"Boys of Summer" is the first episode of the fourth season of the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

original series ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...

''. Written by

David Simon David Judah Simon (born February 9, 1960) is an American author, journalist, screenwriter, and producer best known for his work on ''The Wire'' (2002–08). He worked for ''The Baltimore Sun'' City Desk for twelve years (1982–95), wrote '' Hom ...

from a story by David Simon &

Ed Burns Edward P. Burns (born January 29, 1946) is an American screenwriter, novelist, and producer. He has worked closely with writing partner David Simon. For HBO, they have collaborated on ''The Corner,'' ''The Wire,'' ''Generation Kill'', ''The Pl ...

, and directed by

Joe Chappelle Joseph Chappelle is an American screenwriter, Film producer, producer, and Film director, director of film and Television director, television. He is perhaps best known for his work on the critically acclaimed HBO series ''The Wire'', where he d ...

, it originally aired on September 10, 2006.

Plot

Snoop,

Marlo Stanfield Marlo Stanfield is a fictional character on the HBO television drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Jamie Hector. Stanfield is a young, ambitious, intelligent and ruthless gangster and head of the eponymous Stanfield Organization in the Baltimore ...

's young enforcer, replaces her cordless

nail gun A nail gun, nailgun or nailer is a form of hammer used to drive nails into wood or other materials. It is usually driven by compressed air (pneumatic), electromagnetism, highly flammable gases such as butane or propane, or, for powder-actuated ...

. Snoop and her mentor,

Chris Partlow Christopher "Chris" Partlow is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Gbenga Akinnagbe. Chris is Marlo Stanfield's second-in-command and bodyguard in his drug dealing operation. He is a minor antagonist for season 3 a ...

, prepare a vacant

row house In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house (British English, UK) or townhouse (American English, US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings party ...

while a victim pleads with them. After the victim is shot with a suppressed pistol, they cover the body with

quicklime Calcium oxide (CaO), commonly known as quicklime or burnt lime, is a widely used chemical compound. It is a white, caustic, alkaline, crystalline solid at room temperature. The broadly used term "''lime''" connotes calcium-containing inorganic ma ...

and plastic sheets and nail the vacant building closed before leaving.

Councilman A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries. Canada Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...

Tommy Carcetti Thomas J. "Tommy" Carcetti ( ) is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Aidan Gillen. Carcetti is an ambitious and venal Baltimore politician who begins the series with a seat on the city council. Biography Season 3 Tom ...

and his deputy campaign manager, Norman Wilson, are busy with appointments and public appearances as Carcetti runs for

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

. The process of campaigning has left him bitter and disillusioned, and he ignores certain duties such as fundraising calls.

Thomas "Herc" Hauk Thomas "Herc" Hauk is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Domenick Lombardozzi. The series introduces Herc as a detective in the Baltimore Police Department's Narcotics Unit, begrudgingly detailed to the initial Barksd ...

joins Mayor

Clarence Royce Clarence V. Royce is a fictional character in the HBO series ''The Wire'' played by Glynn Turman. Season 3 Clarence V. Royce is the Mayor of Baltimore whose first appearance is at the demolition of the Franklin Terrace housing projects as a mea ...

's security detail. Royce's chief of staff,

Coleman Parker The following are politicians, family members, and assistants administrating the politics of Baltimore on ''The Wire''. Maryland State politicians Clay Davis * Played by: Isiah Whitlock, Jr. * Appears in: :Season one: "One Arrest"; " The Cost" ...

, reports that Carcetti and Anthony Gray's campaigns are asking for two separate debates. In contrast to Carcetti, Royce has a speaking engagement with a healthy attendance at a harbor redevelopment site. Carcetti's engagement with the community initially makes him energized, but he sours upon hearing about his low poll numbers and assumes he has already lost. Later, an officer recognizes a drunk Carcetti sitting on a park bench at

Federal Hill Park Federal Hill Park is a 10.3 acres park located in Baltimore, Maryland on the south shore of the Inner Harbor. The park is a signature Baltimore landmark and offers visitors some of the most noted views in the city often photographed looking north ...

