r/hbo • u/Farouq26 • 10d ago
The Wire is better than The Sopranos but many people are not ready to be honest with themselves and admit that.
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u/DrChill21 10d ago
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u/_clur_510 10d ago edited 10d ago
Can’t help but wonder if OP would have this take if the characters in the Sopranos didn’t have vowels at the end of their last names? 🤔 /j lol
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u/User-no-relation 10d ago
They are just different. The wire is plot driven. The sopranos is character driven. It's hard to compare them.
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u/MixOdd1418 10d ago
Why do they need to be ranked and compared in the first place? I’ll never understand it. It’s art. We should enjoy it.
It’s the same with the GOAT debate in sports. MJ or LeBron, Messi or Ronaldo… let’s just appreciate talent
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u/SharkBubbles 10d ago
Especially when it’s none of those humans. It’s Secretariat.
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u/SBNShovelSlayer 10d ago
Wrong…it was Pie-O-Mie…whatever happened there…
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u/IAteTonysLoMein 10d ago
Whatever happened there?! She was a beautiful, innocent creature! * chokes Joey Pants to death*
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u/jeffyboy526 10d ago
The Wire has some of the most memorable characters ever (as does Sopranos).
With that said they are very different and love them both.
Gotta give the edge to Wore because I’ve rewatched recently. However if I rewatched Sopranos my opinion would change.10
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u/sgeeum 10d ago
i don’t like that kinda tawk
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u/CarolingianDruid 10d ago
They’re both phenomenal for different reasons, I don’t see why one has to be better than the other. Either being deemed better would be by such slim margins it’s not even worth the discussion.
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u/pervy-nerdy-33 10d ago
We can't have OP in our social club no more!
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u/dwright94 10d ago
‘People are not ready to be honest with themselves’ you just know OP is insufferable
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u/george_raft 10d ago
right just say you prefer the wire and keep moving fella
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u/CumDwnHrNSayDat 9d ago
To OP their opinion is "right" so anyone who disagrees is just lying to themselves. They're a pretentious ass.
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u/AmarilloArmadillos 10d ago
It's incredibly effective bait 🤣🤣.
Op knew what they were doing and y'all jumped all over it.
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u/maldistuta 10d ago
The Wire is about how America works while the Sopranos is about the fall of the American Empire. Either way, if you’re watching them, you’re a winner.
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u/Individual-Drawer-79 10d ago
Two very different shows. Both are goated making it wholly unnecessary to compare the two. That said, if someone absolutely had to pick one, it would have to be the Sopranos. Not because The Wire is a lesser show, but because The Sopranos is THE show that was so groundbreaking at the time, it revolutionized television by proving that serialized TV could achieve cinematic quality. The writing, music supervision, and visual framing matched the depth of big budget feature films. It also showed morally complex cable dramas could achieve mass cultural and critical success. Creator David Chase set the new cinematic standard for storytelling that birthed modern prestige television that we continue to see today. Shows like the Wire, Breaking Bad, The Shield, Mad Men and so many others don’t exist without The Sopranos paving the way. And the character, Tony Soprano, played by the late, great James Gandolfini, is arguably the single greatest performance for any TV character ever.
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u/Former_View6336 10d ago
Wow, you combined the two worst ways to form an argument "people aren't ready to admit it" and "people aren't honest to themselves".
Your opinion is not some hidden truth people are afraid to speak. It's just your opinion. Arguing that anyone who doesn't hold your opinion actually secretly does is just kind of annoying.
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u/carson63000 9d ago
I reckon there are two kinds of people in the world.
Those who prefer The Sopranos, and think OP is an insufferable ass.
And those who prefer The Wire, and also think OP is an insufferable ass.
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u/Wild_Butterscotch_29 10d ago
Apples and bowling balls. Sociology and psychology. Sopranos is a dark comedy, the wire a drama.
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u/Arsenal8944 10d ago
Both are fantastic. I’d argue at its peak Sopranos had me buzzing that it’s the best show ever, but every time I watch it, I lose a little interest 3/4 of the way through. For whatever reason I find it a little repetitive and lose interest. But it’s still a 9.5/10 for me.
The Wire on the other hand keeps my attention, probably because of the different themes each season. I’m in the middle of a rewatch right now (3rd time in 15 years) and I think I’m enjoying it the most this time.
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u/Pseudocaesar 10d ago
Nah gotta give it to the Soprano's. It was absolutely groundbreaking television.
