#I want my Robby-Kenny dynamic back

[zenmastercharles]

Robby: Just let me take care of Kenny's training, Sensei Kreese, he'll be my responsibility.

Kreese: ...alright, but no monkey business.

Five Days Later

Robby: And then swing, yuh- Kenny: And then swing, yuh- Robby and Kenny: And then swing, yuh, AND THEN SWING YUUUUUUU-

[seeker-of-stories19]

Season 6 Pt 1 Kiaz Thoughts/Observations

- Miguel and Robby choosing to sit in the backseat together when the passenger seat is open in the very first scene

- Miguel asking Robby to bandage his knuckles for him even though he also has a roll of tape in his hands. Just the symbolism of that moment with what their relationship has been like and they’re not fighting each other anymore they’re protecting each other.

- Miguel being so invested in watching Robby hit the punching bag at Golf N Stuff

- Literally a double date but Kiaz are the only ones even interacting- it totally gives boyfriends who are trying to set up their bffs so they have another couple to hang out with

- Miguel being the first one to check on Robby after Shawn shows up and immediately agreeing with the girls that they’re all on Robby’s side

- Miguel stepping into yet another fight to protect Robby

- “That could’ve gone better” “It could’ve gone worse” literally Robby being pessimistic and Miguel being optimistic is my favorite dynamic

- Miguel being so desperate for Robby’s feedback on his college essay and so worried about hurting his feelings

- Miguel immediately reaching for Robby when the sewage pipe breaks

- Literally Miguel and Robby are never not next to each other, they’ve got more chemistry than any of the actual couples

- Miguel reaching for Robby in the background when Johnny comes in with the pink powder on his shirt

- More scenes where Robby is with Miguel and Sam and Tory are together than with the people they’re actually dating, I wonder why…

- Robby immediately putting his hand on Miguel’s chest when the Sekai Taikai announcement comes out

- Miguel looks so put out at the thought of having to fight Robby again

- He is so offended he got blown off for Robby’s actual girlfriend even though they had a pretty good reason not to train together

- Miguel seeking Robby out to make sure he knows that he’s not mad at him and doesn’t want anything to change their relationship

- Robby immediately checking where he stands with Miguel after winning the captaincy

- Miguel’s little smile when Robby is checking to see if he’s upset during the speech about Barcelona

- Miguel is so disappointed but he also can’t help being proud of Robby it’s so cute

- All the looks I can’t even count

NON KIAZ RELATED BONUS

- Really excited to see Shawn come back and have more character development

- Daniel being willing to give up the miyagi do name for Johnny is giving me major Lawrusso vibes and I’m not even a hardcore shipper

- Johnny in a Miyagi-Do gi is literally unbelievable

- Demetri’s shocked expression every time he does karate

- I’m not on board with Kyler’s mini redemption, not after what he did to Sam in season one

- Beer with blue and pink labels for a baby shower, only Johnny Lawrence

- THE BABY IS A GIRL!!!

- Just laughing over the fact that Johnny even knew what tampons are

- Samtory is also amazing this season

- I’m excited about Kwans arc

- Me literally expecting Yasmine to walk in on Eli and Demetri making out when she shows up at the Dojo

- Kenny winking at Anthony

- Pissed we got a American flag Mohawk and not a bisexual/nonbinary pride one (not that that was ever gonna happen but it would’ve been nice)

- I still really hope Kenny somehow ends up with a Sekai Taikai spot after what Devon did and that Anthony and Kenny don’t have too many problems for too long over it

- While I wanted Hawk to have a spot as well- I was annoyed they just gave it to him instead of letting Kenny and him have a rematch which would’ve been more fair

- I’m worried that Kenny vanished

- ROBBY IS A CAPTAIN!!!!! I’m literally so excited as much as I love Robby and Miguel both there are so many reasons I want to see Robby get a win and I’m so excited for the possibility of him winning the Sekai Taikai

- Tory ditching Robby sucked, he’s been hurt by yet another person he cares about

- Also Daniel not letting her fight sucked, as long as Sam was okay with it they should’ve let Tory process how she needed to. Daniel made assumptions about the situation and while Tory was obviously emotional she was fighting for this specific memory of her mom that shaped her life not just using karate as an ongoing negative coping mechanism and the way everyone ignores what she’s saying she needs in that moment really rubbed me the wrong way

Finally I’m just going to say this is my favorite season yet and I’m more excited than anyone will ever understand to get actual Kiaz interactions. I feel like this season took me from I ship them because I think they’d be really compatible and they already have this super intense relationship to actually seeing moments between them that feel like more than friendship and it means so much to me I’m so excited!

[bluektw]

CK S6 Part 1 Spoilers

I'M SO FUCKING PISSED.

ok, Keenry is still the best couple? Yes

But it was so out of character for him not go console her, like I'm sorry I would care more about my girlfriend than getting a headband. Other than that, he and Tory have probably the best set ups in this part.

I'm really pissed at Robby, but I do think that in part 2 maybe their promise will come back up, and they might support each other even in different dojos (Hard to believe, but it would be the best outcome) I also hope we finally see him going after Tory this time, S5 was only her pining, now is his turn

Tory Nichols they could never make hate you. You wanna fight in CK? go queen. I get why she's doing it, it's not healthy, will probably end bad for her again, but I do hope her going back has SOME payoff, please don't let her go back just to lose to Sam again. I'm thinking either her or Robby will be injured in the tournament, and I have seen theories she will jump back to MF but I don't know (and now I'm pretty sure Sam will win, and honestly I'll just have to make my peace with that).

Btw that flashback she had? ALL PAIN. I was crying. Also really sad no Brandon and that the first time we saw her mom she was dead. Can't she get a break? Like we know she's not the writers favorite, but come on?? You really gave her ALL a teenager shouldn't have to deal with in one episode.

