Cobra Kai Season 1 (2018) Review 

I clearly missed the boat with Cobra Kai and with the 3rd season of the show recently coming to Netflix, I decided it was time to watch this show and I watched the first season today and here is my review for it. The premise of the show is set decades after the events of The Karate Kid and sees Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso become martial arts opponents in there middle age. 

Main Character 

William Zabka as Lawrence is the antagonist of The Karate Kid but he is really our main character here and he does a superb job. He is so entertaining and cool and the biggest compliment to give to this show is that it made me really care about him. The show does a fantastic job of showing his side of the story and create a really compelling character that adds so much to his character in the original film. Ralph Macchio is back as LaRusso and again I thought he was a very compelling character and it takes directions that you wouldn't expect seeing the original film. You see just how much that one Karate Tournament affected these two people and how it made their lives turn out this way. 

Supporting Characters

The supporting cast is mostly young actors and actresses and they all give decent performances and fit very well into this universe. Xolo Mariduena plays Miguel, the first Cobra Kai member and I thought this kid was a real highlight of the show, you just see his connection with Zabka and how it affects him in every day life and just how committed he becomes to him and his cause. The same can be said for Tanner Buchanan who plays Robbie, he has a great relationship with LaRusso and the two partnerships are really well represented and you see how the tow different ideologies add to the rivalry. The rest of the cast are good too and add plenty to this show. 

Story 

The story between the main two characters is fantastic, you really get more layers added to their characters and I really appreciated the risks that were taken with them to make them more interesting and surprising. I also loved seeing more of their Karate philosophy, you don't see too much of Cobra Kai in the film but you see lots of it here and the show gives it a really interesting outlook leading to a phenomenal ending for the season. But I have one criticism and that is some of the teen drama didn't work for me, I know it is faithful to the original film but I felt like some of it could have been left out and that time could have been used on the Karate elements of the show. 

Script 

The script is fantastic, yes there are some cheesy moments but it fits very well with the whole show and leads to some really funny moments and one liners that hit the mark expertly. Also there is some great drama and heartfelt moments that pile on the emotion and yeah that also really works and credit to the writers for really understanding what this show is. 

Style

The style is also really great, the action feels like it should for a Karate Kid show but it is modernised to make it more athletic and even more brutal which adds so much weight to the fights that we see here. Also the show flows incredibly well with ten thirty minute episodes it is a really easy watch and one to really sink your teeth into. 

Overall

Overall, I wasn't sure what to expect with the first season of Cobra Kai but I thought it was fantastic and a show I couldn't stop watching. If you haven't started this show then do it as soon as possible as it is a great show that I think will only get better. 

Rating - 9/10