The Sopranos vs The Wire vs Breaking Bad

[Showbags]

There is often plenty of debate about which drama is the greatest to ever hit the small screen. It usually boils down to 3 shows that most people rate as the top 3. The Sopranos vs Breaking Bad vs The Wire. These shows have all in one way or another changed the television industry and set the bar for crime dramas (there may be others but the general consensus is these are the most influential and the best of the bunch).

So my question is what is the greatest show? Now Breaking Bad has concluded we can begin to compare and contrast each show. I will ask people to give each show a 3-2-1 rating for a number of different categories (3 being best and 1 being worst) and explain your answer (if you can). Please tally your scores up at the end of your post. If you can think of any other categories feel free to include them and people can come back into the thread and edit their posts/scores:

• Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty?
• What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man?
• What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week?
• What show had the best cinematography?
• What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run?
• What show was the most unique and groundbreaking?
• What show was the most realistic and gritty?
• What show had the best ending in your opinion?

 

[djrossie16]

I was a bit slow getting into let alone getting (and i blame it on watching the odd late night random episode on tv out of order) the Sopranos but it has incredibly high rewatchablilty i've found more so than The Wire. I find myself youtubing classic scenes a lot and whenever reruns are on Foxtel I can't help but watch them. It's now firmly entrenched in my top 5.

James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano is the best tv performance i've seen. It's epic.

 

[benchwarmer5]

Breaking Bad < Sopranos < The wire

 

[Edd1e]

Going by your categories i'd vote:

• Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty? 3-S, 2-BB,1-TW
• What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man? 3-TW, 2-BB,1-S
• What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week? 3-TW, 2-BB,1-S
• What show had the best cinematography? 3-BB, 2-TW,1-S
• What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run? 3-TW, 2-BB,1-S
• What show was the most unique and groundbreaking? 3-S, 2-BB,1-TW
• What show was the most realistic and gritty? 3-TW, 2-S,1-BB
• What show had the best ending in your opinion? 3-TW, 2-BB,1-S

Total
The Wire 19
Breaking Bad 16
Sopranos 13

A lot closer than i'd thought, since TW is clearly number 1 on my best of list, BB 3rd, and Sopranos 10th...

Imo The Wire doesn't have a leading man, it's strength is the depth of so many characters. Sopranos paved the way for cable tv, so was ground breaking, while The Wire offers nothing new, just shows everything in enormous detail.

 

[Kong]

• Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty?
• 3: Tony, 2: Walter, 1: Jimmy
• What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man?
• 3: The Wire, 2: The Sopranos, 1: Breaking Bad
• What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week?
• 3: The Wire, 2: The Sopranos, 1: Breaking Bad
• What show had the best cinematography?
• 3: Breaking Bad, 2: The Sopranos, 1: The Wire
• What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run?
• 3: The Wire, 2: Breaking Bad, 1: The Sopranos
• What show was the most unique and groundbreaking?
• 3: The Sopranos, 2: The Wire, 1: Breaking Bad
• What show was the most realistic and gritty?
• 3: The Wire, 2: The Sopranos, 1: Breaking Bad
• What show had the best ending in your opinion?
• TBC: Haven't finished Breaking Bad's final season

The Wire: 16 votes
The Sopranos: 15 votes
Breaking Bad: 11 votes

Closer than I expected.

I have The Wire as clearly the best of the 3, and Breaking Bad a fair distance behind the others.

 

[flight23]

Breaking Bad < Sopranos < The wire

The wire < The Sopranos < Breaking Bad

 

[fairlight_cmi]

cbf with a writeup, but here goes:

The Sopranos: 9.8/10
Breaking Bad: 9.8/10
The Wire: 9.7/10

Therefore, in my opinion - Sopranos = Breaking Bad > The Wire.

 

[Showbags]

Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty?

3=The Sopranos
2=Breaking Bad
1=The Wire

I think Tony Soprano was easily the best in this category. He has raised the bar so high for a leading man that even the brilliance of Bryan Cranston couldn't touch Gandolfini's performance. Jimmy McNulty was decent but nowhere in the same league as the other two (though The Wire was less about Jimmy McNulty and more about the overall cast).

What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man?

3=The Sopranos
2=The Wire
1=Breaking Bad

The Sopranos again for me had the best supporting cast (this is a real tough one as all 3 shows had amazing supporting casts). Every character in The Sopranos was interesting or compelling in some way or another, they all had their little traits and history with one another that made the show that much richer for it. The Wire and Breaking Bad had great supporting casts but to me the level of detail involved in The Sopranos supporting cast and their history made that show.

