More often than not, when a favorite show ends it leaves the viewer unsatisfied—as if they didn't get the closure they were looking for. Not so in the case of Cobra Kai. The ending was perfect (chef's kiss), leaving this viewer in particular feeling satiated.
I remember seeing The Karate Kid in theaters and, later, on television. By the time The Karate Kid Part II came out, my mother, who never went to the movies, actually wanted to go. In the sequel, Mr. Miyagi, played by Pat Morita, was still diligently trying to catch a fly with his pair of chopsticks, and my mom, who didn't know silence was golden in a theater, said in a normal volume, "He's still trying to catch that fly?!" which made the whole theater laugh. The Karate Kid movies turned out to be a great bonding experience for us, something my mother and I shared for many years.
When Cobra Kai first debuted in 2018 on YouTube, it was welcome and bittersweet for me. You see, my mother had passed a while back, so she would never see what had become of Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) or Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio).
I was happy when the show moved over to Netflix, where it would reach a larger audience—and boy, did it! It became so popular, the series would go on to have six seasons, with the final episodes now available for its fans to binge.
William Zabka, Ralph Macchio and Yuji Okumoto star in Cobra Kai season 6 on NetflixCobra Kai ending was so satisfying
It was nice to see Johnny Lawrence come full circle from the films to the series. While Johnny aged several decades since the original movie, he only matured over the course the show, joining forces with his once hated nemesis, Daniel LaRusso (Macchio). Even John Kreese (Martin Cove) saw the error of his ways and literally went up in a ball of flames taking on Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith).
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In the final, tie-breaking match between Sensai Lawrence and Sensai Wolf (Lewis Tan), Johnny combined what he learned through Cobra Kai and what he learned at Miyagi-Do to defeat Wolf and win the Sekai Taikai World Championship. The combination of styles reminded me of an old martial arts movie from the '70s called Executioners from Shaolin. A man, trained in Tiger Style kung fu, is defeated when he goes up against a powerful foe. To protect her son (who is also that defeated man's son), a mother trains him in Crane Style kung fu. The boy, through his father's teachings and journals, simultaneously trains in Tiger Style. When he goes up against the man who killed his father he is able to avenge his death only with the combination of both Tiger and Crane styles.
The final episodes also offered viewers a few cameo appearances including Elizabeth Berkley Lauren (Saved by the Bell, Showgirls), former NFL player and current football analyst Ryan Clark, NFL sportscaster Kevin Burkhardt and Darryl Vidal, a third-degree black belt in Kenpo Karate who appeared in the original movie. (Fun fact: Vidal was Morita's stunt double for the famous crane-kick scene in the original movie.)
The final episodes began on a somber note with the death of Kwon (Brandon H. Lee) at the Sekai Taikai which literally ends the tournament (though it is later restored). It picks up momentum as several characters began (or continued on) their redemption arcs. The kids of Cobra Kai looked to the future and the next adventure after the world championships and viewers got a satisfying end to all the villains in our story.
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While the story may have wrapped, the characters continue on. Johnny is a now a girl dad after Carmen (Vanessa Rubio) gave birth to their daughter. You'll see Macchio as Daniel in the upcoming movie Karate Kid: Legends opposite Jackie Chan and Ben Wang (American Born Chinese, MacGyver). Both Johnny and Daniel remain as Senseis at Cobra Kai and Miyagi-Do, but with an added twist—the two dojos have a sort of exchange program where the students train at the other dojo and learn their teachings and styles.
The series had a good run and gave viewers more seasons and episodes than expected. Characters we've been following since the mid '80s got their moments to shine and true fans of The Karate Kid, this one included, were left satisfied with the outcome. Mr. Miyagi would have been proud.
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