Daniel LaRusso’s history in the Karate Kid movies before Cobra Kai should logically make him Mr. Miyagi’s new replacement, but the sensei’s most worthy successor was actually someone else. In the original Karate Kid movies, Daniel LaRusso trained under Mr. Miyagi’s wing and learned everything from karate to life from him.
Although there were arcs where Daniel strayed away from Miyagi Do karate and ended up training at the Cobra Kai dojo, he always found himself going back to Mr. Miyagi’s valuable lessons. Even in Cobra Kai, it was Daniel’s motive from the beginning to spread Mr. Miyagi’s lessons across the Valley.
Unfortunately, as well-intended as Daniel might have seemed, he always seemingly struggled to fulfill the role of Mr. Miyagi’s worthy successor. While he found it hard to live up to the wisdom and balanced perspective that defined Mr. Miyagi, another character from the franchise stepped in and became a better Mr. Miyagi replacement with ease.
Johnny Was More Like Mr. Miyagi In Cobra Kai Than Daniel Ever Was
Like Mr. Miyagi, Johnny Was Always Open To Change
It would be unfair to say that Daniel LaRusso was wrong when he often tried to hold on Mr. Miyagi’s lessons and principles instead of being more accepting of change. His experiences had made him believe that the Miyagi way was the best way to live one’s life. However, this belief made him less like his sensei.
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Mr. Miyagi always emphasized how, like a bonsai tree, one must always have their own unique way to grow. This is something Johnny Lawrence seemingly embraced in Cobra Kai as he set out to bend many rules and ideas his former sensei, John Kreese, had deeply ingrained in him. Daniel, in contrast, let his ego initially get in his way of opening his mind to new ideas, fighting styles, and philosophies.
Similar to Miyagi, Johnny Lawrence also started from nothing in Cobra Kai. While Daniel seemingly lived a pretty lavish lifestyle, Johnny was rock bottom in the show’s early moments. With heart and grit, he worked his way up and embraced a more simple life. Daniel does not deserve to be antagonized in any way, but Johnny always seemed more worthy of the “Mr. Miyagi replacement” than him.
Why Johnny Lawrence Was A Better Sensei Than Daniel LaRusso In Cobra Kai
Johnny Lawrence’s Training Methods Were More True To Mr. Miyagi’s Spirit
The whole point of Mr. Miyagi’s “wax on, wax off” training style was to teach karate through muscle memory and help Daniel realize that the martial art was all around them. Daniel took Mr. Miyagi’s methods a little too seriously and passed them to the next generation exactly how they were taught to him.
Daniel’s early story beats in Cobra Kai revolved around how his ego could not handle seeing Johnny do better than him in the world of karate.
Johnny Lawrence, on the other hand, did not shy away from switching things up and using diverse real-world experiences to teach karate. In the show’s opening moments, Johnny’s motives were also in the right place. He just wanted his students to feel stronger and fight back against their bullies.
Daniel’s early story beats in Cobra Kai revolved around how his ego could not handle seeing Johnny do better than him in the world of karate. Although Daniel, too, always wanted to do the right thing for his students, his inability to move on from the past and lack of control over his impulsive decision-making held him back from treading the path that Mr. Miyagi would have wanted him to.
Cobra Kai
8/10
- Release Date
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2018 – 2025-00-00
