‘Cobra Kai’ Returns to its ‘Karate Kid’ Roots for Season 3

The third season of “Cobra Kai” has recently become available on Netflix, and it has received good reviews with many claiming it’s the best season yet.

The series is based on the timeless martial arts classic film ‘Karate Kid.’ The show tells the story of two men, now in middle age, who were martial arts rivals during their high school years.

The story not only continues from the movie franchise, but it also features two actors from the movies, Ralph Macchio and William Zabka, starring in their previous roles. 

The series focuses on the Karate Kid’s arch-rival, Johnny Lawrence, whose role is once again portrayed by William Zabka.

The title of the show is based on the name of the karate dojo where Johnny received his mentorship from a cruel instructor.

Facing desperate circumstances later in life, Johnny decides to reopen the dojo with himself as the head of the school.

The third season of the show has been praised for being an improvement over the second season.

The first season of “Cobra Kai” succeeded in reigniting the magic of the original classic and in sparking nostalgia.

The third season works in more elements of nostalgia from the 80s, and this helped it deliver more charm than the second season.

Even though season three is not quite as good as the first season, it is a lot better than the second.

The reason that the first season had a more entertaining impact is possibly due to the lack of story requirements leftover from season two.

The second season reignites a rivalry between LaRusso and his former nemesis that feels like pulling the scab off of an old wound, and it also left some cliffhanger moments that built up some plot momentum for the third season. 

Some of the success of the third season also is due to the portrayal of the characters. They seem to resonate more as people that viewers would care about and empathize with.

The new character of a high school nerd turned bad boy also played an unexpectedly pivotal role in the third season that gave more flavor to the show.

The actor who portrayed Miguel, the kid who was left in a coma for the season two cliffhanger, also provided a dramatic impact during the third season.

Since the character who played the original movie’s namesake, Daniel-San, didn’t seem to have many personal issues to resolve in his life, the third season spends more time on his rivals.

Daniel travels back to Okinawa where he reunites with a childhood love interest and a rival for her affection who is harboring old feelings of unresolved revenge.

People who began to lose interest during the second season of “Cobra Kai” should look forward to seeing the third season with a renewed enthusiasm. The overall pacing and plot of the current season do more justice to the landmark films from which the show is derived.