mild spoilers incoming!
Guys, this show shouldn't exist. It shouldn't. Karate Kid was years ago. The story was complete. We didn't need more. But holy crap I'm glad they decided to do more. Season one should have bombed. It didn't. Season two really should have bombed. Why it didn't I don't know, but I loved it. I hungrily awaited season three.
Guys, this is it. It's cheesy karate, cheesy romance, cheesy philosophy. Done all the way up to 11, perfectly stitched together. Each of these individual pieces do not work together. The romances are typical teen triangles, nothing terribly special. The fight scenes are well done, having a good and grounded feeling, but they're not super. The philosophy is cheesy, but effectively placed.
I've no idea why it works. But good God it does.
My favorite character is Hawk. Hawk is a personification of what this show is. Beginning as a whiny nerd, Hawk joined Cobra Kai to become strong. But with his strength his character coarsens, until he betrays his friends by staying with Cobra Kai when they go bad. Season three is watching Hawk's thick hide thin out, as he has to deal with the cognitive dissonance of literally none of his friends being with him. His evolution through the show is predictable, sure, but it's played with a ton of heart and love.
And I think that's it.
This show just has pure heart. It's hard to put it another other way. This show believes in what it is doing, all the way down. And it just keeps sticking to its guns, three seasons in. It may not be perfect. It even had me rolling my eyes at a few points. But that sincerity? It's contagious. I find myself believing it too. Silly as that may be. You may not feel that, and that's okay. But I do. And I'm really glad I do.
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