The Wire

Season 1

S1E1 · The Target

Epigraph: "...when it's not your turn." - McNulty At the homicide trial of West Baltimore drug kingpin Avon Barksdale 's nephew D'Angelo, underboss Russell "Stringer" Bell intimidates witness Nakeesha Lyles into changing her story, resulting in an acquittal. Homicide detective Jimmy McNulty breaks chain of command by complaining about the BPD's failure to investigate Avon to judge Daniel Phelan, who insists to deputy commissioner Ervin Burrell that something be done. Sergeant Jay Landsman warns McNulty that his behavior may get him reassigned, who admits he gets seasick and dreads the marine unit. Burrell tasks lieutenant Cedric Daniels with creating a detail that will passively investigate Avon. Heroin addict Johnny Weeks is beaten for trying to scam Barksdale dealers, prompting his friend Reginald "Bubbles" Cousins, an informant for detective Kima Greggs, to give her information on them. D'Angelo is demoted to heading the low-rise "Pit" projects, where he finds the body of William Gant, the other murder witness.

S1E2 · The Detail

Epigraph: "You cannot lose, if you do not play." - Marla Daniels Believing the Barksdales killed Gant, McNulty has Phelan put him on the case. He and his partner William "Bunk" Moreland detain D'Angelo and manipulate him into signing a confession, but his attorney Maurice Levy pulls him before he can incriminate himself. Bubbles covertly marks Barksdale men by selling them hats and they are photographed by the detail. Burrell gives Daniels useless officers to fill the rest of the detail, including Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski, who drunkenly attacks teenage dealer Kevin Johnston. Daniels backs Prez, which his wife Marla admonishes him about. He later learns that Johnston lost vision in one eye.

S1E3 · The Buys

Epigraph: "The king stay the king." - D'Angelo Detective Leander Sydnor goes undercover in the Pit with Bubbles and finds that money and drugs are never held by the higher-ups. Prez's father-in-law, Major Stan Valchek, saves his job by agreeing to keep him off the street. Daniels orders a raid on the Pit, unaware that robber Omar Little has emptied it, and dealer Marvin Browning is arrested while detective Lester Freamon notes a phone number written on a wall. D'Angelo's man Preston "Bodie" Broadus punches an officer and is beaten. When the detail realizes they have no pictures of Avon Barksdale, Freamon finds a poster from Avon's old boxing career. McNulty learns from assistant state's attorney and frequent fling Rhonda Pearlman that he needs to prove he is out of options to clone a pager, and hears from his FBI contact Terrance Fitzhugh that Daniels was investigated in the past for pocketing drug money.

S1E4 · Old Cases

Epigraph: "Thin line 'tween heaven and here." - Bubbles Landsman makes a deal with major William Rawls that McNulty can return to the homicide unit with a clean slate if the detail wraps soon. Bodie easily escapes from the facility he is held in and challenges D'Angelo upon his return, who boasts about killing Avon's ex-girlfriend Deirdre Kresson for him, an old case which McNulty and Bunk investigate and find a previously unnoticed shell casing. Browning chooses jail over flipping on the Barksdales. Avon puts out a bounty on Omar's crew while Stringer wonders if the Pit has a mole. As McNulty explains the requirements for a clone to the detail, Freamon reveals that the number he saw is likely D'Angelo's. McNulty turns up to Greggs's apartment drunk, who explains that their inability to monitor their targets inside buildings qualifies them for a clone.

S1E5 · The Pager

Epigraph: "...a little slow, a little late." - Avon Barksdale Avon shows D'Angelo his brother, left vegetative after being shot in the head, and encourages D'Angelo to use the fear of ending up like him to work harder. Stringer recommends that D'Angelo withhold pay from his dealers to flush out a rat. He takes his girlfriend Donette to a ritzy steakhouse dinner, but is uncomfortable in the lavish atmosphere. A ballistics test connects the casing to two previous murders. Detectives Ellis Carver and Thomas "Herc" Hauk arrest Bodie and beat him when he insults them, but warm to him over a game of pool. Phelan approves the clone and the detail discovers that the Barksdales only send numerical codes, though Prez realizes through his love of puzzles that they are sending jumbled phone numbers. McNulty and Greggs track down Omar to inform him that one of his men was killed, and he reveals that Barksdale soldier Marquis "Bird" Hilton killed Gant. Pit boys Wallace and Malik "Poot" Carr spot Omar's boyfriend Brandon Wright and notify D'Angelo.

S1E6 · The Wire

Epigraph: "...and all the pieces matter." - Freamon Wallace is horrified to find Brandon's mutilated body the next day. D'Angelo pardons a pair of dealers that have been stealing due to their withheld pay and tells Stringer his crew is clean. Johnny is arrested while buying drugs. Levy gets Bodie released from custody. Rawls tries to force Bunk to investigate murders connected to Avon, so Daniels has Burrell override him to prevent Avon from being alerted of the detail. Wiretaps are installed in payphones on Avon's territory. After McNulty shows Omar Brandon's body, he agrees to testify about Gant's murder.

S1E7 · One Arrest

Epigraph: "A man must have a code." - Bunk As the detail learns the Barksdales' routines, they arrest Johnston when he picks up drugs from enforcer Anton "Stinkum" Artis. Knowing there is a reason Stinkum was untouched, Avon and Stringer order Pit trade to halt and the phones in it to be destroyed. Wendell "Orlando" Blocker, the owner of Avon's strip club front, asks D'Angelo for help selling cocaine. To get Johnny out of trouble, Greggs makes him to go to NA, where Bubbles is moved by a speaker named Walon. Bird is arrested after another witness corroborates that he killed Gant and a ballistics test identifies his gun. Rawls orders detective Michael Santangelo to either solve an open case or give him dirt on McNulty to protect his job, and McNulty gets information from Omar that solves a case for him. A grateful Santangelo warns McNulty that Rawls is after him.

S1E8 · Lessons

Epigraph: "Come at the king, you best not miss." - Omar McNulty spots Stringer in public and has his sons write down his license plate. He follows him and discovers he studies economics at BCCC. After learning about a money drop on the wire, the detail pulls over senator Clay Davis 's driver Damien Price and finds money in the car. Phelan stops Burrell from subsequently shutting down the detail by threatening to charge him with contempt. Poot notices Wallace's withdrawn behavior and alerts D'Angelo, who passes Orlando's request to Avon and is denied. Stinkum is promoted and thrown a party, where a stripper dies of an overdose. D'Angelo lies when her coworker and his side girlfriend Shardene Innes asks after her. Omar ambushes Stinkum and enforcer Roland "Wee-Bey" Brice, killing the former. Stringer suggests luring him out with a false truce. The detail learns of Omar's crime but do nothing to keep him as a viable witness. A guilty Bunk and McNulty go drinking, and Bunk cheats on his wife, forcing McNulty to take him in for the night.

