He knew Joe was gonna fall if he backed Marlo or not. He knew he was going to wear the crown either with him or the shty new York connect. It was inevitable.
Marlow was all about action. Proposition Jo was more humble and overall smarter and able to get better deals. I dont remember the exact deals but Marlow undercut Prop knowing he'd get the power which is why the price of the product went up.
Marlo bought Prop Joe out. Slim Charles forewarned Joe about introducing Marlo to the connect, which gave him the opportunity to go around the Co-Op. Marlo began watching the Greeks to get closer to him. Marlo presented the Greeks with an insurance policy that lets him know that he would like to take over.
@@Ruthless508 right! Marlo wanted to be the #1 man and Joe knew that, which is crazy to me that he’d give the intro, never introduce your buyer to the plug, they no longer need you!
Definitely. He displayed an extraordinary amount of negligence, uncaring of who it might ruin. The same way he failed Bubbles. Apathy instead of empathy.
@@SuperSpasticNinja I FORGOT ABOUT THAT. And his only comeuppance was Carver giving him that speech about “what we do/don’t do matters” and him getting a cushy job with Levy. Why did we watch this upsetting show, again?
What killed me is that at the beginning of season 4 Randy was the one guy of the group in the best situation a loving caring foster mother , he had a successful business selling things to people at school and the corner boys in the street and it all went away after doing a favor for little Kevin
In the streets it can all go wrong due to a simple act. A friend of mine caught 20 years because he gave some girl a ride. Unbeknownst to him she had a kilo of cocaine in her purse on her way to a deal. She gave the teary eyes routine to the cops and jury. She got 3 years and probation plus a bunch of community service crap. Far as I know the guy never even smoked a cigarette. He came home last year a totally different person.
You think his foster mother was loving and caring? She judged the hell out of him. She looked down on him for getting exploited with the Lex situation. She may have not been physically abusive, but she was definitely mentally abusive. That's why Randy feared her so much.. I bet she never laid a hand on him, so it wasn't whippings that he feared. He feared her constant disappointment, her rage and her judgement. She expects perfection out of that kid. David Simon really exposed the poor black community so well in The Wire and that's why a lot of the uppity blacks in Baltimore were so mad. They didn't like the truth being exposed.
The scene where Randy says to Carver, you gone look out for me right...as he turns/walks down that hallway. Is possibly the most devastating scene in all of the series.
Unpopular opinion, when Sabodka is walking under the bridge knowing what’s going to happen most likely was devastating as well. The older I get the more I appreciate season 2
The knowledge that Randy was going to get a subplot and that it was likely related to Cheese being his father, but it was cut from Season 5 due to time has officially ruined my day.
@@mujahudin their last name is mentioned on the show a few times. Randy’s was mentioned a lot especially in school. Cheese was mentioned by Kima and Lester. It’s wasn’t hard to do.
Randy was going to be the next Stringer, he literally said he wanted to own a store just like string said back in the day. Also notice how Randy tried to strategize a retaliation against the terrace boys without guns similar to how Stringer would advise Avon on taking a less direct route against Omar.
Randy is absolutely still aware of it all and intelligent, he’s been hardened by reality and the difficulties of life. I think what’s being confused for him just being another mad black kid, is a boy having to become a man too early, he’s obviously always heavy in thought and deliberation when dealing with adults, and figuring the best way to navigate a situation in the situation, learning on the fly etc. Randy had been condemned to snitchhood once and wouldn’t ever let that happen again that way.
Empathy. If there's anything that separates The Wire from the other 3 top series, its the fact the viewer is meant to emphasize and sympathize with the victim. And in that regard its what makes The Wire real, more so than all detail shown in the street stories, language, styles and background.
True, but all that empathy is established by all the detail of the streets, language, home life, etc. Empathy is what happens when you see how people really live.
I literally wanna fight people who underestimate this show, or say it's boring, etc...it covered so much ground without being over the top. Greatest show ever
David Simon's thesis statement basically suggests that the war on drugs is actually a war on poor people. He wrote an article stating how he is for jury nullification for all criminal drug trials as a protest against this war. He wrote The Wire to show how everyone is complicit, yet only the poor and downtrodden get impacted the most negatively.
*The system* didn't care enough to look into Randy's family background, to see if there was possibly some blood relative out there who could have taken him in before he became state property. So I seriously doubt they'd take the time to go over any inheritance entitlements especially knowing if no rightful family member makes claim in time the properties and finances will all be confiscated by their municipality.
The last time we saw Randy was him getting jumped by his housemates so I’m going to assume from here. With that lifestyle I would have to say that Randy probably became what was necessary to survive the group home which may have transformed him to a more cold hearted individual. Lots of times not all, you become a product of you environment, survival becomes your new way of living. The Wire did a fabulous job of showing how the system fails but is so called designed to protect these kids when in fact the group homes are in line with jailhouse rules.. Which then creates the next generation to go to jail. Foster care is only extension of jail for these broken kids that feel abandoned because we all know the older a kid gets in foster care the less they will find a foster home.
@@joejoerunya8908 very true, physically and emotionally, it’s a whole different person. They couldn’t have timed that better if they tried, that’s just a case of supreme luck.
Micheal was my favorite he reminded me of myself. But it’s crazy how dookie and randy never got a fare chance and namond was born into luxury and ended up winning in the end it’s cray how police pans out sometimes
@@righteousmasculineRandy started the series with a better chance because he had a parent - his foster mother - who was looking after him and raising him properly. The other 3 didn’t have that to begin with
@@onuwisdom2966Namond was the one that didn’t have it hard like the others. Yeah his mom was a problem but he got the chance to get out which is what everyone that watched the show would want for the other kids instead of Namond. Just goes to show that no one has the same opportunities and those that have them aren’t necessarily the best type of person.
I didn’t consider Michael’s fate as sad. He’s getting good money doing something he’s good at. It’s unfortunate he had to send Bug downstate to the burbs but I imagine he’ll still see him regularly. I was actually happy seeing Michael turn into the new Omar.
@@jkearns22 Being a robber of drug dealers who is inevitably shot by somebody (or worse if caught by drug dealers) eventually is sad, IMO. But to each his own, I guess.
I’d really love to believe that Randy eventually landed on his feet by way of inheritance but as another comment mentioned the city of Baltimore isn’t about to put that effort in to track down next or kin and will just absorb the estate. Also I won’t lie, I can’t believe I never made the connection to Randy being the son of Cheese!
I think you missed the most obvious choice for who Randy would turn into. I'm a huge wire fan and always saw the ending as Randy becoming the new Bodie a character who was very tough on the outside because of his up bringing but really was smart and caring deep down
yeeeeeeeeppppp i came in here to write something similar. Bodie was a product of nobody caring for him or about him now Randy is suffering that same fate. He is a good kid but he is learning that to survive in this world you have to be cold.
Except that Bodie was loyal above all else. Not that I condemn Randy snitching because he was not in a gang, but it says something about his character.
@@icecoldballing2039 Lol. Marlo was a complete psychopath and to him, his street cred was everything. That's actually the reason he "lost" or at least suffered Pyrrhic victory by the end; he escaped the law and got richer, but he is no longer feared on the streets. Instead some random upstart gangbanger points a gun at him and wounds him. I don't think Marlo has a "successor" in the ending.
Few things I wanna say: 1. Randy's storyline of course broke my heart. 2. While others were heartbroken when Little Kevin got put in the back of a car, I was smiling ear to ear. He deserved it just for what he did to Randy. His laziness single handedly ruined Randy's life. 3. Officer Walker was ALWAYS a douche. Or at least that's how I imagine it haha.
@Ryan Wilson yeah. At the end of the day, most of these young hoppers are just kids that don't know any better. They might try to act tough and all, but the moment you see them for who they really are, their false persona comes crashing down, revealing scared and neglected children; children whom the system has failed. For that reason, even when Little Kevin causes all that much pain and suffering for others, you still don't want him to die. Unfortunately, with someone as power-hungry as Marlo was, any small infraction would have meant death or a fate worse than death.
Lil Kevin didn’t deserve that. he should’ve kept his mouth shut about what happened to lex but, Randy should’ve kept his mouth shut about that murder when he got jammed up at school 💯🤷🏽♂️
Randy, Wallace, and Ziggy were the saddest stories The Wire had to tell. I had heard Randy was Cheese' son but wasn't sure if it was true. Knowing about the Cheese/Randy connection just makes me hate Cheese even more.
@@jay7166right! I don’t see how ziggys story was sad. He got what was coming to him. He wasn’t ever likable so it was hard to even feel the smallest amount of bad for him. Wallace was sad tho, just a child caring for children and had a conscience.
If Cheese knew Randy was his son then Prop Joe would have known. If Prop Joe would have known then Randy would have been taken care of. Cheese probably would have not been the best father but a father non the less... I mean look how cheese reacted when his dog Died. I think there would have been love for his own son, probably even a change where he doesn't give up Joe. To bad we never got to see Cheese as a father.
@@JeffTheHokie cheese killed his dog cuz he thought the dog turned Ker on him and didn’t want to fight the other dog. Not cuz he lost. Cheese broke down in the police station when the cops thought they had him on a murder charge but it was really the dog kill and he got revenge since he had to kill his dog cuz they cheated. If he’s willing to do that for a dog then I think he would be more loving to his child.
