Episode #26 "The Dutch Oven"

[fakespyder]

When I was younger I was not too fond of this episode but I have grown to appreciate there are more scenes I like than dislike, and narratively it is pretty good. There's some plodding filler scenes that drag a bit though.

Having said that, the episode has grown on me:

• strong start with rip-offs, chases and gunfire
• some nice cues from Jan, particularly Trudy's theme, her piano scene & Tubbs' stakeout
• Castillo showing his concern for her well-being
• Sonny sticking up for Trudy
• the vice unit helping Trudy to make a decision
• Giancarlo Esposito is always worth watching
• I only recently picked up on Sonny using the euphemism "Alpha Hotels" to describe the Internal Affairs duo

Edited March 1, 2021 by fakespyder
just thought of an addition

[ViceFanMan]

I really like this episode!! It finally gives Trudy (Olivia Brown) a chance to really “shine”--and she does a superb job!   

If I remember right, this is the episode that finally gave Trudy her last name: ‘Joplin’. Before, her character hadn’t really ever stated one--as one was not really needed in the beginning, as her character at first was not considered that important. But, with the internal affairs scenes a last name was needed...so for whatever reason they came up with Joplin.

I love Trudy's wild punk face paint and hair at the beginning--and the “sizzling” action & car chase (with the slow motion of Trudy looking at Crockett like he was nuts for driving like that) was awesome!!  I also love Olivia Brown's acting and her portrayal of how Trudy handled things. Very good!

I also find hilarious the wild party that her loser boyfriend takes her to...and the main singer and song "King of Babylon"!! Oh man, I laugh so hard everytime I watch that part that I better not have food or drink in my mouth at the time...or it'll be all over the TV screen.  I don't think I could keep a straight face if I was at a party that had a singer like that.   Of course most of those people were so high off their butts, they probably didn’t even notice.  

But, other parts of this episode were sad and I felt terrible for Trudy...as her boyfriend David was a total idiot and jerk! What the heck...you are dating a cop (and a Vice cop no-less) and you take her to a party that you know is going to be wall-to-wall drugs??  Then you act like she's being rude when she wants to bust them? Okay...I think David was not only a jerk but a total moron as well! Hello, stupid!  

The very end also left me irritated...when Trudy gets totally "slammed" and no one is around to encourage or support her!  I wanted so bad for her to tell David where to go...but she just stared at him. This was Trudy’s turn, I guess, at a bad choice for a significant-other. Like Brenda & eventually Caitlin with Crockett, and Valerie with Tubbs...this was another toxic case of people not really knowing, or bothering to get to know each other...and one or both are just about “themselves”, as David just assumed Trudy would acclimate to his lifestyle and wants, whenever he wished or was convenient for him.

But, this is an awesome, action-filled episode with outstanding performances by everyone (especially Olivia Brown), cool fashion & colors, and although I originally gave it a 7...if I could officially change it I’d definitely bump it up to an 8-8.5!! 

Edited April 16, 2021 by ViceFanMan

[RedDragon86]

Instead of appearing in this the actor/singer Cleavant Derricks I think would have been an excellent choice as Tubb's former partner in BLTC.

Would been much more convincing. 

Edited June 30, 2021 by RedDragon86

[Jack Gretsky]

Good to have a Trudy-centric episode, but it's a somewhat mediocre one despite some interesting aspects of cop life out on the streets and private life to ponder.  One good energetic scene is the party with the eccentric David Johansen's "King of Babylon."  There were sure some nice-looking ladies there!  Too bad it's all so druggy.  

Some New York actors here - Cleavant Derricks, a Tony award winner, Giancarlo Esposito (back for his third? time), who had acted in musicals since he was a child, and Matthew Cowles who had acted in the 1960s with Al Pacino and John Cazale in Israel Horovitz's play The Indian Wants the Bronx and later appeared in the classic crime film The Friends of Eddie Coyle. (Which also features a cop who says, "April fool" at a bust.)

The IAD guy aggressively played by David Provol claims that 90% of policemen never discharge their weapons.  Dude, this is Miami Vice! 

I like seeing Olivia Brown spotlit, but that montage showing endless clips of scenes from prevous scenes, all set to deadly dull Amy Grant was awfully sappy. 

Edited September 2, 2021 by Jack Gretsky

[RedDragon86]

Great performance from Olivia, underrated episode.

 

Edited April 10, 2022 by RedDragon86

[johnnyfarragut]

" All I had to do was mention 'Miami Vice' to get a good table at a restaurant [Laughs]", Abel Ferrara says.

On working for Michael Mann:

" Well Michael Mann, he was like the big dog then,man, doing that stuff. He was great. To him,everything was the most important thing in the f *cking world - the guy's tie, the bottles on the floor.

He's very special. He brought this unique thing. He didn't give a sh*t it was TV."

[Michael Mann]'s cool. He's like a mathematical directorial genius [Laughs.] He comes at it from a different way than I did at the time. I learned a lot from him. He was hiring me, so I was just trying to figure out his game,you know? [Laughs.] But he was figuring it out himself, because Miami Vice... I mean, I was there at the very beginning. But, yeah, he had his vision, and I was just trying to execute it."

Edited February 1, 2023 by johnnyfarragut

[Glades]

14 minutes ago, johnnyfarragut said:

" All I had to do was mention 'Miami Vice' to get a good table at a restaurant [Laughs]", Abel Ferrara says.

On working for Michael Mann:

" Well Michael Mann, he was like the big dog then,man, doing that stuff. He was great. To him,everything was the most important thing in the f *cking world - the guy's tie, the bottles on the floor.

