Predictions for Season 5

January 6, 2008 is slowly coming upon us and if you are like me the date is etched in your mind and you are eagerly anticipating the final 10 episodes of the greatest television show in the mediums history. Yes my fellow hoppers, it's going to end and a void will be created unlike any other in your life.

By this point my hope is that if you are reading this you have already viewed Season 4 in it's entirety (I did so this past weekend). Therefore, I am going to go ahead and make some early predictions on how I think Season 5 and ultimately the end of the show, will play out. I am basing my opinions on Season 4, what I have read thus far about Season 5, and my general conversations with numerous The Wire fans.

Prediction #1: Snoop and Chris are Going Down!
When we left Season 4, Lestor Freamon had finally discovered the bodies in the vacants and got hair and blood samples from Snoop and Chris. He is on to them and if there is one thing we have learned about Smooth Lestor it's that he does not leave any business unfinished. There are too many things that could have gone wrong with the way Chris and Snoop disposed of the bodies. Mainly, I find it hard to believe there is not at least one hair or bit of DNA in any of those vacants that might point to them. Second, Lestor is simply too thorough of an investigator to not leave all stones turned. Unfortunately, I don't think either ends up dead, but both will end up in jail. If there are two characters on this show that deserve to get got, its Chris and Snoop. Though I will miss the humor that Snoop supplies to the show.

Prediction #2: Marlo Goes Down...At the Hands of Herc!
Yep. You heard it right. Herc is going to be the one who finally gets to Marlo. Why? "Why ain't in your repertoire no more." No, seriously. I look back on Seasons 3 and 4 and the writers have made a point to show more than one confrontation between Herc and Marlo. The stare down in the lot during Season 3; Marlo snatching Herc's camera and sub sequentially getting pulled over and handed Herc card (which leads to that absolutely hilarious phone call Prop Joe makes to track Herc down); and finally, in a show that is about as unpredictable as it gets, wouldn't it just make sense to have the biggest fuck up cop of all be the one to take down the kingpin? Something just tells me that Herc is "accidentally" going to be the one that finally gets to Marlo. He holds a personal grudge against him and for Herc it ain't about the police work, it's about that grudge.

Prediction #3: Michael Lee & Dukie Are the New Avon & Stringer
It is set up perfectly. At the end of Season 4 Marlo hands Michael Lee his own corner to run and crew to create. We see Prezbo watching Dukie take the money on the corner and realize there is no escape from the easy money. Michael Lee always acted as Dukies protector and now has him running in the game right along with him. They live together, work together, and now will rule together. Michael Lee being the ruthless corner boy that Avon was, with a heart of steel and a coldness unlike any other and Dukie with the smarts and business sense of Stringer Bell. Together they will be standing tall at the end while Marlo and his crew fall. Nothing lasts forever except the game itself and Michael Lee and Dukie are perfectly set up to take it all over.

Prediction #4: We're Going To See How Fucked Up the Press Really Is
This one isn't too much of a stretch considering we know the press is going to be a major theme this season. But I feel that viewers are going to be exposed to sites and sounds and words they have never been before. Just like politicians, the press plays upon the publics' perceptions. We know David Simon was a writer for The Sun so we know we are going to get that unique and genuine insight that we otherwise wouldn't get. What gets reported, why it gets reported, how it gets reported is really going to open some eyes into how we read newspaper articles. My ultimate prediction in how this will play out within the plot line is that there is going to be some reporter that gets wind of the bodies, finds out too much, threatens to go public, and is forced to hold back information by the police department and/or their reporting will give wind to Marlo that they are on to him and help Marlo avoid prosecution.

Prediction #5: Daniels Becomes Police Chief and Carcetti Becomes Governor
Again, neither is really going out on a limb here but we know that the storyline of Carcetti mimics that of O'Malley (current Gov. of Murdaland) and that Daniels was being groomed for Chief. The only thing I think might hold Daniels back is Burrell having some "dirt" on him. But I think Daniels will be untouchable at this point and with Carcetti in his corner he is heading to the top. Will this change a thing? Who knows. I am sure it won't. But it seems like Daniels will be all up in the new investigation into the vacant bodies and it's going to be a major news story and theme within the Governors race that Carcetti will be running. All the pieces matter.

I am sure there are quite a few more predictions to be made: Namond back in the game? Randy alive and well? Will Omar really disappear? (no way he does) Is Marlo going to make a run at Prop Joe to get the direct connect from the Greeks? Does Bubbles finally get clean? Does McNulty finally get dirty? Will Cutty be around? Colvin? Bunk? Does Kima give in to domesticity? All I know is this: Season 5 is going to be awesome because we have no reason to think otherwise. Sure, it's only going to be 10 episodes but I have the utmost faith that those 10 eps will contain a life time of story lines.