I personally noticed how the adults that gravitated to a specific kid in season 4 was a shell of that adults former self. So in the case of Randy who was a snitch, Carver was the one who took a liking to Randy and if you remember from earlier seasons he was a "mole" in the department. So I don't think what happens to them matters as much as the personality they're growing into does.
@@joshuawatson575 doesn't matter what we think , that's how the show presented the situation. At the end of S4 he is beaten for it multiple times and eventually has to run aways because of it. Hell they even write it on his bunk or bag. I get what you're saying though but it kind of conflicts with the season where we change pace by following these kids, and every decision they make has higher stakes because they are kids but nobody cares (instead they are treated like adults and are thus forced to take on these roles a little too early in life )
@@tomz5704 What makes it sad is he wasn't even in the "game" at all, he was a kid, unknowingly passing along a deadly message and just like that he irreversibly became part of it.
i dont know if you read your comments or not, but i have watched the wire so many times that i know episodes word for word, and i never thought about any of this. Im so glad there is SOMEONE on RUclips that thinks about the Wire as deeply as the rest of the internet thinks about Star Wars and Marvel. You are a blessing and a scholar my guy, keep it up, you are appreciated.
I had a kid in my class in 7th grade. He's African American and lived in the city. I'm white and lived in the suburbs. We would always joke with each other in class and make each other laugh. Summer came and went and on the first day of school I came up to him and he was really aggressive. I was kinda taken back but could tell something was different. He got into alot of fights that year. I kept my distance but if it was just him and I he'd always talk to me and ask how I was. Something changed in him over the summer. God knows what happened but I always felt bad for him like he lost his childhood.
Growing up in the inner city I’ve seen a lot of kids change overnight. It’s always sad when you can see potential in a person but due to the environment and the pressures of poverty most people enter the streets as a survival decision.
Randy is the next Marlo. His last scene, you see he has grown is a taller, stronger, quick acting, cold, vicious, calculating, antiauthority, untrusting, fearless teenager. He isn’t bruised up, scared, desperate so it’s clear he isn’t getting beat up or labeled a snitch no more, and looks like he is the top dog there. He talks, acts, reacts, his posture is 100 precent the same as Marlo. Prop Joe, stringer, Avon are the old generation kingpins, Marlo/Chris are the current generation colder, violent, heartless kingpins. Randy is the next, he’ll be more wicked than Marlo. It’s to show that the game gotten meaner, more violent, younger, Ruthless, colder, chaotic, random. , the speed of the game the turn over of players becomes quicker. Avon and prop joe were kingpins of established organizations for decades, then Marlo comes out of no where-takes over the game, in like a year, is completely gone, for like a day Cheese is the top dog because he has the most money for the connect but gets killed by slim….it’s showing the game becomes rapid, chaotic, more fatal , less so out territory, its about the money in the now and not getting smoked. With the law enforcement technology and getting better at taking down organizations….I doubt there are kingpins like Marlo, Avon, prop joe. Greeks at this point don’t care about having an established guy, they don’t want to know anyone, they care about cash and they’ll do a drop
@@mrleelee6478 no the writers of the show and creators stated this over the years. Cycle gets quicker, institutions don’t change really but get refined and they change the people. Marlo grew up in bmore with Avon making the west more violent and heartless. Marlo continued that.
Another reason why The Wire is so great, it lays the blame squarely at the feet of EVERYONE who is involved with the problems of inner city kids. The failure of the police. The failure of the foster system. The failure of the schools. The failure of group homes. But most of all, the blame for Randy's circumstances are all on Cheese. If Cheese had been a father, or even at the very least PRESENT in his life and wasn't a crook, then Randy could have had a MUCH better chance. It is lack of 2 parent families, lack of father figures that is the main driving force in why so many promising young black men fail in our society.
That's assuming cheese even knew Randy even existed. Remember he's related to prop joe too. The whole family knew he existed and ignored it....I doubt it
@@nasaihyana exactly the fact that he was in foster care means more than likely his biological mother was strung out on drugs and gave him up for adoption or lost because of her addiction and cheese never knew but then why would he have cheese last name ?
Hard to imagine cheese would have made a better impression on Randy tho, cheese sucked and was a pos. He would’ve brought him down even lower imo. Babies raising babies.
I LOVED this show. I grew up in similar neighborhoods and this was the most realistic show about inner city life, especially in the 90's, that I have ever seen!!! Probably that has ever been made!!!!
The last part about Marlo is great. We don’t really know Marlo’s back story but you can kinda tell by the way he carried himself and how he spoke that he was smart and was educated in some sort of way. He could have been just like Randy who caught a bad break and was even locked up in Juve or a group home but continued to read thinking he might have a chance. He is such an enigma which makes his character so great. We know nothing about him at all.
He was street-smart. And perhaps even intelligent. But not educated. And that's one of the reasons he feels so out of place in a suit with all those "sophisticated" people and has to walk away into the streets. In that sense, he's the inversion of Stringer Bell, who wanted to be a real businessman instead of just a criminal.
@@olubukonla7352 The final scene shows he's unhappy. He is no longer respected and feared on the streets. "MY NAME IS MY NAME!" turned into getting sliced by random street kids.
Marlo was definitely very intelligent but he wasn't educated outside the hood. He didn't even know about bank accounts and stuff like that until Joe fills him in. Marlo was a quick learner though and very smart but knew nothing outside the hood game and that's why all he wanted was to be king and for his name to command the ultimate respect. Denard I always felt like was the one that will grow up to be the next Marlo. Torturing animals and having no regard for any life and being far harder for his age than most.
I always thought: Randy would be the new Marlow Mike would be the new Omar Dookie would be the new Bubbles Naimon would be the new Colvin & The other kids like Donut, Bug and Kenard would find a spot with one of their leaders.
I always thought Canard (Omar’s killer) was the new Marlo, sadistic and sociopathic. Canard was seen torturing cats and trying to punk Namond. Identifying what he can get away with and maximizing that. I’m surprised nobody else saw this.
I love the happy ending for Randy. But damn real life is scary. Haunting when you know the people in power can easily fix things, but it's all politics. Sad and scary at the same time. I'd love for a happy ending but we never got a "El Camino" answer for these characters. And I love El Camino but this is way better I must admit
I think Randy may have become the new Marlo. The group home hardened him as seen in a later episode and he realized the value of having a clean name in the dirty ass game that he was a victim to. So like Marlo, I could see him taking any approach to protect his name from that point on.
Hell no. If anyone is Marlo it's Kennard. He was running corners and already had a body. Plus he didn't let nobody play with him even tho he was the smallest. Randy is prop joe
Crazy thing is, Marlo didn’t seem to even care, he said Randy can’t hurt them but then Snoop says he can’t let it slide (“but he’s a snitch though,”) so that’s when he says put the word out.
9:53 Cheese not having a will would actually make it more likely for Randy to gain his inheritance. In most states in the U.S., absent a will, a persons inheritance automatically goes to a spouse first, then to children absent a spouse, parents absent children or a spouse, etc. All it would take is a scene with Randy standing around while someone nearby talks about all the money Cheese Wagstaff left behind and saying he had a son who lived in the area so it must have went to him. Randy is smart enough to figure the rest out and get his inheritance.
After Court and Lawyers Fees. And a court-appointed management company who charges fees to manage the estate and give Randy just what he needs since he is a minor.
@@postsniper-7532Cheese took on Joe’s wealth. That’s why he had $900K to kick in to buy the connect from Marlo. In reality though, Randy would never see a dime of it because Cheese didn’t have an established relationship with Randy. He would be a hustler but he would have to clear up that snitch tag that was put on him as a civilian.
I love your Wire videos. I like to think Randy read a Sun article about known drug king pin Melvin "Big Cheese" Wagstaff being killed, did a little investigative work, and got that inheritance.
If the Legendary Omar could not even get a mention BENEATH the fold, no way a lieutenant like Cheese gets a write up. The state likely seized Joe s property, or his siblings took it over.
Another alternative is that Randy gets prop Joe’s estate and is eventually taken in by Slim Charles. Slim’s going to Joe’s house and knocks on the door. Randy opens the door and asks who he is and slim replies that his boss used to live there. Randy then lets him know that Joe is his grand uncle, and slim being the cool dude he is takes him in and teaches him about entrepreneurship. He puts Randy in charge of running joes store in the end and tells him that the store gotta stay in the family. Kinda like how him and Joe worked together. A parallel version of Colvin and Namond.
It seems the kids represent the next generation..the changing of the guard.Michael became the next Omar/Chris/Slim Charles..,stickup man/hitman,Dukie became Bubbles,Naymond probably went into law enforcement and Randy became the next Prop Joe..or maybe Avon
Few shows even come close to the intricacy and detail of the characters and writing in the Wire. You can take individual characters and go so far with it
It's a nice thought, and I totally agree with the idea that Randy could be the next Prop Joe the way he somewhat mirrors Joe the way Mike and Dukie do Omar and Bubbles. But I just can't see Joe's ledger winding up in Randy's hands. He seems too smart for that. At the very least he would probably use some sort of code or something so that if it was discovered he would still be the only one who could understand it.
