By Adeola Adeniyi<\/p>\n
HBO\u2019s The Wire<\/em>, which aired from 2002-2008, is my favorite drama of all time. In my opinion, almost no other series, except The Sopranos<\/em> and Atlanta<\/em>, measures up to the complexity and fantastic storytelling of the show\u2019s sixty episodes. After eight years of comparing almost every other drama to The Wire, <\/em>I finally found a series just as great and as entertaining titled The Deuce<\/em>.<\/p>\n Brought to life by The Wire<\/em>\u2019s creator David Simon and novelist George Pelecanos, the three-season series focused on pornography, prostitution, and the AIDS epidemic in Times Square during the 70s and 80s. I believe it is Simon\u2019s heir to The Wire<\/em>, although it is absent of a pop culture presence and unlike The Wire<\/em>, the ratings were poor. I ceased recommending the show to friends because they usually stopped watching after the second episode; some barely finished the pilot. Those who were into the pornography and action aspects were disappointed, and others who enjoyed television series possessing complex storylines were turned off by the subject matter.<\/p>\n The world of The Deuce <\/em>was an ugly one of street violence, drug dealing, murder, prostitution, and dirty cops, but the show was unique due to the complexity of the characters. While other series, such as Law and Order: SVU, <\/em>might also focus on prostitution, you would never see prostitutes who check out Charles Dickens’s books from the library or use their profession to fulfill their own film directing ambitions. There were sympathetic characters such as the lead, Vincent Martino, a conflicted bartender sucked into the world of mob-controlled prostitution by easy money; and Candy who saw a promising future for herself in porn after becoming disillusioned with hooking.<\/p>\n