This week’s episode of Miami ink was basically a review of some of Kat’s most interesting clients from the show and Kat herself giving personal commentary on each tattoo. If you watch the show regularly, it was really nothing new and even the commentary basically repeated what we already know with a little filler thrown in of Kat saying things like “this tattoo was really cool” and “I really liked doing this one”. But, here’s the basic gist of what happened.

The first one was Robert – a friend of Kat whose son, Allan, had died 11 years previously and Robert was finally ready to memorialize him with a tattoo. Kat did a portrait of Allan’s face, which was a particular challenge because he wore glasses.

Melody – the girl who got the pinup mermaid in memory of her dad. Her father was a sailor and would tell her stories of how the mermaids would lure the lonely sailors. Kat commented how she likes to add white highlights to black ink tattoos to add extra shine.

John and Gail – their baby died on her first day of being born. The doctors had told them there was a good possibility of brain damage, but they decided to leave it in God’s hands. So, they also chose a tattoo of hands holding their angel baby and the words “In God’s Hands” in script above the tattoo. Yoji, a new father himself, was particularly emotional about this tattoo.

Carolina – Darren’s wife. As a birthday present, Darren arranged to have Kat give Carolina a tattoo of the Virgin Mary. Kat really likes doing Catholic religious art and was excited about the project – until she got started and realized Carolina was going to be a crybaby through the whole thing. Kat thinks she was probably just faking most of it for attention. Kat gets really stressed out when people are in pain and she was really glad when this tattoo was finished – and so was Carolina. Her tears were replaced with smiles.

Alanna and Jessica – their friend and close family member, Devon Adair, died February 7, 2002, after falling asleep at the wheel. Alanna got a shooting star on the inside of her ankle, and Jessica got a sacred heart with wings. Kat added heavier lines and shading to the sacred heart to give it a more 3-D, bubbly look.

Ryan – the guy with the really big white sunglasses who was in a car accident and had been declared clinically dead for 20 minutes by paramedics, and as the bag was being closed over his head, he miraculously popped out of it. His mother had brought him a candle with a picture of “Our Lady of Guadalupe” (Virgin Mary) and he decided to have her tattooed on his side.

Oliver – Kat’s husband. He was visiting Miami Ink to see Kat and got some ink from her while he was there. He’s pretty well covered and doesn’t have much room left, but there was a nice spot at the back of his upper thigh. This sensitive area turned Oliver into almost as much of a crybaby as Carolina. Kat calls him a Drama Queen. She explains that they met in December and eloped in March, which didn’t go over well with the parents.

Josh – got an M.C. Escher tattoo to remind him of his sobriety. This tattoo was quite large and Kat didn’t feel like taking any breaks, so Josh was in a lot of pain towards the end of the tattoo. And then Kat says that she was stressed because he was fidgeting so much.

Last but not least – John – the father of Elise, the beautiful little girl with Tay-Sachs disease. John got a portrait tattoo of Elise sleeping on his chest, which was where she is always the most peaceful. Tay-Sachs is a terminal, but preventable, disease. For more information, visit The National Tay-Sachs and Allied Diseases Association

Unfortunately, I missed the first 10 minutes of this episode, which was probably actually the first 5 minutes along with 5 minutes of intro and commercials, but if I catch a re-run of it later I’ll throw in whatever is missing from this summary.

This episode is highlighting the best of Ami James – his most interesting and memorable tattoos and clients. Ami is sitting, reviewing the episodes, and giving his personal thoughts and commentary on each one. The first is one of Ami’s friends – Mike Diamond. This is from the March 7 episode when Ami was in a really bad mood and cut Mike with the razor while shaving him. Even now Ami doesn’t apologize for his bad attitude. He just says that’s the way he is and his friends know not to mess with him when he’s in a bad mood. Then he says he really put a lot into this tattoo because when you really care about someone, you want to do your best. I think it’s a good thing for Ami that Mike is such a peaceful guy.

Jason – Jason’s grew up on the back of a Harley and still rides to this day. Riding to him is a feeling of total freedom, and he wants a full backpiece of an eagle with its wings spread across from shoulder to shoulder. Garver helps Ami draw this one up and they create a huge stencil transfer. Ami says he loves the power of a huge backpiece that can be seen from far away, and powerful is a good way to describe the finished product.

Jodi – Ami’s most annoying customer. Jodi is the girl from the March 14 episode who was on holiday from Canada with her sister. Jodi was not intimidated by Ami’s bad-ass ‘tude and gave him attitude right back, which Ami didn’t appreciate. He threatened to boot her out of the shop and says that she was like a garbage disposal that would not stop spitting out garbage. But all’s well that ends well – she was happy with her tattoo and Ami was happy to see her leave.

Gianmarco – The big screw up. This is the guy that wanted the graffiti style letters down his arm with the letters “per sempre”, and even drew it out for Ami. But when the tattoo was finished, it actually said “pre sempre”. Gianmarco was so freaked, Ami said he blanched and actually almost fainted. Ami wouldn’t let him leave with a misspelled tattoo, so he reworked it completely and fixed it so it would be spelled right. Apparently, Gianmarco was telling everyone at work that the misspelling was Ami’s fault, so Ami felt he needed to set the record straight.

Alyson – Alyson’s friend Danny passed away and as a tribute to him, she wanted a tattoo just like Danny had on his side – a rose with a skull in the center. But Ami has to break it to Alyson that Danny’s tattoo was actually very poorly done and he wanted her to have something that looks much nicer, so he creates a similar but better design. She admits Danny would want hers to look nice and she goes with it, which turns out just great.

