For All Its Flaws, the 'Cobra Kai' Ending Is Perfection

The final season of Cobra Kai was bloated and unnecessarily drawn out, but damn, did they stick the landing. That finale was so good it almost erases the indulgences of the rest of the season. In the end, they recaptured the magic and spirit of that first season with a conclusion that felt truly earned.

Granted, much of the season felt like a blatant attempt to juice the streaming numbers. It was 15 episodes split into three parts, stretched out over nine months. The first part was essentially a five-episode training montage for the Sekai Taikai, an international tournament that pitted Daniel and Johnny’s Miyagi-Do against John Kreese’s Cobra Kai and Terry Silver’s Iron Dragon. It mostly served to thin the competition and give some minor characters their send-offs. The second part, set in Barcelona, was the heart of the tournament, though it also took an odd detour into Mr. Miyagi’s past. The tournament itself, however, ended prematurely when one of the students was tragically killed.

That set up the final five episodes, bringing the action back to the All Valley Sports Arena in San Fernando Valley, California. Here, Kreese—finally—chooses redemption, sponsoring one Cobra Kai fighter: Tory Nichols. In the semi-finals, Robby gets eliminated when the Iron Dragon’s Axel smashes his knee. Then, in a surprising twist, Samantha LaRusso refuses to fight her best friend, Tory, eliminating Miyagi-Do entirely. But it’s a noble defeat —Samantha bows out because she understands that sometimes, the best way to win is by walking away. Her character is headed to Miyagi’s old stomping grounds in Okinawa (and the actress, Mary Mouser, is marrying Tanner Buchanan, who plays Robby Lawrence).

In the penultimate episode, Kreese does the unthinkable: he apologizes to Johnny Lawrence for the last 35 years, tells him he’s proud of him, and hands Cobra Kai back to him. Johnny, in turn, replaces his injured son, Robby, with his stepson, Miguel — who, let’s be honest, has always been the show’s true Karate Kid. Together, underdogs Tory and Miguel — as Cobra Kai — not only take down the Iron Dragons but rack up enough points to tie the overall score.

And then, because this show never misses an opportunity for an absurdly dramatic twist, the tie is broken by a final showdown between the teams’ senseis. That means a climactic fight between Lewis Tan’s 38-year-old Sensei Wolf and Johnny Lawrence, played by 59-year-old William Zabka.

Is it ridiculous? Absolutely (and so is killing off Kreese and Silver in a yacht explosion). But it’s also exactly what Cobra Kai has always been building toward. From the very beginning, this has been about the redemption of Johnny Lawrence — the guy whose life derailed after his 1984 defeat. This fight was his moment of closure. He didn’t need to win to prove his worth — he has that now, with his wife, his kids, the LaRussos, and even Daniel — but he wins anyway. Because this is a crowd-pleaser to its core. And he wins by finally mastering the lesson Daniel taught him in that final match all those years ago: maintain balance. Exploit your opponent’s aggression.

It’s the ultimate underdog story — about a former bully who took a punch to the nose, spent 40 years grappling with his demons, and finally found peace in the most full-circle, satisfying manner possible. Predictable? Sure. But damn near impossible to resist.