Character Analysis: Jimmy McNulty vs. D’Angelo Barksdale Roll over the arc to uncover analysis, episode by episode Episode 6: EpisodeBlurred 7:Lines OneEpisode Arrest 7: EpisodeDistance 8: andLessons Isolation Episode 6: The Wire Episode 5: Respect and Self-Consciousness McNulty blursMcNulty the lines is Laterstarting between in tothe hisMcNultyfeel episode personal the pressure continues McNulty from to receives show his where the his priorities lay-- McNulty struggles tocoworkers balance his and Episodepassion superiors with5: McNultyThe at the Pager police finds depart- himselfEpisode struggling 9: Game to Day belong in a and professional lives asstrongest he takes confirmationwith his kids his job. along While yet that shopping he is beingwith his made two boys at a his reason as the casement. is threatened While visitingMcNulty by the Judge struggles Phelan with with his Rhonda lackThrough of power surveillance in over the wiretap, McNulty withEpisode him 4:to Oldpick Cases up a distraughta target for Omar.local thenew market,trouble stageAs Omar, ofJimmyhe his has personal recognizescaused thelife Stringer depart-as he attempts Bell andEpisode hasto 10: The Cost vindictive and apatheticPearlman Major toRawls. updatethe hierarchy Though the Judge of theon thepolice case, department. learns that After Wallace has information that could aIn symbol this episode of Baltimore we get ment:drug a clear violence, fellow juxtapositionhisbuild detective boys sits a inplay normal Michaelof“front environment and Santangelo follow,” a for game tells his where kids at theyMcNulty’s his ongoing problems in his personal heEpisode insists 3: on Hierarchies speakingMcNulty truth to expresses power,successfully which a bit of manipulating paranoia when the asked power structure McNulty’sMcnulty’s car, personal his innocent life and kids his are professionalapartment. symbolically life. Though be he used has fulfilled in the case. the life continue to loom as he pushes ahead in the Hierarchies in both sideswhy he of didn’t theMcNulty crimeby come appealing world to that surveilsee Rawlsthe to someoneJudge is looking whenPhelan, without Rawls for Rawls, being any bit strikesnoticed, of dirt with Stringer Episode 11: The Hunt Episode 3: heThe believes Buys in is the for back the common seat—displaying good, this how vio- McNulty’sdemands his wife hasHere, of him, we seehe findsMcNulty’s thatinvestigation. he and is D’Angelo’s His decision interests to eectively involve reveal themselvesThese lines andmade arewe catchanblurred attempt toa briefhavewhen to glimpse himshut heas shows fired.downthe target. McNulty upthe to case,While his saying.shows Stringer up realisticallyat Rhonda’s posed no In the wake of last episode, McNulty begins McNulty andlates the the rest chain of his of commandfellow detectives and subvertshim down—commands hisalso judged by him something to beginget back tohe converge intocan’t the help—his in thehis kidsform in of his Wallace. work comes The back to hurt him in McNulty and Hamartia prioritiesson’s soccer in“With life practice can all expressdue housewith respect Bubbles.themselves. late I’m threatat startingnight, his to wifeThe McNulty’s expressing to is worry up- children, more sincere McNulty dismay allowed at them drinking heavilyEpisode and 11: threatens to drop the case find themselvesownof how objectives under McNulty public and sees scrutinynegates himself theas within the actionrotation. it. When He hetries to subvert theyoung power Barksdale structure crewmember his divorce represents proceedings. a sig- He further McNultycommingles is willing to bargain the whole case if imageset with serves himabout toand show the his people howpersonalthe prospectMcNulty’s who problems claimtohistory. leaveof professional beingto hislove are As sight, fired me his than eventuallyforwife wanting the expects losing to that do them hehis won’t as he went entirely because of his guilt over Kima’s shoot- murder of altogether.Gant,asks two the olderkey witness detectives in D’Angelo’s to hunt bydown pushing a picture forward on the investigation and his professional and personal lives byit havingmeant getting Greggs back, if it meant she Episode 2: The Detail passionsgetting worse.canones subvert Meanwhilewho don’t.” hisjob. personal he is tohaving life.comply get his success carwith from the in the demands parkingnificant oflot path a to normal tail to Stringer.a breakthrough life, for McNulty’sing. What happened toEpisode Kima was 12: Cleaning a sudden Up of Avon Barksdale. The detectivestying have murder seniority cases to the one involving the Rhonda represent him to retain his visitationnever got shot. This case, which he has put all As the unit task forcecase, has beenis brought established, into questioninvestigating