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Deliver Us from Evil

Deliverusfromeviltitle

Season
Episode
21 (89th Overall)
Airdate
April 29, 1988
Repeat Airdate
September 9, 1988
TV Rating
TV-14 L-V
Writer(s)
Director
Guest Stars
Previous Episode
Next Episode

"Deliver Us from Evil" is the twenty-first and penultimate episode of Miami Vice's fourth season. It premiered on April 29, 1988, and was rerun on September 9, 1988.

Summary[]

Hackman is back in Miami after Crockett mistakenly freed him from death row, and his next victim hits Crockett close to home.

Plot[]

Two years after getting off death row, Frank Hackman returns to Miami in force. He and his crew invade a home and murder the family living there, including their young daughter.

Caitlin is heading back to town for some sold-out shows, and needs to talk to Crockett (who by now has made a full recovery from his near-fatal gunshot wound), but Crockett is forced to put it off as he and Tubbs look at the bodies from the home invasion, finding that the victims suffered 12-gauge shotgun blasts followed by a pistol shot in the head to finish them off. Johnny Blatt and his girlfriend Julia Adams discuss Hackman's plans for a big job, before Blatt loses his temper for petty reasons and begins abusing Julia. Castillo is ready to turn the case over to Homicide when Crockett recognizes the M.O. as unique -- as Hackman's. Although little more than a hunch, he asks Castillo for time to work on it despite a full caseload. Castillo grants him two days.

Hackman's wife wants to leave, fearing Crockett will come after them, but Hackman is confident that Crockett works Vice, and therefore has nothing to do with what technically falls under Robbery or Homicide's jurisdiction. Tubbs and Switek go see Izzy (now running a jewellery store), who tells them Blatt may have fenced some of the stolen merchandise through him. Caitlin calls Crockett back to tell him something, but Tubbs interrupts with news that Blatt has left Izzy's store, and Crockett is forced to hang up on Caitlin. Tubbs finds that Julia works for a security company, passing info on big scores to Blatt, who gives it to the rest of the crew.

On their way to see Julia, Crockett tells Tubbs how Frankel (his old partner, who was killed by Hackman) once saw a guy who'd twice beaten rape charges and wanted to "beat the living hell out of him," which caused him to realize he was losing his faith in the justice system. Crockett expresses a fear that he is getting to that point, and hopes his hunch about Hackman is wrong. Julia, who has bruises and a possible broken rib, willingly gives Blatt up to them. Crockett and Tubbs head to the warehouse hideout, but Blatt makes them and warns Hackman and his crew. Crockett and Tubbs storm in and shoot down several gunmen, but Hackman and Blatt get away. Hackman's wife is hit in the crossfire and is rushed into surgery. A visibly shaken Crockett calls Caitlin to let her know he can't make her show the next day. Sometime later, Tubbs wakes Crockett up and tells him Hackman's wife is dead.

Crockett goes to Castillo for a request to transfer out of OCB/Vice, declining to disclose why or where he wants to transfer to. Castillo gives Crockett a request form, but says he will remain in OCB until his transfer is approved -- and informs Crockett Hackman's wife was killed by a bullet from Hackman's gun not Crockett's. Blatt viciously beats Julia for selling him out to the cops. Izzy tells Switek and Trudy that Hackman’s team is planning a job for that night, but didn’t know where or when. Crockett visits Caitlin in her dressing room just before she goes on stage. Tubbs talks with a badly-beaten Julia, who knows where the hit is -- at Club 1235, which is where Caitlin is performing. En route to the club, Tubbs calls Crockett's car phone, which is shown ringing in the empty car outside of the club. Hackman kills the stagelight operator and sets up his laser-sighted rifle, taking aim at Crockett, before redirecting it at Caitlin’s back. He fatally shoots her after she leaves the stage to hug a smiling Crockett. Caitlin, holding a bouquet of flowers, falls into Crockett's arms and dies.

Crockett, drowning his sorrows in whiskey on the St. Vitus Dance and surrounded by pictures of Caitlin, finds the cross Hackman gave him when he got off Death Row. Tubbs stops by just as Crockett gets a phone call. After Tubbs picks up the call and has a brief, non-description conversation, he tells Crockett that the call was from the M.E.,, and that Caitlin was seven weeks pregnant when she died. Three weeks later, Crockett is still drinking heavily while polishing some wood trim on the boat. Tubbs visits him again, reminds him that everyone at Vice misses him, and offers to talk before being rebuffed.

Back at OCB, the team has learned from Julia that Blatt is returning to Miami from Chicago that night, Gina is concerned that it could be a trap, but Crockett walks in, clean-cut and dressed in a suit, saying that Blatt isn’t smart enough to plan a trap. Crockett decided to drop by work a day early since he’d polished, cleaned, and fixed everything on the boat that he could. Hackman had been in Martinique and then most recently was on Virgin Gorda, traveling under the name "Crockett", Castillo returns Crockett's transfer request, unprocessed, because he thought he'd want to review it first; Crockett thanks him before crumpling up the request and throwing it into his locker.

