Odd Couple

During the Qing dynasty, two aging masters—the King of Sabres and the King of Spears—meet each year for a timed duel that always ends in a draw. To preserve their art for future generations, they decide to each take a student and let the next generation determine who is the better teacher. The arrangement sets up the competition as a test of mentorship as much as combat.

Ten years later, the masters plan to reunite with their students to compare not just skill but how well each lineage has grown. The reunion emphasizes legacy and pride, turning the event into a mantle pass rather than a simple rematch. The stage is set for a more meaningful contest between teacher and student pairs.

Before the reunion, Old Yellow Dog—now calling himself Laughing Bandit—kidnaps the two students. The act disrupts the planned duel and escalates the conflict into a rescue mission. The stakes shift from a test of teaching to a fight for the protagonists’ freedom.

A flashback reveals that Old Yellow Dog once impressed the masters but was defeated by both the King of Sabres and the King of Spears and forced into retirement. In his new persona, Laughing Bandit, he plots revenge against his former rivals. The flashback establishes his motive and the depth of his grudge.

When the old masters arrive, they engage Laughing Bandit's four disciples and kill them in brutal exchanges. The confrontation demonstrates the masters’ superior skill but also hints at the danger of new techniques. The firefight sets the tempo for the brutal showdown to follow.

This clash appears to be a deliberate ploy to tire the elders, as the four disciples overwhelm them in isolated battles. The masters’ pride prevents them from coordinating an efficient team response. The relentless onslaught leaves both fighters strained and vulnerable.

The Laughing Bandit's elder suggests both masters attack at the same time, but their pride keeps them from combining their powers. They refuse to cooperate, allowing the disciples’ plan to wear them down further. The rift between the two veterans becomes a turning point in the fight.

Realizing their mentors are overwhelmed, the students break free and retreat through a designated escape route. They protest but ultimately flee the scene to survive. This escape unites the students and motivates them to work together against Laughing Bandit.

Left to face Laughing Bandit alone, the two masters are slain as the final pressure closes in. Their deaths ignite the students’ resolve to form a united front. The loss underscores the cost of revenge and the fragility of the mentor-mentee bond.

Motivated by vengeance and grief, the surviving students join forces to defeat Laughing Bandit. They pool their strategies and combine the principles of both lineages to craft a united plan. Their alliance marks a shift from individual rivalry to cooperative action.

Hung's character, the newly titled King of Spears, devises a plan to use magnets to yank Laughing Bandit's weapon from his grip. The concept leverages physics to neutralize his edge and level the playing field. The plan demonstrates ingenuity born of collaboration.

They lure Laughing Bandit into the open and fight him unarmed, mimicking weapon motions with their hands while the magnet disrupts his attacks. The battle is grueling, testing clock-like endurance as the magnet interferes with his feints. In the end, the united pair overwhelm Laughing Bandit and kill him.

After burying their masters, the surviving duelists honor their memory by attempting to fulfill the masters' request to duel one final time. The fight ends in a draw, echoing the tradition that no one can claim superiority. They reflect on how rivalry can endure beyond death.

Rather than continuing the violence, they propose a game: each must try to place his weapon into their masters' burial mound while actively stopping the other. The long, evenly matched contest tests strategy, patience, and friendship. The outcome remains ambiguous, underscoring that friendship matters more than victory.

The film closes with the two men laughing at the absurdity of the rivalry and realizing they will forever be friends. They accept that neither can definitively be called the best, choosing camaraderie over conquest. The final image celebrates friendship over rivalry.