If there’s one thing Cobra Kai loves, it’s an all-out karate brawl. Season 2 culminated in a schoolwide brawl that resulted in Miguel getting seriously injured. In Season 3, students from Cobra Kai descended on the Lawrusso residence, and Eli stepped up and defended Demetri. Season 5 showcased an amazing reunion of all of Daniel’s former rivals teaming up to face Terry Silver and his team of bad senseis. Cobra Kai uses these fun and rewatachable not only to showcase action, but to mark turning points in the series as well. Season 6 Part 2 has introduced the biggest brawl of all, with a tournament-wide fight breaking out at the Sekai Taikai. Its tragic end, resulting in a character’s death, is the most important end to any of these battles.
Cobra Kai, in true sports anime fashion, revolves entirely around karate, from teenage rivalries to tournaments to philosophies of teaching to the soul of the entire San Fernando Valley. Daniel’s wife, Amanda, has pointed out over the course of the series how things have gone too far with the karate wars. In the past, feelings have been hurt, homes have been wrecked, and bones have been broken. However, Kwon Jae-Sung, the hot-headed star of the newly revived Cobra Kai dojo, is the first karate casualty of the series.
During the chaos of the brawl at the Sekai Taikai, Kwon finds John Kreese’s eunjangdo. He attempts to use it to fight Axel Kovačević, one of the captains of the fierce Iron Dragons, but instead ends up fatally stabbing himself by accident. With Kwon’s life cut short, now more than ever, the characters of Cobra Kai are going to have to reevaluate how they view karate, as well as each other.
The Sekai Takai Might Be Canceled
Tensions were running high during Axel and Robby’s match. Axel, frustrated with Robby’s strategy of defense, asked if he was going to fight and pushed him to where some of the Cobra Kai fighters were standing. Kwon elbowed Robby in his side, causing Miguel to defend him. Axel, who had been nursing a crush on Sam, jumped in, eager for a chance to fight Miguel. The Sekai Takai host, Gunther Braun, was going to break up the fight, when he was knocked out by Tiger Strike’s Sensei Ivanov.
The Tiger Strike team was disqualified due to doping, and returned to seek their revenge. With Gunter out, no one was able to stop the ensuing chaos. Students fought students. Senseis fought senseis. Kwon went to attack Axel, but ended up plunging the knife into his own body, resulting in his death. Gunther awoke just in time to see what had happened, and to ask the cameras to be shut off.
While this season revealed that the odd death can happen during these tournaments, there’s a chance that there had never been a televised one before. Additionally, the lack of sportsmanship during an international tournament that’s meant to celebrate the skills of competitors around the globe would no doubt result in families and news outlets calling into question the ethics of the Sekai Taikai.
Although it may seem anti-climatic, the cancelation of the Sekai Taikai could serve as a reset for Cobra Kai. Instead of competition, the remaining episodes could focus on the characters saying their goodbyes and reflecting on what learning karate meant for them. It was never about trophies. It was always about the bonds these characters have formed.
Old Enemies May Make Amends
At its core, Cobra Kai and the Karate Kid movies are about the relationships between fathers and sons. Daniel, whose father passed away prior to the events of the first Karate Kid film, found a positive father figure in Mr. Miyagi. In Cobra Kai, Johnny explains that his father left when he was in kindergarten and his mother married Sid Weinberg, who had no interest in being a real stepfather. Johnny became who he is under the fierce tutelage of John Kreese. While Daniel flourished in large part thanks to Mr. Miyagi, Johnny wasn’t so lucky, living as a down-on-his-luck handyman at the start of the series.
While Daniel and Johnny have grown as both father figures and fathers to their biological children over the course of the series, their relationships with their mentors still have a profound effect on them. In Season 6, Part 2, Johnny gives a less-than-stellar pep talk to the Miyagi-Do students that stems from him projecting his own past. Despite all his growth, he still worries that his students are going to end up like him and, out of fear, is using the same tough rhetoric that Kreese used.
Cobra Kai may have some great antagonists, including the wonderfully devilish Terry Silver, but John Kreese has always loomed as the series’ ultimate foe. Kreese himself has wrestled with his affection for Johnny, referring to it as “weakness” and trying to stamp it out. Despite that, Johnny proves to be the bigger man when he defends Kreese from Silver. This act could finally set in motion a reconciliation between these two men. Despite their best efforts, they mean a lot to each other and are family just as much as Daniel and Mr. Miyagi.
Kwon’s Death Will Tie Back to Miyagi’s Past
Kwon’s death was foreshadowed by the revelation earlier this season that Mr. Miyagi, the franchise’s most beloved mentor, had once killed another competitor in the Sekai Taikai. (It’s not an uncommon trope in the martial arts genre.) Daniel is understandably shaken by this, but just looking at the competition sheet might not tell the whole story.
After all, Axel didn’t intend to kill Kwon; Kwon accidentally stabbed himself. It could be that Miyagi’s situation was similar. Or perhaps Miyagi did kill a competitor in an accident, which resulted in him changing his philosophy about karate, choosing to teach Daniel a defense-centered approach. Perhaps the only reason why he agreed to train Daniel for a tournament in the first Karate Kid film was because he recognized Kreese’s relentless approach as similar to one he had once shared. Regardless, even though Daniel was unable to get answers during this part of the season, chances are he’ll get some answers before the finale.
It’s hard to say goodbye to Cobra Kai. It’s a rare continuation series that not only dominates in the ratings, but also has received praise from critics/ It doesn’t just revel in nostalgia, but builds on it with some great action and a big heart. Now that the show has thrown down its biggest dramatic gauntlet, the stakes are higher than ever. That said, with the love these creators and actors have for their characters, it will no doubt end with a bang.
