Sparky

What get out of here.

Honestly I haven't watched either in so long but you have to admit the wire is a way larger show. The soprano has the mob angle, the family angle. The wire portrays gangsters, junkies, police, school system, news publication, etc. It has such a grand scope but no characters feel thin, no part lacking, its ****ing crazy.

And what other show has a super bad ass homosexual shotgun wielding thug?

midnight rain

Well that's because The Wire aims for the grand scope. I can't really fault The Sopranos for not doing something it doesn't set out to do. The Wire is more focused on the external, how different groups in society interact and the overall corruption of Baltimore, while The Sopranos is more about the internal.

The Wire wins out for it's sociopolitical themes. The Sopranos wins for it's storytelling, characters, symbolism, and everything else if I'm being honest, but it's just my personal preference. Both shows are at the very top.

Sparky

I like the Sopranos a lot, don't get me wrong, I just find the characters in the Wire to be a lot more original.

Fun fact:
Did you know both shows featured actors that were real life gangsters?
felicia pearson

Drug Dealer
and
Tony Sirico

Associate for Colombo crime family