Randy's present as a backstory for Marlo makes sense. We often wonder how Marlo emerged seemingly out of nowhere. During the first two seasons of the show, Marlo may have been fresh out of a group home; his ferocity may be result of having to grow up in such a hardened and confined environment. It may also be why he doesn't have the same attitude as someone like Bodie who came up in the hierarchy of the game, instead of being tossed into it. In the film "Moonlight," a similar trajectory is set for Chiron to the one you set for Randy, and suspect happened with Marlo. Of course, Chiron is not portrayed as a violent capo (he has employees but doesn't seem to be a big boss), is gay, and spends his time in Juvie versus a group home.
Would it not be justice if Bunk was investigating Cheese's death, that he connects the relationship between Randy and Cheese, and makes things somewhat right with an inheritance?
@@wilhelmvg9978 We are talking about the money he got from Prop Joe and the house. Last I checked neither Cheese nor Prop Joe were under any type of indictment?
@@wilhelmvg9978 the streets would look out for him!!!!! not the government 😂😂😂 aka slim charles and the kid wouldnt even know what the hell happened to his "dad".
I like the theory that Randy could become the cop or Marlo. Definitely a more fitting profile. Cops bully the people who bully them and Marlo acted out of character when his character was questioned as being other than solid as if he had a problem with being solid in the past.
@@olubukonla7352 doesn't matter anything can happen in life when you go through changes. Iv known people in real life that use to be soft that got put in situations that turned them to be worst as adults and they were the "good kid".
@@olubukonla7352 So was Marlo, "You a gangsta, what you gon' be other than a gangsta? Marlo: "Business man"......... Avon: "I mean you a natural business man right" Dont forget Marlo also was an entrepreneur who had the same mindset, remember he was schooled by Joe.
That shit cut deep when Randy was actually telling Carver that it's okay. As they're walking into the group home. And Carver just looks fd up. Like it's supposed to be the other way around, him telling Randy it'll be okay.
Randy was a snitch,the only person i felt bad for was his foster mother who was badly burned because of he was too scared that troll of a principal was going to call her and tell her he was a lookout while some low life creeps violated a young girl. The saddest was obviously Dukie, parents didn’t care enough about him to move in didn’t even tell him where they were going. Always wearing dirty clothes to school,not being able to take a bath,then finally getting hooked on smack,absolutely horrible.
At 7:50, Cheese most likely is aware of Randy's existence if they share the same surname. That typically means either a) Mother and father were married at time of birth or b) Unwed mother listed Cheese on birth certificate, most likely with Cheese's awareness he had a son with his name. Unfortunately it's usually the son - not the father - that is unaware of the others existence. Cheese was probably aware but indifferent to his son who basically grew up in foster homes minutes from Cheese.
@@lakeeshadavis1583 you are stupid there's no background check I got 3 baby moms am on 3 birth certificates and they got my last name there was no call to me or if verification or DNA it's as simple as a bitch saying Yeh it Mr cheese Wagstaff
@@s.h.7613 Agreed but of course it's on record that he had him for the moment and the Foster Care system don't play that crap. The FC lady told him the process for him to take Randy in would be 3 months. Would've been nice to see Carver put in the work and effort to eventually get him out of there.
Season 6 Carver gets news Cheese is dead. He hears the last name thinking of Randy. Carver snakes his way to get a blood test done to save Randy. Randy gets saved only to find out the test was illegal forcing him to give his assets up. Pushing him to Kingpin status
Yo. US-based attorney here. Probate is a vicious and slow cycle, and Cheese’s (considerable) possessions would almost certainly land there before Randy gets a ring. Also if Cheese was able to put up Prop Joe’s house for bond, it meant he had the papers most likely in his name and then Probate will claim it. However, since Randy is firmly in “the system” then oddly enough, the odds of Probate locating him and allowing him to inherit is increased. The real gap in my knowledge is I don’t know how well Probate works in Baltimore (and it works horribly almost everywhere in the US) and if it doesn’t have legal reps with ethics and integrity…well, Randy will never see a dime. The game is the game.
I think the thing that might connect them is Bunk. Bunk certainly would be working the murder case, and might in fact find the relationship being that they shared such an uncommon last name?
@@johnpenley that would improve the odds for Randy (and it would be a good storyline!) but even with that blue-skies approach it wouldn’t surprise me if it took three or four years for the Probate system to get its shit together and get Randy what he’s owed…might be too realistic but the Wire went hard on that realism!
@@TheZackofSpades it's just my fan theory, based off another fan theory, but I would guess both Bunk and Carver and others would now about Cheese's death, and I only assume their would be some type of check into known relatives. Unfortunately Dukie doesn't even get that slim chance..😬
Shit Randy more than likely would end up like Marlo or Chris being put back in the system especially after his foster mother got killed. Pushing the kid down the steps shows him lashing out like a defense mechanisms
Bro that shit blew my mind!!! People like you are why I spend hours of my time listening to RUclips videos bc my eyes and mind are being opened to different things and ways of thinking about even simple shit like The Wire which really isn’t that simple at all
I too wondered what would happen to Randy. I think that his tough demeanour displayed in front of the Bunk is a front, a way to survive in a very hostile environment, and that he remains at hearth the good-natured kid he was. Of course, he also remains that smart kid with a great bizness acumen. So what about him after group home, realisticly ? He'll never have Prop Joe's real estate ; nobody will never bother to look as far as him. He can't join a crew neither, because of his rep. Keeping hustling in Baltimore streets is gonna be hard for the same reason. No, first chance he get, he jumps in the next Greyhound to FL or TX and starts over a new life, getting a dollar here and there until he can earn he's own store. Good luck, Randy.
Can you imagine if Proper Joe raised Randy how his intelligence would of leveled! Randy already had an entrepreneur mindset like Joe . Just bring the show back for the next generation with Randy , Mike , Dookey even the bad ass who killed Omar
They should reboot the wire with the 4 boys Michael as omar Randy as prop joe Dukie as bubbles Namond as a cop figure String n avon can be filled in Slim charles as the plug
I'm no expert on inheritance law by any stretch, but I do know that there's a million ways that people get screwed outta their rightful/ legal inheritance all the time and it's taken to insane extremes when the person or people involved on either end of an inheritance can even remotely be tied to any illegal activity, even minor violations. There's some very messed up laws surrounding these kinds of things, people get their money and significant property snatched more often than you'd think over just the suspension of criminal activity and struggle to get it back even when exonerated. Look at the horrible abuses of things like Civil Forfeiture for one of many examples. So even if they knew Randy was Cheese's kid and there weren't dozens of others ahead of him in line (which it sounds like there are), the odds that anyone would do anything about it are mad slim and the odds that they'd try and snatch it under some questionably constitutional law and stick it in the federal, state, or city coffers is way more likely imo. But idk. What I am an expert in is growing up in that environment. While your version makes for a nice story it's just not the reality. Even if it started as a front it's become who he is as a coping mechanism. Me and countless others are living proof that it's not some terminal condition and people can absolutely change, but ya can't play like that and not have it change ya. It's basically sociopathy as a survival tactic. Much of my first 25-30 years were spent in a similar state. I was in and outta lock ups since middle school and did a lot to get by that I'd never do now. But it would take a significant, radical inner awakening of some kind or leaving that environment for him to really escape it. I had that kinda deep inner shift (more a political one and just a different understanding, I've never been religious or anything like that) eventually but stayed in the life cause I had no other real options, but I felt things I'd never felt before, I had empathy where none had been before, I finally saw and accepted what I was doing to others and myself, and that's what drove me to keep pushing to find a way out. Randy's story definitely isn't a hopeless one, as bad as it seems. But unfortunately it's way more likely that he dies young as yet another pawn (all he'd really have to do is go East Side of start pushing to the "mixed" hoods to the South to escape the snitch jacket) that the system doomed from birth or becomes an abusive pig like Walker that the system uses to oppress his own community.
He'd have to leave town to get away from that snitch rep. Somebody will always pop up and remind folks. He should join the Army, or Merchant Marine, Job Corp, Truck Driving or do Construction Work. Cats can escape the hood. But they think going to the opposite side of town is the answer.
Also, Marlo could have easily had Randy killed as he did so many others for even less than talking to police, but instead just had it put on the street that he was a snitch, which would go to your theory that that's who he would become; almost like a protégé.
Randy is still in there underneath all that rage. That sideways glance is saying, “Look what y’all made me have to be like - what y’all made me do. YOU did this to me”. He’s smart like Joe. Now he’s ruthless too, though not cold as Marlo. It is similar to what ‘Little’ Melvin Williams, AKA The Deacon says in a documentary about his life. He stated that after the cops framed and incarcerated him, he decided to use his brilliance to sell narcotics and (as Stringer said), “take over this goddamn city”. Randy would “keep it boring” while he got all Machiavellian and finessed his way into The Crown. That candy thing and e-commerce let him know he could make legit money too. He might even be able to throw Dukie a lifeline and put his aptitude with computers to work.
