Pretty Much Pop #82: Cobra Kai and the Karate Kids

Did anyone suspect that the beloved 1984 “Kid Rocky” karate film (and its decreasingly beloved sequels) would now be not just remade but revived as the YouTube-Red-turned-Netflix hit Cobra Kai? Is this new show actually good, or just living unhealthily on nostalgia and the fascination of watching teens and middle aged people fistfight and fall in love. Mark-san, Erica-san, and Brian-san survey the show and all the films for nonsensical plotting, villain motivation, questionable acting, and more. It’s almost as if PMP is the best… around… and nothing’s ever gonna keep it down.

Care for some articles with more info about these shows?

• “The Untold Truth Of The Karate Kid” by Nolan Moore
• “The Crane Kick Is Bogus: A Karate Kid Oral History” by Alex Prewitt
• “At Netflix, ‘Cobra Kai’ Broke Out. Now its Whiteness Is Under a New Spotlight” by Jen Yamato
• “‘Karate Kid’: Ralph Macchio Waxes On About “Soulful Magic” Of 1984 (And ‘Cobra Kai’ Reunion)” by Geoff Boucher
• “‘The Karate Kid’ stars explain why fans just can’t get enough of ‘Cobra Kai’” by Drew Weisholtz
• “The Karate Kid Screenwriter to Adapt Film as a Stage Musical” by Nick Romano
• “The ‘Dark’ Side of Mr. Miyagi: ‘Karate Kid’ Star Ralph Macchio Shares Pat Morita Stories in ‘More Than Miyagi’ Documentary” by Elisabetta Bianchini
• “Cobra Kai Season 4 Release Date, Cast and Everything You Need to Know” by Alia Waheed

If you haven’t seen the notorious Karate Kid III, watch this.

Hear more at prettymuchpop.com. This episode includes bonus discussion you can access by supporting the podcast at patreon.com/prettymuchpop. This podcast is part of the Partially Examined Life podcast network and is curated by openculture.com.

             (This is what these actors actually look like now.)