You put it very well. Pawns like Bodie, Little Kevin, Poot and Wallace were dispensable. The reason Stringer Bell was the only person to recognize Bodie is because he viewed the world from a business owner's mindset. Bodie was the low level employee that showed up on time everyday and deserved a small promotion. To everyone else he had little value.
Lil Kevin was good with Chris ,messed up a simple task got took on a ride ,if Bodie had elements of a true crew ,he had spider working ,Bodie needed a partner llke Slim Charles to politic his way to higher gains and new network .
@@darrenjohnson7857 Slim Charles lost his taste for much of it after the Barksdale war and got a quieter gig with Prop Joe but then after Prop Joe's own nephew turns on him, Slim showed everyone that there IS nostalgia to the game and nobody wants to work with a guy who would throw his own uncle under the bus. Slim Charles ends up at kingpin status by the end of the series. He always kept a level head, even when shooting Cheese.
Bodie wasn’t recognized he only used him to go around Deangelo to kill Wallace. He moved up because he was next in line. Even poot moved up. That’s how it is. Stringer ain’t see nothing special he was just a worker. That’s why he tested him to make sure he could follow directions
@@darrenjohnson7857 I loved seeing Slim on top at the end. He and Fat Face Rick would run the connection quietly and probably in a way where they had little to no profile on the street and could invest into legit businesses and launder money that way. The cool part is that even that evil slimeball Marlo totally respected Slim Charles and would never know how Slim came THIS close to murdering him at the end of S3. Slim Charles and Fat Face Rick gaining control of the connection with the Greeks was literally a happy ending for the drug game after evil like Marlo. Slim and Rick would run it like a business and thru the co-op and peace would reign. They both seemed smart enough to never be greedy because there really is enough to go around and like Stringer said, then nobody is going to jail or getting killed.
@@naswiipp no he wasn't. Why is it he was a rat because he knew Marlo was pure evil and makes even a guy who shot one of his best friends to death stop and realize how wrong it is? Literally nobody liked Marlo. Some feared him and some hated him and some were just loyal to what he provided them but we never see anyone truly bonding with Marlo at all. I would imagine Marlo ends up dead or in prison not long after the series ended.
@@flightofthebumblebee9529 Bodie was not friends with Wallace like that. Poot and Wallace were best friends. Bodie and Wallace just happened to be in the same crew. You only saw Bodie and Wallace together in The Pit. Poot and Wallace you saw together outside The Pit constantly.
I would also argue that Bodie's death hit McNulty the hardest as well. I think that when Poot told McNulty that Marlo's people saw Bodie talking to McNulty outside the police station and that was what led to Bodie's murder, something broke inside McNulty and caused him to cross the line and use questionable methods he used in Season 5.
It was more than just Bodie but I'm sure McNulty did think of Bodie often, and how he played a part in his death and how truly pointless the entire back and forth with the drug game really is.
Mcnulty had already crossed that line when Bodie died. Bodie dies halfway through the series finale. By that point, the “serial killer” case had been blown apart and Mcnulty was already doomed to lose his job. Bodies death just made his mental state even worse, and it could be argued was what led to his realization at the end of the show that nothing changes. That scene as he drives out of Baltimore, im sure Bodies death weighed heavily on his mind
Too many wire fans make a mistake in regards to the chess metaphor. Many people regard Slim Charles as a pawn when in reality Slim Charles is a classic Knight. He is hired muscle.
He is a Knight right down to the honor and loyalty to the king's he worked for. Namely, Joe. He followed Prop Joe's last order, to see if Cheese suddenly comes into money, then they'll know he's a traitor. Sure the streets suspected the betrayal, but when Cheese cake up with that 9, then bragged about playing all sides, Charles dropped him.
You're absolutely right about how Bodie kinda slowly grows on you. After the death of Wallace I actually couldn't wait for someone to kill Bodie but when he was finally killed it made me tear up because he'd grown on me so much as a character. Bodie is one of the most tragic characters in a series full of tragic characters.
Bodie had a code and that's why. Yes he was a bad man who tried to talk kids out of going to school so they would sell drugs and stuff, but Bodie never left Baltimore until going to Juvenile Hall. I love to think that if McNulty would've been able to work him just a bit, maybe Bodie could've gotten an ending like Poot got. We see in S4 that Bodie and Poot are forever haunted by murdering Wallace, as they should be. Sometimes that is punishment more fitting than even the longest prison sentence.
Bodie is a young Avon. In fact, the real Avon Barksdale was nicknamed "Bodie." So they are actually the same person, but Simon decided to split them up.
That chess analogy about Bodie’s death was brilliant, loved that. You hit the nail on the head when you said that Bodie creeped up on you and became likeable as the series progressed. Definitely one of my favourite characters. His death scene was tough to watch.
Bodie was a real top G, hard working, loyal, smart and had a big heart. Sad when he died, but that's exactly how the game is, The Wire shows the street exactly how it is.
Aside from a close friend or 2, and of course his loving grandma (who Herc shares a bond with in season 1), Bodie would've been forgotten in a couple of days. Sad but true.
This might be a hot take, but Bodie was actually a piece of shit. Remember how he killed Wallace? Funny how a TV show can make you show sympathy for a killer.
@@in_vas_por8810I mean what else could he do? He was ordered by Stringer to kill Wallace. Wallace was going to die anyways so why also get himself killed in the process?
At least Poot made it out ok. He seemed truly grounded by season 5 in the shoe store and completely lost his taste for all of the street life after getting out of prison and seeing Bodie killed.
Bodies and Poots are all over the place in the streets while hitters like Slim can go anywhere in that world cause good hitters are hard to come by. Personally, I knew a lot more Bodies, Poots, and Wallaces when I was growing up than Slims, probably why I liked the trio from the Pit cause they reminded me of some of my friends from back in the day.
@@Rakasha30 He looks trusting. Thing is who worth their while wants to stick around that. Hanguing next to Joe is full time plus overtime and whatevers left you're still a criminal and a dude who got bodies and opps.
Great video as always but the chess analogy of Bodie’s tragic death is truly superb and one that I never would have noticed myself: O-Dog moving 90 degrees as the knight…wow! It would be amazing to know if that was intentional or just an incredible coincidence!!