S1E9 · Game Day

Epigraph: "Maybe we won." - Herc Avon attends the annual basketball game between Baltimore's East and West sides, which his team loses. Herc and Carver come across the game and realize he is there, identifying him when Sydnor brings the boxing poster. They try to follow him as he leaves, but he notices and outmaneuvers them. Freamon pulls records from City Hall that identify Avon's fronts and confirm that he donated to several politicians. He and Greggs show Shardene the stripper's corpse after finding it in a dumpster, convincing her to help the detail. The detail overhears Poot talking on the phone about Wallace's mental state. Bubbles steals drugs from the Barksdales but realizes they are actually baking soda. He convinces his mistrustful sister Rae to let him move into her basement. Omar buys Avon's pager code from East side leader "Proposition" Joe Stewart and lures him to a spot to kill him. Wee-Bey arrives just in time to save Avon and shoot Omar, who flees.

S1E10 · The Cost

Epigraph: "And then he dropped the bracelets..." - Greggs Sober for three days, Bubbles asks Greggs for help getting a place. As Avon isolates himself, Stringer sets up a meeting with Omar, who realizes it is a trap and leaves town. Phelan pulls support from the detail after losing his spot on the mayor's re-election ticket. The detail brings in Wallace, who identifies several men associated with Brandon's murder, and they send him to his grandmother for protection. Orlando is arrested buying drugs and is noticed by Browning in prison, who alerts Avon. With Burrell pressuring him to make progress, Daniels sends Orlando and Greggs to buy from a stash identified by the detail, but they are shot up by Wee-Bey and enforcer Wintell "Little Man" Royce, and Orlando is killed.

S1E11 · The Hunt

Epigraph: "Dope on the damn table." - Daniels Greggs lies in critical condition and Bubbles is picked up after trying to page her. McNulty, unaware of his attempt to get sober, sends him to buy drugs and find the shooters. He names Savino Bratton, who rode shotgun with Orlando and Greggs to the buy. McNulty threatens to pull Levy's finances if he does not bring Savino in, who takes prison over informing. Wee-Bey kills Little Man on Stringer's orders and takes D'Angelo to an unknown location, leaving him terrified that he is about to be killed, though he is actually being asked to take care of Wee-Bey's apartment while he is in hiding. Burrell orders raids that Daniels tries to prevent to keep the Barksdales unaware of the wire, but Phelan refuses to help after being put back with the mayor. When Daniels tries to withhold locations from his superiors, they find out and he realizes there is a mole in the detail. As the raids occur, an unaware Prez misses a call where Wallace resolves to come back to Baltimore.

S1E12 · Cleaning Up

Epigraph: "This is me, yo, right here." - Wallace Daniels convinces McNulty to get over his guilt about Greggs while Herc passes his sergeant's exam with a higher score than Carver. Daniels accuses Davis of corruption in a meeting between them and Burrell, who tries to threaten an unafraid Daniels with his FBI file. Lyles is killed to protect the Barksdales and Stringer orders Wallace's death due to the risk he poses, which Poot and Bodie reluctantly carry out. As the Barksdales stop using phones entirely, Shardene, now in a relationship with Freamon, maps out the dimensions of Orlando's, giving the detail the position they need to install a camera in the neighboring building. They hear Avon ordering D'Angelo to pick up their next package and fit his car with a tracker. He is arrested and McNulty reveals that Wallace is dead, which he does not believe until Stringer refuses to answer his questions. He rejects Levy's counsel while Avon is arrested.

S1E13 · Sentencing

Epigraph: "all in the game..." -Traditional West Baltimore Greggs wakes and sends Bubbles his money, who spends it on heroin. McNulty and Daniels take the case to the FBI to avoid Burrell's tampering. When they explain that the Barksdales are working with politicians to gentrify neighborhoods for profit, McNulty erupts when the agents plan to work with Avon and Stringer instead of being more concerned with helping victims. He interviews D'Angelo, who gives up Wee-Bey and implicates him as Kresson's true killer. He offers to give up everything he has on Avon if he can be relocated, but his mother Brianna visits him and convinces him to stay quiet. The Barksdales plead guilty on advice from Levy and Stringer takes over for Avon, setting up in a funeral home. Wee-Bey is arrested and confesses to several murders, some of which he did not commit. Carver is promoted to sergeant over Herc and Daniels realizes he is the leak. McNulty's outburst is reported to Burrell, who passes Daniels over for a promotion, while Rawls, after talking to Landsman, sends McNulty to the marine unit, promotes Freamon to homicide, and demotes Santangelo. In New York, Omar robs a dealer and tells him it is "all in the game."

Season 2

S2E1 · Ebb Tide

Epigraph: "Ain't never gonna be what it was." - Little Big Roy McNulty finds a woman's body in the Port of Baltimore, but Rawls passes the case to county police because she was found east of the Key Bridge. McNulty studies tide charts to prove she landed west, getting the case sent back to the BPD, and is asked by Bunk to find Omar to testify in Bird Hilton's upcoming murder trial. Avon turns a supplier in to the DEA for a lighter prison sentence, causing his New York contacts to cut him off. Stevedore union secretary-treasurer Frank Sobotka donates a window to a church to get a meeting with Barbara Mikulski and talk about repairing Silo Point. Stan Valchek is enraged when he donates his own window too late. A container for "the Greek", a crime boss Sobotka helps with smuggling, is dropped off. MDTA officer Beadie Russell notices its broken customs seal and finds several dead women inside.

S2E2 · Collateral Damage

Epigraph: "They can chew you up, but they gotta spit you out." - McNulty McNulty and Russell deduce through an extra bedroll that the harbor woman was in the container and notice a crushed air pipe, getting the case deemed a homicide and given to the partnered Bunk and Freamon. Daniels, stuck in an evidence room, plans to resign and become an attorney. Avon points Brianna Barksdale to a drug contact in Atlanta. Wee-Bey Brice is harassed by guard Dwight Tilghman for claiming to have killed his cousin. Sobotka's delinquent son Chester "Ziggy" Sobotka is denied a supply when he tries to sell drugs. Valchek is given a detail to investigate Sobotka by Burrell, now acting commissioner, in exchange for backing his promotion, while stevedore Thomas "Horseface" Pakusa steals his surveillance van. The Greek's lieutenant Serge Malatov follows the container's ship to Philadelphia and abducts Sam Choksey, the seaman who killed the women, who explains to the Greek that he prostituted them, killing one when she resisted before suffocating the rest. Underboss Spiros Vondas kills him.

S2E3 · Hot Shots

Epigraph: "What they need is a union." - Russell Omar returns and forms a new crew. The Philadelphia men refuse to speak to Bunk and Freamon, while Bunk and Russell discover that the women's container had sketchy paperwork. McNulty's ex-wife Elena gives him a separation agreement. Valchek is sent photos of the van being shipped around the country, and Prez, frustrated with the detail's laziness, tells him of Daniels's effectiveness. Valchek pressures Burrell into getting Daniels for him. Sobotka buys Davis's union support. Ziggy's cousin Nick, wanting to buy a house for his girlfriend, helps him steal a container of cameras, which they sell to Greek fence George Glekas. Through Stringer, Avon orders drug supplier "Butchie" to give Tilghman bad heroin to distribute, which several prisoners die from.

