Review | HBO Max K-drama Fifties Professionals: Shin Ha-kyun action comedy revisits hits of old

In the new hard-knuckled action-comedy Fifties Professionals, three men who formerly held prominent positions in their respective fields are forced into hiding. For 10 years, they work menial jobs and reluctantly pretend they cannot stand up for themselves, all the while not realising that they are lying low on the same island.

Centred on middle-aged bruisers reclaiming their youthful glory, Fifties Professionals does not exactly stand out as original material, but this is a show that leans into familiarity by doubling down on its theme through form.

The opening scenes introduce us to the three protagonists through myth-making vignettes of stylised brawling that deliberately recall Korean and Asian action and thriller hits of old, while also acting as a tongue-in-cheek meta-commentary on a maturing industry longing for its own past glory days.