Recap: Peace Is Temporary In ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 1

“Cobra Kai never dies,” as we’re repeatedly told, and you need to look no further than the Season 6 premiere for proof. Episode 1 is titled “Peacetime in the Valley” — a peace that lasts for all of ten minutes before a new (but old) threat emerges with designs on karate supremacy.

After six seasons, this should — like the characters! — be getting old. And yet somehow Cobra Kai continues to impress and surprise in equal measure, deftly waxing on and off to avoid predictable drama and build new relationships and rivalries among this incredibly likable cast.

An Uneasy Peace

Following the Season 5 finale, things look pretty good for Miyagi-Do. Terry Silver is in prison. Kreese is on the run and is unlikely to reveal himself since he remains a fugitive. Daniel and Johnny are running the dojo together, even if there’s still a rivalry between the Miyagi loyalists and the students of what was formerly Eagle Fang. And Chozen is still around to help out.

The interpersonal relationships between the adults and kids are improved, too. Johnny is happier than ever with a pregnant Carmen. Miguel and Robby are best buds now; the former is dating Sam, the latter Tory, who’re also on speaking terms if not necessarily BFFs. And there’s a common goal to aim for — winning the Sekai Taikai, a fictional international karate tournament introduced last season.

Miyagi-Fang?

The main short-term obstacle is coming up with a name for the combined might of Miyagi-Do and Eagle Fang. This seems like a surface-level problem, but it’s indicative of some simmering resentments and personal anxieties.

Daniel, for instance, wants the Sekai Takai to be his swansong, and he wants to spread the word of Miyagi-Do through the tournament. But Johnny, after having Cobra Kai wrested away from him by Kreese and Silver, is attached to Eagle Fang not just as a dojo but as a success of his own in a life defined otherwise by repeated failure.

On some level, the kids sense this, which is why Hawk and Demetri come up with a new name — Miyagi-Fang, the logo of which is a cartoon of Mr. Miyagi looking like a vampire. Daniel is predictably horrified. It’s well-intentioned but doesn’t solve the problem, so as is typical for this show, Johnny and Chozen, who still have some bubbling animosity, decide they’ll settle the issue by fighting. The winner gets to choose the name.

Johnny vs. Chozen

The fight between Johnny and Chozen doesn’t happen. But they’re both going through their own personal issues, so their not fighting is actually a better resolution.

We’ve discussed Johnny already. He wants something to be able to call his own. In a fakeout, he receives a text from an anonymous number asking to meet him at Coyote Creek, reminding him that Cobra Kai never dies. It turns out to be from Stingray, who has assembled a group of new trainees as a reborn Cobra Kai.

Since Cobra Kai still has a spot in the Sekai Taikai (a plot point that will become important later), Stingray thinks Johnny should restart it. That way, he won’t have to share. And while the Johnny of a few seasons ago would have jumped at this suggestion, here he decides not to.

Meanwhile, Chozen is still stinging from having been beaten by Silver and rejected by Kumiko, to whom he sent a bunch of drunk messages. He’s angry and a bit lost and is just taking it out on Johnny.

More on this in a bit.

Kenny’s Brother Shawn Offers Some Surprising Wisdom

(L to R) Tanner Buchanan as Robby Keene, Xolo Maridueña as Miguel Diaz, Okea Eme-Akwari as Shawn, Dallas Dupree Young as Kenny in Cobra Kai. Cr. Curtis Bonds Baker/Netflix © 2024

“Peacetime in the Valley” is also surprising in how it proceeds with the Kenny storyline, especially in light of his older brother Shawn’s release from juvie.

Initially, it seems like we’re heading down a predictable path. Robby and Miguel take Sam and Tory to an arcade to help them bond, and they encounter Kenny there. Robby tries to make amends, and Shawn, having heard Kenny’s one-sided version of recent events, warns Robby off. He keeps pressing the issue until a fight breaks out, in which all of the Miyagi-Do students are notably non-violent.

Later, Shawn, having seen unfamiliar aggression in Kenny and a surprising amount of restraint in the other kids, pushes Kenny to join Miyagi-Do.

A United Front

Sam and Tory’s budding friendship inspires Daniel to ask Chozen to concede to the dojo being called Eagle Fang. He recognizes it means a lot to Johnny and ultimately doesn’t hamper the spread of Mr. Miyagi’s karate and values. However, Johnny arrives and concedes first. He has determined that he doesn’t want to push the negative legacy of Cobra Kai, and is happy to embrace Miyagi-Do.

Chozen and Johnny still decide to spar but to symbolize a united front.

This is as peaceful as things are going to get, though, since Cobra Kai Season 6, Episode 1 ends with Kreese approaching some training students in the middle of nowhere. He tells them to tell Kim Da-eun — uh-oh — that Cobra Kai is back.

Read More: Cobra Kai Season 6, Episode 2 Explained