Just finished. Such a good ending. David Simon knows how to do an ending - both here and The Wire. Wow.

Great little homage at the end - to the people and how that part of NY has changed too.

I loved the series overall and must be one of the few that did not lose interest as it went. S3 was amazing I thought partly because we just knew these characters so well, but also because they didn't pull any punches for a happy ending. It was always real and honest and never going to end well for most. Again Simon is one of the few that can be that brutally true to the story no matter what that means to the characters. Too often the characters become bigger than the show and they sell out to fan service. Not here.

The other aspect that was always just nails was the period stuff and the attention to detail on production. Style, clothes, music, props, sets, product placement, everything. That just 100% felt like NYC or midtown anyway for that era. So well done.

I don't know that I'll "miss it".... I feel like it did what it intended and the story closed on the right note and covered that era. I just appreciate it for what it was. Bravo to good storytelling.

Counterpoint said:

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Was that a Wire crossover when Black Frankie said he was moving to Baltimore? (I know the other guy in that scene was ACTUALLY in the Wire).

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Yeah well not so much a direct crossover as I think it was just a nod to his other series.

In a way Bobby's fate was too - his character returns to a union job much the same as Frank Sabotka's character on The Wire.

So somehow I never gave this show a chance when it aired. I have no idea why. I absolutely love David Simon, I really like Franco and New York, so I'm kind of at a loss with myself. I don't think I ever paid much attention to it, and maybe I got it confused with the bad reviews for Vinyl? But I just never heard anything and never watched. Also, I could've sworn this show came out like 5-7 years ago... I blame Westworld for taking up all of HBO's marketing.


What a show... Absolutely fantastic, and felt like a companion to The Wire. So awesome seeing all of Simon's go-to actors again and working with his amazing material. And nobody builds a world where the city is the central character like Simon. Baltimore, New Orleans, and now New York. So gritty and sleazy but utterly fascinating. This show was so heartbreaking and hard to watch at times... but at the same time so much fun. Just a perfect balance.

Also, Simon is the KING of finale scenes. This one was right up there with the Wire for best end scene ever.

Can't stress enough to binge this show on HBO Max if you missed it. It's a quick one.