We’re ticking off our Eighties sequels/reboots/remakes one by one here (prepare yourself for the coming of Dune’s big-budget sandworm) and August saw one more resurgence of a hit property from the days of neon-everything.
If you haven’t heard, Karate Kid has inched its way back into pop culture, all thanks to its sequel TV series, Cobra Kai – which picks up with Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso as existential-crisised, middle-aged dudes. The first two seasons debuted on YouTube Red, but moved over to Netflix in August, introducing the show to the platform’s however-million-some subscribers.
With Season Three of Cobra Kai hitting Netflix sometime in 2021, fans have been busying themselves trying to figure out what exactly will go down in the show’s next episodes, after such a depressing finale. We know that Season Three will go the way of The Karate Kid II and visit Okinawa, Japan, possibly seeing Daniel learn an unfavourable secret or two about his old mentor, Mr Miyagi. But what about the return of Karate Kid players we haven’t caught up with yet? Based on a few interviews and hints Cobra Kai has dropped along the way, Season Three could see the return of Johnny and Daniel’s old love interest, Ali –played by Elisabeth Shue. (Even though, you know, Ali dumped Daniel off-screen for a football player. Ouch.)
The ghost of ex-girlfriend’s past definitely lingers over both Johnny and Daniel in Cobra Kai. We find out where Ali ended up when the two rivals meet up for a drink and get to talking about Ali. Turns out she went to med school and is now a paediatric surgeon. And… she’s married to an oncologist. Which seems to bum Johnny out. (Daniel is married in the show, by the way.) The guys go Facebook snooping, where they cut up on Ali’s husband, and Daniel accidentally sends Ali a friend request.
So the path to Ali’s big return is definitely there. What about Elisabeth Shue? Turns out she is a Cobra Kai fan herself, and isn’t against stirring things up with a return to the Karate Kid world. “I have seen it and I thought it was really well done,” Shue told ET Canada. “I’m thinking about making an appearance.”
Some fans already have the storylines all plotted out. The best theories? Ali is actually Tory’s mother. Or, even better, Ali will be the doc who patches up Miguel after his major injury in Season Two’s end. Regardless, William Zabka (who plays Johnny Lawrence in Cobra Kai) is all for a renewed Ali-Johnny romance.
“I’m rooting for Ali with Johnny,” Zabka said. “She’d be a great addition to the show, so I’m rooting for it. But I’m in the dark at this moment.”
