The Karate Adult

I actually do know someone who had watched Cobra Kai back when it was on YouTube Red, before Netflix bought it and released season three to a reportedly sizable audience. That friend did say good things about it, too. But like I was going to subscribe to... YouTube Red? For a TV series picking up 30 years later on the story of The Karate Kid?

Well, I've now joined the masses that have watched Cobra Kai. And yes, it's pretty fun. It's so deeply dumb at times, but somehow always in exactly the right way that it never stops being fun. Everyone involved with the show, from behind the scenes to on camera, clearly know just what kind of show they're trying to make, and it guides all their decisions.

Cobra Kai is a soap opera, through and through. The plot always steers toward the big soap opera moments -- someone harboring a secret, someone escalating a feud, people breaking out into a huge argument (which on this show, means a big karate fight). All the construction debris in the writing is just left there out in the open, and it's kind of liberating in that it really doesn't matter. You can very often guess exactly what's going to happen; the show only surprises you when it imagines bigger and goofier than you do. (But sometimes, it does! And it's entertaining.)

With a big cast of young actors playing teens, you might want to mentally slot this show as some kind of CW parade of beauty. But Cobra Kai is equally set on really being a sequel to the Karate Kid movies. And so also, it's the only action show on television with multiple major characters in their 50s (and 70s!) that are regularly involved in fight scenes. And most of the time, they're not bad at it.

In fact, William Zabka in particular is surprisingly good in this show. His Johnny Lawrence is a serious contender for one of the most entertaining characters on television right now. Likeable? Rarely. Hilarious? Always. Zabka has killer comedic instincts, little vanity, and it just seems like he's having tons of fun. (Also, other performers -- including Ralph Macchio -- seem to be better in scenes with him.)

Still, it can be so silly, so over-the-top. I wonder if this is what people who are into Real Housewives show are vibing on? It's smart that Cobra Kai episodes are only half an hour long; the show knows that it could never sustain hour episodes. Almost every episode has a moment that makes me feel myself getting dumber for watching it... and about five moments that have me grinning stupidly with pleasure.

It's a hard one to "grade," but I think I'd give Cobra Kai a B overall. Whether you ever watched any Karate Kid movies or not (because they'll explain everything you need to know if you didn't), it's a fluffy bit of television cotton candy. You might enjoy it, if cotton candy is your thing.