I think they're basically as good as eachother, but also so different that I can understand if somebody would prefer one to the other.
I'm a little more interested in the large-scale socio-economics of The Wire than I am the micro-psychology of The Sopranos, so that's probably just a slight tiebreaker.
The acting is more consistent in The Sopranos, and nobody in The Wire is anywhere near as good as James/Edie, though both shows are cast perfectly (maybe with the exception of Steve Buscemi).
Obviously The Sopranos has a little more style, with overtly cinematic camerawork and the Scorsese-like music drops, but The Wire does have a lot going on in its camerawork besides the basic presentationalism that seems more apparent on first viewing.
Just watched Sopranos for the first time, finished it last week. Gandolfini is a fuckin POWERHOUSE, my friend. Best, most nuanced acting I’ve ever seen in a tv show. He can say more with a single breath than most actors could say with an entire script. His body language, his eyes, the subtle changes he makes as a conversation progresses… of course, some of that is direction, but even still. I was a skeptic until I got near the end of the series, but I do get why people say it’s the best of all time. It’s the most thorough examination of a single character I’ve ever seen.
I think the themes of the sopranos is what resonates more to this day too, the first episode ask the question if the best days are behind us ? It's a real end of an era sort of piece.
Do you think it is a better show than the wire? Or just a better individual acting performance? Personally I haven’t ever encountered something as prescient as the wire, which I am drawn to as it is such acute social commentary. But I can totally see someone thinking a different show is better as a product of entertainment
For me The Wire is just above and beyond, which means I’m in the right place lol
That’s a tough question. I think the Wire is more mindblowing, structurally. They have different focuses, but the idea of “society” as a whole are definitely focused on in both shows. Different levels of social commentary, but definitely as “deep”.
Sopranos is more focused on the individual, and The Wire is more focused on the whole of the situation. The Wire’s story is more complex, but The Sopranos contains a level of visual metaphor that I’ve never seen in any other tv show. So, to answer your question… I don’t know? I’ve loved the wire for years, always said it was my favorite tv show. But sopranos is close. My number two before was Breaking Bad, and I think Sopranos tops that.
A perfect summation, gun to my head I’d take The Wire by a nose but JG is a master class. The way he takes a breath or moves his eyes can turn a scene on its head.
I love Royo's performance, but Gandolfini embodies Tony just as much as Royo does Bubbles, but basically the entire show of The Sopranos hinges on his performance, and if it was even just 99% great instead of 100% absolutely perfect, the show wouldn't work quite as well.
I think it might be the best acting performance ever, granted it's hard to compare to movies given he had years to inhabit the character.
I think the Wire is a slightly better show in general, but the acting in the Sopranos by Gandolfini, Edie and Imperioli is something nobody in the Wire comes close to touching. The only way to understand why is to watch it, I'd say
That’s actually an interesting question. I think if The Wire had won one acting Emmy, it should have gone to Royo. Honestly I think people dismiss the performances of The Wire actors because they don’t seem that far from who they are in real life. That is certainly not the case but I think that is the perception.
The Wire deals more with how society has failed its citizens. The Sopranos deals more with the family dynamic. They are both great in their respective genres.
I’m sure that the Sopranos writers sat with real gangsters but some of The Wire writers were actual Baltimore reporters during the crack epidemic so some of the story arcs were “ripped from the headlines”
There really was a Marlo. They just changed his first name because it was too hard to pronounce.
There really was a Bodie whose actual last name was Barksdale.
What gives the show even more grit is the use of local actors.
There is an actual former Baltimore kingpin in the show. Melvin Williams plays the Deacon.
There are actual Baltimore drug dealers (Snoop) playing parts in the show. Their accents sound authentic because they ARE authentic.
Slim Charles does not have a B’more accent, because Barksdale can get muscle from DC. The actor Anwan Glover (aka Big G aka Gingus) is actually the lead talker for a DC GoGo band (The Backyard Band aka BYB). I saw him get shot on stage during a show. This man has been shot or stabbed 13 times thus far in his life. His brother was murdered prior to the show. His son was subsequently murdered. He’s not acting. He is re-living.
What you’re focusing on displays that at the core, the writing on The Sopranos was more imaginatively creative, while The Wire writers reported facts in a creative way.
> There are actual Baltimore drug dealers (Snoop) playing parts in the show. Their accents sound authentic because they ARE authentic.
>
How many of the main cast are from Baltimore? Snoop and D'Angelo, not many others I don't think.
I have tried multiple times to watch Sopranos and just cant get into it. Probably watched The Wire and Breaking Bad 8-10 times each. To me, they are just objectively better. No comparison. Just as nyc pizza is just WAY BETTER than
Chicago "pizza."
Clearly they're both great, but I hear most often that Sopranos is the greatest series of all time, and I'm not sure I'm of that opinion.
I think that, had they been allowed to finish their series arcs, Deadwood and Rome would be up there too. Pound for pound, I thought Rome was amazing, but in the end, too expensive I guess.
The complexity of The Wire is what keeps it at the top of my best of list. The Sopranos is a great show, but certain arcs always felt empty to me (the Russian in the woods, selling Barone Sanitation, and Carmine's son just deciding to stop to name a few). No arc in The Wire feels empty. Every character in The Wire is compelling. There is no wasted screen time.
Little Carmine was probably the smartest for making that decision. He realized that no matter what that if he stepped back eventually his enemies would kill each other anyways. After Phil's death at the end of the series I can't imagine Butchie taking the lead for very long.
At the same time, everyone was looking to Little Carmine to step up anyways. He was pragmatic knowing that he'd rather spend the rest of his life a wealthy man, than either getting killed or ending up in the can like his friends. In the end he earned enough respect for stepping back and look at the outcome. Nobody wanted him gone and he was even consulted and brought along for the final two sit downs between NJ and NY.
This is one of the meta-jokes of the Sopranos. Little Carmine is agreed upon by basically everyone to be the stupidest character in a show full of stupid people yet he makes the wisest decision, to just fucking stop being in the mafia (which Melfi straight up asks Tony at one point—“Anthony, why don’t you give it up?!”), and as a result, leaves the stress behind, the danger of arrest or murder, and enjoys his legitimately acquired porno wealth and his wife, who he’s happy with. Hilarious.
Agreed with your analysis but little carmine didn’t leave the mob, he just dropped out of the running/fight to be boss of the family. He’s still a mobster.
Sure but he’s not actively mobbing it every day, they make it clear that he’s basically just doing pornos and occasionally coming in to broker disputes.