S2E4 · Hard Cases

Epigraph: "If I hear the music, I'm gonna dance." - Greggs Nick and Sobotka argue about their illegal activities, which the latter justifies by using the profits to help the union. Ziggy's theft starts a petty rivalry between him and checker Maui. Glekas asks the cousins to get chemicals for him, and a checker points them to a contact. McNulty orders Bubbles to find Omar, who approaches Bubbles himself. Avon rats on Tilghman to shorten the time until his parole hearing. Disturbed by the plot, D'Angelo refuses to do the same. Stringer has his already poor quality drugs diluted. Daniels picks Greggs and Herc for the detail. Both Daniels and Greggs's partners are upset with their new positions. Bunk, Freamon and Russell reveal to Sobotka that the women were murdered, leaving him horrified.

S2E5 · Undertow

Epigraph: "They used to make steel there, no?" - Spiros Vondas Joe Stewart's nephew, Melvin "Cheese" Wagstaff, destroys Ziggy's car over unpaid drug debt. Nick learns that the chemicals are used to make cocaine. Russell presses her old boyfriend Maui for information, who notes that the port's computer system could help her track containers. Freamon is added to the detail and recognizes Sobotka as connected to the dead women. Daniels adds Carver, believing he will not betray him again after being caught the first time, and orders the detail to look into Sobotka's finances and the port drug trade. McNulty tracks trafficked women to New Jersey, but they refuse to talk about the dead woman for fear of deportation. Omar agrees to testify. Stringer's diluted drugs cause problems with sales, and his economics professor advises him to rebrand when he presents his situation as a hypothetical. Stringer, having an affair with Donette, believes D'Angelo is planning to snitch. Sobotka refuses to keep smuggling unless he meets with the Greek, who refuses his demands to quit and offers to triple his payment.

S2E6 · All Prologue

Epigraph: "It don't matter that some fool say he different..." - D'Angelo Omar's testimony gets Bird found guilty, though he responds ambiguously when McNulty asks if he truly saw him kill William Gant. Serge strong-arms his way into a meeting with Joe when asked for help, getting Cheese to compensate Ziggy for his car. The cousins deliver the chemicals and are paid. The detail finds no links between port drugs and the union, so Russell theorizes that they are making money via smuggling. She and Bunk learn how to operate the port computers and discover that Horseface moved the women's container. Greggs and Shardene Innes case strip clubs and learn that madam Ilona Petrovich controls several trafficked women. McNulty and Elena go to dinner, where he lies about reducing his drinking and they have sex. Brianna fails to convince D'Angelo to inform on Tilghman. Stringer has D'Angelo killed despite him taking his full sentence quietly, the death being staged as suicide.

S2E7 · Backwash

Epigraph: "Don't worry, kid. You're still on the clock." - Horseface At D'Angelo's funeral, Joe offers to share his drugs with Stringer if he shares his territory, which Avon rebukes when Stringer relays the deal to him. The cousins begin supplying drug dealer "Frog". Herc and Carver borrow a bug on a free trial and stash it in a tennis ball, but Frog tosses it and it is run over by a truck. Sobotka is horrified when he attends a seminar that advocates for automated port work and leans on the union's lobbyist to hurry his Silo Point efforts. Russell and Freamon use the computer to monitor Horseface sidelining a container for smuggling, which the detail follows to a warehouse and photographs Serge meeting with Joe. Greggs and Prez tail a van of trafficked strippers to an apartment building. Elena rejects McNulty's attempt to restart their relationship. Daniels resists Rawls's attempts to push the women's case to the detail, but they persuade him to take it, leaving Marla Daniels disappointed as he drops his career change.

S2E8 · Duck and Cover

Epigraph: "How come they don't fly away?" - Ziggy McNulty goes on a bender and laments about wanting to work a case to Bunk. He informs Daniels, who convinces Rawls to put McNulty on the detail. Herc has his cousin pose as an informant so he can pay off Carver's bug debt with the reward money and legally tie Nick to Frog. The detail obtains wires after presenting their findings to Pearlman. After learning that the same company owns the warehouse and apartment, the detail suspects the latter is being used as a brothel and McNulty sets up a session after forcing a client to give up Petrovich's number. He almost sleeps with Russell, but leaves when he realizes she is a single mother. The stevedores convince Ziggy to fight Maui, who beats and humiliates him. He buys a duck and gains some popularity when he lets the stevedores feed it alcohol. After his unpaid phone is not shut off and he learns that Russell lied about being transferred, Sobotka realizes the detail is watching him and tricks them by sending a normal container to the Greeks. He calls Vondas, which gives the detail Vondas's number. Sobotka and the Greek agree to move clean containers for the time being.

S2E9 · Stray Rounds

Epigraph: "The world is a smaller place now." - The Greek Bodie's crew gets in a shootout with rivals, accidentally killing a child. He throws their weapons over a bridge, but they land on a barge and are given to the BPD. Major Howard "Bunny" Colvin orders mass arrests, and Bodie goes free after seeing through the bluff that they have his fingerprints. McNulty infiltrates the brothel and the detail busts in to find him having sex with a pair of prostitutes. Petrovich is arrested. Terrance Fitzhugh looks into Glekas at McNulty's request, but finds that FBI agent Kristos Koutris, in league with the Greeks, has sealed his file. Vondas plans to go back to importing drugs rather than distributing them. Ziggy's duck dies from alcohol poisoning and Glekas agrees to buy a stolen shipment of cars from him. Stringer takes Joe's deal, prompting Avon to hire New York hitman "Brother" Mouzone to protect his territory.

S2E10 · Storm Warnings

Epigraph: "It pays to go with the union card every time." -Ziggy As the detail focuses on the Greeks, an annoyed Valchek calls the FBI, who agrees to split work with the detail if they focus on Sobotka. Valchek tries to take Prez off the detail while mocking Daniels, prompting Prez to hit him. Koutris warns the Greeks of FBI involvement and Vondas disposes of his phone, which Bunk and McNulty witness. Cheese is shot by Mouzone when he moves to his new territory. Joe asks Butchie to set up a meeting between Stringer and Omar. Sobotka plans to run for treasurer again despite promising the position to another stevedore. Glekas shorts Ziggy his payment for the cars and beats him when he protests, prompting Ziggy to kill him and be arrested. Vondas orders the Greeks to wipe the warehouse after Glekas's death, an order which the detail intercepts but is powerless to stop.

S2E11 · Bad Dreams

Epigraph: "I need to get clean." - Sobotka The detail arrests several Greeks and stevedores, including Sobotka. They leave Vondas on the street and have Russell tail him, mistaking his lawyer for the Greek while McNulty unwittingly catches the real one in a photograph. Stringer convinces Omar that Mouzone helped kill Brandon Wright, so he breaks into his motel room and shoots him. Mouzone convinces him that he is innocent. Ziggy bitterly expresses his hatred of Sobotka prioritizing the union over him when he visits him in jail. As his arrest tanks his run for treasurer, Sobotka agrees to cooperate with the detail so long as no stevedores are implicated. He goes to meet with Vondas and the Greek to get Ziggy freed, only for Koutris to call them as he arrives to relay that he met with the FBI.

