Cobra Kai is back with its second batch of 5 episodes of the final season. I was mixed on the first 5, and while the second 5 may seem better upon comparison—I found it to be an even bigger struggle. Read our Cobra Kai season 6 part 2 review below.
Cobra Kai Season 6 Part 2 picks back up where Part 1 leaves off—Barcelona, Spain at the Sekai Taikai tournament. Miguel (Xolo Maridueña), Samantha (Mary Mouser), Demetri (Gianni DeCenzo), Hawk (Jacob Bertrand), and Devon (Oona O’Brien) compete for Miyagi-Do against the rest of the teams including John Kreese’s (Martin Kove) Cobra Kai which features Tory (Peyton List). Miyagi Do struggles with Tory’s betrayal, while also balancing the tournament and the drama it brings.
While it is an unusual release structure, I respect that they seemed to have planned out every 5 episodes into arcs of the bigger picture instead of stopping at a random episode. I still don’t love the gap in between the episodes, but it’s something I can live with.
The issue I have with Cobra Kai Season 6 Part 2 is that it feels far too manufactured. Now the show has always been known to be contrived in order to have every character and their mother change alliances but it’s never felt this hollow. The characters have lost what makes them compelling because of the situations the writers keep putting them in. There is no meaning to anything anymore.
While the show has always struggled with cheesy writing, and it has gotten worse as the show has gone on, it has never been worse than it is right now. The scenarios written feel out of place, the dialogue feels like it was written by someone who has never seen a human interact before, and the drama itself is staged like a soap opera—and not a good one.
Every interaction seems forced, and it’s made worse by the newly introduced characters at the tournament. While it’s hard to blame the actors for the portrayal, these characters have absolutely no depth to them which would be fine if in typical Cobra Kai fashion, they were able to make them entertaining but they’re more flat than a sprite bottle without a cap. They’re there purely to stir up stupid drama and these characters range from carbon copies of past characters without their charm all the way to absolutely zero characteristics with an awfully inconsistent accent.
But honestly? Who cares. The appeal of the show is hidden underneath the slop—cool fights. I mean who doesn’t want to see an all-out brawl and cool karate scenes? The show still has that, and it’s still really good at that. The karate isn’t always top notch but there are always fantastic fight scenes showcasing some really cool moments.
Cobra Kai is known for their set pieces, and Season 6 Part 2 is pretty good at delivering that. There have been better set pieces in the past but what they’ve got here is really enjoyable. It’s sort of what saves the show, and it’s what makes me want to keep watching.
It’s an easy show with a simple appeal, and I do wish it was better in its approach but it does its job. However, I genuinely felt entertained in all aspects of the earlier seasons of the show. I might’ve liked the karate more but the drama of Johnny’s (William Zabka) life, Miguel, Robby, Samantha, and all the changing allegiances were fantastic. Now it feels like I’m only there for the karate which I feel is killing the show.
It feels like a simple issue of the show is having way too many seasons to the point where everything feels like it’s been done. Johnny and Daniel (Ralph Macchio) especially just aren’t good characters anymore. There’s nothing compelling left to tell of them. They’ve been sucked dry to the point that Daniel’s only characteristic this season is Mr. Miyagi’s (Pat Morita) past.
The kids just aren’t that interesting anymore either. We’ve all seen this play out before. It feels like we’re in a loop, the only difference being the setting. Everything interesting they could do is something they’ve already done—some even multiple times. There feels like nothing the show has left to give other than the fight scenes.
I wish they did a better job at crafting the entire show outside of just the karate. I’m willing to give it another shot for the final batch of episodes, and I really hope Cobra Kai can prove it has more than kicks and flips left to give.
Cobra Kai stars Ralph Macchio, William Zabka, Xolo Maridueña, and more. The series is now streaming on Netflix ahead of the release of Part 3 of Season 6, which will be released in February 2025.
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