BLACK KNIGHT on Netflix is a new Sci-Fi Action Adventure series from South Korea. The season has 6 episodes, and if you like South Korean productions, you’re bound to recognize a few of the actors. Based on a webtoon. Read our Black Knight series review here!
BLACK KNIGHT is a new Netflix series that takes place in 2071 (and earlier in some flashbacks) right here on Earth. Only 1% of the population has survived the latest apocalyptical events which have left our planet almost uninhabitable. Military and corporations battle over the few remaining resources.
The season has 6 episodes that are all around 45 minutes long so you can binge-watch it quite fast. The episodes do tend to end with wild surprises or cliffhangers, so it is undoubtedly binge-worthy in that sense. It’s from South Korea and based on a webtoon.
Continue reading our Black Knight series review below. Find it on Netflix from May 12, 2023.
A very bleak world
The world we’re introduced to in Black Knight is a very dystopian world with no real hope. In other words, a perfect setting for this sci-fi, action, adventure series. It also has all the marks of being based on an animated production, which I do mean as a compliment. And yes, it is indeed based on a webtoon.
The special effects and the world we’re introduced to in Black Knight do look very good and believable. For the most part, anyway. Every now and then, a brief scene comes on, where it looks like something out of a video game. That’s a shame for a Netflix series that is otherwise very well-produced.
It’s a South Korean production, which tends to be a sign of a very high standard. For me, this is intriguing, but a bit too slow. Not one of the best Netflix productions, but certainly not a bad one either.
Everyone is looking for hope
The core story of Black Knight on Netflix is very simply that the legendary delivery driver “5-8” is a beacon of hope for the hopeless. The hopeless in this dystopian future (as in the real world) are refugees with no safe place to call home. As a delivery driver, 5-8 has managed to escape refugee status and gotten a coveted QR code on his hand.
This QR code is the key to everything. You open and lock doors, identify yourself, and pay with your QR tattoo. If you don’t have this QR code, then you’re essentially not part of the world. Knowing what this is like, 5-8 helps where and when he can.
The young refugee Sa-Wol becomes a project for 5-8, but not before Sa-Wol has already been a decade in the care of a female Major. Obviously, as a major in the military, she knows that she isn’t allowed to have a refugee staying.
Overall, Black Knight deals very much with good and bad along with justice and injustice. But it does also look at the gray areas in between. It’s interesting and drives many characters – even if it does tend to mostly get very black or white.
The cast of Black Knight
In the key roles, we see Kim Woo-bin as the unbeatable hero 5-8. He might be one of the only main characters portrayed by an actor I wasn’t familiar with. Kang You-Seok (Beyond Evil) plays the refugee Sa-wol who dreams of becoming a delivery man.
His protector for many years, Major Seol-ah, is portrayed by the amazing Esom. If you’ve watched Kill Bok-soon on Netflix, then you’ll recognize her. If you haven’t, then do watch it. It’s awesome!
DO NOT MISS OUT ON
As Madam President, we see Jin Kyung (Beasts Clawing at Straws) while the main villain, Ryu Seok, is portrayed by Song Seung-heon (Voice). Also, in a smaller key role, there’s Kim Eui-sung. An actor I’ll always remember from Train to Busan and he does tend to play the same shady guy in every production. He just has the perfect look for it!
Watch Black Knight on Netflix now
Ui Seok Cho is credited as both writer and director of the series. This new South Korean Netflix series is based on a webtoon, which is something we’ve seen with several other series. In other words, this is a pretty good starting point. As a Sci-Fi, Action, and Adventure series from South Korea, it has a lot going for it.
OTHER SERIES BASED ON WEBTOONS
Do check out Hellbound which has a second season coming to Netflix in 2023 >
What I did not enjoy, were the moments where very misplaced and silly humor comes in.
This world is brutal and sarcasm or other kinds of comedy could work. The silly kind of comedy that belongs in Dumb and Dumber just falls very flat in this world. For me, anyway. Especially as this makes an already rather slow story get even slower for no reason.
Black Knight is out on Netflix from May 12, 2023.
Details
Director: Choi Ui-seok
Screenwriter: Choi Ui-seok
Cast: Kim Woo-bin, Esom, Song Seung-heon, Kang Yoo-Seok, Kim Eui-sung, Jiseung Cho, Lee Joo-seung, Kang You-Seok, Lee Soon-won
Plot
In a dystopian future devastated by air pollution, the survival of humanity depends on the Black Knights — and they’re far from your average deliverymen.
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