Now hm... Why is Kwon so interesting? Can I have more of him? Why is he so angry with the world? is his family shitty? What happened for him to become like this? I need answers. (Manifesting him and Tory developing an ACTUAL friendship, I don't usually win but I hope I get this) (Also, three fucking revolutions in that move. THREE. How exactly is he going to lose? I don't know, but if the world didn't revolve around Miyagi Fang, my bets were on him to win)

Kreese... Holy fuck you know? Like wow, hallucination 10/10 loved that scene. And sure, it is for selfish reasons, but I still love that he felt something was missing without Tory. (Love this fucked up dynamic so fucking much)

How could they possibly make Chozen boring after episode 1? Why didn't we have more of him training students? One on one? I FUCKING WANTED HIM AND TORY TO HAVE A BOND.

Honestly Daniel, Johnny they could never make me like you, but not at least I'm more indifferent than disliking altogether. (I like Johnny a bit more than Daniel, not sure why)

Devon... Devon... I get why she did it, but come on? I really wanted Kenny to go. Also, the less Anthony in my screen the better, just let Kenny and Devon being friends and I'm good.

Sam and Miguel I have NEVER been more indifferent to your characters, arcs and whatever. How could they make them SO boring? I was almost skipping their scenes.

edit: Forgot to mention I did enjoy Sam and Tory dynamic an how they got over their shit, but now all is back to hell thank you Kreese.

[purpleheartskies]

The Heart of Miyagi-Do - part 2

Before s5 came out, I wrote a post called the The Heart of Miyagi-Do, in which I talked about how the heart/spirit of Miyagi-Do left the Miyagi-Do dojo when Robby left. Robby had essentially taken the essence of Miyagi-Do with him.

In s5, Robby's return to Miyagi-Do was essential for Daniel and for Miyagi-Do to get their heart/spirit back.

It's no surprise that Daniel's Miyagi-Do's spirit is tied to Robby. After all, Robby had helped Daniel revive Miyagi-Do in the first place.

Robby also showed the most interest in Miyagi-Do's foundation than any of Daniel's other students, coming up with his own metaphors and reading up on Miyagi's history.

But what's more is that Robby's heart has always truly been Miyagi-Do. In s5, Robby rejoined Miyagi-Do and didn't join Eagle Fang, despite spending all season fawning around Johnny. As I mentioned in my Robby's rejection of toxic empowerment post, Robby never truly left Miyagi-Do or its principles behind and stuck to his goal of trying to control his anger. Miyagi-Do's principles match who Robby is in many ways.

Hayden once said about Miguel: "You can take Miguel out of Cobra Kai, but you can't take Cobra Kai out of Miguel."

I think this applies to Robby wrt to Miyagi-Do:

You can take Robby out of Miyagi-Do, but you can't take Miyagi-Do out of Robby.

In s2, when Robby told Johnny that he and Daniel could learn a thing or two from each other, I took this as Robby wanting Johnny to learn from Daniel more so than wanting Daniel to learn from Johnny. Before saying this, Robby told Johnny that Miyagi-Do had helped Robby a lot.

Robby wanted Johnny to become Miyagi-Do too and leave behind Cobra Kai (meaning it's principles). Even now, Eagle Fang is just Cobra Kai with "show mercy sometimes", so Johnny is still technically Cobra Kai. In s4, after the avt, Robby told Johnny that Robby had tried to use Cobra Kai and that had made everything worse for Robby. But, in s5, Johnny forced Robby to use a Cobra Kai way to solve Miguel's rivalry with Robby. Johnny of course didn't care about what Robby had told him after the avt or about how Robby felt. Johnny just wanted to achieve his goal of putting his dream "family" together and of feeling better about himself, the latter being Johnny's driving force since s1. Like Robby said in s4e1, Johnny wants a relationship now just to feel better about himself. (Robby fawning in s5 was so that Johnny wouldn't abandon him again. Their dynamic still remains the most complex and frustratingly sad one in the show.) Regardless, Robby still believes in Miyagi-Do ways of dealing with rivalries and later encouraged Kenny to hash things out with Anthony and reminded him that there's still another way (Miyagi-Do). This is in stark contrast to what Johnny had forced Robby to do for Johnny's own benefit.

At the trials, when Johnny looked at Robby's gi and told the Sekai Taikai judge that they're Miyagi-Do, I took this as a good sign.

Johnny still has a monumental amount of work to do without a doubt, as he hasn't even started his redemption yet. (The basics of storytelling make this obvious. Johnny hasn't even had any meaningful growth yet in terms of overcoming his core internal struggle.) But, Johnny's gotten to the point where he's now open to identifying his dojo as Miyagi-Do. Daniel then told the judge that they're also Eagle Fang. I took this as Daniel wanting to maintain Miyagi-Do's legacy and not mix Eagle Fang with it. Something I assume Robby would agree with, given that he chose to join Miyagi-Do over Eagle Fang in s5 and he kept encouraging Kenny of another way (Miyagi-Do).

In s5e5, Sam was surprised to hear that Robby had stopped Kenny when he was beating up Anthony at the avt. But, that's who Robby is.

And Robby had never let go of Miyagi-Do.

Robby - "That's what Miyagi-Do's all about."

Sadly, Sam never gave Robby any real consideration or benefit of the doubt. In s4e1, Sam judged Robby for joining Cobra Kai and said that he was making the "wrong choice" and that he's a "good person". But Robby hadn't even joined Cobra Kai. He was just living there, away from the people, including her, who've hurt him so much.

He joined Cobra Kai, though, after that conversation with her. Later, in his speech to the Cobras, he said that the Miyagi-Dos think that they're better than them. He knows because he used to be one of the Miyagi-Dos, and now he's not going to be. He's joining Cobra Kai because "we all need to look ourselves in the mirror and realize who we really are." Late in the season, when Robby looked at himself in the mirror (when he looked at Kenny during his match), he realized that being Cobra Kai, by following Kreese's teachings at the avt, isn't who he wants to be. Interestingly, by the end of the season, Sam is the one who had adopted more of a Cobra Kai (Eagle Fang) mentality. Sam should realize that you don't have to be in Cobra Kai to become Cobra Kai.