All the pieces matter.....Lester. Everything on the Wire was intentional. Even that Lester quote about pieces of evidence can be tied back into chess pieces
Bodie is probably my favorite character now-the fact that his character can make getting shot on a street corner in west Baltimore feel honorable really speaks to how tremendously acted and written his character was
I'll always remember, I actually cried out when he met his fate. It was totally involuntary. I just shouted. Didn't realize just how much I liked him until that moment.
In real life Bodie didn't stay a pawn... The real Avon street name was Bodie so the creators ran the characters parallel to show you avons younger mentality as Bodie....1 of the Easter eggs that blows your mind if you ever discover it...
Avon in the period we see him wouldn't.... But the time period they based Bodie on he wouldn't have a choice and the creators know you'll find out Bodie and Avon are the same person so bodies death on the shows explains why at that time he would have to let Marlo do what he does
@@sedhub8791 uh uh bro bro, according to the show, prop joe even wanted avon to let marlo have those corners. Which his response was fuck them niggas & I ain't no suit wearing dude, I may just be a gangster I suppose, but I want my corners. Avon knew how he got them corners in his younger days...which would not have happened if he got punked into taking someone else's package.
JD Williams talent was grossly unutilized on the wire. He grew and showed so much Dept as well as nuance on OZ. With that being said I can't help but to see him as lil Kenny 💯.
Ol Kenny Wangler. Oz is sooo underrated, fam. No Oz I'm not sure ya get The Sopranos or The Shield to get to shows like The Wire, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, etc. It made anti-heros and prestige television possible yet it's constantly ignored and misunderstood 🤦🏽♂️
Oz is just a dissapointment to me. Decent shot at a plot but poorly executed and set in a scenario that is so fast fetched and un realistic that I can't take it serious.
Love Omar, McNulty, Stringer and Bunk... but man, Bodie was special. Great actor, amazingly scripted. His death was needed for the show to play out. But damn, it hurt hard.
I'm from Baltimore. Back then a westside hustla that was street like Bodie was not gonna work for no East side plug. OG west niggaz was not rocking with east like that. Against the code then. That's why Avon ain't fuck with them like that because he was old-school Baltimore. Marlo ain't have a code. Joe was playing any side to maintain. Stringer was all business and not street.
Because he represented someone who wanted to be an individual in a world filled with institutional power. Any represented how individuals get crushed by institutional power. Slim and prop were also really not his people. Slim was a late addition to the barksdale crew basically a paid contractor. He was the man, but ultimately joining east side went against everything Bodie wanted. And they weren't effectively organized anyways and slim Even said they were basically just a loose affiliation without offering much protection to their corners. Especially against Marlo
That analogy about individuals an institutions like big corporations is spot on.I think in the real world surely he would have got in contact with Barksdale an got the connect an tried to replicate what Avon was doing
Bodie was westside through and through. Everything you said, is the reason why. He knew the moment he would have signed up for Stanfield Organization, they would have killed. Marlo wanted him to starve, since he was the last Barksdale member.
Bodie believed in the fantasy that being loyal to dealers with pay off. When in reality loyalty to the dollar is the only true rule in and out of the streets.
I think the reason that Bodie stayed in the corner is had gooe of eventually morphing unto a Avon , Stringer, ir even Marlo. He never had the team around him to make that become a reality
Bodie was always my favorite character. Imo he’s as iconic as anyone on the show. I was terribly sad to see him die on that corner. I often wondered if Poot would’ve stayed he might’ve spotted the youngin coming from the side. Great video! 🙏
Same ending...just with two bodies...Chris and Snoop actually trained their young boys to be killers and always ready. Judging off how they schooled Mike ain't no telling how long O-Dog had been there waiting for the word to end Bodie. Remember get there early was the rule...Poot staying does nothing to help
I've been watching the wire fir for a long time and even other reviewers on TH-cam who talk about the wire but your the 1st person to break down Bodie's death scene as chess moves being made to take a pawn out and since alot of the show uses chess as a metaphor this break down was superb
This is a really good analysis and as the show does, the portrayal of Bodie as a pawn/soldier holds true. What's interesting about his character is that while the atmosphere and power players change, Bodie essentially doesn't. He remains a soldier who simply goes forward. Even when Marlo takes over his area, he doesn't even consider moving because as noted, he can't even think outside of Westside, let alone Baltimore. The one point in which I'd strongly differ with the writers of the show was Bodie and Poot killing Wallace. While it was certainly one of the more poignant moments of the series, I didn't view it as realistic. In real life, even if he was snitching or just talking to the police, guys like Bodie and Poot are not going to kill one of their homies like that. Unless he's specifically snitching on them, he's in court and they are looking at years in prison, it wouldn't happen. If anything, they would have just told him to stay out of town because Avon and Stringer were looking for him. And to that extent, someone like Stringer wouldn't ask the guys friends to kill him. Those guys are too young and fresh to consider something like that. In real life, Stringer would have given that job to someone like Bird, Wee-Bay or someone else of that stature. Dudes on the street get killed all the time but that was an unlikely scenario.
Bodie is the character i was stand up for all along the serie, i really felt him like he was competent as hell but never got the real recognition he deserved, no matter how he play by the rules, showing up at work and killing it but still stand up alone in his last moment.
@@Smokeynephewabk That's the point, no matter how loyal and efficient Bodie was, he was never meant to be higher level than what he was. It's sad as hell, like the competent worker you have in the working world, that shows up everyday to do a great job but will still be a low level employee for ever.
David Simon does “show don’t tell” better than any other tv writer. Bodie was a child killing a slightly younger child at the end of season one. A stupid normal crime show would have Bodie breaking down crying, or us seeing flashbacks to his traumatic childhood to rehabilitate him as a sympathetic character. The Wire gives us 3 more seasons of character development for this rehabilitation, which IMO is why it works.
He was by most. Avon didn’t know bodie and would make sense since bodie is low ranked. Stringer knew bodie was also hot headed which is why he said you gotta show some flex.
