posted
Miami Vice was totally 80's! It was on Friday nights and that was bad news for me because I was too busy enjoying my real life back then to fully appreciate Miami Vice's awesomeness.
I did catch the reruns years later and loved the episodes with Sheena Easton and Vanity!
Posts: 7845 | From: Smiling and glancing in awe in the back of a limo | Registered: Mar 2003 | Site Updates: 22
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Muffy Tepperman
Leopard-print Leotard Wearer.....
Member # 1551
posted
I was younger and it used to play past our bedtime but my mom would let us stay up to watch it..........that intro was the best flamingos and all.......I can't tell you much about it now....but i've been meaning to catch up on it.....HULU actually has episodes for free.
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posted
First tv show I bought on DVD, and still one of my favourites to this day.
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aTomiK
.... has green eyes as well....
Member # 6575
posted
If we put all the 80s shows in a wrestling ring, locked a cage around it, and let them fight to the death, Miami Vice would be the last show standing. It's the best show of the 80s.
Posts: 929 | From: Deb to Tone | Registered: Dec 2004 | Site Updates: 37
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posted
Only in the 1980's would "Miami Vice" be a hit.
If it was made in any other decade, it would be a very different kind of show!
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posted
Awesome 80's show. I didn't watch it much during its original run because I usually was out working or partying. My parents watched it faithfully every Friday night. I wish I could watch it now. The only station I think that it is on now is Centric, and we don't get that.
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oneyedwilly
The Dread Pirate Rewind....
Member # 8730
posted
i started watching this in the school holidays back in 87 and got in trouble for playing the theme tune too loud through the television after recoding it on video just so i could do just that. i then recorded it onto a tape player through a microphone which turned out real bad but i didnt care. Love that scene in The wedding Singer when that Jerk (cant remember his name) opens up the car door to let in julia and the theme tune is blaring out - just a priceless idea only 80s fans would get and appreciate
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posted
oneyedwilly, that is one of the best parts of the Wedding Singer! I thought I was the only one who caught it and thought it was great!
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oneyedwilly
The Dread Pirate Rewind....
Member # 8730
quote:Originally posted by Pittsburghgirl: oneyedwilly, that is one of the best parts of the Wedding Singer! I thought I was the only one who caught it and thought it was great!
oh yeah, i laughed at absolute genius of that moment and then love my way kicks in. . . just love it. sheer genius catching part of the 80s in such a subtle way.
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aTomiK
.... has green eyes as well....
Member # 6575
posted
Big fan of Miami Vice, though I only caught a handful of episodes on it's original broadcast back in the '80's. The intro. theme song by Jan Hammer is iconic, and IMHO is one of the top five best theme songs to a TV series. I was a kid back when the show was first released, so there definitely a lot of nostalgia associated with the series.
A while back, I caught this on DVD & made me realize yet again that the series is an amazing time capsule of a bygone era; it captures a time & place perfectly re: the music, colorful clothes, architecture, fashion, attitudes, etc. In looking back 30 years later, it seems like the show actually strongly influenced the fashion/look of the '80's, rather than the other way around.
Here's a link to an excellent article on the series & how iconic & influential it was. I do disagree that the later seasons of the show were terrible - though they weren't as good as the earlier seasons, they were still solid. However, the show is very much an '80's series so it's fitting that it was winding down as the '80's themselves were ending:
One of the many things that stands out about this show is the Lacrosse-like sport Jai Alai, which is featured both in the opening credits of the series & is also the focus of one of the episodes. Prior to watching MV, I was completely unaware of this sport - the little I know about this is from watching the show. Though it looks interesting, it seemed extremely dangerous - i.e., if the ball they were playing with hit a player (or anyone else) in the head, they would very probably get brain damage and/or die as a result (which happened to a character on the series).
This won't be a review of the entire series, but some of the best episodes included:
The S2 two-hour premiere; one of the best episodes of the series. The scene when Crockett is walking alone in NYC while Glenn Frye's iconic "You Belong to the City" played over the scene was sublime. This combination of visuals & the music is one of the best cinematic depictions of what it means to be alone - but yet not really alone - in a large urban environment.
I found the S3 two-parter when Zito gets killed (Down for the Count - Episodes 1-2) to be especially well-done. Very poignant, especially how Zito was mentoring the up-and-coming boxer & ended up getting killed by gangsters (who made his death look like a drug overdose). I remember when I first saw this episode, I was surprised that they killed off a main character. It's interesting that prior to the death many of the previous Season 3 episodes did not feature Zito as much - i.e., Stan Switek was pretty much going it alone in many of these shows...possibly foreshadowing Zito's death...
Also really impressed by the S3 episode where Crockett raced against time to prove the innocence of a guy he thought he had mistakenly send to death row years earlier. However, at the very end of the episode (as the guy was walking out of prison) he realized he had been played - and that the guy actually WAS guilty. Fantastic & unusual episode - I can't imagine any other series at that time would have had the guts to write/produce a story like this.
And, to those who weren't already aware of this, this great series is coming out on Blu-ray this month...
[ 04. October 2016, 05:47: Message edited by: Nostalgic for the '80's ]
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posted
Very nice review Nostalgic. It would be nIce to own the series on Blu-Ray. I've been watching it off and on while I have been cleaning out my Dad's house. Still love the music, clothes, and characters.
