Binge-watching Miami Vice


vicegirl85

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A nice blog post/article on Twitter's WIRED Binge-Watching Guide today:  http://www.wired.com/2016/03/binge-guide-miami-vice/?mbid=social_twitter

I originally found it because Jesse Johnson posted the link on his Twitter account.

Sorry if this is not the right forum to post this; I guess I have not started a topic, at least not since the site revamp. 

 

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1 hour ago, vicegirl85 said:

A nice blog post/article on Twitter's WIRED Binge-Watching Guide today:  http://www.wired.com/2016/03/binge-guide-miami-vice/?mbid=social_twitter

I originally found it because Jesse Johnson posted the link on his Twitter account.

Sorry if this is not the right forum to post this; I guess I have not started a topic, at least not since the site revamp. 

 

Wow, Nice! Thanks for sharing this. I hope you and everyone around here is doing well! I've been busy and spending much time beside the ocean, you know, listening to Phil Collins and driving late at night.:)

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Sounds like fun!  The winter's been super-busy; I had to temporarily stop my re-watching of Miami Vice due to a writing project and then a very time-consuming work thing.  But am hoping to get back to Season 3 soon.  However, I'll probably have to re-watch a couple of episodes (what punishment ;))

 

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Nice article.  Unfortunately it will be a while before I can enjoy binge watching Vice.  My business has started its busy season. 

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Solid read.  Clearly written by a Vice fan.  When it comes to picking must see episodes, it's 'Sophie's Choice' in that you can't choose.  I woulda put Evan on that list, but then, what the hell episode do you remove.  As a side, I like Tale of a Goat.  Maybe it's because I'm such a Tubbs fan.  Either way, it's no where near as shitty as The MIssing Hours or Cows of October.

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On March 31, 2016 at 1:39 AM, CharlieGlide said:

 I woulda put Evan on that list, but then, what the hell episode do you remove. 

Yeah, it's easier to add episodes to the list than to take them away.  "Definitely Miami" isn't as popular with female fans as with guys, unsurprisingly.

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I also would put Definitely Miami, One-Eyed Jack, Evan, and Back in the World on my personal Top Ten list.  Although some don't like the Burnett amnesia storyline (as the Wired writer doesn't), I thought it flowed well from Sonny's experiences and built upon concepts introduced before.  The sequence in Redemption in Blood where he walks around Miami as Don't Give Up plays, and returns to his true home, the squadroom, is brilliant.

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13 hours ago, CharlieGlide said:

 As a side, I like Tale of a Goat.  Maybe it's because I'm such a Tubbs fan.  Either way, it's no where near as shitty as The MIssing Hours or Cows of October.

Well, I feel the same way about this, just the other way around. :p I agree that "Missing Hours" is weird with the UFO storyline and that, this episode should never have been written. Even Olivia didn't rehearse the script, because she thought the producers were joking. Still I would rather watch that, than "Tale of a goat," very weird too me. :)

I'm gonna admit, I don't like the episode "Evan," and I don't get what you all like about it so much? Is it the storyline? Theme? Or...

Anyway I enjoyed reading the article. Thank you for posting vicegirl85.  

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I'll have to rewatch Miami Vice, before I can make the final decision about my favourite top 10 episodes. I already have some like the "Pilot" and "Bought and Paid for."

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I guess I like Evan because it really shows Sonny Crockett as a flawed, but very human person.  His friendship with Evan in the past was destroyed by 2 things:  Evan's extreme negative reaction to their mutual friend Mike Orgell's revelation of his homosexuality was one of them; he didn't like the Evan who turned on his friend and instigated a negative backlash that drove Mike off the force and ultimately to suicide.  At the same time, Sonny also couldn't deal with the fact that he didn't stick up for Mike; he didn't know what to do, so he did nothing.  He hated himself for doing nothing, and he hated Evan for putting him in that position.  

It's never really confirmed on the episode but I always got the feeling that Evan had been courting death for a long time, partly out of guilt over his reaction to Mike's coming out and partly because he (Evan) feared that he was also homosexual.  Evan seemed to me to have an attraction to Sonny, and Sonny either was oblivious or in denial (back at the time before Mike came out).  I think Sonny realized this at some point in the episode and although he didn't return Evan's feelings in that way, he felt very sad that they had been estranged for so long--and now it was too late.  A person doesn't really get to have THAT many really good friends in life, and Sonny is loyal and likes to keep his friends.  He had let a lot of years go by because of his anger at Evan, and even though Evan provoked the estrangement, they might have been able to salvage the friendship if he had been willing to make the first move.

I think it was also the mood and lighting in the fantastic scene at the gas station where Sonny tells Rico the story of his and Evan's friendship and its destruction.