Harlan – the guy who was also in IDS – the Israeli Army – just like Ami. This was from theJanuary 24 episode, and Ami says it’s pretty cool (and rare) to meet another person from the U.S. that went over to volunteer for the IDS. Ami doesn’t have the insignia from his own platoon, but he says he will never forget where he came from or where he’s been.

Denise – She’s half Israeli and feeling a kindred spirit in Ami she tells him she wants “Hamas” hands, but what she actually wants is a Hamsa hand – the open hand with an evil eye in the middle. The purpose is that the hand wards off evil and “haters”, as Ami explains. He thinks it’s a cool idea and says that it has a lot of meaning in many cultures, not just Judaism. Ami confronts the issue that Jews are not supposed to be tattooed, saying that although he respects his faith, he doesn’t intend to stop doing things that he loves, such as tattooing and getting tattoos.

Alex – another friend of Ami’s. Alex wants a backpiece of a face, but doesn’t really have any specific requirements except that it have a feeling of serenity, something along the lines of Buddhism. Ami and the entire crew get together to create the design in marker on Alex’s back before tattooing it. It ends up being a very unique and interesting picture – another powerful full back tattoo.

Mark Zupan – an Olympic Quad rugby player. He became a quadriplegic after a vehicle accident that was actually caused by a friend (Christopher Igoe) of his after drinking too much. Not only did Mark forgive Igoe, but goes as far as to say that becoming a quadriplegic is the best thing that could have happened to him. He’s since become an Olympian, had a documentary made about him called Murderball, has done commercials and has gotten a lot of media attention. Mark is one of the most down-to-earth guys Ami has ever met and he’s really amazed by his spirit. Ami adds to a preexisting tribal tat on Mark’s arm and brings a Polynesian style tattoo around to his chest. This is the kind of story that really makes Miami Ink special.

This week’s episode that highlighted Chris Garver’s work was definitely my favorite out of the whole “Best Tatts” series so far. The first story was of Nicole – the guitar player who got a tattoo of her favorite guitar – a Fender Stratocaster. Garver said the biggest challenge of this tattoo was the strings – getting them perfectly straight and lined up like they’re supposed to be. Nicole enjoys flirting with Chris, and he says it’s normal for women to flirt with their tattoo artist because getting a tattoo is an intimate experience.

Evan Seinfeld – the singer from Biohazard that got the bad-ass skull tattoo that looked a lot like himself. Garver comments on the FTW on the bandana…he says a lot of people think that means “Free the Whales”, but he thinks Evan means something else by it. He smirks and then says, “Use your imagination.”

Alicia – the girl who got the Mark Ryden reproduction of the girl crying bloody tears. Garver says it’s a real challenge doing art reproductions because it’s not like “regular tattooing”, due to all the different colors throughout. Chris also says that he has very good eyesight – he can write his name on a grain of rice – so even though it’s a challenge, he really enjoys doing miniature tattoo pieces.

Eric – the big, bad biker who was brought to tears at the thought of his wife’s kindness to get him a tattoo for his birthday. Garver finds the sentiment of the wife very sweet and the emotional vulnerability of Eric amusing.

James – a friend of Ami’s from Denmark. He’s already got a great dragon on his right arm and shoulder, and Garver adds a fantastic tiger on the left arm and shoulder. Garver says he feels that this is one of the best tattoos he’s done at Miami Ink. It was also challenging because normally he doesn’t like to tattoo more than 3 hours at a time – at that point, the skin gets hot and the client gets fidgety. But since James is heading back to Denmark, they have to do it all at once, and it turns into a 7 hour session.

Harold Hunter – the skateboarder from New York who got the WTC memorial tattoo and Sk8 or Die under it. Garver felt personally connected with this one because he remembered Harold from the “old days” when he also lived close to the twin towers. He was in Japan when the towers were attacked, celebrating his birthday – his birthday is September 11. He was sad to hear Harold died just a couple of months after doing this tattoo.

Serena – the girl who got the Japanese Hannya mask. Garver says he thinks people like the Hannya mask because they like the devil look, but don’t want to actually get something Satanic, so they prefer the Japanese version. He says this tattoo was probably one of the least challenging for him to do, but also one of his favorites. He liked it especially because there was no sob story attached to it. He feels that people who are really in a bad place emotionally would be better off seeing a therapist instead of getting a tattoo. He’s afraid that someone not in the right state of mind may regret their decision afterward.

Big Dave – came in covered in a heavy black suit. Garver figures it must be his “thing” to go for the shock value of when people see all the tattoos he actually has. Garver did some interesting water effects between a couple of pre-existing tattoos to bring them together as one. Big Dave was definitely an interesting client, but I’m not sure that the tattooing Chris did here was really all that momentous.

Amber – came into the Hawaii shop while Garver was working there. She was going through some tough times and wanted some cherry blossoms on her shoulder. That turned into a whole bunch of cherry blossoms and floating petals all the way down her back. Garver says that traditional Japanese cherry blossoms are not done in different sizes, so he draws one and then copies it several times so all the blossoms are uniform. He said he wasn’t really sure what she thought about the tattoo, but she brought him cookies the next day so he thinks that’s a good sign.

