Hard Cases

Greetings from Lithuania.

"Hard Cases",4 th episode of season 2 was an involving and good one. Same qualities and in previous episodes of season 2 - terrific writing, acting and directing. The story is moving forward, and i like this new setting in port. Kinda gives you same perspective on world but in a different place. And also i really like how the whole "gang" of good guys from season 1 is getting together. I highly enjoy these characters and exchanges between them is a pure writing heaven - it hardly gets and sound better then this.

Overall, with just 4 episodes in season 2 i really enjoyed them all.

Bunk, Freamon and Russell establish a presence at the docks and Avon looks to make a deal.

This is a strong episode that nicely sets up certain characters to come into play.

Having previously set the scene cleverly with the conflict between Valchek and Sabotka, the writers use this episode to move established characters centre stage. This is done in a realistic way that does not feel contrived, plus the politics set around it is very interesting to watch.

One of the best scenes in relation to the above is a montage sequence involving two characters and their home lives. It is an entertaining and memorable piece of visual storytelling.

Much like the previous episode the parallels between characters like the Sabotkas and Barksdales continue to work well. Much of their scenes drive the main dramatic elements of the story. Chris Bauer in particular does great work portraying a character with the world on his shoulders.

There are many other plot threads happening that involve a multitude of characters. The dialogue between McNulty and his wife, that links to an earlier scene with Bubs and Johnny, never fails to make me laugh.

The production values are excellent as usual with the camera telling the story along with the dialogue.

For me it's an 8.5/10 but I round upwards.

This is the only episode to feature the entire starring cast of the show. It is one full of those happy Wire moments we've all come to know and cherish: Rawls getting a cheeky salute from McNulty after being dumped with fourteen Jane Does; Keema pulling an insolent fratboy off the roof of his car; D'Angelo politely telling Avon to get f*cked; Burrell getting pulled up on his meddling ways in last season's investigation (even if it is by Balichek) and the unit being reunited in their new digs.

These may just be small victories for the good guys, but small victories are the only kind of victories fro the good guys in The Wire. This is the quiet before the storm of Greek tragedy of season two's ending. In the context of the whole show, this is as light as it gets and the few rays of hope mean nothing when the show's over. But for one hour, we laugh and hold them close.