Nobody Lives Forever

Lots of action from three young bad guys with a death wish. "Nobody Lives Forever" is almost too heavy on the romance, but those love scenes are a necessary ingredient for the plot. Crockett is so head over heels for "Brenda" (actress Kim Greist) that he is approaching dereliction of duty. When he misses an opportunity to bust the bad guys, we see one of the greatest "Castillo Staredowns" in the entire 5-year run of Miami Vice. The writers should have spent more time developing Morgan's bookmaking setup, and the food trucks he uses as a front. That illegal gambling operation explains why Vice, and not just the Homicide Division, is brought in to take down the crooks. But you can almost miss that point, if you aren't paying close attention. One interesting scene is where Morgan (actor Peter Friedman) and his enforcer Ricky (actor Giancarlo Esposito) mention "Lombard" as possibly the guy who is robbing their bookies. Lombard (actor Dennis Farina) is a well-known crime figure/character who appears on other episodes of Miami Vice. Another good scene is where Gina (actress Saundra Santiago) reproaches Crockett for only using her as "an occasional pit-stop". But the icing on the cake for this episode are the great scenes involving Izzy Moreno (actor Martin Ferrero). He is at his absolute best in "Nobody Lives Forever".

Under-rated. The romance is kind of distracting, since we know nothing will come of it. Bad To The Bone is a great song, but maybe too cliche for its usage by the over-the-top punks. The best parts of this one is dialogue between Sonny & Tubbs, and I think it has some of the best set design and night cinematography of the entire 1st season.

This one shows Miami off well.

There was something in the hook in the music that reminded me of an undertone that was playing before he figured out the tapes were connected in Manhunter. So I looked up. Haven't never watched this. No it can't be. Never know maybe this is the prequel to Manhunter in theory. :P very loosely. So to strike off any doubt he played Heartbeat. go figure.. okay well fine. made it obvious which came first the chicken or the egg. apparently neither the pebble did it. I'll have to file away this one under Manhunter lore. No spoilers on this just well except for that shot of the bosses eyes. Dang good work director/ camera operator !!!!

"Nobody Lives Forever" is a superb episode of "Miami Vice" from director Jim Johnston. Beginning with action accompanied by George Thorogood's "Bad To The Bone", the opening sequence climaxes with the ketchup strewn destruction of a lunch truck. Good, messy fun!

There's romance in the air for Sonny Crockett who has fallen for the undeniable charms of beautiful, up-market Brenda, played by Kim ("Manhunter") Greist. As a result of this relationship, Crockett's work starts to suffer, posing serious questions about his future as an undercover cop.

There's a terrific soundtrack to this episode, including Red 7's "Heartbeat". This seems to be a Mann favourite - he used this for the end titles of the aforementioned "Manhunter". Another memorable track is Glenn Frey's "New Love".

Don Johnson's performance is pitch perfect and the episode is both realistic and moving.

There's great continuity with earlier story lines. Here, mention is made of the untouchable Lombard, last seen in "One Eyed Jack."

9 out of 10.

Story is simple, based on some punks going wild and hitting random people or places without any beforehand action plan.

This makes hard to learn their pattern and to catch them for vice cops. What happens in a meantime is devoted to Crockett's romance story.

Well directed, pastels colors are what they should be and Jan Hammer music score haunts ears easily. These are key elements of MV episode that went missing in seasons 4 & 5.

Original Airdate: March 29, 1985

Written by: Edward DiLorenzo

Directed by: Jim Johnston

Notable Guest Stars: Martin Ferrero, Peter Friedman, Giancarlo Esposito, Michael Carmine and Kim Griest.