A guy named Harlan comes in wanting a tattoo that represents the time he served in the IDS - the Israeli Army. It just so happens that Ami also served time as a volunteer for the IDS, and he feels personally connected to this tattoo. Ami attributes his time in the army as a turning point for him that got him out of gangs, away from guns, and kept him out of prison. Harlan ends up with a great insignia tattoo on his upper arm, and Ami says that it makes him want to get a similar tattoo from his own platoon.
Diablo Dimes is a musician who is about to release his first album and he comes in to see Darren for a tattoo. He wants a gypsy to symbolise good luck and Darren knows just what to do. He chooses a traditional style gypsy lady and adds the sentiments Diablo wanted - Rag Time Gypsy / New Orleans. Of course she turns out just beautiful and Diablo is very pleased.
Alicia walks in with some artwork for Garver - a painting by Mark Ryden from his Blood series - Rose. She wants a reproduction of the painting on her lower back as a memorial tattoo for a good friend of hers that died a year ago. Garver explains that reproductions are more difficult and you want to do that artist justice and get it as close to the original as possible. But of course, difficulties aside, Garver does a great job and Alicia is really pleased with the finished product.
The shop gets a visit by a very special guest - Ami's mom. She's in Florida for a few days from Israel, and it's the first time Ami's seen her in a few years. She's this short, adorable little lady who is all smiles - Yogi jokes that he expected her to be tall, skinny and mean-looking. Ami recalls how he angered his mother at 15 when he got his first tattoo and how she loathed it - and now she loves his tattoos and says that without them he wouldn't be the same person. She doesn't leave without saying she's proud of Ami - which he said he certainly hoped she would be, seeing as he's not in prison.
Jenny gets my favorite tattoo of the day. She comes in to see Garver and she wants a tattoo to remind her of her grandfather, whom she was very close to. She wants a fan with cherry blossoms and Japanese Kanji that reads "I love my grandfather". She gets it on the back of her shoulder and Garver gets the idea to add Mt. Fuji inside the fan as part of the background. It's a real piece of art when he's finished and Jenny is obviously thrilled.
And the Nuñez saga gets worse - Pamela has made an appointment with him to do a tattoo of a sun. She shows up for her appointment, but Nuñez is not there. Ami is livid, Garver is annoyed and Pamela is worried that he'll be hung over when he does get there and she wouldn't want him working on her anyway, so she leaves.
But before you're too hard on Chris Nuñez, his redemption walks through the door and his name is Josh. Josh is a young man who has literally risen up from the ashes. He onced lived in his car and spent all of his money on drugs and partying - today he owns his own business. He wants a tattoo to signify his sobriety and his promise to himself never to go back to his old ways. They decide on a dragon and phoenix, and Josh decides to get the phoenix first. Not only must Nuñez feel like he's found a kindred spirit in Josh, but he also has to make a big sacrifice in order to prepare for this tattoo - he stays home all night to research and draw instead of going out. He feels a sense of accomplishment that partying can't provide, and this reality check seems to wake Nuñez up to the fact that he needs to settle down a bit. He packs up his stuff and his dog and moves downtown, away from the temptations of the beach.
The last client of the show is Tom - a.k.a. South Beach drag queen, Shelley Novak. Tom has a Superman logo tattoo that he wants re-touched, which his old friend Ami is more than happy to do. Tom feels the Clark Kent/Superman double life is similar to his own situation, and he is preparing to finally reveal to his family who he really is.
Miami Ink airs on Tuesday nights, 10/9c, on The Learning Channel.
