Like most of the Starz shows made by Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson’s production company, Fightland has some eye-rolling, over-the-top moments, and a high body count. At its heart, the show is more of a revenge-minded crime drama, but it does have some depth to it, aided by a soulful performance by its lead, Howard Charles.
FIGHTLAND: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: The Las Vegas Strip. We then see Maduka “Duke” Kilroy (Howard Charles) come out of his corner swinging during his WBC heavyweight championship bout.
The Gist: The Duke is one of the best boxers training in the stable of promoter Kingsley Marshall (Nicholas Pinnock), who owns an upscale training gym in London. Marshall’s daughter Cebella “Cece” Marshall (Anita-Joy Uwajeh) is the brains of the operation, and he is constantly upbraiding his son, Ezekiel “Zeke” Marshall (Charles Babalola) for his constant striving for style points without attention to detail.
One of the things we find out, though, is that Marshall Promotions’ main businesses are selling drugs and money laundering — and intimidating reporters that are sniffing around too closely.
Duke knocks out his opponent, giving him the championship belt. Later that night, we see him having sex with Kingsley’s wife, Joy (Deborah Ayorinde). Now that he’s the champion, Duke really wants to sign with a new promoter so he and Joy can start a new life together; she has her doubts that she can leave Kingsley, though.
During the party celebrating his victory, Duke goes to meet his younger brother Cal (Jurell Carter) in the parking garage when he’s jumped by three thugs. One is wielding a hammer, and he crushes Duke’s left hand with it. Cal jumps in to help and in the process takes the other side in the hammer to his neck, quickly killing him. Duke runs after one of the thugs and pummels him, in front of many witnesses.
Seven and a half years later, Duke is in Nevada State Prison for the attempted murder. An influential inmate, cartel boss Amado Rodriguez (Miguel Álvarez), brings Duke over to see one of the thugs that killed Cal; he spills the beans that Kingsley sent them, because Duke was sleeping with his wife. Rodriguez has a proposal: Go back to London and help him take over the drug business from Kingsley and his family.
Six months later, Duke is released and goes back to the gym owned by his estranged father, Gary “Gazzer” Kilroy (Richard Pepple). While Duke’s buddy Justin “Jay” Hall (Tyler Conti) is happy to see him, Gazzer is less enthused about his son being around.
Kinsley Marshall has gone underground, leaving Zeke as the face of Marshall Promotions. Duke executes his plan by first getting a job with Marshall, then by assisting in stealing a drug shipment, sending all of Marshall’s high-powered customers into a frenzy. He also finds out from Joy that he may or may not be a father.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Created by Daniel Fajemisin-Duncan and Marlon Smith, Fightland has the same soapy crime-drama feel of other Starz shows produced by Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, like the various “books” of the Power franchise and BMF.
Our Take: Duke is coming back to London with revenge on his mind, of course, but he is also there to reconnect with his past. Even if he seems to grudgingly accept his father’s offer to stay with him in the apartment above the gym, he also knows that going back to where everything began is going to keep him grounded. His friendship with Jay serves the same function.
In other words, Charles isn’t playing his scenes as Duke in a constant rage. The rage is there, but Duke can keep it under control in order to play the long game. He’s not perfect, as there are two absurd instances that lead both Jay and one of Marshall’s men to the place where he and one of Rodriguez’ contact Lazaro (Sebastián Capitán Viveros) are planning their revenge/takeover plot. But at least we can see how he’s going to be able to keep things under wraps for the most part.
His affair with Joy is also more layered than at first glance, and not just because she has an 8-year-old son that might be his. They have loved each other since their school days, and it seems that Joy’s union with Kingsley is more of a business transaction — at least to her — than anything else. It’ll be interesting to see how the two of them proceed, especially with her son Aiden (Hero Del Valle Marfo) in the mix.
There are also family dynamics at play with the Marshalls. Cece has always been the brains of the operation, but even in her father’s absence, she can’t be the face of it, while Zeke is still too impulsive and flashy. That dynamic playing out while Duke infiltrates their organization will be interesting to watch.
Performance Worth Watching: Charles is certainly the best thing about the show, though Pinnock does his usual solid job as Kingsley Marshall, who influences everything in his power even when he’s not around.
Sex And Skin: There is some of both, mainly in the scene where Duke and Joy have sex after his bout.
Parting Shot: One of Kingsley’s henchmen and Jay have found their way to where Duke and Lazaro are planning their next steps. Duke kills Kingsley’s guy, but Lazaro holds Duke and Jay at gunpoint.
Sleeper Star: Clarke Peters has a guest spot as a rival promoter, and we’re wondering if his role will be bigger as the series moves along.
Most Pilot-y Line: During the victory party, Duke starts a speech naming heavyweight champs like Joe Lewis, Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Joe Frazier, Evander Holyfield, and Mike Tyson. “What’s the common denominator?” Duke asks. Kinsley interrupts him by saying, “Not one of them was from London.” In other words, the greatest heavyweights “don’t have to be American.” Um, did Lennox Lewis ever exist in this world? He’s from London!
Our Call: STREAM IT. While there’s a lot of violence and melodrama in Fightland, there’s more than enough going on underneath the surface to keep viewers engaged with Duke’s plot to get back at the Marshalls for everything they put him through.
Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.