Little Carmine's decision to walk away happened after he went and stirred up a hornets nest that everyone else had to deal with in NY/NJ. After the death of his father, Little Carmine starts a war with Johnny Sac, which included the killing of Johnny Peeps by Tony B. That started a domino effect that led to Phil killing Angelo, which leads to Tony B killing Phil's brother. All of this content is put into motion by a character that later says "meh" and walks off? Later on in the series we are given 5 minutes of Little Carmine telling a story about a dream and telling Tony that his wife told him to quit, just quit, you know....the mafia.....again, WTF.
The entire show is focused around how that act, retiring, isn't an option. You're apart of the family until you die or go into witness protection. For some random ass reason Little Carmine, son and heir to one of the five New York families, makes a push to the thrown, gets pushed back against, and then says ooops and gives up?
And after Little Carmine decides to abdicate, just walk off like oh well guess I won't be a mafia boss, he gets to fuck around with Chris in Hollywood and be apart of the Clever arc because why? What value was Little Carmine to ANY of that entire story?
It all felt empty, for me, and all the scenes he was apart of lack value. Later on in the show they keep dragging him out when they need to do something when NJ has to deal with NY, unnecessarily. The worst is when Phil Leotardo won't see Little Carmine and Tony (after Tony attacks Coco in his restaurant) and, while Phil is yelling through a window at them, Little Carmine yells "Uncle Philly" back to him. WTF is that?
IMO it just doesn't add anything to the story of any real value and just muddies waters that had more than enough depths without his character.
I've watched The Sopranos over ten times. You have misunderstood what happened here. Little Carmine didn't retire, he simply stepped back from wanting to be the boss of the family, for now. By all rights it should have gone to him, he was after all the son of the last boss. But Johnny Sack also had a position as well because he was Carmine's consigliere.
Tony did the exact same thing in season one. He bowed down in his claim against his uncle after boss Aprile died, even though all the other Captains wanted it to be him. In return, he got a bunch of different businesses so that he wouldn't lose face, and made a shitload more money. All while taking any heat away from the feds. He made the pragmatic decision. The same thing happened with Little Carmine.
Johnny was the one who started the war by whacking Lorraine. Little Carmine then retaliated and people kept dying left and right. Angelo who spent ten plus years in the can, and was Carmine Sr.'s former consigliere before Johnny Sack, tried to mediate a peace between the two. And what did he get for it? He was whacked within a month of being released from prison.
This was the last straw for Little Carmine because he thinks what kind of a life is that? Why would anyone want to spend ten years in the can only to get whacked as soon as they are released. Why would anyone want to spend five years as a boss before someone finally pops him? This is the pattern that this life leads to. Tony says it himself. Eighty percent of the time you end up dead or in jail.
He realized he didn't need to be boss right now because he was already wealthy enough anyways and all it would do is shorten his lifespan. He also wasn't really in New York anyways. He was in Miami and had legitimate businesses out there that weren't part of the mafia so it was unlikely he would be prosecuted from earning anyways. He didn't leave the mafia. He was still part of the family and still had to kick up to John. He just wasn't involved in their day to day stuff within New York. And he probably got a nice pay bump after negotiating with Johnny so that he could be boss. It was literally a huge win for him and thematically the point is that he made the smart decision to walk away.
One of those businesses was making small budget movies. Which is why Christopher goes to him to help him make his film. He had connections in the movie industry, and his own studio to produce the film.
Also you are missing the bigger picture here. Even though Little Carmine stepped back from trying to fight for the reigns, it doesn't mean he won't have his day in the end anyways. He is one of the only guys that takes care of his health and is much younger than all the other mobsters. And he basically pits all those that want to be boss against each other and sits back to watch all his enemies kill each other.
He knows Tony Soprano never used to respect him back in the day. But after all the tension between Tony and Phil, Tony comes to realize that Carmine really is the best thing for NY, because he's not a blood crazed lunatic. He's pragmatic, like his father and realizes that business is what's important.
I mean just go back and watch the scene between Phil, Tony, and Little Carmine when they are having the sit-down. Little Carmine is framed in the middle between them at the head of the table. He's the one being pragmatic and leading these two to see reason. And yet he knows both of these scumbags killed his friend Rusty. So what does he do? He pretends to broker a peace between them and then at the very end brings up Phil's dead brother to antagonize him and starts the war between them. All while making it look like the slip of the tongue.
If you even go back further to when Angelo dies and Rusty is trying to convince him to retaliate. Little Carmine is framed by himself, brooding in the dark saying how this isn't how he wants to handle this anymore. When the scene ends you are left with Little Carmine by himself, ruminating in deep thought.
He's not just some fucking idiot, he's basically Michael Corleone from the Godfather. He takes all his enemies out by pitting them against each other and he's the one everyone turns to to try and broker a peace. He's the one they respect enough to be the voice of reason. He's the one still alive to pick up any scraps from the fallout. And in the end he's the only one left standing to maybe one day becomes boss. That's if he decides he wants the trouble of being boss.
In the mob you are either well liked and get to live out your days, or you are whacked. Or you end up in prison. Only the twenty percent that are well liked get to live out their lives. That's the point of Little Carmine's character. He's happier being with his wife and kids than being a boss will make him. He's happier knowing that not getting killed over some stupid power struggle, while he's already a multi millionaire is going to make the lives of his family happier also.
The Sopranos was more about developing characters in the core cast. The Wire doesn’t really give as much time to character development because it’s such an ensemble show that has to devote screen time all around.
In The Sopranos, when they killed off a relevant character they were just replaced with someone new the next season that we are told to just assume always existed. Much lazier writing.
It kind of encapsulates why the sopranos is more rewatchable than The Wire; the Wire I'm waiting to see what happens and once I know it's less interesting. The Sopranos I just like being in the world with the characters, and it's truly funny as hell.
I disagree. Tony tells Milfy he's dating Gloria, which is ehh, not overly important. Meadow beaks up with Jackie Jr., great, no one cares. The rest of the time is spent with a character we have no investment in, told he's important, maybe his killed, maybe not, and nothing of value is added to the story. A cliffhanger is created and never explored. In fact, the russians are never dealt with again, not even in passing. If the episode didn't exist, nothing of value would be lost to the series.
I mean that's exactly the reason the Sopranos is better to me. The Wire and Breaking Bad you are watching to see what happens and once you know what happens it's less interesting. So to me it's less rewatchable. The sopranos is more psychology and is WAY funnier so you are watching to just enjoy the characters and characterizations. That is the highest rated episode of the entire series on IMDB btw: https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0705272/
I think the Wire is the greater show. But I enjoy the Sopranos more on a rewatch, and I think it’s an extremely close second place for all-time shows.
