Despite being one of the greatest TV dramas of all time, The Wire had low ratings on broadcast, when compared to similarly acclaimed HBO shows. David Simon's crime drama was a sprawling story of the war against drugs, social inequality, political corruption, and a police department obsessed with budgets and bureaucracy. While The Wire became a huge hit in the era of boxed set binges, the actual ratings for episodes on broadcast rarely reached above 4 million viewers.

The Wire season 2 was the highest rated season overall, with an average viewership of 3.71 million, but ratings continued to dip in subsequent seasons. Despite the critical acclaim, The Wire season 5 had an average viewership of less than a million viewers. It's testament to David Simon's vision, and HBO's support of creators that The Wire was allowed the time to conclude its overarching story. The commitment of Simon and his team guaranteed that,...