S2E12 · Port in a Storm

Epigraph: "Business. Always business." -The Greek Sobotka's body is found in the harbor and Nick's father forces him to turn himself in. He identifies the Greek in McNulty's photo and mentions Choksey. Bunk and Russell pull Philadelphia footage and find Serge chasing him, which they use to make him explain how the women died. He gives up Vondas and the Greek, but they have already left the country. Fitzhugh realizes that Koutris protected the Greek in exchange for tips to aid the war on terror. Joe takes over Sobotka's role with the Greeks. The union is shut down for voting Sobotka as treasurer, while Davis breaks ground on a condo that will replace Silo Point. Mouzone deduces that Stringer set him up. Herc and Carver transfer to Colvin's unit after being left to uselessly monitor Nick for hours. Daniels saves Prez's job by pointing out that he was provoked by Valchek, who receives a picture of the van in Australia and bids Sobotka a solemn goodbye. Bubbles and Johnny Weeks are arrested for stealing morphine and inform on Joe and Stringer's dealings to go free, who McNulty and Greggs photograph meeting. They convince Daniels to shift the detail's focus to them. Nick is placed in witness protection. Unable to find work at the docks, he stares mournfully at them from behind a fence, then walks away as it starts to rain.

Season 3

S3E1 · Time After Time

Epigraph: "Don't matter how many times you get burnt, you just keep doin' the same." - Bodie Barksdale territory is razed by the city and Stringer decides to work with other dealers rather than fight for new ground. Barksdale soldier Dennis "Cutty" Wise is paroled after 14 years in prison and is given a bag of drugs for his loyalty. He gives it to "Fruit", a dealer for kingpin Marlo Stanfield, for a cut of the profits. Fruit loses it and threatens Cutty when confronted. The floundering detail hopes that Joe Stewart will promote his loud-mouthed nephew when they arrest a higher-up, but Cheese Wagstaff is promoted instead. Burrell warns Daniels that mayor Clarence Royce is stalling his promotion because a separated Marla is running for city council against Royce's ally. Royce suspects that councilman Tommy Carcetti plans to run for mayor when he presses Burrell and deputy commissioner Rawls on increasing crime rates. Colvin goes for a drive in his district and is disgusted when a young boy tries to sell drugs to him.

S3E2 · All Due Respect

Epigraph: "There's never been a paper bag" - Colvin A medical examiner informs McNulty that D'Angelo's death could have been murder, which he tells a disbelieving Donette. Cutty takes a job as a landscaper. Marlo refuses to meet with Bodie when he is sent to talk business. Cheese is forced to put his dog down after it is wounded in a rigged fight, sparking several murders when he has the opponent's trainer killed. The detail mistakes him mourning the dog over the phone as admitting to murder, and the wiretaps go silent after his arrest and release. Pearlman sleeps with Daniels despite McNulty's attempts to be with her. Burrell admits to Carcetti that he is understaffed under Royce. Colvin's officer is shot while undercover and his gun is stolen. Colvin expresses desire for the option to look the other way on safe drug sales, which his men do not understand.

S3E3 · Dead Soldiers

Epigraph: "The gods will not save you." - Burrell Colvin selects three low population neighborhoods to push drug activity into, planning to make sales legal there. Carcetti repeats Burrell's issue in an interview, who Royce forces to take the scorn the news brings but allows him to keep his job for his loyalty. Bunk is tasked with finding the stolen gun, while McNulty investigates the room where D'Angelo died and concludes that suicide was impossible. He and Greggs are irate when Daniels switches the detail's focus to an easier target. Cutty informs his old girlfriend, schoolteacher Grace Sampson, that he has gone straight, but she gently rebuffs his advances. Fruit forcibly takes some of Bodie's territory for Marlo. Omar's boyfriend Dante accidentally kills his accomplice Tosha Mitchell in a shootout following a botched Barksdale robbery. Stringer has her wake guarded in case Omar shows up, who observes it from afar.

S3E4 · Hamsterdam

Epigraph: "Why you got to go and fuck with the program?" - Fruit Carcetti asks consultant Theresa D'Agostino to be his campaign manager, who dismisses his chances due to his whiteness. McNulty discovers Daniels and Pearlman's relationship, and after a drink with Daniels, he wishes them well. Bubbles gets Marlo's license plate for McNulty and Greggs, who pull his records and learn that he has a habit of killing witnesses. As Stringer tries to soothe Donette's worries about D'Angelo, he has a meeting with Davis and property developer Andy Krawczyk that McNulty spies on. McNulty gets Stringer's number from BCCC records, while Prez checks property records and finds that Stringer is building a legitimate developer business. Avon is granted parole. After learning that all his coworkers are felons, Cutty asks Barksdale enforcer "Slim" Charles for work.

S3E5 · Straight and True

Epigraph: "I had such fuckin' hopes for us." - McNulty A deacon tries to help Cutty get into a GED program, but he leaves when Grace does not attend. He helps catch a Barksdale thief but is disturbed by the man being brutally beaten. Bunk learns from a witness that Omar was present at the shootout. Colvin shows drug lieutenants the "free zones" (who dub them "Hamsterdam") and has his men drop off people to freely do business. McNulty realizes that Stringer is funding the Barksdales with his venues. He meets and begins a casual relationship with D'Agostino. McNulty and Greggs observe Marlo rejecting Stringer's offer to join his alliance of dealers, the "New Day Co-Op". Avon is thrown a party upon his release, where Stringer shows him his new apartment.

S3E6 · Homecoming

Epigraph: "Just a gangster, I suppose." - Avon Barksdale The district becomes peaceful after dealers are pushed into Hamsterdam. Bunk asks Tosha's family to contact Omar, who leans on the witness to change his story. He goes to Bunk, who expresses disgust at the sense of community they had when they knew each other as children being gone. Daniels rejects Marla's proposal of reconciliation, but asks Pearlman to keep their relationship quiet for Marla's image. Carcetti manipulates his colleague Anthony Gray into plotting a mayoral run, then hires D'Agostino, believing Gray and Royce will split the black vote. Stringer bribes Davis to speed construction of his first property along. Donette mentions McNulty's visit to Brianna Barksdale. D'Angelo's investigation is closed because there is no suspect. Avon orders his men to take his corners back from Marlo. Cutty corners Fruit but is unable to kill him, deciding to retire for good with Avon's consent. Bubbles tells Greggs about the attacks, but Daniels is more concerned with her and McNulty's insubordination when she informs him. McNulty breaks chain of command by going to his old commander Colvin, who gets the detail's focus reassigned.

S3E7 · Back Burners

Epigraph: "Conscience do cost." - Butchie Marlo feigns retreat to let Avon take over, then has soldier Felicia "Snoop" Pearson attack Poot Carr. Barksdale phone mule Bernard is pressed by his bored girlfriend to hurry, breaking Stringer's rule to only buy two per store. Unsettled by Bunk's words, Omar finds the gun and has it sent to him. Carcetti confronts Royce on a murdered state's witness, who claims they had no money to protect him. Greggs is kicked out by her girlfriend Cheryl after claiming to have never wanted their baby Elijah. Daniels promises McNulty that he will be dropped from major crimes for his treachery after Stringer's arrest. McNulty pulls over Bodie and covertly takes his phone. Freamon and Prez discover that the phone has numbers pre-programmed into it. Carver imposes a tax on Hamsterdam's dealers and buys a basketball hoop for the local kids with the money, but it is quickly destroyed. Herc spots Avon on the street and informs the shocked detail. The episode is dedicated to Geraldine Peroni, who edited several episodes of the first two seasons and died shortly before the third season's premiere.