Bodie Broadus Preston "Bodie" Broadus is a fictional character on the HBO drama series ''The Wire'', played by actor J. D. Williams. Bodie is initially a rough, low-level drug dealer, but matures throughout the series and slowly rises through the ranks. Bodie i ...

is shown running his own drug dealing crew, for which

Namond Brice Namond Brice ( ) is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Julito McCullum. Namond is a middle school student during season 4 and is friends with Michael Lee and Randy Wagstaff. He often bullies Duquan “Dukie” W ...

is the runner. One of Bodie's colleagues,

Lex Lex or LEX may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Lex'', a daily featured column in the ''Financial Times'' Games * Lex, the mascot of the word-forming puzzle video game ''Bookworm'' * Lex, the protagonist of the word-forming puzzle video ga ...

, complains that his baby's mother, Patrice, is dating

Fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

, a crew chief from Marlo's

organization An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived from ...

. Lex threatens to kill Fruit, despite Bodie's warning that doing so will invoke Marlo's wrath. Bodie is met by

Slim Charles Slim Charles is a fictional character in the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Anwan Glover. An enforcer for the Barksdale Organization and later the top lieutenant of kingpin Proposition Joe, he is portrayed as principled, loyal, and competent ...

, who now works for

Proposition Joe Joseph Stewart, better known as "Proposition Joe" or "Prop Joe", is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Robert F. Chew. Joe is an Eastside drug lord who prefers a peaceful solution to business disputes when possible. H ...

. Meanwhile, Namond's friends Michael Lee and

Randy Wagstaff Randy Wagstaff is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Maestro Harrell. Randy is an enterprising student who is dependent on social services. During season 4, he was an 8th grade pupil at Edward Tilghman Middle School and ...

ask to take them catching pigeons.

Duquan "Dukie" Weems Duquan "Dukie" Weems is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Jermaine Crawford. Dukie is a student at Edward Tilghman Middle School. He has a difficult home life because the adults in his home are either alcoholics or dr ...

scares off the birds, which leads to Michael having to break up a fight between Dukie and Namond. That night, Lex shoots Fruit dead as he leaves a club. When Dukie is beaten up by children in the terraces, the boys plan to pelt them with

water balloon A water balloon or water bomb is a balloon, often made of latex rubber, filled with water. Water balloons are used in a summer pastime of cooling off through water balloon fights. Water balloons are also popular for celebrations, including celebr ...

s filled with

urine Urine is a liquid by-product of metabolism in humans and in many other animals. Urine flows from the kidneys through the ureters to the urinary bladder. Urination results in urine being excretion, excreted from the body through the urethra. Cel ...

. The plan goes sour when Namond bursts a balloon on himself and his friends flee. Michael is caught and beaten. Later, Namond buys ice cream for his friends. Randy returns home and is scolded by his foster mother for breaking

curfew A curfew is a government order specifying a time during which certain regulations apply. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to ''not'' be in public places or on roads within a certain time frame, typically in the evening and ...

. Detectives

Lester Freamon Lester Freamon is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire (TV series), The Wire'', played by actor Clarke Peters. Freamon is a detective in the Baltimore Police Department's Major Crimes Unit. He is a wise, methodical detective whose int ...

and

Kima Greggs Shakima "Kima" Greggs is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actress Sonja Sohn. Greggs is a determined and capable police detective in the Baltimore Police Department. Openly lesbian, she often displays a hardened, cyn ...

ask

ASA ASA as an abbreviation or initialism may refer to: Biology and medicine * Accessible surface area of a biomolecule, accessible to a solvent * Acetylsalicylic acid, aspirin * Advanced surface ablation, refractive eye surgery * Anterior spinal ar ...

Rhonda Pearlman Rhonda Pearlman is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire (TV series), The Wire'', played by actress Deirdre Lovejoy. Pearlman has been the legal system liaison for all of Lieutenant Cedric Daniels' investigations on the show. Later in ...

to sign off on

subpoena A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...

s of key political figures that they have linked to the

Barksdale Organization The Barksdale Organization is a fictional drug-dealing gang on the television series ''The Wire''. Many of the characters featured in season one of ''The Wire'' belong to this organization. Season 1 largely deals with the Baltimore Police Depa ...

