Deadwood v. The Sopranos

[Dids]

The characterization on The Wire is amazing. Amost everybody has some depth, nobody is cliche, it all feels authentic (save Brother Mozone, who is a black mark on the show, but slightly mitigated by his badassness).

It's an amazingly smart show. It doesn't treat the audience like idiots, but it's not hard to follow or grasp. It deals with real world issues without being preachy and managed to show you both criminal and police without an overdose of judgement.