Author Topic: Cobra Kai - Season 2  (Read 1849 times)

Tahquitz

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Cobra Kai - Season 2
« on: April 14, 2019, 06:25:24 AM »
Might be stepping on a limb here, but while I have no intent to sub for YouTube for just one show (same as CBS for ST:Disco), after watching the first season at a friend's house... I got to say this was enjoyable.  I'm interested in Season 2 when it comes out.

William Zabka makes a convincing anti-hero.  Johnny Lawrence is a flat out misogynist, machismo-centric, hard-nosed jerk who can and will put down anyone at any moment, but he has just enough empathy for making the audience like him.  He deserves his deposition from glory, fame, and all... but you see him as the underdog at many points.  There's the tease that if he learns some lesson, or changes what is going to happen to be different from his past, he could find redemption faster.  But it is only a tease, and he falls into his old ways.  Eventually, you see that his choices matter less than his students, who become the driving action to the show.

Ralph Macchio returns as Daniel LaRusso, but as the show is not called Karate Kid, he's not the primary focus anymore.  He's found success, his family is dealing with first world problems but will never want for anything in their lives.  After learning that Cobra Kai is reformed due to Johnny's initiative, he tries to stop it numerous times, only to learn that everyone has moved on and forgotten why Lawrence was such a bad seed to begin with.  So he has to take matters into his own hands... only Ralph isn't a teenager, so he can't directly apply himself to the problem.

Don't go into this thinking you'll root for Johnny to defeat Daniel LaRusso, as he doesn't inherently deserve to.  Or that Daniel's complacency and comfort after becoming a father and business leader makes him transcend the situation and address Johnny's issues past the surface.  Rather go into this as you would Breaking Bad.  The screenplay makes who is supposed to be good and who is supposed to be evil cross at so many points, the relationships between characters alone assembles a dizzy map where anyone could be the 'bad guy' at any moment save for the choices they make.  Unlike Heroes, the grey area changes to each character's morality that goes on doesn't feel like it's shock made for it's own sake... it's pretty well written.

So, yes, I'll be checking out how Season 2 starts (at least that much... I can't finish it as I'll be busy with RL soon.)
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Tenzhi

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Re: Cobra Kai - Season 2
« Reply #1 on: April 14, 2019, 10:40:28 AM »
I made it a couple of episodes into the first season while they were doing some free days or something.  It was enjoyable, but I'm digging in my heels against any more viewing subs.
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Vee

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Re: Cobra Kai - Season 2
« Reply #2 on: April 14, 2019, 11:36:19 AM »
I thought season one was fantastic. I'd say I can't wait for s2 but I'm so behind on teeVee that I can wait on anything.

Tahquitz

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Re: Cobra Kai - Season 2
« Reply #3 on: April 14, 2019, 04:25:47 PM »
I should probably walk back my OP a little bit.  It has notes of Breaking Bad, but this isn't superior to that show.  "Ozymandias" this is not.  There's quite a bit of camp that persists as nods to the movies that holds back some of the plot.  (That episode where Walter and Flynn get cars?  There's quite a bit of that in Cobra Kai.)  It's billed as a Action Comedy/Drama.
"Work is love made visible." -- Khalil Gibran