Episode Guide
Drunken Watermelon – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Misspent Youth – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Fire Chicken – | Review Score – 3.5/5 A Twisting Snake – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Codladh Sámh – | Review Score – 3/5 Gu Assassins – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Legacy – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Ladies’ Night – | Review Score – 4/5 Paths Part 1 – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Paths Part 2 – | Review Score – 3/5 Blending elements of Warrior, Iron Fist and pure martial art films, Wu Assassins is a high-octane series that relies heavily on its impressive action sequences to tie everything together. Between the expository-laden dialogue and questionable script work, Wu Assassins feels much more basic than its story would imply, especially as the series kicks into gear during the later episodes. While it doesn’t quite hold the same lasting allure as other shows in this genre, there’s an accessibility to Wu Assassins that makes it a very easy show to dip in and binge through. The story begins at breakneck speed, with a hallway fight and a fast-paced flurry of kicks and punches that sets the tone to follow. From here, we jump to our main protagonist Kai who has the power of 1000 monks bestowed upon him by a mystic. It’s here we learn that he’s tasked with stopping an impending threat of warlords who are on their way to San Francisco. Adopting traits from the usual archetypal stories you’d expect here, this journey sees Kai hunt for five elementals whilst preparing for the final fight to come. In the midst of this grows a threat between the Triad gang and American businessman Andrew McCullough, which becomes ever more prominent and important the longer the series wears on. All of this culminates in a two part finale that sees all the pieces come together for the final fight for humanity. For the most part, Wu Assassins does well to keep up a consistent pace across its ten episodes, with a generous helping of well-choreographed fights throughout. Combining a mixture of sharp edits and long cuts to show off the different moves, these sequences ultimately become the strongest part of Wu Assassins, with the action coming thick and fast through the episodes. When the action dies down though, the issues inherent with the series show up, as Wu Assassins struggles to avoid its cheesy, cliche-riddled dialogue. It’s not the worst out there, but combined with the pop and hip-hop inspired soundtrack, does give the show much more of a young-adult feel than it perhaps should. Kai is certainly likable though and some of the other characters, including Jenny, do grow on you as the series wears on. The casting overall is spot on and there’s just enough charisma and chemistry tying everything together to keep things enjoyable throughout. Compared to other, more recent martial art shows like Cobra Kai or Warrior though, Wu Assassins lacks a unique selling point to really help it stand out. Stay for the fighting; look past the archetypal story and cheesy dialogue. Wu Assassins is fun, light entertainment that makes the most of its action that unashamedly ties everything together. Despite its shortcomings, Wu Assassins is surprisingly easy to watch and has enough drama in its 10 episodes to make it a solid choice if you’re looking for another action series to tide you over this summer.
