My Review of "Cobra Kai: Season One"

Cobra Kai: Season One is a series that I've been avoiding for the longest time. I remember liking the original Karate Kid movie but I wasn't a huge fan of the series because I don't remember seeing the sequel. My friend has been hassling me to watch this TV series but because I wasn't a huge fan of the franchise I never bothered. Fast-forward to 2021 and the third season of this series has recently come out and I get curious about the series. It's finally time to take the dive and I am not sorry that I finally succumbed to peer pressure.

This series starts up innocently enough. I remember the events of the movie all too well and this is kind of a nice ride down memory lane. The main character this time is Johnny Lawrence. If that sounds familiar it's because he's the main antagonist in the original movie. This TV series takes place 34 years after the events of the movie.

Johnny is now in a really dark place. He's barely surviving and doesn't really live a healthy lifestyle. His attitude in life doesn't really help his cause either. It just seems like this guy is a big Charlie Brown character and it's really sad to see. I felt for this guy.

On the other side we have Daniel who was the protagonist of the original movie. He's living the great life. He's got a beautiful family, a successful car dealership and basically life is really good for him. His success is basically in Johnny's face everyday since the two still live in the same city.

Recently a new family moves into Johnny's apartment unit and the teenage kid by the name of Miguel is getting bullied at school. With bigger things to worry about Johnny doesn't really care. That is until one fateful night at a local convenience store. Miguel gets beaten up around Johnny's car and Johnny beats up Miguel's bullies. Not to save Miguel but because they were fighting around his car. The concept of Johnny's character is quite funny because you can see how it's grounded in reality.

Miguel and a whole series of horrible events convince Johnny to restart the Cobra Kai dojo. Although I originally thought this movie was going to be based on Johnny and Daniel's rekindled rivalry, this TV series goes further than this.

There is a whole new generation of kids involved in this TV series. I guess that's how all of the revamping of old franchises are working. We're seeing this in franchises such as Saved By The Bell and Star Wars. The thing is that the kids have pretty fun storylines as well. This is when it gets into more of a teen angsty soap opera. There are elements of bullying and romances between all of the characters.

The cool factor of these little teen angst melodrama problems is that they always somehow have a chain reaction to affect Johnny and Daniel. It's hilarious because one small thing can grow into a big problem for either Johnny or Daniel. These issues will further fuel their rivalry with one another and it's really fun to see. In some ways the same goes with the kids under Johnny and Daniel.

It's also really nice to see the changes in Johnny and Daniel as a result of the kids learning their lessons. Everyone evolves by the end of the season for the better. This is really a family friendly TV series just as the movie was a family friendly affair.

The season consists of 10 half hour episodes so it's not too hard to binge the season. Each episode is packed with loads of content and I never really got bored watching each one of them. I felt like they kept me engaged throughout the whole season. I was really impressed with what they did with this series.

Overall, I had a really fun time with this season. It's a really good gateway into the franchise. You don't even have to see the movie to understand what's going on. They do a lot of flashbacks and will explain specific things in the past that you need to know. I have to give this season an 8 out of 10. It was really good and I can't wait to see the next season.