Throughout s4, Robby had barely been Cobra Kai. His plan to take down the "enemy" was to take away the enemy's ability to wage war, which is a Miyagi-Do philosophy that Robby unknowingly adopted. He taught the Cobras Miyagi-Do, and he taught it to them so well that they beat Daniel's students in Miyagi-Do. As a leader to the Cobras, he set a generally good example, the main exception being what they did to Hawk (which I talk about in the toxic empowerment post). During the season, the Miyagi Fangs bullied Kenny, while the Cobras never bullied anyone like they had when Miguel and Hawk had been the leaders in Cobra Kai. Before Robby and the Cobras made their move against Hawk, Robby had tried two things to resolve the tension between the dojos: (1) He went to Johnny and told him to intervene but was ignored, and (2) he agreed to the offer of a fair fight between the dojos but the Miyagi Fangs pranked them instead. Later, Robby's plan to throw their opponents off-balance before the tournament was to show up at prom and do a show-stopping dance, which is pretty on par with his s1 plan of getting a job at LaRusso Auto to get shirt with his name on it to piss of Johnny. And it was Sam, not one of the Cobras, who started the prom fight. In the tournament, none of the Cobras fought dirty, which is the first and only time in the franchise that Cobra Kai students didn't fight dirty in a tournament or official match.

Overall, even if the Cobras may not have been "better" than the Miyagi-Dos in s4, the Cobras were "better" than what the Miyagi-Dos believed them to be. In s2, Daniel had told Robby that the Cobras aren't the enemy, they're just taught the wrong way, and the goal of Miyagi-Do Karate is to teach them a better way, which is what Robby did, even with the examples he set.

In s5, the Cobras became bullies again after Kyler told Kenny that Robby quit so they need a new King Cobra. When Robby quit Cobra Kai, the Miyagi-Do essence that he had brought to Cobra Kai left with him.

At the trials, despite Hawk being in Miyagi-Do since s4 and learning from Daniel, Hawk still wanted to "shut [Kenny] up". Robby used empathy to change Hawk's mind.

In fact, at the s4 avt, Daniel had told Hawk to give it all he's got against Robby, while at the trials Robby told Hawk to go easy on Kenny. In both cases, beating Cobra Kai to stop its expansion was the ultimate goal, but Robby didn't put that goal above Kenny like Daniel had put that goal above Robby.

In s5e9, Robby's speech at the Cobra Kai dojo was a call back to Daniel's words to Robby in s2, that there are no enemies in Cobra Kai, they're all just taught the wrong way, but the goal of Miyagi-Do karate is to teach a better way. Here, Robby told the students that Silver is their enemy but they're not past the point of no return and that there's still another way. Robby's speech was technically Miyagi-Do's first move against Silver that day.

Despite how bad s5 was for Robby, Robby still carried Miyagi-Do's heart/spirit with him throughout the season. As Daniel told Silver when he said that Miyagi-Do would end with Daniel:

"Miyagi-Do existed long before any of us. It'll be around long after we're gone. The roots are strong, so the tree will survive"

(As always, please don't comment or reblog with dismissive comments about the nuance in the story. The nuance is part of the story, and the story is exploring important topics like trauma, bullying, neglect, and dysfunctional relationships.)

[oneeyekitten80]

I think I’m starting to become a shawbby shipper. Pls let Shawn be a big character next season. Pls pls. Build his character. I like that he cares for his little brother. BUILD HIM PLS!! Besides I want more black ppl in the show 👹

[morgansdeb]

Rewatching the scene in 4x07 where Johnny says he never had a good role model growing up and how he put all that crap in Robby’s life and how he can never fix it... I wonder what the writers were thinking when they wrote that?? And he’s saying all that stuff to Miguel, showing once again that Johnny is using him as his do-over, which is unfair on so many levels to both Robby and Miguel (by the way, I’m not denying that Johnny loves Miguel and sees him as a son, but it’s pretty damn obvious that he ended up projecting all of his failures with Robby onto Miguel and that’s why we ended up with a scene like the one in 4x08. Children aren’t interchangeable objects, and Johnny will never be good for Miguel until he fixes things with Robby first).

It clearly shows that Johnny had no intention whatsoever to talk to Robby and that the whole thing is somehow Robby’s fault for being “too angry” at his dad and that he just needed to “understand why Johnny abandoned him” (let’s not forget that terrible interview where the showrunner compares Robby’s dynamic with Kenny with Johnny’s non-existent relationship with his own son). What kind of message is this??

The worst part is that I never had a problem with Johnny and Robby reconciling; all I wanted was for Johnny to be held accountable for his deadbeat-ness and to show that he cares about Robby... but other than a few small moments every 100 years, he never does. He left his son with a man who abused him through his childhood/adolescence and who tried to murder him twice and didn’t do anything about it. So why should I, as an audience member, believe Johnny loves Robby?? Because of biology?? He can be nice to the daughter of a man he barely likes but checking on Robby is just too difficult of a task, apparently.

Robby is training with two abusers?? Meh, not Johnny’s problem. Miguel is training with Daniel?? Kill Bill sirens. Robby is missing?? Johnny is too busy getting drunk and beating up random men in the middle of the street. Miguel ran away to go to Mexico?? Johnny is more than ready to drop everything to go find him. That’s how the showrunners wrote these dynamics and it’s all very sick and twisted. I’m not saying Johnny shouldn’t go find Miguel, but his lack of concern for Robby makes him look like a giant asshole.

I can’t even get my hopes up about the Robby/Johnny scenes we might get next season, because nothing guarantees me that Johnny won’t drop Robby again once he gets Miguel back.

Now THAT being said, I don’t understand why people say Robby should have gone to Daniel at the end. Daniel pretty much ignored Robby the entire season and like Johnny, left him with a man who tried to murder him. And both times Daniel talked to Robby, he ended up sounding incredibly self-righteous and more concerned about Robby’s role in the fight than his actual well-being... which is why I can’t stand takes insisting that Robby “betrayed” Daniel by teaching a bunch of teenagers how to block a punch.

