There has been an ongoing debate about whether FX series “Snowfall” can take on the iconic HBO series “The Wire,” and this week that debate was reignited.

It seems the premiere of the ninth episode of “Snowfall” on Wednesday, April 14, really got “The Joe Budden Podcast” co-host Mal excited. On April 14, he tweeted, “Snowfall is better than The Wire in my humble opinion.” It’s an opinion that fired up a debate in his comments.

Mal’s tweet (Photo: @mal__/Twitter)

One person responded, “This is a lie straight from the pits of hell…in my humble opinion. Snowfall is good but it definitely is not as 🔥as The Wire. #beblessed.” Another person who did not agree with Mal’s opinion went into more detail about the two drug shows. He said, “Wire is raw and gritty, no theatrical shine to it like “Power” or “Snowfall”. More like the streets than any other show in the history of TV.. Respect ya opinion tho.”

Many people had similar opinions of the FX series being a more watered-down version of “The Wire” because “The Wire” seemed more dramatically realistic. One person tweeted, “Every week someone tweets this bs. I love Snow but nobody fears Franklin or Leon. EVERYONE feared Marlo, Omar and Stringer. They wasn’t running from rivals and getting their asses beat. Stop the nonsense.”

Out of the many social media users who disagreed with Mal, there was a person who did agree that the FX series is an excellent show. “Snowfall is up there though the latest season is starting to heat the f-ck up,” that person tweeted.

But even “Snowfall” star Damson Idris, who plays the lead character, had something to say about Mal’s opinion. “Comparing The Wire to Snowfall is like comparing Diego Maradona to Lionel Messi. Please Don’t! Just love them both, 🍷” he said referring to legendary Argentinian soccer players with Mardona being the former player.

“The Wire,” which aired in the early 2000s, is set in Baltimore, Maryland, and tells the story of a detective who is trying to bring down drug lord Avon Barksdale, played by Wood Harris. The series lasted five seasons and is considered to be one of the most popular drug shows.

“Snowfall,” on the other hand, is still considered to be one of the newer drug shows. Before it, there were a few other shows centered around drugs with a Black-dominated cast. These include FOX’s “Empire” (2015) and Starz’s “Power” (2014), which recently ended its series after six seasons and now has a sequel show called “Power Book II: Ghost.” But while it may be one of the youngest out of these other shows, “Snowfall” still brings just as much heat with its dramatic episodes every season. Next Wednesday will be the season finale to the show’s fourth season. “Snowfall” has been renewed for a fifth season.