Karate Kid: Legends

Director: Jonathan Entwistle
Starring: Jackie Chan, Ralph Macchio, Ben Wang, Joshua Jackson, Sadie Stanley, Ming Na-Wen, Aramis Knight, Wyatt Oleff, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Tim Rozon, Oscar Ge
Running Time: 94 min.
Rating: PG-13

★★★ (out of ★★★★)  

Coming off the recent conclusion of Netflix's enormously successful Cobra Kai, you'd see why greenlighting a new Karate Kid spin-off feature would be too great a temptation to resist, enabling the filmmakers to ride that series' coattails while laying the groundwork for what's next in the Miyagi-Verse. Except the challenge facing Karate Kid: Legends isn't just the unenviable task of following a franchise defining show, but the lingering nostalgia of an original trilogy that hangs over its head. 

After trailers and commercials heavily hinted at an effort more closely resembling 2010's reviled remake starring Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan (who returns here), we knew this wouldn't be easy. That's why director Jonathan Entwistle deserves a lot of credit for delivering an effective underdog story that holds its own, standing independently from what's preceded it. Of course, that doesn't mean it isn't still trying to fit into the overall mythology and serve a few masters at once, namely Mr. Myagi. Or at least his teachings, which continues to provide the foundation on which this entire saga is built. 

It's 1985 when Mr. Myagi explains the connection between his family and the Hans to young pupil Daniel LaRusso before we flash to present day and meet teenager Li Fong (Ben Wang). While studying kung fu in Beijing under the tutelage of his great uncle and wuguan master Mr. Han (Chan), Li's physician mother (Ming-Na Wen) reveals they're moving to New York City where she's accepted a new job. Before leaving, she reiterates her objections to Li practicing martial arts, a decision stemming from the tragic murder of his older brother Bo (Oscar Ge) following a tournament.

Upon arriving in the city, Li struggles to adjust at school before meeting classmate Mia Lipani (Sadie Stanley), the daughter of Victor (Joshua Jackson), a former boxing champion who owns the local pizzeria. Unfortunately, he also owes money to loan shark O' Shea (Tim Rozon), who runs the Demolition Dojo where Mia's ex-boyfriend and defending Five Boroughs karate champion Conor Day (Aramis Knight) trains. None too happy about Mia's new relationship, Conor targets Li, prompting the teen to break the promise to his mom and enter the tournament. But he'll need help from Han, who recruits a reluctant Daniel (Macchio) to teach the boy karate in only a week.

It comes as a relief that Ron Lieber's script doesn't exactly repeat the formula of what came before, or at least when it does, takes enough narrative detours to keep it fresh. Rather than depicting Li as a weakling being shoved into lockers or getting his head flushed down the toilet, he's an experienced fighter more than capable of defending himself. This isn't just a welcome show of restraint, but a display of trust that Wang's likability will win us over, which it almost immediately does. The real issue revolves around him facing a bigger, stronger and more experienced opponent he'll need additional training to defeat. 

Li's mom isn't portrayed as some nagging shrew, but a strict, loving parent whose reasons for forbidding her son to fight are justified based on what they've endured. It's apparent Li's own guilt and sadness over his brother's death fuels that urge to compete, even as memories of it frequently freeze him with fear at the worst possible moments. And while Li's and Mia's burgeoning romance is sweet and well handled with Sadie Stanley lighting up the screen, it's actually the bond he forms with her dad Victor that steals the movie. 

The dynamic between Li and Victor recalls that of Johnny and Miguel in Cobra Kai, only now with the teen in a mentor role as he trains washed up boxer Victor for a return to the ring to save his pizzeria. And Jackson's terrific as this somewhat cocky, overprotective dad in way over his head, prepared to put it all on the line for his daughter and business. There's definitely a lot of Johnny in Victor, with the chief difference being that he's a bit more willing to admit fault and accept help, however it comes.  

When the story takes a turn, Li prepares for his own battle, as two senseis with opposing methods have to co-exist if he's to have any chance against the ruthless Conor, who Aramis Knight does almost too good a job playing. Channeling a young Terry Silver, he comes across as such a psycho that Sadie brushing off her relationship with him as a minor, immature mistake is a bit of a head scratcher. Either way, this gets right what the 2010 remake didn't in making the characters an appropriate age for the story being told and transporting the action to New York, regardless of the fact it clearly wasn't shot there.  

Though Macchio and Chan's presence is welcome, there's a slight drop-off in quality when they enter the mix. But most of that can be attributed to an onslaught of musically backed training montages, comedic bickering and some frenetic editing choices from Entwistle. There are also distracting graphics that appear over the action during the somewhat rushed Five Boroughs tourney. Thankfully, that's discarded before an exciting, well shot final fight and a clever post-credits scene no fan will object to. 

While the Myagi-inspired concept of "two branches, one tree" lays at the heart of this installment, Legends works better when focusing on what's new rather than the franchise's mandated iconography. This could be why the first half plays better, immediately quelling fears it would clumsily retrace the blueprint of previous films. Instead, it's a solid entry that subverts expectations by proving legacy characters don't have to carry every story on their own. 

Cobra Kai (Season 5)

Creators: Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg
Starring: Ralph Macchio, William Zabka, Courtney Henggeler, Xolo Maridueña, Tanner Buchanan, Mary Mouser, Jacob Bertrand, Peyton List, Dallas Dupree Young, Vanessa Rubio, Thomas Ian Griffith, Martin Kove, Yuji Okumoto, Alicia Hannah-Kim, Oona O'Brien, Joe Seo, Griffin Santopietro, Paul Walter Hauser, Sean Kanan, Robyn Lively, Luis Roberto Guzmán
Original Airdate: 2022 

**The Following Review Contains Plot Spoilers For The Fifth Season Of Cobra Kai **

★★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)

Having now wrapped its fifth season, Netflix's Cobra Kai still shows absolutely no signs of slowing down. While it's already common knowledge just how good this Karate Kid continuation is, showrunners Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg are constantly readjusting and evolving the story to keep it fresh. So even if the series already has an established creative voice and tone we're accustomed to, they're still finding new ways to continually top themselves. This latest batch of episodes are no exception, as the writers turn obstacles into opportunity, navigating their way around potential issues many assumed could become major pitfalls the longer this went. Inevitably facing some criticism from diehards insisting it's veered too far into comedy or devolved into a typical "teen show," they've wisely stayed the course, delivering the same high quality entertainment.  

Whereas last season seemed to take the characters in different directions that came together in a really clever cliffhanger, these episodes have a more singular focus that serves the storytelling and performances equally well. Nearly everything revolves around the sinister, looming presence of the show's main antagonist and he doesn't disappoint, taking center stage like a scheming Bond villain with his evil expansion plan. It isn't an easy line to walk, but a big part of the show's success has been taking itself just seriously enough, while still retaining a playful tongue-in-cheek tone. And now they've done it again, delivering a new batch of episodes capped with a bold exclamation point that leaves us wondering what's next.

Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith) is flying high after Cobra Kai's tainted tournament victory at the end of last season vanquished Daniel LaRusso's (Ralph Macchio) Miyagi-Do from the Valley, And after framing John Kreese (Martin Kove) for his own drunken beatdown of Stingray (Paul Walter Hauser), Silver's grabbed full control of Cobra Kai, aggressively attempting to expand the franchise while his old Vietnam buddy rots in jail. But Daniel's not quite out of the picture yet, enlisting former Okinawa rival Chozen Toguchi (Yuji Okumoto) to help take Silver down for good. Meanwhile Johnny's (William Zabka) traveling with son Robby (Tanner Buchanan) to retrieve Miguel (Xolo Maridueña), who fled the tournament for Mexico in search of his biological father. 

With Robby contemplating the negative influence Cobra Kai's having on his former protege, Kenny (Dallas Dupree Young), reigning women's champion Tory (Peyton List) is still wracked with guilt over witnessing Silver pay off the tournament ref following her finals win over Sam LaRusso (Mary Mouser). As Silver's strategy to eat up the competition and take the dojo national picks up steam, he recruits a skilled group of South Korean senseis led by the ruthless Kim Da-Eun (Alicia Hannah-Kim), whose grandfather's teachings espoused a cutthroat "no honor, no mercy" philosophy. Now with a cutting edge, state of the art training facility and enough capital to take Cobra Kai's vicious methodology global, a rattled Daniel will need to call on some connections of his own to cut off the head of the snake.

Silver's sole control over Cobra Kai ups the stakes for the entire season, especially given who he eliminated from the equation to attain it. While last season's power struggle with Kreese ended in Silver having him wrongly incarcerated, it was rash to assume the betrayed sensei could ever be "softened" by jail or even want to help Daniel and Johnny if he's released.

Kreese is still the devil we know, and as these episodes dive deeper into exploring the reasons why, Silver is still far worse, driven exclusively by his insatiable appetite for money, power and greed. The season's heavily anchored by Thomas Ian Griffith's performance, with the actor again given an opportunity to shift gears and play the maniacal Silver more cerebrally than he did in The Karate Kid Part III. 

While Griffith was by far the best thing in the franchise's underwhelming second sequel, he's now bolstered by a better character arc and story, allowing him to further build on the added dimensions he brought to the role last season. A master of mind games, the wealthy business mogul completely throws Daniel off his game, slithering into every facet of his life, jeopardizing the LaRussos standing in the community and even causing cracks in he and Amanda's (Courtney Henggeler) marriage. It even gets so bad between them that she has to retreat back home to Ohio to seek advice from her cousin, and another familiar returning face, Jessica Andrews (Robyn Lively). Most of this rift is due to Daniel being unable to just sit back and watch this twisted sensei psychologically torment a whole new generation of karate students. 

To thwart Silver, Daniel not only enlists the help of Chozen, but tracks down former nemesis and Silver pupil, Mike Barnes (Sean Kanan), the latest legacy character to be creatively resuscitated by the series. Fans will be surprised to see what he's been up to, his reaction to Daniel and how he really feels about both now in middle age. The part isn't huge, but Kanan's effective in it, and par the course for most of these returns, his presence fits into the story's larger context. 

Chozen emerges as a major player after his memorable min-arc in the third season, now living with Daniel and Amanda while attempting gain Silver's trust and infiltrate the dojo. Some purists may complain the character's being reduced to a foil or sidekick, but with his timing, facial expressions and deadpan delivery, Okumoto's such a natural in the role that it's hard to see this as anything but a positive. It's also easy to forget these are Chozen's first interactions with both Silver and Johnny, opening up all sorts of possibilities that the writers take full advantage of, especially when it comes the combustible dynamic between Chozen and Silver. 

It's become a series-long joke that whenever Johnny googles something, hilarity ensues from his inability to move past the 1980's and socially adapt to modern day norms. Since Zabka is such a riot doing this, it never seems to get old, but the ongoing struggle from the series' inception has always revolved around Johnny's potential growth, or more specifically, how much and at what pace. It's a balancing act since you don't want to strip away what's made him who he is, especially considering how that's driven so much of the show's success. 

Making Johnny less of a jerk is one thing, but you don't want a sappy, overnight change that takes away all his bite. It's a credit to the writing and Zabka's performance that it took five seasons for us to revisit this conversation, indicating just how careful they've been about this. Now the trigger's been pulled, with him not only reconciling with Robby, but even taking Daniel's advice to get him and Miguel to bury the hatchet. And after Miguel's encounter with his slimy, criminally connected birth father, Hector (Luis Roberto Guzmán) in Mexico ends in disaster, you could argue that it just reinforces for all three what a real family actually is.

Johnny's relationship with Miguel's mom, Carmen (Vanessa Rubio) is still probably the flimsiest, most overly convenient subplot of the series, but the best news is that they've somehow managed to make him an expectant father without heavily sacrificing the character's rougher edges. His attempts to find new employment and personally recalibrate in the wake of this shocking news comically shifts Johnny's focus in a direction it hasn't gone since the series started. 

Maybe for the first time since the original films, Johnny takes a backseat to Daniel, if only because his beef with Silver doesn't run as deeply personal. It's undeniably Daniel's battle, but that doesn't mean he won't still need help fighting it. This is an improvement over last season when Miyagi-Do and Eagle Fang attempted to co-exist in the midst of Daniel and Johnny's predictable bickering. Having them go in different directions for most of these episodes before eventually joining forces again was probably a smart move.                     

Tory's allegiances are torn being forced to carry a secret that could destroy Silver's plan to have Cobra Kai take over the karate world through their potential participation in the famed international Sekai Taikai tournament. She could really be considered the show's true protagonist, as the guilt of knowing how he bought the win eats her alive, eliminating whatever satisfaction she could have gotten from defeating Sam to win that trophy. 

As Cobra's Kai's fastest rising star, Tory faces a choice. Much like karate came between Sam and Miguel, staying on this dark path would further decimate Tory's already shaky relationship with Robby, who already saw the light. The long troubled Tory is wrestling her own conscience and Peyton List knocks this out of park, subtly conveying the self-loathing and indignation Tory faces each time she steps inside that dojo. 

One of the most affecting aspects of Tory's arc is how she takes ex-Eagle Fang up-and-comer, Devon Lee (Oona O'Brien) under her wing like a sister, seemingly not wanting to see this girl go down a similar road. After briefly impressing as a new addition last season, O'Brien shines in a much larger role, with Devon contemplating if she still wants to be a Cobra in spite of the morally duplicitous qualities senseis Silver and Kim are promoting.