S3E8 · Moral Midgetry

Epigraph: "Crawl, walk, and then run." - Clay Davis Colvin's friend the deacon is unsettled by Hamsterdam and Colvin takes his advice to fund aid for the area. Cutty is shown an abandoned boxing gym and vows to repair it for the local kids. The detail pulls footage from the chain Bodie bought his phone from and trace Bernard's license plate to a rental company. McNulty gives Brianna evidence that D'Angelo was murdered and blames her for convincing him to go to jail. Avon sends a woman named Devonne to seduce Marlo, but when they meet up again, his underboss Chris Partlow notices her talking to Avon nearby and shoots his car up. Stringer bribes a social services agent for Omar's grandmother's address and has men stake it out. He gives Davis another bribe to ensure he gets a federal grant. Avon accuses him of going soft and he spitefully reveals he had D'Angelo killed, insisting he did it to protect Avon.

S3E9 · Slapstick

Epigraph: "...while you're waiting for moments that never come." - Freamon McNulty gives up on pursuing a serious relationship with D'Agostino due to their intellect gap. Pearlman leans on the phones' manufacturer to secure a wiretap. Sydnor follows Bernard from the rental place as he buys and delivers phones. The detail gives Bubbles money to buy up Bodie's product and force a resupply. Stringer's men shoot at Omar and his grandmother as they leave for church, violating the universal "Sunday truce." Avon tries to convince Brianna that McNulty was lying to her when she confronts him. Cutty finds support in delegate Odell Watkins, who is allied with Marla and likes that the gym is in her district. Carcetti and Gray convince Watkins to fund witness protection. Carver finds a man killed by the Barksdales and drags the body out of Hamsterdam. Colvin threatens to close Hamsterdam to make the shooter turn himself in, and a disgusted Herc tips off the Baltimore Sun. Prez kills a black plainclothes officer on the street after mistaking him for a shooter.

S3E10 · Reformation

Epigraph: "Call it a crisis of leadership." - Proposition Joe Marlo kills Devonne. Avon insists on continuing the war despite the Co-Op's plans to side with Marlo. Stringer learns that the grant was given to another company. The Barksdales ditch their phones, so the detail has Bubbles point Bernard to Freamon, posing as a shady salesman who sells him bugged phones. A reporter arrives in Hamsterdam, who Colvin convinces to hold writing about it for a week. Out of options, he admits to his superiors what he has done and promises to take the fall so long as his men are unscathed. Royce notes the positives of Hamsterdam when Burrell tells him about it. Cutty invites youths to the gym, but Marlo's dealer Justin angers him and he drives them away. After receiving advice to not let the kids fail, he apologizes to Justin. Brother Mouzone returns and has his bodyguard scope out gay clubs for Omar. Dante notices and attacks him but is subdued by Mouzone.

S3E11 · Middle Ground

Epigraph: "We ain't gotta dream no more, man." - Stringer Bell Mouzone tortures Dante for Omar's location and goes to confront him, where Omar explains that Stringer set them both up. Cutty secures funding from Avon and holds a match with another gym. His students are beaten, but he commends them, particularly Justin, for their effort and attitude. Royce leaves Hamsterdam untouched and Burrell suspects he is planning to blame it on the BPD. He asks Carcetti to pass the story to Gray, hoping he can use it to beat Royce. Carcetti talks to Colvin to get the full story, who has him observe Hamsterdam. D'Agostino pursues McNulty, who rebuffs her when he realizes she is looking for dirt on Colvin. McNulty uses a machine that records cell signals and uses it to get Stringer's number. Terrance Fitzhugh secures a quick wire by claiming to the FBI that Stringer is linked with terrorism. Levy tells Stringer that Davis is known for pocketing bribes, and the detail records him planning to kill Davis over the phone. Stringer gives Colvin Avon's address to end the war, while Mouzone threatens to cut off Avon's drug contacts unless he gives up Stringer. He relays Stringer's meeting with Krawczyk, where Mouzone and Omar reveal that Avon sold him out. A resigned Stringer allows them to kill him.

S3E12 · Mission Accomplished

Epigraph: "We fight on that lie." - Slim Charles Colvin passes McNulty Avon's location, who he arrests and tells that Stringer gave him up. Marlo attends Avon's prosecution and they see each other for the first time. McNulty pursues a relationship with Russell and rejects Daniels's request that he stay in major crimes, finding peace as an officer. Royce blames Burrell when the press discovers Hamsterdam, who threatens to pin it on Royce to save his job. Royce placates Watkins, demanding Burrell's firing, by offering support to Marla. With her career safe, Pearlman and Daniels, the latter taking Colvin's job, are free to openly pursue a relationship. Rawls has Hamsterdam raided, where Johnny Weeks is found dead of an overdose. At the subsequent hearing, Carcetti sets up his campaign with a rousing speech about the administration's failure to protect the city. Awaiting his hearing, Prez admits to Freamon that he never wanted to be a cop. Greggs misses a call from Cheryl while cheating on her. Grace again rejects Cutty but expresses pride at the good he has done, and he intimidates Fruit to get Justin to come back to the gym. Colvin approaches Bubbles in the wreckage of Hamsterdam and asks if it was a good idea. Bubbles responds ambiguously and they part ways.

Season 4

S4E1 · Boys of Summer

Epigraph: "Lambs to the slaughter here." -Marcia Donnelly Bodie's man Curtis "Lex" Anderson kills Fruit over a woman they both slept with. Marlo's dealer "Little" Kevin has Cheese Wagstaff's estranged son Randy lure Lex to a vacant house, where Chris and Snoop Pearson kill him and nail the house shut. McNulty politely rejects Daniels's request that he rejoin major crimes. Carcetti grows disillusioned with his campaign after seeing his low poll numbers. Prez is hired as a math teacher at Edward Tilghman Middle School after the principal learns he was a police officer. Randy's friend Dukie Weems is beaten by a rival group of boys, so he and their friends pelt them with urine-filled water balloons and get in a brawl.

S4E2 · Soft Eyes

Epigraph: "I still wake up white in a city that ain't." - Carcetti Having joined Royce's security detail, Herc walks in on him receiving oral sex from his secretary. Stan Valchek advises him to stay quiet for the time being. State's witness Fredo Braddock is murdered, which Carcetti startles Royce with during a debate. Freamon serves subpoenas on Davis and Andy Krawczyk for their ties to Stringer. Greggs hears Marlo mention convenience store owner Andre Tonesin over the phone. Embarrassed by his poor math skills, Bubbles's young friend Sherrod goes back to school. Marlo pays for the school supplies of local boys, but Michael Lee rejects the money and takes up temporary work under Bodie for his half-brother Aaron "Bug" Manigault. Wee-Bey Brice's wife De'Londa presses their son Namond into working for him too.

S4E3 · Home Rooms

Epigraph: "I love the first day, man. Everybody all friendly an' shit." - Namond Brice Greggs observes Andre receiving drugs and leaves just before Omar robs his store. To appease Davis, Rawls appoints lieutenant Charles Marimow as head of major crimes, who shuts down the wiretaps while Freamon and Greggs are transferred to homicide. Royce orders Braddock's role downplayed in the press instead of funding witness protection due to Carcetti's support for funding, upsetting Odell Watkins. He has Burrell promote Herc to sergeant for his silence. The deacon informs Colvin that a UMD sociology professor is studying repeat violent offenders, so Colvin takes him to Tilghman Middle and convinces him to study there. Prez struggles to teach his students and two girls fight in his class, where one slashes the other with a box cutter and is forcibly restrained by Grace Sampson.

S4E4 · Refugees

Epigraph: "No one wins. One side just loses more slowly." - Prez Marlo has a security guard killed when he is confronted over stealing from a store. Joe Stewart asks him for help driving New York dealers off the New Day Co-Op's territory, giving Omar the location of Marlo's poker game to rob when he refuses. Carcetti promises to work with the city's ministers if he wins. Watkins is upset to learn that Royce has pulled support from Marla. Burrell assigns the Braddock case to Greggs to stall it for Royce. Having identified Lex as Fruit's killer, Bunk and Freamon suspect his death upon seeing a memorial shrine in his mother's house. Bubbles learns that Sherrod is cutting school and threatens to leave him, but later ignores evidence of him continuing to skip. Colvin is authorized to study Tilghman Middle and observes class behaviors. Cutty is hired as a truant officer for the school and finds that it prioritizes securing funding by only making students come the minimum amount of days. He takes Justin and Michael to a boxing match, the latter of whom refuses a ride home.

S4E5 · Alliances

Epigraph: "If you with us, you with us." - Chris Partlow Chris kills a woman in Andre's store and orders him to frame Omar. Marimow orders useless raids on Marlo, though Carver identifies where he holds meetings. Herc illegally installs a hidden camera and is spotted by a Stanfield man. Marlo agrees to help the Co-Op if they stop Herc. Valchek informs Carcetti of Royce's case tampering and the press picks it up. Royce blames it on Burrell and sets up Rawls to replace him, while Watkins pulls his support and is wooed by Carcetti. Bubbles finds Sherrod dealing and is attacked by a customer for holding him up. Colvin divides the students into nurtured and groomed for dealing, proposing a program to help the latter. Prez tries to give Dukie new clothes to prevent mockery from his peers, but learns that they were stolen by his family to sell. Randy stands guard for a pair of boys while they have sex with their classmate Tiff at school. He admits his role in Lex's murder to Dukie and his fear that Chris turned him into a zombie, so Dukie shows him another vacant house body.

S4E6 · Margin of Error

Epigraph: "Don't try this shit at home." - Norman Wilson Davis offers his support to Carcetti, only to upsell his support to Royce after being paid. Prez gives Dukie clothes to keep at school and a way to wash up before class. Randy tells assistant principal Marcia Donnelly about Lex to get out of trouble when Tiff accuses the boys of rape. Prez asks Daniels for help, who gives the case to Carver. Omar is arrested. Marlo sets up a fake drug deal to confirm police presence, where Herc detains an innocent woman. Brianna Barksdale cuts the Brices off as her money starts to run out and De'Londa forces Namond to sell for Bodie. Bodie's dealer "Spider" quits the gym after Cutty sleeps with his mother. Royce concedes, leaving Carcetti to win the primary due to the city's heavy democratic lean. He rejects Theresa D'Agostino when she comes on to him.

S4E7 · Unto Others

Epigraph: "Aw yeah. That golden rule." - The Bunk Omar learns that Marlo has put a bounty on him and reminds Bunk that he is owed a favor, and he is moved to a safer facility. Carver has Herc watch Randy while he calls Bunk, but the detective working Omar's case spitefully drops the call. Herc presses Randy to lie when he can only name Kevin as part of Lex's murder, forgetting to pass him to Bunk when he refuses. Greggs returns to the scene of Braddock's shooting and finds a nearby backyard full of gunfire, learning that the resident accidentally hit Braddock during target practice. Carcetti's aide Norman Wilson warns him about the optics of a white mayor firing Burrell. He observes a murder scene and is impressed with how Daniels handles it. Marlo steals the camera. Cutty quits his job. Spider refuses to accept his apology, and he promises his students he will do better. Prez teaches his students probability after noticing them gambling and discovers untouched computers in the school's storeroom. Namond puts together a crew of friends and fights Sherrod over territory. He fails to get himself suspended to avoid Colvin's class. As Bubbles is again attacked, he finds Sherrod using drugs and begs him to come home.

S4E8 · Corner Boys

Epigraph: "We got our thing, but it's just part of the big thing." -Zenobia Prez's class performs poorly on a test save for Dukie. Bug's father Devar returns from prison to Michael's dismay. Colvin has a discussion with his class about the factors that lead them to dealing. De'Londa confronts Bodie about territory when Namond undersells. Bunk hears Andre's story firsthand and pokes holes in it, getting him to recant. Rawls tells Carcetti that Burrell is more concerned with good numbers and Burrell realizes that Rawls is moving against him. Daniels informs Carcetti of Rawls's destruction of major crimes. The woman Herc arrested files a complaint and he claims to Marimow that the bust was justified by an informant. He pulls over Chris and Snoop, who have been killing New York dealers. After he finds a nail gun, they dispose of their weapons.

S4E9 · Know Your Place

Epigraph: "Might as well dump 'em, get another." - Proposition Joe Bubbles identifies Kevin to Herc and is promised help with his attacker. Herc accidentally reveals Randy as his source while interrogating Kevin, too busy with him to help Bubbles when he picks a fight with the man. Carcetti learns that city council president Nerese Campbell was set up to be mayor and promises her the position if he runs for governor. He fails to bribe Burrell into retirement with a raise and promotes Valchek and Daniels for their loyalty, giving the latter control of major crimes. Omar is released and Andre goes to Joe for help, but is handed to Marlo and killed. Namond's crew is confronted in their new territory by Carver, who promises to arrest them next time. Randy asks Prez to buy candy online for him so he can upsell it; Prez agrees if Randy pays him back with clean money. Randy uses his new probability skills to gamble and gives Prez the winnings. Donnelly orders teachers to prep their classes for standardized tests, which Prez recognizes as a ploy to raise test scores and refuses. Namond and his classmates win a model-building challenge and Colvin takes them for a steak dinner, where they are ill at ease in the lavish atmosphere. Uncomfortable talking to Prez, Cutty or any other adult, Michael goes to Marlo about Devar.

