Cobra Kai is constantly evolving, and that’s one of many reasons it continues to thrive.
The series remains fresh and exciting with the carefully crafted blend of nostalgia with new plot points and storylines. And the groundwork that Cobra Kai Season 5 Episode 1 and Cobra Kai Season 5 Episode 2 laid for the season is promising.
If this is the season of Chozen, there will be no complaints whatsoever.
The first two installments picked up where things left off during Cobra Kai Season 4 Episode 10, and there was a significant amount of focus on Miguel, as expected, as well as the refreshing duo of Johnny and Robby on a quest to track Miguel down.
However, so much of the installments seemed to revolve around Silver’s sinister plot to take over the Valley and Daniel sending in his sleeper opp in worthwhile opponent, Chozen.
As amazing as Ralph Macchio is, there was the perfect amount of him as Daniel in these installments. He didn’t consume the plot, which shows that maybe they’re aware of how our beloved but self-righteous Daniel is best in specific dosages.
Daniel has allowed this war with Cobra Kai to consume him, and it’s interfered with every facet of his life. As usual, Amanda called him out for fixating on Cobra Kai despite the arrangement they agreed upon after the tournament.
He’s understandably worried about Silver and his larger plan of instilling these dangerous values in legions of kids around the state. However, he tends to prioritize his fixation ahead of his family, which comes at Amanda’s expense more often than not.
The woman wanted Mai Tais by her gorgeous pool with her husband and a house guest who didn’t swim naked in the pool every day. She wasn’t asking for much.
Chozen’s arrival places a heavy-hitter who is far more cutthroat than Daniel is capable of being in Silver’s path, and it’ll be a blast to watch these two masters of deception play each other like a game of chess.
It’s already been pure entertainment. The first installment concluding with Chozen as an undercover opp posing as a sensei at Cobra Kai was enough to make you smile. Of course, it didn’t last as long as one would expect.
Silver spent the next installment attempting to figure Chozen out. Every time they interacted, it felt like a potential trap. As Daniel noted, Silver is crazy as hell, but he’s brilliant and clever, too.
It makes him far more dangerous, especially considering he cut out his weakness by getting rid of Kreese to avoid being vulnerable to any opponent.
It was interesting to learn that Silver’s mentor, Kim Sun-Yung was real, and so was everything he learned from him. But also, Chozen was familiar with the practice, and he had his own familal history that adds another layer of investment to why he’d be eager to take Silver down, too.
For Chozen, it’s about honor, but some more superficial personal stake in the matter heightens things and grounds him.
Daniel: I don’t want to attack him. I want to expose him.
Chozen: To catch Serpent, you must think like Serpent. We will use his style against him.
Chozen is well-versed in many things, and it’s something that Silver appeared to pick up on. Once he invited Chozen to his home, you could tell he was trying to get to the bottom of this mysterious, stoic man who was superior to any other potential sensei applying but showed little interest in working for Silver.
But who would’ve thought that something as benign as dialect would expose Chozen? As much as one loathes Silver, he’s so damn good, isn’t he? He clocked Chozen the second he opted to use an Okinawan cheer rather than the traditional Tokyo salute.
And yet, Silver looks rightfully shook over Chozen and what he’s capable of after that showdown at the dojo and Chozen’s threats.
Chozen taking down all of those supposed future senseis without breaking a sweat was easily the most badass of the fights thus far this season.
Daniel isn’t intimidating to Silver, but Chozen is, and one can appreciate the method of sending someone capable of thinking like a serpent to take said serpent out. It’s the most exciting prospect of the season.
Interestingly, Chozen made some connection with Tory that Silver can’t pull off. Tory’s bond with Kreese was genuine and rooted in a shared background of struggle. However, Silver doesn’t operate the same.
He views Tory as a commodity, and while that may enamor her for the moment, it’s undoubtedly something that will be short-lived. I can see her gravitating to Chozen again if she crosses paths with him. They have a similar disposition, too, and he could be someone who can set her on the right path.
She’s already conflicted about Silver paying off the judges to name Cobra Kai the winner. He reassured her that the trophy didn’t reflect whether or not she was a champion and that she should know the truth at heart. However, it’ll continue to eat away at Tory.
The tournament is definitely weighing on Sam, who can’t get over her loss. She’s probably played back that video dozens of times, retracing every move to figure out where she went wrong.
Now that Miyagi-Do is over (for now), it probably makes it much harder for her as she doesn’t feel she can redeem herself. Daniel shutting down the dojo honors the deal that he made. And it may appease Amanda if she believes it will spare all the kids from potential danger.
But we already know a closed dojo won’t keep the Cobra Kai kids from going after the former Miyagi-Do teens, nor will it put an end to the rivalry. The kids will likely still be fighting for their lives all damn summer.
Hopefully, Johnny and Robby will continue to spend the summer mending their relationship. It was a definite highlight as everything has built up to this point where they can get on the same page and continue bonding with those endearing father/son moments.
