Bad Dreams (The Wire episode)
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"Bad Dreams" is the 11th episode of the second 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 episode was written by
George Pelecanos George P. Pelecanos (born February 18, 1957) is an American author. Many of his 20 books are in the genre of detective fiction and set primarily in his hometown of Washington, D.C. He is also a film and television producer and a television writ ...
from a story by David Simon & George Pelecanos and was directed by Ernest Dickerson. It originally aired on August 17, 2003. The episode was submitted to the American Film Institute for consideration in their TV programs of the year award and the show subsequently won the award.


Plot

The Sobotka detail serve warrants. Daniels, Bunk, Greggs and Freamon find Glekas' warehouse completely stripped of evidence. Weapons are found in
Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...
's home while
Serge Serge may refer to: *Serge (fabric), a type of twill fabric *Serge (llama) (born 2005), a llama in the Cirque Franco-Italien and internet meme *Serge (name), a masculine given name (includes a list of people with this name) *Serge (post), a hitchi ...
and White Mike are arrested.
Herc Thomas "Herc" Hauk is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire (TV series), The Wire'', played by Domenick Lombardozzi. The series introduces Herc as a detective in the Baltimore Police Department's Narcotics Unit, begrudgingly detailed ...
and Carver search Nick's residence, finding
heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...
and cash. Valchek and
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
supervisor Amanda Reese hold off on apprehending Frank at home, wanting to make his arrest high-profile. Daniels decides to leave Vondas on the street, hoping to identify the man he works for. When he learns that Glekas was killed by Ziggy, Daniels is outraged that Landsman left him out of the loop and that their investigation has been compromised. Meanwhile, Frank and Horseface calmly accept their arrests when the FBI raids the stevedores
union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
. Reese delays taking the captives outside until the press arrives.
The Greek The Greek is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Bill Raymond. The Greek is the head of an international criminal organization involved in narcotics and human trafficking. The Greek is a mysterious figure involved ...
's associates refuse to talk under questioning, but White Mike gives up information on Eton and Serge. Frank's lawyers shepherd him through a detention hearing. The detail focuses attention on Vondas, who is tailed from his home to a meeting at the Inner Harbor. Greggs and Beadie follow Vondas into a parking garage, with Beadie getting her first foot pursuit by tailing Vondas to his hotel room. McNulty photographs Vondas leaving the hotel with his lawyer, mistakenly believing the attorney to be Vondas' superior, and happens to get a chance shot of The Greek. Vondas switches cars and loses Greggs, who is oblivious as The Greek walks past her. Daniels and
Pearlman Pearlman ( he, פרלמן) is a surname. It is typically an Anglicized version of the Ashkenazi Jewish surname Perelman. Notable people with the surname include: *Alan R. Pearlman, American engineer and entrepreneur, founder of ARP Instruments, Inc ...
mistakenly assume that Vondas' lawyer is in charge of the
smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...
ring. Beadie volunteers to approach Frank and convince him to cooperate in exchange for probation and witness protection. Nick returns home and is treated coldly by his parents as they clean up after the police. Frank visits a jailed Ziggy, who expresses resentment that his father spent more time with union business than him, and remorse for killing Glekas.
Louis Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis (d ...
, Frank's brother and Nick's father, confronts Frank about his failure to keep Nick out of a life of crime. Frank's arrest makes him a pariah within the union, but he is allowed to work a ship.
Bruce The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been a ...
tells Frank that the arrest has dried up his political support. Beadie urges Frank to come forward as an
informant An informant (also called an informer or, as a slang term, a “snitch”) is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law-enforcement world, where informan ...
to save himself, telling him that there are different kinds of wrong and that he is better than those he has gotten involved with. Frank comes to the detail and agrees to cooperate, so Nick can get leniency and Ziggy can be moved to a safer jail, on condition that he does not give up any union men. Pearlman agrees on straight probation for Frank and Nick. Frank agrees to return with a lawyer the next day. Vondas convinces Nick to set up a meeting with Frank with the promise of helping Ziggy, causing Frank to reconsider his deal with the police. Frank decides to meet The Greek and Vondas alone underneath the
Francis Scott Key Bridge Francis Scott Key Bridge, Key Bridge, or FSK Bridge can refer to: *Francis Scott Key Bridge (Baltimore), a bridge carrying Interstate 695 which crosses the outer harbor of Baltimore, Maryland *Francis Scott Key Bridge (Washington) The Francis Sc ...
, putting his son above his dreams for the docks. However, by this point The Greek has been tipped off by Agent Koutris that Frank has turned informant, making it unlikely that Frank will survive the meeting. Stringer tells
Omar ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ( ar, عمر بن الخطاب, also spelled Omar, ) was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () as the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate o ...
that
Brother Mouzone Brother Mouzone is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Michael Potts. Character history Brother Mouzone (from Arabic موزون ''mawzūn'', meaning "balanced,” "weighted") is a drug enforcer and hitman from ...
was responsible for torturing and killing
Brandon Brandon may refer to: Names and people *Brandon (given name), a male given name * Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins Places Australia *Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales *Brandon, Q ...
, offering to give him up if Omar will cease his pursuit of the Barksdale Organization. With the aid of his crew, Omar knocks out Mouzone's partner Lamar and shoots Mouzone himself as he answers the door of his hotel room. When Omar explains why he is there, Mouzone tells him that he has been misinformed. Omar believes his story and phones for an ambulance on his way out of the hotel.


