RAPPER 50 CENT has more than a few strings to his bow, one of which is executive producing TV shows. His latest venture – via his G-Unit Television company – is Fightland, a boxing crime drama that kicked off on Sky Atlantic this week. 

But is it worth watching? 

What it’s all about

The series was created by Daniel Fajemisin-Duncan, Marlon Smith, Damione Macedon and Raphael Jackson Jr, and might be considered a spiritual sibling to Power, an American crime drama series that 50 Cent starred in and co-produced from 2014 – 2020.

Unlike the US-based Power, Fightland is set in Britain, specifically London’s boxing scene, though there are several characters from other countries (with accents that verge from seamless to a little rough around the edges).

At the story’s centre is Maduka “Duke” Kilroy (Howard Charles), who in the first episode becomes world heavyweight champion in the US. But right afterwards, he and his brother Calvin are subjected to a vicious assault that leaves Calvin dead.

In retaliation, a horrified Duke chases down the perpetrators and assaults one of them, and ends up having to spend eight years in prison in the US as a result. He arrives home looking for vengeance against the criminal kingpin and former promoter, Kingsley Marshall (Nicholas Pinnock), who he believes was behind the attack. But Kingsley has disappeared.

So Duke decides to infiltrate Kingsley’s empire from within, and begins working with a drug cartel. As you’d anticipate, infiltration is far from an easy task, especially when there’s a lot of double-crossing going on and everyone is out to get what they can from someone else.

Quickly the plot points add up: there’s talk of a casino expansion, double-crossing Albanians and Russians, stabbings, shootings and shady meetings in cafés.

Violence

Cebella 'CeCe' Marshall (Anita-Joy Uwajeh); Kingsley (Nicholas Pinnock) Sky Atlantic Sky Atlantic

The violence, when it’s meted out – as it is frequently – is grisly, bloody and lingered over. So there’s no doubt for viewers that the world Duke is mixed up in is a serious one.

The few scenes in the boxing arena are energetic, and there’s plenty of tension in the face-offs that take place throughout. But too often the script feels like it isn’t interested in going any further than surface level. 

When it comes to tone, unfortunately half of the time this series feels more like a soap. Heightened conversations can lean towards feeling leaden and clichéd. Various criminals and their antics feel like they’ve been seen before in other shows. 

There’s a scene where ‘Irish’ characters turn up in flat caps and terrible accents that can only be described as embarrassing. (And yes, Peaky Blinders fans, one of them is named Tommy.)

Thankfully, Howard does a great job with lead character Duke. Though hamstrung by a script which keeps him brooding, he’s a fitting lead character and draws on our empathy.

Tyler Conti is excellent as Duke’s pal Jay, adding a bit of humour to his nervy performance. Charles Babalola is slick as mover and shaker Zeke Marshall. Deborah Ayorinde is appealing as Joy Marshall, who was in a relationship with Duke (and previously Kingsley) and she and Duke make a believable couple. Clarke Peters from The Wire pops up as a promoter who also acts as a mentor to Duke.

Though Anita-Joy Uwajeh (Kingsley’s wife Cece) is given some lines that are far too cliched, it’s fun to have a woman at the helm of some of the more nefarious plotlines, rather than being relegated to the sidelines. And unlike in most sex scenes on screen, it’s her male partner who has to remove his clothes rather than her. Small wins, but they do show how Fightland has a close eye on its female characters in a way other series don’t.

Overall in the episodes available to reviewers, Fightland keeps the action ticking along quickly. But the feeling of it being soapy means that the series doesn’t land its punches properly. Yes, it’s entertaining, but it feels far removed from the prestige drama it would like to be.

Fightland is streaming on Now, with weekly episodes airing Thursdays at 9pm on Sky Atlantic.