I know I haven’t been there for you, Robby. More times than I can count. But I’ve also failed Miguel. Hell, I’m the reason he ran off in the first place. I’m out here trying to fix my mistakes, so I don’t have to live with the regret of making them. If you’re serious about making things right< you can start by helping Miguel. I know you have your fair share of regrets when it comes to him.
Johnny
It’s quintessential Johnny to take his son on a scavenger hunt through Mexico in search of his pseudo-son without telling him right out the gate what was happening.
Robby had every right to be annoyed by the ordeal, but he handled it in stride once he realized how heartfelt and genuine Johnny was in his desire to right his many wrongs.
And he recognized that Johnny is serious about prioritizing Robby too. Robby’s perspective has changed since he’s learned how easy it is to lead a protégé astray.
Johnny and Robby are quite the dynamic duo, and they succeeded in creating some memories and stories for themselves. They’ll be talking about that Mexican trip for years to come.
Johnny didn’t have anything remotely close to a plan in place. With a worried Carmen spurring him on and his regret over how things ended with him and Miguel, his singular focus was tracking Miguel down before he met the mysterious Hector.
But if you’re going to head to Mexico, it would help to know some Spanish. Most of the hijinks he and Robby got into directly resulted from their inability to communicate with anyone around them.
The father and son duo kicking the asses of the swindlers who scammed Miguel was so freaking satisfying that it made up for Miguel walking away from that exchange without putting up more of a fight.
And the hot pepper challenge to score some more cash was unexpectedly entertaining. Robby and Johnny play well off of one another in these non-serious moments, and Zabka and Buchanan really nailed that buddy-cop comedic shtick.
Of course, their serious, grounded moments balanced that out well, and they were heartwarming. No matter what’s happening with karate and everything else, you genuinely root for Johnny to be the father and man he wants to be and for those around him to see and acknowledge his growth.
For one of the first times, it felt as if Robby saw that for what it was, and once they had that breakthrough, their interactions were more genuine.
Johnny’s next balancing act will be managing the two boys he cares about more than anything in the world at the same time. It feels like Robby has mostly come to understand that Johnny has room in his life and heart for him and Miguel.
He understands the lengths that Johnny has gone for him, too, even though he didn’t know about them until later. But the trick will be juggling Miguel’s feelings after his experience in Mexico with Hector.
Hector: people will always come after what’s yours. They want you to sleep with one eye open. I can’t even go back to my home in Ecuador. Can you imagine?
Miguel: what happened in Ecuador?
Hector: Success. Success happened. That woman I told you about? I was practically your age when we got married. Don’t ever make that mistake. She couldn’t stand me doing my business. Her mother was even worse. They tried to fuck with me, a successful man! The corrupt sons of bitches in Ecuador, they did the same. And you know what I regret? Nothing.
Miguel: Nothing.
Hector: That is the cost of doing business. That is the cost.
Miguel can easily walk away from this experience and feel he has to fight for Johnny’s love now that Robby is fully back in the picture and the two men appear to be on good terms. But we know that’s not true.
It was heartbreaking to see Miguel breaking down on the phone call with his mother before collapsing into Johnny’s arms.
His intentions, searching for a father he was missing, set him on a difficult path, all for him to realize that his real father is the one who traipsed through Mexico to find him.
Hector seemed well and good when he met him. On the surface, he appeared as a happy family and businessman, but he revealed his true colors when he thought the Feds were after him and Miguel was a snitch.
It was chilling how he turned on Miguel so quickly, only to dismiss his previous behavior and turn up the charm again. You can understand how someone may buy into his charisma.
Sadly, Miguel needed firsthand experience with Hector to understand why his mother kept the truth from him and never told Hector about Miguel.
Now he understands why his mother did what she did. He’s fortunate that he didn’t reveal his true identity along the way, but there’s no telling if that secret will stay buried or not.
It was surprising that Hector let Miguel leave without a second thought despite his initial suspicions that Miguel led the Feds to him and his insistence that they both stay under the radar for a week.
Hector also alluded to way too much of his past and wrongdoing for not to bat an eye at this strange American teen waltzing away of his own accord.
And if he merely looked out of a window, he would’ve seen Miguel hugging the guy he thought was a Fed. But we can trust that Johnny and the boys will get back to the States without any issue.
Also, the ride will allow Miguel and Robby to make their own amends and straighten things out between them.
Interestingly, with this side quest, Johnny got an emotional arc with his two boys, but we don’t know where he’ll factor into things when he gets back to the Valley.
How will he join the fight against Cobra Kai and Silver? Will the Miyagi-Do kids turn to Eagle Fang, or is that done, too?
Over to you, Cobra Kai Fanatics. What was your favorite moment from the premiere? Are you a fan of Chozen taking some center stage in the narrative? Hit the comments.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.