Based on a key scene in Cobra Kai season 6 part 1, Chozen has surpassed one of The Karate Kid franchise’s best fighters. It’s been evident since season 3 that Chozen Toguchi is near the top of the list when it comes to the most talented martial artists in The Karate Kid’s world. After all, he beat Daniel LaRusso with relative ease.
His reputation was solidified shortly after his return to the series. Chozen proved his worth once again when he promptly took down a handful of karate instructors. In Cobra Kai season 5’s ending, Chozen overpowered Terry Silver, eliminating a key contender for the title of Cobra Kai’s best fighter. He had an opportunity to firmly put himself above Johnny as well, but the show didn’t follow through on that. However, it did use one moment in the final season 6’s first five episodes to position Chozen ahead of a different character in The Karate Kid’s power structure.
Cobra Kai Season 6 Hints Chozen Is Now Stronger Than Sato
When getting ready for his fight with Johnny, Chozen was shown trying to break a wooded beam with his bare hand. He failed in his first few attempts, but finally succeeded. The scene does more than just demonstrate Chozen’s strength, as it also offers a clear contrast to Sato’s capabilities in The Karate Kid Part II. Played by Danny Kamekona, Sato was the uncle of Chozen and the person primarily responsible for his karate training. In the movie, he was understood to be an extremely formidable fighter. However, Sato was incapable of breaking a wooden beam.
For that reason, Chozen breaking the beam in Cobra Kai can be fairly interpreted as the show’s way of saying that Chozen has finally gone beyond the skill of his uncle. The student overtaking the master is a highly coveted milestone in the journey of a martial arts hero, making this an important yet understated moment in Chozen’s story.
Sato Was Arguably One Of The Karate Kid’s Strongest Fighters
Despite never engaging in an onscreen fight, Sato has long been regarded as one of the franchise’s most skilled martial artists. That reputation is built largely on his history with Mr. Miyagi. Both he and Miyagi were trained by the latter’s father, who is treated as the real source of Daniel’s style of karate. Because they both have a similar background in martial arts, it’s fair to say that Sato was a force to be reckoned with when The Karate Kid Part II character was in his prime.
Anyone who is renowned in the franchise as the main karate rival to Mr. Miyagi would naturally have to be quite proficient in martial arts in order to keep up. He obviously wasn’t stronger than Mr. Miyagi, but the progress displayed by his top student (Chozen) has always been evidence of his talents.
Has Chozen Also Surpassed Mr. Miyagi?
With Chozen breaking the wooden beam and seemingly surpassing Sato, it’s worth wondering where he stands now in terms of who the franchise’s top fighters are. There’s no doubt that he’s in the upper echelon of talent now, but that’s not to say he’s taken the highest spot. What Chozen did was impressive, but it doesn’t put him above his teacher’s rival; at the end of The Karate Kid Part II, Mr. Miyagi proved that he too could split a wooden beam when he broke one that had Sato pinned to the ground. It was that scene that confirmed Mr. Miyagi was better than Sato.
This brings Chozen nearer to the level of Mr. Miyagi. Currently, he’s the closest thing The Karate Kid has to an equivalent of Mr. Miyagi, but it has yet to feature anyone who is definitively his equal, much less superior to him – including Chozen. There’s still no evidence that Chozen could defeat Miyagi in a fight. At best, Chozen is the second greatest fighter in Cobra Kai’s world.
It’s important to keep in mind that Miyagi still has the most impressive win in the history of the franchise. In one fight, Mr. Miyagi skilfully disposed of three of the franchise’s best fighters: Mike Barnes, Terry Silver, and John Kreese. Barnes was coming off a national championship at the time, and the other two were in their primes. Chozen, on the other hand, admittedly outdid Terry Silver in Cobra Kai, but not without an immense struggle. Plus, Silver was much older and likely not as formidable as the version of the character that Miyagi defeated.
