As one of the greatest television shows of all time, Miami Vice was not afraid to make us cry every now and then.
Season One
- Tubbs' Death by Origin Story of his older brother, fellow New York City detective Rafael, who was brutally gunned down. Seeing him scream and cry as he held his dying brother in his arms is unbelievably sad.
- In "Heart of Darkness", the incredibly sweet teenager Penny is murdered by her sleazy porn publisher in order to make sure she doesn't testify. Notably, Crockett and Tubbs hadn't even approached her about it yet.
- The episode also has FBI Agent, Arthur Lawson, unable to return to civilian life after too long undercover. He ends up hanging himself.
- The battered wife from "No Exit". Aside from her routine, vicious beatings, while her husband had it coming, it's still sad and frustrating that she had to come to killing him to escape his cruelty once and for all.
- "Milk Run" has two teenage boys, Eddie and Louis, who were manipulated into working as drug mules. Right before Crockett and Tubbs get them home safely, their ex-boss Pepe Moya ambushes them in a gift shop and shoots Eddie dead on the spot. Even with Tubbs catching up with him and gunning him down, it does little to assuage a broken-down and shell-shocked Crockett, who's sat on the floor next to the boy's body and then orders a horrified Louis to stay away from drug dealing and get on the plane to go home. When Tubbs tries to help his partner to his feet after Eddie's body is taken away, he's unable to out of shock, so Tubbs sits down next to him.
- "Evan". Crockett reluctantly reunites with a former partner and friend, Evan Freed, whose life has been in a downfall ever since his and Sonny's biggest regret years earlier; another coworker and good friend of theirs, Mike Orgel, came out as gay to them and while Evan began to viciously bully and then shun him (along with the rest of the squad to force him out), a conflicted Crockett did nothing in his defense, which eventually led Orgel to intentionally get himself shot by a drugged-up suspect. After Crockett eventually made up with Evan, who tearfully begged for his forgiveness and whose intense guilt and remorse caused him to live recklessly as an ATF agent and ever since their friend's death treated every suicide case he encounters seriously, he takes a bullet for his old friend, citing how this was his redemption and that soon Crockett would receive a bullet himself in the end as he dies in his arms. The addition of Peter Gabriel's "Biko" as Evan passes only makes it worse.
Season Two
- For Tubbs, the death of Angelina and supposed death of his son in "Sons and Lovers" is also this. He barely even got to know his little boy before they were both abducted by her half-brother, Orlando. Him coming to the safe house only to see the sight of an overturned, empty crib is as sad as it is frightening. And while his son was ultimately taken to safety at the last minute, he never knew that and was led to believe that he perished along with his mother. There's also the look of grief and horror on his face when the car that Angelina is tied up in explodes and at their funerals, Orlando further taunted him by sending him the dolphin necklace that their father had given her and a note that simply reads "I'll Be Back".
- "Bought and Paid For" has a friend of Gina's, a housekeeper named Odette Ribaud, who was raped by her client's son twice and was bought off by his powerful and well-connected father and her employer to drop the charges to provide a better life for her impoverished family in Haiti. When the son taunts her that he now owns her because of his actions and his father's payment to her family, she commits suicide out of guilt and shame by slitting her wrists, leaving Gina angry and devastated.
Season Three
- Switek finding Zito dead at the end of the first part of "Down For the Count", especially the look on his face upon realizing that his partner was gone. As heartbreaking as it was, the fun-loving and goofy Switek was never the same after that, with him even being unable to give the eulogy at his funeral in the second part of the episode, only being able to say that "Lar" was like a brother to him in addition to them being partners and best friends. He even hugs his partner's dead body after finding him and soon begins to cry.
Season Four
- The ending of "Rock and A Hard Place". As Crockett and Caitlin are saying their heartfelt goodbyes before she goes on tour, they make a vow to each other, even with the hardships they face regarding their respective careers and schedules, to still and try to make their marriage work, "or die trying", as he said. Made all the more gut-wrenching with what would happen a few episodes later and the scene being set to "Don't Dream It's Over" by Crowded House.
- "A Bullet For Crockett" is both a sad and scary episode. Aside from Gina's regret about the last time they spoke and dealing with that, the rest of the squad had to come to terms with the very real possibility that another of their coworkers and good friends could die, it also has a Call-Back to the first season episode "Evan" and the last haunting conversation that Evan and Crockett had.
- The murder of Caitlin Davies, having been shot dead in Crockett's arms after a concert, in "Deliver Us From Evil". This is made even worse when it's discovered that she was pregnant at the time of her death, something that she soon found out, but was never able to tell him before then. Her death is still felt by Crockett in the series finale with Tubbs commenting how he's given up on love and happy endings.
