Is it safe to say Breaking Bad > The Wire?

[girl thats drob]

The Wire > _____

 

[thejrob]

Originally Posted by ATGD7154xBBxMZ

@ ppl who haven't watched both commenting.

Seriously. Why would you compare two things when you don't know +#++ about one

 

[Maximus Meridius]

Love both shows but as a overall show I gotta go with The Wire, the realism is just crazy. Gus is better than any character on The Wire though.

 

[ill legal operation]

There is no competition:

 

[pmatic]

Originally Posted by CripwalkinK

There has never been a more detailed show than Breaking Bad. Ever. I'm planning on starting The Wire very soon but most people I know have told me they preferred BB over The Wire.

The Wire is even more detailed.

 

[tokes99]

am i the only one that the finds the premise of breaking bad so implausible that everything kind of breaks down from there? i find just about every major character, annoying and/or unlikable, and the plot twist so over the top it was sort of predictable. i finally just stopped watching midway through this last season...admittedly BB is more visually interesting, probably more entertaining, and more explicitly suspenseful; however, to me, there is nothing ever at stake on BB soley because it is singularly about walter and to a lesser extent jesse. so i never really felt that any risk they ultimately could face would have any real consequences, which makes it uninteresting from my point-of-view.

to be fair, i came into with the expectation is would be amazingly & undeniably good after reading that closterman article & having watched the wire 1st, and it just disappoints if you expect that level of perspective & storytelling. the wire has a "quiet desperation" wherein the tention is in the narrative or off-screen, not necessarily on camera; it is a true drama...it is slow, it places the story above the action, furthermore it also is both social commentary & critique...it has a point beyond entertainment. and having debated this with people that have come to the wire after watching the exploits of one walter white, they find the wire to be so boring & uneventful, to the point of exhaustion...which is why they're not really in the same category; don't get me wrong BB is probably good tv, but it isn't the wire...

 

[swendro]

Originally Posted by Mangudai954

Originally Posted by ATGD7154xBBxMZ

@ ppl who haven't watched both commenting.

Well this thread is kind of silly to begin with as we're comparing one series that is finished and one that's still running.

 

[kennykhuynh]

I love breaking bad but I have to say The Wire is better. The Wire makes you drawn into the characters like you actually know them. It also felt more real.

 

[luong1209]

I haven't seen The Wire, but BB has had (IMHO) only ~5 IMPRESSIVE episodes.

 

[jimmybeanz]

Originally Posted by RaWeX05

The Wire had 5 seasons and each one was great. What made me like The Wire so much was that it had a "real" factor to it. Each season brought a different aspect of life of Baltimore which made it interesting for me to watch.

^^^Which is one of the reasons The Wire is better.  The Wire had everything: sex, violence, politics, unions, schools, puberty, jail, co-ops, etcetera etcetera.  It not only juggled more topics (well), it juggled a lot of characters well. You have people in really life who ride or die with some of the characters; Weebay, Stringer, Prop Joe, Cheese, Marlo and Avon.  Not to mention a huge percentage of what happened in the show is actually true.  Breaking Bad is an awesome show, but it's not better than The Wire. 

 

[thatpersianguy]

Originally Posted by dro 44

You shouldn't post in here if you haven't seen both....
That being said, "The Wire" offers its viewers an overall glimpse in "that life". May it be street or politics. I feel "The Wire" covers so many more topics than "Breaking Bad". Although, BB has really captivated me with the way the characters feed off one another. BB was cast perfectly. The Wire gave us many characters, but the development was lacking because of the prolific amount of actors. As far as suspense at the end of episodes, BB> The Wire

I just enjoyed "The Wire" a bit more because of all the topics that were covered. I love the seasons with the Barksdale crew, but season 2 isn't slacking because the shipyard had so many intricacies. The attention to detail puts the "The Wire"> Breaking Bad storyline wise. BB seems kind of easy to predict, because there are only a few options when the story is presented. "The Wire" had me with the Wee-bay shocked gif on numerous occasions. 

Summed up...The Wire> Breaking Bad in a decision. Both great shows...I like the way David Simon presented his story a little better.

I disagree with that a bit, nobody can tell me they predicted what happened at the end of Season 2 or even Season 3 for that matter. Season 4 was a bit easier to guess/predict but even then, people always pulled theories out of their @%%#* and made them seem plausible and the show never went in those directons haha.

 

[hymen man]

BB is not easy to predict.

They are both great shows, and you can't really say BB is > until it's over, but I like it more. The characters interest me more, maybe because I'm not from Maryland or have had to live like that. Granted, I am neither a meth cook or junkie, but I find BB much more entertaining. I loved the Wire and every thing about it, I actually just finished my rewatch a few days ago and it's a great series, I even don't mind S5... I think it wrapped up very nicely aside from the whole Newspaper/Homeless Killer (McNulty a complete dork) storyline. I thought the S4 Breaking Bad finale was a bit predictable and I hated the scene with Gus' face but overall, the show is not easy to predict. You think you know what might happen and it pans out in a completely different direction for the most part.

