Episode 55 - Carrying water... and then some.

Episode 55 was like a Wire episode of old for me. It moved quickly between storylines and had a number of important developments happening at once. There was less explication and we were asked to watch more carefullly. I think it was the best episode of the season thus far.

With my blanket-praise out of the way, I'll turn to specifics. The parallel of the "masterminds" of the show was fantastic. Marlo, McNulty, Freaman, Templeton, Omar, even Levy, all had the sense that they were now taking steps toward plans that will result in wins of grand proportions. Of course, we know that all of these plans cannot come to be -- the question is which, if any, will succeed?

I was not convinced by what we saw in this episode that the Greek is aware that Marlo took out Prop Joe, and I am not sure that he will be happy to find this information out. Marlo's ruthlessness is coupled with an ignorance that I think will cause him progressively more problems the more he strays from the streets of the West-side. I know I have already said this many times, but I can't help thinking that Marlo is going to end up being caught or killed out of the arrogance he shows in thinking he is able to deal with the Greek. Also, it is only a matter of time until the co-op figures out that Marlo pulled the trigger, and that fact coupled with Slim's dislike of Marlo is not going to put him in a safe position either. I really liked the shot of Chris with his family in this episode -- he and Snoop are presented as not really having lives outside of Marlo, so it was interesting to see that another Chris does exist (sort of in contrast to Marlo's statement that he wasn't made to play the son -- Chris apparently does see himself as able to play father and husband, albeit one with a greater commitment to his boss than to them). Now, can we see something of Snoop? I have always imagined her as lesbian, truth be told, -- anyone else? -- but something tells me we won't see a shot of she and her girlfriend at City Cafe or The Stable anytime soon.

It was great to see some characters pushed in ways we haven't previously -- Clay fighting for a chance to defend himself; Royce getting to pull the strings for once; Freaman on his knees to Daniels; and Daniels admitting that he has no power. And how about that fabulous exchange at The Sun between McNulty and Templeton. I am not sure I bought that anyone would really have found that exchange altogether convincing in terms of the validity of the caller, but I really liked the way McNulty made a play for calling Templeton's game and using it to his advantage. (BTW, do you think McNulty suspects Templeton, or do you think it was just a prank caller? I had the sense he suspected Scott, but I've only watched the episode once.)

After I read some of the posts on Slate last week, I was surprised to see they actually predicted a plot I didn't see coming -- Herc getting Marlo's number. I didn't really think Herc would care enough to do such a thing, but I suppose since it gives him a chance to get revenge as well, it works for him. Still, it was a great moment for me -- as was Freaman's WTF face when he realizes that the call is encrypted (or at least not easily tapped).

Also, can I just say this is Bunk's season? He's had such a central role this season, and I've loved getting to see his character out of his comfort zone. The exchanges between he and Beadie and he and McNulty (after Greggs is pulled to help on the serial) were both very tightly done and showed two very different aspects of his character.

But my post would not be complete without talking about Omar -- I thought some of the best moments in this episode were the scenes in the car with Omar and Donnie AFTER we know that Chris is watching Omar and Donnie watch Monk. Ughh!! We've never seen Omar go into such an awful trap, and the suspense was excruciating. The actual trap-scene was also great; Omar's face when he sees Donnie's dead body and realizes that he is out of bullets -- my stomach dropped! I don't know how Omar will manage to stage a comeback, but I am hoping that he gets Slim involved. And, in an ideal world, maybe Slim will make an appeal to Avon to talk to Serge against Marlo. I know, I know, far fetched... but these guys carry a grudge and stranger things could happen.

I've got a ray of hope for Bubs and Carver in all of this. I wanted to see Dukie thrown a chance, but Cutty's inability to advise him on a way out just seemed that much more crushing.

Looking forward to reading your comments!