Let’s look at three martial arts TV shows from the 1990s that you might just remember. Yes, these shows were actually a thing and yes, they obviously ended either a cliffhanger or abruptly.
Martial Law (1998-2000)
Running for two seasons, Martial Law was a detective show starring kung fu film legend Sammo Hung and Arsenio Hall as detectives Sammo Law and Terrell Parker.
It ran on CBS and featured a plot of Law being transferred to the LAPD in California. He picks up on how American detective work goes but will resort to Chinese detective work—steamrolling criminals—to get things done.
It was supposed to be something of an adaptation of Police Story 3: Super Cop and feature Jackie Chan but that fell through.
Instead, Chan’s “kung fu brother” and fellow Seven Little Fortunes member Sammo Hung was cast in the lead role. The show aired roughly a week after Rush Hour hit theaters.
WMAC Masters (1995-1997)
I will never stop bringing up this children’s show. WMAC Masters ran on UPN in the late 90s, airing after Dragon Ball Z. The concept was dope with a series of choreographed fights with championship martial artists.
There was a lot going into the two seasons of this show that deserves its own piece. I will say that in watching it, you’ll notice a similar progression to Lucha Underground where contenders had to turn in their Gift of the Gods title for a shot at the Lucha Underground Championship.
Highlander: The Series (1992-1998)
This was a show that had to be made following the success and awesomeness of the 1986 film. Highlander: The Series starts off mid, picks things up around seasons three and four before petering out midway through season five which was meant to be the final season.
However, the series was given a second wind for a sixth and final season in anticipation of Highlander: The Raven. The martial arts action here was mainly in the form of swordplay but it featured a few martial artists in notable roles—such as show lead Adrian Paul.
I will say while I enjoyed the show, it did have a problem with mid characters. No one really stood out as interesting and the storylines from episode to episode were “immortal-of-the-week” for chunks of the series.
That said, the fights and an improvement in storytelling after season one kept this series on TV for a long time.
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