John Mittell's The Wire

simultaneously “show us that societal and institutional forces make the classical Hollywood arc of the goal-orientated protagonist something that is not possible for everyone” (Potter 200). Simon uses the long-form series as an opportunity to develop rich characters and ongoing story-lines that interwind and create complex narratives while challenging the norms of typical episodic television shows or Hollywood films. Mittell writes about the shift of popularity towards complex television and cites “a number of key transformations in the media industries, technologies, and audience behaviours” as reasons for the move (30). One factor Mittell goes on to discuss is the “changing perception of the medium’s legitimacy and its appeal to creators”
With these factors combined, Simon is able to create rich characters and a “basis for discussion and analysis of social issues including urban decay, class, gender, sexuality, employment, belonging, globalization, power, bureaucracy, education and, of course, race” (Penfold-Mounce et al. 154). With the abundance of social issues included in The Wire, some may find it surprising how there is still room for a “vast and complex social network” of characters (Potter198). The show switches the narrative point-of-view often between the police, politicians, drug dealers, corner kids, teachers and other members of society. The balance of different perspectives provide the viewer an inside look into characters and “[t]he show’s serial format allows it to track these less prominent narrative threads for extended periods of time across multiple episodes and even seasons” (Potter 198). By including these scenes that have little connection to the leading storyline, Simon successfully creates multi-dimensional, realistic characters. An example of this how Simon chooses to include scenes of Detective Kima’s life at home in season three or the drunken escapades of Detective Bunk in multiple
Simon “provides a complex and sophisticated sociological narrative that deals with mainstream sociological issues” (Penfold-Mounce et al. 164). By following these social issues of race, urban decay, class, gender, sexuality etc. throughout the series, the viewer is privy to the different institutions and social societies in a city and how they handle difficult matters. Simon attempts with The Wire
“to produce an ‘authentic’ account of not only Baltimore but wider social issues facing America in particular, but has resonance far beyond its geographical locality” (Penfold-Mounce et al. 154). The social issues included in The Wire can transfer to any American city, as well as the different institutional struggles. Simon uses his series to comment on America and ask the question, “are our society’s largest institutions even capable of reform?”