Told from the points of view of both the Baltimore homicide and narcotics detectives and their targets, the series captures a universe in which the national war on drugs has become a permanent, self-sustaining bureaucracy, and distinctions between good and evil are routinely obliterated.
Is this the best episode?
The peak run. Top 40% of seasons by average rating — consecutive, with an average of 8.17.
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Dominic West
Jimmy McNulty
Lance Reddick
Cedric Daniels
Sonja Sohn
Kima Greggs
Wendell Pierce
Bunk Moreland
Michael Kenneth Williams
Omar Little
Deirdre Lovejoy
Rhonda Pearlman
Andre Royo
Bubbles
John Doman
William Rawls
Clarke Peters
Lester Freamon
Jamie Hector
Marlo Stanfield
All 60 episodes plotted by IMDb rating
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13 episodes • 2002Avg: 8.1
| # | Episode | Air Date | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Target | Jun 2, 2002 | 7.4 |
| 2 | The Detail | Jun 9, 2002 | 7.9 |
| 3 | The Buys | Jun 16, 2002 | 7.7 |
| 4 | Old Cases | Jun 23, 2002 | 7.7 |
| 5 | The Pager | Jun 30, 2002 | 7.8 |
| 6 | The Wire | Jul 7, 2002 | 8.1 |
| 7 | One Arrest | Jul 21, 2002 | 8.3 |
| 8 | Lessons | Jul 28, 2002 | 7.9 |
| 9 | Game Day | Aug 4, 2002 | 8.4 |
| 10 | The Cost | Aug 11, 2002 | 8.3 |
| 11 | The Hunt | Aug 18, 2002 | 8.6 |
| 12 | Cleaning Up | Sep 1, 2002 | 8.3 |
| 13 | Sentencing | Sep 8, 2002 | 8.7 |
12 episodes • 2003Avg: 7.9
| # | Episode | Air Date | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ebb Tide | Jun 1, 2003 | 7.8 |
| 2 | Collateral Damage | Jun 8, 2003 | 7.9 |
| 3 | Hot Shots | Jun 15, 2003 | 7.9 |
| 4 | Hard Cases | Jun 22, 2003 | 7.6 |
| 5 | Undertow | Jun 29, 2003 | 7.8 |
| 6 | All Prologue | Jul 6, 2003 | 7.8 |
| 7 | Backwash | Jul 13, 2003 | 7.3 |
| 8 | Duck and Cover | Jul 27, 2003 | 7.6 |
| 9 | Stray Rounds | Aug 3, 2003 | 7.8 |
| 10 | Storm Warnings | Aug 10, 2003 | 8.3 |
| 11 | Bad Dreams | Aug 17, 2003 | 8.6 |
| 12 | Port in a Storm | Aug 24, 2003 | 8.5 |
12 episodes • 2004Avg: 8.2Golden Era
| # | Episode | Air Date | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Time After Time | Sep 19, 2004 | 7.9 |
| 2 | All Due Respect | Sep 26, 2004 | 8.1 |
| 3 | Dead Soldiers | Oct 3, 2004 | 7.7 |
| 4 | Amsterdam | Oct 10, 2004 | 8.0 |
| 5 | Straight and True | Oct 17, 2004 | 7.9 |
| 6 | Homecoming | Oct 31, 2004 | 8.3 |
| 7 | Back Burners | Nov 7, 2004 | 8.2 |
| 8 | Moral Midgetry | Nov 14, 2004 | 8.5 |
| 9 | Slapstick | Nov 21, 2004 | 7.9 |
| 10 | Reformation | Nov 28, 2004 | 8.3 |
| 11 | Middle Ground | Dec 12, 2004 | 9.0 |
| 12 | Mission Accomplished | Dec 19, 2004 | 8.2 |
13 episodes • 2006Avg: 8.1
| # | Episode | Air Date | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boys of Summer | Sep 10, 2006 | 7.8 |
| 2 | Soft Eyes | Sep 17, 2006 | 8.2 |
| 3 | Home Rooms | Sep 24, 2006 | 8.2 |
| 4 | Refugees | Oct 1, 2006 | 7.9 |
| 5 | Alliances | Oct 8, 2006 | 8.0 |
| 6 | Margin of Error | Oct 15, 2006 | 8.1 |
| 7 | Unto Others | Oct 29, 2006 | 7.9 |
| 8 | Corner Boys | Nov 5, 2006 | 8.0 |
| 9 | Know Your Place | Nov 12, 2006 | 7.8 |
| 10 | Misgivings | Nov 19, 2006 | 8.1 |
| 11 | A New Day | Nov 26, 2006 | 8.3 |
| 12 | That's Got His Own | Dec 3, 2006 | 8.3 |
| 13 | Final Grades | Dec 10, 2006 | 8.9 |
10 episodes • 2008Avg: 8.2
| # | Episode | Air Date | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | More with Less | Jan 6, 2008 | 7.8 |
| 2 | Unconfirmed Reports | Jan 13, 2008 | 8.0 |
| 3 | Not for Attribution | Jan 20, 2008 | 8.1 |
| 4 | Transitions | Jan 27, 2008 | 8.4 |
| 5 | React Quotes | Feb 3, 2008 | 8.2 |
| 6 | The Dickensian Aspect | Feb 10, 2008 | 8.0 |
| 7 | Took | Feb 17, 2008 | 7.9 |
| 8 | Clarifications | Feb 24, 2008 | 8.3 |
| 9 | Late Editions | Mar 2, 2008 | 8.5 |
| 10 | -30- | Mar 9, 2008 | 8.6 |