ETA:  from my review of this episode, posted in August 2015:

But I think his guilt over doing nothing is more relatable and the fact that he "didn't do anything" also gave him the ability to repress and deny his part in Mike's death for a long time.  When Evan showed up again and forced him to face the demons he'd been avoiding, he struggled to maintain those defenses.  To continue the confessional motif of the episode, sins of omission can carry the same weight as sins of commission.  In the end he couldn't fully give Evan or himself the absolution Evan sought (because Evan was dying he wasn't able to rebuild the relationship) but I think he did understand the truth Tubbs spoke about how he (Sonny) needed to forgive himself in order to get out of the hole of guilt he was in. 

LOL I will never end this post... I didn't like Evan (the character); his personality was obnoxious and he was annoying.  It was hard to imagine that he and Sonny were ever good friends.  But I do think Evan's personality was warped by his guilt and his self-loathing that just grew deeper and deeper as time passed.  He hated himself and so I think his personality must have deteriorated after Mike Orgell's death.  The fact that Sonny could still not turn his back on him says something about how he must at one time have been a much more sympathetic character.   

 

Edited by vicegirl85
added quote from my episode review; then edited to add comment on Evan's personality
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On 3/31/2016 at 10:06 PM, vicegirl85 said:

Sounds like fun!  The winter's been super-busy; I had to temporarily stop my re-watching of Miami Vice due to a writing project and then a very time-consuming work thing.  But am hoping to get back to Season 3 soon.  However, I'll probably have to re-watch a couple of episodes (what punishment ;))

 

Right there with you! My yearly rewind tailed off close to end of season 3. I'll start again with the last 2 or 3 episodes. Such punishment indeed! :}

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15 hours ago, vicegirl85 said:

I also would put Definitely Miami, One-Eyed Jack, Evan, and Back in the World on my personal Top Ten list.  Although some don't like the Burnett amnesia storyline (as the Wired writer doesn't), I thought it flowed well from Sonny's experiences and built upon concepts introduced before.  The sequence in Redemption in Blood where he walks around Miami as Don't Give Up plays, and returns to his true home, the squadroom, is brilliant.

Exactly! I think the writer nailed it quite well. Personal favorites include..... Buses, Definitely Miami, Evan. Smugglers,  and the pilot .  But I'd never put Tale of the Goat on a skip list. Love the spooky vibes in that one

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Buses--absolutely; Smuggler's Blues was excellent and so was the pilot.  I have said before that When Irish Eyes Are Crying is a personal favorite (although I don't necessarily feel the story has the quality of some of the others mentioned here).  Tale of the Goat... yes, the writers, directors and actors put out an episode that was spooky and made me feel that the fantastic premise was possible.  It could have come off ridiculous and did not (IMO).

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17 hours ago, vicegirl85 said:

I guess I like Evan because it really shows Sonny Crockett as a flawed, but very human person.  His friendship with Evan in the past was destroyed by 2 things:  Evan's extreme negative reaction to their mutual friend Mike Orgell's revelation of his homosexuality was one of them; he didn't like the Evan who turned on his friend and instigated a negative backlash that drove Mike off the force and ultimately to suicide.  At the same time, Sonny also couldn't deal with the fact that he didn't stick up for Mike; he didn't know what to do, so he did nothing.  He hated himself for doing nothing, and he hated Evan for putting him in that position.  

It's never really confirmed on the episode but I always got the feeling that Evan had been courting death for a long time, partly out of guilt over his reaction to Mike's coming out and partly because he (Evan) feared that he was also homosexual.  Evan seemed to me to have an attraction to Sonny, and Sonny either was oblivious or in denial (back at the time before Mike came out).  I think Sonny realized this at some point in the episode and although he didn't return Evan's feelings in that way, he felt very sad that they had been estranged for so long--and now it was too late.  A person doesn't really get to have THAT many really good friends in life, and Sonny is loyal and likes to keep his friends.  He had let a lot of years go by because of his anger at Evan, and even though Evan provoked the estrangement, they might have been able to salvage the friendship if he had been willing to make the first move.

I think it was also the mood and lighting in the fantastic scene at the gas station where Sonny tells Rico the story of his and Evan's friendship and its destruction.

ETA:  from my review of this episode, posted in August 2015:

But I think his guilt over doing nothing is more relatable and the fact that he "didn't do anything" also gave him the ability to repress and deny his part in Mike's death for a long time.  When Evan showed up again and forced him to face the demons he'd been avoiding, he struggled to maintain those defenses.  To continue the confessional motif of the episode, sins of omission can carry the same weight as sins of commission.  In the end he couldn't fully give Evan or himself the absolution Evan sought (because Evan was dying he wasn't able to rebuild the relationship) but I think he did understand the truth Tubbs spoke about how he (Sonny) needed to forgive himself in order to get out of the hole of guilt he was in. 