He's very special. He brought this unique thing. He didn't give a sh*t it was TV."

[Michael Mann]'s cool. He's like a mathematical directorial genius [Laughs.] He comes at it from a different way than I did at the time. I learned a lot from him. He was hiring me, so I was just trying to figure out his game,you know? [Laughs.] But he was figuring it out himself, because Miami Vice... I mean, I was there at the very beginning. But, yeah, he had his vision, and I was just trying to execute it."

Thanks for sharing, very intersting! Is this from an interview?

Ferrara saying M. Mann is a mathematical director is cool. Because I could see a lot of this math in MV and now I know it is real and intentional!

[johnnyfarragut]

1 hour ago, Glades said:

Thanks for sharing, very intersting! Is this from an interview?

Ferrara saying M. Mann is a mathematical director is cool. Because I could see a lot of this math in MV and now I know it is real and intentional!

Yes, from various interviews:

https://decider.com/2021/11/20/abel-ferrara-interview-zeros-and-ones/amp/

https://headstuff.org/entertainment/film/abel-ferrara-interview-tommaso/

The quote about getting better tables at restaurants is from the book 'Abel Ferrara: The Moral Vision' by Brad Stevens.

 

[ViceFanMan]

Watching this one again tonight. Love this episode! One thing I happened to notice, that I haven't really thought about much before in all the "tons" of times I've watched it, was towards the beginning, where the Vice team is staking out and trying to bust the dealers at the Dynamo Club. Zito & Gina are undercover outside...I assume Zito as a potential "John", and Gina as a hooker. Zito acts like he's coming onto her, as he puts his arm around her waist...but Gina just shoves him away, almost as if in disgust or she can't stand the idea. They weren't a couple, nor had they been, so I know neither one were actually trying to come-on to the other...but, in the "role" of the undercover-bit, I'd of thought Gina would have played along. It's a quick, no-big-thing scene , but I just found it somewhat odd?  But, then again maybe there were trying to play a goofy "John" and a hard-to-get hooker? 

[RedDragon86]

I never noticed that before. I have just looked at that scene and it is odd, the look that John give her seems real, like he wasn't expecting to get shoved.

Gina was playing a prostitute and Zito was a customer, so there was no reason for her to do that.

Odd.

[Robbie C.]

1 hour ago, RedDragon86 said:

I never noticed that before. I have just looked at that scene and it is odd, the look that John give her seems real, like he wasn't expecting to get shoved.

Gina was playing a prostitute and Zito was a customer, so there was no reason for her to do that.

Odd.

Not necessarily. If she's playing the "hooker with attitude" her shoving him away makes sense. I always took in that way, and didn't find the scene odd at all. He wasn't her target, so to an onlooker it could be taken as he wasn't willing to meet her price so she told him to take a hike.

[ViceFanMan]

9 hours ago, RedDragon86 said:

I never noticed that before. I have just looked at that scene and it is odd, the look that John give her seems real, like he wasn't expecting to get shoved.

Gina was playing a prostitute and Zito was a customer, so there was no reason for her to do that.

Odd.

 

8 hours ago, Robbie C. said:

Not necessarily. If she's playing the "hooker with attitude" her shoving him away makes sense. I always took in that way, and didn't find the scene odd at all. He wasn't her target, so to an onlooker it could be taken as he wasn't willing to meet her price so she told him to take a hike.

Lol, I found this quick scene somewhat humorous.  It could very well be that she was playing the hard-to-get hooker with attitude, and for whatever reason chose to go with that "role". But, they had played hookers and/or Johns before...with both Stan & Larry playing supposed high-rollers in sports cars and/or limos picking the girls (Gina & Trudy) up, and of course the girls supposedly went happily.  So, this scene did seem somewhat odd to me as well, as it seemed more out-of-character from previous "jobs". But, for whatever reason the "get lost, creep" hooker must have seemed like the best part to play for Gina in the situation, and so that's what she went with.  

[RedDragon86]

12 hours ago, ViceFanMan said:

 

Lol, I found this quick scene somewhat humorous.  It could very well be that she was playing the hard-to-get hooker with attitude, and for whatever reason chose to go with that "role". But, they had played hookers and/or Johns before...with both Stan & Larry playing supposed high-rollers in sports cars and/or limos picking the girls (Gina & Trudy) up, and of course the girls supposedly went happily.  So, this scene did seem somewhat odd to me as well, as it seemed more out-of-character from previous "jobs". But, for whatever reason the "get lost, creep" hooker must have seemed like the best part to play for Gina in the situation, and so that's what she went with.  

The way I see it was why would Gina feel it necessary to do that, who is she really trying to convince in the street? and in the next scene she is passive with Zito. It wasn't the situation in "Give a Little, Take a Little"" in the bar with Trudy saying "I don't take pictures with nobodies" there was a reason for that, Trudy was trying to pull the wool over Cinco's eyes.

Edited March 20, 2023 by RedDragon86

[RedDragon86]

At around the 0:33 I am sure that sound is used "The Glades" taken from the Jean-Michel Jarres Wooloomooloo.

0:41

 

[Dadrian]

1 hour ago, RedDragon86 said:

At around the 0:33 I am sure that sound is used "The Glades" taken from the Jean-Michel Jarres Wooloomooloo.

0:41

 

It’s a Fairlight sample. I think it’s called “TIBET” or something like that. 

[RedDragon86]

22 hours ago, Dadrian said:

It’s a Fairlight sample. I think it’s called “TIBET” or something like that. 

That's interesting, thanks.

It's very haunting, an amazing input of sound. Originally I thought it was Brian Eno who did that piece in "The Glades" not Jean