For any television program that was fawned over critically in its first season, the spotlight was on The Wire from the get go for their second go-round. Would David Simon fall flat on his face trying to capture fire again? What kind of storyline could he come up with considering how neatly wrapped up he left everything at the end of season one?

Well, as we now know from the post-Wire interviews that have been published, Simon and his crew of writers (most of them former journalists or crime fiction scribes) had most everything plotted out from the first episode. It made for a few overly convenient moments to help get the Major Crimes Unit back together for a new investigation, but it also meant that the introduction of a large number of new characters, particularly for an episodic TV show, was handled with grace and ease.

These new characters were all centered around a dying Baltimore industry – dock working – with the focus on a union that is trying to solvent even when the boats aren't coming in to unload their cargo. To that end, union head Frank Sobotka has been helping to bring in containers full of stolen goods for a shady group of criminals, then turning around and giving the payout to lobbyists and politicians who he hope will work on the union's behalf.

One of those containers sets the plot in motion, as it is found to be full of dead women, all of who were being shipped over to the U.S. to work as prostitutes and strippers. The discovery has a ripple effect affecting the union and dockworkers, the police and especially the crooks that are out millions in revenue by the loss.

That alone is enough to take up all 12 episodes, but Simon also sticks with the drug dealers that populated the first season as well. Some are in prison now, still running the operation from within, and the rest are on the street struggling to maintain control of their street corners and other real estate.

To try to touch on every storyline and plot thread that wends through this season (and the others) would take up another 1,500 words, but rest assured that each scene is essential, making for an epic series that lives up to and transcends the hype thrown its way like confetti.

As I'm sure I touched on with the first season, a great deal of the power of the show should be credited to the actors, who bring so much gravitas, humor and heart to their parts. This is especially true of Pablo Schreiber as Frank, the fiery union leader who has a hard time understanding right and wrong when it comes to protecting his people, and James Ransone as his son, Ziggy (probably the most tragic figure on the show) who perfectly captures the desperate swagger and pitiful angst of someone who has spent his whole life getting pushed around.

Both picture and sound were mastered very well for the likes of a TV show on DVD. The sound especially pops from the speakers with an unnerving clarity. There were many an occasion where I thought there was a police siren going nearby my house when it turned out to just be something from the show.

There are next to no extras on here other than a pair of audio commentaries on two episodes. Rather disappointing.