Both Johnny and Daniel failed Robby in every way possible.

[corduevasmila]

SPOILERS BELOW

I don’t hate Sam

I don’t hate Robby

I don’t hate Tory and I don’t hate Anthony

All of these characters are flawed and complex I’m glad that the show doesn’t make them the so called bad person they are just teenagers learning from their mistakes and growing

For samantha yes she is privileged and doesn’t go through what Robby and Tory go through and even Miguel she basically has her life set but Tory traumatized her and she was bullied and slut shamed by majority of the whole school. She was bitchy to tory at her job and it wasn’t right but she doesn’t know the whole situation and if it wasn’t for Amanda letting tory go back to school I don’t think tory would’ve been that nice and she’s acting out because her dad is set in his ways and she doesn’t want to be a copy of her father I don’t know what they’re going to do for season 5 but Sam is one of my favorites

Tory: I can’t wait for her new arc in season 5 after finding out she didn’t win it was heartbreaking to watch because she thought she earned it so it’s going to be a very tory and samantha arc in season 5 so I can’t wait to see that dynamic.

Robby: I think he is going to help Johnny find Miguel and finally make amends Robby is another one of my favorite characters bc he has been hurt by his mother his dad and also by Sam he goes through a lot. That scene With him and Johnny makes me tear up every time I watch it I can’t wait to see more of their relationship and as much as I love Miguel and Johnny I want to see them bond together and actually become a family because Robby deserves happiness.

As much as I love cobra Kai i didn’t like how it was about bullying Anthony LaRusso being the bully made me upset I knew he was a little annoying but I was pissed but the more episodes went on I understood that he is the black sheep of the family and Daniel never really talked to him about Miyagi or his teachings. And I liked that he apologized to Kenny and excited for his new arc.

[demetriandelibinaryboyfriends]

Season 4, Episode 3: An Extremely Chaotic and Incoherent Review

The Good:

DEMETRI AND MIGUEL STANDING NEXT TO EACH OTHER DEMETRI AND MIGUEL STANDING NEXT TO EACH OTHER DEMETRI AND MIGUEL STANDING NEXT TO EACH OTH--

devours BroTP scraps like a starved hyena

HAWK DOING DEFENSE!!! DEMETRI DOING OFFENSE!!! CINEMA!!!

Something something lookit my boys finding balance, hopefully this will bring them closer to realizing they should date

My GOD I was NOT prepared for how adorable Johnny and Daniel sharing food is

I never expect Lawrusso to catch me in a death grip and then it does anyway

Are you fucking KIDDING me Carmen and Amanda looking at each other and giggling like that was NOT straight

Take it from an almost full-time lesbian

This show really expects me to believe Johnny, Carmen, Daniel, and Amanda shouldn't be in a polycure and I say that's some BULLSHIT

AWWWWW MIGUEL BBY NO, HE'S WORRIED HE'S NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR SAM

I thought the class/wealth difference between them might come up at some point but I didn't expect to break my heart this much D:

"And that was BEFORE he sicced a rabid dog on Eli" love overprotective boyfriend Demetri

Whether Dem found out through Miguel or Aisha or Eli told him directly it's funny because like. No attack against his mans escapes this fucker's notice.

It's nice to see Hawk and Miguel being wholesome bros again, even if I admittedly like the dynamic best when Demetri's there too

The relationship developing between Daniel and Miguel has my entire heart actually. This is what I came here for and the show is DELIVERING

Measuring in Nates is the only valid way to measure

Yesssss Johnny and Sam getting into it, give me the DRAMA

Love that they both have valid points tbh

"I get to do what I love every damn day" HELL YEAH JOHNNY, love that he genuinely has a passion for helping all these kids out

I love how I was just kind of lukewarmish about Shawbby in S3, like...it was cute, and I was a fan, but I wasn't super into it. But now you're telling me??? They stayed in TOUCH??? And Robby is mentoring his little brother??? Yeah, I'm boarding this ship right the fuck now. SHAWBBY SUPREMACY.

Also adore that we got some backstory for Shawn, and what he was doing in juvie!!! Just protecting little Kenny, aw my heart ;__; Like ngl I was kind of worried Shawn was gonna end up being this weird "scary black guy in juvie" stereotype, and that would've felt pretty icky to me

Have I mentioned that I love Shawbby now

Miguel and Daniel bonding over growing up poor is SO WHOLESOME

MIGUEL'S FACE WHEN DANIEL SAYS HE BLEW HIS MONEY ON A BONSAI STORE

*Van Halen voice* SO GO AHEAD AND JUMP, SAM

Fuck YEAH Samantha LaRusso, release your inner chaos gremlin!

Really love how Demetri nods super seriously when Johnny says that when you're in a scary situation, don't back down. Like lowkey he actually respects Johnny now and is more open to embracing all of Eagle Fang's chaotic insanity, and I think that's pretty neat.

Also Demetri has grown so much braver over the course of this show, to the point where he's chill with potentially doing life-threatening nonsense to train if needed, and I think that's also pretty neat.

Gotta appreciate how proud Hawk was of Miguel for winning the fishing contest!!! They're good buddies and I love them!

The Bad:

This show will never let Daniel, Amanda, Carmen, and Johnny be in a polycule and this is the crime of the century

I wanted Demetri to jump!!! Would it be out of character? Yes! Did I want it to happen anyways, so that he could gloat to Hawk about it and Hawk could look at him with huge heart eyes? Absolutely!

I just really want to see Demetri go full feral, I think he deserves it

I want Johnny to be a terrible influence on him

I'm sure I'll get flayed again but still a bit more Kreese and Silver stuff then I felt was needed? Like we got a lot of backstory on them last season with the war flashbacks, not sure how much more we need to establish that they're evil divorced karate husbands XD The snake tattoo flashback WAS fun though!

