The original post: /r/television by /u/Ok-fine-man on 2024-08-27 22:25:09.
I’ve just started watching Homicide: Life on the Streets as for years I’d heard it was a precursor to Oz and The Wire. There’s also the David Simon since it’s based on his book. Plus, the new 4k release has just come out.
I really enjoy the raw gritty feel of a lot of it. Plus, Andre Braugher is the standout for me - such an intriguing character. (Hard to believe Simon didn’t give him a role on The Wire). The characters are all very likeable. It all clicks together really well and remains very compelling.
What I didn’t expect was it to feel like more of a comedy, at times. It’s far more entertaining than I expected.
While I enjoy the comedic moments and quippy dialogue - which by the second episode feel very frequent. I can’t help feeling it undercuts the serious grizzled world it’s developed. The way many of the cops bounce off eachother feels like straight out of a comic sketch. It feels the writers felt under pressure to make every scene, which wasn’t at the site of a murder, as funny as possible.
I feel like The Wire never fell into this trap. Sure, there were funny moments…but it never undercut the drama (not for me at least). The likes of Bunk and Jimmy, or Carver and Herc, would give eachother shit and playoff eachother but these funny moments felt more real and less scripted.
I’d like to hear everyone else’s thoughts on this.