It looks like Cobra Kai season 6 is back to taking influence from the 1980s, and that’s precisely what the series’ finale needs. As a spinoff of the 1984 The Karate Kid movie, Cobra Kai has found clever ways to use audiences’ nostalgia to its benefit. As a protagonist, Johnny Lawrence is somewhat stuck in the “good ol’ days” of being a teenager, and this has doubled as a reliable hook. However, the ’80s influence had begun to fade as the Netflix series progressed. Now, as Cobra Kai enters into its final season, it needs to bring back this unique flavor.
Cobra Kai season 6 will be the series’ last, with 15 total episodes released in what Netflix is calling a three-part event. Part 1, which contains five episodes, will begin streaming on July 18, 2024. Part 2 will follow a few months later, on November 28, 2024, while part 3 is expected to be released near the beginning of 2025. The coming episodes will wrap up Johnny Lawrence’s story and decide the fate of the titular Cobra Kai dojo and its future in the Valley, thus ending the tale that started way back in 1984. Fittingly, this story will come accompanied by some 1980s-style music.
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Cobra Kai Season 6’s Soundtrack Teaser Is Full Of 1980s Flavor
The Season 6 Single “Heart Of The Cobra” Has That Iconic 1980s Flair
Cobra Kai composers Zach Robinson and Leo Birenberg have clearly been at work putting together the sounds for season 6, and one of the numbers allocated for the show’s ending takes heavy influence from the 1980s. Titled “Heart of the Cobra,” the song is a soundtrack single from Cobra Kai season 6, part 1, and everything from the synthetic percussions to the electric power riffs screams The Karate Kid. This is, overall, very comforting since the teased track indicates that the final seasons of the Netflix series will remember its 1980s roots.
Why 1980s Nostalgia Is So Important For Cobra Kai’s Ending
“Heart Of The Cobra” Teases A Full-Circle Season 6
Nostalgia has been vital to Cobra Kai‘s success. The first couple of seasons relied heavily on 1980s influence and memories of The Karate Kid to lure audiences back into the franchise. However, as the seasons progressed, this became a little less important. By that point, viewers had already fallen in love with the characters, and the show could stand independently without depending wholly on the Karate Kid franchise. However, now that Cobra Kai is coming to a close, things must come back full circle—the 1980s must again become a central feature.
Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso began their rivalry in 1984, and for the sake of balance and poetry, it’s important that their stories remember this as they come to a close. It’s a reminder that no matter how much time has passed or how much has changed, these are the very same characters and actors that everyone fell in love with back when they watched The Karate Kid. Songs like “Heart of the Cobra” will help audiences settle back into that bittersweet nostalgia and set the stage for the 1980s-style camp and action that will surely be the foundation for Cobra Kai season 6’s ending.
Cobra Kai
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Set decades after the events of the Karate Kid franchise, Cobra Kai shifts gears and puts viewers into the perspective of a former rival/antagonist, Johnny Lawrence. In his 50s and down on his luck, a chance encounter with a bullied young man leads Johnny back to Karate. Agreeing to help him, Johnny takes the opportunity to revive his former home, the Cobra Kai dojo – becoming a refuge for outcast teens.
- Cast
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Tanner Buchanan
, Xolo Mariduena
, Mary Mouser
, Connor Murdock
, Ralph Macchio
, Nichole Brown
, Jacob Bertrand
, Griffin Santopietro
, William Zabka - Seasons
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5
- Streaming Service(s)
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Netflix
- Writers
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Josh Heald
, Jon Hurwitz
, Hayden Schlossberg
, Michael Jonathan
, Mattea Greene
, Bill Posley
, Stacey Harman
, Joe Piarulli
, Bob Dearden - Directors
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Jon Hurwitz
- Showrunner
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Jon Hurwitz