"An anatomy lesson in US dysfunction"

It's hard to believe that it's now ten years since the conclusion of The Wire, David Simon's sprawling, hugely ambitious "novel for television". In this Guardian article, Dorian Lynskey talks to many of the hitherto unknown cast members made famous by their roles in the show and establishes just what made it such a revolutionary show in terms of subject matter, style and objective. It makes me want to start watching it all again (well, apart from the fifth and final season, perhaps) and decide once and for all whether I prefer it to both Six Feet Under and Breaking Bad.

I haven't seen any of Simon's next venture, The Deuce, but he's now working with several former collaborators (including novelists George Pelecanos and Dennis Lehane) on a new project called A Dry Run about US involvement in the Spanish Civil War. It promises to be worthy of investigation at very least.