Cobra Kai Season 6 Can Finally Change The Karate Kid Franchise’s Strongest Character After 40 Years

Cobra Kai is wrapping up Johnny and Daniel’s story with season 6, which means it’s the final chance to dethrone Karate Kid’s strongest character.

The Karate Kid franchise has had the same top dog for decades, but Cobra Kai season 6 can finally change this. The spinoff series has celebrated a new generation of fighters, seeing the old students become the masters and new underdogs learning the ropes of karate. Still, despite this shift, the old masters of Karate Kid have maintained the legacy of being the best of the best, and Cobra Kai has so far shown little interest in allowing anyone else to take that mantle. However, with the Netflix series coming to a close with season 6, it’s finally time.

Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso are now the masters of their respective dojos in Cobra Kai. With their rivalry out of the way, they are free to evolve and grow as they never have before, which can only benefit their students. Going into Cobra Kai season 6, this could mean a shift in their skill and the perspective their students have of them. Of course, this means Mr. Miyagi would be dethroned from his top spot, but this has been a long time coming.

Mr. Miyagi Is Still Karate Kid’s Strongest Character 40 Years Later

Despite his age in The Karate Kid, Mr. Miyagi proved he was a force to be reconned with. He took down Johnny and his gang without an issue, and later, in The Karate Kid Part 2, he incapacitated John Kreese with only a few moves. In doing so, Miyagi proved that the style of karate he had grown up with was superior to Kreese’s Cobra Kai. In all, Miyagi never lost a fight in The Karate Kid. He only fought when he had to, but he often made quick work of it when he did.

So far in Cobra Kai, no other character has come close to this track record. Within canon, Mr. Miyagi passed away in 2011, and since that point, Daniel only recently began training himself again. By the end of Cobra Kai season 5, the original Karate Kid defeated Terry Silver—who had just defeated Chozen and Johnny. Still, it took about all Daniel had to take this master down, even though Silver still wasn’t quite to Mr. Miyagi’s level. All of this proves that, despite how far Daniel has come, Miyagi is still the strongest character in the franchise.

Which Cobra Kai Characters Could Become Stronger Than Mr. Miyagi

Though Miyagi has gone symbolically undefeated in Cobra Kai, that isn’t to say that this couldn’t change in season 6. Chozen’s defeat by Silver, which proved Mr. Miyagi could beat him if he were in Cobra Kai, could motivate the character to train harder and achieve all-new levels of mastery. Similarly, Daniel’s big battle with Silver in season 5 could have reminded him just how important karate can be to those who need protecting, therefore inspiring him to dive deeper into his old master’s secrets. However, given the predominant angle of Cobra Kai so far, it could be more poetic for a different Karate Kid character to take over Mr. Miyagi’s top spot.

Daniel LaRusso may have been the lead character of The Karate Kid, but Cobra Kai is Johnny Lawrence’s show. In season 1, it was Johnny who took over Miyagi’s spot in the Karate Kid formula—fighting off a group of bullies to protect an underdog in need of a good mentor. Of course, the Cobra Kai golden boy is a far more flawed character than Daniel’s old sensei, but that would only make his rise to the top more satisfying. Cobra Kai season 6 will likely see Johnny face off in one last big battle. If the series hopes to continue its parallels to The Karate Kid’s formula, it will mean the central character continuing Miyagi’s legacy in an unexpected way.

Why Cobra Kai Season 6 Should Have A New Strongest Character

Mr. Miyagi has held a symbolic place throughout Cobra Kai, despite the fact that he passed away long before the series started. In a major way, he can never be replaced or dethroned. His wisdom, kindness, and skill are the foundation of the Karate Kid franchise as a whole, and nothing that happens in the spinoff series will change that. However, the whole purpose of the Netflix series exploring this new generation is to see how the strength of someone like Miyagi can affect hundreds as the years go on. Mr. Miyagi didn’t gatekeep his skill and knowledge. He shared it with the young New Jerseyan who needed it most.

Whoever achieves the status of the strongest character in the Karate Kid franchise will be someone who understands that this is an achievement that is supposed to be shared. Together, Daniel, Johnny, Chozen, and any other members of this generation of fighters will do all they can to make sure that the next age of fighters—like Miguel, Robby, and Sam—have all the knowledge they need to continue Mr. Miyagi’s legacy even further than Cobra Kai’s season 6 ending.