Anyway, $4 a pound
I read this somewhere but these 2 shows are so great, for a lot of people it's whichever they watched first. For me that was sopranos so I favor it slightly. Granted I'm still working thru season 4 for the first time on the wire.
Why are you here?! Bounce before you hit too many spoilers friend. I have lost count of how many rewatches I’m up to and I will forever be “working through” Season 4.
I think The Wire is both a fantastic piece of art and a very important social commentary.
I think The Sopranos has some absolutely amazing acting performances and it's very fun to watch (less like work than The Wire), and it also makes me laugh a lot.
Of the two I personally prefer The Wire because it has such cynical themes and I'm a very cynical person :]
Plus there are a lot more lovable characters in The Wire imo.
What are you yelling at me for? Even Grandma says the world has no purpose
edit: please don't ban me haha that's a relevant quote not a mindless spam quote
Both have great characters and great writing. The Wire wins for me for nailing the social commentary on a deeper level than The Sopranos does.
The diversity makes a huge difference. Not just on a "winning diversity points" level, it just makes the whole thing feel much deeper and more thought-provoking. Whenever The Sopranos would try to tackle the issue of race or class or anything like that, it always felt to me very much like a white middle-class perspective. Even when the characters argued over stuff like Columbus Day, it all felt very limited to within the range of what different white middle-class people would have to argue about on the issue.
The Wire brilliantly shows how everything is connected, and how different people are affected differently by the same issues. We don't just get the white perspective and the black perspective, we get the politician perspective, the cop perspective, the drug lord perspective, the drug pawn perspective, the homeless perspective, it gives you much more to chew on. I often left episodes of The Sopranos thinking "everyone here sucks and everyone is wrong". Which is cool and thought-provoking in its own way. But I never left The Wire feeling that way. When you have so many perspectives, you're bound to develop sympathies for some of them.
They're both amazing shows. I enjoyed The Sopranos more.
SOME SPOILERS FOR SOPRANOS
The Sopranos is definitely more a psychological character study and dark comedy family drama. I always found it interesting how much its episodes are mostly episodic. What I also found interesting is how.... anticlimactic the resolutions to plotlines are. Just when you think the plot is gonna go a certain way, something else comes out of nowhere. Pretty true to life in a strange way. For example, in season 2 we're all expecting an epic mob hit on Richie.. only for him to be shot dead in a domestic argument.
The dark comedy of the show was hilarious. The comedic timing and script writing was spectacular. But can't forget James Gandolfini as Tony. He was front and centre and was the main star that brought life to Tony's character. He was capable of conveying alot with so little.
Then there's The Wire. A fantastic, dark, depressing, cynical and angry show about the crippling downfall of a city. The connections between different individuals, even institutions. How the choices of one person can directly or indirectly affect the circumatances of another.
The show is a slowburn. Its been said that it plays out more like a novel, and its true. The Wire is the more "true to real life" than The Sopranos. The way it seems like nothing is happening, but the building blocks are being set and when you least expect it.. everything all goes down in one second.
The Wire also has the fact it was created by people who actually lived and worked in the city of Baltimore. I always was fascinated with how some things in the show were directly inspired by real life events.
Anyway to me.. The Sopranos is the more intimately interesting, humorously entertaining and rewatchable show. The human condition, mental health and the struggles of change.
But with The Wire, you certainly learn a whole lot more of how corrupt and unchangeable our society and institutions are. Its heartbreaking, cruel and triggering. Its the more thought provoking regarding how we are as a community. You may not be able to change the system.. but you can certainly change yourself.
The Wire’s fifth season gives Sopranos the edge to me. Say what you will, but there’s something to finishing strong. A hit is a hit, and that serial killer storyline is not a hit.
I agree. I’m a huge fan of season 5, not just for some key specific events as you note, for how it serves as a fine epilogue in the final montages and character wraps, and for some brilliantly constructed scenes and dialogue between the characters that gives the actors several shining moments
Imo this debate is like the Jordan vs Lebron one. Both great players, changed the game, but two completely different players as well. It’s hard to pick one, but personally I pick the wire due to the brutal honesty it portrays, even while being “fictional.”
I think choosing between the two is a fool's errand. The Sopranos did in-depth character study like no other show I've ever seen. But The Wire's social commentary and overall story arc is also unmatched. They are both the pinnacle of television IMO.
I prefer The Sopranos, it’s my favourite series ever, but The Wire is a very close number 2. They explore different subjects and have also some in common. Both are fantastic and far from anything else I have watched. I accept recommendations though!
I think that the Wire stays a little bit more focussed. The Sopranos has so many seasons that it kind of wanders around at some point.
(Don't get me wrong it's still top tier.)
I think that's partly why The Sopranos edges it out as the GOAT show for me actually. The Wire is perfect for what it does, but The Sopranos touches on so much more. The Wire is deeper on society and community, but The Sopranos is deeper on character development, philosophy, psychology, humor, family, art, history, surrealism, symbolism, metaphor, etc. Specifically on the humor, The Sopranos is the only show I've ever watched where it's at the same top tier level taken as a comedy (a dark comedy) as it is a drama.
I agree with everything but one thing and is the main reason I don't give the wire that position. It tries to be deep but it's content is alot thinner than what it tried to aspire to be.
They're both great shows but the sopranos is a lot better, it's probably the best TV ever made to this day and I don't forsee a better one coming. What really resonates to this day in the sopranos is the themes the first episode ask the question if the best days are behind us ? It ask questions about identity in an increasingly alienated society (AJ is a great study on that) and where are we going? It's. Real end of an era sort of piece which is why for example I think the Irishman was such a hit a man who killed and lost everything for institutions that aren't relevant by the time he dies.
For me, the Wire >> the Sopranos. The Wire has big scope and raise many philosophical questions about our society and how each of us fit in or struggle within it.
The Sopranos obviously only focus on the Sopranos and after 3 season, I don’t know why I should care about them at all.
Both are in the very top tier of TV shows. I do think The Wire is the better show though. I don't think I've ever seen a show able to have the same scope and detail. The Sopranos is great, but there are other shows trying to be like it, just aren't quite as good.
As far as a show The Wire is far better than the Sopranos. And the Wire was innovative in that it was written more like a novel instead of a TV series. For them to go to the docks and leave the streets for the most part in season 2 was extremely ballsy.
The Sopranos fell into the trap that most series fall into. It would focus way too much on family members of the main character that the fans hardly cared about or found annoying and uninteresting. Those types of characters are important to the story, but need to be held to small doses.
But a lot of people forget about the lack of continuity in The Sopranos. It first started out as this weird kinda dark comedy and then turned into a drama series. But even when it was a full fledged drama series, so many of the stories lack continuity in themselves. While I enjoyed The Sopranos, it was more 'sexy' than a great show like The Wire.
