Every Season Of The Wire Ranked Worst To Best
1. Season Four
Where to start? The focus on the schools is immaculate, with some of the best child actors ever to feature on TV. Season four is the most emotionally evocative run, and has moments of utter gut wrenching heartbreak as the lead kids find out how tough life in Baltimore can be.
The escalation of Marlo to ultimate unfeeling dictator is terrifying stuff. He takes control of Baltimore over the course of season four, murdering his foes and boarding them up in vacant houses. Jamie Hector’s performance is one of The Wire’s best - he can be utterly chilling while barely moving a muscle.
Cutty and Bunny return with great storylines, and even McNulty manages to find a little peace in this season, working as a beat cop and focusing more on his personal life.
Mainly, though, it comes down to the schools. This was a risk for the show - another major departure, with a lot of heavy lifting to be done by inexperienced actors. It doesn’t just work - it’s probably the highlight of the entire show, which is really saying something.