Cobra Kai Season 3 (2021) Review

After a few days of catching up on Cobra Kai, I have now finished the third season of the show and here is my review for it. The premise of the season sees after the school fight at the end of season 2, Johnny has lost Cobra Kai to Kreese and Daniel has shut down Miyagi-Do. Both of them try and find a way to help the children recover from the ordeal. 

Main Character

William Zabka is back as Johnny and I really felt sorry for him this season, he is in a really tough place at the beginning of the season and it is nice to see him grow in confidence as the season progresses and he finally starts to get a grip. You see the character from the beginning of the show to the point he ends up here and there is real progression but the essence of the character is still there and Zabka did a fantastic job of showing that. Ralph Macchio is back as Daniel and I thought he had a good role here, his character has a different path to Johnny but you can see they have similar issues but have different philosophies. There is a few episodes in particular where he gets the spotlight and it highlights the journey he is on really well. 

Supporting Characters

Martin Kove as Kreese is maybe the most surprising part of the season as he is developed into a really interesting character, he has always been a villain in the films and this show but for me his character was really fleshed out this season through flashbacks. I mean he still clearly a really bad guy but this show at least gives you a reason as to why he acts that the way that he does. Xolo Mariduena is back as Miguel and the poster spoils his fate from the end of the previous season but I won't go into depth with it but he is really good this season and his relationship with Johnny is really heart-warming to see. Mary Mouser as Sam gets an interesting arc this season, after the events of the previous season it affects her differently to the others and it is actually an element of this show that hasn't been explored much on the show before. Jacob Bertrand as Hawk has been a fun character on the show but this season is really where he gets more to do and I actually thought he became a really well written character that has plenty of depth to him too. 

Story 

The story is interesting, it really stems from these three big personalities in Johnny, Daniel and Kreese and how they influence the younger members of the show and how it shapes them as people. The characters are really well represented and you do care about what is happening to them as characters. But I must admit the story didn't exactly grip me for the first few episodes and there were certain elements of the plot that just conveniently ended when the show wanted to move on from it and it felt like what was the point. But the season ending is fantastic and sets up a really interesting plot for the fourth season. 

Script

The script for Cobra Kai has always been one I like, I laugh a lot while watching it and the drama really works and the characters relationships are really well developed and it makes you care about them and when they are put into peril. 

Style

The style for the show is still great, the action scenes are brutal and there are actually some quite unsettling scenes this season that really pushes the envelope in terms of teenage violence. Some of the episodes are slightly longer but they never drag and keep the intrigue throughout and the excitement. 

Overall

Overall, I enjoyed the second season more then this one but I thought the third season of Cobra Kai was fantastic and keeps the standard of this show really high and I cannot wait till the 4th season.

Rating - 9/10