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The Wire

The Wire: Season 2

  • 2003
  • 12 episodes

McNulty's on harbor patrol. Daniels is in the police-archives dungeon. Prez is chafing in the suburbs. Greggs has a desk job. The detail may be on ice, but corruption marches on . . . and a horrific discovery is about to turn the Baltimore shipping port inside out. Setting up in the wake of the first season's joint homicide/narcotics detail that exposed a major drug operation — and left its members stigmatized and reassigned — the second season expands to include not only familiar drug dealers, but a group of longshoremen and organized crime members who are caught up in a major homicide case.

Season 2 of The Wire premiered on June 1, 2003 and has 12 episodes, from "Ebb Tide" to "Port in a Storm". The last episode aired on August 24, 2003.

Where to watch The Wire

In the United States, you can stream The Wire on HBO Max. You can also buy it on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies and Fandango At Home. It is on streaming services in 97 countries.

Where to watch

Episodes

  1. Episode 1Ebb TideAired June 1, 2003

    'Ain't never gonna be what it was.' -- Little Big Roy Det. Jimmy McNulty--exiled to police-boat duty--makes a shocking discovery in the Baltimore harbor. Bodie drives to Philly to make a connection for the Barksdale crew and Stringer Bell takes the train to New York to feel out the crew's reticent suppliers.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Ed Bianchi and Steve Shill
    • Written by David Simon and Ed Burns

    Guest stars

    • J.D. Williams Bodie Broadus
    • Domenick Lombardozzi Herc Hauk
    • Jim True-Frost Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski
    • Delaney Williams Jay Landsman
    • Pablo Schreiber Nick Sobotka
    • Chris Ashworth Sergei 'Serge' Malatov
    • Charley Scalies Thomas 'Horseface' Pakusa
    • Melanie Nicholls-King Cheryl
  2. Episode 2Collateral DamageAired June 8, 2003

    'They can chew you up, but they gotta spit you out.' -- McNulty Major Valchek gets back at Sobotka for the church gift fiasco, and a feud begins. Valchek ups the ante by asking Deputy Commissioner Burrell for a detail to go after Sobotka. Avon Barksdale continues to run his empire from a prison cell--counseling his nephew D'Angelo and going after a guard who is harassing the organization's convicted hit-man Wee-Bey.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Ed Bianchi
    • Written by David Simon and Ed Burns

    Guest stars

    • Frankie Faison Ervin Burrell
    • Lawrence Gilliard Jr. D'Angelo Barksdale
    • Seth Gilliam Ellis Carver
    • Jim True-Frost Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski
    • Delaney Williams Jay Landsman
    • Pablo Schreiber Nick Sobotka
    • Chris Ashworth Sergei 'Serge' Malatov
    • Charley Scalies Thomas 'Horseface' Pakusa
  3. Episode 3Hot ShotsAired June 15, 2003

    'What they need is a union.' -- Russell Bunk and Freamon chase their crime scene, a container ship, to Philly. Lt. Cedric Daniels--disgusted with his exile to the evidence control unit--makes it known that he's leaving. On orders from Barksdale, Bell finds a way to set up the correctional officer who's been harassing Wee-Bey. McNulty pursues the identity of the Jane Doe found floating in the harbor.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Elodie Keene
    • Written by David Simon and Ed Burns

    Guest stars

  4. Episode 4Hard CasesAired June 22, 2003

    'If I hear the music, I'm gonna dance.' -- Greggs Sobotka reprimands his nephew Nick for stealing the cameras and orders him to bring the cargo back--too late. McNulty is on a self-assigned moral mission to identify his floater, but his old partner, Bunk, says they have a more pressing matter at hand: to find Omar so he can testify against a Barksdale trigger man in one of last year's murders.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Elodie Keene
    • Written by David Simon and Joy Kecken

    Guest stars

    • Michael Kenneth Williams Omar Little
    • Andre Royo Bubbles
    • Frankie Faison Ervin Burrell
    • Lawrence Gilliard Jr. D'Angelo Barksdale
    • Domenick Lombardozzi Herc Hauk
    • Michael Kostroff Maury Levy
    • Jim True-Frost Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski
    • Delaney Williams Jay Landsman
  5. Episode 5UndertowAired June 29, 2003

    'They used to make steel there, no?' -- Spiros Vondas Ziggy loses his prized Camaro to drug dealers. Unable to dump the homicide investigation on other agencies, Rawls measures Bunk for the blame, if the cases go unsolved. Homicide detectives hand out grand jury summonses to stevedores involved in the homicide case, and port cop Beadie Russell talks to an old boyfriend to find out how cargo disappears from the docks.

