THE single biggest impact of MV

[Robbie C.]

Ok...I'll bite this once. Ever hear of a little ol' three season show called Star Trek? I'd say it did pretty well for itself all things considered. Scarface seems to have good legs for an older movie as well. And there's this little low-budget flick called Dirty Harry that stirred up all kinds of talk and continues to. The X-Files pretty much put Fox on the map and spawned strong fan communities (so much so Fox and Mulder were parodied on an episode of Criminal Minds). And then there's things like Sinefeld or Friends. Didn't care for either one myself, but I recall a huge uproar when Netflix said it might not renew Friends reruns. Or Sex in the City. I hear it had a viewer or two... And this doesn't even factor in shows like Breaking Bad or the Sopranos.

Vice is a good show. At its best it was a great show. Mann brought new production techniques and standards to television that improved overall content. At its best Vice was pioneering (or at least as much as a network show during the '80s could be), and at its worst it was almost a parody of itself. That's the reality of the show. For me, part of loving Vice is accepting that reality.

[S.FL84]

I guess I should have qualified my statement w/ "police drama".  Even then, again no show you listed had its own clothes, boats.  Dirty Harry was somewhat popular but MV took things to a whole new level.  Macy's even had a MV section totally devoted to linen suits and pastel T shirts.  It was also the first show ever broadcast in stereo.  I could go on & on.  MV changed everything.

[Mvice8489]

There has never been a TV show like 'Miami Vice' and there never will be one again.

The good guys didn't always win.  That helped keep it real.

  The point of the show wasn't just to watch some lowlife criminal be interrogated in a gritty precinct by just another "burnt-out" cop.    'Vice was the WHOLE PACAKAGE!  It had its own spirit.  It's own aura.  It breathed on it's own.

Not to mention Jan Hammer!  The guy was a genius!  What other TV show matched each scene to music so perfectly??   NONE!   Nothing even close.

It was a perfect mix of chemistry between the actors, music, scenery, emotions, cars, style, guest stars, backgound settings, etc.

 Dude, it was the 8th wonder of the world !!    

Drop the mic

[Mvice8489]

[S.FL84]

MV was just a glammed up fantasy version of what a MTV vice cop show would look like IF it was a video brought to life which is essentially what it was.  Low substance but SKY HIGH on style. I remember watching a 48Hrs news show interview w/ a real Broward County vice detective and he mentioned how far MV was from reality as far as Sonny Crockett's clothes, cars, boats.  It was just a glammed up music video version of a vice cop from a music video...but it touched a nerve in the public's psyche thats still present to this day but it had realism that American TV audiences had never seen before or since. The only "realism" today is two sick homosexual dudes on Modern Family adopting a chinese orphan.  American audiences have become numb to seeing people being murdered and now their being numbed w/ perversion and sexual sickness (mental illness).  I think we as a society have pretty much bottomed out as far as sensationalism goes.

Edited May 22, 2019 by S.FL84

[Dadrian]

Some episodes (like Evan or Death and the Lady) had considerably more substance than others, but overall, definitely a style over substance TV show. I heard someone say you could watch it with no sound and totally still get it haha. You would certainly miss some great music haha. 

[RedDragon86]

I think this great show had style and substance 

[RedDragon86]

On 5/21/2019 at 2:02 AM, Mvice8489 said:

There has never been a TV show like 'Miami Vice' and there never will be one again.

The good guys didn't always win.  That helped keep it real.

  The point of the show wasn't just to watch some lowlife criminal be interrogated in a gritty precinct by just another "burnt-out" cop.    'Vice was the WHOLE PACAKAGE!  It had its own spirit.  It's own aura.  It breathed on it's own.

Not to mention Jan Hammer!  The guy was a genius!  What other TV show matched each scene to music so perfectly??   NONE!   Nothing even close.

It was a perfect mix of chemistry between the actors, music, scenery, emotions, cars, style, guest stars, backgound settings, etc.

 Dude, it was the 8th wonder of the world !!    

Drop the mic

I get what you are saying completely, Miami Vice was original, a never been done before show. TV shows like "The Sopranos" for example were not, basically David Chase borrowed heavily off Martin Scorsese's work. Shows like Seinfied were basically a poorer version of "Cheers" which was also a great, original show.

[S.FL84]

MV had about as much "substance" as internet rumours have truth.  Usually the discriminator is some assface loser with an equally repulsive body who couldn't pick a chick w/ a forklift.   It was show w/ good looking people doing exciting things for a world of plain looking people who are trapped in boring, empty lives.  

[RedDragon86]

1 hour ago, S.FL84 said:

MV had about as much "substance" as internet rumours have truth.  Usually the discriminator is some assface loser with an equally repulsive body who couldn't pick a chick w/ a forklift.   It was show w/ good looking people doing exciting things for a world of plain looking people who are trapped in boring, empty lives.  

Just because there was style doesn't mean it was without great stories. Are you saying that episodes like Evan, Lombard, Home Invaders, Back In The World, No Exit, Bushido and Buddies for example are just stylish, good on the eye and exciting?

