Back for its third season, this is the first to debut straight onto Netflix since the streaming giant plucked it from YouTube Originals obscurity. Following on from the shocking events of Season 2’s school fight finale, Robbie is on the run for putting Miguel in a coma, Miyagi-Do’s doors are closed, Johnny is spiralling and Kreese has full control of Cobra Kai.
In previous seasons of the show, there’s always been this one question looming that’s made it difficult to suspend disbelief and really draw you in – why are parents, school, and/or police not stopping this? This season the show tries to address this and there’s a much bigger focus on the adults in general. Kreese’s origin story is revealed, finally humanising him rather than just making us accept he’s evil. Daniel goes on a journey that ties into the events of The Karate Kid Part II, and Johnny goes on his own journey of self-discovery after hitting rock bottom.
It’s another great season which is really only let down by its ambition. The creators have tried to pack a bit too much story and character development into these 10 episodes. This leads to some arcs like Sam’s newfound fear feeling a little rushed. But overall the good far outweighs the bad and, as ever, this cheesy show gets enough right that you can’t help cheer when the good guys finally start to kick ass, especially with how dark things get now Kreese is in control. With more surprise cameos for fans of the original films than any other, it’s definitely a season you won’t want to miss. Long live Eagle Fang!
Release Date: Out Now (Netflix)