‘The Wire’ is 1 of the ‘Most Realistic’ Police Dramas About Narcotics, Says Former DEA Agent

The Wire didn’t receive huge ratings or tons of awards during its initial run. But the show – which ran from 2002 to 2008 on HBO – has become much more highly regarded since its series finale. In fact, many fans and critics now consider The Wire to be one of the best TV shows ever made. And according to a retired special agent with the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), The Wire is also one of the “most realistic” shows about its subject matter.

‘The Wire’ is widely considered 1 of the best shows of all time

Co-created by author and former police reporter David Simon, The Wire takes a very distinctive spin on police procedural shows. Rather than keeping its perspective on a specific group, this crime drama explored a different institution relating to law enforcement in each of its five seasons. From the illegal drug trade in season 1 to the news media in season 5, The Wire dug a lot deeper than many of its counterparts on the air.

The show gave breakout roles to many of its stars. Dominic West, Lance Reddick, Idris Elba, Aiden Gillen, Amy Ryan, and the late Michael K. Williams also played key roles during The Wire‘s run. And whether on subsequent TV shows or movies, these actors went on to become even more prominent in the entertainment industry, thanks in large part to their work on The Wire.

‘The Wire’ is even praised for its realism by law enforcement 

In a video for Vanity Fair, retired DEA special agent Craig Chretien praised The Wire for its attention to detail. Chretien admits Simon had interviewed him during his time in charge of the DEA office in Baltimore. Meanwhile, co-creator Ed Burns was working in a task force group at that office. So he was familiar with both before The Wire ever aired on HBO. 

“The Wire is one of the most realistic police procedural shows on narcotics,” Chretien told Vanity Fair. “Some of the characters I knew who they were portraying, some were composite characters. Some of the portrayals I didn’t agree with. But overall, I thought it was an excellent, excellent show.”

In particular, Chretien mentions the show’s portrayal of how law enforcement officers do surveillance with multiple cars. “Attempting to do surveillance with one car is pretty much useless,” he said. “A real good serious surveillance you need, at a minimum, two, three plus cars so that they can trade off, not constantly follow the target and do parallel surveillance.”

‘The Wire’ received a spiritual successor in ‘We Own This City’

Fans of The Wire might still miss the unique way the show covers law enforcement. However, Simon and Burns have collaborated several times since that series ended. Their later projects include Generation Kill – a 2008 miniseries about a reporter’s experience embedded with a group of Marines during the 2003 invasion of Iraq – and The Plot Against America, a 2020 miniseries which imagines an alternate version of American history.

However, their most recent project is perhaps most up the alley of fans of The Wire. We Own This City debuted on HBO in April 2022. The six-episode miniseries follows corruption in the Baltimore Police Department and the Gun Trace Task Force. We Own This City received strong reviews from critics, with many alluding to its status as a “spiritual successor” to The Wire.