 

 

Edited May 22, 2019 by RedDragon86

[S.FL84]

I just don't care to dissect the issue THAT deeply.  MV was the epitome of what was cool in the 1980's.  Style was everything.  Actually, the music and the thought and emotion in numerous songs had waaaay more substance than any episode.  The ultimate statement that can be made about MV is:  The right show at the right time.  I'm just glad to have been there and to have bathed in the glam.

[Robbie C.]

First you say no show connected with the streets like MV, and now you want to back off and claim it's just some sort of style statement? I think you need to go read some Hemingway and back off from the criticalist entrepenurializations.

[Dadrian]

Weemin love Eemingway!  

[Vincent Hanna]

I think the show at it's best had equal amount of style and substance, The best moments were when the visuals, music and story all complimented each other perfectly, such as when Tubbs is walking through the club to introduce himself to Calderone as "All Nite Long" is playing. That scene is only ingenious because of the context, If it had been just the visuals and music then it would be nothing.

If Crockett and Tubbs were just cruising around Miami at night while listening to "In the Air Tonight" on cassette tape, it wouldn't have the same impact.

[Dadrian]

18 minutes ago, Vincent Hanna said:

such as when Tubbs is walking through the club to introduce himself to Calderone as "All Nite Long" is playing. That scene is only ingenious because of the context, If it had been just the visuals and music then it would be nothing.

This this this 

[Mvice8489]

that was one of the 5 best scenes of the entire series

[Robbie C.]

Vice was at its best when it mixed elements of cinema and television. 

[S.FL84]

14 hours ago, Robbie C. said:

First you say no show connected with the streets like MV, and now you want to back off and claim it's just some sort of style statement? I think you need to go read some Hemingway and back off from the criticalist entrepenurializations.

The closeness of MV's connection w/ the streets did not necessarily give it substance as it doesn't take to much "substance" to understand or convey the meaning of the superficiality of the extreme materialism of the wonderful 1980's.  MV just personified the ideal MTV cops show of the 1980's.  It lasted a season for the same amount of time the average 1980's video lasted...3:00.  One season for every minute of the avg 1980's music video.  Anyone who can seriously watch MV past season three and honestly think it comes close the season 1-3 is an idiot.

[Robbie C.]

To borrow a line from another show that claimed to capture the feel of an entire decade but missed many significant parts - "I say to you good day."

[summer84]

On 5/22/2019 at 8:52 PM, RedDragon86 said:

I get what you are saying completely, Miami Vice was original, a never been done before show. TV shows like "The Sopranos" for example were not, basically David Chase borrowed heavily off Martin Scorsese's work. Shows like Seinfied were basically a poorer version of "Cheers" which was also a great, original show.

Just curious, how was Seinfeld similar to Cheers? They had their own unique cast/characters and writing/dialogue approach and if I remember correctly, SF was one of the first shows to create comedy successfully with outdoor scenes. 

[RedDragon86]

12 minutes ago, summer84 said:

Just curious, how was Seinfeld similar to Cheers? They had their own unique cast/characters and writing/dialogue approach and if I remember correctly, SF was one of the first shows to create comedy successfully with outdoor scenes. 

Well they are both sitcoms and they rely heavily on one liners.

Seinfeld had a better ceiling for laugh out loud comedy, but Cheers had more emotional and topical episodes. In the end Cheers had better character development than Seinfeld. 

Edited May 23, 2019 by RedDragon86

[Robbie C.]

Seinfeld was famously the "show about nothing" while Cheers was in essence an old radio show converted to TV. That's not a knock, either...radio needed stellar writing and Cheers (and later Frasier) had that in spades. You can actually listen to Cheers without seeing the screen and understand exactly what's going on. It was (and remains) brilliant.

[summer84]

One thing, that made Seinfeld stand out from other sitcoms was it didn't have any emotional/sobby moments. Even when George ends in the hospital with possibly no prospects of walking again, there is no big reaction from his "pals" other than "oh well, let's go get some coffee."

[S.FL84]

A mod needs to step in as this thread is taking one big detour.  Its original point was biggest impact of MV which IMO was it was in touch w/ what was happening on the streets in the mid 1980's...from the point of view of a glammed up MTV cop show styled to resemble a (3:00) music video which because it only a tiny amount of time was 90% style & 10% substance which typified what was cool in 1980's.  There was no AIDS, no financial collapse,  just warm fuzzy Ronnie Regean and the Vietnam was eons ago.  Nobody gave a sh#@ about feelings emotion it all about how you looked not how you felt and MV perfectly embodied that.

Edited May 24, 2019 by S.FL84

[Vincent Hanna]

^I think I get more out of the police procedural elements of the show more than the flashy camerawork and "MTV cops" aspect to be honest. My favourite moments are when Crockett and Tubbs are doing what seems to be real police work and they're using all the authentic lingo and stuff. Would that count as style or substance? I don't know.

Sure there's some episodes that have the typical beach montage basically saying "Look glamorous this is" but I prefer the stories that have genuine drama and excitement that still rival the other top cop shows of today.

I really love that scene in Rite of Passage when we're shown a montage of Pam Griers sister being seduced by the lifestyle and the music is used in a ironic way and not "Look how cool this is". etc I think stuff like that transcend the MTV cops label.

Edited May 24, 2019 by Vincent Hanna