Miyagi-Do doesn't yet know how badly they need Tory on their side, but Daniel definitely needs Stingray, who's also battling his guilt over the Silver's payout to frame Kreese. Now driving Johnny's Dodge Challenger as a full fledged, card-carrying member of Cobra Kai, he's gotten everything he wants, provided he keeps his mouth shut. 

With Silver delivering on his word and welcoming Stingray back with open arms, there's little incentive for him to squeal, especially considering the potentially dangerous consequences if he does. But as badly as Daniel, Johnny and Chozen want him to flip, their biggest asset in destroying Silver is currently behind bars. 

Early signs point to a potentially rehabilitated Kreese being in a reflective, contemplative state of mind, attempting to stay out of trouble in hopes of an earning parole. And this prison stint gives the writers another chance to delve even further into the character's turbulent past and possible motivations. Kove plays it cool much of the way through, as we eagerly anticipate the moment Kreese decides to have his way with the fellow inmates. 

Kreese also has a great scene with the prison counselor where he emotionally cracks coming face-to-face with the ghosts of his past (including a digitally de-aged Johnny). But like everything involving him, you never stop wondering whether he's playing an angle. In the season's final minutes we discover he most definitely is. Part Halloween, part The Silence of the Lambs, his latest con job will probably earn a few laughs for its audacity, but that's Kreese in a nutshell, so it's perfect. Of course, if he held off a little longer he'd have been released instead of a fugitive, but timing wasn't always his strong suit.

The explosive, twist-laden finale ranks amongst the series' strongest, with Silver struggling to maintain a stranglehold over Cobra Kai as all his criminal deeds and dirty laundry float to the surface. Another action-packed, season-ending showdown takes place between Cobra Kai and Miyagi-Do that seriously tests allegiances and loyalty, but it's Silver and Chozen's one-on-one encounter that leaves the more lasting impression after slowly simmering throughout the ten episodes. Johnny also takes the worst beating he's ever gotten on way toward Daniel finally settling his score with Silver in a very public forum, with Cobra Kai's future on the line.

If there's a criticism you could level against this season (albeit an extremely minor one) it's that the bench of characters is so deep it starts becoming impossible for all of them to get a focus, forcing the writers to pick their spots. They've done it well, but it's hard not to notice the somewhat reduced role of All-Valley champ, Hawk (Jacob Bertrand), which may be less a reflection of his importance than the necessary drawback of being part of such a huge ensemble. And aside from a couple of brief scenes of him enduring Kenny's bullying, you may forget Anthony LaRusso's (Griffin Santopietro) even there, while wondering if he's interested in karate at all. 

The show's always excelled at depicting the characters' constantly evolving interpersonal relationships, so it's likely all of these aforementioned moves are purposeful and temporary, with the writers prioritizing which stories to put the heat on at any given moment. If the challenge comes in integrating the stories of the original legacy characters with compelling newer ones, that's where Cobra Kai finds the key to attracting viewers of all ages to a franchise over three decades old.

There's definitely a formula at play here, but it works, proving the series to be far more than just a nostalgic one-trick pony. The returns, reversals and surprises just keep coming, with the show constantly managing to reset itself on an episode-to-episode basis. And it all always comes back to the two middle-aged men who still can't let go of the 1984 All-Valley Karate Tournament final, passing their complicated high school legacies on to the kids, both for better and worse. Daniel and Johnny may be fighting on the same side now, but it hasn't dulled the series one bit.                 

Cobra Kai (Season 3)

Creators: Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg
Starring: Ralph Macchio, William Zabka, Courtney Henggeler, Xolo Maridueña, Tanner Buchanan, Mary Mouser, Jacob Bertrand, Peyton List, Gianni DeCenzo, Martin Kove, Vanessa Rubio, Diora Baird, Ed Asner, Dan Ahdoot, Bret Ernst, Ken Davitian, Yugi Okumoto, Tamlyn Tomita, Traci Toguchi, Barrett Carnahan, Terry Serpico, Jesse Kove
Original Airdate: 2021  

**The Following Review Contains Major Spoilers For The Third Season Of Cobra Kai **

★★★★ (out of ★★★★)

Of the many elements The Karate Kid sequel series, Cobra Kai, has executed with creative perfection over its two seasons, the most glaring is that it's taken two iconic characters from a wildly successful movie made over thirty years ago and enhanced them. By deepening an iconic rivalry into something even more relatable, the show's freed from having to entirely rely on nostalgia as a storytelling crutch like so many failed reboots before it. Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) are two fundamentally flawed characters whose lives have been framed and steered by what happened in high school, triggering both anytime they even share the same air space. 

While they've had fleeting moments of peaceful co-existence since Johnny's resurrection of the Cobra Kai dojo prompted Daniel to open his competing Miyagi-Do, their feud's fully spilled over into the All Valley community, with disastrous consequences. And in starting essentially from scratch with a new generation of teen characters, the show's other gigantic achievement is in getting us to care as much, if not more, about them as we do this legendary pair of dueling middle-aged senseis. 

If Johnny's purpose has been to correct the mistakes he's made as a person and father since high school, Daniel's focus has revolved around honoring the teachings of his late mentor Mr. Miyagi into his personal and professional life. Of course, the more he gets sucked into this rivalry the harder that becomes, reminding us that if there's one thing every fan thought was impossible, it was doing this series without the late Pat Morita's presence as Mr. Miyagi. And they don't, since hardly a minute goes by where he doesn't still feel like an integral part of the proceedings. These ten episodes do the best job thus far incorporating him in, not only with some really meaningful call-backs and flashbacks, but actual plot points that adapt his philosophies into action.

Any concerns the series would be lose steam with its jump from YouTube to Netflix or the creative well would start to run dry are unfounded as we're treated to the return of a major character that couldn't be handled any better, exceeding all expectations of how she would slide back into this story, no matter how briefly. And if the two previous season finale karate battles helped define its characters, we get a final episode here that simultaneously juggles three such sequences, including one that literally feels thirty years in the making.

As the fallout from the high school fight continues to reverberate through the Valley, Miguel (Xolo Maridueña,) lies in the ICU facing the prospect he may never walk again, much less compete. Johnny's estranged son Robby (Tanner Buchanan) is on the run, facing the prospect he could face charges for the attack, as both Johnny and Daniel reluctantly team up to find him, strongly disagreeing on the methods they'll use to do it. 

With a returning John Kreese (Martin Kove) having betrayed Johnny and taken ownership of the Cobra Kai dojo and Miguel's mother Carmen (Vanessa Rubio) blaming him for the accident, Johnny's spiraling again. Only a possible reconciliation with his and Daniel's ex-girlfriend Ali Mills (Elisabeth Shue) provides him with some semblance of a second chance as he helps Miguel recuperate.

