You know Daniel LaRusso.
You know Mr. Miyagi.
You know Johnny Lawrence.
And you know that, even after all this time, The Karate Kid is a bona fide classic.
But do you know the whole story?
"Banzai!
Banzai!
Banzai!"
After all, the Karate Kid world is larger than just one movie.
In addition to two sequels, a soft reboot, a non-canon animated series, and a remake,
there's Cobra Kai, a modern continuation of the story that began all the way back in 1984.
In Cobra Kai, long-time rivals Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso face off just like they
did all those years ago, except this time, the stakes are even higher.
Cobra Kai is a treat for Karate Kid fans, but it's also accessible to newcomers, thanks
to the frequent use of flashbacks, which replay scenes from the original Karate Kid movies.
Still, you'll get much more out of Cobra Kai if you understand the surprisingly complex
Karate Kid timeline.
Whether you've seen the movies before and need a quick refresher or if you want a crash
course so you can jump straight to Cobra Kai, here's what you need to know.
The Karate Kid saga doesn't begin when New Jersey-native Daniel LaRusso moves to California.
If you want to know where the story really started, you have to go back 400 years and
pay a visit to Tome village, a small fishing community in Okinawa , Japan.
There, you'll find a fisherman who came to be known as "Miyagi Shimpo Sensei," although
he wasn't always a martial arts master.
In 1625, after a particularly slow day at sea, Shimpo fell asleep on his boat, and continued
slumbering as winds guided his vessel from Okinawa to the Chinese coast.
After that, Shimpo lived in China for ten years.
When returned to Okinawa, he brought two things with him: his new family, and a small, ceremonial
drum, which became the basis for the Miyagi family's unique form of karate.
"So this is the secret of your family's karate?"
"I don't get it."
"Practice, you will."
Hundreds of years later, the Mr. Miyagi we know from the films was born.
Like his ancestors, he was the son of a fisherman, and was raised in the family business.
Also like his ancestors, his father trained him in a number of traditional Japanese arts.
In addition to karate, Miyagi's father also taught him how to prune bonsai trees, which
became one of his lifelong passions.
Mr. Miyagi wasn't his father's only student, however.
Miyagi's best friend, Sato, also learned karate at the elder Miyagi's hands.
Unfortunately, the relationship didn't last.
As teenagers, Miyagi and Sato fell in love with the same woman, Yukie.
One day, Miyagi publicly proclaimed his love for Yukie.
Sato responded by challenging Miyagi to a duel, and Miyagi responded by leaving the
country.
"Well what about her?
Didn't you love her?"
"Very much."
"Well did she love you?"
"Aye."
"Well, so how could you leave?"
"Miyagi no believe in fighting."
Miyagi settled in Hawaii, where he worked in the sugarcane fields.
Eventually, he fell in love and got married.
Unfortunately, tragedy struck again.
While he was off fighting for America in World War II, Miyagi's pregnant wife was rounded
up and put into a Japanese internment camp.
"Your wife and newborn son died due to complications arising from childbirth."
Many years later, Vietnam veteran and long-reigning US Army karate champion John Kreese dreamed
of opening a karate dojo where he'd be able to teach a new generation of martial artists
his brutal, violent philosophy - "Strike first.
Strike hard.
No mercy."
With help from an old army buddy, he made it happen.
See, Terry Silver, one of Kreese's brothers-in-arms, owed Kreese his life many times over.
After the war, Silver attained a sizable fortune, and he used his immense wealth to found the
Cobra Kai dojo, which he then gave to Kreese as a gift.
The Cobra Kai trainees were more than just karate students, too.
Together, they formed a bike gang and ruled West Valley High School with an iron fist.
Everyone was afraid to stand up to them.
Everyone, that is, except for Daniel LaRusso.
In September 1984, Daniel LaRusso and his mother moved from New Jersey to Reseda, California,
settling down in a shabby apartment.
Almost immediately, two things happened.
Daniel made friends with the apartment building's quirky caretaker, a middle-aged Mr. Miyagi,
and he began making moves on Johnny Lawrence's ex-girlfriend, Ali Mills.
That didn't sit well with Johnny, who still hoped to get back together with Ali, and he
didn't waste any time letting Daniel know.
Johnny and the rest of the Cobra Kais savagely beat Daniel, embarrassing him in front of
Ali and the rest of his new friends.
"You sure pick cool people to be friends with, Freddy.
Where'd you find this guy?
Come on, let's go."
By Halloween, Daniel decided that he'd had enough.
He struck back at his tormentors by dousing Johnny with water during a school dance, but
the Cobra Kais still managed to get the upper hand.
After chasing Daniel to his apartment complex, the Cobras delivered a brutal beat-down on
the New Jersey transplant.
Daniel only survived thanks to the intervention of Mr. Miyagi, who used his long-dormant karate
skills to teach the bullies a lesson.
Bruised and battered, the Cobra Kai gang left - but now, their hatred for Daniel was stronger
than ever.
Mr. Miyagi marched down to Cobra Kai with Daniel in tow and struck a deal with Kreese.
Instead of all the bullying, why not let Johnny and Daniel settle their differences in an
official, one-on-one matchup?
They agreed that the two teens would face off at the 1984 All Valley Karate Tournament,
where the winner would get to bask in all of the glory and the loser would be utterly
humiliated.
It was a good plan, except for one tiny problem: Daniel didn't know much karate, and he only
had a couple of months to get ready.
