Episode #49 "The Good Collar"


Ferrariman

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  • 1 year later...
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This was one of my favorite eps. from season 3. I gave this one a 9 though as the 15 year old punk gangster kinda killed it for me.

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This is another decent Vice episode from Season 3! It has an original story for the show, with a great performance from Crockett. The music used in the ending is great, the intro is witty, well done and the majority of the bits imbetween are also done well. I like the idea of the gang culture, something a lot of gritty shows of today deal with e.g The Wire.If im going to be critical, Crocketts reaction to the kid dying at the end was a little bit over the top. Also the bits leading up to the end at the school was long, drawn out and pretty boring. But still i like this episode a great deal and therefore i give it an 8/10.

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"I'm a ladies man' date=' not a business man" - what a line! :)[/quote']Is that what you say when your Area Manager requests a business meeting Mate? ;)
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Original Episode review of Apr 2007The Good Collar is a good episode but It disturbs me. My problem is with that DA that goes back on his word that he gave to Sonny that Archie would get a deal. After initial crying by Archie when he's first arrested, he comes through because he seems to know that he made a mistake which he needs to atone for. He doesn't blame anyone for it but himself. This isn't true about his grandmother, McCaine and Even Sonny. All three of them felt he should be able to get on with his life Sonny was even willing to change his testimony to make it a bad search (which would have definitely gotten Sonny in trouble.) The songs were good in this that it reflected the feelings of the neighborhood. The one especially played during Count Walker riding around town in the limo seemed to go with the scenes being depicted money changing hands, drug dealing, and gold chains. I hated and detested Peppin! I thought he was a wisenheimer, and an arrogant guy. I was hoping the first time I saw this that Archie would live, and secondly and most important was that Peppin would get killed or worse! I wanted to kick something like Sonny did when Archie died. And then to rub salt in the wound The leader of the gang detectives is so smug that there isn't a gang kid out on the street! My personal likes, I give his one a 4, but in episode quality I give this one an 8.5 It's got good music use, it's a good story, The characters seemed real to me especially that no good DA guy although I hate his guts! This episode depresses me, and brings me back to my teens when I felt the establishment and the fuzz were bothering me and were lower than dirt!(usually for curfew violations when coming home from band practice.) 9/28/2009 – I still don’t like this one much, and I still think Peppin is arrogant and worse. I still get depressed when I see this episode, but other than that, it really is a good episode. I just realized the no-good Peppin is the same guy that played the creator (Tim McManus) of Emerald City in OZ. Since we don’t do half points here I’ll downgrade this to an 8, because I don’t like it enough to give it a 9.

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Another solid Season 3 episode in my opinion with some great acting by DJ.Notice how Crockett and Tubbs play good cop-bad cop in the interrogation of Archie near the beginning of the episode. This was very similar to their interrogation of Mark Jorgensen Jnr in "Little Prince" back in Season 1. You have a young, essentially good but none the less mixed up and misguided novice in the drug world, being psychologically shoved from one side to another by Crockett and Tubbs' good cop-bad cop routine. There is a reversal here however in the sense that with Jorgensen, Crockett played bad and Tubbs played good. With Archie it's the other way round. In "Little Prince", Tubbs was actually being genuinely sympathetic and understanding. Crockett picked up on this, assumed that Tubbs was leading him into a good cop-bad cop routine, then immediately started acting bad cop. With Archie, as soon as Archie started talking about the football shoes, Crockett's combination of his sixth sense that Archie was essentially good and his immediate connection with Archie as a young football star who reminded him of himself at that age made Crockett sympathetic towards him. This time, although it was not made explicit I felt that Tubbs assumed that Crockett was acting good cop, and then immediately tried to play along by acting bad cop.There was another reason I believe why Crockett identified with Archie so much. The clue is when he goes to visit Archie at his Grandmother's home. Crockett gives Archie his football. This isn't just a gift, it's also symbolic. Crockett himself was a Football Prodigy who could have had a promising career ahead of him. However it appears that he gave this up due to a combination of his knee injury and the advent of the Vietnam War in which he participated. Crockett is projecting his own frustrated ambition into Archie in the same way that parents sometimes do with their kids. Crockett is hoping that Archie can pick up where Crockett left off. This act is Crockett's way of passing his own arrested football career onto Archie for him to develop instead.The scene where we see the young kid's body overdosed on the floor was cut from the original BBC version that I saw, as was the scenes of violence depicted in the "Sold" montage, and the scene where Crockett puts out the man on fire.I thought Charles S Dutton's role as one time gang banger turned youth reformer was fitting. Charles S Dutton himself did prison time for Manslaughter and managed to turn his life around in prison through discovering acting.I had to laugh when Crockett is having that "damn it a deals a deal" conversation with Castillo....Castillo: "Say the word and I'll get into it with Pepin's supervisor"Crockett: "D'ya think it'll do any good?"Castillo: "NO!"Check out Castillo's death stare at Pepin. You'd be forgiven for expecting Pepin to start clutching his own throat, and choaking whilst falling to the floor.Archie's death visably stunned Crockett in a fine acting job by DJ. His initial anger and violence then turned inwards on himself into catatonic depression was very realistic.This episode is once again another example of the bleak, nihilistic, and dark atmosphere of Season 3, and the ending had to be the darkest Vice has ever got. You've got the haunting "Picture book" song, the dark, lonely, deserted street, the wet road surface indicating gloomy weather, Archie's death, and Crockett being left metaphorically out in the cold by McCaine and Archie's grandmother. The dumping of the football in the trash can seems weird but again is symbolic. It represents not only Archie's death and the death of his football career, but the final nail in the coffin for Crockett's football career to be actualised not only by him but through someone else. This is also Crockett's way of moving on himself.This episode, like many others in Season 3 demonstrates the fact that despite Leutenant Atkins positive words to Crockett at the end of the episode "You should be proud. It was a good Collar, Crockett", there are in fact no winners in these storylines, only those who lose and those who break even. It's events like this that lead Crockett two episodes later to say to Tubbs "we never get even do we?". This is where the rot sets in for Crockett, as this is what gradually begins his downward spiral into going off the rails in "Deliver us from evil".8.5 out of 10.

