Lights Out

:

Season 1
  • Network: FX
  • Series Premiere Date: Jan 11, 2011
User Score
8.1

Universal acclaim- based on 40 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 34 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 40
  3. Negative: 1 out of 40
Watch Now

Where To Watch

Stream On
Buy on

Review this tv show

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling

User Reviews

view
per page
  1. joegernaut
    Mar 31, 2011
    10
    I love this show . it's way better then a lot of the stuff FX shows or has shown. I think this show is right up their with Sons of anarchy ,and the shield .
  2. MarcDoyle
    Jan 13, 2011
    6
    That metascore just seems way too high. I had high expectations for this, maybe because FX has debuted such amazing shows over the last few years. But the lead actor is not extremely watchable, the brother is not as interesting as he was on season 2 of "The Wire", Stacy Keach is a poor fit , and the pilot just didn't jump out at me like it should have. Even the scenes from the rest ofThat metascore just seems way too high. I had high expectations for this, maybe because FX has debuted such amazing shows over the last few years. But the lead actor is not extremely watchable, the brother is not as interesting as he was on season 2 of "The Wire", Stacy Keach is a poor fit , and the pilot just didn't jump out at me like it should have. Even the scenes from the rest of the season don't seem to offer much to hope for. I'll give it at least one more episode.… Expand
  3. mt2e
    Mar 10, 2011
    10
    Being a avid boxing fan this show has it all. Very witty with a lot of insight to the boxing world. Very true to a real experience of a boxer and everything around him. One of my favorite shows of all time. Teddy Atlas is an advisor to the show and that says a lot.
  4. EpicLadySponge
    Aug 7, 2016
    8
    Lights Out represents those finest moments you've just basically seen in television, except that we got to add something to that. It's boxing like never before seen montages of one character living the boxing life.
  5. AlejandroAguas
    Apr 16, 2011
    0
    I cannot believe that people that claim to be boxing fans actually like this show. Its fight scenes are crap. The lead is completely unconvincing as a boxer; he looks like a pudgy old man, and cannot throw a convincing punch. As a drama, it's middling and clichéd.
  6. MuTTrO
    Jan 31, 2011
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This series has everything to go right, a champion to be retired, but be crazy to go back to war of punches back. 100%. A great many early struggles to come, I look at this great emotion.… Expand
  7. skantea
    Jan 22, 2011
    8
    It's the Sopranos but instead of Italian Mafia it features the underworld characters related to professional boxing. Main character may even be a more likable anti-hero than Tony. If the writing continues to improve I see this turning into something durable.
  8. NVB1987
    Jan 26, 2011
    8
    Dark, Gritty, and well written. Was gonna give up on FX after they canned Terriers, but checked this out anyways. This is a story of man doing everything he can to provide for his family after the giving up the one thing that was his passion and life. The lead does a very good job and looks the part of a pro boxer.
  9. Domini
    Feb 2, 2011
    8
    This show is great. More of a story line than I expected - not all violence and blood as I feared. Holt McCallany is very convincing as a boxer. Pablo Schreiber as his bro is a true find, great in this role. Would like them to pick up the pace a bit, but I'll stick around until that happens.
  10. manbearpig3
    Mar 3, 2011
    8
    The show started off slow but has picked up the last couple of weeks, I went from watching it because it was on, to counting down till the next episode, can't wait to see how the season ends!
  11. NMC
    Mar 26, 2011
    9
    This show is very well written and just plain exciting. You can see yourself in the characters, struggling to do right by all. The boxing scenes and matches are intense and realistic. The characters are complex.
  12. crimson66
    Mar 27, 2011
    9
    Unbearable shows like 'Community', 'Fringe', and the 200 crime drama series on CBS get renewed but FX cancels Lights Out and Terriers. FX has a long history of not only having a miniscule budget for their television series, but now we're seeing them try to become more like a basic cable network. They have been transitioning towards the concept of quantity rather than quality, whereas inUnbearable shows like 'Community', 'Fringe', and the 200 crime drama series on CBS get renewed but FX cancels Lights Out and Terriers. FX has a long history of not only having a miniscule budget for their television series, but now we're seeing them try to become more like a basic cable network. They have been transitioning towards the concept of quantity rather than quality, whereas in the past I believe FX was all about quality and I really respected them for it. Imagine if The Shield was cancelled after its first season due to decent but not great 'ratings'. We would have never been able to love 'Vic Macke' for those 7 great seasons, meanwhile FX was barely keeping the show alive financially. Lights Out I think was one of the top 3 best new series of 2011 along with Shameless and The Walking Dead. I would have liked to seen another season at least since 'Lights Leary' can't really keep his abilities too far into his 40s, so 2 or 3 seasons at most would have been ideal. I think Lights Out could have survived, and can still survive perhaps, if they were on HBO or Showtime. At least then you have a network who supports their series with loyalty and of course tons of cash. Terriers had some potential as well though I can agree with cancelling it after 1 season because you can only take that premise so far with a mediocre cast. Personaly I think Archer is a truely awful bag of crap, but you can see why FX loves it so much ($$$ from advertisements). It's kind of a shame It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is so underrated with it's cast probably serverely underpaid, meanwhile it's been maybe the best sitcom on tv in the past 5 years (2.5 Men is for retards who like #Winning). I think FX started to realize that after producing critically aclaimed series like The Shield, Rescue Me, Damages, Nip Tuck, etc. they won over critics but not advertisers and the 'american idol' generation of viewers. So in with the 'new', out with the 'old'. After Rescue Me and Damages are done, so is FX in my opinion.… Expand
  13. BigRick
    Apr 14, 2011
    9
    This was a great show that wasn't based on action (although the few scenes fight scenes were pretty good), but based on powerful characters. It's a shame this original show got cancelled before it hit its prime, while we have dozens of cop dramas, soap operas, and other shows that are a dime a dozen. The 13 episodes we actually got are all worth watching and I highly recommend them to everyone.

Awards & Rankings

22
#22 Best TV Season of 2011
69
#69 Most Discussed TV Season of 2011

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 25
  3. Negative: 0 out of 25
  1. People Weekly
    Reviewed by: Tom Gliatto
    Jan 24, 2011
    100
    Beneath the grit, this is a tale of chivalry. [31 Jan 2011, p.40]
  2. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: Emily Nussbaum
    Jan 13, 2011
    80
    Lights Out starts slower but has an even more intriguing anti-hero dad: Patrick "Lights" Leary (in a beautiful and subtle performance by Holt McCallany), a retired heavyweight champion with itchy fists.
    Read full review
  3. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ken Tucker
    Jan 12, 2011
    83
    At its strongest, it freshens those themes without melodrama, opting instead for slow-boil tension. The challenge for this artful series is whether that boiling point is too slow for viewers raised on WWE Raw and mixed martial arts.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »