How to watch: Available with Netflix membership
Starring: Iko Uwais, Lewis Tan, Katheryn Winnick, Byron Mann, Juju Chan, Li Jun Li, Lawrence Kao, Celia Au, Tommy Flanagan, Mark Dacascos.
Director: Toa Fraser, Stephen Fung, Michael Nankin, Roel Reine, Katheryn Winnick.
Writers: Jessica Chou, Tony Krantz, Yalun Tu, John Wirth, Cameron Litvack, David Simkins, Julie Benson, Shawna Benson.
Runtime: 10 Episodes
Rating: TV-MA
Release Date: August 8, 2019
Style: Martial Arts, Fantasy, Crime, Drama
More information on this series can be found on its IMDB page.
The Sad State of Martial Arts on TV
So far into 2019 movies like Triple Threat, John Wick: Chapter 3 Parabellum, and Avengement have lit up the big screen with fantastic martial arts goodness. However, the small screen has been going through a bit of a rut in this past year. Daredevil, Iron Fist, and The Punisher were all canceled by Netflix. Then Into the Badlands met its untimely end at the hands AMC after three seasons. This has left the television landscape without a fictional martial arts-focused program, unless of course, you have Cinemax where you can watch Warrior. But who the hell has Cinemax, anyway?
On August eighth Netflix debuted their latest original in Wu Assassins which stars Raid: Redemption star Iko Uwais, former Into the Badlands star Lewis Tan, Vikings’ Katheryn Winnick, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny’s Juju Chan and international star Byron Mann. A cast like that could bring something special back to television. It may even be something that makes up for the loss of the previously mentioned shows. So, is it that “something special”, or is it just another Netflix show?
Overview
Uwais plays Kai Jin, a San Francisco chef with hopes of starting his own food truck. One day he is approached by a spirit who endows him with the power of a thousand monks becoming the Wu Assassin. As the Wu Assassin, Kai must hunt down the five Wu Warlords as each holds different elemental powers. He is joined by his long-time friends: Lu Xin, Tommy Wah, Jenny Wah, and undercover officer Christine Gavin. All of which are tied to the prophecy Kai sees when he becomes the Wu Assassin. The powers of the Wu are not all he must deal with as the Triads are lurking behind every corner. To make matters worse, Kai’s father is the head of the local chapter of the Triads and just might be one of the Wu Warlords.
Story Review: 7/10
What It Gets Right
Wu Assassins does a wonderful job of telling a mystical story about human characters. Kai knows that he must face his own father if he is going to save the world. Of course, this leads to some problems, but what about for the father? How would a man with dark intentions react to learning that the only thing stopping him from achieving his goal is his only son? That relationship felt like it was going to be a crutch but the antagonist having his own struggles felt refreshing. The introduction of other antagonists provides enough space for the father-son relationship to evolve each character individually.
Family is a major focus of the show. Not only does Kai worry about fighting his father to save the world but almost every character has their own problems involving their loved ones. Jenny tries to keep her restaurant afloat while keeping her drug addict brother Tommy clean. They both do what is best for their restaurant while also trying to appease their strict father. These dilemmas feel nearly as heavy as learning that they are part of a world-ending prophecy. Even the big bad villain of the show believes he is doing everything for the greater good because the greater good to him means seeing his wife and child again. He’s evil and his acts are reprehensible but his story brings sympathy to him as he was unfairly pushed to become the monster he is.
What It Gets Wrong
“I Could Never Take a Life”
Perhaps one of the weakest aspects the show is how often something is built up without ever actually feeling very important. Two major examples immediately come to mind. The first comes from the main protagonist Kai Jin. Kai is told that he will be forced to kill whoever gets in his way. This creates a conflict within Kai as the reason he was chosen is that he is pure of heart. He does not think that he has it in him to take a life and he struggles with this every time someone tells him who he needs to kill. When the moment finally comes for Kai to do what must be done there isn’t any struggle. He takes a life in a heated battle only showing concern for his own and his goal of securing the Wu elements.
Compare this to another Uwais moment in the film Raid: Redemption. As Rama, Uwais finds himself in a deadly battle with machete-wielding thugs. Up until this moment he had killed plenty of men, but he notices that someone he is fighting is just a kid, barely the age 18 if even that. In a spectacular fight, Rama impales the boy’s throat through the shattered remains of a broken door. He still has other people to fight but for just a few seconds the camera focuses on Rama as his face shows signs of anguish and regret for what he was driven to do. This small detail, that truly only lasts maybe two and a half seconds, adds so much to the character and the moment.
Wu Assassins lacks even the slightest moment of sympathy and once Kai takes his first life, he easily eliminates any enemies who get in his way. All of that talk of inner conflict was for nothing.
“You Made Me a Monster”
The other wasted storyline comes from the character of Lu Xin. Lu Xin is made to feel like a monster due to a third-degree burn he suffered when he was young. He feels incredible disdain for the person responsible as it has made him feel like a freak for most of his life. He goes as far as to nearly murder someone when he finds who was at fault. While this is pushed down the viewer’s throat time and time again there isn’t any weight to it because the scars are never shown. Nor is there a moment where the character is ridiculed for his condition.
The characters spend time talking about it but no proof of it is ever shown. This whole thing comes from one of the most confident and egotistical characters on the whole show. This scar is his one insecurity and the consequences of it are never put on display, just mentioned in passing by him and other characters. When the time does come for him to face the one responsible the moment lacks any real weight because viewers never truly get to see the struggle that these scars have created for him.
Martial Arts Review: 9.6/10
Kickass Cast
As soon as the show was announced fans saw Iko Uwais and expected Raid: Redemption level action. This is an unfair assumption. The show never reaches that level of intensity but that is not a bad thing, it was never trying to be that. There are reminiscent moments simply based on Uwais’ Pencak Silat but the show went for a flashy American style. The choreography and camerawork are expertly done but the action does lack the ferocity of Uwais’ previous work.
The stacked cast of characters provides multiple opportunities for incredible fight sequences. Lewis Tan thrills in every fight that comes his way. Juju Chan dominates her enemies as the intense Zan. Even Katheryn Winnick gets to put her Taekwondo and karate black belts to good use. Finally, Iko leads the charge with his own experience in fight coordination behind the scenes. His tenure in front of and behind the camera influence every beat of the action and the directors do a fantastic job of capturing every fighter’s strengths.
Martial Arts + Mystical Powers
It is common in super-powered media for characters to forget that they have abilities and just start punching. Wu Assassins is not in that group. While there is plenty of fisticuffs between powered individuals there is always room for them to incorporate their powers into the fight. This ends up being one of the most interesting aspects of the action. Characters must be strategic and methodical about how they’re going to finish their opponent. As the Wu Assassin Kai builds up some defenses against the elements. Simply burning him or hurling a boulder at him isn’t enough. This leads to some creative and entertaining use of the Wu Warlords’ powers.
Grade: 8.3 Out of 10
Conclusion
Wu Assassins is a welcome inclusion to the television landscape. When shows like Daredevil, Iron Fist, and Into the Badlands were forcibly ended a hole was left in the hearts of fans everywhere. Does Wu Assassins fill that void? Not really, but that’s okay. That would be a tremendous burden on the creators, directors, and performers. There are lulls in the action but that is to be expected from a ten-episode series.
If you’re craving a nonstop, face kicking action series, then maybe pump the brakes a little bit. A show like the aforementioned Daredevil was not critically praised for just its action. The Walking Dead wasn’t one of the most-watched shows of all time because people were crazy for zombies. Those shows saw success because of the stories they told, and the endearing characters followed along the way. And yes, there was some awesome action and horror sprinkled in. That’s what this show is going for.
There is some questionable CG but very few shows have quality computer-generated effects on a television budget. At times the acting varies in quality but that could be for a plethora of reasons. Some of the greatest actors of the generation have struggled through awkward dialogue. These negatives do not do much to take away from the quality of the story being told or the action going down. This is a delightful show with a stellar cast and thrilling action.
Netflix Needs Us
If you struggle in the first few episodes, just remember that many of the greatest shows ever made had a rough first few episodes themselves and even some difficult first seasons. Stay with the show because if you want martial arts to stay on television than you have to watch it. Netflix relies on watch numbers to determine if they get another season. If you want another season or even just more shows like this than you have to watch it.
What did you think?
What were your thoughts on Wu Assassins? Were you disappointed or was this everything that you wanted and more? Tell us your thoughts on the show. When you’re done head over to Martial Arts Film Freak on Youtube to see me reviewing this show and other martial arts content.
Wu Assassins
The Good
- Character relationships
- Choreography
- Integration of abilities
The Bad
- Unimportant side plots
- Lack of payoffs. (Not a lot)
- Some Poor CGI & Acting
Check out my Youtube channel where I review and discuss martial arts films.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUYUbj1Rjnf07S3UbVvKZ0Q?view_as=subscriber
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