S4E10 · Misgivings

Epigraph: "World goin' one way, people another." - Poot Young car thief "Donut" escapes from abusive officer Eddie Walker, but is later caught and beaten. Carver arrests Namond, who is allowed to stay the night with Colvin, impressing him and his wife with his manners. Colvin's class is forced to teach test prep and the assistant superintendent gets a bad impression when she observes them. After failing to scam Carcetti by funding Burrell's raise, Davis asks Campbell to hold off on giving it so Burrell has time to redeem himself. Burrell orders arrests for minor infractions to inflate stats, which McNulty is upset with. Elena is impressed with his turnaround and congratulates him. Daniels informs Carcetti of the arrests, leaving him pleased with him and angry at Rawls for not alerting him. Herc again misses Bubbles's call for help while meeting with Marimow about the camera, so Bubbles takes revenge by tricking him into arresting a minister. Marlo has Kevin killed upon learning that he involved Randy in Lex's murder, and spreads word that Randy talked to the police. Stalking Marlo, Omar is confused when he sees him meeting with Slim Charles. When Michael implies that Devar molested him, Chris visits Devar and brutally beats him to death.

S4E11 · A New Day

Epigraph: "You play in dirt, you get dirty." - McNulty The boys corner and rob Walker. Omar stalks Charles and discovers the existence of the Co-Op, pressing Joe into helping him attack Marlo. Sherrod returns to Bubbles and they are robbed by the man. Donnelly plans to move several students, including Dukie, to high school early. The school board shuts down Colvin's class without the backing of City Hall. Randy is rescued by Prez after being attacked and Carver assigns men to guard his house. Daniels is ordered to take care of Herc when the minister complains, but when he lets him off easy, Burrell advises Carcetti to find a reason to fire Herc. Carcetti pledges to focus on community-based policing and fire those who prioritize stats, only to learn that the school systems are $54 million over budget. Daniels gives Freamon authority over Marimow. Herc mentions the nail gun while talking to Freamon, who learns from Prez where Randy lured Lex. He goes there and notices newer nails on a nearby vacant, realizing Lex is inside.

S4E12 · That's Got His Own

Epigraph: "That all there is to it?" - Bubbles Namond discovers his lieutenant Kenard lied about their stash being stolen, but is unable to beat him and is horrified when Michael does. He picks a fight with Michael at the gym and tearfully tells Cutty that he does not want to be like Wee-Bey. Dukie moves in with Michael when his family is evicted. Cutty tries to stop Michael from working for Marlo but is shot by lieutenant Monk Metcalf. Omar steals Marlo's drugs from Cheese with Joe's information. Bubbles laces a vial of heroin with cyanide in hopes of the man stealing and using it, but Sherrod takes it instead and dies. IA detectives question Herc about the camera. Freamon finds more vacant tombs but is ordered by Jay Landsman to stop and protect homicide's clearance rate. He goes to Daniels, who suggests to Rawls that pulling the bodies now will shift the blame to Royce. Impressed by the idea, Rawls presents it to Carcetti as his own, who authorizes it. Carcetti begs the Republican governor for budget help but realizes he is being set up to look bad if he takes it and then runs against him. Carver's men are lured away and Randy's house is set on fire, badly burning his foster mother.

S4E13 · Final Grades

Epigraph: "If animal trapped call 410-844-6286" - Baltimore, traditional Bubbles turns himself in and attempts suicide but is rescued by Landsman, who sends him to rehab. Freamon discovers multiple bodies and a suspended Herc confirms that the nails in the vacants match Snoop's gun. Carcetti uses the bodies to distract from the budget on advice from chief of staff Michael Steintorf, insisting to a disappointed Wilson that he can solve both problems as governor. Colvin fails to convince Steintorf to keep the class. Prez's students attempt the test in earnest and he is pleased when a third of them perform adequately. Dukie drops out of high school and starts working for Marlo. McNulty convinces Bodie to inform on Marlo after Kevin's body is found, but Monk spots them and Bodie is killed in a shootout with the Stanfields. Marlo gives Bodie's territory to Michael, who kills a rival dealer. McNulty has Daniels add him back to major crimes. Joe buys back his upsold drugs to keep Cheese safe from Marlo, and Omar retires with the money. Marlo has Vondas followed after they meet. Unable to adopt Randy or find another home, Carver is forced to give him to social services. Randy forgives him for his failure and is beaten by other boys in his group home. A recovering Cutty sets up a meeting between Colvin and Wee-Bey, where Colvin is allowed to adopt Namond. As Namond starts his new school, Donut passes by in a stolen car and the two acknowledge each other before he drives off. The episode is dedicated to Robert F. Colesberry, the show's co-creator and Ray Cole's actor, who died between the second and third season.

Season 5

S5E1 · More with Less

Epigraph: "The bigger the lie, the more they believe." - Bunk Chris gets Serge Malatov's picture from courthouse files. Dukie fails to get respect from a crew Michael gives him, who asks him to focus on watching Bug Manigault. As the Baltimore Sun faces budget cuts, Bubbles, sober and living in Rae's basement again, works as a distributor for it. Carcetti refuses the Republican U.S. attorney's offer to assist with an investigation into Davis. His attempts to fund the school system causes budget issues in the BPD, shutting down the major crimes unit and the investigation of the vacant murders. Freamon and Sydnor are given the Davis detail, while McNulty falls back into infidelity and alcoholism.

S5E2 · Unconfirmed Reports

Epigraph: "This ain't Aruba, bitch." -Bunk Bubbles regularly attends NA meetings but is unable to talk about Sherrod's death. Sun reporter Scott Templeton cuts corners on a piece, but the lead editor is impressed regardless and ignores city editor Gus Haynes's concerns. Carcetti commits to running for governor, unable to fix Baltimore 's problems without asking for help from the current one. Avon refuses to let Marlo see Serge until he gives money to Brianna Barksdale. After doing so, Marlo convinces Serge to put him in contact with Vondas. He has a rumor-spreading dealer killed in his home by Chris and Snoop Pearson. Michael is disturbed and lets a child escape the scene, while Greggs finds a second child, Devonne, hiding in a closet. Unable to get federal backing for the Stanfield investigation, McNulty manipulates the scene of an overdose, plotting to fabricate a serial killer that preys on the homeless to get funding sent to the BPD.

S5E3 · Not for Attribution

Epigraph: "They're dead where it doesn't count." - Fletcher McNulty contacts Sun reporter Alma Gutierrez, but the story is only given a small piece. Bunk tries to get Freamon to talk sense into McNulty, but he instead agrees with the idea. He and Sydnor discover that Davis committed a federal crime by lying on a mortgage application. Burrell shows Carcetti crime stats that Stan Valchek reveals are doctored, giving Carcetti cause to fire him. He plans to replace him with Daniels, which a disillusioned Wilson leaks to his friend Haynes. Templeton spitefully publishes a quote that frames Daniels as betraying Burrell when another reporter is given the story. Damien Price testifies against Davis before a grand jury. Dukie persuades a depressed Michael to go to Six Flags America with him and Bug, but he is berated by Monk Metcalf for leaving when he returns. Vondas tells Marlo to clean his money if they do business, so Joe Stewart points him to the Antilles for laundering. Cheese Wagstaff gives up Butchie, who Chris tortures and kills to lure out Omar.

