Moral Midgetry
"Moral Midgetry" | |
---|---|
The Wire episode | |
Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 8 |
Directed by | Agnieszka Holland |
Story by | David Simon Richard Price |
Teleplay by | Richard Price |
Original air date | November 14, 2004 |
Running time | 58 minutes |
"Moral Midgetry" is the eighth episode of the third season of the HBO original series The Wire. The episode was written by Richard Price from a story by David Simon & Richard Price and was directed by Agnieszka Holland. It originally aired on November 14, 2004.
Plot
During a subcommittee hearing,
In Hamsterdam, one of the drug dealers is tricked into going into one of the vacant buildings where he is assaulted, bound, gagged, and robbed. He sees several other dealers have fallen for the same ploy. Once the stick-up crew has left, the dealers manage to escape and alert the police. The dealers plead with
Using its serial number,
Upon returning to the detail, the detectives find Agent
At
Omar
Omar has moved his crew over to the East side and is having much more success robbing the dealers there. On their return to the West side they are surprised at Hamsterdam. Omar believes it is too good to be true and refuses to consider it as a target.
Stanfield Organization
Marlo catches a girl watching him in a club and approaches her. Marlo checks that she is there with friends and declines both drinking and dancing. Instead they leave the club together. After they have sex in his car she persuades him to meet her again the following day. She tells him her name is Devonne.
Marlo phones Devonne to arrange a meeting, but feels suspicious. He assigns Chris Partlow to check out the meeting place to see if it is a setup. Snoop sits in the restaurant where Marlo had arranged to meet Devonne and recognizes Perry, a Barksdale soldier, buying a large quantity of food and taking it to a nearby SUV. Snoop reports in to Partlow. Partlow observes Devonne receiving a signal from the car. In response, he has his driver pull up alongside the SUV, at which point Partlow fires a shotgun through the side window, wounding Avon in the shoulder and killing Tater.
Shamrock reports the shooting to Stringer and tells him that Brianna has been calling looking for Avon. Stringer orders Shamrock to keep Brianna away from him and Avon. Slim Charles takes Avon to a veterinarian to address his injuries. Avon meets with Shamrock, Slim Charles and Perry and tells them they are going to wait out Marlo, forcing him to return to the corners to make money. Stringer interrupts the meeting. He warns Avon about the consequences of war. Avon criticizes Stringer as being too concerned with money and having lost his hard edge for the street and warns he may not be smart enough for the business world. Stringer says that thinking before killing does not make him soft, but Avon challenges Stringer's toughness by asking him who he has killed. Stringer reports Brianna's meeting with McNulty and reveals to Avon that he was behind D'Angelo's death, and that his was a life that had to be taken. Avon attacks Stringer, but Stringer overpowers his wounded friend and tells him that he did it for him, to protect him from D'Angelo turning against him. Stringer lets Avon up from the ground, and Avon walks away and sits down, speechless as the screen fades to black.[1][2]
Production
Title reference
Colicchio describes Colvin's plan to create drug tolerant zones using the episode title. It's a metaphor for Hamsterdam, being small in morals because the drug dealers and the drug users are protected by the law there.
Epigraph
Crawl, walk, and then run. - Clay Davis
Davis uses this phrase in his speech to Stringer about the need to prepare himself for moving into the world of federal corruption.
Credits
Starring cast
Although credited, Deirdre Lovejoy, Wendell Pierce, J. D. Williams, and Corey Parker Robinson do not appear in this episode.
Guest stars
- Isiah Whitlock, Jr. as Clay Davis
- Chad L. Coleman as Dennis "Cutty" Wise
- Jamie Hector as Marlo Stanfield
- Brandy Burre as Theresa D'Agostino
- Michael Hyatt as Brianna Barksdale
- The Deacon
- Megan Anderson as Jen Carcetti
- Clarence Clemons as Roman
- Doug Olear as Special Agent Terrence "Fitz" Fitzhugh
- Gbenga Akkinagbe as Chris Partlow
- Benjamin Busch as Officer Anthony Colicchio
- Ryan Sands as Officer Lloyd "Truck" Garrick
- Michael Willis as Andy Krawczyk
- Richard Burton as Sean "Shamrock" McGinty
- Anwan Glover as Slim Charles
- Jonathan Orcutt as Sheriff
- William Zielinski as Gene - public health academic
- Mayo Best as Gerard
- Kelli R. Brown as Kimmy
- Christopher Mann as Tony Gray
- Brandan T. Tate as Sapper
- Ernest Waddell as Dante
- Perry Blackmon as Perry
- Fran Boyd as Needle Exchange Worker
- Tiana Harris as Devonne
- Dee-Dee
- Felicia Pearson as Snoop
The female needle exchange worker is played by Fran Boyd, who was one of the main subjects of David Simon and Ed Burns' previous HBO miniseries The Corner.
Uncredited appearances
- Lee E. Cox as Officer Aaron Castor
- Rico Whelchel as Rico
- Delaney Williams as Sergeant Jay Landsman (voice only)
- Nehal Joshi as Baba Jani manager
- Edward Green as Spider
- Anthony Fedd as Tucky
- Unknown as Tater
- Unknown as Veterinary Surgeon
- Unknown as Deputy Carol Ann
- Daryl Davis as Mondo Mart Manager
Reception
The Futon Critic named it the 15th best episode of 2004, saying "It was the showdown we all knew had to happen as Stringer surprisingly confesses to Avon his ordering the death of his nephew after being chided over his lack of toughness. What follows is absolutely, jaw dropping riveting as Idris Elba and Wood Harris prove themselves to be some of TV's most talented actors."[3]
References
- ^ "Episode guide - episode 33 Moral Midgetry". HBO. 2004. Retrieved 2006-08-09.
- The Wire. Season 3. Episode 08. HBO.
- ^ Brian Ford Sullivan (January 4, 2001). "The 50 Best Episodes of 2004: #20-11". The Futon Critic. Retrieved June 25, 2011.
External links
- "Moral Midgetry" at HBO.com
- "Moral Midgetry" at IMDb