Production


Title reference

The title refers to the way that Frank's hopes to rejuvenate the docks by becoming involved with crime have had dire consequences for him and his family. It may also refer to the morning raids that wake everyone involved in the conspiracy.


Epigraph

Frank Sobotka while talking with his lawyers after his arrest. To get clean is to wash the blood off his hands that he never expected or wanted caused by a desire to simply keep his people at the port able to work properly and progressively. He starts this process by returning to the docks to work a simple hard day's labor, and also by talking to the police about the smuggling organization headed by the Greek. Frank comes to a tragic end by the time the episode is over with because he couldn’t get clean.


Music

The two Greek songs at the end of the episode were sung by Stelios Kazantzidis. In the restaurant, the song playing in the background was "To Psomi tis Ksenitias" (Bread of a Foreign Land). The song played during the montage at the end is a less well-known song, "Ena Sidero Anameno" (Ένα σίδερο αναμένο; also known by its
refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in poetry — the "chorus" of a song. Poetic fixed forms that feature refrains include the vi ...
, ''Ephyge'', "She left") a love song. Both songs were chosen by the episode's writer
George Pelecanos George P. Pelecanos (born February 18, 1957) is an American author. Many of his 20 books are in the genre of detective fiction and set primarily in his hometown of Washington, D.C. He is also a film and television producer and a television writ ...
who is Greek American.


Credits


Starring cast

Although credited, John Doman and Wood Harris do not appear in this episode.


