darkmatter Journal» The Wire Files | darkmatter http://www.darkmatter101.org/site Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:53:14 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=abc en hourly 1 Editorial: ‘All the pieces matter’ – introductory notes on The Wire http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/editorial-all-the-pieces-matter-introductory-notes-on-the-wire/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/editorial-all-the-pieces-matter-introductory-notes-on-the-wire/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 22:00:02 +0000 Ash Sharma http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=820 What Do Real Thugs Think of The Wire?[1]

The Thugs were bored. Episode 7 [Season 5] failed to move them.
“Too slow,” griped Shine
“They’re making us wait,” said Orlando.
“See, that’s when this stuff gets unreal.

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]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/editorial-all-the-pieces-matter-introductory-notes-on-the-wire/feed/ 0 Short Circuiting the Power Grid: The Wire as Critique of Institutional Power http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/short-circuiting-the-power-grid-the-wire-as-critique-of-institutional-power/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/short-circuiting-the-power-grid-the-wire-as-critique-of-institutional-power/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 21:55:00 +0000 Sophie Fuggle http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=1165 The Wire, we are presented with a quotation, a statement which will be made by one of the characters at some point in the episode. Detached from its context, these quotations seem to offer some philosophical insight into the show, its story and characters.]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/short-circuiting-the-power-grid-the-wire-as-critique-of-institutional-power/feed/ 0 Who Loves Ya, David Simon? http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/who-loves-ya-david-simon/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/who-loves-ya-david-simon/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 19:54:14 +0000 Jane Gibb http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=590 Notes towards placing The Wire’s depiction of African-Americans in the context of American TV crime drama

Critics have justifiably praised The Wire for its rounded African-American characters, and the risks it took in foregrounding ‘black Baltimore’ – risks that have…

]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/who-loves-ya-david-simon/feed/ 0 “Thin Line ‘tween heaven and here” (Bubbles): Real and Imagined Space in The Wire http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/thin-line-tween-heaven-and-here-bubbles-real-and-imagined-space-in-the-wire/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/thin-line-tween-heaven-and-here-bubbles-real-and-imagined-space-in-the-wire/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 19:52:46 +0000 Linda Speidel http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=624 In America, Baudrillard famously states:

The American City seems to have stepped right out of the movies…To grasp its secret, you should not, then, begin with the city and move inwards towards the screen; you should begin with the screen

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]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/thin-line-tween-heaven-and-here-bubbles-real-and-imagined-space-in-the-wire/feed/ 0 The Life and Times of Fuzzy Dunlop: Herc and the Modern Urban Crime Environment http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-life-and-times-of-fuzzy-dunlop-herc-and-the-modern-urban-crime-environment/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-life-and-times-of-fuzzy-dunlop-herc-and-the-modern-urban-crime-environment/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 19:50:58 +0000 C.W. Marshall http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=529 “I’m a sworn fucking police officer” – Herc

Detective (later Sergeant) Thomas “Herc” Hauk (portrayed by actor Dominick Lombardozzi) is, perversely, the greatest criminal investigator in David Simon’s Baltimore. Despite his ostensible function as comic relief in The Wire,…

]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-life-and-times-of-fuzzy-dunlop-herc-and-the-modern-urban-crime-environment/feed/ 0 The Politics of Brisket: Jews and The Wire http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-politics-of-brisket-jews-and-the-wire/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-politics-of-brisket-jews-and-the-wire/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 19:45:23 +0000 Keith Kahn-Harris http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=432 The Wire generally avoids simple characterisations of heroes and villains in favour of ambiguous, finely drawn characters. Our expectations of characters' behaviours are constantly challenged and played with. But in this world of complex motivations and contradictory actions, the lawyer Maurice Levy stands out...]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-politics-of-brisket-jews-and-the-wire/feed/ 7 White Negroes and The Wire http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/white-negroes-and-the-wire/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/white-negroes-and-the-wire/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 19:40:43 +0000 Daniel McNeil http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=630 The White Negro, an influential essay which encouraged more hipsters to rail against soul-destroying institutions with a little help from a bad ass Black culture. ]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/white-negroes-and-the-wire/feed/ 0 The Subversion of Heteronormative Assumptions in HBO’s The Wire http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-subversion-of-heteronormative-assumptions-in-hbos-the-wire/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-subversion-of-heteronormative-assumptions-in-hbos-the-wire/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 19:35:19 +0000 Hillary Robbie http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=608 Television today is inundated with reality programs, and formulaic sitcoms and dramas with very rare exception, and these shows are not only mechanical in their form and story development but in their depictions of social norms and cultural practices. This…

]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-subversion-of-heteronormative-assumptions-in-hbos-the-wire/feed/ 1 Casting The Wire: Complicating Notions of Performance, Authenticity, and ‘Otherness’ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/casting-the-wire-complicating-notions-of-performance-authenticity-and-otherness/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/casting-the-wire-complicating-notions-of-performance-authenticity-and-otherness/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 19:30:50 +0000 Lisa W. Kelly http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=642 In an effort to produce original programming that viewers are willing to pay for, the pay-cable channel HBO has successfully defined its output in opposition to network television. This approach is perhaps most apparent in The Wire (2002-2008), a drama…

]]> http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/casting-the-wire-complicating-notions-of-performance-authenticity-and-otherness/feed/ 1 The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same: Serial Narrative on The Wire http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-more-things-change-the-more-they-stay-the-same-serial-narrative-on-the-wire/ http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/2009/05/29/the-more-things-change-the-more-they-stay-the-same-serial-narrative-on-the-wire/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 19:25:22 +0000 Erika Johnson-Lewis http://www.darkmatter101.org/site/?p=541 The Wire has been lauded for its uncompromising look at the failure of institutions in contemporary Baltimore. The city of Baltimore functions as a microcosm of the larger problems effecting contemporary U.S. urban life. Each season the writers tackle diverse…

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