Jerry – this is the guy obsessed with the 50s and wants old style pinup girls on his arms. While Chris is half way through the first one, Jerry suggests that maybe Kat could do the other one since she’s also so good at pinups. Someone cooks up the idea that they should do them at the same time, so they tag-team Jerry, which upon reflection was really not a very good idea. Even with all the joking and the challenge of being moved around, Jerry survives it all and both pinups look fantastic. Garver says it was fun, but he wouldn’t do it again.

Mike – his daughter, Krista, got cancer at a very young age and they really thought they were going to lose her. But their family motto was “never give up”, and she amazed everyone by beating it. So he wants a tattoo of a girl punching an ugly mass (tumor) like the one Kristen beat. Garver creates just the right picture. Garver likes this tattoo story because it’s in celebration of something positive.

While the past episodes of the Best Tatts series have focused mostly on tattoos and the interesting life stories of the clients, the Nuñez special – predictably – was more focused on the beautiful ladies he tattooed.

Karla – wants a tattoo of a lion with Medusa hair, but she isn’t willing to go large on the tattoo for the sake of detail, so Nuñez convinces her to go with something more basic. While being tattooed, she says she was banned from family picnics for 2 years after getting her first tattoo, and informs Chris that her mother is going to hate him, so he makes a public apology to “Mom”, because he’s not out to upset anyone.

Josh – the client that served as a reality check for Nuñez. He came in for a phoenix tattoo because the symbolism of rising up from the ashes was true to his own story of coming from a background of homelessness and addiction. Chris says he’s happy Josh will be coming back for more work.

Yazyth - a club dancer friend of Chris. This is the girl that whined when Chris tried to encourage her to take some time to think about her tattoo since she kept changing her mind. She insisted that if she didn’t do it that day, she’d never do it all all. However, Chris says that after all the whining and pouting he expected her to be a nightmare to tattoo, but she actually sat stock still and didn’t complain one bit.

Anna – a bartender and friend of Chris’s from the bar next door. She’s a recovering addict and has been clean and sober for just over a year, and she wanted a tattoo of the Hindu God, Ganesh. It’s a large tattoo that had to be done in 3 sessions, some of which was done after pulling a long shift at work, so it was painful and difficult for her to endure, which Chris explains can happen when you’re already tapped out physically.

Caroline - had complications during her pregnancies and is grateful to have three healthy children. She originally wanted tribal, but Chris talks her into something much more personal – a tattoo of her eyes reflecting in a rear-view mirror with fuzzy dice hanging down. Nuñez says he appreciates it when a client is open to suggestions instead of being stuck on an idea he really doesn’t think will work or they may regret down the road.

Chris – a small man with a huge heart. Chris is a motivational speaker and has traveled all around teaching kids the three D’s – dedication, determination and desire (to be a friend). He gets a script tattoo with these words, so the kids can see just how dedicated his is to his purpose. Nuñez says he admires Chris for what he does and was proud to have met him.

Deanna - Nuñez’s first crying client. Chris thought he was going to get a treat when she walked in the door because she was so pretty. Just goes to prove that looks are not everything. She whined and shed actual tears through her tiny little Kanji tattoo. Chris says he felt bad about this because he really doesn’t like to put anyone in pain and it makes it difficult to concentrate.

McLaine – came to Nuñez for a healing tattoo. When she was younger, she had an eating disorder and injured herself by cutting. Now she wanted to cover up some of her scars with something beautiful, and Chris creates a colorful flower on her stomach. He says that he is there to do his job, not pass judgment on his clients. Some of them like to share their stories and he’s willing to listen.

Trista - Nuñez says beautiful ladies are a perk of working in the shop, and apparently Trista was very perky. They didn’t even bother to talk about the tattoo he did on her, but highlighted the fact that Trista thought his bad-boy image was hot and Chris left the shop to have lunch with her. Chris says they are good friends now.

Stacy - the North Carolina farm girl. She talks about her love for her father and she gets two koi fish to represent both of them. She says she’s a bikini model who also drives tractors, so Chris can’t resist asking her to send him a picture of her in a bikini on a tractor, which she does. Nuñez can’t stop grinning about this one and saying how excited he was to get the photos.

Cristina – Nuñez’s own sister and he hasn’t seen her in 8 years. Chris says Cristina is as close to Martha Stewart (minus the jail time) as you can get – and he’s shocked when she says she wants a tattoo. She chooses Polynesian lovebirds and talks about how excited she is to have her brother giving her her first tattoo, and how much her kids love “Uncle Christopher”. Nuñez says he was really glad to do the tattoo and that she now carries a piece of him wherever she goes.

Joan – Chris’s mom! She was in the shop visiting one day and he asks her to give him a tattoo. On reflection, he marvels how his mom isn’t scared easily and jumped at the opportunity. She digs in and tattoos the word “Mom” on Chris’s leg, even making him flinch. She laughs and says this is payback for all the bad things he did that she didn’t get to punish him for. He says it’s one of the most special tattoos he wears.

The first client of the show is Bianca – a friend of Darren’s he met when he first moved to Miami Beach. Bianca is sure she must have been a pirate in a past life – she travels the world and chases the wind with the same freedom. She has always wanted a pirate ship and finally gets one on her left side, right over her ribs. Darren’s impressed how tough she is through it all – she takes it like a pirate.

DJ Skribble – the fellow graffiti artist that told Darren to give him something with “cosmic, futuristic energy”. Darren took off with the basic idea and created a great tattoo across Skribble’s upper back. Darren said this project really took him back as he hadn’t done graffiti art in years – that was before his tattooing days began.

