Les repentis

John Woo's Once a Thief is one of the most interesting television which I have the pleasure of watching again and again. With a thick La Femme Nikita-like story-line and John Woo's unparalleled action scenes, Once a Thief is an action-comedy you do not want to miss.

On contrary to the previous comment, I think that this series is brilliant. It's fast, interesting and appealing. The writing is funny and cleverly bizarre... it is just simply clever. The action sequences are directed perfectly. But you don't have to be an action lover to be captured by John Woo's "Once A Thief", because it has so many more elements that make this show one of the best in television, and one I definitely recommend to TV lovers out there.

Once a Thief focuses on the lives of three people, each with his/her own deep background, that unwillingly become secret agents and pawns of an almost maniacal woman - the director of a shaddowy government agency.

The movie is, in short, a work of art.

Both elements of seriousness and humor are portrayed seamlessly and stylishly. Each episode is an independent part of a large collection that, when complete, is a master piece.

I love this series! Based on the trio antics of the movie by John Woo, this is a Canadian produced action comedy series. Li Ann and Mac try to get out of the Hong Kong Triad, Vic is set up by his dirty cop colleagues. Li Ann and Mac are separated, Mac ends up in jail, where he's approached by a slick high status woman with a proposal; come and work for her secret agency or rot in jail. Li Ann and Vic have gone the same route as Mac does, accepting the offer, and the three are put together as a team, with the woman, The Director, as a puppet master and boss. Cue adventures and intrigue.

It's a series driven by great actor chemistry, one-liners, timing, and the occasional hey-let's-do-martial-arts stuffing. My tastes exactly. A little cliché at first, perhaps, but some episodes are freakishly good. Ivan Sergei and Nick Lea work great together (how great? ask any slasher out there), Jennifer Dale is my GOD, the weird Agency that's always empty of people, camera and lighting, there's so much to love! And only one season's worth of episodes. *sobs*

A sad case of a series being created to cash in on a name. John Woo had very little to do with "John Woo's Once A Thief"; he certainly didn't direct any of the episodes. Consequently, the action sequences one might expect from a John Woo project were lacking -- which is actually no surprise considering the constraints of a television shooting schedule. However, it was the writing of the show that was the real villain. Viewers got treated to the worst features of lowbrow action flicks (shallow characters, absurd dialogue, implausible situations, leaden pacing), and none of the compensatory strengths (a sense of humour about it all).

Towards the end of the series, the writing got a little better, and a couple of episodes were almost passably entertaining in a campy sort of way. But it was too little, too late, and the series mercifully came to an end after 22 episodes.