The following contains major spoilers for Cobra Kai Season 5, Episodes 2 and 5, “Molé” and “Extreme Measures,” now streaming on Netflix.
The Karate Kid franchise centers around big confrontations. In all three original films, Daniel LaRusso spent all of his time training to fight an opponent clearly more advanced than he was. He fought Johnny Lawrence, Chozen, and the recently redeemed Mike Barnes. But as each of those movies ended, Daniel overcame his opponent and that was the end of that chapter.
Cobra Kai has the ability to go much deeper. Because it’s a TV series, there aren’t any one-and-done fights; instead, it’s based around ongoing rivalries. In fact, the show started with Daniel and Johnny igniting a rivalry based on their fight from the original Karate Kid. Going into the critically acclaimed Season 5, the former rivals portrayed by Ralph Macchio and William Zabka had become allies, but another Season 1 rivalry had yet to be resolved: the one between Miguel Diaz and Robby Keene.
Season 1 saw Johnny reopen the Cobra Kai dojo with Miguel as his primary student. Robby started training under Daniel, although there were ups and downs in their relationship. In Season 1, Episode 10, “Mercy,” Miguel and Robby faced off at the All-Valley Tournament, where Miguel exploited Robby’s injured shoulder and won. Between losing that fight and thinking that Johnny had replaced him, Robby started to resent Miguel.
The situation only got worse when Daniel’s daughter Samantha LaRusso broke up with Miguel and started dating Robby. In Season 2, Episode 10, “No Mercy,” Robby kicked Miguel over a railing during the high school brawl and temporarily paralyzed him. Their relationship continued to be tense throughout Season 3, but at the end of Season 4, both characters experienced major changes: Robby quit Cobra Kai and Miguel ran off to Mexico.
As Season 5 opened, Johnny needed to go find Miguel but also had to focus on rebuilding his relationship with Robby. How did he fix that conflict? In true Johnny fashion, he did both things at the same time. He went to Mexico to find Miguel and took his son with him — but he didn’t tell Robby why they were going south of the border until much later. At least Johnny was able to bring Miguel back to the Valley in Season 5, Episode 2, “Molé.”
But back in the San Fernando Valley, Miguel and Robby’s rival became even more awkward when Miguel’s mother Carmen Diaz announced that she and Johnny were having a baby. Because of that news, Johnny tried his darndest to get Miguel and Robby to work out their differences. He tried everything from Olive Garden breadsticks to a homemade escape room, but nothing worked — until he tried something totally unorthodox. In Season 5, Episode 5, “Extreme Measures,” he told the duo to just fight it out.
All of their resentment and anger came out — and in an inverse of Season 2’s school brawl, Miguel could have kicked Robby over a railing, but he stopped short. They both saw things from the other’s side and just like that, four and a half seasons of conflict ended. With their tension finally settled, Cobra Kai will have to focus on a new teenage rivalry in Season 6 — like the one brewing between Kenny and Anthony. Like their mentors, it’s great to see Miguel and Robby bury the hatchet and become friends instead of enemies.
Cobra Kai Season 5 is now streaming on Netflix.
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