Here's a video without major spoilers from The Wire. Multiple scenes from more than episode are used to show the story of how Lestor shows that he is not a "hump" or a "cuddly house cat."
What makes this show so good is that, at some point, almost every character becomes your favourite character. Lester is a great example of a slow burn character who you suddenly realise you love.
6:04 I love the moment of silence as everyone just takes a second to think "who the fuck is this guy and how is he so good?" I have a theory that's why he essentially runs away afterward. He's uncomfortable with the implied praise and admiration.
Delinquent Lester was the cop when they heard he was on one of their cases,Avon,Prop Joe etc etc they got instantly irritated THEY KNEW LESTER FREEMAN😂😂😂
Damn never thought about it like that... the difference is, Slim was on the young side and had the heart of an OG. Lester was just straight up old school in all the good ways
Amazing how Lester pulls up to this rough part of town that looks desolate, a kid walks up trying to sell him drugs, he goes up the stairs, opens the doors and suddenly the boxing gym, so full of life and complete opposite of the streets just grabs the viewer and pulls them into this other dimension. Loved this scene
Before I'd assumed he was just pausing for effect before he pulled out the number. Watching it again I think he genuinely wanted to give the younger detectives a chance to shine in case any of them had it. He's a classy guy.
Lester knows that the Majority of those Detectives are for a better word ( raw ) he knows that at least 2 possibly 3 or 4 has longevity in the Detective ranks Kima has some skills mostly raw talent he knows McNulty is game , he has talent and determination ' notice when LT Daniels asked who has a number Lester didn't even scan the whole room He just casually looked at Greggs and McNulty ' Lester been on the job when most of them were in middle school or elementary school at best Lester was Ol school ' get out and work tha case on foot ' finding clues and putting pieces together type crime-solving " not working a keyboard , all day !
on 3rd rewatch noticed at 2:36 no one shouts "Five-O!" Unlike his "subtle" and "professional" colleagues who stick out right away, Lester can pass completely undetected. It's characterization by what's *not* said. This show is truly a masterpiece
he was the type of oldschool, middle-class black gentleman that doesn't exist anymore thank half a century of affirmative action for it. If you see a black guy in a suit today, it's a safe assumption he didn't get there by merit
My favorite part of this is that McNulty thus far has been the "best cop" of the series. He's the guy who moves mountains to get things done. He's principled and doesn't take any shit from the bosses. In fact, in preparation for these raids, he outright refuses to go, saying he wouldn't do anything that would help their bosses gut the case. And in this scene, Lester shows that he's actually the "best cop", because you'd have to be there during the raids to have gotten D'Angelo's number. And suddenly, McNulty is a step behind this hitherto largely unknown entity who's been stuck in the pawn shop unit for 13 years and four months. McNulty is "these raids are pointless" good, but Lester is "these raids are pointless... so far" good.
Also shows the difference in their age. Usually more experienced people like Lester move into management or administration, and forget what it’s like “on the ground” so to speak. But Lester was just a regular old police. All his experience and patience contributed greatly to the cases while he was surrounded by these younger detectives.
Those two guys were perfectly cast as cirrhotic, lazy, washout cops. We tend to blow by those actors in the ensemble, but it's the casting of those roles so well that makes The Wire what it is. Almost perfect drama.
The way Lester starts up the stairs in the gym, springs up the first few before slowing down, catches his breath before walking through the door. He's done those stairs hundreds of times, probably as a younger fitter kid bounding up the whole way, probably a regular in that gym. More character development in a single moment, blink and you miss it.
@@jetsamperes5762 both of you guys are amazing at catching minuscule but very imporant details. I thought I was good at that until now. You guys are SHerlock Holmes material. And I am not being sarcastic.
Those also represent Lester's final steps before "re-entering the game" of wanting to make a difference with his policework, after a 13 years (and 4 months) forced hiatus.
He was a methodical detective; he was able to take small pieces of information and build real cases. Far more intelligent than most of the characters in the higher up positions at the BPD. He could of been a Burrell or a Rawls, who play the game for their own benefit, but he's just natural police.
I like his arc, because he started out as a weirdo, turned out to be a sympathetic dude, rose back into the place he fought hard to get, then got over-ambitious and made stupid choices in a way that you can judge him for, but still have his sympathy. I think one of the strongest things about The Wire is that no character stays static for long, people are alway rising and falling in the course of a season. And that's got to be such a difficult task for the writers considering that there's 500 characters on the show.