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The Good Collar is a good episode. Seems like all Seas. 3 episodes are tearjerkers so far. Someone close to the vice team gets killed or Rico gets beat up. I liked the clothes in this one, lots of green! Sleasy 15 yr. old drug lord, riding a chauffer driven Town car shows how drugs rule people's lives. Sonny is again, as in other eps, trying to keep his word. The creep from the state attorney's office was the one to reneg on the deal with the kid. It caused the end of a good kid's life. I still see Sonny holding the boy's lifeless body, then kicking the inside of the car, & the pain he expressed when the grandmother threw the football out the house. Frustrated, he tosses it in the garbage. The whole mess also ended the young detective's life. A sad episode but one I like. I give it an 8.

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Hmm, The Good Collar, how do I put it into words? Let's see ...I have to say this episode is a sappy, soapbox drama that is on the level of a Lifetime made for TV movie of the week, all that's missing is Ally Sheedy.I'm giving this storm of soapyness a 5 out of 10.

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This episode's great strength is obviously it's ending. Great sequence. Simply Red's 'A Picture Book' was an excellent choice and it was a very powerful scene, especially Crockett's meltdown in the limo, the distain he's met with when he comes to Archie's house and finally throwing the football in the garbage can and walking to the car.
Overall,a good episode with a very memorable ending. 7/10

Edited by Tommy Vercetti
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  • 2 weeks later...

This episode pegged the meter for me...Awesome, start to finish. The intro really did for me-'69 GTO convertible, and later in the episode- Adkins's 70 or 71 Torino convertible...Heck even Gina's Mercury Cougar(fitting?) she had..I must applaud Mann at times as he has great taste in cars, exotic or classic for that matter...Seemed so well done and the acting seemed superb...Mike

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Being a season 3 fan, this get's a perfect 10 for me.Being a UK Vice fan, the BBC cut it to pieces, for example, when the rocket hits the car, you barely see any of it, do ice cream van etc.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I found this to be a heartthrobbing episode. I give it a 7 as it has good merit. Not so for the MV flare and drama the other eps portrayed, but because it had focused more on the struggles of a real life like teenager trying to pull himself out of the lores of the drug world.

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this was a very moving and tragic story. simply red's "picture book", coupled with sonny's reaction to archie's death, hit the emotional spot ten-fold.

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  • 1 year later...
  • 2 months later...

I will write a proper review in time, still watching the episode now, but this episode has my favourite teaser in the whole of Season Three (it even beats Red Tape, where Sonny suggests Rico ought to see a plastic surgeon...); I love the set up, the excitement, and the way Tubbs and Crockett rib each other:"Well I should be finished with the sports' section by the time you get him cuffed..." *continues avidly reading*and then..."I should have him cuffed by the time you catch them..."I also love this:"Er? Ricardo?! You got a minute?"Crockett and Tubbs at their best!! As I say, full review to follow.