Outstanding video CR, pretty impressive that you were able to come up with this after just starting to watch the show for the first time this year. I think one possibility you overlooked was Randy becoming the next Bodie, but I agree he could also have become either of the characters you suggested.
Randy wasn't tough enough to be another Bodie. Just like Prop Joe or Cheese weren't real tough guys. Cheese got ahead because of who his Uncle was. In reality Cheese was just a knuckle head.
@@coolpeople4287 Fair point. I think it comes down to if the 'new' Randy we see at the end is just a role he plays, or if he really changed. He's definitely nothing like his father, but as CR pointed out, there are similarities with Prop Joe.
@@johnbakker4828 Toughness like Bodie displayed is something that's "in you". Although we can all act tough. . . for awhile maybe. Yeah, I think he has the makings on a young Prop Joe.
I see the connection of Randy becoming a similar character to Stringer Bell. Neither has a family connection, both are natural businessman/hustlers, and both appear calm under pressure.
The scene when Marlo yells in the security guards face “you want it one way” now makes way more sense . If he is a parallel of Randy his authority issues were fully on display at that moment‼️
thank you so much for this video! Randy is such a great character and it hurt so much when his tragic ending played out. i love this thought of a happy ending for Randy
There’s no way to prove it because its deliberately ambiguous, but the implication I got was out of the four boys, he was the one most likely to become the next Marlo. It would be a huge indictment of the system if it could turn the kindest, most outgoing person who loved life into a man like Marlo.
He’s Avon not Joe. Look at the scene where Ms. Anna is first introduced. He started off in the green but runs to her where her home is red. He’s in the kitchen with Ms. Anna washing dishes, he has to rebuild his name after season 4 because people only know him as a snitch so when he rebuilds his rep he will be 10x more considerate. All the kids in Marlo’s reign grew to rule in Avon’s era Namond- Stringer/Mayor Royce Michael- Omar Dukie- Bubbles Randy- Avon Spider- Slim Donut- Wee Bey Albert- Bird Kenard- Marlo Bug- Clay Davis The boy hiding in closet after parents are killed by Chris and snoop- Bodie
Spider could be slim, but his relationship with Kennard mimics that of Marlo and chris. Namond is Davis or Royce. Wouldn't say donut was anyone especially Bey, but the one person we adult we see that stole a car was Stinkum. Bug is most likely to become a cop
@@maniac50ae14 Donut loved his cars, is only introduced in the 6th grade, was with Randy selling snacks on the corner trying to make cheese and in his very last scene he’s upgraded into the whip similar to the one Bey was introduced in. Bug loved math and wasn’t dumb. But at some point he had to realize who is the older brother he dearly loves and looks up to. Michael robs people in the game for money but if Mike could rob people legally the same way Clay Davis did, he’d be less worried about his conscience since he’s not holding a gun to anybodys face for the money. Also Clay Davis and Omar handled their court situations very similarly in grand fashion
Randy became the new Bodie Michael became the new Omar Dukie became the new Bubbles That's what was great about "The Wire". They showed you that the end was just a new beginning. The Drug War will never end. Love this show!
His hustle is that of Joe's as shown in the flashback promo and he shares the same last name. It was alluded to but as he said, Simon only recently confirmed it
I think he will be part Joe, part Stringer, and part Marlo. He probably will be as big as those mentioned, or bigger, but will probably fall hard after and long strong run.
I always had a thought of Randy turning 18, hittin the streets and runnin into and teamin up with Mike and them turning into the next Stringer and Avon....mannn what a thought!!
*Why Did The Greek Choose Marlo Over Proposition Joe? | The Wire Explained:*
ruclips.net/video/rkOT4kokT98/видео.html
He knew Joe was gonna fall if he backed Marlo or not. He knew he was going to wear the crown either with him or the shty new York connect. It was inevitable.
Marlow was all about action. Proposition Jo was more humble and overall smarter and able to get better deals. I dont remember the exact deals but Marlow undercut Prop knowing he'd get the power which is why the price of the product went up.
Marlo bought Prop Joe out. Slim Charles forewarned Joe about introducing Marlo to the connect, which gave him the opportunity to go around the Co-Op. Marlo began watching the Greeks to get closer to him. Marlo presented the Greeks with an insurance policy that lets him know that he would like to take over.
hopefully not hopefully a guy like that would find something better to do than waste his life selling drugs
@@Ruthless508 right! Marlo wanted to be the #1 man and Joe knew that, which is crazy to me that he’d give the intro, never introduce your buyer to the plug, they no longer need you!
This video reminded me how fucking hateable Herc is in season 4. He high-key ruined Randy’s life.
Definitely. He displayed an extraordinary amount of negligence, uncaring of who it might ruin. The same way he failed Bubbles. Apathy instead of empathy.
@@SuperSpasticNinja I FORGOT ABOUT THAT. And his only comeuppance was Carver giving him that speech about “what we do/don’t do matters” and him getting a cushy job with Levy.
Why did we watch this upsetting show, again?
Herc really hurt Randy but he also really hurt Bubbles too in season 4.
@@flightofthebumblebee9529 holy fuck. Someone make a video titled “Herc Is One of the Worst People in The Wire”
He was stupid. Carver learnt a lot more than herc from his time on the detail
Randy’s story is sad but dukie was the most tragic IMO cuz he basically became the new bubbles.
Damn.....
No one's life goals...
Imma be like bubbles
He became like his whole family just another fiend
The whole situation was just heartbreaking. And that was only three of the millions of kids that come of age in such circumstances.
Bubbles did get one of the most hopeful endings of the series tho
@@malevolentgaze9391 true but who wants to be bubbles....bubbles didn't even want to be bubbles
What killed me is that at the beginning of season 4 Randy was the one guy of the group in the best situation a loving caring foster mother , he had a successful business selling things to people at school and the corner boys in the street and it all went away after doing a favor for little Kevin
In the streets it can all go wrong due to a simple act. A friend of mine caught 20 years because he gave some girl a ride. Unbeknownst to him she had a kilo of cocaine in her purse on her way to a deal. She gave the teary eyes routine to the cops and jury. She got 3 years and probation plus a bunch of community service crap. Far as I know the guy never even smoked a cigarette. He came home last year a totally different person.
@@davidmoss2576 Dam that mess up hope you friend life get better
You think his foster mother was loving and caring? She judged the hell out of him. She looked down on him for getting exploited with the Lex situation. She may have not been physically abusive, but she was definitely mentally abusive. That's why Randy feared her so much.. I bet she never laid a hand on him, so it wasn't whippings that he feared. He feared her constant disappointment, her rage and her judgement. She expects perfection out of that kid. David Simon really exposed the poor black community so well in The Wire and that's why a lot of the uppity blacks in Baltimore were so mad. They didn't like the truth being exposed.
@@KtotheG he didn't wanna go back to a group home ended up going anyway he should of just kept his mouth shut
Bout to fye up this little Kevin pack ⛽🚬
The scene where Randy says to Carver, you gone look out for me right...as he turns/walks down that hallway. Is possibly the most devastating scene in all of the series.
that scene cuts to the bone....you felt that.
Unpopular opinion, when Sabodka is walking under the bridge knowing what’s going to happen most likely was devastating as well. The older I get the more I appreciate season 2
@@shawnmoney8055 but you know what....he didn't know. The Greek found out he snitched when he got the call...but he didn't know they were aware.
@@crharper25 he had a feeling which is why he wouldn’t let Nick come with him. Rewatch it.
@@shawnmoney8055 a feeling & knowing is 2 different things.
The knowledge that Randy was going to get a subplot and that it was likely related to Cheese being his father, but it was cut from Season 5 due to time has officially ruined my day.
Man me too. But I kind of pieced it together during the show. I thought maybe Randy was either Cheese’s son or brother
me too , time to eat some shrooms
@@Saveyourbs I don't get how you could have possibly linked Randy to Cheese. how so?
@@mujahudin their last name is mentioned on the show a few times. Randy’s was mentioned a lot especially in school. Cheese was mentioned by Kima and Lester. It’s wasn’t hard to do.
David Simon said randy was cheese’s son. I can see Prop Joe taking randy in if he had lived.
Randy was going to be the next Stringer, he literally said he wanted to own a store just like string said back in the day. Also notice how Randy tried to strategize a retaliation against the terrace boys without guns similar to how Stringer would advise Avon on taking a less direct route against Omar.
Prop jo also owned a store and that’s exactly the kind of proposition he would have schemed too
@@StoutProper
They're also related. Randy was cheese's son
NAH. Randy- Prop Joe, Michael- Omar, Dukie- Bubbles, Namond- Clay Davis. Kenard- Bird, Donut- Dead
@@johndeere593 Damn that Clay Davis line got me thinking 🤔
And they both snitch
Randy is absolutely still aware of it all and intelligent, he’s been hardened by reality and the difficulties of life. I think what’s being confused for him just being another mad black kid, is a boy having to become a man too early, he’s obviously always heavy in thought and deliberation when dealing with adults, and figuring the best way to navigate a situation in the situation, learning on the fly etc. Randy had been condemned to snitchhood once and wouldn’t ever let that happen again that way.
Empathy. If there's anything that separates The Wire from the other 3 top series, its the fact the viewer is meant to emphasize and sympathize with the victim. And in that regard its what makes The Wire real, more so than all detail shown in the street stories, language, styles and background.
