One of television's most critically acclaimed programs, the Peabody Award-winning drama series 'The Wire' continues to challenge viewers with a "cop show" unlike anything on air.
The fifth and final season of 'The Wire' centers on the media's role in addressing - or failing to address - the fundamental political, economic and social realities depicted over the course of the series, while also resolving storylines of the numerous characters woven throughout the narrative arc of the show.
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This season of 'The Wire' is based in large part on Simon's experiences in 13 years at The Baltimore Sun. Simon decries recent trends in the newspaper industry that have conspired to make high-end journalism vulnerable: out-of-town chain ownership, an economic climate in which the share price of media companies matters more to industry leaders than the product itself, and a newsroom culture in which prizes, personal ambition and the cult of the "impact" story has replaced consistent and detailed coverage of complex issues as the primary goal.
The first season of 'The Wire' (2002) concentrated on the often-futile efforts of police to infiltrate a West Baltimore drug ring headed by Avon Barksdale and his lieutenant, Stringer Bell. In Seasons Two and Three, as the Barksdale investigation escalated, new storylines involving pressures on the working class and the city's political leadership were introduced. Season Four focused on the stories of several young boys in the public school system, struggling with problems at home and the lure of the corner - set against the rise of a new drug empire in West Baltimore and a new Mayor in City Hall.
[ from the HBO site ]
With:
Dominic West
, John Doman
, Wendell Pierce
, Deirdre Lovejoy
, Sonja Sohn
, Domenick Lombardozzi
, Lance Reddick
, Seth Gilliam
, Clarke Peters
, Jim True-Frost
, Andre Royo
, Michael K Williams
, Frankie Faison
, Delaney Williams
, JD Williams
, Wood Harris
, Idris Elba
, Corey Parker Robinson
, Aidan Gillen
, Robert Wisdom
, Jamie Hector
, Tray Chaney
, Anwan Glover
, Robert F Chew
, Gbenga Akinnagbe
, Felicia Pearson
, Amy Ryan
, Glynn Turman
, Tristan Wilds
, Jermaine Crawford
, Method Man
, Hassan Johnson
, Julito McCullum
, David Simon
, Joe Chappelle
, Ernest R Dickerson
, Clark Johnson
, Edward Bianchi
, Steve Shill
, Daniel Attias
, Karen L Thorson
, David Simon
, Nina Kostroff-Noble
, Robert F Colesberry
, Simon Egleton
, Leslie Jacobowitz
, David Simon
, Ed Burns
, Chris Collins
, George P Pelecanos
