A few weeks ago, while we began to watch an episode of "Treme," I noticed that George Pelecanos had written this show. I told Mike about my experience with "The Wire," how it had been recommended to me and how, one day when I was sick, I had gone to the local video store and rented the entire first season at a discount rate. I started watching it, didn't like it, but kept watching it, because I felt too sick to do anything else.
Then I saw the Wallace's final episode written by George Pelecanos. That's what it took. I was hooked on the show and I started reading Pelecanos novels.
We watched the "Treme" episode that night. There was a death of a very well loved character. It was tragic and unexpected and explainable and heartbreaking.
"That's Pelecanos," I said. I later read that he has the nickname of Dr. Death, that it's almost an advance spoiler alert if he has the writing credit on these shows, because David Simon has always admired the way he handles these deaths in his novels.
So I'm on a short vacation last week, reading Soul Circus, one of his Derek Strange novels. There are familiar Pelecanos elements that I've grown to love: musical references, mentions of Westerns, the world of the investigators and the world of the street. I'm reading along, and Dr. Death strikes again. It is operatic. It is startling. It is a moment that I can't believe has happened. It makes complete sense. I keep reading, certain that it can't be true, but it is, and I talk about it and think about it throughout the whole trip.
That is the power of Dr. Death. Pelecanos is becoming so famous for it that he may have to retire from the role. It will be interesting to see. In the meantime, it is preserved on the page, on the screen, this very interesting ability to create these moments where loved ones die.
