Cobra Kai

[Silver Nemesis]

By a strange coincidence, I just looked up Yuji Okumoto who played Chozen in The Karate Kid: Part II. And to my surprise...

'Chi of Steel' is tied with 'The Phoenix' and 'Tempus Fugitive' as my favourite episode of L&C season 2, but somehow I never realised that was Chozen until now. I guess those glasses really are an effective disguise after all.

[thecolorsblend]

This was a good moment. Johnny wants to put the screws to Daniel a little bit by co-opting his signature move. Miguel does it in the most sarcastic yet effective way that it's a handy reminder that the Cobra Kai philosophy of strike first, strike hard, no mercy, can be turned on and turned off at will. The Crane Technique is an inherently defensive posture. Doing it so well indicates that Miguel chooses to be what he is.

It's a good moment.

[Silver Nemesis]

[johnnygobbs]

I need to check this show out.

I understand John Kreese (Martin Kove) makes a cameo.  Is that right?

What would be cool is if they brought back Sean Kanan, and Thomas Ian Griffith as Terry Silver, who was such a deliciously evil villain in the third film.  I'm not going to pretend that the third film is particularly good, but the almost pantomime levels of villainy are sublime, and since Johnny appears to be a more interesting and complex, even sympathetic, character here, it wouldn't hurt to add some more unequivocal villains.

[thecolorsblend]

One of the things that's best about the show is the response to it. I figured there would be some attention paid but the acclaim has been really incredible. I don't think even the creators of the show were necessarily banking on this level of good will. Because if they were, they'd have to be fools.

It looks like this show found its audience pretty much right from the start. Which isn't very common. Or very easy to do.

[Silver Nemesis]

What would be cool is if they brought back Sean Kanan, and Thomas Ian Griffith as Terry Silver, who was such a deliciously evil villain in the third film.  I'm not going to pretend that the third film is particularly good, but the almost pantomime levels of villainy are sublime, and since Johnny appears to be a more interesting and complex, even sympathetic, character here, it wouldn't hurt to add some more unequivocal villains.

Sean Kanan has said he's reprising his role as Mike Barnes in season 2.

Thomas Ian Griffith has retired from acting and is currently a producer on the TV series Grimm. But it'd be swell if they could lure him back as Terry Silver.

One of the things that's best about the show is the response to it. I figured there would be some attention paid but the acclaim has been really incredible. I don't think even the creators of the show were necessarily banking on this level of good will. Because if they were, they'd have to be fools.

It looks like this show found its audience pretty much right from the start. Which isn't very common. Or very easy to do.

The response has been great. I've seen countless comments comparing it to Ghostbusters 2016, Star Wars and all the other classic film properties that have been soiled by lousy reboots in the last few years. The consensus is that Cobra Kai gets it right – it treats the originals with respect without being a retread; it references classic characters and moments from the old films without getting bogged down in fan service; it tells an original story and takes the characters in fresh directions they've not gone before.

Lately we've seen so many IPs rebooted in ways that alienated large portions of the fan base. But Cobra Kai feels like it belongs to the fans. While Star Wars is drowning at the hands of Kathleen Kennedy, the popularity of the Karate Kid franchise is only increasing.

[thecolorsblend]

Lately we've seen so many IPs rebooted in ways that alienated large portions of the fan base. But Cobra Kai feels like it belongs to the fans. While Star Wars is drowning at the hands of Kathleen Kennedy, the popularity of the Karate Kid franchise is only increasing.

Yep. The common element here is people saying that this new thing doesn't seem like a big F You to the original audience like those newer properties are.

One reason this is so mind-blowing for me is because TKK didn't have very many people publicly declaring their love for the property before Cobra Kai came along. If anything, TKK3 and the remake left some stink on the franchise. The attitude seemed to be that the first two are good but everything else is p00p.

I've seen fewer people arguing that now. Suddenly it's becoming okay for people to say "Ya know, I rather enjoy the entire TKK trilogy".

It makes me wonder what might have been if Return Of The Jedi had been the end of Star Wars until 2015. No Special Editions, no 90's renaissance, no prequels, nothing. But then in 2012 Lucas announces a sequel trilogy which continues the story while honoring everything that came before, after which he was retiring.

Under those circumstances, I think the Star Wars brand might be overall less profitable but more cherished as a result. It would be starting off where Planet Of The Apes was prior to those new movies where people who remember it love it but not necessarily everyone does remember it.

Anyway, the sheer GOOD WILL that Cobra Kai has stirred up is enjoyable. It proves that fans aren't necessarily out to pick on everything and everybody; they simply want quality stuff and they'll be your biggest advocates if you give it to them.

Never thought I'd see the day when the KK franchise is more highly respected than Star Wars. But here we are. It is indeed a disturbing universe.

[Silver Nemesis]

Never thought I'd see the day when the KK franchise is more highly respected than Star Wars. But here we are. It is indeed a disturbing universe.

Strange, isn't it? The Karate Kid's prestige has skyrocketed as a result of this show. According to Parrot Analytics, Cobra Kai outperformed every other VOD TV series last week, getting more views than any show on Hulu, Netflix or any other streaming service:
http://variety.com/2018/digital/news/cobra-kai-youtube-red-karate-kid-1202810780/

It's currently got a 9.1 rating on the IMDb and a 98% positive Google user rating. Meanwhile the IMDb has disabled the user ratings for Solo after they sank into the 5-6/10 range. One of these productions clearly has the unanimous support of the fans while the other doesn't.

[thecolorsblend]

So I just discovered certain comments Kanan made during 2016. If you know what I mean.

And let's just say I respect him now more than ever.

[johnnygobbs]

So I just discovered certain comments Kanan made during 2016. If you know what I mean.

And let's just say I respect him now more than ever.

Is Sean Kanan aware how much his ethnic group is hated by a large number of the other people who expressed similar comments in 2016? If you know what I mean.