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40 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Old edition - covers only series 1-3. NEW EDITION OUT SOON covering all 5., 19 Sep 2008
***THIS REVIEW IS FOR THE OLD EDITION OF THE BOOK, AND HAS BEEN PUT HERE IN ERROR BY AMAZON***
Hello, my name is Liam, and I'm a Wire-o-holic.
I first noticed the series on Amazon in the DVD sectionThe Wire: Complete HBO Season 1-5. Attracted by the great reviews and the pedigree of the writers and producer, I ordered the first installment. Two months later and I've got through all but the fifth and final series, which is on pre-order.
The reason I tell you this is to establish where my perspective is on this book; I loved the show, the dialogue, the 'plot arc' (or whatever the new word for storylines is) - it's dazzlingly good.
The first thing that you should know if you're thinking of buying this book is that it was written as they were doing the third series, so it covers less than half the output they've completed now.
When I opened this book, my immediate reaction was one of foreboding - the layout was quite large print with lots of pictures and margin lines in evidence; it's got that look of a magazine style to it (it's like Harpercollins do Dorling Kindersley) - signs of dumbing down or padding out, perhaps. This impression dissipated slightly, but nevertheless stayed with me as I read the book, as perhaps two-thirds of it is written in the form of episode synopses. These were fairly entertaining to recap on, but it felt like I was reading a media studies textbook (as I imagine one to be, anyway) at times.
But the good stuff! The remaining third of the book consists of essays by the writers of the scripts and others, and the amount that they CARE about this project shines through; there's a lot of social commentary on Baltimore, the setting for The Wire and hometown to a seeming majority of those involved in the series, and it's these testimonies that are worth getting this book for.
These's also interviews with some of the actors (another 'magazine - type' thing to do) which were uneven in quality and insight, as well as cast lists at the back.
So, because the book only covers two series and previews the third, and because there's too much synopsis and not enough personal opinion, I can only give it three stars.
I'm still glad I have it at the used price though, as it looks good on the shelf next to the DVDs of the show. Could this be the beginning of OCD?
EDIT 08/08/09: There's a new book out that covers the whole 5 series - see it here. It's bound to be a better choice if you were considering this old edition, especially at the pre-order price.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent book for Wire addicts, 16 Nov 2009
This review is from: The Wire: Truth Be Told (Hardcover)
I hesitated a bit before buying this as it seemed from reading some reviews it was just a recap of each episode plus a bit extra. But I'm really glad I bought it. The prologue by David Simon is almost worth the price in itself, he's an eloquent, articulate and gifted writer whose ability to summarise the malaise of innercities - his reason for creating the Wire - is inspiring to read. I'm only a few chapters in, but already it's taken me back to my happy hours watching the Wire unfold and giving me interesting insights into how it all came about and what reality it was showing. If, like me, you are a Wire addict, this will help your craving when you have watched all five series and no TV programme will be the same again.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tapping THE WIRE, 3 Nov 2009
This review is from: The Wire: Truth Be Told (Hardcover)
I got into THE WIRE early last year and speedily devoured the first four seasons in order to watch the final one as it was broadcast on FX. Since the final season aired THE WIRE has really tipped into the mainstream, and deservedly so. It has done for television in this decade what TWIN PEAKS achieved in the nineties, which is basically out-do cinema in ambition and scope.
At its heart THE WIRE belongs to its writers. Everyone knows about the vaunted contributions to the series of Richard Price, George Pelecanos, Dennis Lehane et al, and the fact that it sprung out of two extraordinary works of immersion journalism written by its co-creator, David Simon: HOMCIDE and THE CORNER.
So it seems only fitting that a similarly high end, bountiful book should be released, bringing it all back down to the written word again. Every WIRE fan wants bang for their buck and this delivers in spades. It's full of thoughtful essays from numerous contributors, loads of photographs, as well as superb commentary and observations from Rafael Alvarez (who wrote for the show too).
On top of that there's a knock-out introduction by David Simon, which confirms that although much has been written about THE WIRE, this is definitively the last word.
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