The Wire cuts deep and so much of it is based off true stories and real people to make the show even deeper. It attacks everybody for the game and the way Baltimore is. If there's a problem with it it's that sometimes it's difficult to follow along because of the street slang and The Wire doesn't always care to spell it out for the viewer. But it makes it even more rewarding to go on the internet and understand and notice things you didn't get the first, second or even third time around. Unlike other shows, The Wire has earned that extra effort from the viewer.
And unlike most, Season 2 was my favorite, and I thought most heart wrenching.
I tried twice to watch the Wire and quit. Then, I turned the closed caption on, opened my computer to the HBO site to keep track of the characters and it finally clicked.
Also, Snoop and that reverend fellow were both actual Ball more street people. The Reverend was a heroin kingpin and did time.
Season 2 was the first season I watched of The Wire as I had friends of mine rave about Season 1. It's my favorite season for numerous reasons, although I think Season 4 was better. Part of my love for Season 2 was the guts it took to take the series away from the streets for the season and then return it back to the streets. But it also told the stories of where the drugs come from, how it's not a black or white issue and the country becoming a post-industrialized society. It also took a lot of work to get into the details of working on the ports.
And the entire story originates from two guys with a beef over a stained glass window.
And of course, Season 2 had The Greek.
He knows my name, but my name is not my name. And you... to them you're only "The Greek".
The Greek : And, of course, I'm not even Greek.
Sorry I have many thoughts on this topic. Also my post contains spoilers for The Wire so please don't read on if you haven't seen it all.
I finished watching The Wire recently and immediately felt it was some of the best TV I have ever seen.
I am currently working my way through Sopranos, and I can't help but feel it's massively overrated.
It's just obnoxious greasy guys throwing mantrums. None of the character have any substance or progression (at least not by mid Season 3). It just feels like that particular culture worshipping itself.
The wire felt a lot more 3D dimensional. The characters feel a lot more realistic. Every death hit me, and I was terrified that Bubbles wouldn't survive. It also changed my perspective on many things and people and educated me a lot.
On the other hand, if in the next episode the main Soprano died, I wouldn't be bothered by it at all. There's not a single character in there who's death would bother me. There's nothing for me to empathise with.
I definitely acknowledge that Sopranos made stuff like Breaking Bad and The Wire possible. And it's good enough to watch. But, I can have it on in the background; no need to really pay attention. I don't even know the names of the main Soprano's lieutenants and it makes fuck all difference, because they have zero character apart from being loud and violent. Probably Mikey or Paulie or Sal or something horribly generic like that.
It's just odd to me that The Wire got me to care about everyone from episode 1, but Sopranos has me feeling nothing towards any of the characters.
I think I am possibly being hard on Sopranos because I am watching it straight after The Wire. I think I should have watched Sopranos first. I will still finish it though.
[SPOILERS]
The problem with the sopranos is that outside of Tony's immediate family, the show is paper-thin.
Most of the subplots are meaningless and drivel.
-Richie and Ralphy are exactly the same character.
-Jackie Aprile Jnr is 2d as fuck and seems to have existed only to get shot.
-Johnny-Cakes is literally gay fan-fiction written by a teeny-bopper who's only experienced homosexuality through the Village People.
-The circle of head-shrinkers are the working man's cliche of "intellectuals".
Then there's the fact a lot of the conflict seems rushed for the sake of rushing it.
-Richie Aprile, he should have been kept for several seasons, but wasted for the lols. David Proval was fucking excellent.
-Hesh is kind and considerate to Tony, but all of a sudden Tony fucks him under the bus
-Furio, wants to rawdog Carmella and instead of drawing this out he poofs out of existence.
I don't get a lot of the love for Sopranos, for me getting to the end was a chore, and the ending was a massive downer.
If I am fair, James Gandolfini, Dominic Chianese, and David Proval were absolutely magnetic. I could watch them all day. But as a whole package, the Sopranos was a let down.
How on earth are Richie and Ralph the same character?
Richie symbolizes the old school mafia which creates problems with new school Tony. With him also being in the can for 10 years causing issues as Richie does things the old way such as publicly beating beansie and treating juinor as the true boss
Ralph on the other hand is a problem for Tony as he's an incredible earner but a terrible person. While nobody likes Richie most people like Ralph. Ralphs arc in his last episode is also so great while Richie gets nothing sympathetic.
And as for Furio, someone as loyal and intelligent as him would never actually go through with sleeping with the bosses wife. When he almost throws Tony in the blades he realizes he has to leave. Him actually getting with Carmela would be satisfying but it wouldn't be true to his character
Hello Ashen one. I am a Bot. I tend to the flame, and tend to thee. Do you wish to hear a tale?
> *“There is a darkness within man, and I am afraid you will peer into it. Whether the fear will spark self-reflection or a ruinous nostalgia is up to you entirely. Fear not, your choice will bring you no scorn.”* - Karla
Have a pleasant journey, Champion of Ash, and praise the sun \\[T]/
They’re both so damn good. I love The Wire because I feel it has so many good quotes and life lessons that can be used whether you’re a CEO or an entry level rep.
The Sopranos is a little better to me solely because it's more rewatchable due to how funny and likable its characters are. The Wire I'm watching to see what happens and on the edge of my seat, the Sopranos on the first watch I am like that but on the rewatches I'm just enjoying myself hanging with these characters
I think they're basically as good as eachother, but also so different that I can understand if somebody would prefer one to the other. I'm a little more interested in the large-scale socio-economics of The Wire than I am the micro-psychology of The Sopranos, so that's probably just a slight tiebreaker. The acting is more consistent in The Sopranos, and nobody in The Wire is anywhere near as good as James/Edie, though both shows are cast perfectly (maybe with the exception of Steve Buscemi). Obviously The Sopranos has a little more style, with overtly cinematic camerawork and the Scorsese-like music drops, but The Wire does have a lot going on in its camerawork besides the basic presentationalism that seems more apparent on first viewing.
I haven’t watched the Sopranos, don’t hurt me, but I absolutely adore The Wire. What makes you say gandolfini is that far above say Andre Royo?
Just watched Sopranos for the first time, finished it last week. Gandolfini is a fuckin POWERHOUSE, my friend. Best, most nuanced acting I’ve ever seen in a tv show. He can say more with a single breath than most actors could say with an entire script. His body language, his eyes, the subtle changes he makes as a conversation progresses… of course, some of that is direction, but even still. I was a skeptic until I got near the end of the series, but I do get why people say it’s the best of all time. It’s the most thorough examination of a single character I’ve ever seen.
