Benjamin Busch

In the Season Three premiere, a wave of urban reform brings down the notorious Franklin Terrace public housing towers, forcing the Barksdale drug crew to find a new home. Stringer Bell sets up shop using a new sales strategy as he awaits the return of Avon. McNulty, Greggs and the Detail look to make a case against Stringer with a wiretap on a drug ring run by his ally, Proposition Joe. Assigned to the Western District drug unit, Carver and Herc notch up the pressure on dealers. Burrell is caught in a power play by Councilman Tommy Carcetti. Mayor Clarence Royce, facing re-election next year, puts Burrell on notice that crime stats must come down. The order from on high has put police commanders in the hot seat during the new Comstat meetings. Daniels, too, is confronted by the reach of City Hall, as his promotion to major may be derailed. A rash of murders cuts short Bunk's day at the ballpark. On the eve of his parole, Cutty Wise is offered a new start on the outside by Avon.

In the Season Four premiere, four boys from West Baltimore--Michael, Namond, Randy and Dukie--play out their summer vacation in the streets. Having failed to capture a potentially valuable homing pigeon, the boys are stirred to action when Dukie is beaten up, and Randy concocts a retaliation plan against the rival gang. The action is slower at Bodie's corner, giving young Namond an excuse to take off early. Meanwhile, Marlo has solved the problem that baffled Stringer Bell: how to maintain discipline--read: murders--without getting police attention. At the detail's office, Freamon and Sydnor press Pearlman to issue City Hall subpoenas. With the mayoral race heading into its final weeks, Mayor Royce and his primary challenger, Tommy Carcetti, hit different campaign trails. Carcetti's deputy campaign manager, Norman Wilson, and his campaign guru, Theresa D'Agostino, try to keep their candidate focused. Prez preps for a new career in higher education and McNulty turns down a promotion.

Colvin feels the sting of Burrell and Rawls during a Comstat assessment of his district's felony numbers; a blown wiretap forces Daniels's detail to turn to a new target; Proposition Joe cautions Stringer Bell that the police have been tapping phones. Carcetti continues to curry favor in Mayor Royce's inner circle with a scheme for jump-starting a police-academy class for Burrell. Omar and crew get more than they bargained for during a stick-up of a Barksdale stash house; Colvin has a new crime-reduction plan. Already awash in police work, Bunk is dispatched on a mission impossible. McNulty probes deeper into D'Angelo Barksdale's prison suicide, while Marlo suggests Fruit get his slumping sales numbers up with a persuasive visit to Bodie's crew. Cutty struggles to stay on the straight and narrow, still hopeful as he tries to reconnect with his long-ago girlfriend, while a group of colleagues gather to pay tribute and provide a proper sendoff to a friend at an old-time Irish wake.

Stringer Bell gets an education in construction management; Bunk uses shoe-leather to catch up with Omar and deliver a searing message; a frustrated Colvin unleashes the troops on the corner boys, ignoring his new edict; Avon sends Cutty and Slim Charles against Marlo; Bubbles refocuses the picture for Greggs; Donette receives Brianna's blessing of her hookup with Stringer and lets slip that McNulty visited about Dee. Daniels keeps up the front of marriage to Marla as she pursues a new career at City Hall; McNulty backdoors Daniels with a visit to Colvin; and Burrell hears from the mayor that he should take Baltimore's rising body count very personally.

Herc discovers a blast from the past, which he belatedly reveals to his ex-colleagues. Daniels blows a gasket over the real reason the detail was reassigned. Stringer Bell learns from Donette that she's told Brianna about McNulty's visit. Bubbles makes a sales call and finds Johnny during the long, strange trip. Omar grapples with guilt as Butchie points out its pitfalls. Greggs stumbles into Cheryl, forcing them to confront the realities of their relationship. Carver announces a new tax initiative to help the unemployed. After a traffic stop turns bad, Colvin is forced to explain Amsterdam to members of the detail. Bunk receives a gift-wrapped surprise. Councilman Carcetti confronts Mayor Royce after learning that nothing's been done about the witness protection issue. McNulty tracks Terri to Washington, where he discovers the ups and downs of a long-distance relationship. Marlo dispatches a drive-by on a Barksdale corner from the calm of his pigeon coop.