. Greggs tricks Lieutenant Jimmy Asher, the Major Crimes Unit's new commander, into signing the papers they need. Freamon learns about Fruit's murder through the wiretap and meets with

Bunk Moreland William "Bunk" Moreland is a fictional character in ''The Wire'', played by Wendell Pierce. Bunk's character is based on a retired Baltimore detective named Oscar "The Bunk" Requer. He is portrayed as a generally competent, if profane and curmud ...

and

Ed Norris Edward T. Norris (born April 10, 1960) is an American radio host and former law enforcement officer in Maryland. He is the cohost of a talk show on WJZ-FM (105.7 The Fan) in Baltimore, Maryland. Norris, a 20-year veteran of the New York Police ...

, who are working the case in Homicide. Bunk gives Freamon a cell phone that they recovered from Fruit's body to garner more numbers for wiretaps. District Sergeant

Ellis Carver Ellis Carver is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire (TV series), The Wire'', played by actor Seth Gilliam. Carver is a former Sergeant of the Baltimore Police Department's Western District Drug Enforcement Unit. While initially match ...

harasses Bodie's crew, and encounters

Jimmy McNulty James "Jimmy" McNulty is a fictional character and the protagonist of the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Dominic West. McNulty is an Irish-American detective in the Baltimore Police Department. While talented in his profession, McNulty's c ...

, who is still a beat cop. When Bodie tries the politeness that Carver has taught him on Officer

Anthony Colicchio The Baltimore Police Department plays an integral part in ''The Wire''. Command The department is led by a Police Commissioner assisted by Deputy Commissioners of Operations (often shortened to Deputy Ops) and Administration. The Police Commission ...

he is angrily rebuked. Carver reminds Colicchio that if they come down hard on everyone, they'll have no one to get information from when something serious happens. McNulty is called to meet with Major

Cedric Daniels Cedric Daniels is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Lance Reddick. Daniels is well regarded in the Baltimore Police Department by making his subordinates focus on decent police work and quality arrests. He occasional ...

, now commander of the Western District, who urges him to move out of the patrol division and return to detective work. After McNulty declines the offer, Daniels reflects he is probably better off in Patrol on a personal level. At the roll call meeting, officers are given a misguided mandatory lecture about soft targets for

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

in West Baltimore. Bunk visits McNulty to ask if he knows Lex, and is invited to dinner with his

domestic partner A domestic partnership is a legal relationship, usually between couples, who live together and share a common domestic life, but are not married (to each other or to anyone else). People in domestic partnerships receive benefits that guarantee r ...

Beadie Russell Beatrice "Beadie" Russell is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actress Amy Ryan. She was featured prominently in the second season, after she discovered thirteen corpses in a container on the Baltimore docks. Charac ...

. Meanwhile,

Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Jim True-Frost. Pryzbylewski is a detective of Polish heritage in the Baltimore Police Department. Initially seen as incompetent and rash, he pr ...

arrives at an inner city school as a trainee math teacher, and is immediately hired by the principal when he mentions being a former police officer. Prez attends a seminar on student motivation that seems to be as inept as the terrorism lecture in the Western. Prez later takes in his unkempt classroom, but seems excited at the prospect of teaching. Marlo meets with his lieutenants to discuss how to retaliate for Fruit's murder, and settles for killing Lex.

Little Kevin ''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...

asks Randy to tell Lex that Patrice wants to meet him behind the playground that night. When Lex arrives, he finds Snoop and Partlow lying in wait. Bunk and Carver are unable to find Lex on his usual corner. While Randy is selling refreshments to Bodie's crew, Little Kevin gives him cash for following his instructions and reveals that Lex is dead. Snoop and Partlow board up another vacant house after leaving Lex's body there.

