While the show's biggest conflicts may have been resolved by this point, some key character rivalries are still alive ahead of Cobra Kai season 6.
SUMMARY
- Multiple rivalries are still alive going into Cobra Kai season 6, including Mitch vs. Chris and Kenny vs. Anthony. Loose ends from season 5 are expected to be addressed.
- Kreese's grudges against Daniel and Johnny intensify in season 5, and his hatred for Daniel is likely to be a central focus in season 6.
- The conflict between Hawk and Kenny will need resolution before they can become allies, while the rivalry between Johnny and Kreese may take a different turn in the upcoming season.
The battle with Terry Silver seemingly came to an end, but multiple rivalries are still very much alive going into Cobra Kai season 6. Daniel and Johnny beat Silver, Sam and Tory formed a team-up, and Miguel finally made amends with Robby. In ending these key story arcs, Cobra Kai resolved its biggest conflicts. Some, though, continue to linger.
While ending the dojo war between Miyagi-do and Cobra Kai may have felt like a necessary move for the show based on how long it's gone on, it was likely for the benefit of the series that Cobra Kai season 5's ending left some loose ends. After all, the Netflix series has one more season in the pipeline. It's inevitable that new problems will arise when Cobra Kai continues, but the show should also be expected to lean heavily on some of the rivalries that are still going strong in the show.
Mitch vs. Chris
A karate rivalry from Cobra Kai's second and third seasons saw an unexpected return in the season 5 finale. In season 2, best friends Chris and Mitch became enemies when the former left Johnny and Kreese's Cobra Kai and joined Miyagi-do.
When the rival dojos engaged in fights, Chris and Mitch were pitted against each other on more than one occasion, including the high school brawl. Chris won the fight, but their rivalry persisted until the two groups of kids decided to put aside their differences. They've been friends ever since, but Mitch's betrayal changes that.
Frustrated by insulting nicknames and other teases he received from his peers, Mitch tipped off Cobra Kai about his friends' plans and effectively started the big fight at the dojo. Mitch's decision to turn traitor puts him in a position for another rematch with Chris in Cobra Kai season 6.
Theoretically, he could apologize for his actions and convince Daniel and Johnny to take him back, but until that happens, Mitch should be counted as a member of the opposing side.
Kenny vs. Anthony
While Daniel's daughter may have worked things out with Tory, his son's bully problem hasn't been fixed yet. Anthony LaRusso's mean-spirited treatment of Kenny came back to haunt him toward the end of Cobra Kai season 4, which evolved Kenny from a victim into a villain.
When Cobra Kai season 5 ended, Kenny's loyalty to Terry Silver was seemingly shattered, but there was no moment in the episode that indicated he was done torturing Anthony. Cobra Kai's downfall was a possible step in that direction, though.
Daniel vs. Kreese
There may not be any character in Cobra Kai with more open grudges than Kreese. In addition to the beef he has with Terry Silver, Kreese is also in an ongoing feud with Daniel and Johnny.
What happened in season 5 only intensified it; being tricked into giving up information is sure to only motivate him further now that he's on the loose. Now only that, but Cobra Kai season 5's finale implied he'd be on the warpath against the two via his final scene.
His issues with Daniel have been quite made plain in Cobra Kai. It was made apparent in season 2 that Kreese still has let go of everything that happened in the original Karate Kid trilogy. Mr. Miyagi, his true enemy in the movies, passed away years ago, but his legacy lives on in Daniel.
Beating him was Kreese's main objective in seasons 2 and 3, and while Kreese may have more enemies on his plate by this point in the series, it's only a matter of time before the series circles back to the villain's hatred for Daniel.
Hawk vs. Kenny
What started as a tense conflict at a pool party in Cobra Kai season 5 reached a whole new level when Hawk and Kenny fought later on in the story. Using Terry Silver's secret Silver Bullet move, Kenny pulled out a surprising win over the defending champion of the All Valley Karate Tournament's boys division.
The bruise this surely left on Hawk's ego is unlikely to go ignored when Cobra Kai returns. Even if Kenny ultimately joins Johnny and Daniel's dojo, it stands to reason that some resolution between him and Hawk will be needed before the two can be allies.
Johnny vs. Kreese
The rivalry between Johnny and Kreese differs considerably from the one that the villain shares with Daniel. Whereas Kreese has always hated Daniel, he appeared to have a great deal of affection for Johnny, so much that Silver once - perhaps rightfully - called Johnny Kreese's "weakness."
This makes sense, considering that Kreese made multiple attempts to align with Johnny, even after their split. But Johnny's promise to "erase every mark" Kreese left on him visibly wounded the villain, and could have impacted his approach toward Johnny in season 6.
If Kreese has accepted that his bond with Johnny truly is broken and that he must move on, that could set up a very different version of their rivalry in Cobra Kai season 6. If Kreese overcomes his "weakness" and loses interest in joining forces with Johnny, he could become more dangerous than ever in the series.
Kreese vs. Terry Silver
Daniel LaRusso, Johnny Lawrence, Chozen Toguchi, and even Mike Barnes all had opportunities to directly participate in Terry Silver's defeat, but John Kreese was on the sidelines for the entirety of the season. He used Tory to get involved in the fight in his own way, but that was the extent of his role.
He promised payback against Silver for framing him at the end of Cobra Kai season 4, but has yet to deliver on that vow. When considering how single-minded Kreese can be when thinking about revenge, it's hard to imagine there not being any retaliation from him in season 6.
Unless Cobra Kai takes Silver off the board and locks him in prison, there's a good chance Kreese will get a chance to deal with his old friend personally. As noted above, Kreese also has existing issues with Daniel and Johnny, but it's important to note that unlike Silver, they're not the ones who put him behind bars in the first place. Because of that, Silver is poised to be his primary target in Cobra Kai season 6.