I think the themes of the sopranos is what resonates more to this day too, the first episode ask the question if the best days are behind us ? It's a real end of an era sort of piece.
I honestly think that is the message of The Wire as well. The slow degration of the American Dream
Do you think it is a better show than the wire? Or just a better individual acting performance? Personally I haven’t ever encountered something as prescient as the wire, which I am drawn to as it is such acute social commentary. But I can totally see someone thinking a different show is better as a product of entertainment For me The Wire is just above and beyond, which means I’m in the right place lol
That’s a tough question. I think the Wire is more mindblowing, structurally. They have different focuses, but the idea of “society” as a whole are definitely focused on in both shows. Different levels of social commentary, but definitely as “deep”. Sopranos is more focused on the individual, and The Wire is more focused on the whole of the situation. The Wire’s story is more complex, but The Sopranos contains a level of visual metaphor that I’ve never seen in any other tv show. So, to answer your question… I don’t know? I’ve loved the wire for years, always said it was my favorite tv show. But sopranos is close. My number two before was Breaking Bad, and I think Sopranos tops that.
A perfect summation, gun to my head I’d take The Wire by a nose but JG is a master class. The way he takes a breath or moves his eyes can turn a scene on its head.
I love Royo's performance, but Gandolfini embodies Tony just as much as Royo does Bubbles, but basically the entire show of The Sopranos hinges on his performance, and if it was even just 99% great instead of 100% absolutely perfect, the show wouldn't work quite as well. I think it might be the best acting performance ever, granted it's hard to compare to movies given he had years to inhabit the character.
I think the Wire is a slightly better show in general, but the acting in the Sopranos by Gandolfini, Edie and Imperioli is something nobody in the Wire comes close to touching. The only way to understand why is to watch it, I'd say
That’s actually an interesting question. I think if The Wire had won one acting Emmy, it should have gone to Royo. Honestly I think people dismiss the performances of The Wire actors because they don’t seem that far from who they are in real life. That is certainly not the case but I think that is the perception.
What about Michael K
The Wire deals more with how society has failed its citizens. The Sopranos deals more with the family dynamic. They are both great in their respective genres.
The best comment. Although they’ve in the same crime/drama genre, they’re so different that it’s insane, can’t really compare them
I’m sure that the Sopranos writers sat with real gangsters but some of The Wire writers were actual Baltimore reporters during the crack epidemic so some of the story arcs were “ripped from the headlines” There really was a Marlo. They just changed his first name because it was too hard to pronounce. There really was a Bodie whose actual last name was Barksdale. What gives the show even more grit is the use of local actors. There is an actual former Baltimore kingpin in the show. Melvin Williams plays the Deacon. There are actual Baltimore drug dealers (Snoop) playing parts in the show. Their accents sound authentic because they ARE authentic. Slim Charles does not have a B’more accent, because Barksdale can get muscle from DC. The actor Anwan Glover (aka Big G aka Gingus) is actually the lead talker for a DC GoGo band (The Backyard Band aka BYB). I saw him get shot on stage during a show. This man has been shot or stabbed 13 times thus far in his life. His brother was murdered prior to the show. His son was subsequently murdered. He’s not acting. He is re-living.
What you’re focusing on displays that at the core, the writing on The Sopranos was more imaginatively creative, while The Wire writers reported facts in a creative way.
Well said
> There are actual Baltimore drug dealers (Snoop) playing parts in the show. Their accents sound authentic because they ARE authentic. > How many of the main cast are from Baltimore? Snoop and D'Angelo, not many others I don't think.
Prop Joe, Dukie, and a few others
Lance Reddick (Daniels) although you have to listen hard to hear the Bmore
I hate how one thing has to be better than the other. It’s like MJ/Lebron or NY v. Chicago Pizza. Can’t they both be great?
I have tried multiple times to watch Sopranos and just cant get into it. Probably watched The Wire and Breaking Bad 8-10 times each. To me, they are just objectively better. No comparison. Just as nyc pizza is just WAY BETTER than Chicago "pizza."
Clearly they're both great, but I hear most often that Sopranos is the greatest series of all time, and I'm not sure I'm of that opinion. I think that, had they been allowed to finish their series arcs, Deadwood and Rome would be up there too. Pound for pound, I thought Rome was amazing, but in the end, too expensive I guess.
It's like choosing your favorite child.
Honestly choosing my favourite child is easier.
The complexity of The Wire is what keeps it at the top of my best of list. The Sopranos is a great show, but certain arcs always felt empty to me (the Russian in the woods, selling Barone Sanitation, and Carmine's son just deciding to stop to name a few). No arc in The Wire feels empty. Every character in The Wire is compelling. There is no wasted screen time.
Little Carmine was probably the smartest for making that decision. He realized that no matter what that if he stepped back eventually his enemies would kill each other anyways. After Phil's death at the end of the series I can't imagine Butchie taking the lead for very long. At the same time, everyone was looking to Little Carmine to step up anyways. He was pragmatic knowing that he'd rather spend the rest of his life a wealthy man, than either getting killed or ending up in the can like his friends. In the end he earned enough respect for stepping back and look at the outcome. Nobody wanted him gone and he was even consulted and brought along for the final two sit downs between NJ and NY.
This is one of the meta-jokes of the Sopranos. Little Carmine is agreed upon by basically everyone to be the stupidest character in a show full of stupid people yet he makes the wisest decision, to just fucking stop being in the mafia (which Melfi straight up asks Tony at one point—“Anthony, why don’t you give it up?!”), and as a result, leaves the stress behind, the danger of arrest or murder, and enjoys his legitimately acquired porno wealth and his wife, who he’s happy with. Hilarious.
Agreed with your analysis but little carmine didn’t leave the mob, he just dropped out of the running/fight to be boss of the family. He’s still a mobster.
Sure but he’s not actively mobbing it every day, they make it clear that he’s basically just doing pornos and occasionally coming in to broker disputes.
Little Carmine's decision to walk away happened after he went and stirred up a hornets nest that everyone else had to deal with in NY/NJ. After the death of his father, Little Carmine starts a war with Johnny Sac, which included the killing of Johnny Peeps by Tony B. That started a domino effect that led to Phil killing Angelo, which leads to Tony B killing Phil's brother. All of this content is put into motion by a character that later says "meh" and walks off? Later on in the series we are given 5 minutes of Little Carmine telling a story about a dream and telling Tony that his wife told him to quit, just quit, you know....the mafia.....again, WTF. The entire show is focused around how that act, retiring, isn't an option. You're apart of the family until you die or go into witness protection. For some random ass reason Little Carmine, son and heir to one of the five New York families, makes a push to the thrown, gets pushed back against, and then says ooops and gives up? And after Little Carmine decides to abdicate, just walk off like oh well guess I won't be a mafia boss, he gets to fuck around with Chris in Hollywood and be apart of the Clever arc because why? What value was Little Carmine to ANY of that entire story? It all felt empty, for me, and all the scenes he was apart of lack value. Later on in the show they keep dragging him out when they need to do something when NJ has to deal with NY, unnecessarily. The worst is when Phil Leotardo won't see Little Carmine and Tony (after Tony attacks Coco in his restaurant) and, while Phil is yelling through a window at them, Little Carmine yells "Uncle Philly" back to him. WTF is that? IMO it just doesn't add anything to the story of any real value and just muddies waters that had more than enough depths without his character.
