Cobra Kai Non-Spoiler Series Review: This Is How You Do A Long Awaited Sequel

When I first heard that The Karate Kid franchise was being relaunched in the form of the streaming series Cobra Kai back in 2018 on YouTube, I honestly had very little initial interest. Don't get me wrong, I love the 1984 classic film, I've seen it plenty of times and like many other fans it certainly holds a special place in my heart. Heck, I even like the 2010 reboot/remake with Jackie Chan & Jaden Smith. But, we've seen plenty of attempts from Hollywood to reinvigorate many old nostalgic franchises (particularly ones from the 80s) and often to rather mixed results, so I guess for me that novelty has sort of wear off. But, as the years have gone by since it first premiered, the show has certainly gained lots of praise and attention which obviously only peaked my interested. And once the show moved over from YouTube Red to Netflix back I think in September 2020, its evolving popularity has just continued to grow leading up to its Season 3 which just released last month. Just a few weeks ago, I finally decided to sit down and see what the fuss was all about as I binged through these first three seasons with my mother. 

And I'm so happy to report that Cobra Kai absolutely lives up to its ever growing hype. These first three seasons are ridiculously entertaining, funny, surprisingly emotional and totally as addicting any other streaming show of today. And it's quickly becoming one of my overall favorite currently running TV shows no doubt. 

Cobra Kai takes a really interesting approach in that it follows the antagonist from the 1984 film, Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and allows us to understand not only many of that classic film's events through his own perceptive, but also see what his life has become thirty-four years after his defeat to Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) in the 1984 All-Valley Karate Tournament. The show essentially reverses the roles of both Johnny & Daniel. Johnny is now working as a financially struggling handyman far removed the wealthy lifestyle he had in the original film, whereas Daniel is now married to Amanda (Courtney Henggeler) with two children (Mary Mouser, and Griffin Santopietro) and is also the owner of a successful car dealership chain. Johnny is also dealing with his own estranged relationship with his teenage son, Robby Keene (Tanner Buchanan). Soon enough, Johnny eventually takes a teenager Miguel Diaz (Xolo Mariduena) under his wing after helping him fend off a couple of bullies one night. This encounter motivates Johnny to reopen his old Cobra Kai dojo and train a new generation of karate students while also working to reform the dojo's reputation. This then rekindles his old rivalry with Daniel who looks to counterpoint and open his own dojo that follows the teachings of his late mentor/father figure, Mr. Miyagi (the late & iconic Pat Morita). 

The choice of telling much of this show's story through the original's bully character Johnny Lawrence was honestly a brilliant one that has paid off in spades for this show. Much of this can be contributed to not only the strong writing, but also the consistently outstanding, and even Emmy worthy work from William Zabka. Through Zabka's performance, we see so many different layers for this character and it obviously allows us the viewer to see Johnny in a much more humanized light that we ever got to see before. Zabka not only continues to also nail the physicality of this role, but the perfectly timed comedic timing of Johnny as well. This provides great contrast to Ralph Macchio's return as Daniel LaRusso, our beloved hero from the original set of films. It would have been so easy to now just paint Daniel as the real villain (something that has been a running internet gag about the original film for years now), but thankfully they skillfully avoid this by reminding us why we fell in love with his character in the first place. Much like Johnny, even Daniel is a far more complex character than before, a flawed man with many of his own inner demons, but ultimately he still carries that good hearted nature and moral compass that he obviously learned from his inspiring mentor, Mr. Miyagi who we see remains a great spiritual influence in his life. It's not like having a lot of money has corrupted Daniel's own morals. Just like Zabka, Macchio has eased back into his most famous role so seamlessly and each season consistently displays the best piece of acting I've seen from him in his entire career. Every scene these two have with one another is just magnetic and I'm just so consistently rooting for these lovable hotheads that all I want is for them to finally settle this on-going petty rivalry that has continue into their adulthood for good. The great Pat Morita is unfortunately no longer with us, but especially through Daniel's character, his iconic Mr. Miyagi character remains a looming presence throughout all three seasons of Cobra Kai. 

There's been many wonderful elements in this show throughout the first three seasons, but I think the biggest standout for me has been how impressively show creators & writers Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg, & Josh Heald have managed to balance this impressive ensemble cast of characters. I've raved about both Zabka & Macchio more than enough, and their dynamic is certainly what will draw you into this show the most, but they are also guided by many great supporting players. Of the newly introduced cast members for the "Miyagi-Verse" (as the showrunners have now labeled this franchise as being a part of), it's the young actors that have really gotten to take much of the spotlight. Xolo Mariduena especially brings so much of the show's heart as Miguel, as watching the endearing mentorship between him & Johnny has been so rewarding. Other standouts include Mary Mouser as Daniel's daughter Sam, and Tanner Buchanan as Johnny's son Robby. Courtney Henggeler has also been a major scene stealer as Daniel's supportive wife Amanda. The character work throughout these first three seasons has just been really impressive across the board. These characters are memorable. and at least by the end of this latest season, even feel three dimensional.  

After the first few episodes of Season 1, I figured I'd grow annoyed or even bored by the on going teen soap opera angle of the show, but thankfully this great writing team and impressive young performers have managed to keep this element of the show consistently engaging, even when it occasionally treads into corny territory. And even during those moments that it does, the show really often embraces its own sheer absurdity and it honestly becomes all the more of such a wildly fun ride. After all, this is a sequel for a franchise that was very much a popular product of the 80s, so it does not at all shy away from the nostalgic references to that era. 

Speaking of that nostalgia factor though, there is so much of that certainly sprinkled throughout this show, from 80s references to callbacks of the older films and even surprise appearances from characters that have appeared in the franchise before. All of this would usually start to become way overbearing in just about any other film or tv show, but through Cobra Kai, they've managed to beautifully incorporate major fan service elements in the story arcs of these characters in a way that feels exciting and even surprisingly organic. For the sake of not revealing spoilers for those that have yet caught on board with this show, there's plenty of returning characters from the older films that appear throughout each of the seasons that even caught me very much off guard. I'm a fan of The Karate Kid for sure, I'm just not nearly as connected to the overall franchise as many others certainly are, but even these numerous of call backs have made me quite emotional. I don't at all believe you have to see the originals in order to really enjoy this show, it stands on its own so well, but it'll give you an even greater appreciation for these wonderful tie-in moments for sure. 

Even as a fan of its source material, Cobra Kai through three seasons has managed to far exceed any expectations I originally had for it with how consistently great the quality of this show has remained. The show is jam packed with great action, terrific character work led by an outstanding ensemble, a surprisingly great emotional core, and overall really smart storytelling. It feels like the organic continuation for the stories of both Johnny Lawrence & Daniel LaRusso, and wonderfully captures the spirit of the films that came before it, but also does such a great job in standing on its own feet that I really think it can appeal to literally anyone, even those that are either not fans of the franchise or have somehow never even seen that 1984 classic.  

I'm so thrilled that Netflix managed to pick this series up from YouTube Red, as it clearly has helped the series reach a much wider audience. And even better is that in picking the series up, Netflix have retained Hurwitz, Schlossberg, & Heald as the head creative team because their work has been outstanding. Season 4 is currently filming, and the show creators have maintained that they have plans for at least six seasons in total (while even planting seeds for future spin-offs set in the now labeled "Miyagi-Verse"). If the quality remains consistent, count me as completely on board to see their plans come to full fruition. Regardless, with where things leave off in Season 3, I will no doubt be impatiently waiting for the next chapter, the wait is for sure to be a chore.

Final Letter Grade: A-