The Wire: Omar. ***SPOILER INFO***

Good question I never thought about it to be honest.

Omar was killed off the way he was because you can't leave B'more behind. If you try to B'more will kill your friend savagely and have one of its little, screwed-up, soon-to-be-Marlow-if-he-makes-it-to-he's-22, children shoot you in the face when you're buying cigarrettes upon your return to avenge savagely murdered friend.

There was a series of NPR segments on this, with the writers, and with the actor who plays Omar.

The answer to the first is yes. That was a deliberate choice on the writer's part made for that particular reason. The answer to the second is "read what you want into it" - the scar was not placed there on purpose. It is an actual scar from an accident the actor was in when he was young. The producers left it there.

I saw the killing as a succesful case of building a mythical personna and then crashing that very same myth down and bringing you back to reality.

I read an interview with David Simon in which he claimed that the message of "The Wire" was that flawed institutions and official malaise can destroy a person and a society. In that context, Omar's death makes a lot of sense as a microcosm of the show. He was amoral in some respects, but had redeeming qualities. However, the system which he helped create inevitably destroyed him.

Simon also mentioned that he tried to fashion his characters as tragic heroes: each with hamartia. Omar's was pride. He obviously thought himself cleverer than anyone else but was eventually brought low by his least sophisticated enemy.

As an aside, I'm not as impressed with Omar's character as everyone else seems to be. He doesn't have any of the obligations that other characters do, nor do his motives extend beyond greed/survival. Given that, I think Stringer Bell is a much more compelling character. Arguments to the contrary are welcome.

I don't think I've further clever insight to offer on the subject of Omar's death, except that unless I remember totally wrong, it's worth noting that Omar is in the end killed by Kenard, who was one of the kids playing on the street after the big shootout in Season 3 (the failed stash house raid, where one of Omar's crew, Tosha, gets killed). Kenard is the little kid who's playing the part of Omar, as it's clear that the neighbourhood kids idolize Omar (which is referred in that brilliant dialogue between Omar and Bunk later on in the season). Then few seasons later when Kenard is in the game, he sees Omar limping along (after being crippled by the fall after a shootout with Marlo's crew) and no doubt sees himself an opportunity to become a player himself. Very Jesse James/Robert Ford-ish. Funnily enough, the real-life Omar, Donnie Andrews actually got out of the game and is doing well these days. And as a somewhat OT note, to me Frank Sobotka was easily the most tragic and complex character in the series (actually, I loved all of the dock gang). Chris Bauer did an amazing performance as him. I can't call myself a blue-collar worker, but the characters at the docks were written so well, it was real easy to identify with alot of those issues, even if my background in physical labour is mostly limited to a few summers working in construction and road work. S2 was some heartbreaking stuff (even if S4 is the best season overall). One of my favorite montages from the series, still kinda difficult to watch. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMe-3jFdwLY Frank Sobotka: We used to make shit in this country, build shit. Now we just put our hand in the next guy's pocket.

Season two was not nearly as tight as season 1 (which I felt was the best overall), but it had the most compelling character in Frank Sobotka. Unlike some of the other characters, there was nothing exagerrated or outsized about Frank. He was played perfectly as a decent guy who is not particularly greedy, not particularly mean, but has the fatal flaw of wanting things "the way they were", and "the way things were" in his corner of the world is not even that much - steady work, decent pay. That was it. He wasn't trying to get rich quick, or even get rich.

Burrell was also in Ziggy's category. The people who were only out for themselves are the least sympathetic in the show. Also, Marlo's people, especially compared with Barksdale's operation, were loathesome. The more I think about it though, the more I think Marlo was written that way so the audience could see Barksdale for what he really was. Over the course of the first season, I grew sympathetic to the Barksdale people, but clearly they're only the more-polished version of Marlo's crew.

Last night I watched the episode in which Omar is gunned down. Made me quite sad. First Stringer, then Prop Joe, now Omar...

Dang i remember seeing it, but forgot what happened. Anywho i guess i should get back to the wire watching.