I don't know whether to be amused or annoyed over Daniel and Johnny fighting over who gets to be Miguel's dad, like...it's very funny, especially considering how they fought over Robby too, but like...can't you fuckers BOTH be his dad???

STAY TUNED FOR MORE

[emletish-fish]

Cobra Kai Seaon four feelings

The Great Things: 

Amanda and Tory’s storyline.  Did not expect it, but I friggin loved it. How Amanda treating Tory like a human being (not a psycho or a monster or a useful tool), caused this slow growing profound change in Tory, from ‘there are no rules’ to her blunt and definate refusal to cheat and her graciousness in victory. The way Tory responds to Amanda. How she comes to respect Amanda enough to feel comfortable asking her for help (which is huge for Tory) - the fact that we know Amanda provides this help and counciling. 

In fact the Tory, Sam, Amanda mess was amazing. Sam’s understandable anger and lashing out at Tory, her hyper-vigilance and how she’s so quick to react negatively and escalate with Tory, which is completely understandable given the history between these girls.  But how Amanda sees Sam being an entitled brat (and Sam is very privileged and coddled, but she wants to fly the nest so bad), and sees that Tory is a human being, who’s young and upset and struggling.  How she tries to balance her role as a mother to Sam while also trying to support a girl so many characters have written off as a lost cause... and to have it work. To have Tory blossom into a fire-cracker of a fighter, but one who fights fair.  But how Sam feels resentful that her mother doesn’t understand her trauma. The way they fight over amanda.  (how refreshing in a show that is packed to the rafters with Daddy issues that we got two girls fighting about the mom for once.)

Tory in general was great this season. loved her arc and my heart broke fore her at the end, when she realised her dream of being the best, and of EARNING it fairly was completely crushed. because I counted at least 3 times the ref ruled in her favour in a way that was shady - and one of those was for the final point with Sam - and that is just going to haunt Tory. 

Tory and Robby was also surprisingly great. It was not on my bingo card, though I was hoping for a strong friendship between these two.  However when it turned romantic, I liked it.  These two genuinely like and respect and care for each other. they have a surprisingly healthy dynamic given how traumatised and damaged they both are.  And they won me over. 

Robby and Kenny - are everything. I love them. I love everything about them. they are precious and lovely and they make me just want to wrap them both up. 

Robby’s character arc in general was so incredibly well written and such a wonderful journey for him. Tanner knocked it out of the park in every scene.  

AISHA!!!! I love her and she was such a radiant breath of fresh air. Seeing her scene with Sam was just everything. 

Sam and Johnny was so astonishingly cute and precious and sweet. How Sam has been treated like a princess her whole life and now that castle feels like a cage. How her how life is planned out and her parents have her in this mould. Larusso 2.o,  Daniel’s mini-me.  How Johnny’s chaos and off-the-wall ideas are the complete opposite to Daniel’s order and tradition. But how it’s so freeing to be trusted to forge your own path.  Johnny doesn’t not want any child to grow up like him. He doesn’t want Sam to copy him. He wants her to be true to herself - and gives her the strength to find her own path and step out of Daniel’s shadow.  I loved everything about their dynamic. How proud she made him, and how proud she was of herself when she mastered an eagle fang technique. 

The truly deranged and twisted love between Kreese and Silver. My god, this was pure, unadulterated toxic sludge love.  The epic struggle to control each other. The insane power dynamics. the over-flowing toxicity.  Kreese’s manipulation and weaponising Terry’s PTSD against him to drag him back into the swamp of their love. Terry’s absolute unhinged jealousy of Johnny and the idea that Kreese has an emotional connection to anyone else.  It’s all so grotesque in the best way possible.  Compelling television.  Hand-in-unloveable-hand fuckery. 

The Good Things:

The hug!!! the hug has me deranged.  it was so beautiful and hopeful and healing... But so unearned on Johnny’s side.  I actually like it as a resolution to Robby’s arc, but they just needed to put in the work with Johnny and they didn’t. So it’s beautiful and I love it, because I love Robby being comforted.  But it could have been so much more!!! (I actually write a gigantic post about how Johnny’s arc could easily be fixed with a few small changes so that this moment is earned on both sides. It could have been done in four short scenes. less stingray and more of these two.)

Daniel’s  overall arc. It makes so much sense, given Daniel’s flaws, and his arc (which is all about Trauma and Control and Grieving Mr Miyagi, and how his unresolved issues cause brings out Daniel’s worst instincts).  Daniel’s behaviour, while dissappointing, is not surprising.  But I wish the show could have balanced all his problematic behaviour with some nuance and some understanding of his trauma and his grief, and how being confronted with the monster from his past with no Mr Miyagi to protect him is at the root cause of his attitude and actions. The narrative rewards and punishes him for the wrong things - but overall, it still makes sense. 

-0- 

The huh? 

Miguel’s arc. Another one that was very heartfelt, and Xolo broke my heart in a few scenes.   but with just a little extra groundwork and linking better with Johnny’s character journey, this could have been epic. instead it was a few heart-breaking moments and then a whole lotta filler and nonsense.  but it still makes sense overall. 

The pointless

The way the Larusso drama was dragged out, unnecessarily villianising Daniel and regressing Johnny. I feel like these same plot points and story beats could have been hit without all the unecessary drama. I would have liked their arguments to be a push pull between Johnny’s chaos and Daniel’s order, rather that squabbling about styles in a nonsensical way. (all martial arts have offensive and defensive moves. the idea that CK and MD are just complete binary opposites doesn’t hold water.) 

 instead the argument about how to use karate and how to respond to threats, like the way they both react to the kids pulling the sprinkler prank on the CK. Daniel thinks it’s smart.  cool trick. fun joke.  and they avoided fighting. what Mr Miyagi would have wanted. Johnny thinks its a stupid escalation that will get a kid hurt because Cobra Kai always needs to finish the fight and they will respond.  Why did they poke the bear then run away like pussies - there is nuance there! We could have had more conversations like that - instead we got a montage of Johnny fighting the ocean cause he was pissed at Daniel.