Production

Simon has commented that the influx of novice child actors led to an unruly behavior at the beginning of filming, but they became a closely knit group of professional young actors by the close of the series.

Non-fiction elements

During the counter-terrorism briefing, Carver jokes that terrorists "got jacked by Apex's crew." Apex was a real stick-up man in Baltimore in the 1990s whom

met, and was one of several inspirations for

Omar Little Omar Devone Little is a fictional character on the HBO drama series ''The Wire'', portrayed by Michael K. Williams. He is a notorious Baltimore stick-up man, who frequently robs street-level drug dealers. He is legendary around Baltimore for hi ...

Title reference

The title refers to the children of West Baltimore on summer break. "The Boys of Summer" is also the title of a

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...

by Don Henley and

book A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...

by Roger Kahn, named from the poem 'I see the boys of summer' by

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Under ...

. Both of those works illustrate a remembrance of glory days past and innocence lost. Thus the title sets the stage for the fourth season.

Epigraph

Assistant principal Donnelly makes this comment when Prez applies to be a teacher. This also can be applied to the group's (Michael, Namond, Duquan, and Randy) innocence before the events of the season begin to unfold, as well as Carcetti's inexperience heading into his campaign for election as mayor of Baltimore. The epigraph also ties into the sinister activities of Marlo's enforcers efficiently executing undesirables over pleas.

Music

The song playing in the background while Randy is selling candy to Little Kevin is "

Survival of the Fittest "Survival of the fittest" is a phrase that originated from Darwinian evolutionary theory as a way of describing the mechanism of natural selection. The biological concept of fitness is defined as reproductive success. In Darwinian terms, th ...

" by

Mobb Deep Mobb Deep was an American hip hop duo from New York City. The duo consisted of rappers Prodigy and Havoc. They are considered to be among the principal progenitors of hardcore East Coast hip hopEdwards, Paul, 2009, ''How to Rap: The Art & Scien ...

Credits

Starring cast

Although credited,

Chad Coleman Chad L. Coleman (born September 6, 1967) is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for playing Dennis "Cutty" Wise on the HBO series ''The Wire'' (2004–08), Tyreese on the AMC series '' The Walking Dead'' (2012–15), Mingo on ''Roots'' (2 ...

John Doman John Doman (born January 9, 1945) is an American actor best known for playing Maryland State Police Superintendent, Deputy Police Commissioner and Major William Rawls on HBO series ''The Wire'' (2002–2008), Colonel Edward Galson on '' Oz'' (20 ...

Frankie Faison Frankie Russel Faison (born June 10, 1949) is an American actor known for his role as Deputy Commissioner, and, later, Commissioner, Ervin Burrell in the HBO series ''The Wire'', as Barney Matthews in the ''Hannibal Lecter'' franchise, and as Suga ...

Andre Royo Andre Royo (born July 18, 1968) is an American actor, producer, and writer. He is best known for his role as Reginald "Bubbles" Cousins on the HBO crime drama series ''The Wire'', and his appearances on ''Fringe'', ''Party Down'', ''How to Make I ...

Michael K. Williams Michael Kenneth Williams (November 22, 1966 – September 6, 2021) was an American actor. He rose to fame in 2002 through his critically acclaimed role as Omar Little on the HBO drama series ''The Wire''. He has been described as a "singular pr ...

and

Robert Wisdom Robert Ray Wisdom (born September 14, 1953) is an American actor, best known for his roles as Howard "Bunny" Colvin in ''The Wire,'' Norman "Lechero" St. John in ''Prison Break'', and Harold Conway in the 2021 Hulu movie ''Vacation Friends''. ...

do not appear in this episode.

Guest stars

Jermaine Crawford Jermaine Crawford (born October 28, 1992) is an actor best known for appearing on the HBO original series ''The Wire'' as Dukie Weems. He is a second cousin to fellow ''The Wire'' cast member and actor Tristan Wilds. Career Crawford started p ...

Maestro Harrell Maestro Harrell, also known as M A E S T R O (born July 29, 1991), is an American DJ, singer, rapper, actor, and record producer. He starred on the HBO original series ''The Wire'' as Randy Wagstaff (2006–08), and as Malik on the ABC comedy '' ...