Well said!
True, but all that empathy is established by all the detail of the streets, language, home life, etc. Empathy is what happens when you see how people really live.
I literally wanna fight people who underestimate this show, or say it's boring, etc...it covered so much ground without being over the top. Greatest show ever
David Simon's thesis statement basically suggests that the war on drugs is actually a war on poor people. He wrote an article stating how he is for jury nullification for all criminal drug trials as a protest against this war. He wrote The Wire to show how everyone is complicit, yet only the poor and downtrodden get impacted the most negatively.
Answer the question tho lol
*The system* didn't care enough to look into Randy's family background, to see if there was possibly some blood relative out there who could have taken him in before he became state property.
So I seriously doubt they'd take the time to go over any inheritance entitlements especially knowing if no rightful family member makes claim in time the properties and finances will all be confiscated by their municipality.
He was related to Cheese both there last names were Wagstaff
??? @@MikeJones-jy9kq yes it was mentioned in the episode. The social workers, police or audience were not aware of this... remember
ya i thought carver was looking for days if not weeks
Whoa @@Viennas_Sausages you're right... Totally forgot about that. Interesting nothing came of it. 🤔
@@tarman8568 yeah you could tell he really felt guilt having herc handle randy the way he did
Season 4 reminds me of my time in high school…Randy And Dukie story broke my entire heart
"you gona lok out for ME sgt carver? You mean it! Youre gona look out for ME!" Hospital was one of the best scenes Ever.
The last time we saw Randy was him getting jumped by his housemates so I’m going to assume from here. With that lifestyle I would have to say that Randy probably became what was necessary to survive the group home which may have transformed him to a more cold hearted individual. Lots of times not all, you become a product of you environment, survival becomes your new way of living. The Wire did a fabulous job of showing how the system fails but is so called designed to protect these kids when in fact the group homes are in line with jailhouse rules.. Which then creates the next generation to go to jail. Foster care is only extension of jail for these broken kids that feel abandoned because we all know the older a kid gets in foster care the less they will find a foster home.
They brought him back later on to talk about that Lex Murder …. He was taller and was a bully at that point .
The final shot of Randy hit me a lot harder than anything else , that was the point
Puberty hit Randy hard and fast. How he looks at the beginning of season 4 to the group home, that’s a whole other person man.
He was the lil boy in Barbershop that bought Terri her Apple Juice.
That’s also the point though. When we saw him again he had been in the group home for about a year. He had grown hard and cold, by that point
@@joejoerunya8908 very true, physically and emotionally, it’s a whole different person. They couldn’t have timed that better if they tried, that’s just a case of supreme luck.
Randy was my favorite of the boys. So much potential and a kind heart.
Micheal was my favorite he reminded me of myself. But it’s crazy how dookie and randy never got a fare chance and namond was born into luxury and ended up winning in the end it’s cray how police pans out sometimes
@@righteousmasculineRandy started the series with a better chance because he had a parent - his foster mother - who was looking after him and raising him properly. The other 3 didn’t have that to begin with
This is so much better than Breaking Bad
It is. Definitely more realistic than Breaking Bad.
Duh 🙄
WAY better
Breaking Bad was bad… 🗑️
Bullshit
Dukie’s plot line was sadder. He had the slimmest chance of becoming anything. Now a dope fiend.
He wanted to be a dope fiend /borrowed the money from teacher /what was he thinking ?* Michael becomes a stick up kid
@@darrenjohnson7857 sad stories man. Love that show. Straight realism.
@@Saveyourbs Very real
Lol
@@darrenjohnson7857 Michael became omar so he probably likes boys
The fates of Randy, Mike and Dukie are sad. But Dukie's is probably the saddest.
I like how realistic it was how the one kid who didn't really deserve a happy ending got one in namond. Life is not fair.
@@mrsinister8943 lol true that, cos out of all of the boys Namond was the one that actually sold drugs...Lucky i guess
@@onuwisdom2966Namond was the one that didn’t have it hard like the others. Yeah his mom was a problem but he got the chance to get out which is what everyone that watched the show would want for the other kids instead of Namond. Just goes to show that no one has the same opportunities and those that have them aren’t necessarily the best type of person.
I didn’t consider Michael’s fate as sad. He’s getting good money doing something he’s good at. It’s unfortunate he had to send Bug downstate to the burbs but I imagine he’ll still see him regularly. I was actually happy seeing Michael turn into the new Omar.
@@jkearns22 Being a robber of drug dealers who is inevitably shot by somebody (or worse if caught by drug dealers) eventually is sad, IMO. But to each his own, I guess.
I’d really love to believe that Randy eventually landed on his feet by way of inheritance but as another comment mentioned the city of Baltimore isn’t about to put that effort in to track down next or kin and will just absorb the estate.
Also I won’t lie, I can’t believe I never made the connection to Randy being the son of Cheese!
I think you missed the most obvious choice for who Randy would turn into. I'm a huge wire fan and always saw the ending as Randy becoming the new Bodie a character who was very tough on the outside because of his up bringing but really was smart and caring deep down
yeeeeeeeeppppp i came in here to write something similar. Bodie was a product of nobody caring for him or about him now Randy is suffering that same fate. He is a good kid but he is learning that to survive in this world you have to be cold.
Bodie for sure
I saw marlo
Except that Bodie was loyal above all else. Not that I condemn Randy snitching because he was not in a gang, but it says something about his character.
@@icecoldballing2039 Lol. Marlo was a complete psychopath and to him, his street cred was everything. That's actually the reason he "lost" or at least suffered Pyrrhic victory by the end; he escaped the law and got richer, but he is no longer feared on the streets. Instead some random upstart gangbanger points a gun at him and wounds him.
I don't think Marlo has a "successor" in the ending.
Few things I wanna say:
1. Randy's storyline of course broke my heart.
2. While others were heartbroken when Little Kevin got put in the back of a car, I was smiling ear to ear. He deserved it just for what he did to Randy. His laziness single handedly ruined Randy's life.
3. Officer Walker was ALWAYS a douche. Or at least that's how I imagine it haha.
Little Kevin's laziness not only ruined Randy's life, but effectively ended his own as well.
@Ryan Wilson yeah. At the end of the day, most of these young hoppers are just kids that don't know any better. They might try to act tough and all, but the moment you see them for who they really are, their false persona comes crashing down, revealing scared and neglected children; children whom the system has failed. For that reason, even when Little Kevin causes all that much pain and suffering for others, you still don't want him to die. Unfortunately, with someone as power-hungry as Marlo was, any small infraction would have meant death or a fate worse than death.
Lil Kevin didn’t deserve that. he should’ve kept his mouth shut about what happened to lex but, Randy should’ve kept his mouth shut about that murder when he got jammed up at school 💯🤷🏽♂️
Randy, Wallace, and Ziggy were the saddest stories The Wire had to tell. I had heard Randy was Cheese' son but wasn't sure if it was true. Knowing about the Cheese/Randy connection just makes me hate Cheese even more.
Ziggy’s story wasn’t really sad to me bro was and idiot
@@jay7166right! I don’t see how ziggys story was sad. He got what was coming to him. He wasn’t ever likable so it was hard to even feel the smallest amount of bad for him. Wallace was sad tho, just a child caring for children and had a conscience.
I think you'll find dukie belongs at the top of the tragedy tree too
If Cheese knew Randy was his son then Prop Joe would have known. If Prop Joe would have known then Randy would have been taken care of. Cheese probably would have not been the best father but a father non the less... I mean look how cheese reacted when his dog Died. I think there would have been love for his own son, probably even a change where he doesn't give up Joe. To bad we never got to see Cheese as a father.
Cheese killed his dog to punish it for losing a fight.
@@JeffTheHokie cheese killed his dog cuz he thought the dog turned Ker on him and didn’t want to fight the other dog. Not cuz he lost. Cheese broke down in the police station when the cops thought they had him on a murder charge but it was really the dog kill and he got revenge since he had to kill his dog cuz they cheated. If he’s willing to do that for a dog then I think he would be more loving to his child.
So in a nutshell, the writers on the Wire left a LOT of stories on the typewriter. The show had many storylines that can go on and on 👌
I personally noticed how the adults that gravitated to a specific kid in season 4 was a shell of that adults former self. So in the case of Randy who was a snitch, Carver was the one who took a liking to Randy and if you remember from earlier seasons he was a "mole" in the department. So I don't think what happens to them matters as much as the personality they're growing into does.
Randy was a kid. Calling him a snitch in that situation isn't really fair
@@joshuawatson575 doesn't matter what we think , that's how the show presented the situation. At the end of S4 he is beaten for it multiple times and eventually has to run aways because of it. Hell they even write it on his bunk or bag. I get what you're saying though but it kind of conflicts with the season where we change pace by following these kids, and every decision they make has higher stakes because they are kids but nobody cares (instead they are treated like adults and are thus forced to take on these roles a little too early in life )
@@joshuawatson575 according to the "street" it is snitching, not that I agree with it, it's just a fact in that world
@@tomz5704 What makes it sad is he wasn't even in the "game" at all, he was a kid, unknowingly passing along a deadly message and just like that he irreversibly became part of it.