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  • 1 month later...

Well not much to say here.. nice story but predictable. It was so clear that the kid was gonna die sooner or later. As for the 15 year old count whatever, I guess he had no parents? Unrealistic for a child to be that powerful? Or even the sad truth nowadays? Sonny cared so much for the kid, he really should have stopped him from wearing the wire. Oh I really liked the opening with Sonny and Rico being all bored and bothered having to do that bust, dont remember the lines but I really enjoyed that :Dgave it a 7

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Well not much to say here.. nice story but predictable. It was so clear that the kid was gonna die sooner or later. As for the 15 year old count whatever' date=' I guess he had no parents? Unrealistic for a child to be that powerful? Or even the sad truth nowadays? Sonny cared so much for the kid, he really should have stopped him from wearing the wire. Oh I really liked the opening with Sonny and Rico being all bored and bothered having to do that bust, dont remember the lines but I really enjoyed that :Dgave it a 7[/quote']It was that weasel D.A.'s fault for going back on his word. Sonny had promised to cut the kid a deal but was torn between getting him to wear the wire or sending him to jail, ending his future in football.
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It was that weasel D.A.'s fault for going back on his word. Sonny had promised to cut the kid a deal but was torn between getting him to wear the wire or sending him to jail' date=' ending his future in football.[/quote'] yeah I know, but Sonny offered to change his statement and make it a bad search. the kid should have taken that way out. guess he didnt realize how dangerous it could be, somebody should have told him there's a good chance you might get shot.. sad ending..just like the one with the two kids and one of them getting shot at the airport right before they were suppose to fly home (cant remember the ep). But even though these type of endings were frustrating and sad, I kinda like the fact that there wasnt always a Happy End.
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  • 1 year later...

I totally agree with the glossary. The Good Collar is the next episode which belongs to the best ones of the whole series!!!:happy::clap::happy::clap:The plot around Archie is really really touching and his fate is piteous. The tremendousness is that he has to die due to carelessness of police and politics - as often usual in VICE!Generally the descreption of the situation in Miami Overtown between the rivaling youth-gangs is superb! And especially the helplessness of police caused by the minority of the "gangster-kids" is very realistic!It's very hard for Sonny and Rico to acknowledge to themselves that they have to chase a minor who thinks that he's the greatest and most clever guy on earth.After the cool teaser with nice Crockett-quotes, I really really like the scenes at the interrogation room when Sonny and Rico question Archie because this time Rico plays the bad cop and Sonny the man of understanding.This fact is very rare and therefore notably. :cool:Rico interrogates completely different than Sonny does. I think he appeals much more threatening than Sonny because he isn't that emotional, but forceful and pointed.Sonny attends to Archie and sees that he isn't a gangster. Archie saves Sonny's and Rico's life, so Sonny wants to help him and to get him out of the mess. In my opinion the best part of The Good Collar is the last quarter-hour. Career-obsessed D.A Peppin want to appoint Archie to arrest Count Walker. The dialogues between Peppin and Sonny, Sonny and McCain and Sonny with Archie are overwhelming!!!:clap::happy:I don't need action when such strong dialogues are featured to me.Then the end scene follows. I think I don't have to say more than: FANTASTIC!Picture Book by Simply Red is made for these scenes. :radio:Sonny's blowup inside the limousine is awesome - and understandable. Archie has to die because Peppin badly wanted to nail Walker in this dangerous way...A terrific episode, typical VICE.10 points!

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  • 4 months later...

Another excellent vice episode! Don's acting in this one was one of his best. Infact, his whole season 3 acting was topnothc. Weird that he did receive numerous awards for season 2 acting but nothing remarkable for season 3. While I think he was in better shape in 3.String episode, good storyline, despite that it does remind me of the Fix. But this one is better. You genuinely feel sad for poor Archie at the end. Too bad he messed up in the conversation with the count (who was miscast I believe. Totally unbelievable.)The song picture book, again was a fantastic choice. What an eery song and used to perfection! Crockett going crazy in the limo was done perfectly by Don. Again: Great acting! From sad, to anger, to accepting. Also interesting to hear the real life story of Charles S Dutton. i didnt know he was a conficted criminal. makes he story even more believable.One thing was a bit unrealistic to me, and that was the fact that Crockett accepted Archie at the end to get the confession out of the count. I would have expected him to fight more for Archie's freedom, he knew there was a huge risk involved after the first shoot-out already. All in all, I give this episode a 9 also. Great music, great SoBE and overtown scenery, great acting. Classic vice again.

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