This review may contain spoilers
Knock out sure does Knock you out.
This is the first time in a while I’m calling a series overrated—but I stand by it.
Episode one? Fantastic. I was hooked. The tension, both romantic and sexual, between the two leads was electric. Every glance, every moment of silence, every bit of body language was on point. The actors sold it completely. It felt magnetic. The shower scene? Amazing push and pull tension. Everything about the first episode made me think this show was going to go places.
Then it didn’t.
By episode two, my excitement started turning into worry. We get a huge fight between Thun and Typoon—someone clearly important to him—this early in a 13-episode series? And not just a light spar. This was intense, personal, and emotional. I was on edge the whole time, assuming we were heading into a typical but effective arc. You know the one: the main character loses badly, hits rock bottom, has a turning point, trains hard, finds clarity, and redeems himself later in a bigger, more meaningful fight. Yeah, it’s a cliché, but when done right it works, and I honestly would’ve welcomed it.
Instead? Thun wins. Right there in episode two. Against a significant opponent. Which left me going… now what? With ten more hour-long episodes to go, the plot already felt like it had nowhere to go. And sadly, I was right.
I kept holding on, thinking maybe there’d be buildup to another rematch. Maybe Typoon would cheat, maybe Thun would finally learn something about himself. But no. The story doesn’t even try to revisit that conflict. It just drops it. Then revisits with less throttle.
Then enters Keen—our magical fix-it-all guy who I’ve now dubbed the “solution fairy.” Every problem, big or small? He’s got it handled. He finds Thun, who’s mad about being forced into another fight. And suddenly the gym hates Keen for setting up the fight before asking Thun, even though his uncle literally did the same thing. The logic is all over the place.
Then comes the jail scene. The infamous “now we’re suddenly close” moment. And here’s where I have to draw a comparison to KinnPorsche, because it’s impossible not to. Remember that wilderness scene in KinnPorsche? The one where they’re cuffed together for two days with no escape, forced to survive in the forest, sleep side-by-side, talk, clash, understand each other? That arc wasn’t just sexy tension—it was narrative tension. It earned their intimacy. You saw trust build, layer by layer, over time.
In Knockout, they tried to mimic that dynamic. Two characters stuck together, sharing a space, forced to confront their emotions. But here? It’s 15 minutes in a holding cell. No real tension. No long conversations. No shift in tone. They go from annoyed to “soft” way too fast. It feels like a knockoff version of KinnPorsche without the patience or depth. Like they wanted the same payoff without doing any of the emotional heavy lifting.
After that, Keen continues to solve every issue before it even has time to exist properly. Conflict with Thun getting pulled out of the fight? Fixed. Thun being framed? Fixed. Some random crisis? Fixed. Every time the show tries to introduce a problem, Keen just steamrolls it. And it’s exhausting.
The worst part? By episode four, it feels like Keen has already “healed” Thun. Like... all his trauma, all his issues, his pain—it’s just... gone. Solved by this one guy who showed up less than three episodes ago. I don’t care if three or four months have passed in-universe, it feels like the writers speedran his development. And it kills all potential for meaningful growth. Thun doesn’t have to reflect. He doesn’t have to evolve. He doesn’t even really have to open up. Because Keen is just... there. Ready to fix everything, over and over again.
And then—of course—they have sex in episode four. Not even halfway through the series. No build-up. No proper payoff. Just vibes. And I get it, chemistry is chemistry, but this felt like a poor man’s “trauma bonding.” Like, Thun’s upset? Bang. Thun wins a fight? Bang. Someone smiles at someone? Bang. Every emotional beat gets reduced to physicality, and it’s the same issue people call out in shows like Miraculous Ladybug:
“Oh no, there’s a fight!”
“Thun is upset!”
“Keen comforts him!”
“Let’s smash!”
Repeat.
Then this continues.
Repetition of “fight bad guy,” “win/lose,” “someone makes them feel better,” “fight bad guy”—and the cycle goes on. The whole story starts to feel like it’s looping. Conflict, quick fix, shallow emotion, and repeat. The pacing feels like it sprinted through all its story arcs way too early, and now it’s just floating aimlessly. The emotional arcs are rushed, the romance is shallow, and the fight scenes lost their impact because none of it is earned anymore.
And that’s what’s sad. Knockout had the potential to be something really special. Episode one was magic. Episode two had tension. Then the plot bailed, the writing flattened out, it goes downhill fast. Everything starts feeling rushed, undercooked, and reused to the point where I honestly don’t think the directors would know what to do after episode seven. The plot left the room.
4.5 out of 10 for effort
By the time I finish this series, I’d be knocked out asleep.
(this review can be taken with a grain of salt considering i dropped the series at the end of episode three, lightly skimmed through four then gave up and browsed reviews lol.)
