3 Reasons Why Cobra Kai Stinks

I was eleven when the first Karate Kid movie came out in 1984. My brothers and I had been in Karate for six or seven years already under Sensei Luis Chiock Wong, a man I admire and respect to this day. In that sense, I found the movie endearing simply because of the mentorship that Mr. Miyagi exemplified, and which I found from my own Sensei.

Fast forward to 2018 when Cobra Kai was released by YouTube Red, and I was very excited to pick up again on the story of the now old(er) karate practitioners. This time however, it was a huge disappointment. I think that the writers missed an opportunity to do something great, and instead settled for cheap, and sometimes tasteless entertainment.

I could point out a bunch of other things in the show that, as a Karate instructor, make me cringe, but I'll stick to my main three:

Everyone seems to be a worse version of their old selves.

One of the maxims of a Karate-Do practitioner is to "Seek perfection of character." In Cobra Kai, however, everyone seems to have gotten worse over the years. I'm not talking just about the villains though; LaRusso, Lawrence, and their students are usually rude, and vengeful. Very seldom do they show courtesy, discipline, or self-restraint. It would seem that learning Karate made them worse, instead of better. In the real world, a Karate instructor is responsible for the personal growth of his/her students, not just their karate skills. In the show, good character seems to be an afterthought if anything at all.

Everything is solved by fighting.

Can you imagine if we all solved our disagreements with kicks and punches? At school, work, the water park, or even at home? Starting with the "Senseis", their students, and even the Moms, everyone gets into fights. In the real world, Martial Artists are peaceful people who do not need to prove themselves to anyone, and who have enough self assurance to know that walking away is always the best option. Violence is the last resort we want or need because we know that when violence is necessary, there are no winners.

Winning a tournament is THE most important goal.

Just like in the TV show, Sport Karate Tournaments can be a very serious business and many dojos do focus on competition training as their primary objective. Sadly, when winning a trophy becomes the highest objective, many Karate-ka (and their Senseis) lose sight of the true aim of their training. As Mr. Miyagi put it: "If Karate used to defend honor, defend life, Karate mean something. If Karate used to defend plastic metal trophy, Karate no mean nothing".

Don't get me wrong, I still watch the show, even if it has become somewhat painful to sit through. But as a Karate instructor, and a fan of the First Karate Kid movie, I would have loved to see Daniel LaRusso and even Johnny Lawrence as new versions of Mr. Miyagi. But maybe that is too much to expect from Netflix. As for myself, I hope to be for my students what my Sensei has been to me, an amazing mentor and role model. And maybe, someday, I can pass the torch to another generation of amazing Karate instructors.