Wrong

Wrong!

Crockett and Tubbs watch Blatt returning to Julia's house and decide to breach rather than wait for backup in the hope of saving Julia from another brutal beating. Back at OCB, the team talks about how quickly Blatt gave up Hackman’s location on Caicos Island. Castillo tells Crockett that although Hackman will be detained if he tries to leave the island, it’s unlikely that he will be extradited. Castillo then pointedly tells Crockett to “get some rest.”

Hackman is sitting in a lounge chair with a cocktail and reading a book on Caribbean design when Crockett’s shadow looms over him. He tells Crockett that he's set up his retirement home, including making arrangements with the local judge and police. Hackman’s face drops when Crockett dangles his cross in front of his face. Crockett steps back and shakily aims his gun. Unfazed, Hackman tells him that he knows he can't shoot an unarmed man just as he couldn't let an innocent man be executed. He then closes his eyes and lays his head back. Crockett supposedly proves Hackman wrong by pulling the trigger, but as he walks away to the shoreline, a gun can clearly be seen in Hackman’s dead hand, justifying the shooting.

Cast[]

Guest Stars[]

Co-Starring[]

Notes[]

  • This episode begins a story arc of Crockett losing his wife, seeking vengeance for her death, suffering amnesia, and becoming his alter-ego, Sonny Burnett. The arc runs through the final episode of season 4 and into the first and second episodes of season 5.
  • In the original script, Hackman was unarmed, and had Crockett shoot and kill him out of revenge, vigilante style. NBC censors refused to allow the episode to air unless Hackman was armed and about to shoot Crockett. The script was revised to add a shot of a gun slipping out of Hackman's hand as he died, thus showing he had been armed, tried to use it on Crockett, and thus justifying Crockett shooting him.
  • The opening narration states "Previously on Miami Vice," referencing "Forgive Us Our Debts" from season 3. This is the third and final time the "previously" opening is used on the show.
  • The two episodes with Hackman’s character, "Deliver Us from Evil" and "Forgive Us Our Debts" are titled after passages from The Lord's Prayer. Hackman’s cross symbolizes his faked religious conversation in both episodes, with Crockett returning it to Hackman just before he kills him.
  • Crockett is alerted to Hackman's likely involvement in the fatal home invasion because of Hackman’s unusual method of murder - shooting first with a shotgun loaded with slugs and finishing point-blank with .38 pistol. In "Forgive Us Our Debts,” Hackman uses only a shotgun to kill Frankel .
  • After the home invasion murders, Crockett recounts to Tubbs that Frankel had told him that once a cop begins to seek vengeance, they have "maybe a year" left in the job. In the series finale, Crockett quits about one year after killing Hackman.
  • During the raid at invasion crew’s hideout, another crew member appears to escape along with Hackman. After Crockett and Tubbs run out the back, two men are shown with Hackman in the getaway car. One of the escapees must have been Blatt. The third man is never shown or mentioned.
  • Hackman's wife, played by Mary Fanaro, is presumably not Felicia, played by Gy Mirano in "Forgive Us Our Debts," with whom Hackman had a fling that led to the breakdown of her marriage.
  • Caitlin's final concert is performed at Club 1235. Don Johnson was reported to have visited during Vice's run. Music artist Prince bought the club in the late 1980s, with numerous owner and name changes before closing sometime before 2023. The club reappeared as Mansion as the location of the opening undercover operation to bust Neptune in the Miami Vice film.
  • During Caitlin's concert, Crockett is wearing one of his classic season 1-2 outfits (white suit and loafers, pastel pink t-shirt).
  • This episode marks the last time Crockett's Testarossa will be seen for seven episodes. It does not appear on-screen again until "Line of Fire" in season 5.
  • Inside Crockett’s locker, there’s a picture of him in football gear with his friend Robbie Cann (played by James Remar in "Buddies") . There is also a photo of Crockett, Tubbs and Gina on the St. Vitus Dance which looks as though it is from "One Eyed Jack."
  • Hackman and Crockett’s fixation on each other is a central theme throughout the episode. Hackman’s hesitation to shoot Crockett and instead kill Caitlin is similar to Crockett’s wavering hand before he kills Hackman.
  • After Caitlin’s death, Crockett’s appearance and demeanor appear increasingly similar to his ruthless alter ego, Burnett. When he confronts and then shoots Hackman, Crockett’s voice drops to a lower, emotionless and more sinister tone, his eyes are jet-black, and his walk away toward the ocean is slower and more deliberate.
  • In the remaining episodes, no mention is made of Caitlin and Crockett’s house and it is never shown after her death. There are no references made of her funeral, memorial, final resting place, or her estate. Though Crockett likely inherited Caitlin’s wealth, the only change in his lifestyle is when he adopts his drug kingpin alter ego, Burnett, after the next episode’s boat explosion. When Crockett’s memory returns, he appears to return to his pre-Caitlin lifestyle.
  • How Crockett evaded suspicion in Hackman’s death despite Hackman’s bribery of island officials is never brought up. Although if Hackman was blackmailing or forcing the island officials in some way, they perhaps would not have cared what happened to him. But, neither Castillo nor Internal Affairs ever investigates Crockett for Hackman’s death. However, Caicos Island is 550 miles from Miami or about 5-6 hours by speedboat and Crockett wasn’t expected to return to duty until the next day. As Crockett left OCB before appearing in Caicos, Castillo tells him that it’s unlikely Hackman could be extradited and then pointedly tells Crockett to “get some rest.” More than likely, although Castillo may have suspected it, there was actually no way to tie Crockett in to Hackman's death.