# Julito McCullum as

Tristan Wilds Tristan Paul Mack Wilds (born July 15, 1989) is an American actor, singer-songwriter, and record producer. He is known for his roles as Michael Lee on the HBO original drama series, ''The Wire'', and as Dixon Wilson on the CW teen drama seri ...

as Michael Lee #

Gbenga Akinnagbe Olugbenga Enitan Temitope Akinnagbe ( ; born 12 December 1978) is an American actor and writer, best known for his roles as Chris Partlow on the HBO series ''The Wire'' and as Larry Brown on the HBO series '' The Deuce''. Early life Akinnagbe ...

Tootsie Duvall Tootsie Duvall (sometimes credited as Susan Duvall or Susan "Tootsie" Duvall) is an American film, theatre and television actress. Early life She was born Susan Steinweidle. Career In recent years, she is known for her role as Assistant Pri ...

as Assistant Principal Marcia Donnelly #

Henri Edmonds Henri is an Estonian, Finnish, French, German and Luxembourgish form of the masculine given name Henry. People with this given name ; French noblemen :'' See the 'List of rulers named Henry' for Kings of France named Henri.'' * Henri I de Montm ...

as School lecturer # Richard Hildebird as Principal Claudell Withers # Christopher Mann as Councilman Anthony Gray # Megan Anderson as Jen Carcetti #

Brandy Burre Brandy Burre (born September 27, 1974) is an American actress, best known for her portrayal of Theresa D'Agostino on the HBO series ''The Wire''. Burre was born in Sandusky, Ohio. She earned her master's degree in acting at Ohio University, and h ...

Theresa D'Agostino The following are politicians, family members, and assistants administrating the politics of Baltimore on ''The Wire (TV series), The Wire''. Maryland State politicians Clay Davis * Played by: Isiah Whitlock, Jr. * Appears in: :Season one: "One ...

Sam Coppola Sam Coppola (July 31, 1932 – February 5, 2012) was an American actor. He appeared in almost 70 films, beginning in 1968, but may be best remembered for his role as Dan Fusco, owner of the hardware and paint store in ''Saturday Night Fever'', wh ...

as "Young Tony" - Former Mayor #

Joilet F. Harris Joliet or Jolliet may refer to: People * Louis Jolliet (1645–1700), French-Canadian explorer of North America * Oscar Joliet (1878–1969), Belgian scholar-priest and Catholic Auxiliary bishop of Ghent Places in the United States * Joliet, Illi ...

as Officer Caroline Massey #

Brandon Fobbs Brandon Fobbs (born April 19, 1981) is an American actor. He had a recurring role on HBO television series ''The Wire (TV series), The Wire'' as Stanfield Organization#Fruit, Fruit. He also appeared in ''Pride (2007 film), Pride'' (2007) and '' ...

Anwan Glover Ralph Anwan Glover (born May 5, 1971 in Washington, D.C.) is an American rapper, actor, model, DJ, and founding member of the D.C.-based go-go band "BackYard Band" (also abbreviated as "BYB"). Glover is also known for his portrayal of Slim Charle ...

#Norman Jackson as Curtis "Lex" Anderson #

Cleo Reginald Pizana Cleo may refer to: Entertainment * ''Cleo'' (magazine), an Australian magazine established in 1972, now active in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand * Cleo (group), a South Korean girl group formed in 1999 * ''Cleo'' (play), by Lawrenc ...

as Chief of Staff Coleman Parker #

Tyrell Baker Tyrrell or Tyrell may refer to: Places * Tyrrell, Ohio * Tyrrell County, North Carolina * Tyrrell Sea, prehistoric Hudson Bay People * Tyrrell (surname) * Tyrell Biggs (born 1960), American boxer * Tyrell Terry (born 2000), American basketball pl ...

Nathan Corbett Nathan "Carnage" Corbett (born 23 October 1979) is a retired Australian Muay Thai kickboxer, color commentator for Lion Fight Promotions on CBS Sports and feature author at Fightmag. He is a former 11-time Muay Thai World Champion. Hailing out ...

