22/50
Avildsen shot hours of tournament footage from multiple angles
Synopsis
Decades after their fight at the 1984 All Valley Karate Tournament, a middle-aged Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence meet again as martial arts rivals. During the original filming of The Karate Kid, the late director John G. The team behind Cobra Kai dug through the studio vault and found a ton of never-before-seen clips, which they were able to introduce into the series via flashbacks. One of them includes Zabka’s real-life mother, who was in the stands at different angles that weren’t seen until 2018.
Ralph Macchio told Uproxx that there are three entirely new angles of the famous crane kick
Many people believe that Miyagi’s name on his tombstone is a continuity error, given that in Karate Kid 4 (1994) his name is stated to be Keisuke, but it was actually previously shown on a sign Chozen was holding for him in Karate Kid 2 ( 1986) as Nariyoshi. This means that it was The Next Karate Kid that changed his name, while Cobra Kai kept the name previously given to him. Another interesting fact, however, is that the name given in The Karate Kid Part II was not the original first name given to Miyagi. In Karate Kid (1984), it can be briefly seen on Miyagi’s dog tags, attached to the keys to the 1948 Ford given to Daniel for his birthday, that Miyagi’s first name is Hideo.
This is what we need from shows, taking unique and interesting angles
Featured on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Anthony Mackie/Ralph Macchio/Kiry Shabazz (2018). Impressed, enthralled and engaged are the words that come to mind for Cobra Kai. Cobra Kai flips the script and gives us Johnny Lawrence’s view, this is truly his story. He is the one who lost and turns out to be a real person with very real flaws.
Cobra Kai intrigues us with its great storytelling
There is no longer a one-dimensional “Good vs. Evil” story that we have all heard a million times. This mirrors the feelings of the “loser” from the memorable 1984 film Karate Kid and picks up the story 34 years later. Because of this storytelling and twist, I find Johnny to be an inspiring figure who tries his best to rebuild his life.
Full marks for a great show
Johnny is a very down to earth and straightforward character who makes the most of the cards he is dealt. Isn’t this how we live our lives? In a funny way, we see the arrogance and attitude that Daniel Larusso, who was originally the hero, sometimes displays.