Miami Vice (1984-1989)

I kind of enjoyed some of the change that was done during season 3, as I think overall that it was a stronger season compared to season 2, which I felt was at times very poor compared to season 1, and where it felt like the show too often semed to "rely" upon the star power of famous guest appearences, and the most obivous one was the horrible mess called Phil the Shill where Phil Collins takes up too much space, and while I really enjoyed his songs/music that was used in the show, I thought it got maybe a bit overboard having him have his "own" episode, and a very silly/goofy one too.
Another example is when Frank Zappa (big fan of his music) shows up at the end of what seemed to be a promising episode: Payback, where Frank plays some big drug baron that Crockett and Tubbs wants to bring down, and when we finally end up seeing Zappa against our two heroes, it is done in such a silly and ridiculous way that it looks like it was taken from some random, low-budget b-movie than an episode from one of the biggest budget TV shows of that time, as I think Frank even says out loud "YOU GOT TO BE KIDDIN' ME!" when Crockett and Tubbs suddenly overpowers his entire crew within a few seconds and kidnaps the drug lord and it all seemed so rushed and poorly executed, that they didn't even bother to edit out Frank's hilarious little comment on how stupid the whole scene really was/looked like. 
Again, the star power from the guests become too big and I prefered it more when the guests on the show was still some years away of becoming prominent names in the movie or music industry, and was not big there and then when they came on Miami Vice. 

But it was not just that, what really annoyed me was that the show seemed to frequently use comedic/clownish characters that kind of had already by season 1 outwore their welcome, such as Noogie and Izzy and while season 2 opened with a bang where you had classic episodes such as Prodigal Son which was the opening episode of season 2 and worked like a mini-movie similar too season 1 and Brother's Keeper and then two episodes later one would get maybe the finest Miami Vice episode of the whole show, Out Where the Buses Don't Run, however after that ridiculous strong opening, there would be very few ones that came close of matching that solid quality and pace, and if one took out other season 2 highlights such as Bushido, Definitely Miami and Little Miss Dangerous, you would end up with a very long bunch of forgettable moments. But of course, this all just my own opinion of it.


Anyway, I am not saying every episode of season was a 10/10, but I thought very few was "forgettable" or stuff that I could just skip over and move on to the better ones, as there was maybe 2-3 ones that was within the 4/10-5/10 rating level, where the rest was somewhere around 6,5/10 and up to 8,5/10, with a few going up to 9/10 and then one I gave a perfect 10/10.
Season 3 I thought was a stronger (overall) season that the one before, even though I did not approve much of the cheesy hairstyles/clothes, poor music choices, and how they got rid of the black Ferrari and sometimes it could become a bit too "bleak/depressive" as I think the show began to loose viewers in the second half of season 3 and I guess the producers thought it was "wise" to try and shock the fans by doing some rather sad changes, like and the show never really hit the same heights (for me that is) and while some good episodes showed up here and there, I wished the producers/writers would give Stan Switek more to work with or maybe a , instead the focus was too often on Crockett and his love life, which I thought became a big joke when they brought onboard one love interest after antoher and while Tubbs and the fellow co-workers rarely got to shine anymore, it really ended up as the Crockett one man Show.

I have probably said too much already, and who knows I might regret it when I re-watch the show again in the future, but for me the best time for Miam Vice was from season 1 and up til around mid season 3, after that I lost a bit of interest and season 4 and 5 had a very "cheap" look/feel to them, and I guess the producers knew that it was not gonna last for long before it would be taken down.

Speaking of Calderone, this little but very well done scene is taken from the pilot/opening episode Brother's Keeper and where Tubbs (Philip Michael Thomas) first approaches his brothers killer, and the use of music and scenery is fantastic and there are so many similar moments like that in the first seasons, where they really knew how to make the best use of music and where the songs that are included do not just end up becoming another random background soundtrack, but instead helps an already strong scene to become even more powerful.

After successfully re-watching Scarface (1983) back in the mid of july, I felt the urge of continuing on with more of the 80s neon and pastel dominated Miami City adventures of cocaine deals gone wrong, drug wars, fast cars and even faster women, so what better than to just keep going with Miami Vice:

Miami Vice: Brother’s Keeper (1984) by Thomas Carter

"'ll be damned if I'm gonna put my life on the line with some outlaw cop on a personal vendetta! Cause when it gets personal, it gets messy, and when it gets messy, the wrong people get killed."

During a failed attempt on bringing down a notorius drug lord, a vengeful New York detective decides to take a little time out for some sun and relaxation down in Miami.
However, the criminal he's been chasing, is also high up on the chain of command, among well known faces within the local police. And it does not take too long, until the NYPD and Vice police collides, when Teddy Prentiss (Philip Michael Thomas) meets up with Sonny Burnett (Don Johnson), and the two rival cops must seek out some kind of temporarely trust in each other, before their prey gets out of sight once again.  