@@SuperSpasticNinja I know, it's just that that world works that way
The kids in this show were fantastic. Great actors.
Alternate alternate ending: Randy becomes a dock worker, saves money, and moves to Milwaukee.
I think the organ in the background tells us he will become a musician.
i dont know if you read your comments or not, but i have watched the wire so many times that i know episodes word for word, and i never thought about any of this. Im so glad there is SOMEONE on RUclips that thinks about the Wire as deeply as the rest of the internet thinks about Star Wars and Marvel. You are a blessing and a scholar my guy, keep it up, you are appreciated.
I had a kid in my class in 7th grade. He's African American and lived in the city. I'm white and lived in the suburbs. We would always joke with each other in class and make each other laugh. Summer came and went and on the first day of school I came up to him and he was really aggressive. I was kinda taken back but could tell something was different. He got into alot of fights that year. I kept my distance but if it was just him and I he'd always talk to me and ask how I was. Something changed in him over the summer. God knows what happened but I always felt bad for him like he lost his childhood.
🧢
Probably just tired
@@Saveyourbs why is it cap???? You don't know that man
@@StoutProper tired of what?
Growing up in the inner city I’ve seen a lot of kids change overnight. It’s always sad when you can see potential in a person but due to the environment and the pressures of poverty most people enter the streets as a survival decision.
Randy is the next Marlo. His last scene, you see he has grown is a taller, stronger, quick acting, cold, vicious, calculating, antiauthority, untrusting, fearless teenager. He isn’t bruised up, scared, desperate so it’s clear he isn’t getting beat up or labeled a snitch no more, and looks like he is the top dog there. He talks, acts, reacts, his posture is 100 precent the same as Marlo. Prop Joe, stringer, Avon are the old generation kingpins, Marlo/Chris are the current generation colder, violent, heartless kingpins. Randy is the next, he’ll be more wicked than Marlo.
It’s to show that the game gotten meaner, more violent, younger, Ruthless, colder, chaotic, random.
, the speed of the game the turn over of players becomes quicker.
Avon and prop joe were kingpins of established organizations for decades, then Marlo comes out of no where-takes over the game, in like a year, is completely gone, for like a day Cheese is the top dog because he has the most money for the connect but gets killed by slim….it’s showing the game becomes rapid, chaotic, more fatal , less so out territory, its about the money in the now and not getting smoked.
With the law enforcement technology and getting better at taking down organizations….I doubt there are kingpins like Marlo, Avon, prop joe.
Greeks at this point don’t care about having an established guy, they don’t want to know anyone, they care about cash and they’ll do a drop
This is all in your head
@@mrleelee6478 no the writers of the show and creators stated this over the years. Cycle gets quicker, institutions don’t change really but get refined and they change the people. Marlo grew up in bmore with Avon making the west more violent and heartless. Marlo continued that.
Another reason why The Wire is so great, it lays the blame squarely at the feet of EVERYONE who is involved with the problems of inner city kids. The failure of the police. The failure of the foster system. The failure of the schools. The failure of group homes. But most of all, the blame for Randy's circumstances are all on Cheese. If Cheese had been a father, or even at the very least PRESENT in his life and wasn't a crook, then Randy could have had a MUCH better chance. It is lack of 2 parent families, lack of father figures that is the main driving force in why so many promising young black men fail in our society.
Cheese was his father? Never knew
That's assuming cheese even knew Randy even existed. Remember he's related to prop joe too. The whole family knew he existed and ignored it....I doubt it
@@nasaihyana exactly the fact that he was in foster care means more than likely his biological mother was strung out on drugs and gave him up for adoption or lost because of her addiction and cheese never knew but then why would he have cheese last name ?
Imagine getting all the working right, just to get the wrong answer at the end.
Hard to imagine cheese would have made a better impression on Randy tho, cheese sucked and was a pos. He would’ve brought him down even lower imo. Babies raising babies.
I LOVED this show. I grew up in similar neighborhoods and this was the most realistic show about inner city life, especially in the 90's, that I have ever seen!!! Probably that has ever been made!!!!
The last part about Marlo is great. We don’t really know Marlo’s back story but you can kinda tell by the way he carried himself and how he spoke that he was smart and was educated in some sort of way. He could have been just like Randy who caught a bad break and was even locked up in Juve or a group home but continued to read thinking he might have a chance. He is such an enigma which makes his character so great. We know nothing about him at all.
He DID end up being great. He does speaking engagements now warning against drugs, and getting involved in The Game.
He was street-smart. And perhaps even intelligent. But not educated. And that's one of the reasons he feels so out of place in a suit with all those "sophisticated" people and has to walk away into the streets.
In that sense, he's the inversion of Stringer Bell, who wanted to be a real businessman instead of just a criminal.
@@olubukonla7352 The final scene shows he's unhappy. He is no longer respected and feared on the streets. "MY NAME IS MY NAME!" turned into getting sliced by random street kids.
@@Aivottaja Which for HIM would be the ULTIMATE failure. Even with 10 million in his pockets.
Marlo was definitely very intelligent but he wasn't educated outside the hood. He didn't even know about bank accounts and stuff like that until Joe fills him in. Marlo was a quick learner though and very smart but knew nothing outside the hood game and that's why all he wanted was to be king and for his name to command the ultimate respect. Denard I always felt like was the one that will grow up to be the next Marlo. Torturing animals and having no regard for any life and being far harder for his age than most.
Randy as Avon, can't believe I never thought about that.
"I can see you a natural business man"
I always thought:
Randy would be the new Marlow
Mike would be the new Omar
Dookie would be the new Bubbles
Naimon would be the new Colvin
&
The other kids like Donut, Bug and Kenard would find a spot with one of their leaders.
Namod the new clay davis
Spida as Bodie and they should've made Dukie turn into Chris more like a zombie type nigga
I hate the Dukie ending tbh when i saw it
Randy as Prop Joe
I always thought Canard (Omar’s killer) was the new Marlo, sadistic and sociopathic. Canard was seen torturing cats and trying to punk Namond. Identifying what he can get away with and maximizing that. I’m surprised nobody else saw this.
@@razorsharp9545 randy is nothing like prop joe,Stop trolling
I love the happy ending for Randy. But damn real life is scary. Haunting when you know the people in power can easily fix things, but it's all politics. Sad and scary at the same time. I'd love for a happy ending but we never got a "El Camino" answer for these characters. And I love El Camino but this is way better I must admit
"Happy ending for Randy"?
I think Randy may have become the new Marlo. The group home hardened him as seen in a later episode and he realized the value of having a clean name in the dirty ass game that he was a victim to. So like Marlo, I could see him taking any approach to protect his name from that point on.
Clearly marlo
No
Hell no. If anyone is Marlo it's Kennard. He was running corners and already had a body. Plus he didn't let nobody play with him even tho he was the smallest. Randy is prop joe
@@fartgangtv9143Kenard has no similarities to marlo,Stop this bs
New prop Joe
Crazy thing is, Marlo didn’t seem to even care, he said Randy can’t hurt them but then Snoop says he can’t let it slide (“but he’s a snitch though,”) so that’s when he says put the word out.
9:53 Cheese not having a will would actually make it more likely for Randy to gain his inheritance. In most states in the U.S., absent a will, a persons inheritance automatically goes to a spouse first, then to children absent a spouse, parents absent children or a spouse, etc. All it would take is a scene with Randy standing around while someone nearby talks about all the money Cheese Wagstaff left behind and saying he had a son who lived in the area so it must have went to him. Randy is smart enough to figure the rest out and get his inheritance.
Cheese didn’t have any money lol he didn’t have a bank account all his drug money doesn’t just go to randy lol
@@postsniper-7532But he did have a raggedy ass Camero.
After Court and Lawyers Fees. And a court-appointed management company who charges fees to manage the estate and give Randy just what he needs since he is a minor.
@@postsniper-7532Cheese took on Joe’s wealth. That’s why he had $900K to kick in to buy the connect from Marlo. In reality though, Randy would never see a dime of it because Cheese didn’t have an established relationship with Randy. He would be a hustler but he would have to clear up that snitch tag that was put on him as a civilian.
I’m glad there’s so many other people that still appreciate the wire as much as I do.
I love your Wire videos. I like to think Randy read a Sun article about known drug king pin Melvin "Big Cheese" Wagstaff being killed, did a little investigative work, and got that inheritance.
If the Legendary Omar could not even get a mention BENEATH the fold, no way a lieutenant like Cheese gets a write up. The state likely seized Joe s property, or his siblings took it over.
Another alternative is that Randy gets prop Joe’s estate and is eventually taken in by Slim Charles. Slim’s going to Joe’s house and knocks on the door. Randy opens the door and asks who he is and slim replies that his boss used to live there. Randy then lets him know that Joe is his grand uncle, and slim being the cool dude he is takes him in and teaches him about entrepreneurship. He puts Randy in charge of running joes store in the end and tells him that the store gotta stay in the family. Kinda like how him and Joe worked together. A parallel version of Colvin and Namond.