I noticed a scene where Lester is wearing a Vietnam veteran cap. The fact that he never mentions his military service is another great nod to how humble he is. Lester has no ego in his work, he just wants to seek truth and justice. His self confidence is evident in how he ends up with Shardene. Jimmy and Bunk make fools of themselves in bars, proving their masculinity by picking up women with games and bullshit. Lester actually courts and wins the heart of a beautiful younger woman just by being himself.
He calls everyone draft dodging cowards for not being able to take accurate measurements through steps. That in itself is a nod to Clarke Peters who actually protested against the Vietnam war. Safe to say that Lester had his ways of acquiring his talent and patience needed to monitor a wire and breaking codes from a lot of different sources. The silly thing is that the bosses would rather punish him until he is forgotten about than just keep him solving murders when they are so stretched out and desperate for clearances. And of course Lester being Lester, he just applied the same diligence to the pawnshop unit as he did to any other assignment he was posted at.
Nah, Jimmy ALWAYS thought he was the smartest guy in the room. But he immediately recognized Lester was somebody that could be useful to help HIM solve the case. It wasn’t until later that he came to respect Lester, and it wasn’t until the end of the season when he realized Lester was right about what would happen to him if he saw this case through to the end until he started to understand and appreciate Lester’s attitude
Often times he was. McNulty was an outstanding detective. But he let his ego get in the way much too often. He didn't know how to play the political side of the game.
@@jonmacie7581 McNulty's the reason why those cases got pushed to begin with. Love it or hate it, his ego and drive is what made the others give a damn if they didn't know about it
I love how you can see a look of honest appreciation on Pryzbylewski's face in the background - it's like the first inkling of the thought that one can be a completely different sort of police.
Lol thats actually the initial reaction of the cast too, when they saw episode 1 they were like damn maybe we shouldn't have signed up for this why is it so slow and boring.
iRuckiz Damn I remember the Carver and Herc actors upset about season 2 and not having much screen time but they stuck with it. It was for the greater good.
elemento188 I used to cringe whenever I'd see the adverts for the show at bus shelters around the city, and I'd mutter "oh great, yet another 'cop show'". I didn't finally give it a chance until season 4 or 5. Couldn't believe how amazing the writing and acting were.
fooloof the great thing is going back and rewatching those "boring" first few episodes and seeing the little tidbits you missed that helps you better understand later episodes. Great great writing.
This scene is like waking up a sleeping giant or a great ninja master rising from the ashes. Lester Freamon was the spark that was needed throughout each seasons crime investigations. One of my favorite characters.
but he had to see that someone cared before acting. even a great master can only do so much. you need all the other players there to be effective. no one alone can do what needs to be done.
And he gave warning about the journey ahead when starting to work the paper trail... "When you follow the drugs you get drug addicts and drug dealers. But when you start to follow the money... you don't know where it will take you"
I love how bunk knows lester and is able to give jimmy insight and perspective on who he is. not only does it show lesters richness as a character, it also shows bunks experience and knowledge too. Brilliant writing
@@postsniper-7532 true that. Politics in the police force as well as in the American workplace in general...can get pretty toxic very easily...if you dont have solid and dependable allies in your corner.
One of the best intros to a character period. The great thing about Lester's intro was that it was 4 episodes into the series. We already had it set in our minds that McNulty, Greggs, and Daniels would be the main people of the detail, and the others including Freeman were just hopeless mopes. Then here comes Freeman. Perfect.
Clark Peters was too good an actor for me to believe he was insignificant. If you saw "The Corner" by Simon, Clark had a good part in that mini-series. I knew he's be more than a "Hump," but I didn't know exactly what.
@DrogbaLegend The Shield has some great characters and fine actors, but it doesn't have the political and social analysis The Wire does, and The Wire also has characters, action, relationships and humour.
Of all the detectives, Lester Freamon was my favorite. I always wished they had given him the screen time that they gave McNulty. Clarke Peters is an absolutely brilliant actor. Even before The Wire, his work as an addict on The Corner stood out as genius.
I couldn't agree more. McNulty as the centerpiece always seemed like a misstep to me, but luckily The Wire still became one of the greatest shows ever. (Nothing against the actor, for the record)
Lester was a better version of McNulty in every single way. Better police, better person, etc. I think it would be too antagonizing if he had as much screen time as McNulty.
You know what is scary? There were so many great actors on this show and this was the first time I saw all of them. And we still don't see as much of them working as much as they should, and yet the mainstream actors who get all the work are terrible.
