Why Your Dad Is Obsessed With Cobra Kai: Nostalgic Series Builds On The '80s Film Phenom

Kids, I’m going to explain to you why your dad is so obsessed with Cobra Kai.

Ralph Macchio, right, reprises his role as Daniel LaRusso and William Zabka is back as Johnny Lawrence in the Netflix series ‘Cobra Kai,’ which builds on the story first told in the 1984 film ‘The Karate Kid.’ Originally developed for YouTube Premium, ‘Cobra Kai’ moved to Netflix on Aug. 28 and immediately caught on with audiences.

If you’ve got a Gen X’er in your life — someone old enough to have once owned, say, a Men at Work cassette — you’ve probably noticed a strange phenomenon in the past few weeks. They’ve been bowing before entering the TV room. They’ve been karate-chopping sofa cushions. They’ve been randomly singing REO Speedwagon songs.

This column isn’t for them. It’s for the younglings near them. So, if you happen to be one of the creaky-kneed relics described above, stop reading now and hand the newspaper — or whatever fancy-dancy digital device you use for news consumption nowadays — to the child sitting next to you.

The Karate Kid spinoff series Cobra Kai cashes in on 1980s nostalgia, as evidenced by the T-shirt actor William Zabka wears in Season 2 honoring New Orleans metal band Zebra… read more >