We all knew that when the Russo Brothers plan on bringing something to life, they most certainly will not disappoint you. Taking a break from the MCU, as they haven’t said as of yet that they won’t be back, they haven’t left comic books behind.
Deadly Class is based on the comic book series created by Rick Remender and Wesley Craig for Image Comics. The Syfy series premieres in January 2019 with a 10 episode first season that is a fast-crazy bloody ride. That being said, in June, Syfy announced they would be cancelling two of their series, Happy and Deadly Class. However, the production companies plan on shopping both of them around to other networks and streaming services, so fingers crossed!
The series takes place in the late 80s and introduces Marcus (Benjamin Wadsworth) who is homeless until he is recruited into King’s Dominion lead by Master Lin (Benedict Wong), a storied elite private school where the world’s top crime families send their heirs to train. Feeling not at home first, he settles in and becomes friends with a crazy bunch of fellow students. Saya (Lana Condor), the leader of the Kuroki Syndicate, Maria (María Gabriela de Faría), member of the Soto Vatos and girlfriend to Chico (Michel Duval), who is the leader of the Soto Vatos. Willie (Luke Tennie), the Leader of the F.W.O. (First World Order), and punk Billy (Liam James), son of a corrupt drug smuggling cop, who become Marcus’s friends.
It may take a little time to get into the series, and because of the way it’s told, it would be better to binge watch rather than watch an episode a week. But why should you watch it? Well we’ve got a few reasons for you!
Mini Kill Bills
If you are looking for a show that will remind you of some badass character as Kill Bill, Deadly Class could be your show. You not only have a school full of future assassins and leaders of the worst criminal organisations, but you also have a director who acts more secretive as his students ever could. Everyone is hiding something from one another as after all they should not become friends, because one day they have probably to kill each other. But this does not stop them from trying to get along. Just because their parents cannot stand each other does not mean they have to continue this path. To follow the each of the students stories is easy compared to Master Lin’s. His relationship to his sister, Gao, and the plans of the Guild is something that will need time to understand.
Brutal and Bloody
I am not sure if this is a reason to watch the show or perhaps more like a warning. If you do not want to see very brutal and bloody scenes, which look like outtakes from Texas Chainsaw Massacre, then be prepared to fast-forward some scenes or not to tune in at all. I did not expect to see these scenes in such detail. I even thought about not continuing to watch, but I was already three episodes in and couldn’t help myself. Some of these scenes are shown through a comic strip part, which is in almost every episode, when you learn about the past of one of the main characters. 10 episodes are not enough to tell the story fully, so let’s hope the series gets picked up.
Quite A Story
As mentioned before, there is the Guild standing behind King’s Dominion. The school was founded by Master Lin’s grandfather under the motto “In Vitam Mortem” – In Life and Death. It has the same atmosphere as joining the army, but you are trained in different kinds of deadly arts such as martial arts, sword fighting, or poisoning. Madam Gao, despite being unhappy with how her brother Lin is guiding the school and its students, also seems to have a personal feud going on, which we’ve only seen a glimpse of so far. You won’t be overly sure as to who is really the big bad guy in this story.
In general, Deadly Class is worth giving a go, but only if you are up for some crazy storytelling and a lot of brutality. The cinematography is quite different from other shows and knowing the Russo’s, it might take time until the story reveals itself fully and everything starts to make sense if they do get picked up. Something tells me, when you start it, you should just wait patiently with a bowl of popcorn in your hands.
This is an incredible series all the way around. The performances are Emmy worthy – just marvelous. The story is something different from all the other similar fare out there. The problem: SyFy seems to love starting series — and cancelling them! #DeadlyClass is being shopped around to different companies. Here’s hoping it can be saved.