Cobra Kai's second season was a bit on the middling side, but it ended with a massive gang war that completely upended the entire status quo. Thankfully, Season 3 did a good job of following up on that insane finale, even if it still isn't as consistently strong as the first.
Season 3 was probably at its most compelling when dealing with the fallout of the fight at the school. I liked how each character had their own consequences that they had to deal with throughout the season. The community is starting to be against karate, Sam faced panic attacks, Miguel had the entire season to recover from his injury, it was all incredibly well-paced. We also get a lot more alliances between Johnny and Daniel this season, as Kreese's status as the bad guy becomes more and more evident. It's a bit of a slow burn, but it helps to make their climactic teamup in the finale all the more satisfying. It seems like more than any other, this season is about mending wounds, with a particular highlight being Johnny and Miguel rebuilding their relationship that I found so great back in Season 1. We also get a ton of returning characters from the films, Kumiko and Chozen, Ali, and even Silver from the third movie in some of the best scenes of the season. I love how Ali is the one to help Johnny and Daniel resolve their issues, how Chozen ended up being a super nice dude, and how Kumiko gave Daniel a final message from Mr Miyagi. If you're a fan of the Karate Kid films, this season should absolutely be a dream come true.
However, Season 3 also made me realize what has been falling flat for me in regards to Cobra Kai these past two seasons: the gang aspect. While I love those massive battle scenes and dramatic finales, I realized that the show has been forcing me to suspend my disbelief in ways that I just can't anymore. The melodramatic conflicts between Cobra Kai and the other dojos have just gotten so over the top this season, and Kreese's army-esque demeanor doesn't help matters. I admire the show's willingness to demonstrate the ineffectiveness of school faculty, but this is just ridiculous. While I still enjoy the show for what it is, it's gotten difficult to empathize with anyone who doesn't think all three dojos should be shut down for good. However, I love how the finale hinges the major conflict on another All Valley tournament, it's a great hook for next season and one that makes a lot of sense. Season 3 marked Cobra Kai's shift to Netflix, and while the cinematography, fights, and production values is generally the same, I found that the lighting of all things ended up improving. Right from the first episode, it looked like the show's lighting had gotten much more dynamic since the shift to Netflix. The fight scenes and music is also great, though I don't think any scene was able to top the insane school brawl from last season.
As usual, the season had a bunch of great highlights, such as:
Nature Vs Nurture: This episode was basically a buddy-cop film but with Daniel and Johnny, with all of the banter, interrogation antics, and action scenes you'd expect. I wasn't a fan of the subplots, but that search for Robby was so damn fun!
Miyagi-do: This episode feels like a love letter to Karate Kid fans. The reunion with Chozen, the reveal of Miyagi's secret pressure points, Yuna's surprise appearance, Daniel's trip to Japan really covered all of the bases. We also got the heartwrenching scene where Hawk breaks Demetri's arm, and the far more satisfying scene where Amanda gives Kreese a well-deserved slap on the face.
December 19: While it wasn't as jaw-droopingly shocking as No Mercy, this was another really great finale from Cobra Kai. Ali's role was amazing, she was the perfect character to really put all of the crazy melodramatic conflict into perspective. And the big fight at the LaRusso residence (while really cheesy and oddly lacking in consequences) was a fun resolution to the high school conflicts. It was awesome to see Daniel and Johnny finally reconcile, face Kreese together, and get their dojos to reunite. Add in the promise of Terry Silver's return and you get a great season ender (seriously though, why are Cobra Kai's finales always so good?!).
Overall, Season 3 does a great job of following up from the insane school brawl, and boasts some amazing references and a ton of satisfying reconciliations, even if I'm still not a massive fan of the gang war aspect of the plot.
3/5 Stars
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