So in lieu of today’s top 5 Wire characters list, I figured I’d remind everyone who undervalues Herc why he’s such a sneaky great character on the show. First though I wanna point out that pretty much any Wire fan is going to have similar opinions on a lot of characters. Everyone loves Omar, String, McNulty, Bunk etc… Everyone has a soft spot for Wallace and Randy. Nobody is surprised that Greggs was a lesbian, yada yada yada. The majority of characters on the show end up getting the same response from the audience, partly because of how well done it is but mostly because the characters are acutely transparent. We know who they are. They aren’t holding back secrets. All the cards are out on the table.

And that’s what makes Herc so phenomenal in my book. He’s one of the few guys that isn’t totally laid out in front of you. Some people hate him, some people love him. There’s a lot of people like Mo that want to throw their TV’s out of their window when they see him or hear him talk. But the reality is he’s a smart cop disguised as an absolute fucking idiot that provides some of the best comic relief on the show. He’s a multi-dimensional character that appears one-dimensional. You can’t say that for many guys on the Wire. It’s a show of open books, regardless of how deep their stories go. Herc doesn’t have much of a life that we’re exposed to outside of his work and therefore we get to kind of guess and choose the type of person he is when he’s away from the job, if he ever is. I get why a lot of people don’t like him or don’t rank him up there with other guys. But if you can’t appreciate him you’re missing out.

Videos of Herc being the man after the jump

PS: Undisputed Champ – Jimmy McNulty