I rewatch the wire once a year and even after all these years i still notice something i previously missed. when Marlo snd Chris are discussing taking Bodie out Marlo says give it to your pup to get him started, Chris says your first time should not be somebody you know, this is in stark contrast to Bodies first time as he was ordered to take out Wallace by Stringer
Makes sense, as you can truly see the inner struggle Bodie is having right before shooting Wallace. He knew Wallace, and it was his first hit, and he almost had to be goaded by Poot yelling to, "do it if you're gonna do it!" Bodie is clearly stressed and conflicted about a task that Bodie 💯 KNEW he had to do or give up the streets, and possibly his life, for not carrying out the murder. I almost wonder if Poot yelling startled Bodie enough that he pulled the trigger, and you can see the disbelief in his face after the gun fires. Poot even had to take the gun and finish his best friend to end Wallace's suffering. Damn. Amazing acting by all 3 in the scene. 👍
That chessboard reference you used for Bodie's death & all the characters involved was EPIC & spot on. I never looked at it that way until you broke it down.
CR..you're doing an awesome job with these great critical breakdowns and insights which many of us see who were true aficionados of this series, but your clear explanations and logical process is so on point. Great job my man and....Salute!
When Bodie was sitting with McNulty and said that he feels old, I really felt the tragedy of his character. He was barely an adult, his life was still ahead of him, and yet he feels old.
I am in total agreement with you. I despised Bodie after Wallace’s death and by the time he was killed in season 4, I felt like I was kicked in the stomach and lost a friend. This is the brilliance of The Wire.
Wow. Beautifully said. Bodie had a code. Code died with him. Slim could go wherever needed. Funny. Nothing has change 20 years later in the street. NO one learned anything.
Bodie represented something in a soldier that Marlo lacked: honor. If you think about it, Bodie's death was Marlo's downfall. It really lit a fire under Jimmy's ass, and he then sacrificed his career to take Marlo out of the game. In the end, nobody on the streets remembered Marlo's precious name.
Because he was a low level soldier who lived in Marlo’s area, unless Slim Charles had offered him a position; he had no choice but to take Marlo’s package
You are absolutely right...Bodie would never cross over and become East Side!!! That would be like a blood joining the crips or a klansman joining the Black Panthers 🤔!
Bodie always felt like the Christopher Moltisanti of The Wire for me. Cant say exactly why. Anyhow, Bodie was definitely in my Top 3 Favorite Characters along with McNulty and... i dont know, it's so hard to pick. Omar? Michael? Cutty? Frank Sobatka? Bunny Culvin? Avon? All those guys are definitely in my top 10, I just cant choose which of them I'd pick to round out my top 3, lol.
Bodie not knowing that there were radio stations outside of Baltimore shows what kind of person he is. He only knows his little corner of the world and he doesn't have the curiosity or flexibility to go beyond it. He doesn't know about other ways of doing things and he doesn't really want to learn.
Marlo had to kill Bodie because Bodie was never going to be loyal to Marlo and ultimately he would kill Marlo if he got the chance....Slim knew Bodie wasnt cut to bow own an humble himself for the greater good....
Im not sure why but Bodie is the one character i think about from this show more than all others. There is something about him that resonates with me and im not even sure what it is.
What I never understood was why Bubbles had no final meeting with Kima or the other police officers. It would be nice for them to see that he got free from that nightmare.
Bodie was 16 years when he got murdered and was still a CHILD! And at the same time he was a street veteran. Such an incredibly sad story. And as for murdering his friend (another even younger child), it was an order from the gang leader and Bodie either had to carry out the murder, flee from Baltimore or turn informant. Also he killed a presumable police informant. They way I see things they were all victims of the game.
@@ChrisThomas-hg4ne ok thanks. it is cool that there are som many Wire fans who can even break down these things straight from their memory. Take care man.
It may have been the person who host TH-cam Channel Lions and Legends that reached out to you previously. Just guessing. They do a lot of Character analysis deep dives from the Wire and other HBO dramas. If it's not them hope you are able to find out who it was. A collab with them may be just as good otherwise.
U gotta understand how Baltimore works. Bodie couldn't just jump West to East like that. Plus somebody who built up that spot not gonna just roll over like that. Bodie was a dude who was gonna always stand on his.
He didn’t join Eastside he just got his package from them he was alone that’s why he had to take Marlo package he had no one to back him in a war he was alone
Bodie told us in the end why didn’t leave “this is my corner”. That corner is all Bodie had in the game. He was there to lead it’s growth and subsequent downfall. That corner for Bodie is the last remaining piece of the old days. Though he took Slims and then Marlo’s package, he was still the manager of that corner, he hired and fired the staff, he protected it, and he in the end died for it. That was Bodie’s corner and he was not going to leave it.
Dude, I’ve been subscribed for a while cos I love your videos. I hope that patroon sub went through, I just did it on mobile on the bus and it was confusing. Anyway, keep doing you. I appreciate your content so much!
Help me out! Did Marlo take over Bodie's corner in Season 4 after he joined Prop Joe's Co-op? If so, this doesn't make sense. Bodie could have simply confirmed he was getting a package thru Slim Charles. Which would eliminate the possibility of Marlo taking over the corner because Slim was also aligned with Joe.
Marlo took over Bodie's corner before Bodie even died. Bodie even agreed to it after they forced him into it. Bodie even tried to punk Chris and Snoop and Marlo during that. ("You know my name..."). The guy was fearless.
Bodie understood the game and knew his role and place in it. When Avon's crew was disarticulated he lost his identity as a member of a powerfull organización and was left by himself having to play by others rules (wich he hated). After Marlo did Lil' Kevin he became sick of the Game ando saw no point on it. Specially because he killed his own friend, Wallace, over something that didn't made sense to him anymore. He felt trapped in the Game. But didn't know any other type of lifestyle.
Really nice with the chess comparison, only I would call Chris a queen and not a bishop, if he was a bishop it would only leave Monk as Marlo's queen and seeing as how Chris shuts him up about what Omar's been saying about Marlo that doesn't make sense, just finished season 4 but I don't remember Monk doing anything incredible.
great video, I believe brodie had a few problems mainly being his lack of understanding and not being able to see the bigger picture. He blinded by the game and couldn't see past the street, I think of him as the person who has been a fry cook his whole life and never know how to be anything more than that. He's the best fry cook in the world he flip those burgers with the best of em, brodie can work a corner and a crew with the best of em, but he can't see past that he can't understand how to move up, he can't see life where he's not on the corner, so he stay a pawn moving 1 square at a time never really thinking 3 moves ahead.
