Review by Christian Garcia
Today I am looking at Cobra Kai Season Three!
After a dramatic and shocking end to season two, can Cobra Kai's third season top it?
Let's take a look.
Plot Summary
After the fight at West Valley High School, the landscape of karate in the valley has changed. Miyagi-Do is shut down, Cobra Kai is now under the control of John Kreese and the students of each dojo are left dealing with issues stemming from the fight.
Story Arcs
The Fallout from the West Valley High School Fight
The finale to season two had dire consequences that affected everyone throughout the third season. The fight brought many of them to their lowest of lows. Sam suffers the most emotionally dealing with guilt, fear, and anxiety. She feels great guilt and blames herself for her actions having caused Miguel to get hurt and Robby to go on the run. Miguel suffers the most physically as the fight leaves him comatose and paralyzed. Robby begins the season on the run from the law after what he did to Miguel. Johnny and Daniel stew in their failures and cope in different ways.
However, they don’t stew for long as Johnny picks himself back up and coaches Miguel through his recovery. Miguel soon regains the use of his legs and regains his confidence in himself. Johnny is also reminded of his purpose as a sensei and with Miguel’s help, he starts a new dojo named Eagle Fang Karate.
Daniel tries to do right by Robby, but his actions lead to Robby feeling betrayed and he cuts Daniel out of his life. Daniel helps Sam cope with her fear by telling her of the time he almost lost to fear and reminds her that it is okay to lose a fight, but it is not okay to lose to fear. This talk inspires Sam to resume her training.
Their comebacks culminate at the Board Meeting where Johnny, Daniel, and Kreese try to get the All-Valley tournament reinstated. Their bickering nearly ruins their chances, but Sam and Miguel save the day when they come together to help convince the Board to reinstate the Tournament showing that karate has done more good for them than bad. With the tournament back on, Kreese makes a wager with Daniel and Johnny to settle their differences in the tournament. Winning dojo stays and the losing dojo closes. Daniel and Johnny combine their dojos to take down Cobra Kai once and for all.
Sam’s Anxiety
Sam is reeling the most from the fight dealing with guilt, fear, and anxiety. She feels great guilt and blames herself for the fight that caused Miguel to get hurt and Robby to go on the run. She has a hard time going back to school at first because she keeps seeing Miguel’s fall repeatedly in her head. She also is afraid of seeing Tory Nichols again as their fight scarred her both physically and emotionally. She grows frustrated with Cobra Kai and their bullying ways and keeps trying to fight back. During a fight with Cobra Kai, she suffers a panic attack when Tory arrives which leaves her paralyzed with fear as she watches Demetri get his arm broken by Hawk. After the attack, she has an emotional breakdown.
When her father, Daniel tells her his intention to reopen Miyagi-Do, she tells him she wants nothing to do with karate. This causes Daniel to bring her to the All-Valley gym where the tournament finals were held and tells her about his bout with fear during his second All-Valley tournament. He admits that he almost gave into fear, but Mr. Miyagi made him realize that it is okay to lose fight but not okay to lose to fear. He tells her that she cannot give into fear and that only she can lift herself back up. The pep talk inspires her to resume her training.
In the season finale, Sam comes face-to-face with Tory again. She at first is scared and runs away but Tory soon corners her and comes after her with weapons. After smashing a picture of Mr. Miyagi, Sam remembers the words of her father, lets go of her fear and fights back against Tory. She disarms Tory until they are interrupted by Miguel, Demetri, and Hawk who has defected. Tory warns Sam that the war between them will never be over and leaves.
Sam ends the season reassured of herself having conquered her fear and is now more determined than ever to beat Tory and Cobra Kai and put an end to them once and for all.
Daniel’s Return to Okinawa
Daniel’s troubles continue when Tom Cole approaches him and Amanda about buying LaRusso Auto and at first, they are dismissive of him but then Anoush lets it slip that Cole signed an exclusive deal with Doyona which could put Daniel out of business. With his business crumbling and his dreams shattering, Daniel remembers a bonsai tree trimming lesson from Mr. Miyagi and sets in motion a last-ditch plan to save his business. He flies to Tokyo to try and convince the board of Doyona to reconsider.
Unfortunately, the board rejects his plea and Daniel is left conflicted on what to do next. A friendly bar tender’s advice and a commercial lead him to journey to Mr. Miyagi’s hometown of Okinawa. While there, he runs into his old love, Kumiko. They catch up on old times and Daniel mentions that he wishes that he could talk to Mr. Miyagi now in his time of need. Kumiko tells him she might be able to make it happen. In the most emotionally touching moment of the season, Kumiko reads Daniel Mr. Miyagi’s final letter to her Aunt Yukie. He wrote about how lost he felt until he met Daniel and that it is the people in your life that bring you back to the right path, not the signs.
Daniel’s time in Japan also teaches him a lesson about confronting the past and letting go when he is reunited with his formal rival, Chozen. After an awkward first encounter, they venture out to a dojo that is revealed to be Miyagi-Do. Chozen refuses to show Daniel the secrets and the two spar once again. Chozen teaches Daniel that there is still much for him to learn as he uses new pressure point techniques to best him and in a callback to Karate Kid II, humiliate him.
Afterwards, Chozen shows Daniel the techniques and they part on good terms, showing that rivalries can be put to rest. Daniel gets one last blessing in the form of Yuna, the young girl that he rescued from the typhoon in Karate Kid II. She reveals that she is the VP of Sales at Doyona and can save his business. This moment is a reassurance of Kumiko’s lesson from Aunt Yukie, that if you put good into the world, good will come back to you. Having watched Karate Kid Part II, it was nice to see the film get acknowledged and it was funny to how the small old-time town had transformed into a shopping outlet. It was a nice love letter to the often forgotten sequel and was a great journey to bring Daniel back into focus.
Miguel's Recovery
After his fall during the West Valley High School Fight, Miguel is left comatose with a broken back. While in his coma, he envisions himself fighting in a tournament and not being able to defeat his opponent. After a pep talk from his sensei that he subconsciously hears, Miguel beats his opponent in his dream and wakes up from his coma. He struggles with his condition and at first lashes out at his sensei blaming him for what happened. However, Johnny returns and gives him the tough love that turned him into the great fighter that he is and Johnny starts on the path to recovery.
After some unorthodox training methods by Johnny, Miguel’s spirit is still low as he struggles to regain the use of his legs. Johnny tries to lift his spirits by bringing him to a rock concert. At the concert, Miguel begins tapping his foot, showing signs that he is recovering. After the concert, his training picks up as Johnny helps him slowly regain the use of his legs.
During one exercise where Miguel attempts to stand up without support, his frustration boils over and he lashes out at his sensei even yelling at him to “quiet!” He chastises Johnny for giving up on Cobra Kai and for letting Kreese take it from him. He doesn’t notice that while he is doing so, he is standing on his own two feet without any help or support. After this he starts training more and soon regains the use of his legs. His training with Johnny lifted him both physically and emotionally and brought him back.
Robby’s journey to Cobra Kai
Robby begins the season on the run from the law after what he did to Miguel. Robby feels guilt over what he did and guilty that he let his sensei down. He turns up to see his mother, Shannon in rehab and he encounters his former sensei, Daniel. He apologizes for his mistake and Daniel tries to assure him that things will be okay. Daniel tries to explain his plan that would involve Robby turning himself in to get a lighter sentence. However, before Daniel can explain, two police officers show up and arrest him. Thinking he was set up by his former sensei, Robby is hurt and betrayed and cuts Daniel out of his life.
While in juvie, he is told that his father Johnny Lawrence is coming to see him. Sadly, Johnny fails to show up letting him down once again. Johnny shows up later to explain himself and upon learning that he did not show because of Miguel, Robby is hurt even more. Believing that his father chose Miguel over him and that his sensei betrayed him, Robby feels like he has no one.
During his time in juvie, Robby is the victim of several beatings at the hands of fellow inmate, Shawn Payne. One day, he receives an unexpected visit from John Kreese. Robby is dismissive of him at first but then Kreese advises him to strike first to survive which Robby takes to heart. Fed up with the abuse from Shawn, the feeling of abandonment from Johnny and Daniel, and the mind games of Kreese, Robby finally fights back against Shawn, and at the end of it, they leave with a newfound respect for one another.
Upon his release, Robby is met by both Daniel and Johnny. However, he cuts ties with both. While at the probationary office, he runs into Tory Nichols. Tory warns him that Sam will go back to Miguel and hurt him like Miguel hurt her. He defends Sam but Tory tells him not to be so sure. They have a slight bonding moment when she tells him to write stable on his application form as she has plenty of experience in this situation.
After leaving the office, he goes to Miyagi-Do to see Sam and is hurt to see her with Miguel. Things escalate quickly and an angry Robby goes to attack Miguel before being stopped by Sam. Hurt, Robby ends things with Sam and tells her and Miguel that they deserve each other. No with no one left to turn to and no one else to go, Robby goes to Kreese and Cobra Kai. He slowly begins training under Kreese’s wing and even begins to bond with his fellow Cobra Kai students, especially Tory.
When Johnny shows up to confront Kreese, he is hurt to see Robby now training with his former master. Johnny fights Kreese and gets the upper hand until Robby steps in. Robby tells Johnny that he is tired of being his own worst enemy and declares that Johnny is his worst enemy and attacks him. Johnny refuses to fight his son and while trying to defend himself, he accidentally knocks out Robby. Robby wakes up after the fight between Kreese, Daniel and Johnny and coldly tells Daniel, Sam, Johnny, and Miguel to leave. Kreese calls him son and he has now fully fallen under Kreese’s leadership.
Robby has now undergone the transition to the dark side after being hurt by the ones he cared for and trusted and is now going to use that hurt and anger to defend Cobra Kai in the All-Valley Tournament.
Hawk’s Redemption
Now under the full tutelage of John Kreese, Hawk has fully transformed into a bully. With Miguel out of commission, Hawk is primed to become Cobra Kai’s top student. He blames Miyagi-Do for Miguel’s injury and goes to great lengths to get back at them. After seeing that Sam LaRusso is organizing a fundraiser for Miguel’s surgery, he and some Cobra Kai students beat up Nathaniel and steal the fundraiser money.
He also continues to taunt his former friend, now rival, Demetri. He outsmarts the teachers to get over on the Miyagi-Do students while keeping himself and Cobra Kai out of trouble. He and his crew go to former Cobra Kai student now turned Miyagi-Do, Chris’ job. The rest of Miyagi-Do come to his aid and a fight ensues. Miyagi-Do has the advantage at first but the tide soon changes after Tory arrives. Hawk pins Demetri to the ground and the other students encourage him to break Demetri’s arm. Hawk hesitates at first but then breaks Demetri’s arm. As he and Cobra Kai leave, Hawk shows some signs of remorse on his face.
Hawk becomes uneasy with the newest additions to Cobra Kai when his former bully, Kyler shows up. Kyler tries to bully him again but Hawk challenges recruit Brucks to fight. Hawk brutally beats him and leaves him bloody. This is one of Hawk’s most brutal moments and highlights how much Hawk has been corrupted. Kyler looks on in horror and fears Hawk from that moment on.
After Miguel returns to school, he calls out Hawk for his actions and encourages him to leave Cobra Kai and join Eagle Fang. Johnny arrives at the school and apologizes to Hawk and the other students admitting that he let them down and reminds them that he is the one who made them and not Kreese. He tells them if they want to go on the right path, they should join him. Hawk and the other students arrive the next morning seemingly about to join Eagle Fang but then Kreese shows up and Hawk declares that he is Cobra Kai for life.
However, Hawk’s loyalty to Cobra Kai is tested when Robby Keene joins. Having labeled him the enemy because of what he did to Miguel, Robby questions Kreese’s decision. Kreese tells him that the enemy of his enemy, is his friend. After a mission to secure a cobra for Kreese as a gift, Robby establishes himself as a leader in Cobra Kai. Kreese then instructs the students to attack the Eagle Fang and Miyagi-Do students, although Hawk is reluctant to do so.
During the fight with Miyagi-Do and Eagle Fang, despite having the upper hand, upon seeing his friends getting beaten up, Hawk remembers what his sensei’s have taught him and has a change of heart and switches sides. He saves Demetri from getting his arm broken again and apologizes to him and they make amends.
In the end, Hawk realizes the error of his ways and redeems himself.
Season Highlights
Mr. Miyagi's Last Letter
The emotional highlight of the entire season is when Kumiko reads Mr. Miyagi's final letter to Daniel. It's a moment that will have Karate Kid fans in tears getting to hear the final words of everyone's favorite sensei.
The scene is one of the show's best as it feels like Mr. Miyagi is still there and having watched the original films it was heartwarming to feel Mr. Miyagi's presence one more time. It was a great final summation of the man's life and was powerful to hear how much of a positive impact that Daniel had on his master's life. Having watched the Karate Kid trilogy and seeing how strong the relationship between Daniel and Miyagi was, this scene did an excellent job of capturing that bond and had the same feel-good spirit of the original film.
It was a moment for Daniel that reminded him of what was important in life and gave him the boost that he needed. It's a great reminder that students teach their teachers along the way.
Johnny & Daniel vs. Kreese
The final confrontation between Johnny, Daniel, and Kreese is the payoff to a season's worth of buildup and tension.
In the first season, Daniel confronts Kreese and Kreese tries to goad Daniel into a fight. Daniel tries to take the high road and refuses to fight him, but Kreese tells him that their fight will be inevitable. Meanwhile, Kreese keeps trying to get Johnny to return to Cobra Kai but Johnny refuses.
After another brawl between their students, Johnny arrives at Cobra Kai and attacks Kreese. During their fight Johnny gets the upper hand until his son Robby interferes. After accidentally knocking out Robby, Kreese gets Johnny in a chokehold until it is broken up by Daniel. An enraged Daniel finally faces off with Kreese and uses the pressure point techniques taught to him by Chozen to disarm him.
For fans of the films, seeing Daniel and Kreese face off was a dream come true and a great way to cap off the season.
Daniel, Johnny, and Ali Reunion
The reunion between Daniel, Johnny and Ali is a crucial moment for fans and for the characters. Last season ended with a teaser that Ali would show up at some point and when she finally arrives, it is everything that fans wanted and more. We got to see Johnny and Ali's chemistry together and now have a better understanding of how they could have been a couple in high school. Given that Ali was the reason that Johnny and Daniel's feud began in the first place, it was a great moment of self-reflection and brought some closure for both Daniel and Johnny. It was fun to watch old enemies hang out like friends and in the end they all part on good terms, leaving the past behind them and looking towards the future.
Kreese Vietnam Flashbacks
During the season, a series of flashbacks are shown depicting Kreese’s experiences in Vietnam. These flashbacks give us more insight into Kreese as a character and help us understand how he became the way that he is. We learn that he had an unstable home life as his mother struggled with her mental health and eventually committed suicide. He was bullied by his peers because of the stigma of his mother’s actions. We see him save a young woman named Betsy from her jerk boyfriend and his gang of bullies. Young Kreese remarks how he had been fighting all his life. He later joins the army and before he leaves, he promises Betsy that he would come back to her and that he would come back a hero.
His time in Vietnam is where he learned the ruthless and no mercy mentality that would remain for him the rest of his life. His commanding officer tries to rid him of his humanity and tells him that letting it go is the only way to survive. While on a mission, Kreese makes a decision that results in his team getting captured and is forced to witness his friend Ponytail be executed right in front of him. While in captivity he witnesses two of his fellow soldiers fight to the death. He is then forced to fight his captain in one-on-one combat to the death after stepping in place of his scared friend, Terry Silver. Right before their fight, his captain reveals that Kreese’s girlfriend Betsy died. During their fight, Kreese finally accepts the no mercy mentality and commits his first ruthless act by killing his captain despite the team being liberated by the US army. These flashbacks were a great tool to give Kreese more dimension and to give us a better understanding of how he got to be the way that he is and why his views are the way that they are. It is a great reminder of Mr. Miyagi’s lesson that there is no such thing as a bad student, only a bad teacher and after seeing the kind of teacher that Kreese had, we understand how he ended up the way that he is and reminds us that Kreese is human.
The Return of Chozen
The return of Chozen in this season was great to see as it gave Daniel a chance to confront a loose end from his past and get closure on an old rivalry. When he and Chozen fight once again, it took me back to their fight in Karate Kid II and while I knew what Chozen was going to do when he asked Daniel if he wanted to live or die, I laughed at the callback. Seeing Chozen's transformation from unhonorable and crazy to humbled was great to see and was a great lesson to Daniel that people can in fact change. It was also great to see that Chozen taught Daniel another dimension of Miyagi-Do karate. It showed that even the masters still have much to learn and never stop learning. Seeing Chozen was a welcome treat and an awesome way to honor the sometimes-forgotten Karate Kid Part II.
Tease of Terry Silver
The Vietnam flashbacks not only gave fans insight into Kreese as a character, but also served as teaser for the return of Karate Kid III villain, Terry Silver.
They cleverly tricked audiences by having Kreese have two friends in the army, Ponytail and Twig. Both resemble a young Terry Silver and leave you wondering which one was which. Then when Ponytail was executed, we realize that the scared Twig is young Terry Silver. Having watched Karate Kid Part III and knowing that Silver and Kreese had a history dating back to Vietnam, it was cool to see those events play out and see why Silver was so loyal to Kreese. It was a great way to set up Silver's return in season four and got fans excited!
Final Thoughts
Cobra Kai's third season was a great season full of character development, growth and sets up higher stakes for the next season. Kreese's inclusion as the main antagonist did a great job in shaking up the foundation of the show. The wager the three feuding sensei's make in the final episode raises the stakes for everyone and gives them something to work towards. The prospect of Johnny and Daniel teaming up as sensei's as well as the teased return of Terry Silver will get fans excited for the next season.
The third season on its own merit does an excellent job of following up on the West Valley High fight that closed season two and showing how it rocked the characters to their core. It is the most dramatic season of the show (so far...) as it packs a lot more heavy moments and deals with serious issues like anxiety, PTSD, and self-doubt. We see the characters at their lowest and watch them slowly crawl their way back up (for Miguel almost literally) and now that they have come back from the lowest of lows, we are ready to see them take what they have learned and be even better than before.
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