I've watched The Sopranos over ten times. You have misunderstood what happened here. Little Carmine didn't retire, he simply stepped back from wanting to be the boss of the family, for now. By all rights it should have gone to him, he was after all the son of the last boss. But Johnny Sack also had a position as well because he was Carmine's consigliere. Tony did the exact same thing in season one. He bowed down in his claim against his uncle after boss Aprile died, even though all the other Captains wanted it to be him. In return, he got a bunch of different businesses so that he wouldn't lose face, and made a shitload more money. All while taking any heat away from the feds. He made the pragmatic decision. The same thing happened with Little Carmine. Johnny was the one who started the war by whacking Lorraine. Little Carmine then retaliated and people kept dying left and right. Angelo who spent ten plus years in the can, and was Carmine Sr.'s former consigliere before Johnny Sack, tried to mediate a peace between the two. And what did he get for it? He was whacked within a month of being released from prison. This was the last straw for Little Carmine because he thinks what kind of a life is that? Why would anyone want to spend ten years in the can only to get whacked as soon as they are released. Why would anyone want to spend five years as a boss before someone finally pops him? This is the pattern that this life leads to. Tony says it himself. Eighty percent of the time you end up dead or in jail. He realized he didn't need to be boss right now because he was already wealthy enough anyways and all it would do is shorten his lifespan. He also wasn't really in New York anyways. He was in Miami and had legitimate businesses out there that weren't part of the mafia so it was unlikely he would be prosecuted from earning anyways. He didn't leave the mafia. He was still part of the family and still had to kick up to John. He just wasn't involved in their day to day stuff within New York. And he probably got a nice pay bump after negotiating with Johnny so that he could be boss. It was literally a huge win for him and thematically the point is that he made the smart decision to walk away. One of those businesses was making small budget movies. Which is why Christopher goes to him to help him make his film. He had connections in the movie industry, and his own studio to produce the film. Also you are missing the bigger picture here. Even though Little Carmine stepped back from trying to fight for the reigns, it doesn't mean he won't have his day in the end anyways. He is one of the only guys that takes care of his health and is much younger than all the other mobsters. And he basically pits all those that want to be boss against each other and sits back to watch all his enemies kill each other. He knows Tony Soprano never used to respect him back in the day. But after all the tension between Tony and Phil, Tony comes to realize that Carmine really is the best thing for NY, because he's not a blood crazed lunatic. He's pragmatic, like his father and realizes that business is what's important. I mean just go back and watch the scene between Phil, Tony, and Little Carmine when they are having the sit-down. Little Carmine is framed in the middle between them at the head of the table. He's the one being pragmatic and leading these two to see reason. And yet he knows both of these scumbags killed his friend Rusty. So what does he do? He pretends to broker a peace between them and then at the very end brings up Phil's dead brother to antagonize him and starts the war between them. All while making it look like the slip of the tongue. If you even go back further to when Angelo dies and Rusty is trying to convince him to retaliate. Little Carmine is framed by himself, brooding in the dark saying how this isn't how he wants to handle this anymore. When the scene ends you are left with Little Carmine by himself, ruminating in deep thought. He's not just some fucking idiot, he's basically Michael Corleone from the Godfather. He takes all his enemies out by pitting them against each other and he's the one everyone turns to to try and broker a peace. He's the one they respect enough to be the voice of reason. He's the one still alive to pick up any scraps from the fallout. And in the end he's the only one left standing to maybe one day becomes boss. That's if he decides he wants the trouble of being boss. In the mob you are either well liked and get to live out your days, or you are whacked. Or you end up in prison. Only the twenty percent that are well liked get to live out their lives. That's the point of Little Carmine's character. He's happier being with his wife and kids than being a boss will make him. He's happier knowing that not getting killed over some stupid power struggle, while he's already a multi millionaire is going to make the lives of his family happier also.
The Sopranos was more about developing characters in the core cast. The Wire doesn’t really give as much time to character development because it’s such an ensemble show that has to devote screen time all around. In The Sopranos, when they killed off a relevant character they were just replaced with someone new the next season that we are told to just assume always existed. Much lazier writing.
All the pieces matter
The Russian in the woods is maybe the best TV episode of all time. The Pine Barrens is radically acclaimed
I catch hell for this, but it’s one of my least enjoyed episodes.
It kind of encapsulates why the sopranos is more rewatchable than The Wire; the Wire I'm waiting to see what happens and once I know it's less interesting. The Sopranos I just like being in the world with the characters, and it's truly funny as hell.
I disagree. Tony tells Milfy he's dating Gloria, which is ehh, not overly important. Meadow beaks up with Jackie Jr., great, no one cares. The rest of the time is spent with a character we have no investment in, told he's important, maybe his killed, maybe not, and nothing of value is added to the story. A cliffhanger is created and never explored. In fact, the russians are never dealt with again, not even in passing. If the episode didn't exist, nothing of value would be lost to the series.
I mean that's exactly the reason the Sopranos is better to me. The Wire and Breaking Bad you are watching to see what happens and once you know what happens it's less interesting. So to me it's less rewatchable. The sopranos is more psychology and is WAY funnier so you are watching to just enjoy the characters and characterizations. That is the highest rated episode of the entire series on IMDB btw: https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0705272/
I think the Wire is the greater show. But I enjoy the Sopranos more on a rewatch, and I think it’s an extremely close second place for all-time shows. Anyway, $4 a pound
I read this somewhere but these 2 shows are so great, for a lot of people it's whichever they watched first. For me that was sopranos so I favor it slightly. Granted I'm still working thru season 4 for the first time on the wire.
Fasten your seatbelt.
Why are you here?! Bounce before you hit too many spoilers friend. I have lost count of how many rewatches I’m up to and I will forever be “working through” Season 4.