Daniel's also struggling since Miyagi-Do's role in the fight has shattered his upstanding reputation, sinking sales at the car dealership. As he and wife Amanda (Courtney Henggeler) formulate a plan to save the business, daughter Sam (Mary Mouser) struggles with panic attacks in the wake of Miguel's fall and attack at the hands of badass Cobra Kai queen Tory (Peyton List), whose school expulsion and family problems have temporarily sidelined her. 

Assembling a more ruthless group than ever before, led by an angry Hawk (Jacob Bertrand), Sensei Kreese wants to extract revenge on Miyagi-Do, even as we learn about the traumatic life event that turned the hardened karate instructor into this monster. Now, Johnny and Daniel may have to put their differences aside long enough to deal with him while Miguel inches closer to recovery, only to return to a Cobra Kai that's channeling its bloodthirsty roots of decades past. The battle for the very soul of the Valley is on, and everyone's going to have to pick a side. 

There's a reshuffling of the deck, with Miguel's injury essentially ostracizing Johnny from everything and everyone, leaving him to contemplate the role he may have unintentionally played in encouraging the fight that saw his own son nearly killing the student he coached to the championship trophy. But his biggest mistake was letting let Sensei Kreese back into the Cobra Kai fold, somehow thinking things would be different, resulting in him again getting cruelly manipulated by the only father he's really ever known.

The relationship between Johnny and Miguel that's always been at the series' core is now strained, but undergoing repairs, with the rebellious sensei employing a grab bag of unconventional techniques to literally get him back on his feet. It calls back to some of their best training scenes from the first season, while providing some hilarious moments that effectively play off Johnny being stuck in the past. 

When the show was first announced, initial worries the material would be treated as merely a comedic spoof of the films proved completely unfounded as it ended up finding just the right dramedic mix. But by far the the most effective ongoing gag is Johnny being frozen in the '80s because it's not only good comedy, but completely true to the character. 

If the writers are ever in danger of veering into Encino Man territory with this, Zabka's smooth timing conquers all, whether Johnny's dishing out some "tough love" by setting Miguel's shoelace ablaze to get him walking again or making painfully dated Vanna White references. And while his inability to understand the concept of public parks or any social norms might raise eyebrows, nothing tops his attempts this season to use social media.

Despite Johnny steadily growing in this reluctant mentoring role, the writers and Zabka have excelled at making sure he's still very much the Johnny we knew, resisting the urge to have him go "soft," with those aforentioned scenes and occasionally boreish behavior reinforcing that. Mistakenly putting his trust in Kreese again may have put him on the outs with Robby, Miguel, the Larusso's and basically the entire community, but as the season progresses it becomes clear he's not ready to throw in the towel just yet. 

The past also catches up with Daniel when an unexpected business trip to Japan to save the dealership reunites him with former girlfriend Kumiko (Tamlyn Tomita) and arch nemesis Chozen (Yugi Okumoto) in a far different and more commercialized Okinawa than he remembers having visited with Miyagi as a teen (Ep. 3.4, "The Right Path"). While creators Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg haven't shied away from diving into the film mythology, this is their biggest swing yet, if only because The Karate Kid Part II was always viewed as paling in comparison to its more respected predecessor. But hindsight has revealed it to be an undervalued chapter that actually did a lot right, delivering some memorable franchise moments. And since this isn't nostalgia for the mere sake of it, Daniel's scenes with Kumiko dovetail into his current situation, while continuing to emphasize Miyagi's lifelong impact on him. 

For those who do hold the sequel in high regard, his interaction with Chozen is even more satisfying, with Okumoto returning to the role a far better actor, and with a more complicated, intriguing character to play. Conveying a mix of menace and calm, he gives us more than what we came for, before the script is flipped and we also end up getting something else entirely. It's one of the season's many reunions that challenges Daniel, as many of his actions and decisions upon returning home can be traced to what occurs in the episode. 

If ever a character seemed immune to change or growth, it's the sadistic John Kreese, whose origin story is explored in considerable detail. There's always a level of creative risk when incorporating flashbacks that could potentially alter our perceptions of already established figures or overexplain actions better left to viewers' imaginations. The writers successfully walked this line in the first season in showing glimpses of Johnny's troubled childhood in pre-Karate Kid scenes and again last season with flashes of Kreese's life before he returned. 

Now with a full 1960's Vietnam subplot, they're able to go all in, showing how he came to be and what exactly led to his founding of Cobra Kai. But anyone understandably ready to reject any attempt at "humanizing" him or creating empathy that could suck the venom out of his villainy can breathe a sigh of relief since that's not at all what's done here. Seeing the show tackle a supporting story like this in its own action-adventure style is kind of thrilling, with end result being a presentation of Kreese completely in line with our previous perceptions, yet surprising at the same time. 

Focusing on the volatile relationship between a young Kreese (Barrett Carnahan) and his commanding officer, Captain Turner (a menacing Terry Serpico), it encapsulates why the series is so successful by adding layers to stories and characters without detracting from what we already knew. The desire to understand "why" with Kreese was already there from the beginning, but now we can appreciate Martin Kove's work even more knowing that the writing has caught up to his performance, investing him with substantially more depth than the movies did. 

If Kreese's return to prominence stoked the flames of a dojo feud that was already boiling over after last season's incident, Cobra Kai's now emerged as something more closely resembling a cult for disaffected youths. If there's any criticism to be made of the season it would be that the crimes and assaults committed would result not only serious jail time for all involved, but some kind of charges against the damaged vet. Of course, doing that would damper the escapism of a story that actually does an entertaining job showing how he pulls the wool over the community's eyes, convincing them he's a pillar of society while Johnny and Daniel fume. 

The one character who does serve jail time, Robby, has a really rough go of it, having to not only fight for his survival, but reckon that what he did to Miguel may qualify him as even more like his father than he feared. And we all know Johnny's diabolical former sensei won't waste any time exploiting that rift. It might be Hawk who emerges as the true second coming of Johnny, a dangerous bully whose betrayal of former best friend Demetri (Gianni DeCenzo) has been one of the more underappreciated long-term arcs in the series. It's taken to a whole new level here, even as Hawk shows his first subtle signs of doubt about the direction Cobra Kai's taking. 

Showing less hesitation is Tory, whose troubled home life and anger over Miguel results in the most intriguing Sam LaRusso storyline yet, as she struggles to mentally rebound from last season's attack. And since Peyton List is so ferocious as Tory, it's even easier to understand Sam's paralyzing fear at the mere thought or sight of this girl. Theres' no question it's leading to a big showdown between the two, with Sam having to dig down deep to overcome her crippling anxiety. 