What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week?

3=Breaking Bad
2=The Wire
1=The Sopranos

Breaking Bad had the most intensely compelling storyline of the three for me. It was the one that made me say "I can't wait for the next episode" more than The Wire or The Sopranos.

What show had the best cinematography?

3=Breaking Bad
2=The Sopranos
1=The Wire

What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run?

3=Breaking Bad
2=The Wire
1=The Sopranos

Breaking Bad again for me was the most consistently excellent. It never really dipped in quality. The Sopranos and The Wire had brief periods of mediocrity.


What show was the most unique and groundbreaking?

3=The Sopranos
2=The Wire
1=Breaking Bad

What show was the most realistic and gritty?

3=The Wire
2=The Sopranos
1=Breaking Bad

What show had the best ending in your opinion?

3=Breaking Bad
2=The Wire
1=The Sopranos

TBH I loved The Sopranos ending but obviously I can see why people didn't. It was pretty bold to do what David Chase did. But for wrapping things up and making everything neat and tidy. Breaking Bad and The Wire did this quite well.

My end score:

Breaking Bad=17
The Sopranos=16
The Wire=15

 

[PVF]

I really need to watch The Wire. Am I the only one who finds the first two episodes very slow? It has kind of put me off watching it.

 

[Marlowe]

I really need to watch The Wire. Am I the only one who finds the first two episodes very slow? It has kind of put me off watching it.

I found most of the first season slow. But I stuck with it, and by the fourth season, I thought it was the greatest show ever.

The Wire is like the opposite of BB. It's a slow burner and it will reward patient viewers.

• Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty? Walter >Tony> Jimmy
• What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man? Wire> Sopranos> Breaking Bad
• What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week? Equal.
• What show had the best cinematography? All distinct styles that suited each other. So, equal.
• What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run? Probably Breaking Bad > Wire> Sopranos .
• What show was the most unique and groundbreaking? The Sopranos> Wire> Breaking Bad
• What show was the most realistic and gritty? The Wire, but I don't see this as a negative for the other shows... Sopranos> Breaking Bad
• What show had the best ending in your opinion? The Sopranos> Wire> Breaking Bad

13 - The Sopranos
13 - The Wire
10 - Breaking Bad

Looks about right. Three great shows, I enjoyed them all.

 

[rumply]

• Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty? TS, WW, JM
• What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man? SOP, BB,TW
• What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week? BB, SOP, TW
• What show had the best cinematography? SOP, TW, BB
• What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run? BB, SOP, TW
• What show was the most unique and groundbreaking? SOP, BB, TW
• What show was the most realistic and gritty? SOP, TW, BB
• What show had the best ending in your opinion? SOP, BB, TW

SOP - 22
BB - 16
TW - 10

Clearly all are benchmarks in their own ways - the only criticism I have of all of them is that being so well written, I find myself getting more & more unforgiving of inferior series & often junk them 1/2 way through - yes Dexter I am looking at you but your not alone.

 

[fairlight_cmi]

I find myself getting more & more unforgiving of inferior series & often junk them 1/2 way through.

this

 

[checkraiseulite]

• Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty? 3BB 2TW 1TS
• What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man? 3TW 2BB 1TS
• What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week? 3BB 2TW 1TS
• What show had the best cinematography? 3BB 2TW 1TS
• What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run? 3BB 2TW 1TS
• What show was the most unique and groundbreaking? 3BB 2TW 1TS
• What show was the most realistic and gritty? 3TW 2TS 1BB
• What show had the best ending in your opinion? 3BB 2TW 1TS

Breaking Bad 21
The Wire 18
The Sopranos 9

Not a big fan of the Sopranos. Still prefer the wire marginally ahead of breaking bad in terms of atg series.

 

[Showbags]

SOP - 22
BB - 16
TW - 10

Clearly all are benchmarks in their own ways - the only criticism I have of all of them is that being so well written, I find myself getting more & more unforgiving of inferior series & often junk them 1/2 way through - yes Dexter I am looking at you but your not alone.

Ha same here. Shows like Sons of Anarchy I have given the arse. They are just so far inferior to these other 3 it's almost a joke. They have ruined television for me tbh.

Just a question has anyone seen the HBO show Oz? It has a huge amount of The Wire and The Sopranos actors and actually came before The Sopranos (it was pretty ground breaking in itself). It seems like very few people ever have seen it (it was never shown in prime time due to the graphic violence, drug use and rapes that happened in basically every episode). To me that is the only show that I've seen that has competed in anyway with the 3 already mentioned in terms of compelling storylines, great acting and hard hitting brutal reality.

