The Karate Kid’s mentor Mr. Miyagi passed away before the spin-off series Cobra Kai began, but what was the character up to in the years between the movies and TV show? The iconic character was an important founding stone in the franchise and his story - guarded though it was - was as important as Daniel-san's.
Beginning in 2018, Cobra Kai is the hit comedy-drama series that follows the lives of The Karate Kid’s Johnny and Daniel into adulthood. Don’t let that description fool you, though. There are still plenty of Karate Kid characters who could appear in Cobra Kai as, with two seasons under its (black) belt, the show has yet to rely on easy nostalgia appeal to bring in fans. Sadly, Mr. Miyagi cannot appear himself after the sad death of Pat Moria in 2005, but the character's legacy hands over Cobra Kai still.
What matters most to fans of the original film series is also the one thing viewers can be sure of: Mr. Miyagi and Daniel remained close friends until (and after) the character’s 2011 death. Not only did the irascible mentor leave Daniel his house, but Daniel is also seen visiting his grave regularly. How regularly? Well, at one point he notes that a few months is a long time between visits, which can only imply that he and Miyagi remained close for the remainder of his teacher’s life.
Fortunately, the show has been able to bring back a lot of familiar faces, with many Karate Kid characters appearing in Cobra Kai. And most fans are understandably pleased with how the show has continued the legacy of the franchise, finding a graceful way to honor the memory of Moria’s role. The backstory is clearly not all schmaltz either, as The Karate Kid’s fandom has noted that the bonsai store the pair opened in The Karate Kid Part III evidently failed, though, since Miyagi still had a home to gift Daniel in his will, that perhaps wasn’t financially disastrous. But that isn't the limit of his untold story.
As well as teaching Hilary Swank's Julie Pierce in The Next Karate Kid, Miyagi had further adventures with Daniel that didn't make it to the big screen. Those are chronicled in the often-overlooked Karate Kid animated series, which saw Miyagi (voiced by Robert Ito) and his student traveling the world over 13 episodes. They were sent on a mission to recover a magical shrine that was stolen from Okinawa, which was intended to last 65 episodes but was cut for its run on NBC. The pair - along with new sidekick Tamurai went to Europe, South America, and Australia and saw Miyagi working on a film set at one point and also joining the crew of a Norwegian whaling vessel.
Ultimately, Cobra Kai offers a bittersweet coda to the inter-generational friendship between Danny and Mr. Miyagi. Of course, that doesn’t mean Cobra Kai is done with the character, as the upcoming season three will likely explore more of his mysterious past. Given that the third season is heading to Okinawa and there's some speculation that it will bring back Karate Kid Part 2’s Chozen (as a good guy), it makes sense that Miyagi's past will be in focus. So it’s clear that nothing is beyond the realm of possibility for Cobra Kai as it continues the re-imagine the Karate Kid universe in poignant, tragicomic fashion.
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