The What THE FUCK, that doesn’t even make any sense!

Hawk’s story line.  Like it was well telegraphed that Hawk was going to do a redemption arc, but the way it was executed was terrible.  Violation of bodily autonomy is healing?!?!  Hawk’s anger issues were in his hair and now his hair is gone so he’s a total fucking doormat. but he wins so it’s okay. I can’t even enjoy him winning because it was in service of Daniel’s story, not Hawks. Hawks win isnt even about him. it’s an unearned moment. I can’t even with this story line.  I wrote out how I would fix it. 

Johnny’s character arc. They didn’t even know what to do with Johnny’s over-all arc until episode 7.  They had him running around and propping up other plots and being a reactive character with no narrative drive of his own; regressing randomly and then being super self-aware and show growth in other places. it was so sloppy and all over the place. And like, a well written Johnny arc would have perfected Robby’s storyline and made the hug earned, and enhanced Hawk’s journey and recovery and made his victory at the AVT earned,  elevated the found-family tragedy and is our love enough even though we aren’t biologically related that was happening in Miguel’s journey.  

And it’s so frustrating becuase there are some really good elements to Johnny’s storyline. His connection with Sam, his poignant scenes with Miguel and then hug are all emotioanlly charged and beautiful, but they are surrounded by so much sloppy mess and nonsense that these moments get dragged down. 

My two biggest gripes are Johnny and Hawk’s storylines. Neither of them are perfect people, but they both deserved better writing than that.  But because both of these storylines are quite pivotal, they distracted from the whole season when they’re bad...And they were really bad. 

The unforgivably bad

Get off my screen stingray.  Why did we have to spend so much time with stingray.  he is a tedious and grating character and there was alreay so much else happening. 

[lysteriaposts]

COBRA KAI S4 FULL REVIEW (OMFG!!!)

where to freaking start... what an absolute INSANE season that upped the game and stakes for so many characters. i'm going to keep doing this in bullet list form since i find it easier to express my thoughts that way and is easier to read. SPOILERS BELOW!!!

first off: terry silver and kreese and their crazy dynamic was so unexpected. i thought they were going to get along splendidly have work great together, but there was so much scary tension between them!! at first i thought kreese was the 'bad' one, and then they switched it around to silver being the maniac. absolutely brilliant and one of my favourite parts of this season.

on that note... kreese being somewhat redeemed?? what!? did not see that coming and i'm still on the fence if i like it or not. but it does elevate silver's character not going to lie.

johnny/daniel storyline this season however was one of my pet peeves of the season tho... it was just underwhelming and felt like they dragged out the same old rivalry stuff from previous seasons. and i did not like how they regressed daniel so much, and johnny was more of a knobhead than normal.

conclusion: kreese/silver > johnny/daniel in terms of story

the larussos overall were done dirty this season *except* anthony and amanda...

i've seen people hate on anthony but i loved his arc (that is not yet finished) and it's something fresh for the show as well as his story with kenny. it brought out a new side to daniel too and amanda.

unlike anthony i did NOT understand the motivation for sam to be such a bully this season... i'd actually like to even call her a bitch because that's what she was. i would've been alright with it i guess if it lasted half of the season but she remained unlikable until the end so you didn't even want her to win the all valley. bad season for her.

oh kenny, kenny, kennny <3 my precious son. no, robby's precious son! so sad to see how he had to be corrupted for robby to have clarity in his relationship with his dad and who he wanted to be. i really do hope tory or robby save kenny from silver...

honestly all the new character additions were great and did not feel forced at all! i did think devon would play a bigger part but maybe next season, there were a lot of storylines to keep up with. but she seems like a really cool girl.

TANNER'S ACTING WHEN HE RECONCILED WITH JOHNNY. my heart burst at that scene and even though i wish johnny had fought for his real son much more before this happened, i realize it's just not in his character and i did sense that getting robby back was one of his greatest wants this season, just nothing he expressed outwardly... *cue another emotional scene with drunk johnny and sad miguel*

MIGUEL MY POOR BOY! honestly, i knew it would come to this. i said that what johnny was doing was kind of replacing his son partly, and that it would strike back on both robby and miguel, because it was self serving. i really hope miguel and robby can bury the hatchet and that johnny will bring those two together.

can i also just say the heart attack i had when miguel suddenly hurt himself in the middle of the tournament..? i was like omfg not again....

TORY!!! an absolute mvp of the season. wonderful acting by peyton list, you could feel her anguish the whole season and us seeing more of her soft side didn't feel forced at all! i love the way she realized she was in such a rough position she had to mature, let go of grudges and let people in (amanda... robby...). and the fact that kreese was looking out for her was a nice surprise.

also happy she is the first all valley girls champion <3 it felt very predictable to make sam win, and it didn't feel like she earned it the way she was gloating about being the best the whole season and just being immature as well. you definitely rooted for tory more. i'm sad to see they had to make it tainted through silver cheating for her, but this show will add drama when it can so... and it does make it interesting how tory will approach silver about it next season....

i honestly hate kyler but since i was oddly rooting for the cobras this season he didn't annoy me as much?? like he wasn't an ass to kenny either? they really felt like a little dysfunctional family. robby as the dad, tory as mom, kyler as a weird uncle and kenny as the son lol.

kenny being shawn's brother!!! did not see that coming but i like it, it was convenient but flowed well with the story.

robby losing the final yet again and hawk of all people winning.... i don't know man. on one hand i didn't mind that robby lost because it was deeper for his arc that he felt bad about kenny, but i don't think a win was earned for hawk. at least it was unpredictable but i would've rather demetri won.

hawk didn't go through that much this season, not enough for me to really care. don't get me wrong i definitely like hawk/eli more now than ever before but... i'm just kind of over him and his insecurities? i would much rather they give demetri his own storyline than be half of the binary bros and hawk's side kick. he deserved it more.

also the demetri + yasmine scenes were too many, i'm not into them or her lol.

