We know how much you love The Wire, you know how much we love The Wire—everybody here loves The Wire, okay? Which is why we assume that you’re already planning some kind of celebration to mark its 15th anniversary, a date you already knew we were aware of, right? So what are we talking here: a marathon? An “Omar comin’’ drinking game? Not bad, but we think you’ll agree that these ideas, while compelling, suck compared to what Michael Kenneth Williams thinks we should be doing to observe this milestone.
While speaking with TV Guide about this auspicious occasion, Williams indicated there are better ways to spend the day than attempting a Clay Davis impression. What Williams suggested Wire fans do is: “Go to your local hood and grab a kid and get a mentorship going, so that we can stop putting our kids in the prison pipeline. That’s how you show your love for The Wire, because those stories are based on real people.”
This is obviously not nearly as easy as sitting on our asses and loading our DVD players or streaming queues, but it would help someone other than ourselves, which is a good thing. As Williams said: “A lot of kids are not given the proper tools to survive in society. We gotta get back into the community aspect of the community healing itself.” And look at it this way: you’re still paying homage to the show, because actors like Williams, Sonja Sohn, Wendell Pierce, and Andre Royo have all pitched in to help the people of Baltimore.