vicenarc Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 I can only give this a 6. While the beginning sequence at the bird sanctuary, was entertaining, I found the rest of the ep to be sowewhat bland. I think a more fitting and suspenseful ending would have been perhaps for Judge Ferguson to have been allowed to help sting Pagoni and maybe a dramatic takedown of sorts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsEvanFreed Posted October 11, 2010 Report Share Posted October 11, 2010 As someone mentioned before' date=' I found this episode boring. The only part I liked was when Sonny met the judge in the park and they had that heart to heart. Other than that, I, too found myself waiting impatiently for the credits. Sorry, but I give it a 5/10.[/quote']That was a great scene, in fact the best of this entire episode.It's pretty weak , but better than crap like Tale of the Goat.6/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonnysgirl Posted March 31, 2011 Report Share Posted March 31, 2011 I gave it a 5. Cant really say much to this because I dont remember much about it and I only watched it a few nights ago. Rather boring unfortunately. Just thought it was really sad that the judge killed himself, had hoped for a happier ending but that would have meant he would have gone to jail which must be the worst thing for a judge. A really sad story overall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christine Posted March 31, 2011 Report Share Posted March 31, 2011 I gave it a 5 because I don´t think that this is a very interesting story. Gambling is a vice that had already destroyed many families. I only feel sorry for Matt. In my opinion the judge reacted in a coward way. He killed himself and left his son behind with a lot of bad feelings and, surely, a lot of debts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Posted October 13, 2011 Report Share Posted October 13, 2011 An underrated episode! The Fix offers a good insight in a judge's life which only consists of corruption, gambling addiction and desperation.:clap:Futhermore Fred Lyle (music supervisor) does one of his best works in this show I think: Both Gambler by Madonna and epsecially p:Machinery by Propaganda are one of the best songs of the series!:radio:It fits to the basketball-match scene more than perfectly.Typical for VICE is the way how the story is built up: judge Ferguson isn't shown as a ruthless acting authority without conscience or remorse.No, in principle he's a clever man who went to the bad some time and he asked the wrong people for the wrong favors.:oInsofar this episode is interesting because the OCB primarily investigate a judge. This is a controversial topic because mostly judges are figured as an inapproachable person who signifies the law.Here, judge Ferguson shows the exact opposite. He's a weak, unconfident and character without self-confidence.Finally he wants to demonstrate that he won't be susceptible to blackmail anymore and kills the gangster and himself...:hot:Both Donnie and William Russel act veeeerrry awesome - whereas Russel is a sportsman!:glossy:And Don's view at the end is first class! Such a shocked facial expression!!!Finally I want to mention the design. The courtroom is the the most creative and extravagant room I've ever seen in a film. This spectacle is indescribable nice!!!:happy:Due to these aspects I give 9 of 10 points! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C Glide Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I would have to rate it as a 5 out of 10 and say it is my least favorite episode of the first two seasons. There are several factors that lead to this and though I would rather watch the "worst" Vice episode ever than watch most other shows best episode, after reviewing the above postings I say that the casting of the judge was the biggest mistake that ruined this episode. Someone else may have changed the whole look and feel of the episode with different and better acting. The best part of the episode it seems is cats like the teaser,lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViceFanMan Posted April 16, 2013 Report Share Posted April 16, 2013 This is probably my least favorite episode of the 2nd season. But, it's still not as bad as episodes such as "Missing Hours" or "Cows of October". :eek:The beginning was pretty cool...with the gun battles at that bird zoo or something, and capturing Ortega--who turned out to be a woman. I also like Bill Russell guest-starring...but after that, the episode just doesn't quite come together. :rolleyes:"The Fix" isn't that terrible of an episode but it's just not that captivating or interesting either. This is one that I watch when going through the series...but I can be doing something else while it's playing. I rated it a 6. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vincent Hanna Posted July 3, 2013 Report Share Posted July 3, 2013 TerribleIt was so bad that bill russell himself commited suicide at the end of the episode, the shame of appearing in such a smelly peice of dog crap.I did like the intro at the bird sanctuary, It's always nice hearing "cool running" by jan hammer.And the madonna song "gambler" fits vice nicely! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViceFanMan Posted July 6, 2013 Report Share Posted July 6, 2013 TerribleIt was so bad that bill russell himself commited suicide at the end of the episode' date=' the shame of appearing in such a smelly peice of dog crap.I did like the intro at the bird sanctuary, It's always nice hearing "cool running" by jan hammer.And the madonna song "gambler" fits vice nicely![/quote']Yeah, like I stated above earlier, "The Fix" isn't really that good of an episode...and is the only one from season 2 that I didn't care for. However, it still isn't anywhere near as bad as "Missing Hours" or "Cows of October"! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vincent Hanna Posted July 6, 2013 Report Share Posted July 6, 2013 only one from season 2 that I didn't care for. However, it still isn't anywhere near as bad as "Missing Hours" or "Cows of October"!hmm i'd say tale of a goat, bushido, buddies, dutch oven & free verse are bad episodes also.Missing hours is a 0/10, ^^ those episodes are more like 3/10s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViceFanMan Posted July 6, 2013 Report Share Posted July 6, 2013 hmm i'd say tale of a goat' date=' bushido, buddies, dutch oven & free verse are bad episodes also.Missing hours is a 0/10, ^^ those episodes are more like 3/10s[/quote']Yes..."Missing Hours" is more like a -10! But, for the others...can't do it! "Tale of the Goat" is awesome and whether realistic or not is fun to watch! "Dutch Oven" and "Free Verse" are also good episodes--with color, action, music, and acting! :clap:However, I will admit that "Bushido" and "Buddies" are not that great of episodes (I prefer "Buddies" between the two)...but they both still include their "moments"...whether action, or music used, or colors, etc... They're not terrible episodes...just not awesome or ones that stand out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicegirl85 Posted September 18, 2015 Report Share Posted September 18, 2015 (snipped) I felt that you could really empathise with Ferguson's predicament, and this was of course where the whole idea of the title "The Fix" comes from. He'd dug himself a hole that he couldn't get out of, and no matter what decision he made, it would ultimately harm him or his son. He could have accepted Crockett's olive branch and help them bring down Pagoni. It appeared that the only reason for refusing was his principles "That's how I got into this mess... always lookin to make a deal". Yet he seems to favour the alternative of murdering Pagoni and committing suicide. Working with OCB, he might have avoided any serious jail time by serving Pagoni on a plate to them. Having said this, Crockett's conversation with the District Attorney over the phone did not appear to be going well, so it appeared that the DA might have wanted to throw the book at Ferguson anyway. Wouldn't Ferguson have had to have been arrested first though before the DA got involved in the first place? Ferguson could have also been more apprehensive than most about serving jail time in case he bumped into anybody in there that he'd put away in the past. Plus by this point I think he'd got so ashamed of himself (particularly after he'd gone begging to his own son to sabotage his own career for him), and depressed, that he probably felt like ending it all anyway. (snipped) Good points, Papa Legba. Whatever got Ferguson started on gambling, at this point he was only paying the interest on his debts. From TV we have all seen that the loan sharks who deal with big-time gamblers don't stay satisfied with that level of payment. He must have been a figure Crockett looked up to at one time, because he (Crockett) went quite far out on a limb to try to help him. It made me wonder a little if Sonny himself struggled to pull himself up from poverty through sports (football in Sonny's case). And as a former athlete and a father, Crockett had a soft spot for the judge. He didn't want to bring him down and humiliate him before his son. You're right that the DA didn't seem to be receptive to the plan for Ferguson to roll over on Pagoni, and it seems Ferguson himself wasn't willing to do that, even to get off the hook. I think once he made the decision to kill Pagoni, he had also decided to commit suicide. It was just Crockett's bad luck to be there when it happened. An underrated episode! The Fix offers a good insight in a judge's life which only consists of