Episode one? Fantastic. I was hooked. The tension, both romantic and sexual, between the two leads was electric. Every glance, every moment of silence, every bit of body language was on point. The actors sold it completely. It felt magnetic. The shower scene? Amazing push and pull tension. Everything about the first episode made me think this show was going to go places.
Then it didn’t.
By episode two, my excitement started turning into worry. We get a huge fight between Thun and Typoon—someone clearly important to him—this early in a 13-episode series? And not just a light spar. This was intense, personal, and emotional. I was on edge the whole time, assuming we were heading into a typical but effective arc. You know the one: the main character loses badly, hits rock bottom, has a turning point, trains hard, finds clarity, and redeems himself later in a bigger, more meaningful fight. Yeah, it’s a cliché, but when done right it works, and I honestly would’ve welcomed it.
Instead? Thun wins. Right there in episode two. Against a significant opponent. Which left me going… now what? With ten more hour-long episodes to go, the plot already felt like it had nowhere to go. And sadly, I was right.
I kept holding on, thinking maybe there’d be buildup to another rematch. Maybe Typoon would cheat, maybe Thun would finally learn something about himself. But no. The story doesn’t even try to revisit that conflict. It just drops it. Then revisits with less throttle.
Then enters Keen—our magical fix-it-all guy who I’ve now dubbed the “solution fairy.” Every problem, big or small? He’s got it handled. He finds Thun, who’s mad about being forced into another fight. And suddenly the gym hates Keen for setting up the fight before asking Thun, even though his uncle literally did the same thing. The logic is all over the place.
Then comes the jail scene. The infamous “now we’re suddenly close” moment. And here’s where I have to draw a comparison to KinnPorsche, because it’s impossible not to. Remember that wilderness scene in KinnPorsche? The one where they’re cuffed together for two days with no escape, forced to survive in the forest, sleep side-by-side, talk, clash, understand each other? That arc wasn’t just sexy tension—it was narrative tension. It earned their intimacy. You saw trust build, layer by layer, over time.
In Knockout, they tried to mimic that dynamic. Two characters stuck together, sharing a space, forced to confront their emotions. But here? It’s 15 minutes in a holding cell. No real tension. No long conversations. No shift in tone. They go from annoyed to “soft” way too fast. It feels like a knockoff version of KinnPorsche without the patience or depth. Like they wanted the same payoff without doing any of the emotional heavy lifting.
After that, Keen continues to solve every issue before it even has time to exist properly. Conflict with Thun getting pulled out of the fight? Fixed. Thun being framed? Fixed. Some random crisis? Fixed. Every time the show tries to introduce a problem, Keen just steamrolls it. And it’s exhausting.
The worst part? By episode four, it feels like Keen has already “healed” Thun. Like... all his trauma, all his issues, his pain—it’s just... gone. Solved by this one guy who showed up less than three episodes ago. I don’t care if three or four months have passed in-universe, it feels like the writers speedran his development. And it kills all potential for meaningful growth. Thun doesn’t have to reflect. He doesn’t have to evolve. He doesn’t even really have to open up. Because Keen is just... there. Ready to fix everything, over and over again.
And then—of course—they have sex in episode four. Not even halfway through the series. No build-up. No proper payoff. Just vibes. And I get it, chemistry is chemistry, but this felt like a poor man’s “trauma bonding.” Like, Thun’s upset? Bang. Thun wins a fight? Bang. Someone smiles at someone? Bang. Every emotional beat gets reduced to physicality, and it’s the same issue people call out in shows like Miraculous Ladybug:
“Oh no, there’s a fight!”
“Thun is upset!”
“Keen comforts him!”
“Let’s smash!”
Repeat.
Then this continues.
Repetition of “fight bad guy,” “win/lose,” “someone makes them feel better,” “fight bad guy”—and the cycle goes on. The whole story starts to feel like it’s looping. Conflict, quick fix, shallow emotion, and repeat. The pacing feels like it sprinted through all its story arcs way too early, and now it’s just floating aimlessly. The emotional arcs are rushed, the romance is shallow, and the fight scenes lost their impact because none of it is earned anymore.
And that’s what’s sad. Knockout had the potential to be something really special. Episode one was magic. Episode two had tension. Then the plot bailed, the writing flattened out, it goes downhill fast. Everything starts feeling rushed, undercooked, and reused to the point where I honestly don’t think the directors would know what to do after episode seven. The plot left the room.
4.5 out of 10 for effort
By the time I finish this series, I’d be knocked out asleep.
(this review can be taken with a grain of salt considering i dropped the series at the end of episode three, lightly skimmed through four then gave up and browsed reviews lol.)
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