KO One

Chinese Title: Zhong Ji Yi Ban (literally, the last great class)
No. of episodes: 21
Theme song: TANK "Zhong Ji Yi Ban"

Cast
Jiro Wang as Da Dong
Arron Yan as Xiao Yu
Calvin Chen as Ya Se Wang
Danson Tang as Lei Kei Se
Stephanie Lee as An Qi
Sunnie Huang as Sha Jie KO.13
Zhang Hao Ming as Jin Bao San KO.135
Cai Yi Zhen as Wu Xiong
Cai Han Cen as Yun Han KO.7
Gong Ji An as Ji An
Na Wei Xun as Duan Chang Ren
Melody as Homeroom teacher Tian Xin
Ba Ge as Principal Qian Lai Ye

Foreword
Wacky with a capital "W". With screwball comedy, zero character development, and a terrible cast, KO One is definitely a series to miss. If this is where Taiwanese idol drama is headed, we're all screwed.

Plot

Where to begin? The Last Great Class is made up of a bunch of deliquents who rank on various levels on the KO rank (for those of you who are video game-illiterate like me, KO stands for 'knock out'). They are headed by Da Dong, who is KO 3. Two major characters join the class, the arrogant Ya Se Wang, who is also a KO 3 fighter, and softspoken pianist Ding Xiao Yu, who ranks as a KO 4.

When Da Dong's best friend from childhood, the seemingly mellow, quiet Lei Ke Se, returns, strange things start happening in class and Ya Se Wang is to blame. It's finally revealed that KS is the infamously ruthless KO 2 This wouldn't be so bad if KS and DD weren't fighing over the same girl, An Qi (who, uninterestingly, doesn't rank on the KO ranks). After an unimpressive fight ("I don't hit my friends", says DD), KS leaves. An Qi follows suit when she realizes DD actually likes their English teacher. She momentarily considers accepting Xiao Yu's love, but both know that she actually loves DD.

The three guys also like to go to a stall owned by Duan Chang Ren (literally, "short intestine man") a former KO fighter who knows more than he lets on and cooks his own innards to serve his customers (cue theme from Dumplings...Three Extremes). As if this isn't enough wackiness for you, consider each of the characters' unique skills. DD's weapon is a pan, XY's weapon is his fist which is always in his pocket, and SW's weapon is a sword stuck in a rock.

Some kind of attempt at plot development happens when The Demon tries to take control of the top KO fighters to become invincible. In the quest to solve this problem, the three stooges eventually find out that everyone around them, including DD's parents, YSW's dad, and the class' English teacher and her younger brother all have links to the KO ranks.

What else? Let's see, YSW falls in love with an ape. You read that right. An ape. She saves him from the demon by kissing him and giving him the Bear Pearl. He ends up giving it back to her when they realize that without it, she'll age rapidly and die.

If you think I'm making this plot up, trust me. I'm not that creative.

The final fight between the good and bad guys ends up in what I would call a lose-lose situation. Though the good guys prevail, the KO fighters end up losing their power. But no worries, an equally wacko sequel has already been released (The X Family) and they're filming a triquel (KO 3anguo).

Review

To be fair to the actors, how the hell does one act in a plot like this one? But still, an evaluation is to be made. Calvin Chen comes off as intelligent and articulate offscreen but he's a terrible actor. Delayed reactions, slow delivery of lines, and all-around awkwardness in front of the camera make his performance here one of the worst ones.

Jiro Wang does fine, but his performance is dragged down by a completely ludicrous script. Arron Yan shows potential and has a lot of screen presence for someone filming his first series but he needs his bangs pushed out of his face because I can't see his facial expressions half the time. And something about him here reminds me of Bruce Lee.

Stephanie Lee, who played An Qi, couldn't act her way out of a cardboard box to save her life. She gives the weakest performance here. Melody as the English teacher wasn't bad; her performance improves when her backstory is revealed. Na Wei Xun gives one of the series' strongest performances as Duan Chang Ren, followed closely by Danson Tang as Lei Kei Se.

Everyone else is forgettable; I couldn't tell them apart.

To Watch or Not to Watch, That is the Question
Even Fahrenheit fans need to stay away from this one. A complete waste of film.

Rating: 0.5/5
For the first time, I'm giving a rating that even SPCnet doesn't have. The lowest rating on SPCnet is 1 star, but I have to give this crap 0.5 stars.