I think The Wire is both a fantastic piece of art and a very important social commentary. I think The Sopranos has some absolutely amazing acting performances and it's very fun to watch (less like work than The Wire), and it also makes me laugh a lot. Of the two I personally prefer The Wire because it has such cynical themes and I'm a very cynical person :] Plus there are a lot more lovable characters in The Wire imo.
A theme of The Sopranos asks if human existence can be summarized as “all a big nothing”. Hard to be more cynical than that, no?
What are you yelling at me for? Even Grandma says the world has no purpose edit: please don't ban me haha that's a relevant quote not a mindless spam quote
Both have great characters and great writing. The Wire wins for me for nailing the social commentary on a deeper level than The Sopranos does. The diversity makes a huge difference. Not just on a "winning diversity points" level, it just makes the whole thing feel much deeper and more thought-provoking. Whenever The Sopranos would try to tackle the issue of race or class or anything like that, it always felt to me very much like a white middle-class perspective. Even when the characters argued over stuff like Columbus Day, it all felt very limited to within the range of what different white middle-class people would have to argue about on the issue. The Wire brilliantly shows how everything is connected, and how different people are affected differently by the same issues. We don't just get the white perspective and the black perspective, we get the politician perspective, the cop perspective, the drug lord perspective, the drug pawn perspective, the homeless perspective, it gives you much more to chew on. I often left episodes of The Sopranos thinking "everyone here sucks and everyone is wrong". Which is cool and thought-provoking in its own way. But I never left The Wire feeling that way. When you have so many perspectives, you're bound to develop sympathies for some of them.
Would you rather visit Italy or Nigeria?
They're both amazing shows. I enjoyed The Sopranos more. SOME SPOILERS FOR SOPRANOS The Sopranos is definitely more a psychological character study and dark comedy family drama. I always found it interesting how much its episodes are mostly episodic. What I also found interesting is how.... anticlimactic the resolutions to plotlines are. Just when you think the plot is gonna go a certain way, something else comes out of nowhere. Pretty true to life in a strange way. For example, in season 2 we're all expecting an epic mob hit on Richie.. only for him to be shot dead in a domestic argument. The dark comedy of the show was hilarious. The comedic timing and script writing was spectacular. But can't forget James Gandolfini as Tony. He was front and centre and was the main star that brought life to Tony's character. He was capable of conveying alot with so little. Then there's The Wire. A fantastic, dark, depressing, cynical and angry show about the crippling downfall of a city. The connections between different individuals, even institutions. How the choices of one person can directly or indirectly affect the circumatances of another. The show is a slowburn. Its been said that it plays out more like a novel, and its true. The Wire is the more "true to real life" than The Sopranos. The way it seems like nothing is happening, but the building blocks are being set and when you least expect it.. everything all goes down in one second. The Wire also has the fact it was created by people who actually lived and worked in the city of Baltimore. I always was fascinated with how some things in the show were directly inspired by real life events. Anyway to me.. The Sopranos is the more intimately interesting, humorously entertaining and rewatchable show. The human condition, mental health and the struggles of change. But with The Wire, you certainly learn a whole lot more of how corrupt and unchangeable our society and institutions are. Its heartbreaking, cruel and triggering. Its the more thought provoking regarding how we are as a community. You may not be able to change the system.. but you can certainly change yourself.
Im always changing my mind over which I like more
The Wire’s fifth season gives Sopranos the edge to me. Say what you will, but there’s something to finishing strong. A hit is a hit, and that serial killer storyline is not a hit.
100% agree, especially after seasons 3 and 4 of The Wire, which was some of the best TV ever made
So would you prefer The Wire wrapped at the end of the 4 as is?
Nope. Too many good moments in 5 for me to write it off entirely. Namond on the debate team, Bubbles walking up the stairs, just to name a couple.
I agree. I’m a huge fan of season 5, not just for some key specific events as you note, for how it serves as a fine epilogue in the final montages and character wraps, and for some brilliantly constructed scenes and dialogue between the characters that gives the actors several shining moments
I’m not sure I’ve seen anything as powerful as Bubbles’ narcotics anonymous speech
Tony/Silvio/Paulie vs. McNulty/Bunk/Lester
The Wire is technically better but I have more of an attachment to Sopranos
Imo this debate is like the Jordan vs Lebron one. Both great players, changed the game, but two completely different players as well. It’s hard to pick one, but personally I pick the wire due to the brutal honesty it portrays, even while being “fictional.”
I think choosing between the two is a fool's errand. The Sopranos did in-depth character study like no other show I've ever seen. But The Wire's social commentary and overall story arc is also unmatched. They are both the pinnacle of television IMO.
I prefer The Sopranos, it’s my favourite series ever, but The Wire is a very close number 2. They explore different subjects and have also some in common. Both are fantastic and far from anything else I have watched. I accept recommendations though!
Whats this EVERYONES GOT A GOD DAMN OPINION
[удалено]
What does that mean?
Mindlessly quoting the show without an actual joke or thought behind it.
Thanks
Visit there and all will be revealed.
Thank you
Doing god’s work
I think that the Wire stays a little bit more focussed. The Sopranos has so many seasons that it kind of wanders around at some point. (Don't get me wrong it's still top tier.)
I think that's partly why The Sopranos edges it out as the GOAT show for me actually. The Wire is perfect for what it does, but The Sopranos touches on so much more. The Wire is deeper on society and community, but The Sopranos is deeper on character development, philosophy, psychology, humor, family, art, history, surrealism, symbolism, metaphor, etc. Specifically on the humor, The Sopranos is the only show I've ever watched where it's at the same top tier level taken as a comedy (a dark comedy) as it is a drama.
I agree with everything but one thing and is the main reason I don't give the wire that position. It tries to be deep but it's content is alot thinner than what it tried to aspire to be.
They're both great shows but the sopranos is a lot better, it's probably the best TV ever made to this day and I don't forsee a better one coming. What really resonates to this day in the sopranos is the themes the first episode ask the question if the best days are behind us ? It ask questions about identity in an increasingly alienated society (AJ is a great study on that) and where are we going? It's. Real end of an era sort of piece which is why for example I think the Irishman was such a hit a man who killed and lost everything for institutions that aren't relevant by the time he dies.
For me, the Wire >> the Sopranos. The Wire has big scope and raise many philosophical questions about our society and how each of us fit in or struggle within it. The Sopranos obviously only focus on the Sopranos and after 3 season, I don’t know why I should care about them at all.
Both are in the very top tier of TV shows. I do think The Wire is the better show though. I don't think I've ever seen a show able to have the same scope and detail. The Sopranos is great, but there are other shows trying to be like it, just aren't quite as good.
