Aspiring boxer Kim Gun-woo (Woo Do-hwan) befriends fellow rookie Hong Woo-jin (Lee Sang-yi) during the heights of Covid-19. After a ruthless loan shark, Kim Myung-gil (Park Sung-woong) cons Gun-woo's mother into taking a predatory loan, they team up with a moneylender (motivated by his own painful history with Myung-gil) to shut down his schemes for good. 

As with many South Korean revenge action thrillers, Bloodhounds sheds light on the economic exploitation of the working class. Standard, to the point of being predictable, the fight for justice feels formulaic and quickly paced due to its oversimplified and convenient plot. With an abundance of zestful action scenes and empathic beats, the series delivers enough on its promised premise.

Well-choreographed action was expected, but Bloodhounds stands out with its faithfulness to the boxing style. No sudden martial arts. No surprise techniques you wouldn't expect of a boxer for the sake of a flashy sequence. Every bob, weave, slip, and block is equally exciting as the punches that land. Even the hand-to-hand combat styles of knife experts Hwang Yang-Jung and Lee Du-Yeong, and the brute force of Kang In-Beom's strength allow for legible yet energetic cinematography that (I have to say it!) packs a punch. Majority of the action scenes steer clear of fanfare; instead, delivering some good old-fashioned brawls.