Cobra Kai: What Happened With Mr. Miyagi & The Sekai Taikai In The 1940s

Warning! This article contains spoilers for Cobra Kai season 6 part 2.

Through flashbacks and dream sequences, Cobra Kai season 6 part 2 reveals the truth about what happened with Mr. Miyagi at the Sekai Taikai in the 1940s and how it impacts Daniel LaRusso. Mr. Miyagi has always had a looming presence throughout Cobra Kai‘s runtime. While characters like Daniel LaRusso keep his legacy alive by teaching his lessons, others like Chozen and Johnny Lawrence honor his contributions to karate. However, Cobra Kai season 6 seems to take things a little further by adding new depth to Mr. Miyagi’s backstory.

It all begins when Daniel LaRusso finds a hidden box under Mr. Miyagi’s bed and learns about his sensei’s criminal record. Things take an intriguing turn when LaRusso notices Mr. Miyagi was also a competitor at the Sekai Taikai when he was young. As Daniel LaRusso gets closer to learning more about Mr. Miyagi’s past in Cobra Kai season 6 part 2, he discovers bits and pieces about his history that gradually start altering how he views his sensei and his legacy.

Mr. Miyagi Was A Sekai Taikai Team Captain

Long Before Daniel’s Miyagi Do Dojo, He Was A Competitor At The Tournament

After skimming through Mr. Miyagi’s belongings in his box, Daniel LaRusso focuses a little too much on the newspaper clippings that describe his criminal past. However, he ends up ignoring one crucial item: a karate headband. Towards the end of Cobra Kai season 6’s part 2, LaRusso has a “Eureka moment” when he ties the Sekai Taikai headband over his daughter’s head and recalls how he saw the same in Mr. Miyagi’s box of belongings. With this, he connects the dots and realizes that his childhood sensei was also a competitor at the international tournament.

While most other characters in Cobra Kai visit Barcelona with the sole purpose of performing well at the Sekai Taikai, Daniel LaRusso is driven by two motives: help his students win the tournament and learn the truth about Mr. Miyagi’s past at the Sekai Taikai. After learning about Mr. Miyagi’s criminal past, Daniel seems prepared to uncover more secrets about Mr. Miyagi’s shrouded past. However, as he soon learns that Mr. Miyagi was a Sekai Taikai team captain and committed some questionable actions during the tournament, his sensei’s perfect image in his head begins to crumble.

Mr. Miyagi’s Opponent Died During The Sekai Taikai

The Tournament Was Far More Brutal In The 1940s

While looking for new clues surrounding Mr. Miyagi’s past in the Sekai Taikai, Daniel LaRusso almost gets himself killed when he crosses paths with one of Terry Silver’s henchmen, Dennis De Guzman. However, to his surprise, Silver later helps him learn more about Mr. Miyagi by giving him a tournament bracket, which confirms Mr. Miyagi competed in the Sekai Taikai tournament. Shockingly, the bracket also shows that one of Mr. Miyagi’s opponents died after facing him in a match.

LaRusso even shows the document to the tournament’s authorities, who confirm it is authentic. This new revelation about Mr. Miyagi’s past sends Daniel reeling, making him wonder how his sensei could have had such a violent history. He feels overwhelmed by the fact that his mentor, who often preached about peace and fighting for self-defense, might have been involved in something far darker than he could have ever imagined.

Since the Sekai Taikai’s authorities confirm that deaths were not unheard of when Mr. Miyagi competed in the tournament, the competitor’s demise could have been accidental. However, regardless of whether Mr. Miyagi’s opponent’s death was accidental or intentional, it challenges the very foundation of the philosophies that Mr. Miyagi had instilled in Daniel LaRusso.

Daniel LaRusso’s Miyagi Dream Explained

Daniel LaRusso Experiences A Dissonance After Learning About Mr. Miyagi’s Past

After learning about the Sekai Taikai death in Cobra Kai season 6, Daniel LaRusso grows increasingly worried about how much he does not know. His mental state is reflected in one of his dreams where he finds himself facing Mr. Miyagi in a one-on-one showdown. A younger version of his sensei attacks him while the spectators cheer him on. While defending himself, Daniel asks him if this is another one of his lessons. Miyagi, who seems nothing like himself, scoffs and continues to fight.

The sequence ends as Mr. Miyagi confronts Daniel, reminding him that he never told him about his past because he was never willing to accept it. After taking a few brutal hits from Mr. Miyagi in his dream, Daniel wakes up feeling confused and tormented. The dream seemingly reflects the dissonance Daniel experiences after learning the truth behind Mr. Miyagi’s past. A part of him seems to villainize Mr. Miyagi for keeping him in the dark and never opening up about his dark history.

At the same time, he cannot help but blame himself for idolizing Mr. Miyagi to the point where he was not a human anymore in his eyes. He always perceived Mr. Miyagi as a perfect, morally righteous figure whose teachings were pure and untouchable. However, Daniel’s dream serves as a harsh reminder that before Mr. Miyagi became the wise and serene mentor he had known, he, too, made mistakes and learned many lessons from his flawed youth.

How Mr. Miyagi’s Sekai Taikai Story Ties Into Cobra Kai Season 6

History Repeats Itself In Cobra Kai Season 6 Part 2’s Ending

At its core, Cobra Kai has always been about angry young men finding fatherly figures who help them navigate their struggles through karate. While fatherly mentors like Kreese and Silver bring out the worst in their students and further aggravate their issues, ones like Daniel LaRusso and Mr. Miyagi try to guide their students toward self-awareness and personal growth. Daniel LaRusso relates to angry young boys like Robby and is able to help them because he, too, was in their shoes before Mr. Miyagi guided him.

Mr. Miyagi’s backstory suggests that he, too, had a troubled past before he learned from his dire experiences and passed his wisdom to Daniel. Unfortunately, like Johnny Lawrence, young men like Kwon did not get the right mentors. Therefore, Kwon makes an impulsive decision towards the final moments of Cobra Kai season 6’s part 2 and ends up dying at the Sekai Taikai’s venue. With this, history repeats itself as another competitor dies at the international tournament.

After seeing Kwon die at the Sekai Taikai, Daniel might realize that Mr. Miyagi probably never intended to hurt his opponent. However, like every other young fighter, he was likely blinded by his overwhelming desire to win. In Cobra Kai season 6’s part 3, Daniel might also understand that if it wasn’t for Mr. Miyagi’s dark past, he would not have been able to guide him the way he did.

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

Tanner Buchanan , Xolo Mariduena , Mary Mouser , Connor Murdock , Ralph Macchio , Nichole Brown , Jacob Bertrand , Griffin Santopietro , William Zabka

Seasons

6

Writers

Josh Heald , Jon Hurwitz , Hayden Schlossberg , Michael Jonathan , Mattea Greene , Bill Posley , Stacey Harman , Joe Piarulli , Bob Dearden

Directors

Jon Hurwitz

Showrunner

Jon Hurwitz

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