(Spoilers for The Karate Kid spinoff Cobra Kai will be found below.)
Cobra Kai has so much fun amping up the bad guys amid the warring dojos, all while the show appeals to both younger and older generations alike. Granted, there were a few slight moments of weakness in Season 4, like when worst character Anthony LaRusso received way too much airtime and when the missing Aisha returned, but only for a few minutes. However, the show has sealed the deal by providing us with delicious villainy from sensei John Kreese, who came back a few seasons ago and reclaimed Cobra Kai from Johnny Lawrence, only to (ultimately) shoot himself in the foot by bringing The Karate Kid III‘s Terry Silver back into the mix.
In the short term, was this a good idea? Oh sure, Terry ended up rigging a tournament win for Tory (unbeknownst to Tory until afterward), which tipped the balance in favor of Cobra Kai, despite Hawk‘s triumph. Then Terry began to really play his hand, seizing the microphone and announcing a Cobra Kai expansion to set up dojos all around the Valley and surrounding areas. And then he engineered Kreese’s exit, or so it seems.
During one of the final moments of the fourth season, Silver revealed his dastardly betrayal of Kreese while declaring, “I’m shedding my weakness.” From there, we learned that Silver forced Stingray (playing sobbingly by Paul freaking Hausser) to blame Kreese for beating the holy hell out of him, when it was Silver all along. The cops showed up at Silver and Kreese’s post-tournament, fireside-and-champagne meetup and arrested Kreese for aggravated assault and attempted murder. It didn’t look good for Kreese.
Nor did it look good for Johnny, since Silver added, “And don’t worry about Lawrence. I’ll take good care of him too.”
And where does Kreese’s story go from there? He’s pretty f*cked, at least at first. Because if Silver moves against Johnny, then Daniel LaRusso and Eagle Fang/Miyagi Do groups will surely rally in his defense. Whereas Kreese’s entire existence revolves around Cobra Kai, which has now been seized from him. Silver also alludes to calling in some helpers, and it’s at least one of these people will surely be Karate Kid III antagonist Mike Barnes. Both of them were banned from the All Valley Tournament at that time, due to their antics, which included plotting a brutal takedown of Daniel.
Silver had promised Barnes a huge stake in Cobra Kai, too, so it appears that Silver’s been planning (during Season 4) to deliver the goods to Barnes. We could also see Barnes’ old pals, Snake and Dennis, along for the journey, but will there be Justice for Kreese? I see two options here where this could happen:
(1) Somebody convinces Stingray to do the right thing and tell cops that Silver’s the one who beat and left him for dead. This option feels like a long shot, but it’s possible;
(2) Tory continues to grow a conscience and, since Kreese helped her so much (and this is one of the only genuinely good things that we’ve seen him do), rallies for her true sensei and helps to prove him innocent. This option feels much more likely and could fuel Tory’s ongoing redemption. Then maybe she can build a dojo with Samantha or something. (That last part’s a joke, but I wouldn’t be mad at it.)
Too far-fetched? Well, few people believed that The Karate Kid franchise would be going strong in 2022 and beyond, so never say never.
Netflix’s ‘Cobra Kai’ is currently streaming the first four seasons on Netflix.