corruption, gambling addiction and desperation.:clap:Futhermore Fred Lyle (music supervisor) does one of his best works in this show I think: Both Gambler by Madonna and epsecially p:Machinery by Propaganda are one of the best songs of the series! :radio:It fits to the basketball-match scene more than perfectly.Typical for VICE is the way how the story is built up: judge Ferguson isn't shown as a ruthless acting authority without conscience or remorse.No, in principle he's a clever man who went to the bad some time and he asked the wrong people for the wrong favors.:oInsofar this episode is interesting because the OCB primarily investigate a judge. This is a controversial topic because mostly judges are figured as an inapproachable person who signifies the law.Here, judge Ferguson shows the exact opposite. He's a weak, unconfident and character without self-confidence.Finally he wants to demonstrate that he won't be susceptible to blackmail anymore and kills the gangster and himself...:hot:Both Donnie and William Russel act veeeerrry awesome - whereas Russel is a sportsman!:glossy:And Don's view at the end is first class! Such a shocked facial expression!!! (snipped) Agree that the songs used are perfect for the episode. And yes, Ferguson does seem a weak and ineffective judge, although a loving father. Although Bill Russell's acting was pretty stiff, I think it worked for the character. He did seem like an ordinary man who had allowed himself to get caught up in something he now didn't know how to get out of. Also it was obvious he'd never given serious thought to the potential he could be asked to use his son to help himself (while ruining his son's future in basketball). Interestingly, in one conversation with his son, he mentioned how he had always worked hard to support his wife and son, but the wife was not in evidence in this episode, so seems like she may have been dead. Maybe his gambling started or escalated after his wife's death. The son's acting wasn't the greatest either, but I did believe in him when he came back to his dad and said that without the dad's sacrifices, he wouldn't have had the opportunities he had, so anything he could do for his dad, he would do. I enjoyed seeing more of Miami in the scenes at the bird sanctuary,Hialeah and the greyhound track, and the college basketball game (that was more like a high school B-ball game today!) It was also interesting to see Michael Richards (Kramer in Seinfeld) as a coldblooded criminal. Nice to have each member of the team with something to do, although Gina got the shaft as far as lines As several have mentioned, the picture quality seemed worse than usual for S2, very grainy (I watched on Hulu, rather than on my DVD), and the sound was muddy as well. College basketball has (apparently, LOL) changed a lot since 1985 and there was entirely too much slow, boring basketball in the ep Watching Stan during this episode, I wondered if he had started gambling at this point. It was intriguing to think we may have seen a foreshadowing of his future. As also mentioned by others, DJ's acting in the last scene was great. He didn't need to say anything, his eyes said it all. All in all, for me the story was interesting, the guest acting was OK, and the Miami atmosphere was very good. Better picture quality and maybe a bit more character development would have improved it. It had potential to be much better. I would rate it a 6-7. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remington Posted May 12, 2017 Report Share Posted May 12, 2017 I hated this episode at first. However, it's grown on me. Its just really watchable. The music is pretty perfect as usual. Love the opening with the birds. I loved seeing Kramer as a villain. Dug his yacht too. I like the finale. Crockett's eyes say it all. The PQ wasn't great but the colors to me seemed more like the way it originally looked. Maybe ViceFanMan can help me out there. 7.5/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Detective_Crockett Posted August 2, 2017 Report Share Posted August 2, 2017 7/10 A powerful ending with Sonny traumatised as usual, and a great beginning but also a bit of a borefest. Nice to hear the New York theme again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