i thought moon getting back together with hawk was meh, a new girl would've been better for him or just no girl. i also didn't like the cheap LGBT rep with piper/moon just being a plot device.

on piper... really weird character.

anthony and kenny > nate and bert. sorry but those two annoy tf out of me...

i can't believe i've gotten this far and not mentioned the elephant in the room... ROBBY AND TORY. omg. i was actually hoping for more scenes but there were SO many parallel storylines that i understand the limit... but what they did with them was amazing. well-written, so much chemistry and wholesomeness. in my books the best CK pairing on the show (pls become official next szn okay?).

the whole prom episode... parts were good (mostly robby and tory) but i'm not gonna lie the fight scene in tuxes and dresses was so embarrassing ahahaha.

i am very happy they chose the route to make tory/robby be completely over their exes but have sam/miguel (who people thought were gonna be solid) be hesitant and jealous. that is usually normal for cheaters. but it's also a cool contrast.

i don't think sam and miguel are good for each other, they also don't have the somewhat chemistry they had in s1. miguel should get someone new and i would like to see sam single. she needs to find herself.

THE ADDITION OF KATA DEMONSTRATION IN THE TOURNAMENT WAS SO COOL. however carrie underwood made me cringe. lol

i think more playing witht eh johnny/sam and demetri/johnny dynamic was missed. but johnny already has "two sons" so i get they don't have time to add more to the mix lmao.

when johnny was lubing up miguel in oil and tried recruiting girls for his dojo at the football field and this girl said "I'm asexual" - I've never related more lmaoooo.

omg... i actually think that's it! i'm gonna have to rewatch this szn many times over, it's gonna be a pain to wait a year for the next... plz share your favourite moments of the season and opinions <3 i'd be happy to hear them!

[ncmcrcysideblog]

thoughts on s5 in regard to my muses here

Canon

Kyler: Asshole. Completely IC. Wish there were more scenes of him pestering Tory and her turning him down like in s4 since he wanted to be the King Cobra and she and Robby broke up for a bit. I just love the little dynamic Joe and Peyton ad-libbed and I wanted more lmao. I think with Cobra Kai gone, he’ll focus more on wrestling and another sport, maybe football, but if Sensei Kim or Kreese show up with a new dojo somehow (less likely for Kreese for obvious reasons) I can see him going back to either of them.

Kenny: My little problem child you need to go to your room and think about what you’ve done jfc you basically attempted murder TWICE. I do think them leaning into Kenny becoming an aggressive bully was the right call to an extent, but I also think there should have been more conflict there at least for the first half of the season trying to reason with himself why his mentor and most trusted person in the dojo left. He was there because of Robby, now suddenly Robby’s out and trying to convince him that Cobra Kai is bad for him? That would at least give him pause for a while trying to figure out what changed so suddenly, I don’t think his relationship with Robby is something he would readily throw under the bus like that until more down the line when Silver’s got him convinced he can be the next big thing, because then he can see it from a distorted perspective of like “oh Robby’s just jealous and worried about me being better than him” and being mad about that. I do think after how everything went down he really is remorseful about some things, particularly how he didn’t listen to Robby and how fast he turned against him and Tory and anyone else who might have left. I think he needs guidance now more than ever, he needs to process his own behavior, and find his own balance of right and wrong because he doesn’t know what to think about anything anymore. Also ... Hawk should have flattened him lol that should in no way be an even fight, Kenny’s only hope for winning was landing that Silver Bullet.

Piper: She’s not there so I’m just going to assume she left Cobra Kai between seasons and the reason why is free real estate.

Lia: Also was not there so she is also free real estate this season.

OCs

Kevin: Was def rooting for Hawk the whole time. He was a lifeguard at the pool and kept taking up for everyone, which is the reason the teens weren’t kicked out until later when things really broke down. He also lost his lifeguard job there because he kept letting everyone stay in spite of their behavior, RIP. During the egg training, he got busted pretty early because he hid under the seat in his van, ate an edible bc “one won’t hurt”, and then passed the fuck out for twenty minutes.

Leo: Right now Cali and I have this plot where he’s seeing Nina hurt Tory when Tory comes to Cobra Kai to expose Silver and no one believes her bc she has no proof outside of saying he cheated. Which adds to him questioning, especially after talking with Jeanny afterward and seeing how it badly it affected her, but he still doesn’t leave then. He’s definitely out after Silver’s arrested though and he’s dealing with the realization that he stayed there because that’s what his family wanted for him and what they told him could give him a bright future but now his family’s association with Silver in general is a black mark on their reputations as a whole. I don’t think he’s going back to Miyagi-do / Eagle Fang without some convincing since he did get kicked out of Eagle Fang originally, but down the line he might, or he might join a different dojo. And yes, he is taking a lot of shit from his parents about the whole situation.

Hikari: You can bet your ass she’s big mad about Chozen getting hurt. It makes her even more upset when it comes to all the ex-Cobras, especially the ones that join Miyagi-do / Eagle Fang. She could have lost her sensei, she isn’t very quick to be forgiving or understanding about it. Chozen probably can’t get back to Okinawa soon with his injuries, so she’s staying as long as he is. She probably helped Chozen bust people during the egg thing instead of participating herself.

Bianca & Vincent: Bianca is a fake bitch trying to act like she had no idea about anything bad happening and like she supported Tory lmao. Vincent is going back to boxing, he’s a champion he doesn’t need this shit. He did still take Silver’s side though and would go back to Cobra Kai / Kim / Kreese if they had the chance. I think Bianca is completely done with karate outside of sticking her nose in the drama though, it was never really her thing anyway.

Diya: She breaks up with Vincent for good after s5 because of his reaction to the scandal and the fact that he still takes Silver’s side. Her reaction is basically “wow yeah everyone was right and you’re a really shitty person and I shouldn’t have stayed with you this long”. But they were toxic af also pretty co-dependent (in the bad way) so she’s having to make a lot of adjustments in her life now.