That Marlo comparison makes so much sense I think that’s the one he’s the next marlo
It seems the kids represent the next generation..the changing of the guard.Michael became the next Omar/Chris/Slim Charles..,stickup man/hitman,Dukie became Bubbles,Naymond probably went into law enforcement and Randy became the next Prop Joe..or maybe Avon
Few shows even come close to the intricacy and detail of the characters and writing in the Wire. You can take individual characters and go so far with it
It's a nice thought, and I totally agree with the idea that Randy could be the next Prop Joe the way he somewhat mirrors Joe the way Mike and Dukie do Omar and Bubbles. But I just can't see Joe's ledger winding up in Randy's hands. He seems too smart for that. At the very least he would probably use some sort of code or something so that if it was discovered he would still be the only one who could understand it.
He will never be like joe,did you bother paying attention to the show,Joe grew up nicely,Randy was in a group home
Randy's story is connected to Marlo. "My name is my name" is connected to Randy not wanting to be a snitch
That makes more sense
Randy's present as a backstory for Marlo makes sense. We often wonder how Marlo emerged seemingly out of nowhere. During the first two seasons of the show, Marlo may have been fresh out of a group home; his ferocity may be result of having to grow up in such a hardened and confined environment. It may also be why he doesn't have the same attitude as someone like Bodie who came up in the hierarchy of the game, instead of being tossed into it. In the film "Moonlight," a similar trajectory is set for Chiron to the one you set for Randy, and suspect happened with Marlo. Of course, Chiron is not portrayed as a violent capo (he has employees but doesn't seem to be a big boss), is gay, and spends his time in Juvie versus a group home.
All signs point to marlo
Would it not be justice if Bunk was investigating Cheese's death, that he connects the relationship between Randy and Cheese, and makes things somewhat right with an inheritance?
Could possibly happen, Bunk going back later on to check on him like McNulty did DeAngelo & make it right this time, definitely a theory.
Govt not gonna let you inherit dirty money man.
You can’t inherit drug money dude.
@@wilhelmvg9978 We are talking about the money he got from Prop Joe and the house.
Last I checked neither Cheese nor Prop Joe were under any type of indictment?
@@wilhelmvg9978 the streets would look out for him!!!!! not the government 😂😂😂 aka slim charles and the kid wouldnt even know what the hell happened to his "dad".
I like the theory that Randy could become the cop or Marlo. Definitely a more fitting profile. Cops bully the people who bully them and Marlo acted out of character when his character was questioned as being other than solid as if he had a problem with being solid in the past.
No, Randy is Prop Joe. Entrepreneurship is in his genes.
@@olubukonla7352 doesn't matter anything can happen in life when you go through changes. Iv known people in real life that use to be soft that got put in situations that turned them to be worst as adults and they were the "good kid".
Reputation means everything in that world. Marlo personified that ideal.
@@kudjoeadkins-battle2502 facts
@@olubukonla7352 So was Marlo, "You a gangsta, what you gon' be other than a gangsta?
Marlo: "Business man".........
Avon: "I mean you a natural business man right"
Dont forget Marlo also was an entrepreneur who had the same mindset, remember he was schooled by Joe.
That shit cut deep when Randy was actually telling Carver that it's okay. As they're walking into the group home. And Carver just looks fd up. Like it's supposed to be the other way around, him telling Randy it'll be okay.
Duke becomes Bubbles, Naymond becomes Bunk, Michael becomes Omar 😂
The Macho Man Randy Quad Savage!, will taker dine🤣🤣
Omar was beat the fuck up,& hung from a helicopter by senior sosa🤣🤣🤣🤣
Sneaky Snitch Beech!😅
I love how your breaking the series down the wire was a one of a kind show
In the scene where he is entering the group home on the wall, it says “drugs, guns, violence, crime” this shows Randy’s future life.
Randy was a snitch,the only person i felt bad for was his foster mother who was badly burned because of he was too scared that troll of a principal was going to call her and tell her he was a lookout while some low life creeps violated a young girl. The saddest was obviously Dukie, parents didn’t care enough about him to move in didn’t even tell him where they were going. Always wearing dirty clothes to school,not being able to take a bath,then finally getting hooked on smack,absolutely horrible.
At 7:50, Cheese most likely is aware of Randy's existence if they share the same surname. That typically means either a) Mother and father were married at time of birth or b) Unwed mother listed Cheese on birth certificate, most likely with Cheese's awareness he had a son with his name. Unfortunately it's usually the son - not the father - that is unaware of the others existence. Cheese was probably aware but indifferent to his son who basically grew up in foster homes minutes from Cheese.
Or C the mom forged his name on the birth certificate
@@TheFirstTEE1 How would that be possible? How old are you? Lol
@@lakeeshadavis1583 you are stupid there's no background check I got 3 baby moms am on 3 birth certificates and they got my last name there was no call to me or if verification or DNA it's as simple as a bitch saying Yeh it Mr cheese Wagstaff
In the early seasons they have Cheese last name as LAGSTAFF not WAGSTAFF
The biggest Easter egg with Randy is his last name WAGSTAFF. He is actually Cheese's son and Prop Joe's great nephew. They missed a helluva storyline.
They did Randy dirty. I was real hoping that Carver would take him in as his foster son.
Carver should’ve just took him. Carver broke so many other rules. Why not those of the foster system?
@@s.h.7613 Agreed but of course it's on record that he had him for the moment and the Foster Care system don't play that crap. The FC lady told him the process for him to take Randy in would be 3 months. Would've been nice to see Carver put in the work and effort to eventually get him out of there.
Me too. Fuckin heart shattered when I found out he couldn’t do that. Smh
@@s.h.7613 Yeah but it probably would amount to kidnapping or some shit? And then Randy ends up in foster care again anyway
Season 6 Carver gets news Cheese is dead. He hears the last name thinking of Randy. Carver snakes his way to get a blood test done to save Randy. Randy gets saved only to find out the test was illegal forcing him to give his assets up. Pushing him to Kingpin status
Yo. US-based attorney here. Probate is a vicious and slow cycle, and Cheese’s (considerable) possessions would almost certainly land there before Randy gets a ring. Also if Cheese was able to put up Prop Joe’s house for bond, it meant he had the papers most likely in his name and then Probate will claim it.
However, since Randy is firmly in “the system” then oddly enough, the odds of Probate locating him and allowing him to inherit is increased. The real gap in my knowledge is I don’t know how well Probate works in Baltimore (and it works horribly almost everywhere in the US) and if it doesn’t have legal reps with ethics and integrity…well, Randy will never see a dime. The game is the game.
I think the thing that might connect them is Bunk. Bunk certainly would be working the murder case, and might in fact find the relationship being that they shared such an uncommon last name?
@@johnpenley that would improve the odds for Randy (and it would be a good storyline!) but even with that blue-skies approach it wouldn’t surprise me if it took three or four years for the Probate system to get its shit together and get Randy what he’s owed…might be too realistic but the Wire went hard on that realism!
@@TheZackofSpades it's just my fan theory, based off another fan theory, but I would guess both Bunk and Carver and others would now about Cheese's death, and I only assume their would be some type of check into known relatives.
Unfortunately Dukie doesn't even get that slim chance..😬
This is the greatest breakdown on this show that I've ever heard
Cheese does acknowledge he has a son... he says "I wouldn't even know what to say to the boy" in one of the episodes
Really I don't remember that
What episode was that???
@@dabighomie613 That's because it never happened lol I don't know why so many liked that comment.Fans on here writing their own script 🤣🤣
The fact that 9 clowns liked this comment blindly without doing research,Cheese never acknowledged no where in the show that he had a son
@dedricklane4899 there was no episode saying that at all
It was gut wrenching at the end with Mike , Bud , , Dukan, and Randy because sometimes good ppl have do bad things
Shit Randy more than likely would end up like Marlo or Chris being put back in the system especially after his foster mother got killed. Pushing the kid down the steps shows him lashing out like a defense mechanisms
Bro that shit blew my mind!!! People like you are why I spend hours of my time listening to RUclips videos bc my eyes and mind are being opened to different things and ways of thinking about even simple shit like The Wire which really isn’t that simple at all
I too wondered what would happen to Randy.
I think that his tough demeanour displayed in front of the Bunk is a front, a way to survive in a very hostile environment, and that he remains at hearth the good-natured kid he was. Of course, he also remains that smart kid with a great bizness acumen. So what about him after group home, realisticly ?
He'll never have Prop Joe's real estate ; nobody will never bother to look as far as him. He can't join a crew neither, because of his rep. Keeping hustling in Baltimore streets is gonna be hard for the same reason. No, first chance he get, he jumps in the next Greyhound to FL or TX and starts over a new life, getting a dollar here and there until he can earn he's own store.
Good luck, Randy.
Can you imagine if Proper Joe raised Randy how his intelligence would of leveled! Randy already had an entrepreneur mindset like Joe . Just bring the show back for the next generation with Randy , Mike , Dookey even the bad ass who killed Omar
They should reboot the wire with the 4 boys
Michael as omar
Randy as prop joe
Dukie as bubbles
Namond as a cop figure
String n avon can be filled in
Slim charles as the plug
💎!!!!!
Yep, I’d watch it. Send this idea to David Simon asap!!
