Lights Out (2011 TV series)
Encyclopedia
Lights Out is an American
television boxing drama series from the FX network in the United States. It stars Holt McCallany
as Patrick "Lights" Leary, a New Jersey native, and former heavyweight champion boxer who is considering a comeback. The series premiered on January 11, 2011 at 10 pm ET/PT. On March 24, 2011, FX announced the cancellation of the show. The final episode aired on April 5.
who is struggling to find his identity after retiring from his beloved boxing. After years of wear and tear in the ring, he is diagnosed with pugilistic dementia (a neurological
disorder that affects boxers who suffered too many hits to the head, gradually causing memory loss and constant headaches). Now, Lights is struggling to support his family (a wife and three daughters) and their comfortably secure lifestyle in Bayonne, New Jersey
, after his amoral and incompetent brother/business manager squanders Lights' life savings. Running out of ways—and time—to earn enough money to re-secure his family's future, Leary must decide whether to either: accept the brutal and demeaning job of debt collector for a local racketeer; or, launch a long shot, health-risking, comeback for the huge payday that would result from becoming "the champ" once again.
awarded the series a score of 79%, based on 25 reviews, indicating "Generally favorable reviews". Matt Roush from TV Guide
said "Lights Out delivers a sucker punch of downbeat realism as Leary takes a pounding from life but refuses to give up. McCallany brings such a weary dignity to the role you can't help but root for him." He went on to say "Lights Out has its work cut out for it to find and hold an audience and deliver the proverbial TKO, but on the basis of the work alone, it's a triumph." The New York Times
review said "In other words, even the soapier subplots of Lights Out are sparingly written and tautly filmed, and the story never strays too far from the violence that is at its core. It's an ambitious drama that doesn't lose sight of what Patrick tells a television interviewer about retirement: 'Sometimes, you miss hitting people.'" Brian Lowry at Variety
said in his review "Lights Out isn't an unqualified knockout, but in its milieu, leading man and rich supporting players, score the show a clear winner on points. And that's no bull." James Poniewozik from Time
said "It starts and finishes strong, and in between, it passed the most important test this non-boxing-fan could hold it to: when I finished one episode, I immediately wanted to put another in." Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe
said "The story of Patrick 'Lights' Leary is engrossing from the first bell, with nicely developed plots and psychological twists that transcend the genre cliches of the boxing drama. And the acting is strong where it matters." Dorothy Rabinowitz from The Wall Street Journal
said in her review "It's quickly clear that this skillfully sustained, sharply plotted series is a fighter saga you'll want to follow to the final bell." Ed Bark from Uncle Barky said "It sometimes lapses into the abundant cliches of its genre. Pound for pound, though, you won't see many better dramas this season. Gloves on or off, it keeps scoring points."
Lights Out drew 1.5 million viewers in its pilot episode—793,000 of them from the highly sought-after 18–49 year-old demographic. Viewership declined from there, however, with the series averaging 863,000 viewers per episode.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television boxing drama series from the FX network in the United States. It stars Holt McCallany
Holt McCallany
Holt McCallany is an Irish American actor, writer, and producer working primarily in film and television.-Early life:...
as Patrick "Lights" Leary, a New Jersey native, and former heavyweight champion boxer who is considering a comeback. The series premiered on January 11, 2011 at 10 pm ET/PT. On March 24, 2011, FX announced the cancellation of the show. The final episode aired on April 5.
Plot synopsis
An aging, former world heavyweight champion, Patrick "Lights" Leary is an extremely proud, good-hearted, Irish AmericanIrish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
who is struggling to find his identity after retiring from his beloved boxing. After years of wear and tear in the ring, he is diagnosed with pugilistic dementia (a neurological
Neurology
Neurology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system. Specifically, it deals with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of disease involving the central, peripheral, and autonomic nervous systems, including their coverings, blood vessels, and all effector tissue,...
disorder that affects boxers who suffered too many hits to the head, gradually causing memory loss and constant headaches). Now, Lights is struggling to support his family (a wife and three daughters) and their comfortably secure lifestyle in Bayonne, New Jersey
Bayonne, New Jersey
Bayonne is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. Located in the Gateway Region, Bayonne is a peninsula that is situated between Newark Bay to the west, the Kill van Kull to the south, and New York Bay to the east...
, after his amoral and incompetent brother/business manager squanders Lights' life savings. Running out of ways—and time—to earn enough money to re-secure his family's future, Leary must decide whether to either: accept the brutal and demeaning job of debt collector for a local racketeer; or, launch a long shot, health-risking, comeback for the huge payday that would result from becoming "the champ" once again.
