Season 4

Complete listed story — includes the ending

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.