After a clever early episode fake-out, the moment everyone's been waiting for since Ali acceptied Johnny's friend request in last season's cliffhanger finally comes to fruition with Academy Award-nominated actress and 80's movie icon Elisabeth Shue's highly anticipated return to the franchise (Ep. 3.9, "Feel The Night"). While we suspected the possibility, it was far from a lock considering how well they kept her appearance a secret. But does it ever deliver, undoubtedly causing diehards like to jump out of their seats when she reenters the picture some thirty plus years later to discover the more things change, the more they don't. Our first instinct is to want to see her and Johnny back together, and while I'm not sure that wish changes after the two-episode arc, the writers manage to again subvert expectations by giving her a more important purpose. 

The Johnny and recently separated Dr. Ali reunion we've been clamoring for ends up being much more than a mere tease, with them basically picking up where they left off, until Daniel squeezes his way back in (Ep. 3.10,"December 19"). The country club Christmas party scenes that bring the three together for the first time in over three decades just might stand as the best work the series has done thus far, with both guys instantly reverting back to their high school selves in her presence, as if they weren't already halfway there anyway. 

Shue's terrific as a wiser, more experienced Ali, effortlessly sensible and likable in these scenes as the only adult in the room. Well, besides Amanda. who also attempts to bring Johnny and Daniel back to reality (between this and that great Kreese confrontation, this is Henggeler's best season as Amanda).  Lesser writing would have Daniel's wife consumed with jealousy or attempted to manufacture another triangle of some sort that will threaten their marriage, but the show's too smart for that. They both tease and torture both guys about it instead, forcing them to come to realization that they'll always be more alike than different, even if both are too stubborn to admit it. 

Recognizing that Johnny needs to "move on" and the writers are painted into a corner with Shue's limited availability, I'm still not quite sold on his relationship with Carmen. There's a lot work left to do there and if it seems impossible for diehards to endorse him ending up with anyone other than Ali, that's because it is. Still, they made the right decision under the circumstances so if this does ends up being a one-off and we never see her again (please, no!) credit the show for still overdelivering. Waiting the two seasons to bring her in paid off big, maximizing the impact of a return that couldn't have possibly gone any better.

Thanks to Ali, Johnny and Daniel now know exactly what they need to do, if only their egos can allow it. An alliance of some sort is what we've been building toward since this started, but Kreese's stranglehold has forced it, with Cobra Kai's actions putting the community on high alert and even threatening the continuation of the All Valley Karate tournament. A wild Christmas brawl to settle the score between Miyagi-Do, Cobra Kai and Johnny's fledgling Eagle Fan faction rivals last season's school fight, forcing Sam to face her fears, Miguel to test his health and Hawk to make a choice. But its Kreese's attempted poisoning of Robby's mind that ends up being a bridge too far for Johnny.

The sight of Daniel saving Johnny is comparable to what Star Wars fans experienced in the gasp-inducing final minutes of The Mandalorian's second season in that it's this franchise's finest hour in many years, bringing everything back around while still pushing the characters forward. Having the two rivals finally on the same side does feel right for the story at this point, but also well-earned since all the pieces were so carefully placed to get them there. Brilliantly juxtaposing this with the culmination of the Vietnam story puts viewers in the awkwardly thrilling position of seeing Kreese through two different lenses, which are ultimately one in the same. 

With his reckoning in Vietnam, a young Kreese lights a life-altering fuse that rots his soul, causing him to continuously replay that defining event under far different circumstances. In a way it explains everything, while laying the groundwork for the return of another familar character that indicates his war with Johnny and Daniel is far from over. The Karate Kid fans will need to pinch themselves that they're getting all this, but still may need a flowchart handy to track all the turns, betrayals, and shifts in allegiances that take place, all of which feel completely organic to the "Myagi-verse" that's emerged from within this series. While it's becoming repetitive to heap piles praise on each season before the next tops it, Cobra Kai's momentum not only shows no signs of slowing, it may just be getting started.

Cobra Kai (Season 2)

Creators: Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg and Josh Heald
Starring: William Zabka, Ralph Macchio, Courtney Henggeler, Xolo Maridueña, Tanner Buchanan, Mary Mouser, Jacob Bertrand, Gianni Decenzo, Martin Kove
Release Date: 2019

★★★★ (out of ★★★★)

**Spoiler Warning: The Following Review Reveals Some Key Plot Details From The First Two Seasons of 'Cobra Kai' **

When YouTube Premium's Karate Kid sequel series, Cobra Kai, premiered last year, the big shock wasn't it being far better than anyone expected, but in how it made you re-examine the original film with fresh eyes, now working with the knowledge of what would become of All Valley Karate rivals Daniel Larusso and Johnny Lawrence thirty years later. Jumping off a very good idea that the latter viewed himself as the bullied victim in his high school war with Daniel, creators Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg and Josh Heald's introduced us to a present-day Johnny frozen in '84, unable to fully move past his biggest defeat. And despite the fact Daniel's married with two kids and running a successful car dealership, something's missing, as he still struggles to find his way without the guidance of Mr. Miyagi.

As good a starting point as this was, there were many ways it could have gone terribly wrong. If their characters seemed to be a betrayal of who they originally were or the creators failed to recognize how much more the actors were capable of, it all could have been a disaster, joining the pitiful ranks of other reboot and sequel hatchet jobs. This represents the polar opposite, as the team behind this series use every minute of  second chance to deepen our appreciation of the franchise, while successfully pushing it forward. 

Cobra Kai's Hawk, Johnny and Miguel

Reluctantly taking a young pupil under his wing and resurrecting the Cobra Kai dojo as an unlikely sensei training a group of misfits, we got the Johnny we never knew we needed. And watching him again go face-to-face with Daniel under different, but not entirely dissimilar circumstances, we're reminded just how they bring out both the best and worst in each other. their feud trickling down to the new generation of characters we've grown to care about just as much.

Coming off a suspenseful first season finale, Cobra Kai has proven thus far to be the template for resurrecting an already existing property, delivering a second season that's just as strong, if not stronger. It's accomplished this by expanding the show's universe, further developing the characters and capitalizing off last season's tournament showdown that not only ended with a shocking twist, but the return of an infamous figure from Johnny's past who could again prove to be his, and Daniel's, biggest threat. But the series' more lasting accomplishment is what it's done with the newer characters, whose arcs take yet another turn in this year's finale, topping any previous episode in terms of adrenaline and suspense. Forget about measuring up to the original's legacy. You could easily make a case that this show is already well on its way to surpassing it. 