Guest stars

#
Seth Gilliam Seth Gilliam (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayals of Ellis Carver on ''The Wire'', Clayton Hughes on '' Oz'', Detective Daniels on ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' (2007–2008), Dr. Alan Deaton on ''T ...
as Detective Ellis Carver # Domenick Lombardozzi as Detective Thomas "Herc" Hauk # Jim True-Frost as Detective Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski (credited, but does not appear) #
James Ransone James Finley Ransone III (born June 2, 1979) is an American actor and musician. He is known for his roles as Ziggy Sobotka in the second season of the drama series ''The Wire'', United States Marine Corps Cpl. Josh Ray Person in the war drama min ...
as
Ziggy Sobotka Chester Karol "Ziggy" Sobotka is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor James Ransone. Though his father Frank Sobotka was a well-respected stevedore union leader, Ziggy's thoughtless and immature behavior gained h ...
#
Pablo Schreiber Pablo Tell Schreiber (born April 26, 1978) is a Canadian-American actor. He is best known for his stage work and for portraying Nick Sobotka on ''The Wire'' (2003), William Lewis on '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' (2013–2014), Mad Swe ...
as Nick Sobotka # Michael Potts as
Brother Mouzone Brother Mouzone is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Michael Potts. Character history Brother Mouzone (from Arabic موزون ''mawzūn'', meaning "balanced,” "weighted") is a drug enforcer and hitman from ...
#
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 pre ...
as Omar Little #
Chris Ashworth Christopher Michael Ashworth (born March 13, 1975, in Farmville, Virginia), better known as simply Chris Ashworth, is an American actor, perhaps best known for his portrayal of Sergei Malatov on ''The Wire''. He commonly plays characters from E ...
as Sergei Malatov #
Al Brown Alfonso Teofilo Brown (July 5, 1902 – April 11, 1951), better known as Panama Al Brown, was a Panamanian professional boxer. He made history by becoming boxing's first Latin American world champion, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest ...
as Major Stanislaus Valchek #
Bill Raymond William Joseph Raymond (born September 9, 1938) is an American actor who has appeared in film, television, theater and radio drama since the 1960s. Career He is featured in the second and fifth seasons of the HBO drama ''The Wire'' as "The Gree ...
as
The Greek The Greek is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Bill Raymond. The Greek is the head of an international criminal organization involved in narcotics and human trafficking. The Greek is a mysterious figure involved ...
#
Delaney Williams Delaney Williams (born December 12, 1962) is an American character actor from Washington, D.C. He appeared on the HBO drama ''The Wire'' (2002–2008) as a recurring guest star playing homicide sergeant Jay Landsman. He also had a small role o ...
as Sergeant Jay Landsman #Luray Cooper as Nat Coxson # Robert Hogan as Louis Sobotka #Bus Howard as
Ott Ott, OTT or O.T.T. may refer to: Entertainment * OTT (group), a pop band from the late 1990s * Ott (record producer), British record producer and musician * "O.T.T" (song), a song by Fugative * ''O.T.T.'' (television series), a UK TV programme f ...
#Doug Lory as Big Roy #Richard Pelzman as Little Big Roy #Benay Berger as FBI Supervisor Amanda Reese #
Toni Lewis Toni Lewis is an American actress best known for playing Terri Stivers on '' Homicide: Life on the Street''. The role led to her receiving a nomination for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. She is also ...
as Assistant United States Attorney Nadiva Bryant #Kevin McKelvy as FBI Agent #Doug Olear as FBI Agent Terrance "Fitz" Fitzhugh # William L. Thomas as FBI Agent #Kelli R. Brown as Kimmy #Edwina Findley as Tosha Mitchell #
Tom Mardirosian Tom Mardirosian (born December 14, 1947) is an American actor. He is known for playing Agamemnon Busmalis in the HBO show '' Oz'' and Agt. Kristos Koutris in the HBO show ''The Wire''. Mardirosian was born and raised in Buffalo, New York, the s ...
as Agent Koutris #Gordana Rashovich as Ilona Petrovich #Brook Yeaton as "White" Mike McArdle #Keith Flippen as Bruce DiBiago #Aphrodite Georgelakos as Unknown #Clifton Gross as stevedore #Steve Lukiewski as stevedore #
Jackie Sawiris Jackie Sawiris is a Jordanian/Egyptian actress, writer and film-maker who is best known for playing the Arabian genie Majida in ''Knightmare'' from 1993 to 1994. Other notable performances include playing Roz in ''Eyes Wide Shut'' (1999). Acting ...
as Unknown #Paul G. Sepczynski as stevedore


Uncredited appearances

*Derren M. Fuentes as QRT Leader Torret *Tommy Hahn as FBI Special Agent Salmond * Merritt Wever as Prissy * Lev Gorens as Eton Ben-Eleazer * Charley Scalies as Thomas "Horseface" Pakusa *Jeffrey Pratt Gordon as Johnny "Fifty" Spamanto *Elisabeth Noone as Joan Sobotka *DeAndre McCullough as Lamar * David Simon as reporter at Sobotka's arrest Clifton Gross, Steve Lukiewski, and Paul G. Sepczynski are all real-life stevedores who appear as stevedores in this episode. Lukiewski is a hiring hall dispatcher and emulates this position when Sobotka uses another member's card to work. Gross and Sepczynski are the stevedores helping Sobotka to unload the ship.


Reception


Awards and nominations

The episode was submitted to the American Film Institute for consideration in their TV programs of the year award. The show subsequently won the award and the institute commented that "''The Wire'' portrays mundane police work with tragic grandeur and, in doing so, captures the seemingly intractable problem of drugs in American society in a daring and unique way. Complex and subtle, the series offers a look at police procedure more realistic than any show on television."


References


External links


"Bad Dreams"
at HBO.com * {{The Wire episodes The Wire (season 2) episodes 2003 American television episodes Television episodes directed by Ernest Dickerson