LOL I will never end this post... I didn't like Evan (the character); his personality was obnoxious and he was annoying.  It was hard to imagine that he and Sonny were ever good friends.  But I do think Evan's personality was warped by his guilt and his self-loathing that just grew deeper and deeper as time passed.  He hated himself and so I think his personality must have deteriorated after Mike Orgell's death.  The fact that Sonny could still not turn his back on him says something about how he must at one time have been a much more sympathetic character.   

 

I like how you described this in depth. And there were some interesting things you wrote, that I didn't notice in the episode. To me it didn't appear, that Evan was attracted to Sonny.

I don't know, how to describe it myself, (I'll try :)) but the reason, I'm not so fond with this episode is because of the annoying and obnoxious character (as you said yourself) Evan and because of the whole storyline being about a conflict Evan has with himself and with Crockett over a guy (there friend) who turns out to be homosexual.

I understand why the writers made this episode, because it's clearly an issue going on also in todays world. Only this was not an issue/theme that was interesting to me, though it was psychological. And I felt the same way about "Tale of the Goat," which I thought was ridiculous, though I can still watch it. :D

Vicegirl85 if you ever make your review of "Missing Hours" in the episodes section, I would really like to read it. I remember you writing about the whole thing being a dream, I also think that, as in "Trudy's dream," she thought it was all a dream, only to realize at the end of the episode, that it wasn't, that last scene was spooky to me.

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It'll probably be awhile since I'm still back in the early part of Season 3 with my re-watching plan (and intend to go in order), but I definitely plan to get there!  Missing Hours was not a favorite episode, but I think I was so aggravated with it at the end that I have never watched it since the first broadcast.  I might decide it's not so bad this time, LOL!

I was less interested in the homosexuality theme (as I saw it) but quite intrigued by the fractured friendship and the effect that had on Sonny. The theme of forgiveness (of oneself as well as of another person) being necessary in order to move past a place of pain is one that always interests me.  And the various confessional references intrigued me.  We've had the discussions here about what religious background the characters may have had.  This episode was the one that started me thinking Sonny had a Catholic background, which surprised me at the time.  And not that I sit around figuring out the religious leanings of TV characters or judging them for it, but I thought it was revealing that he made a comment like "You're my partner, not my priest," which I would not have expected from someone who is (somewhat) painted as a South Florida "cracker." 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 3/31/2016 at 1:16 AM, James said:

I would have also put One Eyed Jack in there, the episode where we meet Castillo.

Love One Eyed Jack. I consider it a pretty raw episode in that the show was still trying to figure out exactly what it was. Like Heart of Darkness, it was heavy on story and character and some of the production flash we'd see later in the season wasn't there yet. A true study of Crockett's flawed character with flawed, local acquaintances and Tubbs trying to hustle things along. 

And of course, that penultimate moment when Castillo sticks up for Crockett...finally!  Always will love this scene.  Especially Castillo not acknowledging Crockett's thanks.  Cold, steal and establishment of hte Castillo who would remain for up to the 111th episode. 

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Reading this thread, I was forced to ask myself, "Why do I like the episode Evan so much."

Many thoughts come to mind, but I think it boils down to this:  It's my favorite type of Vice wherein the "good guys" don't necessarily win which blew me away when I first saw it. COp shows weren't supposed to end this way.  That last shot is brilliant.  But there's also a major thing here that makes Vice great for me:  lots of great little scenes which contribute to both the character development of Crockett and Tubbs and the story.

For example:  Tubbs in the club pouring champagne one glass on top of another.  Why?  I have no idea.  That's just TUbbs.  And, "If I go home with you, you'll expect me to sleep with you..."  I love the song by Fashion playing in the background. 

Evan drinking all the time.  It just works so well with the character.  "Maybe someday he will make you something besides ice cubes."

"DON'T run around me Tubbs."  A make or break moment for our two characters. I love that the show reminded us that these guys didn't get along when they first met, and just because their partners now, it doesn't mean everything's gonna be perfect.  Very cool, deep and dark.

So many other instances, but these are a few off the top of my near midnight head.

 

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Great and concise analysis of some other aspects of Evan that made it a top episode.  I think there were a lot of dimensions to it, and those eps that further the character development, like it does, always appeal to me.  

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My MV "revival" has been going on for 15 years (in addition to watching it on NBC in the 1980s) and yet I've never binge-watched the show.  At most I watched two episodes in one day, and I even regretted that because I didn't really absorb them as well.

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i've started watching MV again after a break of a few years. i watch way too much political stuff and this year is really getting me down.

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1 hour ago, AzVice said:

i've started watching MV again after a break of a few years. i watch way too much political stuff and this year is really getting me down.

I must cut down on the political shows & watch some "Vice" episodes. :thumbsup:

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