"The Great McCarthy" is indeed a great episode of "Miami Vice". We are introduced to the off-the-wall Izzy Moreno in the fast-moving opening sequence, an eccentric character that was to prove to be a popular regular in the show.
With Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild" accompanying an exciting powerboat race, this is stirring stuff. You just don't get big-budget thrills like this on television these-days.
Possibly the only weak point to the episode is a seemingly endless love scene between Tubbs and his love-interest Vanessa, played by the beautiful Maria McDonald. Just when you think, "Surely this can't go on any longer? This must have been on for ages," the scene continues from another camera angle. It's almost like the episode had been completed and the director had been informed it was 60 seconds too short and he'd have to re-cut it.
William Gray Espy is a decent baddie in this tale, the great Mccarthy himself.
Superb. 9 out of 10.