Bodie also stayed Westside because he had claimed and built his own corner. It was “raggedy,” but it was his own slice of territory, his own crew, and some basic amount of autonomy. Yea, he was definitely on his own, subject to the kingpins, but he finally had his own shop as an independent. This agency came with personal growth, broader perspectives, and aspirations to experience the wider world. He staked his claim and built something and would never go back to being an employee, reflected by his final cry as he made his last stand “Yo, this is my corner! I ain’t goin nowhere!”
Bodie aka Bricks from HBO's OZ. Almost Literally the same character. OZ used a TON of the same actors and I love it. Watched on cable and bought all the dvds.....
I can't front a little tear welled up in my eye when Bodie got hit because I saw so many of my people fall that way. He represented the guy who that's all he knows but a soldier and a overall Kool dude. Sat an ate some wings and fried rice moving a pack sippin a brew kickin' it. The crazy thing is Bodie actually died by the words he spoke in his introductory episodes. He said to mcnulty and bunk anybody goes talking to cops gets got. And the wire was real in a way where people did their dirt such as Bodie and they did pay for it and Bodie wasn't exempt.
I would argue Michael Duquan Namond and Randy are the embodiment of all the Characters on the Wire. They show you where the Omar’s Avons, Prop Joes etc come from.
I hate when people say why doesn’t he just move. Leave the life. Get a straight job? Because when all you know is one thing. That’s all you’re physically able to do!
Bodie didn't go EastSide for the same reason Wallace didn't leave and get out of the game. WestSide was all he knew. It was where he felt most at home, regardless of what he had to do to survive. So, he stayed. There's no higher level of complex logic needed to understand this. It's just inertia. There was no real force in Bodie's life that came in and forced him to make a deeply consequential change. He didn't care which boss he slung for, so long as he got his corner to work. He even said so, several times in the show. What made Bodie such an interesting and integral character in the show was that he understood *what* he was, and where he stood within the larger context of "the game". Unlike many of his cohorts around him, Bodie was always very adept at managing his own expectations. It wasn't until Marlo & his crew began knocking off people for minor offenses did Bodie become unhinged. Not just because his friend Little Kevin was killed, but more because the rules to "the game" had been grossly violated in his mind.
Fantastic Video, I am a fan of this channel. Especially since you started covering my all time favorite show. But if I'm not mistaken, it's Michael who kills Bodie, I don't know if any O dog. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
He was a tried and true Westside Baltimore guy. So working for an Eastside dealer was out of the question. Even though it was Joe supplying Bodie through Slim Charles. Because Bodie’s crew was independent, they never had a chance against The Stanfield crew
Let me...break it down!! Such was the impact 😌 of The Wire's character development, that when Brodie made that last stand...I still haven't watched that scene 😳
You put it very well. Pawns like Bodie, Little Kevin, Poot and Wallace were dispensable. The reason Stringer Bell was the only person to recognize Bodie is because he viewed the world from a business owner's mindset. Bodie was the low level employee that showed up on time everyday and deserved a small promotion. To everyone else he had little value.
Lil Kevin was good with Chris ,messed up a simple task got took on a ride ,if Bodie had elements of a true crew ,he had spider working ,Bodie needed a partner llke Slim Charles to politic his way to higher gains and new network .
@@darrenjohnson7857 Slim Charles lost his taste for much of it after the Barksdale war and got a quieter gig with Prop Joe but then after Prop Joe's own nephew turns on him, Slim showed everyone that there IS nostalgia to the game and nobody wants to work with a guy who would throw his own uncle under the bus. Slim Charles ends up at kingpin status by the end of the series. He always kept a level head, even when shooting Cheese.
Bodie wasn’t recognized he only used him to go around Deangelo to kill Wallace. He moved up because he was next in line. Even poot moved up. That’s how it is. Stringer ain’t see nothing special he was just a worker. That’s why he tested him to make sure he could follow directions
@@flightofthebumblebee9529 Excellent
@@darrenjohnson7857 I loved seeing Slim on top at the end. He and Fat Face Rick would run the connection quietly and probably in a way where they had little to no profile on the street and could invest into legit businesses and launder money that way. The cool part is that even that evil slimeball Marlo totally respected Slim Charles and would never know how Slim came THIS close to murdering him at the end of S3. Slim Charles and Fat Face Rick gaining control of the connection with the Greeks was literally a happy ending for the drug game after evil like Marlo. Slim and Rick would run it like a business and thru the co-op and peace would reign. They both seemed smart enough to never be greedy because there really is enough to go around and like Stringer said, then nobody is going to jail or getting killed.
When McNulty and him shared a pit beef lunch and complained about their bosses, that was peak Wire.
My favorite moments of the series are when the cops and "criminals" are working in tandem.
You cookin'! Some of the best TV EVER!💪🏿🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
He was a rat.
@@naswiipp no he wasn't. Why is it he was a rat because he knew Marlo was pure evil and makes even a guy who shot one of his best friends to death stop and realize how wrong it is? Literally nobody liked Marlo. Some feared him and some hated him and some were just loyal to what he provided them but we never see anyone truly bonding with Marlo at all. I would imagine Marlo ends up dead or in prison not long after the series ended.
@@flightofthebumblebee9529 Bodie was not friends with Wallace like that. Poot and Wallace were best friends. Bodie and Wallace just happened to be in the same crew. You only saw Bodie and Wallace together in The Pit. Poot and Wallace you saw together outside The Pit constantly.
I would also argue that Bodie's death hit McNulty the hardest as well. I think that when Poot told McNulty that Marlo's people saw Bodie talking to McNulty outside the police station and that was what led to Bodie's murder, something broke inside McNulty and caused him to cross the line and use questionable methods he used in Season 5.
It was more than just Bodie but I'm sure McNulty did think of Bodie often, and how he played a part in his death and how truly pointless the entire back and forth with the drug game really is.
Thats actually the best explanation ive heard, or insight as to why the show went the way it did
It for sure hit McNulty the hardest. It's not even debatable. At least amongst the cops.
