[7.8/10] This is another episode that started out feeling like just another riff on a Mortal Kombat like setup without much more to it. It’s a stock trope to have a badass hero stuck in a gladiator realm (going back all the way to the original Star Trek). But a lot of what Samurai Jack does is take classic tropes and revivify them with its electric style. “Jack and the Smackback” is no exception.
The setup works well for what this show does. There’s a Spartacus vibe to a lot of the proceedings, mixed with the series’s trademark heightened reality approach. There’s admittedly something a little ironic about the show making its bones on the thrill of seeing Jck act like an absolute badass while also depicting him chastising the crowd for reveling in senseless violence, but this is far from the first show to grapple with that self-contradiction.
The episode builds Jack’s fights nicely, escalating his opponents in meaningful ways. We start with what the audience thinks is the champ of all champs, only to see things grow in difficulty from there. Jack’s defeat of the ape man is pretty straightforward, but still exciting. His defeat of the “Aqualizer” help balance the way that there are sentient beings behind these otherwise brutal goons which makes this combat wrong. His tickle fight with the giant sumo wrestler is hilarious. And the final gauntlet against an array of other “champions” is exciting in the escalation (though the Ganesh character is borderline offensive).
The show also nicely varies Jack’s methods with the various weapons at his disposal. It’s cool to see him using a bo staff, shields, a trident, and others implements before he finally retrieves his sword. It also makes the threat more meaningful visually by showing the damage to Jack’s body and clothes, to where he’s down to just his skivvies and bearing scars by the time he’s taking on the horde.
Again, there’s a tension with his mission not to participate in this violent spectacle at the same time he and the show make their bones by creating a violent spectacle, but his honorable mission helps give a thematic throughline to what is otherwise just a series of cool fights in the “Doom Dome.” The show does wring tension and excitement from the pro-wrestling style setup of it all. Everything from the overzealous announcer, to the jerk of a taskmaster running the fighters, to the fact that we only hear the fights and see shadows before Jack emerges from his pit helps add to the electricity of this one.
Overall, this isn’t a particularly deep episode, but it’s still one that captures a certain type of pugilistic thrills and finds a deeper motivation for Jack beyond the glory of combat.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2020-02-02T21:00:21Z
[7.8/10] This is another episode that started out feeling like just another riff on a Mortal Kombat like setup without much more to it. It’s a stock trope to have a badass hero stuck in a gladiator realm (going back all the way to the original Star Trek). But a lot of what Samurai Jack does is take classic tropes and revivify them with its electric style. “Jack and the Smackback” is no exception.
The setup works well for what this show does. There’s a Spartacus vibe to a lot of the proceedings, mixed with the series’s trademark heightened reality approach. There’s admittedly something a little ironic about the show making its bones on the thrill of seeing Jck act like an absolute badass while also depicting him chastising the crowd for reveling in senseless violence, but this is far from the first show to grapple with that self-contradiction.
The episode builds Jack’s fights nicely, escalating his opponents in meaningful ways. We start with what the audience thinks is the champ of all champs, only to see things grow in difficulty from there. Jack’s defeat of the ape man is pretty straightforward, but still exciting. His defeat of the “Aqualizer” help balance the way that there are sentient beings behind these otherwise brutal goons which makes this combat wrong. His tickle fight with the giant sumo wrestler is hilarious. And the final gauntlet against an array of other “champions” is exciting in the escalation (though the Ganesh character is borderline offensive).
The show also nicely varies Jack’s methods with the various weapons at his disposal. It’s cool to see him using a bo staff, shields, a trident, and others implements before he finally retrieves his sword. It also makes the threat more meaningful visually by showing the damage to Jack’s body and clothes, to where he’s down to just his skivvies and bearing scars by the time he’s taking on the horde.
Again, there’s a tension with his mission not to participate in this violent spectacle at the same time he and the show make their bones by creating a violent spectacle, but his honorable mission helps give a thematic throughline to what is otherwise just a series of cool fights in the “Doom Dome.” The show does wring tension and excitement from the pro-wrestling style setup of it all. Everything from the overzealous announcer, to the jerk of a taskmaster running the fighters, to the fact that we only hear the fights and see shadows before Jack emerges from his pit helps add to the electricity of this one.
Overall, this isn’t a particularly deep episode, but it’s still one that captures a certain type of pugilistic thrills and finds a deeper motivation for Jack beyond the glory of combat.