Tanya – the model who got her magazine debut as a Geisha Girl and wanted an anime geisha tattoo to commemorate it. Darren says anime appeals to him like American traditional – simple elements, simple colors and bold lines that create a very graphic image.

Ryan – this guy was such a trip. First he comes in with his girlfriend wanting a heart with a key that represents her holding the key to his heart. When he comes back to get the tattoo – they’ve broken up. He decides to get the heart anyway, sans key. While lifting up his shirt to show Darren where he wants it, he reveals a tattoo of a G-string across his lower back! The guys think it will be great if Ryan actually wears a thong to get tattooed in and he says he would if only he had one! So Nuñez goes out and buys one! Ryan actually puts the thing on, which results in poor Darren begging him to put his pants back on while the other guys are doubled over laughing. Ryan is just kind of aloof through the whole thing – I’m not sure he even realized the guys were totally making fun of him.

Another Ryan – a friend of Darren’s whose brother, Mark (also a friend of Darren), passed away and wanted an appropriate memorial tattoo. Since Darren knew him, he helps Ryan create the perfect design for the hard-core skateboarder. Darren says he’s never done a tattoo that meant more to him personally than this one.

Ozzie – a very talented graphic artist. He designed a pair of knotted pencils that he wanted wrapped around his arm. Darren partied too hard the night before Ozzie’s appointment and it affected his blood sugar badly and he couldn’t come in to work. Ozzie didn’t even get upset – he just came back another day and got his first tattoo – he says it was well worth the wait.

Adam – from the hardcore band, H2O. Adam gets the words, “One life, one chance” tattooed on his arms and gets them strategically placed so they will be visible when he’s playing bass guitar with the band. Most of the band members are straight edge, which Darren himself practiced for about 6 years of his life. “One life, one chance” is the name of one of their songs on their FTTW album, and it’s very similar to the “Carpe Diem” motto that Darren fashions his own life after.

Alex – Darren just got over his broken arm and wasn’t sure just how long he’d be able to work, so he calls in a friend to continue a project on his leg they’ve been working on. Alex has also been in a car accident and is still in a lot of pain himself. Darren said he could actually feel the plates and screws in Alex’s leg while he was tattooing him. They were both in pain, but they kept each other going.

Diablo Dimes – the musician who got a gypsy head for good luck while pursuing his music career. Darren was just beaming talking about this tattoo, as American traditional art is definitely his favorite. He really loves the look of the classic gypsy and the meaning behind it.

Phil Varone – former drummer but now he’s focusing more on being a dad, because they didn’t see him much when he was always on tour. He got his daughter’s name tattooed on his chest when she was born, but now it’s time to get his son’s name – which is to be his last tattoo (he’s out of room anyway). The cute thing about this is he has Philip write his own name with a marker on his chest, and then Darren tattoos over it exactly as Philip wrote it. Darren says it may not be a masterpiece artistically, but it’s probably one of Phil’s most special tattoos.

Richard – Darren’s father. Richard and Darren’s brother, Ryan (Ryan number three for this show), have come to the shop with a surprise. Richard wants his first tattoo. Darren is stunned – his dad had talked for years about wanting a tattoo but Darren figured he was just blowing smoke. And then, there he is – with an adorable figurine of 3 penguins Ryan had given him – wanting it reproduced in ink to represent dad and his 2 sons. Darren says this was true affirmation that his father is obviously proud of him and that he shows off the tattoo to everyone.

Darren says moving to Miami from his home and wife were difficult and trying to get Carolina to join him was a battle. But things finally worked out and he’s really glad to be part of the Miami Ink success story.

In this season opener of Miami Ink, we get a glimpse into the kind of drama we can probably expect to see even more of in future episodes. Besides, what produces better ratings than a little drama?

Kat Von D has now joined the crew full-time, so fans of the lovely Kat are in luck. It also means we’ll be seeing a lot more glimpses of her husband, Oliver, in the shop. Is he keeping tabs on her?

Cariann is the first customer of the show. She brings a rough sketch of what she wants to Ami – a severed zombie hand with the fingers in the “rock on” positions. It has a bit of a traditional style to it – a green zombie hand, complete with stitch lines, bolts sticking out and a bloody bone protruding from the bottom.

Hey, Big Spender
All of the crew are living it up and enjoying their fame and fortune, but Nuñez seems to be taking it to extremes by spending without control. He walks into a car dealership, zooms in on a brand new Escalade and is driving out with it within minutes. He says he’s a live-for-the-day kind of guy and believes in enjoying the present to the fullest.

Alexis’ father passed and not long after his death, she came across a poem that said if you find a penny heads up, it means an angel is saying hello to you. Alexis wants Ami to give her a penny with angel wings for her father. Ami says it’s too small and to do the details justice, it would have to be larger, and he suggests a nickel. This annoys Alexis and she says she’s willing to cut out some of the detail as long as it still resembles a penny. Ami says it’ll still look bad, and that taking away the details will make it indistinguishable as a penny. Kat jumps in and says that the copper coloring would make it clear that it’s a penny, and Ami says that maybe Kat should do this tattoo. Kat says fine – she thinks she can do it. And she does; the penny is perfect, details and all, and Alexis is happy.

Alex already has a dragon half sleeve from Nuñez and is back for more. He wants to add a tiger under the dragon to finish out the sleeve. The tiger represents strength and he’s had to be strong against a lot of bad influences and bad decisions.

The Shop Clown
The shop’s getting busier and Yoji’s ready to start tattooing full time, so they decide they need a shop manager to help run the business end of things. In walks Anthony, a guy with no tattoos and no previous experience. Of course they’d turn him away, right? No! So, Anthony ends up telling one girl a tat on the bottom of her toe would be cool (they don’t do toe tattoos), another woman that they could give her an all-white-ink tattoo (they don’t do those, either) and hitting on a client before anyone tells him he’s not the right guy for this job. Duh!

Tish and her daughter Sam walk up to Ami, and Tish explains the tattoo she wants. Her son was only two when he passed away from choking as a result of a case of whooping cough. She carries a tiny urn with her that holds some of his ashes, and the urn has a fairy bowed down in mourning on top. She wants the image of this fairy on a crescent moon and two stars. Given the fact that Ami hates tattooing fairies, he handles this very respectfully and does a beautiful job on the tattoo.

Ami’s going through the shop bills and finds the one for the Escalade. Ami’s seriously ticked off with Nuñez’ live-for-the-moment attitude and incessant spending.

Damon comes in and talks to Darren about his tattoo idea. He explains that he’s a Type 1 diabetic, and is surprised to learn that Darren is, too. He wants the ripped skin effect with a brick wall and a syringe underneath, showing that even though Type 1’s look very much the same as everyone else on the outside, they have a constant battle raging on the inside. Darren changes up the design a little, which Damon likes, but they butt heads for a while over Damon’s desire to turn it into an armband. Darren pleads with him to just leave it as it is, and finally Damon concedes.

The Final Straw
A guy walks in the door with a delivery for Nuñez – a very nice, very expensive new watch. Ami completely blows his top over this one and tells Nuñez exactly how he feels about his irresponsible behavior before storming out the door.

Dave was electrocuted with 69,000 volts of electricity when he was 16. He wondered why he survived it and wasn’t sure what his purpose in life was until his little girl, Alexandria, was born. Kat does a beautiful portrait of the girl, saying that it’s nice sometimes to do a portrait that doesn’t have a sad, depressing story behind it.

The guys (minus Ami) are at the bar, and Nuñez is ranting about Ami’s nose being in his personal business. Garver wonders why Ami even cares what Nuñez does with his own money. Nuñez does the only thing he seems to know how to do and orders a round of beers for everyone at the bar. Miami Ink airs Tuesday nights on TLC at 10/9 Central.

The announcement is made that Yoji is finally ready to start tattooing and making some money. His wife is happy, and Yoji believes he is ready – even if he’s not, he has to do this because he has a family to support.

Emily wants to get Japanese cherry blossoms on her foot. She went through a difficult time, but now it’s a new season in her life. Nuñez (of course) fawns over the pretty girl, but she doesn’t seem to mind.

Yoji faces hazing by the crew as a rite of passage before crossing over into tattooing They all sit around planning what to do to him, and decide that they’re going to kidnap him and drop him off in Little Havana (about 6 miles from Miami Beach) in nothing but his boxer shorts and shoes.

Bryan and “wife” (name not given) – Adopted daughter Cassidy drowned in their swimming pool and Kat does a stunning portrait of her on Bryan’s arm. “Mom” cries while Kat is doing the tattoo, seeing Cassidy’s face come to life, and tells Kat that she has a real gift.

Wellington brings in a picture of a Green Tree Python to Ami and wants it on his arm. Ami says he loves snakes – he used to have about 100 of them when he was younger. Later, when Wellington comes back, he brings a friend with him – a Bald Python. Ami is impressed; Yoji jumps out of his chair. Ami can’t resist chasing Yoji with the snake, causing him to crouch down on the floor and beg Ami not to touch him with it. Yoji thinks the way snakes hiss and slither is disgusting. Ami finds it all very amusing.

But Yoji gets his revenge when Darren releases a box of white mice into the shop, knowing Ami has a phobia. Ami catches a glance of one and jumps up out of his chair right in the middle of Wellington’s tattoo, cusses up a storm and refuses to re-enter the shop until every mouse is removed. Yoji finds it all very amusing.

Meagan has a large scar on her spine due to surgery from severe scoliosis when she was younger. Now she wants it covered up with a tattoo – not to hide it, but to beautify it. She’s been studying Buddhism and chose a White Tara – the female Buddha and Goddess of Longevity. Garver enjoys doing the Tibetan style art, despite the additional difficulty of working on the scar tissue. It’s a very large tattoo taking up over half of Meagan’s back, and it appears she had the whole thing done in one sitting.

D-Day for Yoji. Yoji’s sitting on the bench outside and the guys grab him and throw him in a van and take him to Little Havana. They drop him off in his boxers with a pillowcase on his head. Yoji says he was so embarrassed because everyone was looking at him like he was a freak – yeah, right. This is the same guy who ran around in his fundoshi just for the heck of it and mooned everyone at the end of a musical performance.

Ivy Supersonic makes wild and crazy rock star hats for celebrities and wants a tattoo of a cartoon of herself in one of her crazy hats. Kat doesn’t usually do animated, colorful stuff like this but is stoked for this project. But then there is this huge debate over where to put the tattoo. Ivy can’t make up her mind and Kat keeps having to do the transfer over and over. Ami says if his client had done that to him, he would have kicked her out of the shop. Finally she decides to get it on her stomach. Then she sees the finished product in the mirror and thinks the colors aren’t bright enough. (Her skin is really dark and she expects it to look like it is on a piece of white paper). Kat adds more color and Ivy says she loves it but Kat isn’t sure – she wants her clients to be instantly in love with their tattoo, not grow to love it.

