I will do this at some point I'm sure, but that's a lot of episodes.

You only have to start with the first season!

"The more you know about insects, the harder it is to believe in a rational god."

I don't see that as nihilism, though. Could be simple atheism, gnosticism, or any number of thought systems that don't rest on meaninglessness. I mean, I can think that evolution is cruel and often leads to absurd results and/or I can think that evolution is beautiful in its ornate pointlessness, but what I think about evolution doesn't say much about how much I love my kids, y'know.

I think it's a fairly simple proposition, and I think many people have had the kind of life experience that supports that conclusion.

I dunno. Seems to me that any nihilist worth his or her (but probably his, for the same reason that your typical libertarian is a he) salt would be an agent of mass mayhem with a short and unhappy life. But I would wager that anyone who would identify themselves as a nihilist is both fairly well-educated and somewhat deluded. And would undoubtedly do quite a bit to avoid unnecessary physical pain and/or death, neither of which should hold any meaning for the Platonic nihilist.

Bringing this back around to my criticism of Danny Boyle and Chuck Palahniuk, their protagonists (in the movies I was criticizing, at least) don't strike me as the terrifying sort of agent-of-destruction nihilist (say, Anton Chigurh in No Country For Old Men [I almost wrote "County" there, which would be quite a different movie]) but the I-just-discovered-Nietzche-and-don't-really-understand-him sort of privileged nihilist who was common in Philosophy 101 classes.

You only have to start with the first season!

::laughs the laugh of a Wirefiend who knows exactly what kind of crack java is peddling::

I almost wrote "County" there, which would be quite a different movie

Maybe an even better movie!

I wonder what county would work, though.

Megan, they really are separate stories...there are little callbacks throughout for geeks that like that kind of thing, but some of my friends have found The Wire's pacing like waiting for paint to dry.ETA: Hec is quite right. Every dealer knows to make the first hit free.

but some of my friends have found The Wire's pacing like waiting for paint to dry.

Those people need to Shut UP!

I'm sorry. I'm tired of people bitching about the pacing on The Wire or Mad Men. It's not about pushing all your narrative buttons in one hour. There's set up and backstory and grace notes and depth about the culture and all that stuff pays off over the run of the season.

Yes, each episode should satisfy on its own merits but you can't bitch about the pacing because this is a kind of long form narrative and that's the way it works. And it works well. (Points at The Wire and Mad Men, gleaming in their obvious awesomeness.)

This is not a Quinn Martin production with four acts and beats to hit before the commercials.

I completely agree. When I want adrenaline, I watch "Kidnapped". But I also think that a lot happens in both "The Wire" and "Mad Men"; it's just more subtle. But something is actually happening every second, if you pay attention. Damn, it's a lot like baseball, actually. And people complain about baseball being too slow. When I want football or hockey (read: urgency and adrenaline), I watch "Kidnapped" or "Damages". When I want baseball or soccer (a slower, powerful narrative captured over time), I watch "The Wire" or "Mad Men" or "The Sopranos". They all have their appeal.

I love The Wire but still think baseball is boring. Otherwise, though, neat use of sports metaphors, javachik.

Yeah, baseball isn't for everyone. It doesn't need to be. But thanks for the compliment.

Lotsa spicy brains on show in here today. Me like.