S03.E05: Straight and True

[Rinaldo]

Story byDavid Simon & Ed Burns. Teleplay by Ed Burns. Directed by Dan Attias.

 

Colvin tries to promote his plan a different way. McNulty talks to Bell.

[Constantinople]

One of the funniest scenes occurs in this episode when Stringer asks what his parliamentarian in training, Shamrock, is doing:
 

Stringer: Yo. Motherfucker, what is that?

Shamrock: Robert Rules say we got to have minutes for the meeting, right? These the minutes.

Stringer: Nigga, is you taking notes on a criminal fucking conspiracy? [Grabs notepad from Shamrock] What the fuck is you thinking? [Tears out minutes and crumples them]

Partly it's the idea, introduced in the season opener, that someone would use Robert's Rules of Order to run a crime meeting (Of course that someone would be Stringer).

Partly it's Shamrock following Stringer's lead so seriously, or literally, or enthusiastically, that he loses the forest for the trees.

Partly it summarizes Stringer's desire for respectability, while recognizing that perhaps that just may not be possible.

[ToxicUnicorn]

What an inspired running gag.

 

Two and a half seasons in, and I'm getting used to the dialogue.  Every time I try to think about that fact, all I get is cognitive dissonance.

 

So far, this season seems much more about a day in the life storytelling than about any stories going anywhere.  That's ok with me, but it does seem to be different.

 

Interesting to watch the growing divide between Stringer and Avon, and how Stringer keeps managing Avon. 

 

I felt sorry for Bubs at the beginning of the episode, trying to negotiate for more cash from Kima.

[scowl]

The thing I remember most about this episode is that Stringer expresses emotion (using his face) three times, although snickering at McNulty's joke at the copiers may have been a front. As Butchie said, talking to Stringer is like "talking to a dead man".