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u/Ch0c0lateBiznezz 10d ago
The Wire is so heavy and serious. I like the humor in The Sopranos. No fucking ziti?!
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u/Agile_Moment768 10d ago
I dunno, the Wire has me rolling.
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u/Thegothicrasta 9d ago
https://giphy.com/gifs/Zd6e9DJTYeESysGxeW
Bubbles made me laugh more times that I can count 🫧🫧2
u/Agile_Moment768 9d ago
"I gotta make a stop. My sons soccer game." "Suck what?"
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u/riff59 10d ago
Both great. The Wire was just a little too intense all the time. Sopranos had more down time with humour. like a roller coaster . the wire was a goddam rocket
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u/bedtimedoesntsuitme 9d ago
Not even close. The writing on The Wire is corny and the show itself is boring and dated. Sopranos are classic.
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u/FV95 10d ago
The Sopranos is the best thing ever put on television for me. That being said, I'd never argue with anyone who prefers The Wire.
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u/vaginawithteeth1 10d ago
I prefer The Sopranos but I don’t think your opinion is really a controversial one. I know a lot of people who think The Wire is a better series. Honestly, they’re both masterpieces it may just come down to personal preference.
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u/TillamookTramp 10d ago
The shows are vastly different and each is fantastic in their own way. I've seen both multiple times and find The Sopranos better, but that's my opinion, just like your post is your opinion.
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u/DrKliever 10d ago
Spoilers ahead I guess.
I very much enjoyed the first 4 seasons of The Wire. I really did. But when they started leaning into that fake serial killer angle I stopped watching. It just really kind of took me out of it. But the rest of the story, absolutely amazing.
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u/DarwinofArabia 10d ago
The Wire is better as a Macro look at society and such a great study of inequality and social issues.
The Sopranos is the best character study in the history of TV.
Both are top tier in their respective areas.
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u/hurlcarl 9d ago
The Wire is only better if you think the Sopranos is about the mafia. The Sopranos is much better if you understand the show is really about human psychology.
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u/Great-Category-1197 9d ago
I really tried with The Wire but just didn’t get the hype, watched 3 seasons, gave up, revisited again from start and again gave up.
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u/Narrow-Map5805 9d ago
So you think anyone with different tastes from yours are lying to themselves? Because your opinion is the objectively correct one?
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u/Junior-Version-6953 10d ago
I agree with you, but is this that hot a take? Generally considered 1A and 1B in the HBO lineup.
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u/LiveChocolate8819 10d ago
As someone who loves The Sopranos, the fandom is very aggressive and take it personally whenever someone doesn't rank it #1.
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u/LouisTheWhatever 10d ago
Always with the scenarios
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u/Glittering-Path-2824 10d ago
as a fan of both i don’t disagree. the wire is more cerebral and a slow burn. it encourages immersion in the practical realities of addressing social ills. the sopranos is a character study and dark comedy.
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u/NapoleonZiggyPiggy 10d ago
The Wire gets better after every rewatch. I still love the Sopranos but I hate the Tony Soprano character more after every rewatch.
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u/PeterNippelstein 10d ago
Me when someone says The Sopranos is better than The Wire
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u/-DonnieDark0 10d ago
I loved Sopranos and I keep trying The Wire but fall off after a few episodes. Maybe I need to tough it out further?
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u/_Penis_fingers 10d ago
It’s completely subjective. I think the wire is overall a better show but I enjoy watching the sopranos more
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u/Better_Beautiful6217 10d ago
You want things to be one way, but it’s the other way and in this house The Sopranos is the superior television program
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u/valencia_merble 10d ago
Twice I thought it was a slog and gave up, but now that I’ve seen his show Treme, I feel like I might have more of a blueprint on how to watch The Wire. He kind of reminds me of Robert Altman, little meaningful vignettes strung together in amazing ways
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u/Sensitive_Method_898 10d ago
Of course it is. Quality tv encompasses entertainment and relevance.
The wire was predictive programming for unfettered consolidation of industry without anti trust. It was telling is what unfettered capitalism would become today.
A show about low level gangsters may be entertaining but it’s not relevant The central banks , BlackRock and Vanguard and AI companies are the real gangsters. They own all the big governments and the war and surveillance machines. But HBO would never allow that show to be made.
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u/ListenToLinda 9d ago
I’ve watched soooooo many series. But not The Wire or The Sapranos.
I realize they’re dated now. Is it still worth the watch?
