Omar: The Aftermath

In spite of the Oscars, Omar's death has gotten some tread. Here's some of what's rolling around out there:

• Ben Nuckols - Associated Press: "Stickup man Omar Little, perhaps the most beloved character on the HBO series 'The Wire,' was dispatched in shocking fashion Sunday night, taking a bullet to the back of the head as he bought a pack of Newports at a convenience store. His killer: Kenard, a boy no older than 12 and a minor player in the drug gang Omar was battling."

• Cynthia Littleton - Variety: "The scene where Omar gets it is so shocking for its randomness, in the sense that you just never can tell where the bullet is coming from in that world. One of Baltimore's most notorious thugs gets it from a kid."

• Teresa Wiltz - Washington Post: "Another, lesser show would have taken out Omar in a hail of bullets. Instead, he met his end in the most prosaic of ways: buying cigarettes at a grocery store. In broad daylight. And sadistic little Kenard -- who'd just finished torturing an alley cat -- just happened to come upon him."

• Karen Valby - Entertainment Weekly: "Omar didn't meet a glorious end, with his guns blazing and trench coat fluttering in the wind. He died like most of the people on The Wire, suddenly and without a lot of witnesses."

• Chris Barton - LA Times: "There will be no Jerry Bruckheimer finale with a hail of hot lead and venom for Omar, only a cruel moment where someone's guard was let down for a split second too long. That was enough for everyone who crossed Omar's path, and so it's enough for Omar."

• Alan Sepinwall - NJ Star-Ledger: "By the time of Omar's death, he's a broken man, literally on his last legs, shuffling back and forth across Baltimore in a quest for revenge against Marlo."

• James Poniewozik - Time: "But still--Omar, man. He had a code, at least, even if he broke it, and a sense of justice and loyalty. And you have to mourn, at least, what he represented: the idea that it was possible to be a free agent, to have a life outside the pernicious sytems that destroyed the people in them, that a badass gay guy with a shotgun and a duster could, if not change things, at least kick some deserving asses."

• Tim Goodman - SF Chronicle: "Amidst the chaos and urban decay and relentless downbeat cynicism of both West Baltimore and "The Wire" in general, the character of Omar was one the audience could root for and take satisfaction in when his brand of vigilante justice prevailed."

Keywords: The Wire, Season 5, Season Five, Omar, Dead, Died, Death, RIP, Kenard, Omar's Dead, Omar Shot, Spoiler, Episode 8, Episode Eight, Clarification, Clarifications, Brother Mouzone, Marlo, Chris, Snoop, Media, Reactions