Picking Nits
Everyone lets Chong Li perform his finishing move; the gambling makes no sense; Dukes has to prove himself with the brick despite holding an invitation; nine fights implies 512 entrants
In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:29Read transcript
- Everybody is too accommodating of Chong Li's finishing move: he holds conscious opponents and works the crowd while nobody pulls him aside to say stop killing people; one host disagrees, calling it his gimmick.
- How gambling at the Kumite works is a mystery of shouting and thrown money, like old Wall Street pit scenes and Trading Places, and bettors throw their tickets on a knocked-out fighter; one host has attended a cockfight in the Philippines, where a Cristo holding his arms out memorizes hand-signal bets, balled-up losing money is swept from the ring and winnings are tossed back as a paper football, which sounds awful and wildly inefficient.
- Why does Van Damme have to prove himself by breaking the brick when he already has the invitation? The answer offered is two-factor authentication, clicking 'I'm not a robot' to confirm it is the real guy, and the nit is rescinded.
- Chong Li, the reigning champion, has nine fights in the tournament, so a single-elimination bracket needs 512 fighters; the stands show many fighters but not 512, prompting the question of whether a pile of bodies sits outside Kowloon Walled City.
- Noted early as a nitpick: after failing all film at their one job, the two agents turn up in row two to watch the final.