Goofs[]

  • During his discussion with Castillo about Hackman’s signature method, Crockett refers to the twenty years he's been a cop. In the previous episode, Crockett is said to be about 35. Crockett served in Vietnam in 1971 (when he met Danny Allred) and in 1975 during the Fall of Saigon). This episode, like most, doesn’t explicitly refer to a particular date or year. It’s also possible that Crocket used the term “twenty years” as a rounded reference to his career.
  • The shot of Crockett's Testarossa immediately before Crockett and Tubbs' first visit to Julia Adams’ home is flipped -- the car’s single side mirror is incorrectly shown on the passenger side. 
  • In Crockett’s flashback to Caitlin’s shooting, the red dot from Hackman's laser sight on Caitlin’s back is missing.
  • During the conversation between Crockett and Hackman in Caicos, Hackman has a large book laying on his chest. However, both of Hackman’s hands remain visible, including when Crockett drops his cross and chain on Hackman’s chest. In the added scene required by NBC’s censors, Hackman’s left arm is extended in death so that his hand, holding a gun, rests on a side table next to his lounge chair. It’s possible the gun was on Hackman’s chest underneath the book though the shooting sequence wouldn’t have given Hackman time to reach for the gun. Crockett has already turned away and begun walking to the shoreline, making it impossible for the gun to have been planted.

Production Notes[]

  • Working Title: "Love Means Never Having to Say You're Busted"
  • Filmed: March 16, 1988 - March 30, 1988
  • Production Code: 63528
  • Production Order: 89

Filming Locations[]

  • 4994 Hammock Lakes Drive, Coral Gables (home invasion in teaser)
  • 2538 Lincoln Avenue, Coconut Grove (Blatt's house)
  • Department of Solid Waste, 1290 NW 20th Street, Miami (Hackman´s hideaway)
  • Moray's Jewelry, 224 SE 1st Street, downtown Miami (Izzy's jewelry store)
  • Club Z, 1235 Washington Ave, Miami Beach (Caitlin's Concert)
  • Miamarina, 410 Biscayne Bvd, Miami (St. Vitus Dance, Crockett/Tubbs sit in car next to bus)
  • The Barnacle State Historic Site, 3485 Main Highway, Coconut Grove (Crockett shoots Hackman)

Music[]

Jan Hammer Music[]

  • "The Talk" (Caitlin considers telling Crockett about her pregnancy, and Crockett on the St. Vitus Dance after Caitlin's death)
  • Unnamed and unreleased theme used in "Buddies" for Dorothy Bain (Hackman's wife’s death, and when Crockett asks for a transfer from Vice).

Quotes[]

  • "Frankel...a couple of nights before Hackman killed him, we stopped into this bar, on the way home and...Frankel saw a guy in there he'd been trying to put away a couple times on rape charges. The guy had beaten him both times. Frankel said he wanted to take him out in the alley and beat the living hell out of him. He said he figured if he felt that way, maybe he had a year left in him as a good cop. I promised myself I'd quit before I got to that point... I hope it's not happening. -- Crockett to Tubbs
  • "Caitlin was... seven weeks pregnant." -- Tubbs to Crockett after getting the autopsy report
  • "Yeah, it took him (Blatt) a long time to give up Hackman--almost 10 minutes!" -- Switek
  • "I sure as hell know the same way you couldn't let an innocent man be executed, that you can't shoot an unarmed man!" -- Hackman to Crockett
  • "Wrong!" -- Crockett in response after killing Hackman 
Season 4 Episodes:

"Contempt of Court" "Amen... Send Money" "Death and the Lady" "The Big Thaw" "Child's Play" "God's Work" "Missing Hours" "Like a Hurricane" "The Rising Sun of Death" "Love at First Sight" "Rock and a Hard Place" "The Cows of October" "Vote of Confidence" "Baseballs of Death" "Indian Wars" "Honor Among Thieves?" "Hell Hath No Fury..." "Badge of Dishonor" "Blood & Roses" "A Bullet for Crockett" "Deliver Us from Evil" "Mirror Image"

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