Wood Harris was recently in the New Edition movie and he was great...JD Williams that plays Bodie plays on a show Saints & Sinners, but your right most of them should get more offers
If you go back and look at old Law& Order SVU episodes you'll see a lot the cast make cameos and bit parts. Ltd. Rawls, the Srgt. From homicide, Daniels. A lot of them actually
One of the most interesting parts of these scenes is that movement from the street corner to the boxing gym. The gym is like a world inside a world, full of energy, separated from the dreariness of the streets. Really cool how sudden that change in setting is.
you can tell how Lester moves up those stairs and through the double doors that he's probably done it hundreds of times probably back in the days as a youngin. great little character details like this really make this show special
You know he wrote and starred in a musical? It's called "Five Guys Named Moe", and it's based on the music of Louis Jordan. The CD of the London cast recording, which is the one he's in, is still available on Amazon.
Lester rules! He could do street work too; ie. when he cracked Bird over the head with that bottle. He also starts banging a hot dancer. So in closing.... LESTER RULES!!!
Brian Lopez I was just thinking about that part!..I missed it the first time I saw it...but second time around I was like “Lester?” When he swung the crap out of that bottle
I have so many favorite charactors in the show, and I always forget about lester. He really is one of the all time greatest. Plus what he does in season 5?!!!! also- sidenote_ when I die I want to have a wake like they do for the officers. Singing irish songs and shit and getting hammed up. Respect lol.
@@leecro83 Lester was always underrated, and he wanted to keep it this way. He was buried as deep as possible by his corrupt superiors because of his "dangerous" integrity and probably because he would've outshined the whole police department given the chance. He learned the lesson and tried to operate from the shadows as much as he could. As a detective, he surpasses even McNulty (without the character flaws), besides having many other skills such as technical know-how on seting up and operating a complex wire network. His skillset is vastly superior to anyone in the police force. He shows absolutely no weakness throughout the whole show. Compared to him, McNulty is insignificant.
I love watching other fans comment on the show. I missed so much of the little details, how it all matters. You boys and girls make my experience great.
I think the implication was that the policemen were largely dedicated and able to do their jobs, but were most often hampered by the system. In other words, bad cops are a result of a bad system, not the other way around
I know I'm late but I was just about to comment this. It takes a lot to get Jimmy's respect but Lester definitely had it. Matter fact by season 5 Lester probably was the only person who could actually give McNulty a command and he listens
6:35 I love that smirk that Daniels gives after Lester's epic stare down. Such a great detail that I think leads us all to believe that Daniels knew Lester was real PO-lice all along before everyone else realized. If you think about it, he could have very well known Lester from his days back in the Eastern District. Lester would have been presumably in the homicide division at that time too before he got moved to the pawn shop unit. They probably would have crossed paths at countless murder crime scenes over the years. The thing about the Wire, and especially season 1, was the consistency and the level of in-depth detail was off the charts.
I don't think so, you see in one episode Daniels staring at Lester for making his toy furnitures and not participing at the case. In an another scene Daniels asks to an another lieutenant more powerman for the detail, complaining about Prez, Polk and Mahone, then Daniels says about Lester: "A cuddly housecat. I don't think he can even find his gun"
My favorite character , I wish every workplace had a Mr.Freamon . Lester was experienced and had tremendous knowledge in his line of work which he willingly passed on to his younger colleagues without any ego . He could see things many people would often miss , he made the people around him better at their job .A gem of a character.
In his own way, he has a lot of ego, but he's the polar opposite to McNulty. While Jimmy needs everyone to know that he's the smartest guy, Lester KNOWS that he's smarter than most of them. And he has no problem in pissing off McNulty in the later seasons, because he almost pities him for his narrow field of view. Freamon knows how the game works and he's willing to play on his terms. That's what McNulty never understands: You can make a difference by putting in the work, but nobody will thank you. Freamon gets it.
I just finished watching this series, and I kept going back and forth on who the best character is, and Lester is. Yes Bunk and McNulty have their moments, but Lester is the gold standard.
This happens a few times throughout the series to various cops....much to the same comedic effect. Basically speaks to the quality of corner hustlers. Wouldn't know poh-lice from Patrice if they weren't in their cars.
When that dealer Justin tried to sell to Colvin, haha! Justin was like "I got spider bags", Colvin said "What???" Then Colvin turned on his police radio to give the kid a HUGE hint that he was 5-0. Justin didn't get it and was STILL trying to sell to him. It wasn't until Colvin put on his Major's hat is when Justin finally backed off. Colvin just shook his head and the other dealers were laughing XD
that wasn't supposed to be funny tho(not only funny at least). it was supposed to signify bunny accepting that the police are having no effect. that's why bunny legalizes drugs in west Baltimore. he's months from retirement and was always a good cop but he feels that nothing was changed and he didn't accomplish anything.
