I’ve just been watching Series Three again where Avon comes out of jail ready to stamp on Stringer’s “legitimate” business plans, sort of suggesting that he has no intention of giving up control to Stringer and still treats Stringer as lieutenant.

Series 5 is awesome. I haven’t posted anything about it because I don’t want to post spoilers….

I don’t think it’s fair to say Booker “rides roughshod” over the subplot as I don’t think there really IS a subplot about Stringer ‘manoevering through the ranks to take over’. From calling the shots in season one, Barksdale going behind bars in season two is the final step to really putting Stringer at the top, so there is no manoevering required. The subplot we see in series two and three is not Stringer manoevering to take control, but continuing revelations about just how much control Stringer already exerts in terms of their legitimate business interests, (most of which were also revealed in series one, so clearly this has been going on for some time). If anything, the subplot is Barksdale’s dawning realisation that Stringer is running the show and – in season three – Barksdale’s attempts to regain control and get the organisation back to its roots.

By the way, if you listen to the dialogue carefully, you can tell who the native Baltimoreans are. A true Baltimorean pronounces his city Balmer and his state Murlan. njs