Meanwhile, it’s been 2 hours since Yoji’s kidnapping and he’s still trying to find his way back home. Finally he walks back in the shop, looking worn and sore. The guys hand him two brand new tattoo machines. He’s almost too tired to enjoy it!

Josie enters the shop, interested in the shop management position. She’s dressed preppy and has no tattoos. Everyone tells her she just isn’t right for the position and send her away. Later she comes back with her hair colored and chopped, dressed all punked out with studs and covered in fake tattoos. The repressed laughter around the shop is practically tangible. They accuse her of being a poser; she says she’s someone showing how determined she is. They tell her that, as a teacher, she is really too good to be a shop mule.

Lori and Tanya are celebrating a 20-year friendship. Yoji does his first tattoo with his own tattoo machine. It’s a tribalesque design of their initials. Ami sends Yoji to draw the design and makes him redo it, saying Yoji is only half a tattoo artist at the moment and still has a lot to learn. The lines were a little shaky and it wasn’t a perfect tattoo, but the girl seems happy with it.

Ivy Supersonic is ba-ack. She brings Kat one of her crazy hats, which Kat is really happy about and maybe that makes up for the hell she put her through.

Sussan is a graffiti artist and designed her own tattoo, which she brings to Darren. It’s an ambigram that says “faith” one way and “trust” when turned upside down. Sussan says the tattoo represents a lot of tough times she’s been through. She asks Darren to add some flowers around it, and he says that the design is good enough that it doesn’t need any alteration. It’s her first tattoo and she gets it right on her ribcage, but with the help of her boyfriend, Chad, she hangs in there through the whole thing.

Kat discovers a disgusting mess in the bathroom – the toilet is unflushed, there is urine all over the floor and it stinks. Nunez and Garver both agree it’s disgusting; Yoji says, “It’s only pee.” Kat decides she is going to find out who the “potty monster” is. She starts inspecting the bathroom every time one of the crew has finished using it. Yoji comes out of the bathroom and when Kat checks it, the mess is back. Kat is so disgusted with Yoji she storms out of the shop.

Dalia’s father died serving in the Armed Forces in Afghanistan. He received a bronze star when he was killed and Dalia wants a tattoo of the service medal and a rosary. Nunez suggests that a “floating” rosary may look odd and suggests just the star. Dalia gets very sentimental when she sees the finished piece.

Talia comes in to apply for the shop manager position. She actually has tattoos and says she has tattoo experience, but is vague about what that means. Darren tells her she can come back the next day after the crew has had a chance to talk, and she asks if there is anything she can do for them today. They jump on this opportunity and send her to go get lunch for all of them, which Talia says she’s sure wouldn’t be considered a “normal” duty of shop manager – would it? When she discovers that “shop manager” is just a glorified term for personal assistant, she tells Nunez she thinks she may be a bit overqualified but would like to offer her services as a cosmetic tattoo artist. She shows Nunez her portfolio and he agrees she does great work and her line of work is important and helps a lot of people, but they simply don’t have room for it in their shop.

Athena owns (custom motorcycle shop) and wants to get a tattoo of her company logo, the “Vagabond Chickie,” alongside the first bike she ever built. Kat changes the logo girl up a bit to make her more sexy, but is afraid Athena won’t like it. Her fears are alleviated when Athena sees it and is visibly excited and loves the sketch. Kat and Athena enjoy sharing their common bond, being women working in male-dominated industries.

Amanda is getting married soon and wants to cover some keloid scars on her upper back and shoulders from a severe case of chicken pox. Ami is concerned that the tattoo could cause additional keloiding, and designs the tattoo around – but not on – her scars. She brought in her own design of a tribal-style wing, but Ami draws a much more artistic version of it, which she loves. Ami tells her she really shouldn’t be ashamed of her scars, because they build and add character. But Amanda was teased so much as a child because of them that she just can’t seem to accept them, and gets a huge boost of confidence when she sees the tattoo.

Greg wants Garver to tattoo a Japanese snake on his arm that will work with the armband he already has. He brings a lot of reference material with him, which Garver pretty much ignores and draws the snake up the way he would have anyway, and hopes Greg will like it. He does. They do over half of the tattoo in one sitting and it’s already looking great. When the colors go in and it’s finished, it’s amazing.

Nunez takes Yoji shopping and makes him buy cleaning supplies for the bathroom as his “punishment.” Kat goes back to the bathroom and is blown away. There is a colorful rug on the floor, a paper seat cover dispenser, candles burning, and a bouquet of flowers. Yoji gets a hug. Now let’s see if they can keep it clean.

Sussan is a graffiti artist and designed her own tattoo, which she brings to Darren. It’s an ambigram that says “faith” one way and “trust” when turned upside down. Sussan says the tattoo represents a lot of tough times she’s been through. She asks Darren to add some flowers around it, and he says that the design is good enough that it doesn’t need any alteration. It’s her first tattoo and she gets it right on her ribcage, but with the help of her boyfriend, Chad, she hangs in there through the whole thing.

