This is straight-up, unironic wuxia fantasy with post-apocalyptic trappings and it is not ashamed.Hottest place on Earth.
These lines are delivered confidently with the full knowledge that Into the Badlands is inspired by Journey to the West, one of the great classical Chinese novels. This is still a world where people say things like "After all these years, your destiny is finally at hand" with a straight face. There are also moments of extreme violence that have more ritualistic and less martial arts-based roots.ĭialogue is one thing that hasn't changed in Into the Badlands. The episode still has its fair share of conflict to be sure, but there are moments where one expects swords to be drawn that are instead only used to build tension towards the inevitable, a nice bit of restraint that will help carry momentum into the middle of the season. What's more impressive is that the second episode actually leans away from its battles to build tension a bit. As usual, the fight scenes are glorious, with Sherman Augustus returning as Nathaniel Moon, the brutal formerly retired regent, to make sure that there's still someone on the battlefield who can challenge Sunny. Into the Badlands' third season is everything fans should expect based on the previous two seasons but with a few unexpected accents. There is hope though, as a major revelation in the second episode of the season - which we will not spoil here - seems to set MK on a much more interesting arc than he's had to date. Aramis Knight does what he can, but the first two episodes of the season find MK both a prisoner of the Widow and of a newly acquired opium addiction, leaving him with almost literally nowhere to go. Bajie will likely have a bigger role to play as the season progresses thanks to his connection with Pilgrim.įinally, there's MK, who remains the most difficult character to love.
Bajie is also back, and Nick Frost is as enjoyable in the role as he was last season, though it's not clear if the character has learned anything since then. The Iron Rabbit is working with the refugee camp run by Lydia (Orla Brady), who is easily the most changed character since the show's first season, having gone from Baroness to a leader of the downtrodden.
Ioannides imbues the character with a newfound freedom and confidence that, much like with Wu's Sunny, is more interesting and entertaining to watch than the morally conflicted Tilda who served the Widow. The most growth is seen in Tilda (Ally Ioannides), who has adopted the Robin Hood-like vigilante thief persona of the Iron Rabbit. Other characters have adopted a new demeanor as well.
Having a son and losing his love has made Sunny much more sullen and combustible, which is a bit more interesting to watch than the stoic, "I don't want to fight anybody" Sunny of the previous season. When an unexpected turn forces Sunny to make his way back to civilization, or what's left of it, he catches up with several former allies and enemies before setting off on his new quest. One may assume that this will force the residents of the Badlands to put their differences aside to defend their home, but there's a serious lingering doubt about whether anyone still believes it is a home worth saving.Īs for the rest of the cast, main protagonist Sunny (Daniel Wu) has gone full Lone Wolf and Cub and has been living in solitude for six months mourning Veil and taking care of his son, Henry.
A revolution deposes the established, corrupt order, leaving the region an easy target for religious zealots to move in and enact their will. The two macro-level storylines recreate a story that has played out across global news feeds for years. Ceesay plays the role of demagogue well, and Lorraine Toussaint is even more captivating as Pilgrim's resident prophet Cressida, mixing just enough confidence and raw spontaneity to make viewers wonder if she is having real visions - a possibility in a world with "dark ones" who have "the gift" - or if she's just a charlatan making things up on the spot. Instead, it is Pilgrim (Babou Ceesay) who finds his way into the Badlands and his version of salvation seems to mean wiping the old order away entirely and replacing it with his own.