u/Puzzleheaded_Home150

I must've watched The Wire all the way through at least 10 times (conservative estimate). My big takeaway from it was that in all institutions — even in the 'good' ones — the only things that matter are the numbers, promotions based on those numbers, and of course, money. This is true of every single institution covered on the show — policing, education, journalism, and politics. Sure, there are a select few who join to make a difference but they don't get very far before they hit a brick wall. Either they are shunned and sidelined so they don't get in the way (eg. Freeman, McNulty) or they eventually conform and become they very thing they wanted to change (eg. Carcetti). When Landsman says to McNulty, "It's all about self-preservation, Jimmy. Something you never learned", it drives the point home succinctly and beautifully.

Prez's timeline makes this reality especially disheartening. He was a genuinely brilliant detective but couldn't stand the BS that came with the job — the bureaucracy, the numbers game, the lack of funding to do things that are worthwhile. When he becomes a teacher only to be met with the same exact systemic problems there, it's the show telling you, "You can leave the game to pursue noble endeavours but the game will find you there too."

No matter the field — whether you're a cop, a journalist, a teacher — there's no real substance or purpose to what you do. You're only there to get ahead (or at the very least, stay where you are), put up the numbers (or juke them if you have to), and keep the machine running for the guys at the top.

Once I came to terms with this, it made me extremely cynical and nihilistic. Curious to hear your guys' experience and thoughts.

George Orwell's 1984 is hands down the face of dystopian art — so much so that the term "Orwellian" has become synonymous with "authoritarian" and "totalitarian".

V for Vendetta (2005) is a riveting film that has predicted the rise of mass surveillance, censorship and democratic backsliding with prophetic accuracy.

Most recently, Black Mirror (2011-present) is an incredible commentary on tech dystopia.

Other notable works on the topic include Ernest Bramah's The Secret of the League (1907) and First World Problems (2018).

It feels like in every time period, the dystopian art of that era came out of the UK. Why do you think that is?

The Wire is undoubtedly a masterpiece that does a phenomenal job of examining institutional failure — in policing, in the judicial system, in prisons, in education, and in the media. It's best thought of as a dissertation based on the writers' 20 years of experience with institutional problems. No show comes even close to The Wire in terms of depth of socio-political insight.

One theme I wish the show had covered more was corruption, i.e., collusion between state actors (law enforcement, lawmakers) and organized crime. Sure, there are a few great instances of this on the show, notably:

1. In one of my favourite scenes, the crooked FBI agent is chatting with The Greek and tips him off about the ongoing investigation into his guys. It's a brilliant scene that drives home the point that even the FBI, the preeminent law enforcement agency in the country, has been infiltrated by criminal organizations.

2. The crooked but hilarious Clay Davis who gets caught red-handed but is let go because he is protected by Commissioner Burrell.

3. The corrupt correctional officer who sneaks drugs into prison and helps Avon get a reduced sentence.

However, given how pivotal corruption is to organized crime in the real world, I felt that this theme was underexplored on the show. Eg. On the show, we don't see cops who are on the crime bosses' payroll, giving them intel about investigations before they happen, info about rival groups etc. Nor do we see corrupt customs/border officials who IRL are key to the operation.