The world of combat sports is a manic corner of the planet. You either dig it and have a good time or think it’s barbaric and hate everything it stands for. Regardless of where you stand on the sport, there are some aspects that are irrefutable and undeniable. One of the biggest names of the modern era in all forms of sports and entertainment is Conor McGregor.
You know the name and you know some of his game, but in the new Netflix miniseries, McGregor Forever, we get an inside look at The Notorious One. The four part miniseries takes a look at the buildups and the aftermath of Conor McGregor’s most recent fights. Here is a super quick review of the series.
Conor McGregor Forever
Within this series there are four episodes, all about an hour long. Since the episodes are all based on his fights, there is not much to spoil. Conor is a very public figure and operates on the mic in a very open way. Everything Conor tells you is a matter of fact, and his emotions frequently get the best of his passion for the fights.
Conor McGregor pictured above looking strong ahead of his UFC return. Image provided courtesy via McGregor’s Instagram @thenotoriousmma.
The in-between footage of McGregor preparing for a fight, or dealing with the fallouts of the bouts, are sensible emotional journeys. I’m a fan of Conor in the octagon and think he is one of the best talkers in UFC history not named Tony Ferguson or Chael Sonnen.
“Hold on, brother. I’m talking” is the best Tony Ferguson line. “Anderson Silva, you absolutely suck” is Chael Sonnen’s simplistic masterpiece. “Sorry I’m late. I just don’t give a f***” is Conor’s opus in my eyes. Yeah, fine, “Who da fook is that guy” left a Jeremy Stephens shaped crater in the ground, but I digress.
The Bad: Fourth Round Rear Naked Choke
Although I am a fan of Conor and appreciate everything this mini-series does to show him for his accomplishments, I think it is a little empty. Don’t get me wrong, I am fascinated with Conor and have so much respect for his legacy and skills. With that said, I pretty much know everything that happens in all four episodes already.
This series was not made for UFC fans, because we can fill in the blanks of what went through his mind after his loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov. We know he wants another win over Dustin Poirier. The Cowboy fight was a really exciting build and moment for everyone involved.
Conor McGregor facing down Khabib Nurmagomedov in their UFC 229 Lightweight Title bout. Image provided courtesy of The UFC.
I liken this mini-series to Euphoria season two- I like what I am seeing, but none of it connects emotionally for me. Most of what this series felt like was just another excuse to get you excited for all of these fights that happened already. While it is appreciated that some emotional context was provided for how Conor felt after each fight, none of it changes anything about Conor.
I like McGregor already so there is no need for this series to try and convince me he is an exciting person. There is not even a need to convince me whether I think he is a good person or not. My opinions already exist. Maybe this is a personal thing, because Conor is a polarizing figure- you either like him in all aspects or you hate him entirely.
Main Gripe
Right now, I am looking forward to whenever his fight with “Iron” Michael Chandler happens. The future looks great for the former champ-champ and his past few fights are all notable moments for Conor and the UFC.
It is currently May of 2023 and the last time Conor fought was in July of 2021. The Chandler fight has not even been confirmed since they both will still be head coaches for the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter. It has been nearly two years since Conor last fought and it will still be a while before the Chandler fight is announced.
Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor in their most recent bout at UFC 264. Image provided courtesy of The UFC.
Aside from this series telling me what I already know, I think this came out way too early. McGregor Forever ends with the super depressing ending of his trilogy finale with Dustin Poirier when Conor’s ankle snapped. This series spent so much time showing us where Conor has gone and where he ended up.
Why not wait a few more months to show where he will be? In fact, they should have waited till after the Chandler fight to see if this is a story they could end positively. That is my overall biggest issue with this series: it came out too early and leads to an uncertain ending that we know is not uncertain. Aside from those two big issues I don’t have much else to say negatively.
The Good: McGregor’s Forty Second Knockout
Conor McGregor is a fun person to follow along. Despite this is all pretty much a rehash of past, none of it would be exciting without McGregor. The in-between emotional bits did not do a whole lot for me, but it did ground Conor more whenever we saw him interact with his family.
Cases could be made that he is a selfish individual, but I kind of have to disagree with that. Conor will tell you what he is thinking and will not say things he does not mean. Exaggeration is sometimes in the cards, but nothing feels fake, to me at least. Almost every interview or decompression scene he is talking about his wife and kids. Conor is a family man, plain and simple.
Conor McGregor opposite rival coach Michael Chandler in the upcoming season of The UFC’s The Ultimate Fighter. Image provided courtesy of The UFC.
The finale sees him separated from his family in preparation for his fight against Poirier and you can see this hurts him a bit. At no point did my opinions of Conor change, but my appreciation for his appreciation grew. There are many times he talked about his wealth and money, but the way he speaks of everything is not like it is for granted.
The Scorecards – In Conclusion
Hopefully an announcement will be made in the future regarding when we will see The Notorious One back in the cage. Champ Champ is an exciting guy, and the sport would not be the same thing it is today without him.
If you are not a huge consumer of UFC or want to know more about Conor’s recent life, then I think this might be an enjoyable series. If you know Conor already than you can kind of skip this unless you need a fix of Proper No. 12.