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posted
I'm planning on getting the MV complete series on Blu (it's being sold on Amazon for an amazing price, especially considering how expensive the individual DVD sets were), and when I do I'll try to write up a brief review. I'm sure seeing this show in HD will be a great experience - I'm hoping the picture looks significantly better than it did on regular DVD.
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posted
Excellent discussion about Miami Vice. I have been in law enforcement for over 32 years, and I always tell people that one of the most realistic cop shows to ever run on US TV was Miami Vice. They always laugh at the dated clothes and cars, but I remind them that it was the first time American audiences saw real narcotics work--snitches, search warrants, wiretaps, etc. A tremendous show from the incomparable Michael Mann.
Posts: 2008 | From: Dixieland | Registered: Oct 2008 | Site Updates: 0
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-The first Commanding Officer (CO) from the pilot episode was fine, but not that memorable. However, in subsequent episodes Edward James Olmos (EJO) was much better as the CO: the stoic, non-smiling Castillo with a mysterious past made the series to a great extent. In fact, I can't imagine liking the show as much as I did if the first CO had been in place throughout the series.
Some of my favorite episodes of MV involved the ones where Castillo's past came back to haunt him. I.e.:
1) The excellent two-parter when his former wife from Asia came back into his life.
2) The one where the serial killer from his Vietnam years came to Miami.
And, it was EJO's role in MV that was at least partially responsible for making me a fan of the re-made Battlestar Galactica in the 200X's (where he played Adama).
-I was always amused by Switek & Zito - they were obviously the "Laurel and Hardy" of the series - i.e., the bumbling semi-inept characters who would drive around in the "bug van" as their undercover "front". I would always get their names confused, even though they looked distinctly different. One of my favorite episodes was when Zito was forced to move in with Switek & his girlfriend - in a small apartment. Hilarious- especially the scene when they were both watching Elvis on TV, surrounded by Elvis posters & memorabilia (Switek was a huge Elvis fan).
-It was also interesting that so many rockers from that era made their way onto the series. I.e., Glenn Fry & Phil Collins were great; however, Ted Nugent & Gene Simmons (KISS) also had cameos in some episodes. This almost seemed to be an homage (in some ways) to the fact that popular rock/pop music was such an important part of the series.
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posted
My favorites include the episode "Only in Miami" with Ted Nugent and the iconic use of Godley & Creme's "Cry, the first episode of the second season with "You Belong to the City," and one directed by the great Abel Ferrara called "Home Invaders," I think.
Edward James Olmos was great as Lt. Castillo. I don't think that he ever even started to smile for the entire run of the series. He was perfectly cast.
And let's not forget Sheena Easton and Martika's arcs on the show as Don Johnson girlfriends. Michael Mann really understands how music can enhance a scene. The scene in the pilot where they are driving to "In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins has been copied so many times since that we forget that Mann was really there first. MTV Cops indeed!
[ 13. October 2016, 19:59: Message edited by: Crash ]
Posts: 2008 | From: Dixieland | Registered: Oct 2008 | Site Updates: 0
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posted
I just got the "Miami Vice" 5-season set on Blu-ray. I haven't had a chance to delve into this yet, and probably won't be able to until next year (I've got a huge back-log of things I want to watch, and I've already re-watched MV Seasons 1-3 earlier this year on DVD).
A brief review of the physical aspects of the set:
Box cover art: Great!
Individual Blu Season case(s) cover art: Great!
Packaging: Leaves a lot to be desired. I don't like that they stacked two discs on top of each other, since this will increase the chances of the discs getting scratched.
That being said, I do like how slim the individual season cases are, and visually this set looks great. It's just that the packaging is sub-par.
quote:Originally posted by Crash: So cool. You have a lot of binge watching a head of you.
True. Unfortunately, I won't have time to watch the series on Blu until sometime next year; I've got a huge back-log of things I want to see prior to re-watching MV.
Since I re-watched the first three seasons of MV (on DVD) earlier this year, I think I can hold off on this for a while - LOL.
That being said, if anyone gets (or at least watches) the show on Blu-ray & if you get a chance, report here on what you think. I have heard that the picture quality is much improved over the DVD's.
When I do get a chance to see this on Blu, I'll post here as well.
[ 13. October 2016, 09:42: Message edited by: Nostalgic for the '80's ]
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posted
Miami Vice is a show that needs to be seen with the best possible picture and audio quality. It's such a beautiful looking and sounding show, defining an era. Michael Mann is a genius.
Posts: 2008 | From: Dixieland | Registered: Oct 2008 | Site Updates: 0
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There's so much good stuff coming out (both music and movies), i can't possibly fit this new blu-ray set into my budget.
Definitely want to see Miami Vice in HD though... sooner or later, it will happen ! Posts: 2176 | From: The Netherlands | Registered: Jun 2011 | Site Updates: 0
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Still haven't had a chance to check out my MV Blu's yet. But, here's a link with some MV Blu-ray screen shots - go halfway down the page to see them:
I am extremely impressed by these; the amount of detail here is incredible! You can see the texture of some of the clothing; the gray/white in Castillo's hair; and Gina's cavities! - truly amazing. I never thought the show could look this good when I was watching it on an old Cathode Ray Tube TV back in the '80's.....
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