Cobra Kai (Karate Kid Show on YouTube Red)

[elevenism]

I heard the premise for Cobra Kai and thought it sounded HORRIBLE.
furthermore, the trailer was abysmal.
So when YouTube released the first two episodes, my wife and I turned it on to look at just how terrible it was.

Surprisingly, the first episode was reasonable. The second was pretty damn good.

I just finished the tenth episode, and I still can't believe it: this thing was fucking GREAT.

It's generous with the nostalgia, but in a good way. It's full of not just parallels, but parallels with juxtaposition. It boasts more emotional complexity than the original movie and , imho, is better than all of the sequels. It's a little campy, but in a self aware manner that's just right.
It's got a LOT of meaning and a LOT of depth and is full of moral grey areas that ask rhetorical questions about who is good and who is bad. It's got some seriously funny jokes. It's well written and directed and the actor playing Johnny is WAY more talented than I ever realized.

Basically, I feel like they knocked it out of the fucking park with this one.
it's obviously nothing like Twin Peaks, but that's the first thing that comes to mind, as The Return is the only reboot/revisitation I've seen that's this good.

my ONLY complaint is that some of the emotional payoff I predicted is saved for season 2 and I don't trust season 2

But SHIT, if you grew up with Karate Kid and loved it (aka aren't a robot,) I can't recommend this show enough.

[Conan The Barbarian]

Woah, that sounds great. Guess I know what me and the wife are watching tonight.

[neorev]

I'll just say this, I watched the first two free episodes and it made me go get YouTube Red so I can finish it. From the first two episodes, i think they did an amazing job. I was one of those people who heard about this aeries and was like "WTF??? Really??? Can't we get any new ideas?" Then I saw the trailer and was like "Hmmm. Can they actually pull this off?" I must say, it looks like they nailed it with this one.

This is how a reboot/rehash should be handled. It honors the originals the right way while also feeling like something new and original at the same time. You can't help but smile and feel a little giddy getting a direct Karate Kid sequel today and it ends up being frigging awesome.

It almost reminds me like something the creators of Eastbound & Down and Vice Principals would do, just not so raunchy and silly humor. It's a nice mix of comedy and drama, but mature comedy. Who knew these two characters could connect so well today with the audience that grew up with them. But they do and this show works. We can all sorta relate to the situation. I can't wait to watch the rest of the season this weekend. Seriously, I went from 0 to 60 in stokeness.

I keep hearing good responses fringe my friends as well. It's kind of a shame that this is on YouTube Red and probably won't be seen by as many people as it should. But, hey, if you never tried YouTube Red, the first month is free. So definitely use it to bingewatch this series. It is well worth it.

[elevenism]

Yeah, the "relate to the situation part @neorev : it kind of has a sadness to it about aging that certainly fits where those of us are who grew up with these characters and gets into meta territory (Johnny is watching eighties movies to relax while we are watching a show about eighties characters.)

Another thing that fucking stunned me is that this thing tackles like societal politics and manages to smartly explore BOTH sides without appearing to agree with either.

This thing is just way fucking better than it has any business being, ha!

[elevenism]

Hey speaking of mature comedy, there's a part where the kid's grandma thinks he's jerking off in his room (he's practicing karate and it sounds all violent so that's funny enough. )She says it in Spanish but the subtitle is there. But when his mom gets home later and asks how the kid hurt his hand, grandma's response is not subtitled: she's saying "you don't wanna know."
Hahaha that shit cracked me up

[Shunt]

Binged on it today. It's not perfect and there's a complete lack of chemistry between Ralph Macchio and a certain other actor... but loved it all the way.

[thevoid99]

I saw the first 2 episodes and I like it. I think I'll do the 30-day trial for YouTube Red just to see the rest.

[Self.Destructive.Pattern]

Will be checking this out this weekend. I wanted to see it regardless of the ridiculous plot and cheese, but that is what I loved about the series in the first place.

[neorev]

I saw the first 2 episodes and I like it. I think I'll do the 30-day trial for YouTube Red just to see the rest.

That's what I did

[dvdglss]

This was truly excellent.

Johnny was a dick as a teen, but I guess we all were. I was bullied but man, I could be a real jerk to some of my bullies and their friends too... being a teen is so weird...

Scared to parent my kids as teens now too! Lol

[elevenism]

This was truly excellent.

Johnny was a dick as a teen, but I guess we all were. I was bullied but man, I could be a real jerk to some of my bullies and their friends too... being a teen is so weird...

Scared to parent my kids as teens now too! Lol

Sweep the Leg.

I felt like the subtlety and dichotomy of Johnny was one of the show's strengths.
Because he IS still a dick. He's a cranky old man who doesn't understand that the world has changed and he's scared and it engenders sympathy. But he's still a dick and it's great.

They also kind of use Johnny to both lampoon and explore the motivations of the right I think.

