Episode #86 "Badge Of Dishonor"

[FlemFan]

MV Trivia Question #452:

Which wet lady appears in both Badge of Dishonor and The Cows of October? Not a moo-t question!

[wolfie1996]

On 11/19/2019 at 5:09 PM, Dadrian said:

Yes, thanks. 

Mind you I see the article glossed over why they broke up, which (I read) was because  she found out he was dating some actress while filming in Toronto, flew up there to confront him and he (so it's said) offered her a non-monogamous marriage!!! (No self-interest there then!) Whereupon she told him to sling his hook, wise woman  

[FlemFan]

On 5/14/2021 at 6:47 PM, FlemFan said:

MV Trivia Question #452:

Which wet lady appears in both Badge of Dishonor and The Cows of October? Not a moo-t question!

Anyone have a guess? Hint -- water-bound.

[FlemFan]

The answer, the boat Vanesa appears plainly in both episodes.

[ViceFanMan]

These are mostly my original thoughts on this episode...still feel about the same:

This episode is an okay one...not overly special or memorable but still has some decent action and moments. The intro was awesome and I liked some of the guest-stars...Jsu Garcia (as Nick Corri) was cool as the main bad guy. But, he'll always be ‘Rod Lane’, who got sliced-n-diced by Freddy Krueger in the original Nightmare On Elm Street, to me.

The music is also superb! Glory, Glory by Underworld, and Eyes of a Stranger by Payolas were awesome and fit the scenes perfectly! The Hammer score, as always, is cool.  However, some of the acting and the storyline were a little weak. Overall I like this one okay...I originally gave it a 7, and still would.

[Jack Gretsky]

A good prologue.  I like the song and the night mood conveyed in the scene.  I never mind the re-use of guest stars in different roles in shows, but Julio Oscar Mechoso back as a bad guy is jarring if you're watching all of the episodes in a row in a short period of time so you know him only as good guy Lester.  

There's a Season 1 vibe to a lot of this episode, but notice it's more gritty, less glittery.  Winos, gangs, graffiti, an overall drabness and grunge to the settings.  There's even a discussion between Tubbs and Montana about how he goes undercover among the high-living, flashy crooks while she sees more effectiveness in staying at ground level with the low-living street life.  

The story, if familiar, is well-told.  Michele Shay and Reni Santoni are excellent guest stars. It's funny that in "The Good Collar" Nick Corri played a good cop infiltrating a gang - here he plays a crook essentially infiltrating the police force. An interesting swipe at political correctness - although hiring a more diverse work force is commendable, you still have to be certain about the individual being hired regardless of ethnicity.  This is one of the better S4 episodes. 

Edited November 14, 2021 by Jack Gretsky

[RedDragon86]

Excellent episode. 8/10.

 

Edited July 30, 2022 by RedDragon86

[Augusta]

You've all collectively said it.  A middle-of-the-pack storyline and episode, but still with all the right sparkles in it that allows it to to show more respect to Miami Vice than most Season 4-5 episodes.  

Yes to the music, OH Heavens, YES!  

Subtly one of the best buddy-scenes in the series for me comes from Tubbs having to make a dive into the night water, cuz there was no way his partner was going to be able to save his buns from death---then pulling himself out weary and wet, Crockett finding him in no time at all, gives Tubbs a 100% serious look and a completely no-joke voice, "You alright?!---Ok, STAY THERE!", and leads the rest of the cops forward now that he knows Tubbs is secure.

The best portrayals in this episode were done by actors and actresses who didn't survive more than three minutes on-camera before getting shot, LOL.  Who was the guy who said "clara" so many times in his carphone conversation, and then died after arguing with the river cops who pulled his car over?  His argument, all in native-language, was hands-down the most realistic feeling altercation between criminals.   I've seen a street killing from afar when I was a kid in NY---the sound and the turn of the argument plays out exactly that way before the gun goes off---straight real scene, very unpretentiously acted out.  
Something about Tubb's line sticks in my memory when he's upset that he should have been warned about the near-deadly set up:  "I walked in there carrying GOLD!"

I like that Michele Shay was chosen for the cop in the middle of a crossroads. Michele is NOT a Melanie Griffith/Helena Bonham/Arielle Dombasle beauty type... and THANK GOD she isn't.  Due to her not having the magazine-model face there, she comes across more convincing, less readable of motive, and I actually found myself feeling sorry for what a cop must go through inside when he or she is busted for corruption and gets their first month of treatment in lock-up.  I honestly liked the way she played her Montana character.  

The episode gives me and education on this "river district" that is part of Miami's map/geography.  I knew LA has its dry river reservoir feature running through the city with its network of inlet tunnels... but I didn't know anything about Miami having its own river district with its own inherited river cops and "river dealers".  Woah!  

But,,, it's a Season-4 episode, so you kinda know we're likely being lead toward a cliche ending and you feel you know person-X not survive their situation, dying  in some inevitable bullet exchange 45 seconds before the end credits.  The director saves this episode---the writer was obviously not Season 2 or 3 caliber.  What can we say, right?  

Hey, wait---check out this news archive on a famous Miami River Cops Case.  This wasn't one of the two rare episodes that were modeled after real police incidents was it?  So is this coincidence, or was the episode zooming in on a kind of crime whose idea and opportunity was so obvious and ripe for the right kind of criminal cops to pull off?

http://miamibeach411.com/news/miami-river-cops

Edited April 28, 2022 by Augusta

[RedDragon86]

It was nice to see Jsu Garcia from "The Good Collar" again. Interesting story, great music, locations and guest stars.

It's good enough for any season between 1-3.

8/10.

Edited July 31, 2022 by RedDragon86

[ViceFanMan]

On 4/27/2022 at 11:30 AM, Augusta said:

Hey, wait---check out this news archive on a famous Miami River Cops Case.  This wasn't one of the two rare episodes that were modeled after real police incidents was it?  So is this coincidence, or was the episode zooming in on a kind of crime whose idea and opportunity was so obvious and ripe for the right kind of criminal cops to pull off?

http://miamibeach411.com/news/miami-river-cops

As far as I know the only two episodes specifically based off real life cases were “Out Where the Buses Don’t Run” & “Shadow In the Dark”. But, writers could have gotten an idea from a more local, current (at the time) case or incident, and created an episode similar. 

[johnnyfarragut]

One of the most cold-blooded murder scenes of all the series. These guys were scary. Based on real events, by the way.

Edited April 4, 2023 by johnnyfarragut

[Matt5]

Love this episode has a real 1988 feel about it.

[ViceFanMan]

7 hours ago, johnnyfarragut said:

One of the most cold-blooded murder scenes of all the series. These guys were scary. Based on real events, by the way.

 

The "idea" of the episode I think was definitely gotten from the Miami River Cops case, although I'm not sure the plot itself is a "copy" of the real life case. I think there were several or a few episodes that took ideas of cases or headlines that were known at the time, and writers created their own versions...which in my opinion I think was kind of cool & a little ahead-of-the-time, as back then most crime/cop shows didn't do that yet. Nowadays it's pretty common that crime shows create episodes "ripped" from the headlines. But, both MV and Hunter (in it's later seasons) seemed to kind of start that trend...but, maybe that's just me putting more into them, as I love both shows.  But, for MV there were two episodes (that I know of) that were actually primarily based off real life cases...and those were "Out Where the Buses Don't Run" & "Shadow in the Dark". 

[Mr. Vigilante]

I love the scene along the river, where the guys on the freighter are watching them film.  Just one of those "real life meets movie world" moments.  Definitely something I would brag about!