Kat discovers a disgusting mess in the bathroom – the toilet is unflushed, there is urine all over the floor and it stinks. Nunez and Garver both agree it’s disgusting; Yoji says, “It’s only pee.” Kat decides she is going to find out who the “potty monster” is. She starts inspecting the bathroom every time one of the crew has finished using it. Yoji comes out of the bathroom and when Kat checks it, the mess is back. Kat is so disgusted with Yoji she storms out of the shop.

Dalia’s father died serving in the Armed Forces in Afghanistan. He received a bronze star when he was killed and Dalia wants a tattoo of the service medal and a rosary. Nunez suggests that a “floating” rosary may look odd and suggests just the star. Dalia gets very sentimental when she sees the finished piece.

Talia comes in to apply for the shop manager position. She actually has tattoos and says she has tattoo experience, but is vague about what that means. Darren tells her she can come back the next day after the crew has had a chance to talk, and she asks if there is anything she can do for them today. They jump on this opportunity and send her to go get lunch for all of them, which Talia says she’s sure wouldn’t be considered a “normal” duty of shop manager – would it? When she discovers that “shop manager” is just a glorified term for personal assistant, she tells Nunez she thinks she may be a bit overqualified but would like to offer her services as a cosmetic tattoo artist. She shows Nunez her portfolio and he agrees she does great work and her line of work is important and helps a lot of people, but they simply don’t have room for it in their shop.

Athena owns (custom motorcycle shop) and wants to get a tattoo of her company logo, the “Vagabond Chickie,” alongside the first bike she ever built. Kat changes the logo girl up a bit to make her more sexy, but is afraid Athena won’t like it. Her fears are alleviated when Athena sees it and is visibly excited and loves the sketch. Kat and Athena enjoy sharing their common bond, being women working in male-dominated industries.

Amanda is getting married soon and wants to cover some keloid scars on her upper back and shoulders from a severe case of chicken pox. Ami is concerned that the tattoo could cause additional keloiding, and designs the tattoo around – but not on – her scars. She brought in her own design of a tribal-style wing, but Ami draws a much more artistic version of it, which she loves. Ami tells her she really shouldn’t be ashamed of her scars, because they build and add character. But Amanda was teased so much as a child because of them that she just can’t seem to accept them, and gets a huge boost of confidence when she sees the tattoo.

Greg wants Garver to tattoo a Japanese snake on his arm that will work with the armband he already has. He brings a lot of reference material with him, which Garver pretty much ignores and draws the snake up the way he would have anyway, and hopes Greg will like it. He does. They do over half of the tattoo in one sitting and it’s already looking great. When the colors go in and it’s finished, it’s amazing.

Nunez takes Yoji shopping and makes him buy cleaning supplies for the bathroom as his “punishment.” Kat goes back to the bathroom and is blown away. There is a colorful rug on the floor, a paper seat cover dispenser, candles burning, and a bouquet of flowers. Yoji gets a hug. Now let’s see if they can keep it clean.

Miami Ink Summary – August 2, 2006 Episode

Normally I try to keep my summaries to one page, but the prank the crew pulls in this episode is just too good to leave out the details. If you missed the show, I tried to describe the events as well as I could, so make sure you read both pages of this article!

Alex Finds Herself
Alex wants a pinup tattoo of herself in a sexy pose with high heels and revealing clothes. It may sound vain until you understand her story of a controlling boyfriend who wouldn’t allow her to wear what she wanted and caused her to lose herself. Now she is celebrating her new-found freedom and taking back control with a tattoo from the ultimate pinup tattoo artist, Kat Von D.

Vegas’ Vow to be a Better Father
Vegas laments that his father was never there for him and now he has a son of his own; he never wants to be guilty of allowing a rift to develop between them. He’s not sure how to represent it in a tattoo, so he leaves it in Ami’s hands. Ami comes up with the idea of the “Thinking Man” statue, because Vegas’ father was a mystery to him and he never knew what he was thinking. Vegas loves the idea and loves the tattoo even more.

Joel – Shop Manager Applicant and Prank Victim
Joel is the next shop manager applicant to enter the lion’s den. He just graduated from college and Ami warns him that “shop manager” means unending torment. Joel says he thinks he can handle that, so they ask him to come back the next day. In the meantime, the crew decides to pull a prank on Joel by leaving him alone in the shop and sending in a “thug” to threaten him. Their friend Joey is the perfect guy for the job – a very big, muscular black guy with a shaved head and intimidating walk. They rig the shop with hidden cameras and the plan is in motion.

Jannette’s Flower
Jennette was very close to her grandfather and he was very involved in her life. He taught her to speak Spanish and how to braid the hair on her dolls. She is grateful that he had the chance to watch her grow from little girl to lady – or bud to flower. So she wants a flower on her foot to remind her of him. Nunez tattoos a large orchid on her ankle and Jennette says maybe she will have the strength to visit his grave one day and will put flowers on it – maybe orchids.

Yoji Loses his Temper
Juan comes in wanting a tribal dragon. If this guy wasn’t a total plant just for TV drama, I’d be shocked. Yoji traces a tribal dragon and the guy says it looks flat like roadkill. The guy is obviously trying to bait Yoji to stir up trouble. Yoji starts to argue with him and loses his temper. Ami chews him out and threatens to take any future lost business out of Yoji’s paycheck. Then Ami takes Yoji to the gym to let him release his frustration on a few punching bags and Yoji says he feels much better.

