Finally gave in and started watching this show.

As you probably know, it's a grower.

I just finished episode 5 of the first season and I'm really liking it so far.

Oh yeah, you gonna get hooked.

Finished the first season last night. Damn, that was some good television. Wallace :'(

Been doing my annual re-watch (on viewing number 4) and that scene still gives me chills.

I'm about half-way through season 3 right now. So good. Season 2 is probably my favourite so far, but it's early days yet.

Just finished this show. DAMN.

I've been working my way through this show, also. Right now I'm halfway through season 4 and, needless to say, it is pretty damn good. The second season still might be my favorite so far.

I'm glad someone else appreciates season 2. I really don't understand why it's often regarded as the worst of the five. I was absolutely blown away by the way the season played out.

Let's see, reasons why people love Season 2 less than the others:

1/3rd Ziggy being annoying
1/3rd too many white people, not enough corner shit, not enough Barksdales, the focus on a union and not strictly on the street is kind of a shock if you're not anticipating it.
1/3rd the show never really coming back to the stevedores as major characters (the way it keeps giving, say, Bunny, Cutty, Michael and Dukie lots of shit to do even after "their" season ends).

Personally I don't have a problem with any of that and think it's probably the third best season (43251, if you're wondering) but when people say it that's what they're referring to.

Fun fact: BET reran The Wire but cut out basically every scene involving the Sobotkas and/or the Greeks. Because they're awesome like that.

Yeah, I see that. I can't help but feel a bit bad for Zig. What a fuckup.
Perhaps they should have thrown the docks a bit of a bone in later seasons, but it was pretty clear that the Greeks had a pretty integral behind-the-scenes role in the whole corner business. Ultimately, by developing all of these characters, I really think they did a good job at depicting the nuances of all the drug smuggling.

I definitely see what you mean though. After you really connected with the characters from Season 1, it was a bit of a shock to see a bunch of white dudes. I was internally bitching about the lack of corner kids for the earlier half of the season, until I really got the hang of how it'd all integrate.

Eh, I don't think I'd like that. The Greeks were pretty badass.

Way to shitty it up BET. I go with 2 last but it is a very close last. I need to do my annual rewatch sometime soon but I'd go 41532 with 4 as the only definite position. I have a feeling if I rewatch 3 again especially it may rise back up again. In any case Ziggy is made up for by the introduction of Frank Sobatka who was great. Trouble was them killing him off kind of spoiled the ability to really reincorporate many of the characters.

I think what I liked most about season 2 was the fact that I was actually rooting for the Sabotka's for trying to keep legitimate jobs even though they tried to do so through illegitimate dealings. There are/were criminals that I root/ed for the other seasons (Omar, D), but I don't think that I identify with them as much (never been involved with drug dealing, whereas I do recognize with working class individuals because that's the environment that I was raised in). I also thought the season finale for 2 also really brought it together better than season 1 and 3. Either way, I think the difference in quality between seasons 1, 2, and 3 are marginal and season 4 is shaping up to be my favorite season, anyways.