Mcnulty had already crossed that line when Bodie died. Bodie dies halfway through the series finale. By that point, the “serial killer” case had been blown apart and Mcnulty was already doomed to lose his job. Bodies death just made his mental state even worse, and it could be argued was what led to his realization at the end of the show that nothing changes. That scene as he drives out of Baltimore, im sure Bodies death weighed heavily on his mind
@@Shank5ter Bodie died far before the serial killer case buddy
Too many wire fans make a mistake in regards to the chess metaphor. Many people regard Slim Charles as a pawn when in reality Slim Charles is a classic Knight.
He is hired muscle.
Bodie, poot, and Wallace were all pawns.
He is a Knight right down to the honor and loyalty to the king's he worked for. Namely, Joe. He followed Prop Joe's last order, to see if Cheese suddenly comes into money, then they'll know he's a traitor. Sure the streets suspected the betrayal, but when Cheese cake up with that 9, then bragged about playing all sides, Charles dropped him.
He wasnt really the hired muscle. He was more equivalent to a capo in the mob.
@@shifty1927 In the mob you aren't switching families going from Avon's organization to Proposition Joe.
@@Damianoutlaw plenty swapped families when their don was taken out or overtaken. wtf are you talking about?
You're absolutely right about how Bodie kinda slowly grows on you. After the death of Wallace I actually couldn't wait for someone to kill Bodie but when he was finally killed it made me tear up because he'd grown on me so much as a character.
Bodie is one of the most tragic characters in a series full of tragic characters.
Bodie had a code and that's why. Yes he was a bad man who tried to talk kids out of going to school so they would sell drugs and stuff, but Bodie never left Baltimore until going to Juvenile Hall. I love to think that if McNulty would've been able to work him just a bit, maybe Bodie could've gotten an ending like Poot got. We see in S4 that Bodie and Poot are forever haunted by murdering Wallace, as they should be. Sometimes that is punishment more fitting than even the longest prison sentence.
Exactly ,a worker bee to the end &someone says something and he got a target on his back .
Bodie didn't go down without a fight.
Now that's Gangster 💯
Bodie is a young Avon. In fact, the real Avon Barksdale was nicknamed "Bodie." So they are actually the same person, but Simon decided to split them up.
Bodie is top ten, but Randy and Dookie are truly tragic characters
That chess analogy about Bodie’s death was brilliant, loved that.
You hit the nail on the head when you said that Bodie creeped up on you and became likeable as the series progressed. Definitely one of my favourite characters. His death scene was tough to watch.
"But what if those pawns are really smart ." Bodie
Bodie was a real top G, hard working, loyal, smart and had a big heart. Sad when he died, but that's exactly how the game is, The Wire shows the street exactly how it is.
Aside from a close friend or 2, and of course his loving grandma (who Herc shares a bond with in season 1), Bodie would've been forgotten in a couple of days. Sad but true.
This might be a hot take, but Bodie was actually a piece of shit. Remember how he killed Wallace? Funny how a TV show can make you show sympathy for a killer.
🐀🐀
@@in_vas_por8810I mean what else could he do? He was ordered by Stringer to kill Wallace. Wallace was going to die anyways so why also get himself killed in the process?
Do top Gs work low level corners? I thought top meant top?
That chess analogy for bodies death is mind blowing. 📈
I was shocked when I rewatched the show it’s like they knew everything from the beginning
Word Up!!!!
Just finished season 4 and I agree that watching him die hit me way harder than i thought.
His death has to be one of the saddest, i honestly thought he was going to make it out of the game.
At least Poot made it out ok. He seemed truly grounded by season 5 in the shoe store and completely lost his taste for all of the street life after getting out of prison and seeing Bodie killed.
Why difficult after what he did to Wallace?
@@BruteStrength99 cuz he was the last barksdale left
@@joshm7004 are you saying you're attached to Barksdale organization?
Bodies and Poots are all over the place in the streets while hitters like Slim can go anywhere in that world cause good hitters are hard to come by. Personally, I knew a lot more Bodies, Poots, and Wallaces when I was growing up than Slims, probably why I liked the trio from the Pit cause they reminded me of some of my friends from back in the day.
Slims generally don't have friends, especially after a certain age. Jail, death, the job don't really make for friends and family.
@@andrewcook1246 yeah that too. Honestly is a pretty lonely life when you can't trust anyone.
@@Rakasha30 He looks trusting. Thing is who worth their while wants to stick around that. Hanguing next to Joe is full time plus overtime and whatevers left you're still a criminal and a dude who got bodies and opps.
Seeing as they were kids when the show started and slim was a grown ass man I think you missed a lot go rewatch they were kids he was a vet
Great video as always but the chess analogy of Bodie’s tragic death is truly superb and one that I never would have noticed myself: O-Dog moving 90 degrees as the knight…wow! It would be amazing to know if that was intentional or just an incredible coincidence!!
100% intentional
Everything in the wire is intentional lol
All the pieces matter.....Lester. Everything on the Wire was intentional. Even that Lester quote about pieces of evidence can be tied back into chess pieces
It was a stretch lol chill
I never noticed that their movements lined up with chess pieces, nice catch
Bodie is probably my favorite character now-the fact that his character can make getting shot on a street corner in west Baltimore feel honorable really speaks to how tremendously acted and written his character was
I'll always remember, I actually cried out when he met his fate. It was totally involuntary. I just shouted. Didn't realize just how much I liked him until that moment.
In real life Bodie didn't stay a pawn... The real Avon street name was Bodie so the creators ran the characters parallel to show you avons younger mentality as Bodie....1 of the Easter eggs that blows your mind if you ever discover it...
🔥💯
I feel that except for 1 scene...Avon would never allow marlo to talk to him like that when marlo was playing with the golf club
Avon in the period we see him wouldn't.... But the time period they based Bodie on he wouldn't have a choice and the creators know you'll find out Bodie and Avon are the same person so bodies death on the shows explains why at that time he would have to let Marlo do what he does
@@sedhub8791 uh uh bro bro, according to the show, prop joe even wanted avon to let marlo have those corners. Which his response was fuck them niggas & I ain't no suit wearing dude, I may just be a gangster I suppose, but I want my corners. Avon knew how he got them corners in his younger days...which would not have happened if he got punked into taking someone else's package.
Avon and Bodie are composite characters. The names were just paying tribute.
JD Williams talent was grossly unutilized on the wire. He grew and showed so much Dept as well as nuance on OZ. With that being said I can't help but to see him as lil Kenny 💯.
