Summary
Things take a darker turn in “The Prize” with Kreese having to gain his old master’s favor, but there’s still plenty of trademark humor and frivolity in the Stateside subplots.
For a show titled Cobra Kai, it’s important to remember that it’s not really about Cobra Kai. They’re the bad guys! Episode 2 of Season 6, “The Prize”, is a helpful reminder of that since it focuses on Kreese’s latest efforts to take the karate world by storm, and let’s say they’re a little more severe than what the Miyagi-Do teachers and students are up to.
I’ll get into all of that obligatory coming-of-age business in due course, but since the episode focuses on Kreese primarily, this recap might as well too. You’ll recall that Kreese was looking for Da-eun at the end of Episode 1, so that’s where Episode 2 picks up.
Blast From the Past
A flashback reintroduces us to young versions of Kreese and Silver, as well as Kreese’s former master, Kim, and his granddaughter Da-eun. This is intended to highlight some of the particulars of this dynamic. Master Kim was a violent nutcase who wouldn’t allow Da-eun to train, and Kreese pushed back against him on Da-eun’s behalf.
So, we know that Da-eun owes Kreese a debt. We know he respected her immediately, and we know that they were both trained in an atmosphere of extreme hostility. Lovely.
Armed with this information, the present-day sequences seem even more ominous. Kreese wants to enter the Sekai Taika as Cobra Kai, a new and improved version comprising Da-eun’s elite students. However, it turns out that Master Kim is still alive, seemingly subsisting on his hatred of everything and everyone, so the decision ultimately rests with him.
The Meaning of Kreese’s Visions
Kim has a task for Kreese. He has to venture out to a cave and retrieve an eunjangdo, a dagger that Kim used to kill several Japanese soldiers while Korea was still under colonial rule. It’s a way for Kreese to prove himself, but it’s also an excuse for him to face death.
Death presents itself in the form of a particularly nasty snake which immediately bites Kreese when he attempts to retrieve the knife. The venom sends Kreese into a hallucination, in which he fights a younger version of Johnny — in his old-school Cobra Kai garb from the first movie — to the death.
The meaning of this scene is obvious. Johnny is Kreese’s only weakness. In a perverse way, he has always genuinely cared about and perhaps even loved him. In fighting and killing him, Kreese is symbolically purging himself of that weakness. He’s becoming even more ruthless.
To make the point clear — and this is technically where Cobra Kai Season 6, Episode 2 ends — Kreese returns to Kim not only with the eunjangdo, but also the snake’s severed head.
Frat Party
(L to R) Gianni DeCenzo as Demetri, Jacob Bertrand as Eli ‘Hawk’ Moskowitz, Joe Seo as Kyler, Xolo Maridueña as Miguel Diaz in Cobra Kai. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2024
Back in the Valley, meanwhile, many of the Miyagi-Do students are worrying about their futures beyond the Sekai Taikai. They’re at the age now where they’re applying for colleges, and it’s a matter of some serious concern.
Miguel is applying to Stanford, but since Carmen and Johnny are struggling financially — especially with a new baby on the way — he also considers applying for a cheaper “safety school”.
A tour of this school reintroduces Kyler, who studies there. His downfall has been profound, and he’s now basically the indentured servant of a frat boy named Zenker. He’s under the impression that if does everything “Mr. Zenker” says, including picking garbage off the floor with his mouth like a human hoover, he’ll be allowed into the fraternity.
Needless to say, he won’t be. When it comes out that Zenker is manipulating Kyler, he and Miguel, Hawk, Demetri, and Brucks, who is visiting the campus from MIT, beat the frat boys up.
I know what you’re thinking, and it’s the same thing Hawk and Demetri are worried about. But Brucks doesn’t attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He attends Midwest Industrial Training, where he fixes washing machines.
Johnny Gets A Job
Elsewhere, Johnny and Chozen go apartment hunting. With a pipe having burst in Carmen’s apartment, Johnny wants to find somewhere better for his expanding family to live, but he doesn’t exactly have spotless credit or a reliable income.
Chozen is useful in this context. He’s on hand to remind Johnny to embrace Miyagi-Do so that he doesn’t take the head off a smug realtor, but he’s still out of his depth in the rental market. Luckily, his past as a two-time All-Valley champion and gym class hero earns him the attention of Little Stevie, a dude who used to deeply admire him and who owns several properties in the area. If Johnny can get a job and straighten out his financials, he’d be happy to rent to him.
When Daniel advises Johnny to get a real 9-5, he interprets that as an invitation to work at the LaRusso dealership. Daniel is dead against the idea, but it turns out he’s a great salesman.
Read More: Cobra Kai Season 6, Episode 3 Explained