I thought Daniel San was ALSO a dick

One of the most brilliant moments in the show was Spoiler: when Johnny is telling the kid what an awful bastard Daniel is and recounts the events of the first movie to prove it. The fascinating thing about this is that he isn't lying. Suddenly it's like "Oh shit, yeah!' If you were Johnny, Daniel WOULD be the villain and not because he's the good guy. John's life was pretty sweet. Then this asshole shows up and moved in on his girl, sprays him with a water hose, has this old Karate master injure him and beats him at the tournament by cheating

[Alexandros]

One of the most brilliant moments in the show was Spoiler: when Johnny is telling the kid what an awful bastard Daniel is and recounts the events of the first movie to prove it. The fascinating thing about this is that he isn't lying. Suddenly it's like "Oh shit, yeah!' If you were Johnny, Daniel WOULD be the villain and not because he's the good guy. John's life was pretty sweet. Then this asshole shows up and moved in on his girl, sprays him with a water hose, has this old Karate master injure him and beats him at the tournament by cheating

Haven't watched this series yet, but this is exactly what is described in the analysis below, which I thought was a pretty fun reversal of the story:

[Microwave Jellyfish]

Does this actually feel like it's coming from the same world as the original movies or is it like a self-aware parody?

[Jon]

Does this actually feel like it's coming from the same world as the original movies or is it like a self-aware parody?

Self-aware parody, but it doesn't feel smarmy.

[caca]

I binged the whole thing over the weekend. It’s outstanding. Bring on Season 2!

[bRoot]

Looks guuuud, i'll be back.

[neorev]

Does this actually feel like it's coming from the same world as the original movies or is it like a self-aware parody?

I think it does a good job at being both. A perfect balance of feeling like the honest sequel we needed it to be while also knowing the right moments to be self aware. It hits these emotional connections of one looking back upon our youth as an adult that many of us who watched these movies when we were a kid can relate to now.

My girlfriend thought it wasn't the dumbest thing she ever heard when they announced this. She really didn't care about seeing it. I had to drag her along to sit down and watch it. Now she's the one yelling at me that she wants to watch the next episode as soon as she's home from work.

[Microwave Jellyfish]

You guys were selling it short. Just finished episode 7 after a two sitting binge, I'm way too invested in these characters and I kind of don't wanna see how everything will go to shit for them during the last quarter. Jesus. Ep 5 was the highlight, but it's been great all the way.

[neorev]

SEASON 2 GREENLIT BY YOUTUBE!!!
http://www.comingsoon.net/tv/news/94...lit-by-youtube

[neorev]

Why is no one talking about Cobra Kai's 100% Tomatometer and 98% Audience score on Rotten Tomatoes?!?!

[elevenism]

Why is no one talking about Cobra Kai's 100% Tomatometer and 98% Audience score on Rotten Tomatoes?!?!

Oh man that's awesome!

[elevenism]

Does this actually feel like it's coming from the same world as the original movies or is it like a self-aware parody?

I disagree with @Jon .

it's self aware at moments, but i don't think it descended into self-parody

[Jon]

I disagree with @Jon .

it's self aware at moments, but i don't think it descended into self-parody

I was answering a question using the person's own words without descending into my usual post madness. You can disagree with me, but I didn't exactly expound.

[Microwave Jellyfish]

Unleash your usual madness, I'd love to read your thoughts.

I'm more in agreement with 'ven and neorev at the moment, despite a few silly gags in episode one it seemed to have a huge amount of respect for the characters, and the times it was poking fun at the concept didn't feel like it was being done at the expense of the franchise.

It was an excellent season. The only thing that could've improved it was a real ending instead of the S2 set-up during the last ten minutes or so. Spoiler: Johnny overhearing Daniel's "bad teacher" speech and telling Kreese to fuck off would have been perfect. Also, the final scene between Dan and Robby has a real emotional punch to it - a great moment ruined by Dan's Marvel-esque sequel set-up lines. Minor complaint, though.

[elevenism]

@Jon , yes, please unleash the madness.
@Microwave Jellyfish , I agree 100% about the ending, or lack thereof.
It could have been so much more meaningful.

[neorev]

‘Cobra Kai’: YouTube Red’s ‘Karate Kid’ Sequel Outperforms Netflix, Hulu Shows
http://variety.com/2018/digital/news...id-1202810780/

[thevoid99]

Banzai!!!!!!!

[Jinsai]

this show is amazing. Too bad everything else on Youtube Red is crap as far as exclusive content goes...

[Jon]

Re: parody. It's interesting that most people seem to equate the term with "less than" or "subpar". I enjoyed season 1; I don't want that to get lost or be confused.

I agree that the "overall product" does not come across as parody, but it uses parody very well to draw in elements from the first movie and flip them on their head (make them more realistic, or at least fit a current social archetype). It may be harder to spot, because the show never commits itself fully to being a comedy or a drama. To me, walking that line shows great knowledge of parody and what it can do to a project.

This is more from a story or theoretical standpoint, so I can understand the disagreement. We're probably arguing or looking at this from different points.

[Microwave Jellyfish]

So, anyone binging season two this week? No spoilers, but what an ending, Jesus.

I was afraid that Kreese's presence will a) stunt Johnny's character development, and b) throw the show into a bit cheesier, maybe cartoonish realm, but the total opposite has happened. This went darker than the original movies ever did - aside from that scene with the drunk Mr. Miyagi, maybe - and boy, Johnny is a changed man, but in a good way. The subplot about his relationship with Diaz, how they mutually improved the other one's life and the way they were sticking up for each other despite the odds is so heartwarming. And tragic. Look at Bill's acting during the diner scene in ep3 and the way it echoes back during the final. Wonderful.

Not sure which season I liked better so far, but I can't wait for the next one. Hope to god it won't get stretchd to infinity and will have a proper closure. These characters deserve to catch a break, man.

Edit: except for that asshole Hawk. He's my favorite "new" character, but he belongs in a juvie at this point.