 

[amtothepm]

Culturally; The Wire is the most important TV. So no. Breaking Bad pales in comparison to the Wire. no fanboy

 

[copped]

can everyone who says The Wire is better than Breaking Bad post their race also? i feel 90% of black people who have watched both series will side with The Wire because they relate to it more (for whatever reason)....thus making this question silly...its all relative, if anyone can objectively critique both and still say one way or another, then fair enough.


for me:

sopranos> breaking bad> the wire


that is coming from someone who has watched all three series two times over. i find myself watching re-runs of sopranos more than the other two. the last season of The Wire turned me off.

 

[dt43]

Originally Posted by copped

can everyone who says The Wire is better than Breaking Bad post their race also? i feel 90% of black people who have watched both series will side with The Wire because they relate to it more (for whatever reason)....thus making this question silly...its all relative, if anyone can objectively critique both and still say one way or another, then fair enough.


for me:

sopranos> breaking bad> the wire


that is coming from someone who has watched all three series two times over. i find myself watching re-runs of sopranos more than the other two. the last season of The Wire turned me off.

so you're italian then? 

 

[coolnclutch]

I dunno if it's about race but more so culture. Obviously people are biased to The Wire because it reflects on the street/urban/hip-hop culture. Breaking Bad is set in middle class New Mexico

I feel that Breaking Bad is the most complete TV drama ever in terms of the total package. Acting, visuals, soundtrack, character development, plot, some comedy, etc. It combines all elements of what you'd like to see in a protypical drama.

 

[ruxxx]

Originally Posted by DT43

Originally Posted by copped

can everyone who says The Wire is better than Breaking Bad post their race also? i feel 90% of black people who have watched both series will side with The Wire because they relate to it more (for whatever reason)....thus making this question silly...its all relative, if anyone can objectively critique both and still say one way or another, then fair enough.


for me:

sopranos> breaking bad> the wire


that is coming from someone who has watched all three series two times over. i find myself watching re-runs of sopranos more than the other two. the last season of The Wire turned me off.

so you're italian then? 

But Italian isn't... nevermind.

 

[ruxxx]

Originally Posted by CoolNClutch

Obviously people are biased to The Wire because it reflects on the street/urban/hip-hop culture.

It was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much more than that though.

 

[welcometothetonezone]

So I just finished season 2 of Breaking Bad...it was good but I don't feel like I'm satisfied enough. At least with The Wire each season told a different storyline and yet they all fit together. This one seems like an never ending story.

Speaking of social class drug television, Breaking Bad totally craps on Weeds

 

[Jordan8]

Refuse to choose but Gus > Marlo

 

[ill legal operation]

Originally Posted by cartune

Refuse to choose but Gus > Marlo

Avon > _____________.

 

[tokes99]

[

Originally Posted by copped

can everyone who says The Wire is better than Breaking Bad post their race also? i feel 90% of black people who have watched both series will side with The Wire because they relate to it more (for whatever reason)....thus making this question silly...its all relative, if anyone can objectively critique both and still say one way or another, then fair enough.


for me:

sopranos> breaking bad> the wire


that is coming from someone who has watched all three series two times over. i find myself watching re-runs of sopranos more than the other two. the last season of The Wire turned me off.

it's funny how you don't see how this argument works against you...


quote="Ruxxx"]

Originally Posted by CoolNClutch

Obviously people are biased to The Wire because it reflects on the street/urban/hip-hop culture.

It was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much more than that though.[/quote]

exactly this.

there are so many storylines and themes intertwined into the larger story, viewed from such varied angles that the "street/urban/hip-hop culture" is just a single part

 

[Sonny Corinthos]

I'm almost done with season two of  breaking bad , it isn't as good as The Wire so far

 

[celticsfan9783]

Originally Posted by copped

can everyone who says The Wire is better than Breaking Bad post their race also? i feel 90% of black people who have watched both series will side with The Wire because they relate to it more (for whatever reason)....thus making this question silly...its all relative, if anyone can objectively critique both and still say one way or another, then fair enough.


for me:

sopranos> breaking bad>the wire


that is coming from someone who has watched all three series two times over. i find myself watching re-runs of sopranos more than the other two. the last season of The Wire turned me off.

I've watched both the Wire and Sopranos entire series' probably 4x each. My top 2 shows of all-time. But I still put the Wire ahead of Sopranos.

I'm white and *drum rule*........Italian

You can watch re-runs of the Sopranos more so than the Wire because it has more entertainment value. It's also easier than the Wire to watch re-reruns out of context. I feel like I have to watch the Wire alone and pay close attention, read in between the lines.

 

[jimmybeanz]

Originally Posted by copped

can everyone who says The Wire is better than Breaking Bad post their race also? i feel 90% of black people who have watched both series will side with The Wire because they relate to it more (for whatever reason)....thus making this question silly...its all relative, if anyone can objectively critique both and still say one way or another, then fair enough.


for me:

sopranos> breaking bad> the wire


that is coming from someone who has watched all three series two times over. i find myself watching re-runs of sopranos more than the other two. the last season of The Wire turned me off.

all are great shows. but there was at least 1.5 seasons where sopranos sucked monkey balls. the wire final episode was wack (just like the sopranos), but all of the seasons were great.  and there were seasons on the wire that weren't about black people ya know!

  
the wire is either => than sopranos because it dealt with more issues in a spectacular fashion.  to use a sports analogy, the sopranos is a running back who is great at rushing.  the wire is a running back who is great at rushing, blocking, catching the ball out of the backfield, and has a decent enough arm to throw td's. yes, both are great, but one brings so much more to the table.