Sexual ambiguity as a dislocation device

The Wire (HBO) This show is what Tom Wolfe wishes he could write like--a great city novel with everyone in that city from top to bottom represented and involved in its own subplots, alliances, conspiracies, relationships. So it's interesting to me that in the local street gang, the most frightening, eager-to-kill hitperson is a woman who, for the longest time, seemed to me like a young guy with dreads whose voice hadn't change and whose girlishness was part of what made him so scary. Ditto the coldhearted street baron who is setting up shop on the blocks--they found some guy with perfectly weird-looking eyes, very dark complexion, who's scarier yet. And that's not even counting the gay stickup guy who goes out to rob people in his bathrobe.