Donut A doughnut or donut () is a type of food made from leavened fried dough. It is popular in many countries and is prepared in various forms as a sweet snack that can be homemade or purchased in bakeries, supermarkets, food stalls, and franc ...

Felicia Pearson Felicia Pearson (born May 18, 1980) is an American actress, rapper and author. She played Felicia "Snoop" Pearson on ''The Wire'' and wrote a 2007 memoir, ''Grace After Midnight,'' detailing her troubled childhood and time in prison for second- ...

as Snoop # Karen Vicks as

Gerry Gerry is both a surname and a masculine or feminine given name. As a given name, it is often a short form (hypocorism) of Gerard, Gerald or Geraldine. Notable people with the name include: Surname *Elbridge Gerry (1744–1814), fifth US vice presi ...

Cynthia Webb-Manly Cynthia is a feminine given name of Greek language, Greek origin: , , "from Mount Cynthus" on Delos island. The name has been in use in the Anglosphere since the 1600s. There are various spellings for this name, and it can be abbreviated to Cindy ...

as Teacher #2 #

Benjamin Busch Benjamin B. Busch is an American actor, writer, film maker, photographer, and United States Marine Corps Reserve officer. He is best known for his portrayal of Anthony Colicchio on the HBO original series ''The Wire''. Biography Benjamin Busch wa ...

as Officer Anthony Colicchio #

Jay Landsman Jay C. Landsman is an American retired homicide detective and actor. He was featured in David Simon (writer), David Simon's 1991 book about the Baltimore homicide unit ''Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets''. According to the book, Landsma ...

as Lieutenant Dennis Mello #

as Detective Ed Norris #

Jason Parker Jason Parker may refer to: *Jason Parker (sport shooter) (born 1974), American sport shooter * Jason Parker (American football) (born 1985), American football player *Jason Parker (speed skater) (born 1975), Canadian speed skater *Jason Parker, a ...

as Officer Reggie Leddett #

Michael Salconi Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

as Officer Michael Santangelo # Tyreeka Freamon as School Receptionist #

Thomas C. Hessenauer Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

as Teacher #1 #

Paul L. Nolan Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

as Hardware store employee #

Jim Rood Jim or JIM may refer to: * Jim (given name), a given name * Jim, a diminutive form of the given name James * Jim, a short form of the given name Jimmy * OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism * ''Jim'' (comics), a series by Jim Woodring * ''Ji ...

as Southern District Patrol Officer # Gene Terinoni as Lieutenant Jimmy Asher

Uncredited appearances

Ryan Sands Ryan Sands is an American actor from Washington, D.C. He is known for his portrayal of Geoffrey Wilder in '' Marvel's Runaways''. Early life and education Sands grew up in Washington D.C. along with several older brothers and sisters. His father ...

as Officer Lloyd "Truck" Garrick *

Kwame Patterson Kwame is an Akan masculine given name among the Akan people (such as the Ashanti and Fante) in Ghana which is given to a boy born on Saturday. Traditionally in Ghana, a child would receive their Akan day name during their Outdooring, eight da ...

Monk Metcalf Monk Metcalf is a fictional character on the HBO drama series ''The Wire'', portrayed by Kwame Patterson. Monk is a lieutenant in the Stanfield organization, and probably the third most recognized leader of the Stanfield Organization. Monk is sh ...

Thuliso Dingwall ''The Wire'' is an American crime drama television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The Wire'' premiered on June 2, ...

Kenard Kenard is a fictional young drug dealer on the HBO drama series ''The Wire (TV series), The Wire'', portrayed by Thuliso Dingwall. Series Season 4 Kenard is frequently seen hanging out with Namond's circle of friends, often making fun of Duqu ...

