Miami Vice (TV Series) Better Living Through Chemistry (1986) User Reviews

I've seen better and seen worse episodes!

[mm-39 · 6/10 · 24 November 2023]

Better Living Through Chemistry well I've seen better and seen worse episodes! What does not work: the story has another climatic shoot out on the lame side. The shoot out in the bar how stupid are the hitmen!?! The main story of Tubb's and the ex partner works then does not work on different levels. Maybe the comedy interrupts the serious main story! What work: the comedy Izzy's kidnap plans turn into silly over acting with the death of the chemist. The heavy set chemist has such a comic look. Easy rider style bad guy was realistic. Rest of the crew, well, not so memorable. Not one of Crockett's memorable under cover roles either but the Easy rider character steals all the scenes. I will not call Better Living Through Chemistry a bad episode, but confusing; some how I do not know if I experience a comic or serious episode.? 6 stars.

Is Tubbs safe from his ex-partner?

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 1 May 2012]

This episode opens in a nightclub where Crockett and Tubbs are undercover trying to get close to a dealer who claims to be able to supply cheap artificial cocaine made by his personal chemist; things go wrong though when the club's DJ suddenly blows Tubbs cover. It turns out he was a former New York cop, Clarence Batisse, who was kicked of the force when Tubbs wouldn't back up his claim that a suspect he shot had been armed. With Tubbs' cover blown Crockett must continue the undercover work alone. This isn't helped when there is a shootout at the club and Clarence kidnaps the chemist and Izzy. His plan is to make his boss think the chemist was kidnapped by a rival and take the ransom money but things are complicated when the chemist tests his product and promptly dies! Clarence thinks can trick him just long enough to get the money... and set up Tubbs to get revenge!

This was another quality episode with plenty of action and a nice little twist. The story was good enough to overlook the unlikelihood of Tubbs' ex-partner just happening to work in the nightclub the deal was taking place in. Martin Ferrero continues to be amusing without being annoying as comedy relief character Izzy... clearly the creators made the right choice keeping him as the comedy character rather than the annoying Noogie! Setting much of the episode in a 'biker' nightclub provided a good excuse to have underdressed women gyrating on motorbikes and to give Steppenwolf's classic 'Born to be Wild' another airing along with Peter Gabriel's 'Sledgehammer'.

Season 3 is the real deal

[mylkione · 9/10 · 13 February 2019]

Aside the nostalgia and gimmicks of the first two seasons (excepting the initial episodes) season three is the best of the lot. Watching this decades on Dick Wolf's fingerprints are all over the third run...And lacking the monotany and of law and order. His ideas blend perfectly with Mann's neo-noir feel. This episode has some of the best acting and solid plot/subplot lines and great if not dated visual and musical touches.