Cobra Kai is the Karate Kid sequel we deserve! Back in the 1980s, one of my favorite movies growing up was The Karate Kid. The scrawny kid who got his ass kicked by a bunch of karate jocks until they got their asses kicked by a little Asian guy named Mr. Miyagi
Cobra Kai, the continuation of The Karate Kid
That was the start of a spiritual journey of Daniel LaRusso and Mr Miyagi that lasted for three movies starring Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita. There was a fourth installment with a very young Hillary Swank who went on to win an Oscar (she really deserved it too) but for now we will just focus on the first three movies since the TV show Cobra Kai revolves heavily around the rivalry between Johnny Lawrence (Karate Kid I) and Daniel LaRusso.
Whatever happened to…
Many decades later Daniel LaRusso is leading a succesful life, he is happily married to his wife Amanda, he has two children, a son and a daughter and owns a car dealership that is rated among the best in his region.
Johnny Lawrence has hit rock bottom. Going from riches to rags instead of the other way around. He is doing his handyman thingie until he gets fired from the job. Hitting the bottom of rock bottom he goes to grab some food when a few kids beat up his neighbor. It wasn’t until the group hit his car that he hit back with karate and that was the moment he saw the light and wanted to start up karate dojo.
Alongside Miguel, the neighbor and his first student, they reboot Cobra Kai. Much to the dismay of Daniel LaRusso. That moment along with a car accident that led Johnny to fix his car at LaRusso’s car dealership led to restart of their old rivalry. Both men can’t let go of the past and take their rivalry whereever they go.
Although Mr. Miyagi is heavily missed, his legacy is like the thread through the entire series and his life affected everyone.
The show is a trip through memory lane
When Cobra Kai was first announced on YouTube premium, I didn’t think much of it. That and personal issues in real life made me sit out. I just didn’t think much of YouTube Premium since YouTube does a lot of these pilot programs and then we never hear anything of it anymore. Also the fact that Pat Morita had no role in it was a turn off for me.
A few weeks ago I came accross The Karate Kid movie from the 1980s and it was a trip through memory lane. The Karate Kid movie was my main inspiration to join a karate dojo and both my parents and god aunt (who sponsored me all the way) backed me to do karate. I ended up doing karate for 3 and a half years before I quit.
I didn’t realize it then, I was only 7, but karate has given me much more. It taught me that you don’t strike first. Balance and control are far more important than I thought it would be. A lot of the philosophies that I live by I got from karate. And that wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t watched the movie.
I run marathons…on Netflix
After the movie on Netflix finished it gave me several suggestions. As usual, I am sure you are familiar with it, and along with Jackie Chan’s Drunken Master and The Karate Kid sequels and the reboot with Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan I saw that Cobra Kai had joined Netflix.
My first thought was, well if it’s good enough for Netflix…and so I watched the first episode and the second one , the third and before I knew it, I binged the entire first season within a day. That’s how good I thought the show was.
I was impressed by the acting and fighting choreography of the new students and Ralph Macchio and William Zabka still have the moves and the acting chops to go with it. I didn’t recognize Courtney Hengeler at first but I do now and she had the honor of playing Sheldon Cooper’s sister on The Big Bang Theory. She didn’t have many lines but on Cobra Kai she sure shows that she is a phenomenal actress.
But most of all I was over the moon by the enthousiasm, spirit and the fun the entire cast has. It just splatters off the screen and that is the main strength of the show.
Cobra Kai cast attending media events are a hoot and a half
So after I watched the show I did some digging around on YouTube and found a whole bunch of great videos of the cast visiting several media outlets promoting their amazing show. And when you watch the videos, you notice that the chemistry on screen isn’t actually played but it is real. Which I don’t see very much. The last time I saw that was on The Big Bang Theory and Agents of SHIELD.
Ralph Macchio still hasn’t forgotten his teen idol years while discussing it with Conan O’Brien. Ralph is 57 years old but he still looks like he’s in his mid to late 30s. I wonder how he does it.
Neither has William Zabka! By the way, here is a fun fact: William Zabka likes poetry. That’s pretty awesome I think.
What to expect in season 3
If you haven’t watched the show yet (shame on you) then don’t read any further. If you have then keep reading.
There are some interesting fan theories about the show and specifically Tori, with an i. Fans seem to think that Tory is related to the ex girlfriend of both Johnny and Daniel, Ali…with an i. However this has been debunked by the show’s producer who told that Tory’s last name is actually Nichols. So no, there is no relation between Ali and Tori. I thought it would be far fetched anyway since Ali appear to be happily married and lives far away.
The present that Mr Miyagi leaves is another hot topic among fans. Most of the fans think that Mr Miyagi has a secret son wandering the earth somewhere but he was told that both the baby and his wife passed away at childbirth. So unless they lied, which means that Miyagi’s character background and motivations in the original movies just took a big hit so I am hoping that that isn’t the case. But that the secret of Miyagi is actually a karate move or a kata that we haven’t seen or heard from.
Since the third season will have parts play in Japan, I am hoping to see Okinawa and ofcourse more of Daniel’s rivalries will come to the surface with Chozen. His former romantic partner Kumiko, I hope to see as well.
But the real threat that is looming is Kreese, who has stolen Cobra Kai from Johnny at the end of the second season. Will Johnny and Daniel team up to rid the city of its’ evil? Can they cast aside their differences and pride to team up? We will have to wait and see when season three airs in 2021.
Vulkk also loved Cobra Kai
This last segment is from Vulkk, invading Manfred’s article to share my personal thoughts and experience with this show.
Manfred mentioned a few weeks ago that he is going to write about Cobra Kai. I replied with a question that may have been involving things like “what” and “the hell is that”.
I had seen The Karate Kid as a child and I remember liking it. Most of the plot I had forgotten, of course. Until a few years ago I either didn’t know or didn’t realize who Billy Zabka even is. I learned of him and his “unfortunate role” in the movie from How I met your mother tv show.
I know, shame on me! But the movie was released in the year I was born. My childhood’s movie fantasies were so heavily dominated by Star Wars, and partly by TMNT and the Transformers, I was nearly blind to anything else.
The Karate Kid is a movie out of its time. It was back then and it continues to be today. The Netflix series continues this tradition. It’s a wonderful mix of drama, comedy and incredibly strange activities the characters are involved with during the story of the show.
I don’t want to reveal deep spoilers, but some of the twists and ideas are way too weird, even for this show. Yet I loved all of them.
I think that to enjoy Cobra Kai you should remove any expectations of reality you might have. You should be a fan of The Karate Kid movie (the first, the original) and you should have plenty of time to binge-watch the first two seasons currently available on Netflix. This is my recipe (and recommendation) for getting the maximum level of entertainment with the show.
In the end I am glad Manfred pointed me towards this show. I have now seen the first season twice and am currently in the middle of re-watching Season 2. It’s a damn great way to escape of the traditional world and the not-so-good 2020 considering what is happening all around the world at the moment.