Ol Kenny Wangler. Oz is sooo underrated, fam. No Oz I'm not sure ya get The Sopranos or The Shield to get to shows like The Wire, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, etc. It made anti-heros and prestige television possible yet it's constantly ignored and misunderstood 🤦🏽♂️
It’s Bricks goddamnit
Kenny if you not my friend, then you my enemy lol
@@FrankMakrout 😂😂
Oz is just a dissapointment to me.
Decent shot at a plot but poorly executed and set in a scenario that is so fast fetched and un realistic that I can't take it serious.
Love Omar, McNulty, Stringer and Bunk... but man, Bodie was special. Great actor, amazingly scripted. His death was needed for the show to play out. But damn, it hurt hard.
Daaamn. That chess comparison was awesome! Great Video as usual! Much luv from germany
I'm from Baltimore. Back then a westside hustla that was street like Bodie was not gonna work for no East side plug. OG west niggaz was not rocking with east like that. Against the code then. That's why Avon ain't fuck with them like that because he was old-school Baltimore. Marlo ain't have a code. Joe was playing any side to maintain. Stringer was all business and not street.
Beautifully said. I really wish We as Blacks got more movies made in OUR honor. Not faked, embellished or government sponsored Pick-Me stories.
Bodie was that pawn you wanted to see succeed at the End like Slim Charles
Slim Charles wasn't a pawn at all in the show.
He did kill Wallace so maybe AFTER 20 years in Prison...
Really loved your chess piece analogy. Shame that most of guys in the street game are the pawns on the big game.
Because he represented someone who wanted to be an individual in a world filled with institutional power. Any represented how individuals get crushed by institutional power.
Slim and prop were also really not his people. Slim was a late addition to the barksdale crew basically a paid contractor. He was the man, but ultimately joining east side went against everything Bodie wanted. And they weren't effectively organized anyways and slim Even said they were basically just a loose affiliation without offering much protection to their corners. Especially against Marlo
That analogy about individuals an institutions like big corporations is spot on.I think in the real world surely he would have got in contact with Barksdale an got the connect an tried to replicate what Avon was doing
Bodie was westside through and through. Everything you said, is the reason why. He knew the moment he would have signed up for Stanfield Organization, they would have killed. Marlo wanted him to starve, since he was the last Barksdale member.
Bodie believed in the fantasy that being loyal to dealers with pay off. When in reality loyalty to the dollar is the only true rule in and out of the streets.
I think the reason that Bodie stayed in the corner is had gooe of eventually morphing unto a Avon , Stringer, ir even Marlo. He never had the team around him to make that become a reality
Bodie was always my favorite character. Imo he’s as iconic as anyone on the show. I was terribly sad to see him die on that corner. I often wondered if Poot would’ve stayed he might’ve spotted the youngin coming from the side. Great video! 🙏
Poot didn't have a gun all he would have done was just died with him
Same ending...just with two bodies...Chris and Snoop actually trained their young boys to be killers and always ready. Judging off how they schooled Mike ain't no telling how long O-Dog had been there waiting for the word to end Bodie. Remember get there early was the rule...Poot staying does nothing to help
@@edgehanger8558 No doubt! More than likely it a been the same outcome.
Poot was one of the few characters that kind of had a happier ending.
I've been watching the wire fir for a long time and even other reviewers on TH-cam who talk about the wire but your the 1st person to break down Bodie's death scene as chess moves being made to take a pawn out and since alot of the show uses chess as a metaphor this break down was superb
This is a really good analysis and as the show does, the portrayal of Bodie as a pawn/soldier holds true. What's interesting about his character is that while the atmosphere and power players change, Bodie essentially doesn't. He remains a soldier who simply goes forward. Even when Marlo takes over his area, he doesn't even consider moving because as noted, he can't even think outside of Westside, let alone Baltimore.
The one point in which I'd strongly differ with the writers of the show was Bodie and Poot killing Wallace. While it was certainly one of the more poignant moments of the series, I didn't view it as realistic. In real life, even if he was snitching or just talking to the police, guys like Bodie and Poot are not going to kill one of their homies like that. Unless he's specifically snitching on them, he's in court and they are looking at years in prison, it wouldn't happen. If anything, they would have just told him to stay out of town because Avon and Stringer were looking for him. And to that extent, someone like Stringer wouldn't ask the guys friends to kill him. Those guys are too young and fresh to consider something like that. In real life, Stringer would have given that job to someone like Bird, Wee-Bay or someone else of that stature. Dudes on the street get killed all the time but that was an unlikely scenario.
That chess board analysis of Bodies death is fantastic. I never would have seen it that way.
Bodie is the character i was stand up for all along the serie, i really felt him like he was competent as hell but never got the real recognition he deserved, no matter how he play by the rules, showing up at work and killing it but still stand up alone in his last moment.
Y’all act like Avon them was gone put bodie on a higher level when Avon and stringer actively played d Avon nephew
@@Smokeynephewabk That's the point, no matter how loyal and efficient Bodie was, he was never meant to be higher level than what he was. It's sad as hell, like the competent worker you have in the working world, that shows up everyday to do a great job but will still be a low level employee for ever.
David Simon does “show don’t tell” better than any other tv writer. Bodie was a child killing a slightly younger child at the end of season one. A stupid normal crime show would have Bodie breaking down crying, or us seeing flashbacks to his traumatic childhood to rehabilitate him as a sympathetic character. The Wire gives us 3 more seasons of character development for this rehabilitation, which IMO is why it works.
Wow... I couldn't have seen the chess moves actually taking place without a video like this. Great work! Thank you.
I always hated how the Barksdale organization didn’t respect Bodie the way they should have . He was solid and would do whatever for them
He was by most. Avon didn’t know bodie and would make sense since bodie is low ranked. Stringer knew bodie was also hot headed which is why he said you gotta show some flex.
