I had heard about The Wire here and there, and was told it had been rated as one of the best tv series and such, but first now after season 4 is done I got around to seeing season 1. The show is not very fast paced, but takes it's time to introduce the characters and the plot. Things can get quite complicated to follow, so I can understand why they paced it as they did. The characters are one of the series strongest points as they are very well done. The acting is top notch and they all really stand out. There's a strong political theme as well as a very good display of how life on the streets of Baltimore is. The show brings up important issues like homelessness, drug abuse and the thin line between being on the right and wrong side of the law. I was sucked in to the show right away. Great storytelling, incredible character cast, and social issues that are important in our days makes this one of the best shows on tv these days. The first season centers around a crime family led by Avon Barksdale and an assembled team of detectives who try to get them behind bars.

I must say the Wire really impressed me with strong characters, it's easy to see that they put a lot of effort to find the right actors to the right characters.
The serie is not so fast paced, meaning it's a lot of dialog and drama that builds up before the action scenes.
In my opinion this works perfect, you get a very strong relationship with the different persons and the result is the best detective serie ever made.
You also get to see the conflict between the different ghetto drug mobs and also the police. It all comes to gether perfectly.
The wire is must see if you like good police series and drama.