Robbie C. Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 38 minutes ago, S.FL84 said: BK is so far past ANY pilot ep. much less any ep. of MV in the entire series its pointless to debate it...although if BK was (and it most certainly was) THE best ep. of all pilots ever filmed it was IMO also THE best of the entire series w/ many later eps. coming up a very close 2nd. In terms of overall viewer impact the Shield's pilot is better than Brother's Keeper, especially when you consider it's a single hour as opposed to a two-parter. I wasn't a fan of The Sopranos, but I'm sure there are people out there who are convinced it had the best pilot of all time. The same could likely be said for Breaking Bad, All In the Family, and just about any other groundbreaking show. In fact, Gunsmoke's pilot was considered extremely unique because Matt Dillon was shot and seriously wounded in it...something Western viewers had never seen at that time. As for it being the best episode of Vice overall...glad you like it so much. I think it's a good episode, but it's obvious there were two visions fighting for control (Yerkovich vs. Mann) in terms of style and direction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S.FL84 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 (edited) As w/ all pilots to an extent but especailly w/ MV you simply cannot recreate the electricity in the air of BK. NBC did soooo much publicity was #1 that night around the world. It won 2 out of 3 Emmys which few if any season pilot eps ever matched. This episode was nominated for three Emmy awards and won two Emmy's, for best sound editing and cinematography.[5] Year Result Award Category Recipient(s) 1985 Nominated Emmy Award Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series Anthony Yerkovich[2] Winner Outstanding Cinematography for a Series Robert E. Collins, Cinematographer[2] Winner Outstanding Film Sound Editing for a Series Bruce Bell, Sound Editor; Jerry Sanford Cohen, Music Editor; Victor B. Lackey, Sound Editor; Ian MacGregor-Scott, Sound Editor; Carl Mahakian, Sound Editor; Chuck Moran, Supervising Sound Editor; John Oettinger, Sound Editor; Bernie Pincus, Sound Editor; Warren Smith, Sound Editor; Bruce Stambler, Sound Editor; Mike Wilhoit, Sound Editor; Paul Wittenberg, ADR Editor; Kyle Wright, Sound Editor[2] Edited May 17, 2019 by S.FL84 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie C. Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 Best promoted, perhaps. But that doesn't make it the best pilot ever based on its own merits. The Shield MADE FX as a network...prior to that they didn't have much going on and certainly couldn't have matched NBC's promo push if they wanted to. And Michael Chicklis broke James Gandolfini's Emmy win streak the year The Shield premiered (Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series). The writer and director were also nominated. That to me says something about the different focus of the shows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daytona74 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 When you look at other pilots of the time, hands down it was probably the best ever, and raised the bar for years to come. Not so sure about modern-day shows though. I mean, it has been all of 35 years now since the MV pilot. They do seem to put a lot of money in the pilots today to dazzle viewers from the first minute. Especially in a world of fleeting attention economics, where you practically only have a few moments to vie for a viewer's attention and make them come back the next week. But also, especially on fantasy or sci fi shows, special effects aren't the cost factor they used to be anymore, with most upper range off the shelf computers now being able to handle (4K) CGI software that you needed a $100,000 machine for twenty years ago. That said, I don't really watch many current shows. I couldn't tell you if there were any especially memorable TV pilots in the last 10 years or so. Probably a sign of me getting old Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie C. Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 If you compare Vice to other pilots from the 1980s, sure, but it's a stretch to say it's the best pilot ever in the history of television. I used The Shield as a comparison because the show was low-budget on the whole in terms of production. It's also a pilot that hit before the explosion of 10,000 networks and outlets. I agree now it's next to impossible to make any kind of sustained impact with a pilot unless you drop a ton of cash on it or do it as some kind of reboot or spin-off of an existing series or franchise. I think some can still pull it off based on what you might call network loyalty (the CW springs to mind here based on their niche programming), but aside from that it's hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shallowdraft Posted July 14, 2019 Report Share Posted July 14, 2019 Brother's Keeper not only set the tone and mood for the entire series, it made the series into an instant hit. I remember watching the Superbowl when the Chicago Bears won it, and they plugged it during the game, saying that it was going to be something special. I was watching the game at the clubhouse of the apartment complex where I lived, and they had a STEREO TV, which was something new. Right after the game, Brother's Keeper started. Miss You, the fantastic story line, then the THEME SONG by Jan Hammer ! I was riveted. Several of us stayed and watched the whole episode. That year, with my income tax refund, I bought a 26" STEREO TV, just so I could blast the Miami Vice theme song every week. That is what I think about the pilot episode of Miami Vice. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dadrian Posted July 14, 2019 Report Share Posted July 14, 2019 4 minutes ago, shallowdraft said: Brother's Keeper not only set the tone and mood for the entire series, it made the series into an instant hit. I remember watching the Superbowl when the Chicago Bears won it, and they plugged it during the game, saying that it was going to be something special. I was watching the game at the clubhouse of the apartment complex where I lived, and they had a STEREO TV, which was something new. Right after the game, Brother's Keeper started. Miss You, the fantastic story line, then the THEME SONG by Jan Hammer ! I was riveted. Several of us stayed and watched the whole episode. That year, with my income tax refund, I bought a 26" STEREO TV, just so I could blast the Miami Vice theme song every week. That is what I think about the pilot episode of Miami Vice. Welcome to the site. Seems like you totally belong here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shallowdraft Posted July 14, 2019 Report Share Posted July 14, 2019 Thank you ! I am starting to feel right at home here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Calderon Posted August 7, 2019 Report Share Posted August 7, 2019 I was watching bk yesterday...That albany police chief from calderones desmise was in the pilot as one of the crowd when gina and trudy appears at the explosion scene of eddie rivera? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 Easily the best ever. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kladdagh Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 Just Watching BK yesterday ...Love the mood, the style etc ... It set the standart for MV !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie C. Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 I still stand by my minority opinion. For the era, Vice certainly had the best pilot anyone had seen. But for a single hour pilot, The Shield's is much stronger and set a very consistent tone for the entire series. No doubt Vice was the best of its era, but claiming to be the best of all time is very debatable. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bren10 Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 Yes, I think it also depends on what your favorite shows have been. For instance, I think the original Battlestar Galactica is one of the greatest pilots. Others would say Twin Peaks etc. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie C. Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 And you can further break it into traditional episode pilots (like The Shield's) or what are really TV movies (Vice of course and possibly Battlestar...I remember watching it when it originally aired but don't remember if it was a one or two hour pilot). And if you back further you run into Gunsmoke and Star Trek. Both had huge impacts on TV during their respective eras. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bren10 Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 There's also shows that became great or highly regarded and people project that onto the pilot in retrospect even if it wasn't that good. Star Trek The Next Generation comes to mind. Or even the A-Team whose pilot didn't even feature Dirk Benedict as Face. As much as we love MV, the pilot itself clearly has issues that will have to be worked out as well as truly deciding what kind of show it will be. Lou Rodriguez, the silly car stunt during the boat chase, and the guns in the courtroom scene are all examples of this. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie C. Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 21 minutes ago, Bren10 said: There's also shows that became great or highly regarded and people project that onto the pilot in retrospect even if it wasn't that good. Star Trek The Next Generation comes to mind. Or even the A-Team whose pilot didn't even feature Dirk Benedict as Face. As much as we love MV, the pilot itself clearly has issues that will have to be worked out as well as truly deciding what kind of show it will be. Lou Rodriguez, the silly car stunt during the boat chase, and the guns in the courtroom scene are all examples of this. Exactly. That's why I rate The Shield's so highly. It set the tone and pace for the entire series, never really missing a beat or backing down. What other pilot had a scene that came to be known as "the original sin" and carried through the entire arc of the series (seven seasons)? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bren10 Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 I don't know, Robbie, but there are those shows that were predicated on one particular problem like: The Fugitive, Logan's Run, Land of the Lost, Gilligan's Island, Three's Company, Dead at 21, The Hulk, Werewolf (1987), Hogan's Heroes even? I'm half joking but it's interesting how many shows were like that. Dungeons and Dragons animated, Lost in Space, Space 1999... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 3 minutes ago, Bren10 said: I don't know, Robbie, but there are those shows that were predicated on one particular problem like: The Fugitive, Logan's Run, Land of the Lost, Gilligan's Island, Three's Company, Dead at 21, The Hulk, Werewolf (1987), Hogan's Heroes even? I'm half joking but it's interesting how many shows were like that. Dungeons and Dragons animated, Lost in Space, Space 1999... Some good shows in your post @Bren 10 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted August 24, 2019 Report Share Posted August 24, 2019 26 minutes ago, Robbie C. said: Exactly. That's why I rate The Shield's so highly. It set the tone and pace for the entire series, never really missing a beat or backing down. What other pilot had a scene that came to be known as "the original sin" and carried through the entire arc of the series (seven seasons)? The Shield was good I agree @Robbie C. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie C. Posted August 25, 2019 Report Share Posted August 25, 2019 25 minutes ago, Bren10 said: I don't know, Robbie, but there are those shows that were predicated on one particular problem like: The Fugitive, Logan's Run, Land of the Lost, Gilligan's Island, Three's Company, Dead at 21, The Hulk, Werewolf (1987), Hogan's Heroes even? I'm half joking but it's interesting how many shows were like that. Dungeons and Dragons animated, Lost in Space, Space 1999... This wasn't so much predicated on a single problem as referencing back to that one scene. So much of what happened to the Strike Team came from that one event. Not everything, though. They still managed to work in new content and new arcs for other characters. From a writing perspective it's hard not to be impressed by what The Shield accomplished. Justified did the same thing to a degree, but on a shorter timespan and with fewer continuing characters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 Nice brand new interview (a few days ago) I saw this morning with Jimmy Smits who of course appeared in the Pilot. He mentions the show, getting blown up and the director Thomas Carter. Great stuff! 4 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 Awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 2 hours ago, mjcmmv said: Awesome! First time I’ve ever seen Jimmy Smits mention Miami Vice. So just great. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dadrian Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 3 hours ago, Matt5 said: Nice brand new interview (a few days ago) I saw this morning with Jimmy Smits who of course appeared in the Pilot. He mentions the show, getting blown up and the director Thomas Carter. Great stuff! Love this Matt. Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt5 Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 (edited) 2 hours ago, Dadrian said: Love this Matt. Thanks for sharing. My pleasure Dadrian - good to see. Edited December 7, 2019 by Matt5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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