I rewatch the wire once a year and even after all these years i still notice something i previously missed.
when Marlo snd Chris are discussing taking Bodie out Marlo says give it to your pup to get him started, Chris says your first time should not be somebody you know, this is in stark contrast to Bodies first time as he was ordered to take out Wallace by Stringer
Makes sense, as you can truly see the inner struggle Bodie is having right before shooting Wallace. He knew Wallace, and it was his first hit, and he almost had to be goaded by Poot yelling to, "do it if you're gonna do it!" Bodie is clearly stressed and conflicted about a task that Bodie 💯 KNEW he had to do or give up the streets, and possibly his life, for not carrying out the murder. I almost wonder if Poot yelling startled Bodie enough that he pulled the trigger, and you can see the disbelief in his face after the gun fires. Poot even had to take the gun and finish his best friend to end Wallace's suffering. Damn. Amazing acting by all 3 in the scene. 👍
Bro you blew my mind with your chess reference...🤯
Great video, my all time favorite shows are the Sopranos and the Wire (thank you HBO), and your content about both shows are brilliant!
Bodie is a Westside solider no way he gets down with Eastside
Bodie was always one of my fave characters even when he was on the Sopranos for those 360 seconds...haha
Also Bricks on OZ.
That chessboard reference you used for Bodie's death & all the characters involved was EPIC & spot on. I never looked at it that way until you broke it down.
Bodie was my favorite character in the whole series. No matter how misguided he was he stayed true to his code and stood tall when the going got tough
CR..you're doing an awesome job with these great critical breakdowns and insights which many of us see who were true aficionados of this series, but your clear explanations and logical process is so on point. Great job my man and....Salute!
When Bodie was sitting with McNulty and said that he feels old, I really felt the tragedy of his character. He was barely an adult, his life was still ahead of him, and yet he feels old.
I can’t watch bodie’s death scene without tearing up.
Only problem with the analysis is that Bodie does not need to leave the west side to deal a package from east side suppliers.
Bodie wanted to be Wallace. Bodie was never able to be a boy and never wanted to be seen as a boy only to be seen as a man and a soldier.
I am in total agreement with you. I despised Bodie after Wallace’s death and by the time he was killed in season 4, I felt like I was kicked in the stomach and lost a friend. This is the brilliance of The Wire.
Wow. Beautifully said. Bodie had a code. Code died with him. Slim could go wherever needed. Funny. Nothing has change 20 years later in the street. NO one learned anything.
Bodie represented something in a soldier that Marlo lacked: honor.
If you think about it, Bodie's death was Marlo's downfall. It really lit a fire under Jimmy's ass, and he then sacrificed his career to take Marlo out of the game.
In the end, nobody on the streets remembered Marlo's precious name.
Because he was a low level soldier who lived in Marlo’s area, unless Slim Charles had offered him a position; he had no choice but to take Marlo’s package
Bodi was born and raised in the West Side of Baltimore. Proposition Joe represents the East Side of Baltimore. Bodi stayed true to his neighborhood.
You are absolutely right...Bodie would never cross over and become East Side!!! That would be like a blood joining the crips or a klansman joining the Black Panthers 🤔!
Bodie always felt like the Christopher Moltisanti of The Wire for me. Cant say exactly why. Anyhow, Bodie was definitely in my Top 3 Favorite Characters along with McNulty and... i dont know, it's so hard to pick. Omar? Michael? Cutty? Frank Sobatka? Bunny Culvin? Avon? All those guys are definitely in my top 10, I just cant choose which of them I'd pick to round out my top 3, lol.
The chess move analogy wit Bodie, Chris, Snoop, and Michael was super deep...
Slim going to eastside wasnt so much unorthodox as in S3, Avon hires east side soldiers
Bodie not knowing that there were radio stations outside of Baltimore shows what kind of person he is. He only knows his little corner of the world and he doesn't have the curiosity or flexibility to go beyond it. He doesn't know about other ways of doing things and he doesn't really want to learn.
Marlo had to kill Bodie because Bodie was never going to be loyal to Marlo and ultimately he would kill Marlo if he got the chance....Slim knew Bodie wasnt cut to bow own an humble himself for the greater good....
Im not sure why but Bodie is the one character i think about from this show more than all others. There is something about him that resonates with me and im not even sure what it is.
What I never understood was why Bubbles had no final meeting with Kima or the other police officers. It would be nice for them to see that he got free from that nightmare.
Or, at the least, one of them saw Bubbles' story in the paper. That would've been cool if not a face to face.
That’s how the street be tho I like how they don’t end characters off with that happily ever after stuff cause most of the time that’s not life
Especially Kima she actually really cared for him
Kima was busy as a homicide detective.
Also, if Bubbles wasn't on the street anymore, why would they interact with him?
Selling newspapers for city paper./They paid him nothing and he needed help from bully taking his 💰 and got no help .
"Westside vs Eastside". Avon told Marlo when trying to visit the Greek
“Without that, who is he? Boney? Diddy?” 😂😂😂
7:54
Bodie was 16 years when he got murdered and was still a CHILD! And at the same time he was a street veteran. Such an incredibly sad story. And as for murdering his friend (another even younger child), it was an order from the gang leader and Bodie either had to carry out the murder, flee from Baltimore or turn informant.
Also he killed a presumable police informant.
They way I see things they were all victims of the game.
He wasn't 16
@@ChrisThomas-hg4ne How old was he then?
@@thabomuso2575 he was 16 in season one , he died season 4..years went by. I would say maybe 19/20
@@ChrisThomas-hg4ne ok thanks. it is cool that there are som many Wire fans who can even break down these things straight from their memory.
Take care man.
It may have been the person who host TH-cam Channel Lions and Legends that reached out to you previously. Just guessing. They do a lot of Character analysis deep dives from the Wire and other HBO dramas. If it's not them hope you are able to find out who it was. A collab with them may be just as good otherwise.
U gotta understand how Baltimore works. Bodie couldn't just jump West to East like that. Plus somebody who built up that spot not gonna just roll over like that. Bodie was a dude who was gonna always stand on his.
*AMAZING CHESS BREAKDOWN FOR THAT LAST BODIE SCENE, AMAZING*
He was definitely my favorite character.
He didn’t join Eastside he just got his package from them he was alone that’s why he had to take Marlo package he had no one to back him in a war he was alone
These Videos are so damn good
I am really hoping for some video analysing Poot someday
There's a 50 plus yr old "pawn" around my way. One of the pathetic sights you could lay eyes on.
Bodie told us in the end why didn’t leave “this is my corner”. That corner is all Bodie had in the game. He was there to lead it’s growth and subsequent downfall. That corner for Bodie is the last remaining piece of the old days. Though he took Slims and then Marlo’s package, he was still the manager of that corner, he hired and fired the staff, he protected it, and he in the end died for it. That was Bodie’s corner and he was not going to leave it.
