The bigger the lie, the more they believe

The quote above, attributed to Bunk Moreland, typifies Season Five of The Wire and describes this week’s episode succinctly. Episode Five marks the halfway point to the final season of this epic television series and we’ve been witness to enough lying to fill a newspaper and several police reports.

That just happens to be where most of the falsehoods are going down too. Detective Jimmy McNulty’s convoluted scheme to convert phantom homeless murders into a case worthy of more department resources to go after their real target, Marlo Stanfield, is falling on deaf ears until he feeds the story to the Baltimore Sun. Marginally talented and overly ambitious reporter Scott Templeton is just the man to cover this bogus story and he sets out to write it like he’s got a Pulitzer Prize in sight.

The scene where McNulty and Templeton are in the same room talking about a telephone call the newspaper received from the serial killer is simply priceless. Oh what a tangled web they’ve both woven.

Senator Clay Davis is caught in a web of his own doing and may finally learn it is better to give than to receive. When State’s Attorney Rupert Bond announces the indictment against him, Davis threatens to take everyone with him, until Council President Nerese Campbell and former Mayor Clarence Royce smack some sense into his head. Royce’s public stance is markedly different than his private conversations, another example of the art of lying gracefully.

Marlo may have created his own web of intrigue whether he realizes it or not. Having removed Prop Joe as head of the cartel, there is no place to go but down. Attorney Levy can certainly see what’s coming and his new investigator, former officer Herc, may speed the process along. Meanwhile the trap he’s set for Omar may only serve to make Omar madder.

The street is proving to be a tough road to navigate for young Dukie. His cozy little domestic arrangment with Michael has the block boys questioning his manhood. When he tries to work on his street cred, he gets some valuable advice from both Michael and Cutty. “The world is bigger than that [the street],” says Cutty. “How do you get from here to the rest of the world,” asks Dukie.

After a failed pistol practice, “Can’t shoot, can’t fight,” says a dejected Dukie. “You got other skills,” Michael replies, pointing to his head. Before he gets too caught up in the cauldron of deceit and violence, perhaps he’ll get another chance to prove it.

Finally a clean and sober life has Bubbles in disbelief that he’s come out unscathed.