Richard Celebrates Sobriety
Richard has literally been to hell and back. He was a drug (meth) addict for 7 years and has been sober since 1998. He talks to Ami about a sleeve of skulls with a bible scripture. Garver taunts Ami, saying he can’t draw skulls. Ami accepts the challenge and they both draw up skulls and let Richard decide. Whose skulls does he like better? Ami’s. Garver’s was clearly more detailed but he didn’t like that he had drawn eyeballs inside the sockets. But when Ami starts the tattoo, it is clearly Garver’s design although they never mention that. Either way, Richard is very pleased with his tattoo.

The Prank
Joel’s back and they spend the morning showing him around the shop, just biding their time until they can leave for “lunch” and leave Joel alone to manage the shop. The crew has their friend Joey ready to come in as the “thug” to stir up trouble. Joey comes in wanting to know where Nunez is. Joel tells him that he’s out to lunch and Joey says that Nunez owes him a lot of money and he says he’s going to take Nunez paintings as payment. Joel gets right up in this guy’s face and doesn’t back down and calmly but firmly tries to take control of the situation. Joey finally “wins” and walks out with the painting and a tattoo machine. Joey’s freaking out and is pacing the shop alone mumbling to himself about “the gorilla that just walked in” and says “that guy was big!” The crew is watching all of this on the monitors they’re all doubled over in laughter. Then they return to the shop, acting like they’ve just been to lunch, and Joel tells them what happened. Ami starts yelling at Nunez for gambling again and they all start freaking out about how dangerous this guy is. Nunez says he’s leaving! Ami tells Joel to go take a walk for a minute and they’ll call him back soon so he leaves the shop and everyone starts busting up and high-fiving each other.

Mandy brings in a picture of the word “Believe” with her zodiac sign, Libra. Ami mocks it saying it’s boring, but agrees to do it anyway. When Ami comes in for the tattoo, she likes the way Ami drew it up, but when she suggests peridot green because “it’s the color of August,” Ami gets belligerent. Many rolls with the punches and tells Ami that she isn’t paying him to talk – only to tattoo. They end up bouncing several jokes back and forth and then she breaks down in tears when she sees the tattoo (because she liked it).

Carolina’s Announcement
Darren gets a phone call. Carolina announces that she’s “late.” Darren confirms that she hasn’t taken a pregnancy test yet. Jokes ensue in the shop at Darren’s expense, which he tries to laugh off the best he can. She’s waiting for him to come home that night to take the test together, but just had to call him at work and stress him out about it all day.

Bradley has a picture of viscous looking crab (which I believe was a deep sea stone crab) one of his friends caught. He has a connection with the ocean and this awesome crustacean makes him think of his love of the sea. Darren takes the job, but probably wishes he hadn’t when Bradley goes on and on about his pregnant wife back home.

Lynda’s brother died after a long battle with meningitis. She’s having trouble letting her brother go, and wants Garver to do a memorial tattoo of a sad large-eyed fairy and her brother’s name. Garver gets really depressed just drawing the tattoo, which incorporates both of his least favorite elements – fairies and anything to do with death. He seriously considers suggesting someone else do the tattoo, but he sticks with it because he knows how important the tattoo is to Lynda.

You’re a Good Boy, Nunez
We see Nunez in his home with his mom. He’s been taking care of her because she’s preparing to go in the hospital for knee surgery. She jokes that she’ll come back “Titanium Woman.” She’s worried about not waking up, wondering if she should fill out a living will and Nunez comforts her and assures her that it is not necessary, and he will see her when her surgery is over.

Gordon’s father was a respected member of their Native American tribe. Gordon brings a ton of resources and pictures to Darren, asking him to create a tattoo out of it. Darren manages to pull off this challenge by putting together a feather, a chef’s hat, a bingo card, a slot machine, the Cadillac emblem and a bunch of other details into one upper arm tattoo. They do it in two sessions and it’s quite a piece to behold!

Steven wants a guardian angel to protect him and ward off evil. While Ami is tattooing him, Steve explains that he feels his mother was saved by her guardian angel when she was pistol whipped (at 60+ years old) during a robbery and had to have jaw reconstruction, but she survived the ordeal. This story really irritates Ami, to imagine someone could do that to an elderly lady.

Is Carolina Pregnant?
Darren’s home. Carolina wants to have a full baby discussion and Darren doesn’t want to explore the “what ifs” until they know one way or another. Carolina’s nervous because if it’s a no she’s going to be sad. She takes the test, and it’s negative. Darren tries to hide his relief while trying to comfort Carolina, but a seed has been planted and Carolina thinks maybe Darren will be more amenable to the idea of having a baby now. Needless to say, Darren has no objection to the process of trying to make one.

The Language Barrier
Agnieszka (a NIS kah) comes in for her appointment with Nunez, and Yoji tells her that he’s at the hospital with his mom because she’s having surgery. Apparently, Nunez trusted Yoji with canceling his appointment and Yoji forgot to call her, but then he insists that Nunez didn’t leave her phone number for him to call. Darren is very annoyed with Yoji. Now that she’s in the shop and disappointed that her artist isn’t there, Yoji may have to step up and do it himself? He asks her what she wanted and she tries to explain but her polish accent is so thick, Yoji can’t understand her and she can’t understand him. She wants the symbol of the Hindu goddess, Kali. Yoji offers to do it but he’s really not good enough and Darren tells him to let someone else handle it. Garver has time to take over the job and Agnieszka is very happy with it.

Nunez picks up his mom from the hospital and the surgery was successful and she should be up and running in no time.