I googled The Wire and it seems like something only people 4-10 years older than me would be familiar with, which leaves 0 examples for people my age?

I'm in the age group that would be familiar - it was certainly influential, but i'm not exactly sure i would call it mainstream. It was on HBO in an era where that significantly limited its audience. It was never a household name the way something like lost, game of thrones or breaking bad was. I think its mostly remembered for being the start of the wave of "prestige" televidion.