The Knockout (2023) Review: The Fishmonger's Empire

Is The Knockout worth watching?

Yes. The Knockout is one of the most compelling Chinese crime dramas of recent years, a two-decade gangster saga that became a national phenomenon largely because of Zhang Songwen’s magnetic performance as its rising crime boss. Its study of how an ordinary man is corrupted step by step is gripping and surprisingly nuanced. The reservation is structural: the final stretch feels compressed and abrupt after the patient build-up, and the heroic police side of the story is much less interesting than the criminal one.

What is The Knockout about?

In the early 2000s, An Xin (Zhang Yi) is an idealistic young police officer in a coastal city, and Gao Qiqiang (Zhang Songwen) is a humble fishmonger scraping a living in the local market. A chance encounter links the two men, and over the following twenty years their lives diverge dramatically: An Xin stays a stubborn, principled cop, while Gao claws his way from street-level hustling to the top of a powerful criminal empire, drawing businessmen and officials into his network. Their long rivalry becomes a mirror of the city itself.

The Knockout is a Chinese series in Mandarin, directed by Xu Jizhou and released in 2023. Li Yitong and Wu Gang lead the supporting cast. This review covers the complete story: a single season of 39 episodes, with no sequel required.

Zhang Songwen and the anatomy of a gangster

The series is nominally a police drama, but its beating heart is Gao Qiqiang. Zhang Songwen plays him first as a meek, put-upon man who seems incapable of cruelty, and then charts each small compromise and act of violence that turns him into something monstrous. The transformation is gradual enough to be completely convincing, and Zhang never loses sight of the insecurity underneath the power.

That performance explains why the show became such a sensation. Viewers found themselves understanding, even sympathising with, a man whose rise is built on intimidation and bloodshed. The series is careful not to glamorise him, but it also refuses to make him simple.

A long duel across a changing city

The twenty-year structure is the show’s other great strength. Jumps between eras show how the city’s economy, politics and street life change, and how corruption adapts to each new era. The production design and ageing of the cast are handled with care, making the passage of time visible in faces as much as in sets.

Zhang Yi is solid as An Xin, a decent man whose refusal to bend makes him an outsider in his own force, and Wu Gang brings gravitas to the officials investigating the rot. Xu Jizhou’s direction keeps the saga grounded, favouring tense confrontations and quiet menace over flashy action.

Where the ending runs out of road

For most of its run, The Knockout is patient and meticulous. The final episodes, by contrast, move quickly through major developments, and several storylines feel condensed or resolved abruptly. The police protagonist is also a weaker character than his rival: An Xin’s integrity is admirable, but it rarely generates the same dramatic interest, and the show’s moral framing can feel heavy-handed next to the complexity of its villain.

Who should watch The Knockout?

It suits fans of gangster sagas, anti-corruption thrillers and slow-burning rivalries, and anyone curious about the Chinese series that dominated conversation in 2023. Thirty-nine episodes are a significant investment, though the storytelling is propulsive enough to make long binges easy. Expect violence, intimidation and scenes of brutality, but little that is gratuitously graphic.

If it pulls you in, try these next from the crime shelf or the iQIYI hub:

• The Long Season for another acclaimed 2023 Chinese crime drama that spans decades and rewards patience.
• Nirvana in Fire for a historical epic built on long-game scheming and power struggles.

The verdict

The Knockout is a gripping, ambitious crime saga that earns its reputation through Zhang Songwen’s extraordinary performance and its rich portrait of a city changing over two decades. Its rushed ending and flatter hero keep it just short of greatness, but it remains essential viewing for crime-drama fans.

Rating: 4/5