@@crystalgray79 we all gotta push it tho🤷🏾♂️ I'd be down
Great video. Glad to see someone diving in and touching on this subject.
I'm no expert on inheritance law by any stretch, but I do know that there's a million ways that people get screwed outta their rightful/ legal inheritance all the time and it's taken to insane extremes when the person or people involved on either end of an inheritance can even remotely be tied to any illegal activity, even minor violations. There's some very messed up laws surrounding these kinds of things, people get their money and significant property snatched more often than you'd think over just the suspension of criminal activity and struggle to get it back even when exonerated. Look at the horrible abuses of things like Civil Forfeiture for one of many examples. So even if they knew Randy was Cheese's kid and there weren't dozens of others ahead of him in line (which it sounds like there are), the odds that anyone would do anything about it are mad slim and the odds that they'd try and snatch it under some questionably constitutional law and stick it in the federal, state, or city coffers is way more likely imo. But idk.
What I am an expert in is growing up in that environment. While your version makes for a nice story it's just not the reality. Even if it started as a front it's become who he is as a coping mechanism. Me and countless others are living proof that it's not some terminal condition and people can absolutely change, but ya can't play like that and not have it change ya. It's basically sociopathy as a survival tactic. Much of my first 25-30 years were spent in a similar state. I was in and outta lock ups since middle school and did a lot to get by that I'd never do now. But it would take a significant, radical inner awakening of some kind or leaving that environment for him to really escape it. I had that kinda deep inner shift (more a political one and just a different understanding, I've never been religious or anything like that) eventually but stayed in the life cause I had no other real options, but I felt things I'd never felt before, I had empathy where none had been before, I finally saw and accepted what I was doing to others and myself, and that's what drove me to keep pushing to find a way out.
Randy's story definitely isn't a hopeless one, as bad as it seems. But unfortunately it's way more likely that he dies young as yet another pawn (all he'd really have to do is go East Side of start pushing to the "mixed" hoods to the South to escape the snitch jacket) that the system doomed from birth or becomes an abusive pig like Walker that the system uses to oppress his own community.
He'd have to leave town to get away from that snitch rep. Somebody will always pop up and remind folks. He should join the Army, or Merchant Marine, Job Corp, Truck Driving or do Construction Work. Cats can escape the hood. But they think going to the opposite side of town is the answer.
Randy - prop joe
Michael- omar
Duke- bubbles
Namond- clay davis
Randy runs Joes repair shop. Michael uses Randy as his banker. Similar to Omar and Butchie.
Also, Marlo could have easily had Randy killed as he did so many others for even less than talking to police, but instead just had it put on the street that he was a snitch, which would go to your theory that that's who he would become; almost like a protégé.
Randy is still in there underneath all that rage.
That sideways glance is saying, “Look what y’all made me have to be like - what y’all made me do. YOU did this to me”. He’s smart like Joe. Now he’s ruthless too, though not cold as Marlo.
It is similar to what ‘Little’ Melvin Williams, AKA The Deacon says in a documentary about his life. He stated that after the cops framed and incarcerated him, he decided to use his brilliance to sell narcotics and (as Stringer said), “take over this goddamn city”.
Randy would “keep it boring” while he got all Machiavellian and finessed his way into The Crown. That candy thing and e-commerce let him know he could make legit money too. He might even be able to throw Dukie a lifeline and put his aptitude with computers to work.
In my heart of hearts 💕 I believe Randy became the new Butchie
Randy is the next Bodie for sure. Rough upbringing, hardened by the streets, now has that same attitude Bodie had season 1
Outstanding video CR, pretty impressive that you were able to come up with this after just starting to watch the show for the first time this year. I think one possibility you overlooked was Randy becoming the next Bodie, but I agree he could also have become either of the characters you suggested.
Randy wasn't tough enough to be another Bodie. Just like Prop Joe or Cheese weren't real tough guys. Cheese got ahead because of who his Uncle was. In reality Cheese was just a knuckle head.
@@coolpeople4287 Fair point. I think it comes down to if the 'new' Randy we see at the end is just a role he plays, or if he really changed. He's definitely nothing like his father, but as CR pointed out, there are similarities with Prop Joe.
@@johnbakker4828 Toughness like Bodie displayed is something that's "in you". Although we can all act tough. . . for awhile maybe. Yeah, I think he has the makings on a young Prop Joe.
I see the connection of Randy becoming a similar character to Stringer Bell. Neither has a family connection, both are natural businessman/hustlers, and both appear calm under pressure.
The scene when Marlo yells in the security guards face “you want it one way” now makes way more sense . If he is a parallel of Randy his authority issues were fully on display at that moment‼️
thank you so much for this video! Randy is such a great character and it hurt so much when his tragic ending played out. i love this thought of a happy ending for Randy
Perfect example of Good kid, Madd City.
There’s no way to prove it because its deliberately ambiguous, but the implication I got was out of the four boys, he was the one most likely to become the next Marlo. It would be a huge indictment of the system if it could turn the kindest, most outgoing person who loved life into a man like Marlo.
Great perspectives. U could see him becoming like Joe or even working with Michael. Kinda like being Michael bank. Like the blind man was for Omar
I started wondering who was likely to be a cop. Randy makes sense but so does donut or Bug
Donut was a little boy who had his fingers brutally broken by a despicable cowardly pig. I seriously doubt he would ever join the force.
Can't imagine Randy ever wanting to be near the police after his dealings with them.
@@johnpenley and the streets have been so nice?
Nicely put together just when you think all the dynamics have been covered!
He’s Avon not Joe. Look at the scene where Ms. Anna is first introduced. He started off in the green but runs to her where her home is red. He’s in the kitchen with Ms. Anna washing dishes, he has to rebuild his name after season 4 because people only know him as a snitch so when he rebuilds his rep he will be 10x more considerate.
All the kids in Marlo’s reign grew to rule in Avon’s era
Namond- Stringer/Mayor Royce
Michael- Omar
Dukie- Bubbles
Randy- Avon
Spider- Slim
Donut- Wee Bey
Albert- Bird
Kenard- Marlo
Bug- Clay Davis
The boy hiding in closet after parents are killed by Chris and snoop- Bodie
Spider could be slim, but his relationship with Kennard mimics that of Marlo and chris.
Namond is Davis or Royce.
Wouldn't say donut was anyone especially Bey, but the one person we adult we see that stole a car was Stinkum.
Bug is most likely to become a cop
Donut becomes that fat bald head dude that opens the door when Avon is arrested in season 1
I like your take on the kids
@@maniac50ae14 Donut loved his cars, is only introduced in the 6th grade, was with Randy selling snacks on the corner trying to make cheese and in his very last scene he’s upgraded into the whip similar to the one Bey was introduced in.
Bug loved math and wasn’t dumb. But at some point he had to realize who is the older brother he dearly loves and looks up to. Michael robs people in the game for money but if Mike could rob people legally the same way Clay Davis did, he’d be less worried about his conscience since he’s not holding a gun to anybodys face for the money. Also Clay Davis and Omar handled their court situations very similarly in grand fashion
Namond was heading to being D'Angelo. However, because of Bunny he has potential to be the next Royce - which says a lot about his turn-around.
Glad you r decided to Dissect the wire. Your sopranos videos were top notch. And I think The Wire is even more nuanced.
Facts💯💪🏾
Randy became the new Bodie
Michael became the new Omar
Dukie became the new Bubbles
That's what was great about "The Wire". They showed you that the end was just a new beginning. The Drug War will never end. Love this show!
namond became poot
Pretty crazy timing you released this video as I finally finished the series today!
Awesome show 👌 sad though most of my favourite characters died 😭
Doughnut is running Baltimore in 2022
Donut 🍩 became the new Brother Mouzone
@@Saveyourbs you smoking crack
NO Kennard came home and he got it on lock he invested the bounty money on omar in to herion
If I’m not mistaken Randy is implied in the montage throwing the rock at the surveillance.. not that it means anything
I think of Randy as the new Bodie.. last we saw him he was guarded and angry reminds me more of Bodie
These are the best theories I’ve heard on a The Wire breakdown.
Randy was Cheese’s son?! Never saw the clues🤯
His hustle is that of Joe's as shown in the flashback promo and he shares the same last name. It was alluded to but as he said, Simon only recently confirmed it
@@maniac50ae14 can’t believe I never put the same last name together! Love this show
@@s.h.7613 I think Cheese's last name is only mentioned in the beginning of S3 so it's easy to miss.
I always thought Randy was the son of Hungry Man
@@maniac50ae14 Definitely missed that, man I feel dense sometimes lol
The cycle repeats itself with a new generation
The wire best show ever hands down
Randy is the new avon.. Michael is the new Omar. Namond is stringer. Duke is the new bubbles. Doughnut is the new Bodie.
I think he will be part Joe, part Stringer, and part Marlo. He probably will be as big as those mentioned, or bigger, but will probably fall hard after and long strong run.
I always had a thought of Randy turning 18, hittin the streets and runnin into and teamin up with Mike and them turning into the next Stringer and Avon....mannn what a thought!!
Herc was the reason Randy's story went bad.. Herc being a typical cop didn't care about the outcome of anyone outside of his investigation.