Cast
- Holt McCallanyHolt McCallanyHolt McCallany is an Irish American actor, writer, and producer working primarily in film and television.-Early life:...
as Patrick "Lights" Leary - Pablo SchreiberPablo SchreiberPablo Tell Schreiber is an American actor known for his dramatic stage work and for his portrayal of the Polish-American character Nick Sobotka on HBO's Baltimore drug-related crime drama The Wire. He was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance in Awake and Sing! on Broadway...
as Johnny Leary - Catherine McCormackCatherine McCormackCatherine McCormack is an English actress, known for her stage acting as well as her screen performances in films such as Braveheart, Spy Game and Dangerous Beauty.- Early life :...
as Theresa Leary - Stacy KeachStacy KeachStacy Keach is an American actor and narrator. He is most famous for his dramatic roles; however, he has done narration work in educational programming on PBS and the Discovery Channel, as well as some comedy and musical...
as Robert "Pops" Leary - Meredith HagnerMeredith HagnerMeredith Hagner is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for originating the role of Liberty Ciccone in the CBS daytime drama As the World Turns from 2008–2010.-Early life:...
as Ava Leary - Ryann Shane as Daniella Leary
- Lily Pilblad as Katherine Leary
- Billy Brown as Richard "Death Row" Reynolds
- Elizabeth MarvelElizabeth Marvel-Biography:Marvel was born in Mohnton, Pennsylvania. She studied at Juilliard. She has several credits on Broadway and in film and television. Marvel was a series regular on The District, and has appeared in two films by the Coen Brothers: True Grit as the adult Mattie Ross, and Burn After Reading...
as Margaret Leary - Bill IrwinBill IrwinWilliam Mills "Bill" Irwin is an American actor and clown noted for his contribution to the renaissance of American circus during the 1970s. He is known for his vaudeville-style stage acts, but has made a number of appearances on film and television and won a Tony Award for a dramatic role on...
as Hal Brennan - Reg E. CatheyReg E. CatheyReginald "Reg" E. Cathey is an American stage, film and television actor.Cathey is a native of Huntsville, Alabama and a graduate of J.O. Johnson High School. He spent his childhood in West Germany. His favourite band is Blur....
as Barry K. Word - Eamonn WalkerEamonn WalkerEamonn Walker is an English film, television and theatre actor. In the United States, he is known for playing Kareem Said in the HBO television series Oz, for which he won a CableACE Award, and elsewere as Winston, the gay, black thorn in Alf Garnett's side in In Sickness and in Health and John...
as Ed Romeo
Episodes
| # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | U.S. viewers (million) |
|---|
Reception
Lights Out has received positive reviews from television critics. Review aggregate MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
awarded the series a score of 79%, based on 25 reviews, indicating "Generally favorable reviews". Matt Roush from TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
said "Lights Out delivers a sucker punch of downbeat realism as Leary takes a pounding from life but refuses to give up. McCallany brings such a weary dignity to the role you can't help but root for him." He went on to say "Lights Out has its work cut out for it to find and hold an audience and deliver the proverbial TKO, but on the basis of the work alone, it's a triumph." The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
review said "In other words, even the soapier subplots of Lights Out are sparingly written and tautly filmed, and the story never strays too far from the violence that is at its core. It's an ambitious drama that doesn't lose sight of what Patrick tells a television interviewer about retirement: 'Sometimes, you miss hitting people.'" Brian Lowry at Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
said in his review "Lights Out isn't an unqualified knockout, but in its milieu, leading man and rich supporting players, score the show a clear winner on points. And that's no bull." James Poniewozik from Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
said "It starts and finishes strong, and in between, it passed the most important test this non-boxing-fan could hold it to: when I finished one episode, I immediately wanted to put another in." Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
said "The story of Patrick 'Lights' Leary is engrossing from the first bell, with nicely developed plots and psychological twists that transcend the genre cliches of the boxing drama. And the acting is strong where it matters." Dorothy Rabinowitz from The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
said in her review "It's quickly clear that this skillfully sustained, sharply plotted series is a fighter saga you'll want to follow to the final bell." Ed Bark from Uncle Barky said "It sometimes lapses into the abundant cliches of its genre. Pound for pound, though, you won't see many better dramas this season. Gloves on or off, it keeps scoring points."
Lights Out drew 1.5 million viewers in its pilot episode—793,000 of them from the highly sought-after 18–49 year-old demographic. Viewership declined from there, however, with the series averaging 863,000 viewers per episode.