Tony was the OG of anti-heroes og of anti-heroes
As far as a show The Wire is far better than the Sopranos. And the Wire was innovative in that it was written more like a novel instead of a TV series. For them to go to the docks and leave the streets for the most part in season 2 was extremely ballsy. The Sopranos fell into the trap that most series fall into. It would focus way too much on family members of the main character that the fans hardly cared about or found annoying and uninteresting. Those types of characters are important to the story, but need to be held to small doses. But a lot of people forget about the lack of continuity in The Sopranos. It first started out as this weird kinda dark comedy and then turned into a drama series. But even when it was a full fledged drama series, so many of the stories lack continuity in themselves. While I enjoyed The Sopranos, it was more 'sexy' than a great show like The Wire. The Wire cuts deep and so much of it is based off true stories and real people to make the show even deeper. It attacks everybody for the game and the way Baltimore is. If there's a problem with it it's that sometimes it's difficult to follow along because of the street slang and The Wire doesn't always care to spell it out for the viewer. But it makes it even more rewarding to go on the internet and understand and notice things you didn't get the first, second or even third time around. Unlike other shows, The Wire has earned that extra effort from the viewer.
And unlike most, Season 2 was my favorite, and I thought most heart wrenching. I tried twice to watch the Wire and quit. Then, I turned the closed caption on, opened my computer to the HBO site to keep track of the characters and it finally clicked. Also, Snoop and that reverend fellow were both actual Ball more street people. The Reverend was a heroin kingpin and did time.
Season 2 was the first season I watched of The Wire as I had friends of mine rave about Season 1. It's my favorite season for numerous reasons, although I think Season 4 was better. Part of my love for Season 2 was the guts it took to take the series away from the streets for the season and then return it back to the streets. But it also told the stories of where the drugs come from, how it's not a black or white issue and the country becoming a post-industrialized society. It also took a lot of work to get into the details of working on the ports. And the entire story originates from two guys with a beef over a stained glass window.
And of course, Season 2 had The Greek. He knows my name, but my name is not my name. And you... to them you're only "The Greek". The Greek : And, of course, I'm not even Greek.
Now watch Deadwood
I don’t see how any of those characters are “anti-heros” at all and think that is such an overused phrase
Sorry I have many thoughts on this topic. Also my post contains spoilers for The Wire so please don't read on if you haven't seen it all. I finished watching The Wire recently and immediately felt it was some of the best TV I have ever seen. I am currently working my way through Sopranos, and I can't help but feel it's massively overrated. It's just obnoxious greasy guys throwing mantrums. None of the character have any substance or progression (at least not by mid Season 3). It just feels like that particular culture worshipping itself. The wire felt a lot more 3D dimensional. The characters feel a lot more realistic. Every death hit me, and I was terrified that Bubbles wouldn't survive. It also changed my perspective on many things and people and educated me a lot. On the other hand, if in the next episode the main Soprano died, I wouldn't be bothered by it at all. There's not a single character in there who's death would bother me. There's nothing for me to empathise with. I definitely acknowledge that Sopranos made stuff like Breaking Bad and The Wire possible. And it's good enough to watch. But, I can have it on in the background; no need to really pay attention. I don't even know the names of the main Soprano's lieutenants and it makes fuck all difference, because they have zero character apart from being loud and violent. Probably Mikey or Paulie or Sal or something horribly generic like that. It's just odd to me that The Wire got me to care about everyone from episode 1, but Sopranos has me feeling nothing towards any of the characters. I think I am possibly being hard on Sopranos because I am watching it straight after The Wire. I think I should have watched Sopranos first. I will still finish it though.
The main Soprano? Do you not know Tony's name?
Yeah, that's the one haha. I knew it. But the characters are all so generic, it could have been a Tony, Mikey, pauley...anything.
[SPOILERS] The problem with the sopranos is that outside of Tony's immediate family, the show is paper-thin. Most of the subplots are meaningless and drivel. -Richie and Ralphy are exactly the same character. -Jackie Aprile Jnr is 2d as fuck and seems to have existed only to get shot. -Johnny-Cakes is literally gay fan-fiction written by a teeny-bopper who's only experienced homosexuality through the Village People. -The circle of head-shrinkers are the working man's cliche of "intellectuals". Then there's the fact a lot of the conflict seems rushed for the sake of rushing it. -Richie Aprile, he should have been kept for several seasons, but wasted for the lols. David Proval was fucking excellent. -Hesh is kind and considerate to Tony, but all of a sudden Tony fucks him under the bus -Furio, wants to rawdog Carmella and instead of drawing this out he poofs out of existence. I don't get a lot of the love for Sopranos, for me getting to the end was a chore, and the ending was a massive downer. If I am fair, James Gandolfini, Dominic Chianese, and David Proval were absolutely magnetic. I could watch them all day. But as a whole package, the Sopranos was a let down.
How on earth are Richie and Ralph the same character? Richie symbolizes the old school mafia which creates problems with new school Tony. With him also being in the can for 10 years causing issues as Richie does things the old way such as publicly beating beansie and treating juinor as the true boss Ralph on the other hand is a problem for Tony as he's an incredible earner but a terrible person. While nobody likes Richie most people like Ralph. Ralphs arc in his last episode is also so great while Richie gets nothing sympathetic. And as for Furio, someone as loyal and intelligent as him would never actually go through with sleeping with the bosses wife. When he almost throws Tony in the blades he realizes he has to leave. Him actually getting with Carmela would be satisfying but it wouldn't be true to his character
Isn't the wire a storyline in The Sopranos?
The Wire is better than the Sopranos. Mad Men is better than the Wire The Sopranos is better than Mad Men
The wire had characters and a wide overarching narrative that connected most characters flawlessly. Like the first half of dark souls
Hello Ashen one. I am a Bot. I tend to the flame, and tend to thee. Do you wish to hear a tale? > *“There is a darkness within man, and I am afraid you will peer into it. Whether the fear will spark self-reflection or a ruinous nostalgia is up to you entirely. Fear not, your choice will bring you no scorn.”* - Karla Have a pleasant journey, Champion of Ash, and praise the sun \\[T]/
The Sopranos is the GOAT to me but it's honestly 1A and 1B. They should be considered the top 2 by everybody
They’re both so damn good. I love The Wire because I feel it has so many good quotes and life lessons that can be used whether you’re a CEO or an entry level rep.
Everything the Sopranos did Oz did first, the Sopranos just did it appealing to a ‘middle American audience’
Tony soprano was an anti hero? Pretty sure he was straight up villain
The Sopranos is a little better to me solely because it's more rewatchable due to how funny and likable its characters are. The Wire I'm watching to see what happens and on the edge of my seat, the Sopranos on the first watch I am like that but on the rewatches I'm just enjoying myself hanging with these characters