When last season concluded Johnny (William Zabka) had accomplished his liftetime goal of bringing the first place All-Valley Under-18 Karate Championship Trophy "home" to Cobra Kai after training bullied teen Miguel Diaz (Xolo Maridueña) to victory over his own estranged son, Robby Keene (Tanner Buchanan) in the final. But at what cost? With an injured Robby's new sensei, Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) looking on, Miguel wins by employing the same mean streak and cheap tactics the Cobras were known for over thirty years ago, in the process driving away his girlfriend (and Daniel's daughter), Samantha (Mary Mouser).

Johnny gets a visit from an old friend

Now with a tainted trophy and a relationship with his son seemingly broken beyond repair, the first glimpses of true regret come over Johnny's face as he realizes the Cobra Kai mantra of "No Mercy" may have corrupted Miguel just as it had him years ago. But before that feeling can fully settle in, a shadowy figure appears at the door: Presumed dead sensei John Kreese (Martin Kove), the founding father of Cobra Kai who led Johnny to his greatest heights as a teen, before turning on him. Declaring himself a changed man, the Vietnam vet memorably humiliated by Mr. Myagi in the parking lot all those years ago, is just looking for a second chance, and hoping his former pupil will give it to him.

Much to wife Amanda's (Courtney Henggeler) chagrin, Daniel leaves most of the responsibilities at LaRusso Motors to her as he doubles down on his efforts to open Miyagi-do Karate, making his inaugural students Samantha and Robby, who's now moved in with the LaRussos as the teens grow closer. Miguel meanwhile forms a bond with new bad girl Cobra Kai recruit, Tory (Peyton List), who's also taken Sam's best friend Aisha (Nichole Brown) under her wing. The violent, agressive direction of the group has also caused a further rift between bullied nerd turned badass, Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz (Jacob Bertrand) and his neurotic pal Demetri (Gianni Decenzo). With all these conflicts building toward an explosion as summer comes to a close, Cobra Kai and Miyagi need to somehow co-exist, before Daniel and Johnny's continuous feud threatens to hurt those closest to them.

One of the biggest highlights of last season was seeing a middle-aged Johnny trying to function in the 21st century and discovering it's exactly as we thought. The drinking, music, sexism and xenophobia confirmed Daniel's former bully wouldn't have a softer edge, at least at first. But he was trying, and if his scenes teaching a new class saw him initially coming off as politically incorrect as possible, the thought of a returning and bitter Kreese being dropped into this environment is sort of terrifying, not to mention ripe with creative possibilities, many of which are still not even entirely exhausted by the season's end.

The manipulative Kreese (Martin Kove) returns

Zabka and Kove play off each other so well that we do actually want to believe Kreese is a changed man and the backstory given to explain his absence sheds further light on the unrepentant figure who made Daniel and Johnny's lives a living hell in different ways. But the writers trust its audience enough to know that he hasn't returned to play nice and peacefully co-exist with Johnny.

Something's up, and this season will at least partially be about this disgraced mentor slithering back into his life when he least needs him. And we get this, because for all the misery the original Cobra Kai brought Johnny as a kid, it still holds for him a soft spot in that it provided an escape from his miserable home life. Kreese knows that all too well, pushing the right nostalgia buttons in him to get his foot back in the door. Johnny may resent him, but still can't help but seek his ex-mentor's approval.

Just as compelling is Johnny's students' reactions to Kreese, whose return becomes the driving force behind much of this season's drama, allowing well-traveled character actor Kove to give a different, more nuanced take of his classic, but previously somewhat one-dimensional role. It isn't long before his and Johnnny's dueling philosophies about where Cobra Kai's been and where it should go start to clash, with their students caught in the middle. And no one seems more conflicted than Miguel, whose emerging mean streak at the end of last season caught everyone, especially Robby and Daniel, off guard. But it also took Johnny by surprise, reminding him what Cobra Kai, at its most brutal, really means, and whether that's a road he ever wants to travel down again.

Some of Zabka's very best scenes again revolve around Johnny simultaneously trying to both relive and escape his past, coming to terms with his mistakes and attempting to be "the bigger man" by not getting sucked back into his feud with Daniel. Whether that's reuniting with his original Cobra teammates Bobby, Tommy and Jimmy (actors Ron Thomas, Rob Garrison and Tony O'Dell reprising their roles) for an emotional joyride, figuring out how to use a laptop or a dating app, or having a really awkward dinner with Daniel and Amanda, Johnny's impossible to dislike because we hold out hope he'll eventually get his act together. For the show's sake, it's probably the last thing we should want, but can't help ourselves because Zabka's so good at making us root for his redemption.      

Miyagi-do's Robby, Sam and Daniel

While not on as tumultuous a journey as Johnny, Daniel's determination to get Miyagi-do off the ground is as much planted in his fear of failing his late mentor as it is sticking it to his longtime rival. It's ironic that in trying so hard to live up to the Miyagi legacy, Daniel's training scenes with daughter Sam and temporary houseguest Robby end up being the most repetitive of the season until an influx of new recruits come in and join them,and Cobra Kai takes the feud to a whole new level of personal.

That there's more at stake with Sam and Robby's personal relationship than in Daniel's quest to carry on Miyagi's teachings is kind of the point since it's through his connection to the Larussos that Robby's able to momentarily shed his badboy reputation as Johnny's son. His Cobra Kai nemesis, Miguel, appears to also be on the edge of redemption until Tory enters the picture, tempting him in the worst of ways with a mean streak of her own.That we care as much about this high school rivalry as much as the one still raging between the two adult characters speaks to the writing and performances from Maridueña, Buchanan, Mouser and series newcomer, Peyton List. Really, the feuds become one in the same.

Tory and Sam's climactic face off in Ep. 2.10, ("No Mercy"')

Although Johnny resists Kreese's desire to bring merciless vengeance back to the dojo he founded, his reappearance gives Daniel another reason for justifying his contempt for all things Johnny Lawrence. And after undergoing one of the more drastic transformations last season, Jacob Bertrand's Hawk plays an even bigger role this time around, soon embodying Kreese's ruthless philosophies by becoming the very thing that forced him to adopt this persona, going so far as to turn on his closest friend (despite Demetri's crippling neurosis being the season's only grating element).

Daniel vs. Johnny. Miguel vs. Robby. Sam vs. Tory. Hawk vs. Demetri. Johnny vs. Kreese. Cobra Kai vs. Miyagi-do. All these feuds simmer throughout the season, before finally exploding in a school-set brawl that can best be described as the show's finest 20 minutes, both in terms of storytelling and martial arts choreography, ending with a shocking event that brings these characters the closest they've come to full-on tragedy. Shaking the show's foundation, it's a culminating moment that can be traced to the previous nineteen episodes, while also working as a logical fallout to last season's closer, setting the table perfectly for Season 3.