Brother’s Keeper is a terrific pilot and opener to this legendary show, and in which some DVDs seems to have it down as a 2 hour (or 90 minutes more) tv-film, where as others has it as two episodes.
I do prefer the one which treats it like a full blown movie, and no wonder this show must have felt like something completely else, with its heavy use of atmosphere, visuals, camera angels, solid stunts and combining elegance, grit and adventure into an explosive ride, full of twists and turns, where you feel nobody is quite ever "safe", not even the main characters. 

Another important ingredient to why this show succeeded, is the instant chemistry between the main leads, in Philip Michael Thomas and Don Johson, and it all is taken straight out of some classic 80s buddy cop movie, but instead into a 22 season show.

As mentioned, they went heavily with both the visual and also specially within the choice of modern music, with big names like Cyndi Lauper, Rockwell, The Rolling Stones and Lionel Richie, well if one can include the cover version of All Night Long, which I think was done really impressive.
Perfect use within a lively enviroment, full of suspense and danger, and love the way the camera focuses in on the details and yeah, one of the many awesome build ups with emotional tension just about to erupt into chaos and violence.

Anyway, the one big and uforgettable musical moment, which changed the game was saving Phil Collins and the haunting In the Air Tonight as the climatic finish, where the two detective, well known that they might not survive the upcoming encounter with a dangerous criminal, rides into the night to the classic 80s hit, and the whole build up is still a thrill to behold.  

Another important factor to the whole Vice style, is the impressive work of Jan Hammer, who sets up the tone with the classic main theme, and while it has not yet become the final version that would appear for the rest of the shows run, it is without a doubt classic 80s pulsating tv-theme all the way.

However, my favorite Hammer instrumental in this opener, is the romantic and warm theme that is Gina. 
Such a soothing and lovely little piece of music, kind of sad it was not brought up way more. At least I am glad it is available in a full version. 

If there is anything to pick on, I guess some of the action sequences do seem a little too "cheesy" at times, but I mean, it was a product of another era and since it was a TV show, I guess there were some rules as to how far you could go, and Miami Vice did go pretty damn far at times, specially later on.

All in all, I loved watching this absolute impressive first episode/pilot, and I am very much looking forward to more entertaining late summer nights, with dope deals gone wrong, boat chases, angry alligators and I end up with a well deserved: 

9/10

Season 1 - Episode 03: Cool Runnin' (1984)

Lou Rodriguez: "This was supposed to be a lightweight deal."

Sonny: "Yeah, that's what we thought till the fireworks started."

When a trigger happy trio with Jamaican drug smugglers fills the streets with bullets and corpses, the police realizes they have to change their way of trying to apprehend the violent criminals. Which is easier said than done, since within the ranks there are a couple of young and too cocky detective trying to rise the ranks with busting bad guys. Instead it turns to tragedy, when one of them becomes the latest victim to the murdering gang. 

Another good episode, maybe not up there with the first two, but it is a nasty reminder of what the police in real life stood up against, when the first wave of violence from drug wars appeared in Miami back in 1979, specially through the infamous Dadeland Mall massacre. There the police did not know what they were up against, but the killers certaintly came well prepared, with heavy weapons and an escape van being rebuilt into more like a war machine, equipped with bulletproof windows and steel armoured doors, and enough lethal stuff to take out a small army with.

This along with the rise of lawless violence in which the killers did not just go after their targets, but would also mow down innocent people with machine guns, that was unheard of, until well, Miami went from paradise to becoming one of the most deadliest places on earth.

The episode opens with having Sonny and Ricardo thinking they are just up against another gang of small time crooks, but all of a sudden they stare right into machine guns, which do not stop to fire, until they are completely empty.

Beside the explosive and rather brutal part, the rest of the episode focus more on the Reggae culture along with a soon to be familiar as a comic relief, the Miami Vice clown and informant Nugart Neville Lamont aka The Noogman aka Noogie, played by Charlie Barnett.

Sure, the Noogman can soon become a bit of a pain, but he does have a certain value, not only in the entertainment department, but because he does bring with him a few smiles, specially in times where that is needed.

With the music, I thought it was interesting to hear Jan Hammer and trying to bring in a bit of synth-reggae sound, which indeed came rather close to that of The Police and their Spirits in the Material World:

Also, it is impossible to not take notice of some of the fine female actors in the show, where Gina and Trudy never fails to deliver.
I think Trudy might be a little bit more a favorite of mine, and love her sense of comedy and also having lots of attitude.
Later on, she did have her own desk sign named: "Big Booty Trudy", a fitting one, since yeah, she did fit right into some of those tight dressed, and wore them with style:


All in all, another entertaining episode, maybe not as solid as the first two, but continues on an impressive run of Miam Vice adventures in a row.

8/10