"I can not believe this."
"What?"
"What you just got me into in there."
"EH?"
"You said you were going to make things better for me."
"Ah, I did."
And so, the elderly martial artist began introducing Daniel to the Miyagi family secrets.
Daniel learned quickly, and as his relationship with Ali became more and more serious, he
gained both confidence and skills.
Finally, after lots of training, the big day arrived - but could Daniel win?
Despite not knowing the rules, Daniel entered the All Valley Karate Tournament and immediately
proved that he was a force to be reckoned with.
In the early rounds, he quickly dispatched Kreese's less-talented students.
That was enough to get Daniel to the semi-finals, and that's where his first real setback occurred.
Infuriated by Daniel's progress, Kreese instructed Bobby - Daniel's next opponent - to take him
out of commission.
Reluctantly, Bobby agreed.
"Daniel, Daniel I'm sorry, I'm sorry man, I didn't mean it.
I'm sorry."
The judges called a 15-minute recess to let Daniel regroup, and as the clock ticked down,
things looked pretty dire.
Right when the judges were about to award Johnny Lawrence his third consecutive trophy,
Daniel showed up, determined to win his fight against the Cobra Kai bully.
After several ups and downs, the score was tied, with only one point left to decide.
That's when Daniel pulled out his ace in the hole.
"Winner!"
Johnny argued that it was an illegal move, but the judges gave Daniel the point.
Victory was his.
In the parking lot after the tournament, a furious Kreese attacked Johnny while berating
him for his second-place finish.
It was the wrong move.
Not only did Mr. Miyagi step in to save Johnny, humiliating Kreese...
...but as a result Johnny and every single other Cobra Kai student quit on the spot,
leaving Kreese abandoned and alone.
The following spring, Ali and Daniel broke up at the senior prom, leaving Daniel free
to accompany Mr. Miyagi back to his native village in Okinawa.
There, Miyagi bid farewell to his dying father, smoothed things over with Sato, and rekindled
his relationship with Yukie, who had refused to marry Sato after Miyagi fled.
It was an eventful trip for young Mr. LaRusso, too.
While visiting Okinawa, Daniel had a summer fling with Yukie's niece, Kumik, and entered
a feud with Sato's best student, Chozen.
Near the end of their trip, Daniel defeated Chozen in a duel to the death, and in accordance
with his sensei's teachings, Daniel refused to deliver the final, killing blow.
"Live or die, man."
"Die."
"Wrong."
Things didn't go as well for Kreese.
Without any students to pay fees and with Cobra Kai's name tarnished, the one-time sensei
had no choice but to close the Cobra Kai dojo.
He visited his old partner, Terry Silver, to relinquish ownership of the dojo - but
Silver had other plans, and they weren't exactly subtle.
"They made you suffer.
So I'm gonna make them suffer.
And suffer, and suffer.
And when I think they've suffered enough, then I start with the pain.
Instead of closing Cobra Kai, Silver decided to expand the operation, buying 20 locations
around Southern California and turning Cobra Kai into a chain of dojos.
The only thing that he and Kreese had to do first?
Beat LaRusso at the next All Valley Karate Tournament, humiliating him while restoring
Cobra Kai's name.
Terry's plan had two parts.
First, he hired Mike Barnes, who was known as "Karate's Bad Boy," and offered him a 50
percent ownership stake in the new Cobra Kai if he could defeat Daniel at the tournament.
Originally, LaRusso wasn't planning to defend his title, but Barnes and his goons eventually
forced Daniel to sign the contract.
Second, Silver pretended to befriend Daniel, and offered to train him for the tournament
when Miyagi refused.
Under Terry's tutelage, Daniel became aggressive and bloodthirsty.
"This guy wants to break you, humiliate you, stomp you into the ground.
Now what are you gonna do about it?"
"Nail him?"
"Then do it!"
All that aggression drove a wedge into his relationship with Miyagi, but thankfully,
it didn't last.
Shortly before the tournament, Daniel realized his mistake and apologized to Mr. Miyagi,
which is when Silver and Kreese revealed their true colors.
At the tournament, Barnes beat Daniel savagely while drawing the match out until it reached
the sudden death round.
However, Daniel managed to score the final point, securing his second consecutive victory.
Because of Barnes' brutality, Cobra Kai was banned from future tournaments, while martial
arts fans turned on Silver and Kreese, dooming the brand.
For all intents and purposes, Cobra Kai was finally dead - for now.
Thirty-four years later, the world of The Karate Kid looks very different.
Daniel LaRusso now runs a chain of extremely profitable car dealerships known as the LaRusso
Auto Group.
"Yes, we are chopping prices on all of our Hondas, Nissans, Acuras, and Audis."
Meanwhile, Johnny Lawrence has never gotten over the events of December 19, 1984.
He's a deadbeat dad and a drunk.
His childhood wealth gone, Lawrence tries to eke out a living working as a handyman,
but his mind is consumed by thoughts of LaRusso, whom he still blames ruining his life.
But history has a way of repeating itself, and the time for Johnny's redemption is nigh.
A young man named Miguel just moved into Johnny's building, and he has some very familiar problems.
Like Daniel LaRusso so many years before, Miguel is plagued by rich bullies, and he
desperately needs someone to teach him how to defend himself.
Lawrence may not be the best man for the job, but he's the only one available.
It won't be long before Cobra Kai lives again.
Thanks for watching.
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