Shante Usual Shante Carver (born February 12, 1971) is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He also was a member of the Memphis Maniax and Dallas Desperados. He played college football at Ari ...

as Patrice *

Marlyne Afflack Marlyne Nayokah Barrett (née Afflack: born September 13, 1978) is an American actress. She had a recurring role from 2006 to 2008 as Nerese Campbell in the HBO crime drama ''The Wire'' and in 2007, she had a recurring role as Felicia Marquand in ...

Nerese Campbell The following are politicians, family members, and assistants administrating the politics of Baltimore on ''The Wire''. Maryland State politicians Clay Davis * Played by: Isiah Whitlock, Jr. * Appears in: :Season one: "One Arrest"; " The Cost" ...

* Denise Hart as Miss Anna Jeffries *

Bryan McLarney Bryan may refer to: Places United States * Bryan, Arkansas * Bryan, Kentucky * Bryan, Ohio * Bryan, Texas * Bryan, Wyoming, a ghost town in Sweetwater County in the U.S. state of Wyoming * Bryan Township (disambiguation) Facilities and stru ...

as Bryan - Western District Officer * Tamieka Chavis as Royce's Assistant * Chris James as Carcetti's Driver * Mark Joy as Ed Bowers - Property Developer *

Atif Lanier Atif (also spelled Atef or Atiph, ar, عاطف) is an Arabic language, Arabic masculine given name generally used in the Muslim world, it means "the kind one". Given name Atef * Atef Abu Saif (born 1973), Palestinian writer * Atef Adwan (born 195 ...

as Western District Officer *

Thomas Joe Craig Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the ...

as Construction Foreman * Derek A. Smith as Construction Foreman *Unknown as Tote (Stanfield Soldier) *Unknown as Reesy *Unknown as Lieutenant Hoskins *Unknown as Miss Simmons *Unknown as Reverend Garnett Thomas Hessenauer has a cameo in this episode as a dissenting school teacher; he is also the assistant to executive producer Nina Kostroff Noble.

First appearances

: Middle school child who works as a runner for

. He is the son of infamous Barksdale drug enforcer

Wee-Bey Brice Roland "Wee-Bey" Brice is a fictional character in the HBO drama ''The Wire'' played by Hassan Johnson. Wee-Bey is a trusted soldier in the Barksdale Organization. Character storyline Wee-Bey dropped out of school in sixth grade and started deal ...

. * Michael Lee: Middle school child who takes a leadership role amongst his peers. *

: Middle school child who lives with a strict foster mother and is known for his imagination and entrepreneurship. He is the son of "Cheese" Wagstaff. *

: Impoverished middle school child whose mother is a drug addict; often bullied by his peers. * Norman Wilson: Tommy Carcetti's new deputy campaign manager. *

: Senior Carcetti campaign staffer. * Lieutenant Asher: Commander of the major case unit. Asher is a retiring Lieutenant who provides no interference with the cases being conducted under the lead of Lester Freamon. *Lieutenant Hoskins: Commander of mayor Royce's security detail. *

Monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

: A lieutenant in the Stanfield Organization. *Lex,

and Reesy: Drug dealers in Bodie's crew. *

: Middle school child who is friends with Namond, Michael and Randy. * Claudell Withers: Edward Tilghman middle school's principal who handles most of the school's external problems. * Marcia Donnelly: Edward Tilghman middle school's assistant principal who handles most of the school's internal problems. *

: Baltimore City Council President on Mayor

's election ticket.

Reception

Ratings

The episode drew an average of 1.5 million viewers. Coverage considered this as low compared to other HBO series like ''Deadwood'' and ''The Sopranos'', but felt that including repeats of the episode and video-on-demand viewers would enhance the figure. Despite the low figures HBO commissioned a fifth season of the show two days after the episode aired.

Critical response

An ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' critic named the opening scene of the episode as the first of his "five reasons to live" for the week. A second critic picked out the parallels between the police briefing and the teachers seminar as a key element of the episode tying the institution of the school and the police department together. He also saw the scenes as significant in demonstrating how far removed the bureaucracies of modern lives are from reality.

References

External links

"Boys of Summer"
at HBO.com * {{The Wire episodes The Wire (season 4) episodes 2006 American television episodes Television episodes written by David Simon