by the the press. murder of the womanshe does in notthe complymoral with theirbattle. prior agreement. tragedy. At the same McNultytime, we see is still the wrackedseeds of with guilt over what over McNulty but he recognizes that they are rights with his kids. his wit and soul into working, means nothing to Though the BPD will not ocially say whetherBarksdale or crew. tragedy taking root nearhappened D’Angelo,Episode to Kima. and 12:every He Jimmy’s tells Daniels Resolution that the McNulty displays his disregard lazyfor the and chain don’tapartment. of deserve He their and seniority Bunk discover so he the bullet by Shockwaves are sent through the unithim as Kimanow that is Kima has been seriously injured. Episode 1: Hierarchies not Gant’s status as a witness brought about the person missing every caseopportunity doesn’tMcNulty meanto prevent nearlyanything: it. resolves “Avon to Barksdale quit the case, seeing command by providing Judge Phelan withJimmypiecing the together McNulty the crime and scene. D’Angelo Barksdale in Seasonshot One in a botched sting operation. was just awhat way itfor has meEpisode done to show to 13: Kima, everyone Sentencing but hehow goes back at it Though McNulty is driven by a moralmurder, passion, McNultyusurps knowstheir authority. that it is. This is the (Like when Prez marks a call between Poot and information that Gant has been murdered. Bunk McNulty attemptssmart I was,toeven conquer and harder how theMcNulty fuckedthan system before. upapproaches Epsiodethat theEpsiode department 13: 13:GameFitz Game with Always Always the Winscase Wins in an Episode 1: heThe is Targetultimately hampered by thesort rules of knowledgeand stan- that fuels McNulty’s passion Wallace, Wallace arranging to come back to Epsiode 13: Full Circle and McNulty arrest Dee for the murder and int- binds him byis, that’ssubverting all.” But its Danielsrules,last whetherditch counters eortWe byDee’sWe seethat to see in bring momcase bothin both findsAvon of theseof him theseto howtrial.in howJersey the It the gameseems lockup game and Jimmy McNultydards of is the introduced Baltimore as Police a detective Department. His Baltimore, “non-pertinent.”) Towards the end of the episode, and errogate him at the station.as he fights to investigateSeason Avon. one is, in essence, about the struggle between individual desire andgoing group aroundmeant the somethingchain-of-command tothat Kima Jimmy’s toand Judgekeeps he bringskeepspassion should its its playersup cleanisplayers the infectious, game in check.in check.and as Jimmyhis Jimmythe responsibility rest and and the the to who is professionally,superior ocer, as well Major as personally Rawls, does not disguise and go back to work so they canrest findhisrest of family: theofher closethe unit unit ofrealize therealize first their their season strategy strategy both to the haveto havewords Later, McNulty has some answering to do of his Phelan or threatening to exposeof DAhis unitLevy’s goes along with what ultimately invested inhis his disdain work. forThe McNulty, first episode warning begins him that his goals. This theme is most evident in the character arcs of D’Angelo Barksdale andattackers. thethe case case triedof triedDee right andright through Jimmy through thecome the feds backfeds is not isaround not in own as Lt. Daniels is alerted to the fact that Mc- unsavory ties to the Barksdale amountsorganization. to subverting the mouths the chain of others. of command. Poot teaches the to illustratepenchant the ways for in insubordinationwhich he struggles will to have its going“Thisgoing to rightwork.to work. here Meanwhile, Meanwhile, is part of Dee’s the Dee’s game, mother mother Dee. Nulty has gone behind his back to Phelan.Jimmy McNulty. Both D’Angelo and McNulty occupy the lower levels of theirBut he canorgan- never succeed the way he wantsfinds to.Andfinds him without himlesson in lockupin lockup thehe learnedgame, and and talks this talksfrom him whole himDee down downfamilyin the by by Pit, operate withinconsequences. the rules of Rawls’ his work moment environ- of foreshadowing He is prevented by other people’sIn order ambitions to pressingmakewouldpressing to up showinguponbe for upondown what his his howinobligations he theobligations hisbelieves fucking own to eorts wasTerracehisto his family a have family living prop- ment as hemanifest attempts themselves to lead a fight as the against season goes on izations: the illegal drug trade and the Baltimore police department, respectively,get ahead in their career. moral mistakemembers.omembers. of scraps. pursuingagated Shit, the the we game. probablycase Stringer(and wouldn’t getting and Jimmy what he identifies as a large part of the crime and both struggle with systems that seek to destroy them. D’Angelo