There are heaps of actors that have been on other HBO shows that were in Oz (this is only scratching the surface):

• Bodie from the Wire plays Kenny Wangler (essentially the same character).
• Herc from The Wire makes a few cameo appearances.
• Carmela from The Sopranos has a large role as a prison guard in Oz.
• Daniels from The Wire plays an undercover cop in Oz.
• The priest from The Sopranos plays a prison guard in Oz.
• Christopher Meloni from Law and Order fame plays a gay serial killing psycho (best character on the show for me).

If anyone hasn't seen it I highly recommend it. If you have seen it what did you think and how far away is Oz from Breaking Bad/The Wire/The Sopranos? To me I think it competes in every way with the other shows.

 

[Edd1e]

Yeah Oz is quality. Particularly early-mid seasons. I rate it higher than the Sopranos.

 

[Showbags]

Yeah Oz is quality. Particularly early-mid seasons. I rate it higher than the Sopranos.

Yeah last season it probably wasn't at its best but was still pretty good. They probably went 1 season too long. Still quality though and I actually reckon the cast was the best cast ever assembled for a TV show.

 

[ExpectToWin]

Have not yet watched SOP or TW

 

[mulz]

Sopranos> bbad> the wire

Oz was a brutal show. Adebisi was the best character ( i think that was his name)

 

[Elixuh]

• Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty? 3BB, 2TS, 1TW
• What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man? 3TW, 2TS, 1BB
• What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week? 3TW, 2BB, 1TS
• What show had the best cinematography? 3TW, 2BB, 1TS
• What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run? 3TW, 2TS, 1BB
• What show was the most unique and groundbreaking? 3BB, 2TW, 1TS
• What show was the most realistic and gritty? 3TW, 2TS, 1BB
• What show had the best ending in your opinion? 3BB, 2TW, 1TS

Totals:
Breaking bad: 16
The Sopranos: 12
The Wire: 20

 

[Gus Poyet]

I found OZ and Shameless better than all three.

 

[NitroFan]

oz was entertaining as hell, but it could get a bit silly. i first got in to it after randomly stumbling across it on sbs one night. used to watch it with headphones on so mum wouldnt hear all the swearing

I really need to watch The Wire. Am I the only one who finds the first two episodes very slow? It has kind of put me off watching it.

no. most people find that. its a slow moving show, but easily the most engrossing experience i've had watching tv.

 

[Showbags]

I really need to watch The Wire. Am I the only one who finds the first two episodes very slow? It has kind of put me off watching it.

Yeah it is slow but highly rewarding if you stick with it. For me ***SPOILERS*** I lost a little interest after they nabbed Avon Barksdale and knocked off Stringer Bell. The next crew that took over were ok but didn't hold a candle to the Barksdale gang imo (funny that I actually never even realised Snoop was a girl until later in the series).

 

[Showbags]

oz was entertaining as hell, but it could get a bit silly. i first got in to it after randomly stumbling across it on sbs one night. used to watch it with headphones on so mum wouldnt hear all the swearing



no. most people find that. its a slow moving show, but easily the most engrossing experience i've had watching tv.

Yeah Oz is not exactly a show you wanted your mum to know you were watching. I saw it on SBS all those years ago as well and bought the entire series when it came out on DVD. It is brutally violent but the actual storylines are compelling and interesting and every characters little storyline is interesting in one way or the other. The rivalry between Beecher and Schillinger was legendary.

 

[Percel]

• Who was the best leading man: Tony Soprano or Walter White or Jimmy McNulty? 3 JM WW 2 TS 1 Jimmy was representative of most normal blokes
• What show had the best supporting cast behind the leading man? TS 3 TW 2 BB1
• What show had the most compelling storyline which made you want to tune in each an every week? BB 3 TS 2 TW 1
• What show had the best cinematography? BB3 TW 2 TS 1
• What show was the most consistent in its quality throughout its run? TW 3 BB2 TS 1
• What show was the most unique and groundbreaking? TS 3 TW 2 BB1
• What show was the most realistic and gritty? TW 3 TS 2 BB 1
• What show had the best ending in your opinion? TS 3 BB 2 TW 1

The Wire 17
The Sopranos 16
Breaking Bad 15

 

[750mlPump]

I think people on this forum are being blinded by how great Walter White is as a character. Outside of Mike the lack of character development in BB's secondary characters means it will never be in TW or TS league. Hank, Marie and Skylar all started out as simple characterures and it wasnt until season 3 until any of them developed subtleties. Similarly, Walt Jr, the neo-nazis and Lydia all start and end, as stock figures.