Johnny at a crossroads

The defining event finds Johnny back at perhaps an even darker, sadder place than when he was initially reintroduced, opening up a whole new set of possibilities for where his feud with Daniel could go, or even whether it should continue. While hints have been dropped since the beginning, the writers also lean even further into teasing a potential return many probably didn't think was possible when this story began, or rather began again, for these characters. It's basically the final piece of the puzzle fans have been clamoring for. And now that the timing feels completely right for this exciting development, there's good reason to believe it will be handled as expertly as everything else. It's a deserved show of faith for a series that's proven how little interest it has in merely delivering a glorified reunion.      

Cobra Kai

Creators: Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg
Starring: Ralph Macchio, William Zabka, Courtney Henggeler, Xolo Maridueña, Mary Mouser, Tanner Buchanan, Joe Seo, Jacob Bertrand, Nichole Brown, Griffin Santopietro, Bret Ernst, Ed Asner
Original Airdate: 2018

★★★★ (out of ★★★★)

Few recent sequel announcements of a long-beloved franchise or movie series have been met with as much skepticism as YouTube Red's Cobra Kai. While it appeared the final nail was put into The Karate Kid as a pop culture property eight years ago with an embarrassing remake that may now further recede from collective memory thanks to the existence of this show. If anything good came of that ill-fated reboot starring a certain movie star's son, it's that it only increased our appreciation of the original, with which it shared a title and little else.

YouTube Red's Cobra Kai

To this day, and maybe never more than in the past week, I'll strongly contend the 1984 film is criminally undervalued and a better overall experience than Rocky, to which it's frequently measured against. The comparison's worth noting since they not only share the same director, but have recently been revived with similar "What If?" creative approaches. 2015's Creed asked what would happen if Apollo Creed's son were trained by Rocky. It opened pandora's box, creating a strong link between old and new that most of the franchise's previous efforts couldn't come close to matching.

While not as severely damaged as Rocky by multiple sequels, The Karate Kid  has just never been taken as seriously despite its quality and longevity having earned it the right. Ironically, it's that perception that facilitated this comeback, resulting in numerous videos and a How I Met Your Mother theory that's accidentally evolved into accepted franchise canon over the years. We had it all wrong. Johnny Lawrence is the good guy. Daniel LaRusso is the bad guy. Johnny was just minding his own business when that Jersey punk moved in on his girl, took his Karate title and pretty much destroyed his life. Forgetting the theory doesn't really hold up to logical scrutiny and loads of details are omitted to make it fly, there's just the tiniest kernel of truth to make you grin, and appreciate everything just a little more.

Cobra Kai takes that germ of an idea to the next level, envisioning a present-day scenario that asks, "What if Johnny was the main character and decided to reopen the Cobra Kai dojo?" And with that, we're off to the races, the question hinting at all sorts of possibilities that creators Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg explore within every inch and crevice of their ten expertly paced and constructed episodes.

Daniel vs. Johnny in '84

So much more than a mere trip down memory lane for diehards, it's the blueprint all future reboots or sequels of nostalgic film and TV properties would be wise to follow. It seamlessly sets up its premise, delivering a mixture of self-aware comedy and pathos that deepens and expands the original characters and ideas, successfully reimagining the entire franchise with a fresh coat of creative paint over thirty years later.

When the last episode ends, you'll want to sit down and rewatch The Karate Kid, and doing it with a even greater appreciation, mostly due to what's accomplished in this series. While the words "Cobra Kai" now mean something entirely different and more nuanced than in '84, the surest sign of the show's success comes in the finals of the 2018 All Valley Karate Championship, which feels as monumental as the classic original showdown. And we care just as much about the two new combatants on opposing sides of the mat, and the story that puts them there, built on the foundation of everything right about the film that inspired it. 

34 years since his loss to Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) in the finals the All Valley Under-18 Karate Championship, a drunk, broke, down on his luck fifty-something Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) has just been fired from his latest job as a handyman. One night while drinking and wallowing on the sidewalk of a strip mall, he notices his teenage neighbor Miguel Diaz (Xolo Maridueña) being beaten up by a group of bullies and comes to his defense, assaulting them and spending a night in jail.

LaRusso Auto Group: "Chopping Prices"

Having been sprung from the slammer by his wealthy, verbally abusive stepfather, Sid (Ed Asner), his 80's sports car is soon wrecked in a hit and run while reminiscing at the All Valley Sports Arena. Unfortunately for him, his car is towed to LaRusso Motors for repair, with Johnny coming face-to-face with his high school rival, now an extremely successful used car dealer in the San Fernando Valley. Despite Daniel's willingness to fix Johnny's car for free, his former karate opponent's success only serves to painfully remind him how big a failure he's become.

Everywhere Johnny turns is a commercial or billboard touting Daniel, and that jealousy and resentment sparks in him the idea to use Sid's money to reopen the Cobra Kai karate dojo. He takes on Miguel as his first pupil, and despite his overly aggressive, testosterone-fueled teaching methods, starts to make a difference in the kid's life. Other bullied social outcasts follow and join, and as Cobra Kai grows, so too does Daniel's desire to get rid of it.

Daniel's obsession with vanquishing the dojo is perplexing to his wife Amanda (Courtney Henggeler), as they're running an extremely profitable business, while enjoying a life of luxury in the valley raising their teen daughter, Samantha (Mary Mouser) and bratty young son, Anthony (Griffin Santopietro). But even content in middle-age, there's something about Johnny and Cobra Kai that still gets to him, And even with his karate taking a backseat in life following Mr. Miyagi's passing, he's willing to do whatever it takes to make sure they disappear for good.

William Zabka as Johnny Lawrence

It would be entirely too obvious if the writers chose to simply reverse the two major roles, making Johnny some kind of a hero while Daniel's evolved into an egotistical bully. Not only wouldn't it be true to the original characters, it would make for a predictable, uninspired narrative. So wisely, the series presents middle-aged Johnny as just as big an asshole as we remember, if not more so since he now seems completely out of touch with the present-day world in which he lives.

Everyone loved to hate Johnny because he was one of those ridiculously classic, over-the-top 80's movie villains (similar to Biff from Back to the Future) who had to be the best athlete, go out with the prettiest, most popular girl, drive the hottest car, while making sure to find time to let all the "losers" know who's boss. After getting his comeuppance at the hands of Daniel and even experiencing somewhat of a redemption at the end of the first film, it makes sense that Johnny, whose entire existence was built on winning, would still be licking his wounds from the loss to Daniel decades later.

That Johnny would be living alone surrounded by garbage and empty beer cans, still driving the same car, blasting Guns n' Roses and watching Iron Eagle on his VCR as he yearns for his high school glory days was practically a given. Or that he'd also be a deadbeat dad to his son, Robby (Tanner Buchanan) and living in a literal and emotional man cave for most of his adult life.