S5E4 · Transitions

Epigraph: "Buyer's market out there." - Templeton A BPD officer assaults a civilian after being humiliated by Kenard and Carver decides to charge him when he expresses no regret. The state's attorney decides to charge Davis locally. Burrell uses his knowledge on Daniels's FBI file to get a lucrative job, smugly revealing he had forgotten much of the contents as Rawls is temporarily promoted in his stead. McNulty and Russell fight, interrupted when Freamon's old partner calls him to report a dead homeless man, who McNulty and Freamon bite with dentures to invent a sexual deviance angle. After watching an unsuccessful interview with a traumatized Devonne, Greggs spends time and eventually bonds with Elijah. Marlo gives Cheese his New Day Co-Op rival to kill. Joe tells Slim Charles that he suspects Cheese gave Butchie up. Vondas insists on primarily doing business with Joe, so Cheese gives him to Marlo and he is killed.

S5E5 · React Quotes

Epigraph: "Just cause they're in the street doesn't mean that they lack opinions." - Haynes Vondas gives Marlo a phone as he takes over for Joe. He gives the number to his attorney Levy, and Herc, working as Levy's investigator, jots it down. Omar breaks into Monk's apartment but is ambushed by Stanfield men, jumping from a balcony to escape. Bubbles is upset when he tests negative for HIV, feeling he deserves worse. Davis begins a campaign to frame his charges as racially motivated. McNulty tells Gutierrez about the bites and her story draws more attention to the case. He and Freamon fake a phone call from the killer, and the story makes the front page when Templeton fakes his own call. Carver receives Marlo's number and passes it to Freamon, who obtains a wiretap on the killer and uses it on Marlo instead when Daniels refuses to pursue him.

S5E6 · The Dickensian Aspect

Epigraph: "If you have a problem with this, I understand completely." - Freamon Omar sets his broken leg and burns one of Marlo's money stashes. Marlo disbands the Co-Op and gives Cheese his rival's territory. Trying to get Marlo on a murder, Bunk interviews Michael's mother, who tells him that Chris was involved in Devar Manigualt's death. Stolen indictments turn up in Joe's shop. Carcetti publicly pledges to help the homeless, which Wilson and Steintorf suggest he could run for governor on. Templeton's article is a national success, so he interviews homeless veteran Terry Hanning for a follow-up. Finding it difficult to stage bodies with increased police activity, McNulty accosts a homeless man named Larry Butler, photographs him, and plots a narrative where the killer sends photos of his victims to the press and hides the bodies. He sends Larry to a shelter in Richmond to fake his death.

S5E7 · Took

Epigraph: "They don't teach it in law school." - Pearlman McNulty calls Templeton through the wire and sells the new narrative while posing as the killer. Freamon pulls messages from Marlo's phone and finds images of clock faces sent with a number. Davis charms the jury into an acquittal despite more damning testimony from Price. Haynes sends reporter Mike Fletcher to canvas the homeless, where he meets Bubbles. Omar robs a stash house and kills Savino Bratton, who is out of jail and working for Marlo. He approaches Marlo's younger dealers, amongst them Kenard, and warns them that he will keep killing Stanfields until Marlo meets him in person. Greggs, having taken Elijah for the night, tenderly reads to him when he cannot sleep.

S5E8 · Clarifications

Epigraph: "A lie ain't a side of a story. It's just a lie." -Terry Hanning McNulty travels to Quantico for FBI assistance in the case and is unsettled by their profile of the killer mirroring him. He admits the truth to Greggs and Russell. Bunk runs the DNA on Devar's body and matches it to Chris. Sydnor realizes that the page numbers of a street atlas match the message numbers and the clock hands are Cartesian coordinates that mark a meeting's location. Carcetti gives half of Baltimore's federal funding to Prince George's County for support in the gubernatorial primary. Terry confronts Haynes and Templeton on inaccuracies in the latter's story. Haynes tries to cut the lead paragraph in Templeton's new story, but is stopped by the managing editor. He is impressed with Fletcher's report on Bubbles and tells him to talk to him again. Dukie looks for a job but can only find work helping a junk collector. Kenard notices Omar disrupting Marlo's corners and kills him when his back is turned.

S5E9 · Late Editions

Epigraph: "Deserve got nuthin' to do with it." - Snoop The Stanfields are arrested after Monk is caught at a deal, while Chris is arrested for Devar's murder. Marlo suspects Michael's involvement due to his recent hesitance and orders him killed. Carcetti approaches Colvin at a student debate where he is proudly watching Namond Brice speak, and is ignored when he tries to apologize about not supporting the free zone project. Freamon blackmails Davis with the mortgage into giving up a courthouse worker that sells information to Levy. Herc intuits while talking to Carver that Marlo was arrested using a wire, which he relays to Levy. Haynes grows suspicious when Daniels refuses to talk to Gutierrez due to Templeton's quoting. He visits WRAMC and confirms with Terry's friend that Templeton lied in his story. Fletcher accompanies Bubbles to NA for his anniversary of sobriety where he finally tells Sherrod's story, though he leaves out his culpability in his death. Greggs reports McNulty's scheme to Daniels after a homeless man turns up murdered. He visits the evidence room and finds the killer's phone is actually Marlo's. Snoop tries to lure Michael to his death, but he ambushes and kills her. He gives Bug money and sends him to his aunt, then drops Dukie off with the junk man for his safety. Dukie asks if he remembers their water balloon escapade, to which he responds "I don't" before leaving.

S5E10 · -30-

Epigraph: "...the life of kings." - H.L. Mencken Another man is murdered and McNulty catches the perpetrator—another homeless man—who is framed as the killer. He and Freamon are fired, though the latter identifies the leak and points Pearlman to Levy. Levy gets Marlo freed because of the wire, but on the condition that the rest stay in jail and he stays out of the drug game. An enraged Sydnor breaks chain of command by going to Daniel Phelan. Marlo gets in a fight with dealers rather than let Levy introduce him to developers. Carcetti becomes governor and Rawls is promoted, leaving Daniels to become commissioner under new mayor Nerese Campbell. He refuses to doctor stats and is served his FBI file, so he resigns after promoting Carver to major crimes lieutenant and becomes an attorney while Pearlman becomes a judge. Valchek takes his place. Templeton fakes a story and wins a Pulitzer Prize, while Gutierrez is transferred. Haynes is demoted but is happy to see Fletcher in his place for his moving story on Bubbles, who is invited upstairs to eat with Rae. Dukie asks Prez for money to enroll in a GED program, who warns him their friendship is over if he is lying. He later sees Dukie giving it to the junk man, who he starts using heroin with. Michael robs Marlo's advisor and Kenard is arrested for Omar's murder. Charles kills Cheese for his role in Joe's murder and starts business with Vondas. Having healed his relationship with Russell, McNulty takes Larry back to Baltimore, stopping and contemplating the city as a montage reveals the characters' fates. After a moment, he tells Larry "let's go home" before driving off. The episode is dedicated to Robert F. Colesberry, the show's co-creator and Ray Cole's actor, who died between the second and third season.