It's Friday evening and the work week has ended, at least for most of us. Now it's time to wine, dine, and relax...TGIF! Usually we present a two-hour comedy block of the best, and not so great, sitcoms of the TGIF era. This week, however, we've decided to detour from our regularly scheduled programming and present a police drama that dominated Friday nights on NBC, Miami Vice.
Miami Vice was a crime drama that focused on the shady and seedy dealings in Miami. Episodes of the show were loosely based on actual crimes from that city, and producers didn't shy away from highlighting issues that were rampant in the 1980s such as drug wars, political violence, and police corruption. Social issues such as child, sex, and drug abuse were common fodder for the detectives of the Metro-Dade Police Department. Miami was an ideal location for the show because it was considered an international hub in the '80s for the rich and wealthy, corrupt and corruptible, victims and abusers.
Miami Vice was influenced by the 1980s sounds and fashion, and the show relished in demonstrating the excesses of the decade. The show's main protagonists, Sonny Crockett and Rico Tubbs, were always decked out in designer suits, drove Ferraris and Cadillacs, lived in posh dwellings (Crockett lived on a boat with his pet alligator!), and all this on a police salary! Granted, Crockett and Tubbs worked undercover and typically had to fit into the world they were trying to expose, usually that of the Miami elite and famous.
If Miami Vice didn't scream "We are the '80s" with its style and extravagance, then it sure did with the use of countless pop and rock hits of the decade. The show would spend tens of thousands of dollars per episode just to buy the rights to original recordings. Thus Miami Vice became one of those timeless shows that wasn't only defined by its storytelling but also by its incorporation of music into that storytelling. The drama also became an outlet for music artists to boast their albums. The show's popularity with viewers was prime real estate for exposure, and several artists took it a step further and made guest appearances. Phil Collins' music became a staple on Miami Vice, first in the iconic scene from the pilot episode featuring his hit In the Air Tonight, and later featuring previously unreleased song, Life is a Rat Race.
Miami Vice wasn't as gritty as its network companion Hill Street Blues but it did bring an edginess and dark tone to Friday nights. The good guys sometimes weren't that good, and they occasionally lost a battle or two in the ever persisting war. Casualties were the norm and even the ensemble cast wasn't free from the dangers of undercover work gone wrong such as Det. Zito's forced fatal overdose or Det. Calabrese's rape. Happy endings were rare and the show's episodes often ended with a final bang. Despite the glitz and glamour of the 1980s, Miami Vice focused on the dark real-world and the costs of living the superficial, extravagant good life.
The complete series of Miami Vice has been released on DVD and with all original music still intact. Full episodes on the web are hard to come by but Stay Tuned has located a Season 2 favorite featuring Phil Collins, Phil the Shill.
Enjoy!
Join us again next Friday for another Retro-TGIF, and a return to the world of comedy! Remember to keep it locked to Stay Tuned for future updates on anything and everything television!
No comments:
Post a Comment