Told from the points of view of both the Baltimore homicide and narcotics detectives and their targets, the series captures a universe in which the national war on drugs has become a permanent, self-sustaining bureaucracy, and distinctions between good and evil are routinely obliterated.

In the year 1935, a teen named Billy Bathgate finds first love while becoming the protégé of fledgling gangster Dutch Schultz.

Two FBI agents investigating the murder of civil rights workers during the 60s seek to breach the conspiracy of silence in a small Southern town where segregation divides black and white. The younger agent trained in FBI school runs up against the small town ways of his partner, a former sheriff.

Rebellious footballer Johnny falls for cheerleader Tracy. They come from opposite backgrounds: Tracy has a comfortable, well-off family, whereas Johnny is poor and broken. Tracy already has a boyfriend who acts like a jerk, so Johnny has to win Tracy's heart - something she seems reluctant to let him do.