Asha: Just extremely happy that Cobra Kai is gone and Topanga can be Topanga again. She left during the buyout because she wouldn’t work for Silver, probably went to support Miyagi-do / Eagle Fang in their endeavors and then returned after Silver was ousted.

Winona: Also just really happy that Cobra Kai is gone lol. She hid in the tree during the egg training and got busted by Chozen close to the end.

Hale: Side eyeing the whole thing with Anthony and Kenny but otherwise largely unbothered. In her lane. Moisturized. Minding her business.

[variousqueerthings]

finished s4 and I have s5 predictions already woooo

1. Tory is going to become - or go Very Far down the journey of being a "good guy" next season, I want her to be a feral cat that's tentatively allowing herself to eat LaRusso snacks - Amanda may have not gone about it all the right way, but her heart's in the right place

2. also she's going to visit Kreese (her proper dad) in jail and he's going to ask her to betray/double-cross/fuck up Silver? She's not going to accept Silver's authority next season I think

(Sidenote: obviously Shannon isn't a major character in the show, but the... ownership? that Silver was gaining over Tory and Robby through the clothes and the money and the borrowed car isn't going to stick, because Robby's going with Johnny to Mexico and Tory knows Silver rigged the tournament + she doesn't want to hurt Sam anymore, so Silver's going to corrupt New Guy Kenny I guess? I'm interested in what his emotional tether amongst the kids is going to be)

3. Obviously Johnny and Robby are going on a roadtrip to Mexico to pick up Miguel, which means Silver's promise of taking "good care" of him won't come into being until either end s5 or even s6?

4. Kenny is gonna bully Anthony? Anthony learns karate at last - I'd love it if Sam was the one to take over his teaching, or maybe Chozen does that

5. Chozen?????????? I have no predictions I just CHOZEN????????

6. (whispers) chozen and johnny meet 👉👈

7. I assume Silver is bringing someone in and that might be Mike Barnes, although it feels weird if Sean Kanan comes back, I would rather not have an open Trump supporter in this...

8. Kreese is gonna continue to do some soul-searching - I still think that he'll come around to properly apologising to Johnny + some kind of sacrificing by the end, but not until s6 at the earliest?

9. Okay but we need a Daniel and Silver showdown. This season was very much about just introducing Silver and I think that was a very good choice, but I crave a proper showdown!!!

10. I feel like Sam is gonna break somehow? Her arc has been very much about dealing with anger and an inability to "live up" to her legacy and it feels like she hasn't had a turning point there yet - maybe it can only happen once she learns to talk with Tory

11. They introduced all these new kids, which makes sense, but have nothing to say on where I think they'll fit in + a liiiitttle concerned it's a few too many characters at this point. I liked the girl who joined Johnny's team, but I didn't vibe thaaat heavily with the other dynamics, even though I understand why they did that

12. Thinks about Kumiko and Jessica being in it together 🥺 ALSO I think this would be a great opportunity to give Carmen something to do that's not related to Johnny or Miguel, since they're literally not around next season!

13. this is me still !!!!! on s4, so need to organise my thoughts better moving forwards... not today though...

14. a whole season where johnny and daniel aren't in the same location until the very end *breathes heavily* I can do this... it's a slowburn I get it! *screams*

[bluektw]

You know, I've been thinking about the CK family (Tory, Robby, Kenny and Devon) and how the dynamic will probably not change in the next season but it should change.

I mean, if you think about it, right now, Robby is not the best person to talk to Kenny about Cobra Kai, to Robby, his stay in Cobra Kai was kinda of a way to an end, so he doesn't have/doesn't understand this deep and even kinda toxic relationship Kenny has with not only Cobra Kai the dojo, but Silver himself.

And guess who mirrors this exact experience? Devon.

She had a connection with Tory, not with Cobra Kai the Dojo, and she didn't even have a deep enough connection to Kim, in any way, to her too, the relationship she has with CK was kinda the same, a way to an end, she wanted to learn from the person who won her.

Robby and Devon would understand each other a lot better right now, mostly cause to both, not only CK was just a means to something, and also it wasn't as deep as the connection they had with their previous Dojos. They don't understand what is like to have this toxic dependency to CK and one of their Senseis.

Now, Kenny had a different experience, it was his first Dojo, and he developed a (rather toxic) relationship with Silver, he became his Sensei (especially after Robby left CK) the person Kenny can rely on, the person that will push him forward (even if it is a bad thing), someone he feels like understands him in a way others don't. He felt the power CK had, and he relished in it.

Kenny has a deep connection with CK dojo/Sensei/Philosophy, and who has the same exact connection? Tory.

They have some of the deepest connections (If not the deepest ones) to a Dojo/Sensei. They felt they had someone they could count on, but later had been betrayed by them, by the person they thought had their back.

Tory also has been in only one dojo, has a connection with Kreese (while slightly less toxic) that is pretty much identical to Kenny and Silver, someone they could relate as they went through the similar shit, someone who had her back, who helped her with stuff (The landlord and Amanda in a way) and who seemed to understand her struggles better than anyone

Tory's connection with CK philosophy has been getting weaker, but is still there, and Kenny's, mostly cause Silver lied about the tournament, is also beginning to crack. They both are going through the same feeling of hollowness after losing something that meant the world to them (Tory since the All Valley and Kenny by the end of Season 5), they basically lost their Dojo and their Sensei all in one bat, both feeling like no one has their back now.

So, if anything, I wish we could see the different dynamic here, making Kenny get closer to Tory in a way, maybe she can be the one to "bring him back to the light side" or at least be the one bridge between him and Robby, because she can understand and relate a lot with what he's going through in a way Robby can't.

But I'm not abandoning my hc that Devon doesn't like Robby, so I imagine that with time they would realize that they had the same experience with CK, but not before some argues.

(I've seen people saying that Devon will want to learn from Sam in S6, and while I can see where this comes from I don't think it will happen, if she does end up wanting to learn Miyagi Do like this I would like to be with Robby)