Tuesday, August 21, 2012

The Wire: Hamsterdam (S3:E4)


“Cause both black and white / are smoking crack tonight”

            “Does race matter” is, all things considered, a pretty foolish question. Of course it matters: the real question is “to what degree?” “The Wire” doesn’t put forward the notion that race is irrelevant, that racism is nonexistent, or anything of the sort. It does, however, seem to support the idea that race is truly skin-deep: it matters for appearance’s sake, but little else. Carcetti can’t be mayor of Baltimore because he’s white, regardless of what policies he puts forward. Daniels is less outward about his relationship with Rhonda, at least in part because of race. Race doesn’t affect the core of their relationship, nor does it shade Carcetti as any different than Royce. But just because it doesn’t matter, doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter.
            *(I don’t necessarily buy this viewpoint, by the way. One of the great contrasts between the two shows I’m studying, this and “The Sopranos,” is this very issue. Culture, with its racial elements, traditions, gender roles, etc. is so fundamental to the mechanics of crime on “The Sopranos,” but completely absent here. I don’t think either depiction is “right” or, even worse, “true,” but I do think it’s important to wonder whether or not the cultural expectations of race play a larger role than we see here.)
            However, that doesn’t mean that there still aren’t ingrained traits that define who these people are. Stringer Bell is still Stringer Bell, regardless of who he’s having lunch with. As the show reminds us, he’s still the guy who killed D’Angelo just because (reminded, yet again, by the camera shifting focus from him seducing Donnette to a family picture of D’Angelo. It’s not quite “Mad Men’s” “Your tooth isn’t the only thing that’s rotting, Don” moment, but it sure isn’t subtle). McNulty still shows up drunk on Rhonda’s porch, only another policeman has taken his place indoors (Rhonda may be making better decisions about which police, but still). Cutty will get back in the game, Lester and Prez will follow the paper, Kima and Jimmy will go out on the trail, and that crazy old fox Bunny will keep trying to legalize drugs.
            Speaking of Bunny, we begin to see the pitfalls of his “Hamsterdam” idea. As it turns out, criminals are not easily convinced by cops, especially when they come bearing gifts. The scene in the schoolroom is just great. It shows, for one, that Bunny has almost no control over the grander situation, even if he puts all the drug dealers in one place. As well, it establishes who the foot soldiers in the War on Drugs really are: kids. And not in the Kurt Vonnegut, sending 18 year olds to war sense: I mean actual kids, usually under the age of 16, who learn how to use a gun before they learn to read. It’s great foreshadowing for the next season, probably “The Wire’s” pinnacle.
            This, however, is not that season: it’s the season about fixing what’s already there, not ruining those who are just coming up. Cutty, the most emblematic character of this season, seemingly gives up on his quest to reform himself. It’s difficult finding good work as an ex-con, reminds his particularly bitter yardwork boss, and so Cutty goes out in search of Slim Charles to get back into the life he knows best. And we see why: he’s good at it. He’s can pick out the reasons a guy might not be giving money up to Avon. He also enjoys the perks of, uh, drugs and sex too. It’s an intoxicating life, as the particularly hazy party Bodie hosts demonstrates. There’s a reason people become drug dealers, after all.

“Why you got to go fuck with the program” – Fruit
           
Observations and What-Have-You’s
n  Yeah, I really hate the cut to D’Angelo’s picture, sorry about that (it previously happened in Season 2, so the redundancy makes it worse). I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again: D’ANGELO WAS IN LOVE WITH SOMEONE WHO WASN’T DONNETTE FOR ALMOST ALL OF SEASON ONE. Stringer is a backstabbing ass, certainly, but seducing D’Angelo’s baby mama isn’t as horrible of a crime as the show seems to make it.
n  I wonder why the Parole Committee wouldn’t call Rhonda about Avon’s parole. It feels like they should do a little more research before letting out a drug kingpin…but that’s just me.
n  The Adventures of Jimmy McNulty, sad Irish alcoholic: we see him piss drunk in 3 different bars this episode, impressive considering it takes place over, at my calculations, 4 workdays.
n  …And I just got that “B&B,” Stringer’s company, stands for “Barksdale and Bell.” I should probably work on my observation skills.

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