As the episode begins, everyone is gearing up for the upcoming prize fight. After the intro, Penelope (Joanna Vanderham) is confronted by Jacob (Kenneth Fok). He shows her an advertisement for the upcoming fight. Richard Lee (Tom Weston-Jones) and Bill O’Hara (Kieran Bew) attend the event. Penelope rushes there and makes it just in time. Li Yong (Joe Taslim) speaks to Mai Ling (Dianne Doan). He asks her if she really wants to go through with it. After all, only one of them is going to make it out alive. Soon, the fight begins, Ah Sahm (Andrew Koji) does good in the beginning.
He nearly wins. However, he is soon destroyed and left for dead. Li Yong prepares to kill him. Penelope, Lee, and Bill step in and stop the action. Bill tries to talk some sense into Penelope as he walks her home. Penelope wants to know why Bill saved Ah Sahm. Bill denies saving anyone. Young Jun (Jason Tobin) argues with his father about Ah Sahm’s future. Father Jun (Perry Yung) is adamant that they should abandon him. Meanwhile, Ah Toy (Olivia Cheng) cares for Ah Sahm at her brothel. Buckley (Langley Kirkwood) goes to Byron Mercer (Graham Hopkins). Mercer is told that someone put in a lower bid. They’re going to use Chinese labor to save money.
We jump back in time and see that Ah Sahm has been beaten up. He is told that he is being punished for having a big mouth. Ah Sahm imagines that Mai Ling visits while Lai (Jenny Umbhau) cares for him. In reality, it is Ah Toy. She gives him opium. In a flashback, we see that Sifu Li Qiang offers to teach Ah Sahm how to fight. They practice together until Ah Sahm gets significantly better. He is forced to leave his sister behind to continue his training. Now that Li Yong has destroyed Ah Sahm, Mai Ling is ready to take over the gang. One of the men doesn’t agree with her being the leader. She kills him and takes control anyway.
Ah Toy is surprised when Penelope checks in on Ah Sahm. Buckley tells Mayor Blake (Christian McKay) what he has done. He removed Mercer from the picture because the mayor would have gone over his budget. Samuel Blake isn’t mad at all. He just wants to be told in advance. Ah Sahm tries to stand. Ah Toy finds him. She tells him that Li Yong won because he had something to fight for. Lee and Bill speak with Wang Chao (Hoon Lee) about the recent murders. He refuses to give them any information about the killings. Ah Sahm smokes opium. Then, he receives a visit from Young Jun. Jun tells him about his father’s decision. He admits he wishes they never returned from Grass Valley.
Ah Sahm is told he’ll have a price on his head if he joins another tong. Bill and Lee realize that they’ve hit a roadblock. At the end of the episode, Lee is attacked by Zing (Dustin Nguyen). He is left bloody on the ground.
Warrior Review
I hate to say it, but this episode really ruined the show for me. Ah Sahm’s invincibility was really one of the best aspects of the show. He was destroyed by Li Yong. I am afraid that it is going to be tough to take his character seriously at this point. I think this was a bad move by the writers. It would have been better if Ah Sahm was killed and the show went on without him. At this point, the two most interesting characters are Ah Toy and Young Jun.
The rest is just filler with no real meaning. I am quickly losing interest in the show. It should have ended after one season. Suffice to say, this episode was disappointing. A 6 out of 10 is deserved. Catch up with past recaps of Warrior now!
Jay Skelton is a fan of all television shows and movies. He tries his best to keep up with the latest foreign television shows and movies. Jay loves skinny dipping in the dark too.
Disagree with the majority of what ReelMockery you have written on this series. It isn’t the best by some stretch, but it’s entertaining enough. I think it was good for the show that ah sahm lost. It made sense if you go back and consider their 1st duel where he was unable to even land a glove on ah toy. It was more concerning that ah sahm did so well and almost won the death duel as it wouldn’t have made any sense. The man got slightly above himself and was soon humbled. It’s a good watch and will definitely watch season 2 when the time comes. I find the one Mr leary very interesting and cannot wait for that witch mai ling to get what she deserves as I cannot stand her. Though, I am only about to begin episode 10… there is still time for that
Mistake. Wherever I put ah toy I meant li yong
I understand what the writers were trying to do. They were attempting to say that Li Yong had something worth fighting for because his love for Mai Ling. Ah Sahm had nothing to fight for and that is why he lost.
Have you read the other reviews though? Most of them are positive for Warrior. I just felt that the last few episodes were much lower quality compared to the first couple. Just finished the finale and it was pretty good. Will definitely keep up with the show.
Going to post the finale recap right now. Thanks for the comment!
I’m a bit late, just stared watching the show (October 2020). But I must agree with the writer of this article. I don’t know if I can get into the show with as much enthusiasm. I mean the beating he received was so severe that it felt like an annihilation of his character. I dont know what to look for after seeing him getting destroyed liked that.
Now that there’s season 2, did you (the author of this post) change your mind ?
Haven’t started the 2nd season yet. Got busy with life! I’ll watch it regardless and see what happens. Will let you know when I get around to it.