Mike Eps 3 – 4 is the third/fourth parts of a biographical drama TV miniseries based on the life of heavyweight champion boxer Mike Tyson, played by Trevante Rhodes. The series is a stylised retelling of Tyson’s life from the perspective of a one-man show. Tyson has is not involved in the miniseries and he has disavowed it with a tweet – “Hulu used my Undisputed Truth show as the back drop for their Unauthorised Truth series about my life.”
S P O I L E R S
Mike Eps 3 – 4 can be summarised handily with two names viz. Robin Givens and Don King as the episodes focus on Tyson’s relationships, first with his actress wife Givens and then with his new manager. Both end in tears, of course, as Tyson’s success and his penchant for self-destruction leave him open to anyone who had the opportunity, to exploit him. In truth of course, Tyson is no angel but his desires and appetites get in the way of his need for peace of mind.
READ OUR STORY ANALYSES OF MIKE.
Irony abounds as Tyson obviously pursued Givens but he lacked the wisdom and insight to see that she was still tied with her mother and together they would manipulate and gaslight Tyson. Once free of Givens and her mother, Tyson would fall into the clutches of King, who led Tyson by the nose while he fleeced him blind. Presumably the attraction of Tyson and his excessive lifestyle is similar to watching a train wreck – horrible to witness but one just cannot look away.
Mike Eps 3 – 4 demonstrates once more the conflict that a viewer will experience with respect to this miniseries. Sure, it’s stylised to an inch of its life and Rhodes does an excellent job in conveying to us Tyson’s naive savagery but one imagines that real life was nastier than what has been presented. So obviously we will keep watching …
Now streaming on Disney+.
… still there’s more …