Miami Vice (TV Series) Bushido (1985) User Reviews

Lots To Like With Familiar Faces

[ccthemovieman-1 · 9/10 · 15 August 2007]

Captain Castillo (Edward James Olmos) directs this episode and takes center stage trying to protect an old friend's wife and son. The dramatic ending to this episode lasts 10 minutes and is fun to watch.

Dean Stockwell, who I'll always remember as one the crazy characters in a couple of David Lynch movies in this era ("Blue Velvet" and then "Wild At Heart") plays Castillo's old military partner Jack Gretzky. Also featured is another favorite of mine, the star of "Slege Hammer" himself, David Rasche.

This is a solid episode all the way, a bit different in that Crockett and Tubbs plays supporting roles. I kind of like taking a break from those dudes once in awhile. "Castillo" is a strange guy but always interesting to watch even when he says nothing, which is most of the time.

Good to hear another old pay, too, do the opening song: Bryan Ferry ("Boys and Girls."). The ending song is very different for Miami Vice.

A Castillo driven tale that's effective and memorable

[DVD_Connoisseur · 9/10 · 12 July 2007]

"Bushido" has a powerful beginning with an atmospheric stakeout in the humid Miami night.

Castillo is genuinely shaken by the revelation that his old friend, Jack Gretsky (Dean Stockwell), is alive and kicking. The blue touchpaper is lit for an action packed and dramatic episode with Castillo at the centre of the plot.

Edward James Olmos himself directs this episode and it's a solid effort. The cast includes David ("Sledge Hammer!") Rasche as the main baddie, Surf.

Kate Bush's beautifully strange "Hello Earth" is edited for maximum effect in the closing scenes. Bryan Ferry's "Boys & Girls" also features on the soundtrack.

A 9 in "Miami Vice" terms but so much better than anything made thesedays...

Great Miami Vice episode

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 5 November 2009]

Back in the mid-eighties "Miami Vice" was my favourite television programme and "Bushido" was one of my favourite episodes, memorable for focusing on Castillo rather than on Crockett and Tubbs.

The episode opens with a drug bust going horribly wrong when the target is killed, the buy money is taken and a DEA agent is left tied to a toilet. When Castillo reviews the surveillance footage he recognises the last person to leave the site as his former CIA buddy Jack Gretsky. He learns from the local CIA office that Gretsky is on the run; both from the CIA and the KGB after he helped his Russian wife and child escape from the Soviet Union. I won't spoil what happens next but will say that the final showdown between Castillo and three KGB agents was one of the most memorable in the series.

Edward James Olmos did a great job both playing Castillo and directing the episode. We also get nice cameos from Dean Stockwell as Gretsky and David "Sledge Hammer" Rasche as hilarious KGB undercover agent "Surf".

Solid episode featuring Olmos

[richiezoom · 9/10 · 26 July 2015]

As the years progress, I have become more interested in the other aspects of Miami Vice rather than just the plot. We all enjoyed it during its initial run and occasional rerun, but now... 30 years later (yikes) character development, set design, etc become more interesting.

Such is my vantage point for this episode, seen recently as a part of COZI TV's current rebroadcast of all the MV's in seasonal order each night. Castillo's character is further filled in with a story of friendship, shared dangers, honor and loyalty... setting us straight on what makes this guy tick. What a life this guy has experienced ! This episode has it all, without being a total Don Johnson vehicle. Even a non-fan will like it. /RZ

Vice at its best

[Fluke_Skywalker · 10/10 · 7 July 2016]

Plot; When a drug bust goes horribly wrong, Castillo recognizes the interloper (Dean Stockwell) as his best friend and former partner from their days with the CIA stationed in Vietnam. Ultimately circumstances force Castillo into a choice between duty and honor.

'Miami Vice' is often remembered more for its style than its substance, which is both understandable and unfortunate. Understandable because it was such a game changer in regard to the former, and unfortunate because at its best it contained far, far more of the latter than its given credit for. In the case of "Bushido", it's 'Miami Vice'--and dramatic television--at its absolute best.

Focusing on the quietly intense Lt. Castillo character (a fantastic Edward James Olmos), this is one of the best "hours" of television I've ever watched. Ever. Not only does Olmos deliver a riveting performance, he also directed the episode with great skill and a subtle flare befitting his alter ego. With Crockett and Tubbs reduced to supporting players, it's up to Olmos to carry the episode, and carry it he does.

Forget the flashy images and the MTV-ready soundtrack. This is the 'Miami Vice' I know and love.

Miami Vice - Bushido

[Scarecrow-88 · 9/10 · 9 August 2013]

In this excellent episode of Miami Vice, with a really fine use of Edward James Olmos' Martin Castillo, providing some intriguing back story to his often enigmatic character, has Dean Stockwell guest-starring as a close friend from his past, quite a history when both worked deep under for The Company. Stockwell is briefly used but his scene (as a supposedly rogue agent, named Gretsky, who, according to Jerry Hardin's Agent Hardin, has "went over to the other side", having married a former KGB agent, with a son) with Olmos is poignant and tragic. This side of the Castillo character (he hugs Gretsky with great love, as if knowing this would be their last time together) is rarely seen so "Bushido" should be of interest to those who envision Olmos solely as that head of Vice always sulking, monotone, and quietly intense. Gretsky even named his son after Martin (Marty), so we discover how rich their friendship really is. It is later discovered after Gretsky purposely pulls a machine gun on Castillo (leaving Castillo no choice but to use his gun in defense), that this rogue agent (he has been moving across the country leaving a trail of bodies, such as a drug dealer at the beginning of the episode) was riddled with cancer (the pain, one comments, should have been so unbearable that Gretsky must have had trouble just walking…). "Russkies" from the KGB are in America looking for not only Gretsky but his wife and son as well, hoping to either kill them or take them back to Russia. Castillo will try and protect Gretsky's family, taking them to a secluded location before sending them off on a boat to "parts unknown" (a place where they will be safe from those the mother defected from). But "Surf" (David Rasche of "Sledge Hammer!"), a Russian agent perfectly posing as a Miami pornographer (he looks the part of a thirty-year-old blonde beach bum; Rasche has a flashy part here that makes great use of his Cheshire grin and energetic personality), along with some help (machine guns as arsenal) will crash the party, with Castillo (despite being stabbed literally in the back by the very woman he tries to keep safe (revenge against him for the loss of her husband)) using a Samurai sword (a gift for Marty), going ninja on their asses! This is really an Olmos show - it really is all about Martin Castillo - with Crockett and Tubbs taking a back seat this go-around. Coolest scenes to me involve Castillo's tale of Toshun - a great Bushido warrior who left his clan out of protest against orders to kill a village, facing consequences from those he once served, soon having to face another Samurai that was closer than a brother - to Marty, a parallel to his own confrontation with Gretsky.

The Way of the Warrior

[Mr-Fusion · 8/10 · 11 November 2016]

"Miami Vice" has a signature brand of intensity. Usually, that belongs to Crockett, but here it's owned by Lt. Castillo. 'Bushido' gives us the biggest glimpse into his past, pitting him against old familiar faces, while excluding pretty much everyone else who can help him. And it's a fascinating story, playing all of this material against a Japanese warrior fable. To get a good idea of what this is really all about, Castillo at one point trades in his revolver for a samurai sword. And it works, especially with the ideal choice of David Rasche as a bad CIA operative.

Not everyone who made it out of Vietnam did so intact, and that really deepens this show's mistrust of geopolitical players.

8/10

Not so good the second time around!

[mm-39 · 6/10 · 30 October 2023]

Bushido was not so good the second time around! Bushido was well directed, acted and written. What makes Bushido interesting was the Marty character development based on the Bushido Samurai legend. There was an interesting beginning, a meeting with an old agency cohort. Knowing the full story a second time gets boggled down and slow. Second time around gets across as sappy and cleqche for any 80's series. The slow burn of Marty's personal side loses the effect on re run. The K G B and Crocket and Tubbs character was a good mix. Powerful the first time. Sappy second time around 6 stars. A little too serious.

Castillo...

[Khaela · 10/10 · 16 October 2019]

Ok let's face it... as soon as Castillo take a walk out of his office, you know, things will become interresting. This is the case in this episode once again. An episode with different aspects and honour. A must see... For me, it is one of the two episodes I remember from when I saw MV when it was aired a long long time ago ^^

A Television Masterpiece

[workoutguy · 10/10 · 19 March 2018]

From the mysterious stress field opening scene and the surprises it brings. To the continued tension that builds throughout the episode, this as good as television gets. The direction, the story, the shots...all build to an intense bloody climax. "Its snowing on the beach, boys."

Thousand Yard Stare

[arieldiaz-23509 · 9/10 · 19 February 2022]

This Lieutenant Castillo now I as an adult am getting to know him much better. Reminds me of Rambo with a deeper darker stare. The famous thousand Yard Stare. He is obviously a trained killer that has seen and been involved in so much, during this episode I realized that Crocket and Tubbs are beginners compared to the elite super soldier that Castillo is. As a kid watching Miami Vice I never understood why he never smiles and was a leader of very few words, well this episode showed me why! Castillo is without a doubt a great leader, a trained super soldier that will come out of the office only to defeat the worst that humanity has to offer. This Episode puts Lieutenant Castillo in a Superhero status for sure.