He should of taken out Marlo ,Chris and Snoop at the first possible opportunity.And could of became a major player .
Right, if I was bodie I would’ve started bussin at them as soon as they got out that suv?
I lived near Baltimore/DC at the time of this series... not native. But it added so much to drive through these areas
People of the streets and loyalty are set on
Blocks you come from.
Cineranter is obsessed with the Wire now. I like it. Sounds like he's learning what a true masterpiece this show was.
Dude, I’ve been subscribed for a while cos I love your videos. I hope that patroon sub went through, I just did it on mobile on the bus and it was confusing. Anyway, keep doing you. I appreciate your content so much!
That chess analogy was pure genuis.
Help me out! Did Marlo take over Bodie's corner in Season 4 after he joined Prop Joe's Co-op? If so, this doesn't make sense. Bodie could have simply confirmed he was getting a package thru Slim Charles. Which would eliminate the possibility of Marlo taking over the corner because Slim was also aligned with Joe.
He took over the corner because he could.
Marlo took over Bodie's corner before Bodie even died. Bodie even agreed to it after they forced him into it. Bodie even tried to punk Chris and Snoop and Marlo during that. ("You know my name..."). The guy was fearless.
Bodie understood the game and knew his role and place in it. When Avon's crew was disarticulated he lost his identity as a member of a powerfull organización and was left by himself having to play by others rules (wich he hated). After Marlo did Lil' Kevin he became sick of the Game ando saw no point on it. Specially because he killed his own friend, Wallace, over something that didn't made sense to him anymore. He felt trapped in the Game. But didn't know any other type of lifestyle.
Really nice with the chess comparison, only I would call Chris a queen and not a bishop, if he was a bishop it would only leave Monk as Marlo's queen and seeing as how Chris shuts him up about what Omar's been saying about Marlo that doesn't make sense, just finished season 4 but I don't remember Monk doing anything incredible.
Moving to East Side was not an Option
I think Boadie didn't work for Joe because Joe was Eastside. Bodie was Westside. Its a Baltimore thing.
great video, I believe brodie had a few problems mainly being his lack of understanding and not being able to see the bigger picture. He blinded by the game and couldn't see past the street, I think of him as the person who has been a fry cook his whole life and never know how to be anything more than that. He's the best fry cook in the world he flip those burgers with the best of em, brodie can work a corner and a crew with the best of em, but he can't see past that he can't understand how to move up, he can't see life where he's not on the corner, so he stay a pawn moving 1 square at a time never really thinking 3 moves ahead.
You missed the other chess analogy, that Bodie looked like a fallen pawn with his hoodie and jacket when he died.
yo... this was deep. I mean yes all about the Bodie part, but the way you explain the last fight . it hit harder then before.
Bodie also stayed Westside because he had claimed and built his own corner. It was “raggedy,” but it was his own slice of territory, his own crew, and some basic amount of autonomy. Yea, he was definitely on his own, subject to the kingpins, but he finally had his own shop as an independent. This agency came with personal growth, broader perspectives, and aspirations to experience the wider world. He staked his claim and built something and would never go back to being an employee, reflected by his final cry as he made his last stand “Yo, this is my corner! I ain’t goin nowhere!”
HOLY CRAP....I never picked up on the CHess sympolism in how he died and the other pieces came at him
Bodie aka Bricks from HBO's OZ. Almost Literally the same character. OZ used a TON of the same actors and I love it. Watched on cable and bought all the dvds.....
I can't front a little tear welled up in my eye when Bodie got hit because I saw so many of my people fall that way. He represented the guy who that's all he knows but a soldier and a overall Kool dude. Sat an ate some wings and fried rice moving a pack sippin a brew kickin' it. The crazy thing is Bodie actually died by the words he spoke in his introductory episodes. He said to mcnulty and bunk anybody goes talking to cops gets got. And the wire was real in a way where people did their dirt such as Bodie and they did pay for it and Bodie wasn't exempt.
I would argue Michael Duquan Namond and Randy are the embodiment of all the Characters on the Wire. They show you where the Omar’s Avons, Prop Joes etc come from.
Cuz Bodie wanted it One Way.... But its The Other Way.
I hate when people say why doesn’t he just move. Leave the life. Get a straight job? Because when all you know is one thing. That’s all you’re physically able to do!
The chess reference to the shootout was genius
Bodie didn't go EastSide for the same reason Wallace didn't leave and get out of the game. WestSide was all he knew. It was where he felt most at home, regardless of what he had to do to survive. So, he stayed. There's no higher level of complex logic needed to understand this. It's just inertia. There was no real force in Bodie's life that came in and forced him to make a deeply consequential change. He didn't care which boss he slung for, so long as he got his corner to work. He even said so, several times in the show. What made Bodie such an interesting and integral character in the show was that he understood *what* he was, and where he stood within the larger context of "the game". Unlike many of his cohorts around him, Bodie was always very adept at managing his own expectations. It wasn't until Marlo & his crew began knocking off people for minor offenses did Bodie become unhinged. Not just because his friend Little Kevin was killed, but more because the rules to "the game" had been grossly violated in his mind.
He was great in OZ as well. U should do that show next
Fantastic Video, I am a fan of this channel. Especially since you started covering my all time favorite show. But if I'm not mistaken, it's Michael who kills Bodie, I don't know if any O dog. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
A very good analysis on Bodie & The Wire…
The best TH-camr breaking down The Wire is “ A Man’s World Podcast “, it could have been him.
He was a tried and true Westside Baltimore guy. So working for an Eastside dealer was out of the question. Even though it was Joe supplying Bodie through Slim Charles. Because Bodie’s crew was independent, they never had a chance against The Stanfield crew
Bodie was my favourite character, the only thing I have against him is his devotion to stringer and Wallace’s death
I don't think that Bodie wanted to kill Wallace. That's why Poot had to shoot Wallace, because he understood Bodie was catching feelings.
Let me...break it down!! Such was the impact 😌 of The Wire's character development, that when Brodie made that last stand...I still haven't watched that scene 😳
Boadie said he would not betray Westside never ever 🤷🏾♀️, he died on those same Westside streets where he was born🤷🏾♀️