What Cobra Kai has pulled off over the years is nothing less than magical. The underdog spin off (which revived a franchise that celebrates underdogs) has accomplished what few TV shows or movies could have ever hoped for: successfully rebooting a 1980s entity while appealing to Gen Z to an even greater degree than capturing the original The Karate Kid audience. To be perfectly frank as well, it’s also no secret that updated versions of franchises frequently do not work, as though studios and/or streaming services are throwing everything at the wall and don’t fully process whether a potential revival serves a purpose. Yet Cobra Kai — full of such heart, honor, and humor — prevailed despite nearly insurmountable odds after debuting in 2018.
With that said, I did have some reservations about whether a sixth season would work because the most recent season finale could have actually doubled as a series conclusion.
I suspect that was the case because show creators Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg didn’t know whether the series would be renewed again after shooting the fourth and fifth seasons back to back. They (kindly) didn’t leave a cliffhanger and ended the season by jailing mega-karate villain Terry Silver after he went down with a cinematic crane kick. Most of the younger characters’ stories landed in workable places, too. Also, how long can the show milk a decades-old beef between Daniel-san (Ralph Macchio) and Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka)?
As it turns out, there’s still juice in that rivalry, and the fact that Yuji Okumoto stuck around as The Karate Kid II antagonist Chozen adds extra dimension. He was mainly a source of humor and action in previous seasons, and the show now takes an unexpected dive into his psyche. I am here for it.
Do not forget, as well, that this series previously declared, “Youth is not a liability. It is the greatest power.” These younger karate students are more rationally behaved than their senseis, and that payoff continues this season.
So here we are: Netflix renewed Cobra Kai for a final, supersized season to end on its own terms — a luxury in this TV climate — with three parts of five episodes apiece. The final part (arriving in 2025) will presumably deliver a hand-off gesture to the upcoming The Karate Kid movie that will star Ralph Macchio, Jackie Chan, and newcomer Ben Wang. Will there be any overlap between the two, storywise? Probably not, and the film will leave the Valley for the East Coast, but both are Sony-associated projects, so you never know. There is, after all, a surprise appearance in the new Cobra Kai episodes from an actor (with a packed film/tv schedule) who I didn’t imagine would surface.
What was expected, however, is that terminally bad sensei John Kreese (Martin Kove) returns after escaping from prison right about 5 minutes before he would have been exonerated by Stingray’s revelalation. This leads to splashy headlines on a mocked up newspaper, but the show doesn’t dwell much on the why of Kreese staying obsessed with dominating karate. It’s enough to watch him run circles around himself like a cartoon (now training a rival dojo) while deeper development goes on elsewhere, including with these four Miyagi/Eagle-do presumed front runners: Robby (Tanner Buchanan), Tory (Peyton List), Miguel (Xolo Maridueña), and Samantha (Mary Mouser).
This is also a place in the series where the “karate” of it all (the world competition will come later) takes a slight backseat. Not only do we learn more about Chozen, but Tory’s rough home life presents dire worries about supporting her entire family while also training for competition. Other members of the younger gang are on the brink of adult problems, too, that take the show elsewhere on top of being entertaining, which is fine because we do not need this to be the Emily In Paris of karate-focused shows. Since we do need something flashy, however, Eli “Hawk” Moskowitz (Jacob Bertrand) obliges by regrowing his infamous ‘do and regaining his spirit.
With that said, the heightened reality of this show means that the tone won’t grow too heavy, and viewers can still roll with the absurd. This is a world where perfectly choreographed karate fights break out in school hallways, at the mall, in parks, and so on. This also leaves room for Daniel-san to find a mysterious box inside of Mr. Miyagi’s house — which he has always had access to, btw — that will of course lead to questioning what he knew about his sensei. (Cue dramatic music, but that offshoot does go somewhere of value.)
Surprisingly as well, the fusion of Daniel and Johnny’s teaching methods do resolve into yin-and-yang components while imparting sometimes accidental lessons that give these students perspective for the future. Much credit goes to Macchio and Zabka for holding out on a revival until the right offer came calling. The pair’s love for the franchise is evident, and they spread that enthusiasm to a charismatic group of rising actors who, in addition to the above, include Gianni DeCenzo, Dallas Dupree Young, and Griffin Santopietro. (Yes, the worst character reappears, but he is slowly improving.)
While the karate soap opera continues to churn, the actual action points towards a world competition, the Sekai Taikai, after Cobra Kai has been banished from the Valley. Meanwhile, Daniel and Johnny’s joint dojo is officially a team effort, although who knows, the series could end with them punting each other into the sun. That would be overkill, sure, but these guys need all-inclusive vacations on separate beaches while Hawk, Tory, and Robby decide to open their own dojo. A possible spin off? Make it happen, Netflix.
‘Cobra Kai’ returns to Netflix on August 18.