summer84 Posted April 25, 2018 Report Share Posted April 25, 2018 Nothing really that special in this episode. Definitely in the bottom of S2. A topic that deals with a corrupt judge, but then it turns out he's got problems of his own and portrays the human side of him, so you get to sympathize with him. Acting by Bill Russell was bad, although seemed better in the conversation, he had with Crockett. I agree with that the acting was poor, no action, no tension and all of the actors including the mains stars lacked energy in their performance. It could have been a interesting episode, if the writing had been good. I didn't notice, that the picture quality was bad, but in some scenes with Ferguson the audio and video is out of sync. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted April 25, 2018 Report Share Posted April 25, 2018 29 minutes ago, summer84 said: Nothing really that special in this episode. Definitely in the bottom of S2. A topic that deals with a corrupt judge, but then it turns out he's got problems of his own and portrays the human side of him, so you get to sympathize with him. Acting by Bill Russell was bad, although seemed better in the conversation, he had with Crockett. I agree with that the acting was poor, no action, no tension and all of the actors including the mains stars lacked energy in their performance. It could have been a interesting episode, if the writing had been good. I didn't notice, that the picture quality was bad, but in some scenes with Ferguson the audio and video is out of sync. Good points Summer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
summer84 Posted April 26, 2018 Report Share Posted April 26, 2018 (edited) Miami Vice's Art Director Jeffrey Howard, explained, that the idea for the courtroom was based on Mayan Temples in Guatemala. And showing the judicial system through architecture. Thought it was interesting to know the story behind that. It was still over the top though and looked unrealistic. Edited April 26, 2018 by summer84 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted April 26, 2018 Report Share Posted April 26, 2018 2 hours ago, summer84 said: Miami Vice's Art Director Jeffrey Howard, explained, that the idea for the courtroom was based on Mayan Temples in Guatemala. And showing the judicial system through architecture. Thought it was interesting to know the story behind that. It was still over the top though and looked unrealistic. Yes that was Miami Vice at its peak and was too much looked silly - amazing how the show changed in just over a year and a half- when you think the Season 4 opener "Contempt of Court" had many courtroom scenes and filmed in an actual courthouse in Downtown Miami - looked way better. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Campion Posted March 13, 2019 Report Share Posted March 13, 2019 I started watching Miami Vice from the beginning back in December. I'm watching all the episodes in order, and I am currently stuck in what I consider to be the low point of season 2: Florence Italy, French Twist, and now this--the Fix. Why this episode isn't spoken of in the same breath as Missing Hours and Cows of October is beyond me. I don't blame Russell for his bad acting--I blame whoever decided to use him. The role did not require a basketball player; it required an actor. I'd criticize his delivery of his lines, but I don't think you can call that "delivery". Watching him hunch over during interior shoots and while driving his fancy Mercedes is both painful and comical. The plot is incredibly bare bones and basic, most unusual for Vice. There seems to be editing problems or continuity errors aplenty. And in the end, it's boring, too. That said, Ferguson's last line ("I'm finally breaking even") could have been powerful if delivered by an honest-to-god actor who had built up empathy during the episode. Imagine William Russ, Bruce McGill, or even Willie Nelson delivering that line after an hour of proper build up. IMO, the Fix is the worst episode of season 2. Oh well, they can't all be Emmy winners. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bren10 Posted March 13, 2019 Report Share Posted March 13, 2019 (edited) 5 hours ago, Campion said: I started watching Miami Vice from the beginning back in December. I'm watching all the episodes in order, and I am currently stuck in what I consider to be the low point of season 2: Florence Italy, French Twist, and now this--the Fix. Why this episode isn't spoken of in the same breath as Missing Hours and Cows of October is beyond me. I don't blame Russell for his bad acting--I blame whoever decided to use him. The role did not require a basketball player; it required an actor. I'd criticize his delivery of his lines, but I don't think you can call that "delivery". Watching him hunch over during interior shoots and while driving his fancy Mercedes is both painful and comical. The plot is incredibly bare bones and basic, most unusual for Vice. There seems to be editing problems or continuity errors aplenty. And in the end, it's boring, too. That said, Ferguson's last line ("I'm finally breaking even") could have been powerful if delivered by an honest-to-god actor who had built up empathy during the episode. Imagine William Russ, Bruce McGill, or even Willie Nelson delivering that line after an hour of proper build up. IMO, the Fix is the worst episode of season 2. Oh well, they can't all be Emmy winners. While not very good, this is Vice's attempt at the "sports episode", the same way there would be other themed episodes. I have to disagree about French Twist which I find to be an underrated episode and far above this one. It's also interesting to see Michael Richards as a villain. Cows of October, Missing Hours, and Big Thaw are just wackiness for wackiness' sake whereas The Fix actually makes narrative sense. You're right in saying the ep could have been salvaged with a better cast and execution but those other three I just mentioned really couldn't be imo. That's why I wouldn't put them in the same class. As bad as this episode is I think there are others in season 2 I enjoy less depending on my mood. Junk Love, Whatever Works, and even Trust Fund Pirates come to mind. Edited March 13, 2019 by Bren10 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie C. Posted March 13, 2019 Report Share Posted March 13, 2019 I didn't have a huge issue with Russell's acting, honestly. I didn't expect him to be EJO, and the show was taking on a fairly topical issue (game fixing in sports). And if you think about it Vice was actually showing a successful African-American character, although he was brought down by his own weaknesses. And I do think it's better than Trust Fund Pirates, which was really a weak take on Nobody Lives Forever as far as I'm concerned. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
summer84 Posted March 13, 2019 Report Share Posted March 13, 2019 (edited) Even though I rated it as one of the bottom episodes of S2 it kind of grows on one. The characters have some struggles and it made me sympathize with them. During the Crockett and Ferguson conversation, the acting seemed a bit improved. It had some potential plot wise should have been executed better. One of the things, that brought it down was the acting by father and son. Could have been more emotionally intense. Plus there wasen't enough energy/willingness from the whole Vice Cast in playing out the part. I think "Trust Fund Pirates" is my least favorite episode of S2. Edited March 13, 2019 by summer84 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie C. Posted March 13, 2019 Report Share Posted March 13, 2019 Vice was experimenting during S2, I think. Trying to find its way from the cop show formula it had been conceived in (Hill Street Blues to a degree) into something closer to Mann's vision (even though he was losing interest by this point). There were some things it never quite got away from, and that led to uneven episodes in my view. And don't forget you had two non-actors trying to act as father and son. That's always tough. Florence, Italy also suffered from a non-actor being wooden as all get out. I think they did better with musicians because musicians are used to "acting" as part of the stage show. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedDragon86 Posted March 19, 2019 Report Share Posted March 19, 2019 On 3/13/2019 at 4:52 AM, Campion said: I started watching Miami Vice from the beginning back in December. I'm watching all the episodes in order, and I am currently stuck in what I consider to be the low point of season 2: Florence Italy, French Twist, and now this--the Fix. Why this episode isn't spoken of in the same breath as Missing Hours and Cows of October is beyond me. I don't blame Russell for his bad acting--I blame whoever decided to use him. The role did not require a basketball player; it required an actor. I'd criticize his delivery of his lines, but I don't think you can call that "delivery". Watching him hunch over during interior shoots and while driving his fancy Mercedes is both painful and comical. The plot is incredibly bare bones and basic, most unusual for Vice. There seems to be editing problems or continuity errors aplenty. And in the end, it's boring, too. That said, Ferguson's last line ("I'm finally breaking even") could have been powerful if delivered by an honest-to-god actor who had built up empathy during the episode. Imagine William Russ, Bruce McGill, or even Willie Nelson delivering that line after an hour of proper build up. IMO, the Fix is the worst episode of season 2. Oh well, they can't all be Emmy winners. Those episodes are just plain stupid, with "The Fix" you are getting a serious story about corruption in the judicial systems, I mean at least its sensible and not about aliens and miniature cows. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted March 19, 2019 Report Share Posted March 19, 2019 I’m surprised they didn’t edit the poor acting here with guest stars same as in “Florence Italy”. Dick Miller directed “The Fix” and it was his first main directing- helm position. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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