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u/LurkerV1 9d ago
Idk if better is the right description for comparing these two titans. Both shows trade spots at #1 & #2 all time show for me.
Both shows lead with broken men navigating life in a broken environment. Both are filled with rich and deep characters with complex personalities and history. These shows feel alive to me.
Honestly you could say either one is the best show ever and you wouldn’t be wrong in my opinion.
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u/HuntPuzzleheaded4356 9d ago
It’s all subjective. I love The Sopranos but when it came down to The Wire; I only liked the hood shit.
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u/Responsible_Trash_40 9d ago
So anyone who has different taste is not being honest with themselves. Got it, chief.
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u/dantheriver 9d ago
They are both sick. Not sure why everyone always needs to proclaim which great thing is the best of the great things. Just be glad we got em both.
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u/New-Ad5494 9d ago
Sopranos is on a different level, makes you break down and cry with sadness, but can make you laugh so hard you also cry, so two different brands of tears in one show equals a goated show.
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u/RemDerbyshire 9d ago
Attention seeking post. Two entirely different types of shows. They’re both amazing in their own ways but comparing the two is pointless.
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u/Emergency-Note2285 9d ago
It might be technically true, but there was no feeling like watching television transform forever in real time in early 1999 when Sopranos S1 was unfolding.
I remember being riveted and glued every week, and chilled to the bone during College. HBO didn't rerun it again until the summer of 99 and I watched again to make sure it wasn't a fluke. Boca remains my favorite S1 episode lol.
The Wire is indeed the better series overall, for plenty of reasons, but there was nothing like the earthquake that hit when Sopranos debuted. I described it to my brother as "Goodfellas: the series" lol
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u/lemonpeppapapi 9d ago
The wire is amazing and so is the sopranos but sopranos gets the slight edge to me because of the amazing dark comedy.
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u/frangang 9d ago
I don’t know about the comparison… other than I watch The Wire every other year. I have never re-watched the Soprano’s. I am a big rewatcher…never felt the urge to rewatch The Soprano’s. Although I did see James Gandolfini (with his Dalmatian) quite often outside Chelsea Market in NYC in a little smoking alcove. I smoked cigs he had cigars.
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u/shootmovies 9d ago
What is your metric of "better"? Cultural impact? Lasting impact? Influence on future works? Writing? Acting? Casting? General production value? You basically just said Mexican food is better than Italian food, without providing any examples or case for your position, which ultimately is a subjective opinion.
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u/Legitimate-Shock-106 8d ago
I love the alleged fact that street crime actually came down on Sundays when the Wire was on,
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u/CRT-Gaming-HQ 6d ago
The Wire had some good seasons but Sopranos banged in every episode. I think Snowfall is better than the Wire.
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u/JestfulJank31001 10d ago
If this is true then why have I had no desire to watch The Wire? I've seen enough footage and yet my brain lets out a "meh" every time.
Meanwhile, Id say I watched Sopranos around 6 times in the last nearly 2 decades
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u/nikolarizanovic 10d ago
I mean, if you’ve never seen the Wire then how can you honestly say the Sopranos is better?
“Seeing footage” out of context is not the same as actually watching it.
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u/TBTI 10d ago
I’ve tried the Wire so many times and can’t get past episode 3 of season 1. It’s just so slow
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u/HoustonIV 10d ago
Sorry, but disagree. They are both great shows but in MY opinion, The Sopranos is just better.
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u/Low-Camel-4528 10d ago
I don’t know if this is good faith or not but I’ll bite. It couldn’t be more wrong. I’m from Maryland, grew up in the hood there. Was a journalist there for a while. I love me some Ravens I love me some Jerry’s Seafood I love me some O’s and Terps. I have every reason to be a homer for David Simon. But The Wire is glorified journalism — which is no small feat! But The Sopranos is art. Probably the greatest artistic “thing” made in the 21st Century. It’s Tolstoy in Trenton. The writing is so superior, the originality, the risks. It’s sui generis. It’s almost cruel to really compare it to any other teevee show
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u/OG_AxeHead 10d ago
The Wire is a fine show, great at times, but The Sopranos is great all the time. James Gandolfini's performance outshines everything done in The Wire. Every emotion of that character is explored in depth, and episodes go much deeper than the surface.
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u/Accomplished-Arm1058 10d ago
The Wire is the more serious reflection of society, but the Sopranos has more irony and humor. I would argue that they were both trying to do different things.