Lester pretty much single handedly kept this case afloat, love how he calmly puts the poster on the table & walks away without saying a word like "You're welcome." #Classic
I think that's the complaint, cheap expository dialogue. They could have at least had them explain it to someone like Herc where it would be believable.
I have a law degree and I didn't know what exhaustion was until I watched the Wire. We spent maybe 2 minutes learning about the Federal Wiretap Statute in Con Crim but that was it. And I went to the same school Daniels did.
The older I get, the more layers of this show open up. When Lester walks away after dropping off D's pager number, I used to see that as a mic drop. Now, I still see some personal pride in doing good work, but also someone who knows bone deep that he's working within a system and only a little movement will ever be possible. It is broken, but in the way that everything people do is broken - not necessarily from malice, but from the fact that self interested individuals trying to work within a group always break things some. He's been broken by it and knows the limitations it has placed on him, especially regarding advancement. It is heart breaking and yet hopeful in its own way.
And it's what that number represents, not only as a break in the case, but that Lester saw a random phone number a while back, noted it, followed up on it, proved who it was and what for, then waited for the perfect time to swoop in with that and make it look easy. HAD THEY ASKED earlier he'd have presented it earlier. They need to learn to ask. I'm the same way, sitting on the solution to everyone's problem, just waiting for them to do the work of asking, and then when they don't ask, relenting and dropping the solution in their lap. The problem was solved all along, you just didn't know it, but you'll catch up
If I remember correctly, that scene with Bunk and McNulty is the first time the term "Natural Police" is used. It's the highest honor that officers give each other. Throughout the show, you see so many characters cut corners, slack off, cheat or juke the stats to get ahead or make Burrell or Carcetti happy. So when natural police comes along, you gotta respect it. That's also what makes McNulty and Lester's downfall so tragic. By them coloring "outside the lines," they lose the ability to tamp down the drug trade for good.
2:01 The beginning of the end for Avon Barksdale. Lester "Pawn Shop Unit for thirteen years and four months" Freamon figured some shit out and that was it.
I don’t know if intentional but right before he opens the door to the gym it’s almost like he reflects and thinks I have to open up now, Similar to his character the gym looks unassuming from the outside but once those doors open there is so much going on! For me it’s a cool parallel to Lester’s own personality and self up to this point
Lester Freeman is actually a VERY thorough detective, should be Detective First Grade if he isn’t. He knows how to take very little information and/or evidence on a case and turn it into a plethora of facts using time tested techniques, a lot of bullshit and balls, and some tricks of his own creation. I’d buy you a drink any day Lester, cheers !!!
This makes way more sense as you watch the show. He got punished before for caring about the job by getting placed in the pawn shop unit. Hearing Mcnulty and Kima actually trying instead of being there for a paycheck reactivated him. Good pohleece
Lester was already such a mature man (not just physically) and landed on his feet better than almost everyone in the show, finding a love life and not being totally married to the job, as he warned McNulty about.
It looks like him, but Michael is actually the baby being held by Omar as he watches the Barksdale crew raid his spot. Michaels mom was young and shooting up next to Omar. I forget what episode that is.
@@leecro83 Nah, Michael would be like 9 during Season 1 (2002) since he was 13 in Season 4 (2006). That is Michael's mom shooting up with Omar but the baby she's holding is Bug, not Michael.
My favorite Lester scene was when he showed Bunk the vacants in Season 4 and Bunk is just standing there thinking of the fuckery to come after. This was just as great though. Amazing character!
Lestor "The Machine" Freamon is everything you want in a productive member of society. Conscientiousness, intelligence and dedication. Guy is a legend. And, as an interesting side note appeared in a number of 70's UK TV series, where I am from. Guy pops up all the time and is always class to a tee!
Lester finding Avon's picture was the moment that the mission of the show clicked for me. Not only was I hooked, I started to fall in love with the characters.
Aye, always knew Lester was a cold piece. I appreciate you highlighting that. Brings back memories of when I used to be glued to the TV every Sunday. I've watched the entire series 4 or 5 times and I always see something new. Thanks for the great clip!
Shows so well written, even the exposition. Them explaining exhaustion is mostly for us the audience, but it’s also natural the squad has to explain to Daniels they tried. Daniels is the one who will have to “sell” it to the higher ups to get the affidavit signed. They showed him they know what they had to do, and what parts they sort of stretched to meet the requirements.
The coolest part about this scene to me is that they later called back to it when told Cutty Avon he would be apart of the donor club and they'll put his name on the wall of the gym. Avon didn't want that for specifically the reason of what happened in this scene. Perfect.