    • 58m
    • Directed by Steve Shill
    • Written by David Simon and Ed Burns

    Guest stars

    • Michael Kenneth Williams Omar Little
    • Andre Royo Bubbles
    • J.D. Williams Bodie Broadus
    • Lawrence Gilliard Jr. D'Angelo Barksdale
    • Seth Gilliam Ellis Carver
    • Domenick Lombardozzi Herc Hauk
    • Jim True-Frost Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski
    • Callie Thorne Elena McNulty
  6. Episode 6All PrologueAired July 6, 2003

    'It don't matter that some fool say he different...' -- D'Angelo Trying to let go of police work and return to his marriage, McNulty gives up on identifying his Jane Doe. In their investigation of Sobotka, the detectives discover a pattern in the computer and explain the connection to Daniels, but he still won't take the murders. Sobotka tries to play the political game on behalf of his union.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Steve Shill
    • Written by David Simon and Ed Burns

    Guest stars

  7. Episode 7BackwashAired July 13, 2003

    'Don't worry, kid. You're still on the clock.' -- Horseface Russell tells Sobotka the investigation is over, but, in fact, a port computer is cloned, and when a container goes missing, the detectives follow. Simultaneously, Greggs and Prez tap into a circuit of Russian prostitutes. With two sets of evidence, the detail goes to Pearlman. Neither crime merits wiretap--but a drug connect could give the case legs.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Thomas J. Wright
    • Written by David Simon and Rafael Alvarez

    Guest stars

    • J.D. Williams Bodie Broadus
    • Seth Gilliam Ellis Carver
    • Domenick Lombardozzi Herc Hauk
    • Jim True-Frost Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski
    • Delaney Williams Jay Landsman
    • Callie Thorne Elena McNulty
    • Pablo Schreiber Nick Sobotka
    • Chris Ashworth Sergei 'Serge' Malatov
  8. Episode 8Duck and CoverAired July 27, 2003

    'How come they don't fly away?' -- Ziggy McNulty is back to his old self, on a drunken binge. Urged by fellow stevedores to fight Maui, Ziggy is again humiliated. Worried about McNulty, Bunk tries to get Daniels and Rawls to take him on. After some labor, the wiretap is up--just in time to catch another disappearing can. Sobotka meets with The Greek and Vondas, and they decide to change up.

    • 58m
    • Directed by Dan Attias
    • Written by David Simon and George Pelecanos

    Guest stars

    • J.D. Williams Bodie Broadus
    • Seth Gilliam Ellis Carver
    • Domenick Lombardozzi Herc Hauk
    • Jim True-Frost Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski
    • Pablo Schreiber Nick Sobotka
    • Chris Ashworth Sergei 'Serge' Malatov
    • Charley Scalies Thomas 'Horseface' Pakusa
    • James Ransone Chester 'Ziggy' Sobotka
  9. Episode 9Stray RoundsAired August 3, 2003

    'The world is a smaller place now.' -- The Greek Bodie's effort to improve sales ends disastrously, forcing Bell to rethink his strategy. Ziggy pulls Johnny Fifty into a new caper that should make the Greeks pay off big. McNulty, undercover and outnumbered in the brothel, awaits 'rescue.' Daniels and Pearlman stay cool as Valcheck fumes over the change of targets--and Burrell pulls the rug out from under him.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Tim Van Patten
    • Written by David Simon and Ed Burns

    Guest stars

    • J.D. Williams Bodie Broadus
    • Frankie Faison Ervin Burrell
    • Seth Gilliam Ellis Carver
    • Domenick Lombardozzi Herc Hauk
    • Jim True-Frost Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski
    • Robert Wisdom Howard 'Bunny' Colvin
    • Delaney Williams Jay Landsman
    • Pablo Schreiber Nick Sobotka
  10. Episode 10Storm WarningsAired August 10, 2003

    'It pays to go with the union card every time.' -- Ziggy The Detail uses satellite technology to its advantage. Bodie is unhappy that Proposition Joe's people are slinging on his turf, but business flows--until a new face arrives. Stringer Bell looks to an unlikely solution to the problem. Valcheck visits the FBI in an attempt to get real results on the docks. Ziggy's deal with Double-G goes bad in a big way.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Rob Bailey
    • Written by David Simon and Ed Burns

    Guest stars

    • Andre Royo Bubbles
    • J.D. Williams Bodie Broadus
    • Seth Gilliam Ellis Carver
    • Domenick Lombardozzi Herc Hauk
    • Jim True-Frost Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski
    • Delaney Williams Jay Landsman
    • Merritt Wever Prissy
    • Method Man Melvin 'Cheese' Wagstaff
  11. Episode 11Bad DreamsAired August 17, 2003

    'I need to get clean' -- Sobotka With the clock ticking, the Detail makes a desperate move, and Daniels reams out Landsman for dropping the ball. Nick's deceit is in the open as Sobotka is overwhelmed by bad news. The Greeks ease out of an encounter with the Detail, and Omar's suspicions are validated. The Detail hopes to find Vondas's boss, and Nick hopes to repair relations with the Greeks.

    • 59m
    • Directed by Ernest R. Dickerson
    • Written by David Simon and George Pelecanos

    Guest stars

  12. Episode 12Port in a StormAired August 24, 2003

    'Business. Always business.' -- The Greek The Detail has a setback, while Russell and Bunk revisit Philly to look for evidence. Brother Mouzone talks with Stringer Bell about their agreement, leaving Bell to contend with a dissatisfied Avon Barksdale. Bubbles and Johnny pull another caper and McNulty and Greggs return to the Westside, where they discover new connections.

    • 1h 3m
    • Directed by Robert F. Colesberry
    • Written by David Simon and Ed Burns

    Guest stars

Season cast