Johnny rallies the troops

If this is exactly where we envisioned the Johnny character would be in 2018, him attempting to crawl out of the hole he's dug himself and interact with the rest of society represents the series is at its most darkly comical, with Sensei Lawrence attempting to instill the Cobra virtues of striking hard and striking first into a ragtag group of misfit nerds he would have likely spent his entire childhood tormenting. And so begins his redemption.

Seeing the angry, bitter Johnny attempt to function in a politically correct landscape where everyone is used to getting a participation trophy is priceless, allowing Zabka to go to comedic places as an actor that few thought he'd ever be afforded the opportunity to explore outside of a guest spot or viral video. Whether he's reacting to cyberbullying, ordering these kids to punch each other in the face, or telling a student on the autism spectrum to "get off it," we couldn't expect any less from Johnny, nor would we want to.

Johnny and Miguel

Zabka is terrific, and when he needs to get serious, he's even better, showing that as aggressive and downright dangerous as some of Johnny's tactics are, a real connection is being made with his star pupil, Miguel, whose confidence and ability seems to grow with each session. And Johnny seems to form a bond with him he never could with his real son, Robby, due to his various screw-ups through the years.

Sensei Lawrence will never be another Mr. Miyagi, extolling the virtues of "wax on, wax off,"  but he isn't exactly his sadistic former mentor John Kreese (Martin Kove), either. And even if he definitely needs to dial it back and is still a jerk clinging to sexist, racist attitudes, there may be something to his belief that these kids are being coddled to their detriment, providing yet another intriguing discussion point that stems from continuing the story decades later.

Now a father and prominent pillar in the community, Daniel LaRusso takes Cobra Kai's return as personally as possible, as if it's again contaminating the cozy world he's worked hard to create for himself, and has rightfully earned. But there's just this small hint of condescension in his interactions with Johnny and an insecurity that stems from his high school days that rears its head whenever their paths cross. He's still the same great guy, as a sub-plot involving his training of a new LaRusso Auto Group employee conveys, but his worst tendencies emerge when Johnny walks into his showroom.

Miguel wears a familiar costume in Ep. 1.3, "Esqueleto"

Daniel may still be noble, but he's not perfect, and can't really handle the fact his daughter Sam may no longer want to be "daddy's little girl," seemingly having outgrown karate and maybe even her own father. She's also a good kid who's temporarily fallen in with a questionable crowd, as the series becomes as much about her and Miguel, and the risk they'll both become collateral damage in a feud between two middle-aged men reliving their high school feud. Despite the Cobra Kai affiliation, Miguel's set up pretty early on as the heir apparent to Daniel's throne, only trained by his nemesis. But how will Sam prepare her dad for the news that the most important person in her life is a Cobra?

One of the core ideas of this series, that we never truly escape who we were in high school, is exemplified in Macchio's performance, which digs a few layers deeper the further he's removed from the protagonist role. Like Zabka, he also gets to demonstrate a playful self-awareness that has a lot to say about those who may have peaked or crashed in their youth and now spending their adult life sorting out the repercussions. 

Many sequels and reboots have failed by either using the original characters as doormats to introduce the next generation or relegating the fresh faces to the sidelines to bask in cheesy nostalgia, simultaneously alienating both younger and older fans. While properties like Star Wars have faced justifiable criticism for this, Cobra Kai represents the most organic transition thus far, crafting a new story that bridges the generations, with neither getting the short end of the stick.

Mary Mouser as Samantha Larusso

It helps considerably that Xolo Maridueña, Mary Mouser and Tanner Buchanan are all instantly likable in roles that serve wildly different, but equally impactful functions. In some ways, they've all inherited the mess that is Daniel and Johnny's 1984's All-Valley Karate Championship Finals, but are nonetheless trying forge their own paths.

While the series does many little things right (like Leo Birenberg and Zach Robinson's faithful, modern-day tribute to Bill Conti's 1984 score) the biggest elephant in the room was always going to be Mr. Miyagi's absence. But as it turns out, he isn't missed since the narrative goes to such great lengths to convey he hasn't gone anywhere at all, his lessons still guiding Daniel, even as a middle-aged father.

The moving Pat Morita-dedicated fifth episode, "Counterbalance," sees Daniel taking a much needed trip to Myagi's grave for guidance and reflection. And it's something he needs more than ever given the sudden regression he's undergone since Cobra Kai's surge in popularity. When he makes the decision to positively channel that energy into reincorporating karate into his life, it's the decision to mentor a new pupil that refocuses the character, making for quite the moment when Daniel puts on the classic lotus headband again.

Daniel suits up.

Luckily for us, it's clear Johnny and Daniel could never really be "friends," but the closest they get to begrudgingly reaching some kind of common ground comes in the season's best episode, "Different But Same," as simmering tensions between the two finally reach their boiling point, culminating in the realization they may have had more in common than they thought. It definitely isn't a truce, but rather a reluctant acknowledgement they'll have to somehow co-exist and tolerate each other because this time it isn't only about them.

There's a limitless well of fascination in watching these rivals view their history together in entirely different ways, with each casting the other as the villain. Johnny has a scene with Miguel explaining his feud with Daniel that's interspersed with selectively narrated and edited flashbacks hilarious enough to be mistaken for the many viral videos and clips that partially inspired the idea for this series. Except this time it's actually coming from the character, who Zabka rightly plays as completely lacking in any self-awareness.

The decision to flash back to Johnny's childhood and provide glimpses into what turned him into Daniel's adolescent tormentor should have been a disaster. But like everything else here, it succeeds in adding dimensions to a character everyone previously enjoyed on a superficial level, but really knew little about.

A young Johnny peeks into his future

Without unnecessarily dwelling on it or overexplaining the obvious, the scenes fill in valuable blanks of what brought a young Johnny to Cobra Kai, and why that complicated history makes it difficult for him to reconcile what eventually occurs in the season's finale climactic showdown ("Mercy") that again puts them on opposing sides, albeit in an entirely different capacity. And when Johnny's faced with the true cost of his behavior, we start to wonder if Daniel was right, and it is truly too late for him and Cobra Kai to ever change.

Unlike its 1984 theatrical predecessor, this isn't a sports story about the underdog overcoming the odds, instead operating in a much greyer moral area. By comically acknowledging the differences between then and now, and how its affected these characters, they're able to add this entire extra layer that works as more than just a meta-commentary.

Daniel and Miyagi

Actors are infrequently afforded the opportunity to reassess their iconic roles years later manage to actively improve upon them. This is especially true of Zabka, who not only challenges perceptions of the character that typecast him as an actor, but takes complete ownership of them. It doesn't take long into the series to place any lingering skepticism aside and recognize Cobra Kai works as far more than a nostalgia cash-in, naturally extending a story we didn't know had more to give until now. So when Daniel tells Johnny that it's never going to be over between them, we not only believe him, but honestly hope he's right.