Four main senseis have taught students"no mercy"throughoutThe Karate KidmoviesandCobra Kai.Known for honing"The Way of the Fist,“theCobra Kai dojohas transformed numerous teens in the San Fernando Valley into dangerous badasses, but the Cobra Kai senseis' ruthless methods have also bred cruel bullies and heels. Yet, despite the negatives surrounding the black snake dojo,there is something undeniably cool and alluring about Cobra Kaithat has enticed countless characters in theCobra Kaiseries andThe Karate Kidmovies to embrace the ethos of"strike first, strike hard, no mercy!”
Cobra Kai karate is derived from Tang Soo Do, the Korean martial art developed and taught by Master Kim Sun-Yung (C.S. Lee). From the Korean War onward, Master Kim taught American soldiers his violent form of karate, including US Army Captain George Turner (Terry Serpico). During the Vietnam War, Captain Turner found eager students inJohn Kreese (Barrett Carnahan) and Terry Silver (Nick Marini). After the war,Kreese and Silver founded the Cobra Kai dojoin Southern California before traveling to South Korea to learn directly from Master Kim Sun-Yung himself in 1980.
Cobra Kai’s original heyday was in the early 1980s when the dojo led by John Kreese (Martin Kove) dominated theAll Valley Under 18 Karate Tournament. Cobra Kai’s early success has since been eclipsed by its current renaissance, starting in 2017 when Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) opened the Cobra Kai dojo to a new generation of students. Here’s how Cobra Kai’s four main senseis stack up to each other.
4Terry Silver
Silver Wanted To Take Cobra Kai Worldwide
In truth, being a Cobra Kai sensei is not the primary goal of Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith), and it never really was. Silver, the scion of a wealthy industrialist, is the head of the powerful Dynatox corporation.Terry is a devious and unscrupulous businessman first and foremost, and karate is merely a means to an end for him. When they originally founded Cobra Kai, Silver was glad to let Kreese run the dojo while he bankrolled the whole operation. But Terry always had big dreams, and he wantedCobra Kai to dominate the San Fernando Valley and beyond.
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InThe Karate Kid Part III, Terry Silver stepped into the role of Cobra Kai sensei for the first time, spearheading a revenge plot against Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio). Through deceit and treachery,Terry manipulated Daniel-san away from his sensei, Mr. Miyagi (Noriyuki “Pat” Morita), so thatLaRusso briefly joined Cobra Kai. Yet Daniel and Miyagi reunited and prevailed at the 1985 All Valley Under 18 Karate tournament when LaRusso defeated Silver’s handpicked karate"bad boy,“Mike Barnes (Sean Kanan). Humiliated, Terry turned his back on karate for over 30 years.
Silver is a poor sensei who ultimately doesn’t believe in his students.
John Kreese coaxed Terry Silver out of karate retirement inCobra Kaiseason 4, but Silver soon betrayed his best friend and mounted a hostile takeover of the dojo in order to fully realize his dream of Cobra Kai’s global expansion. But Terry wouldn’t last long as a Cobra Kai sensei. As imposing and resourceful as Terry is, Silver is a poor sensei who ultimately doesn’t believe in his students. This is evidenced byTerry bribing the refereeso that Tory Nichols (Peyton List) could win the All Valley tournament. Even by Cobra Kai’s insidious standards,Terry Silver is untrustworthy, manipulative, and the worst example of a Cobra Kai sensei.
3Kim Da-Eun
Master Kim Wanted Cobra Kai To Honor Her Family’s Legacy
Master Kim Da-Eun (Alicia Hannah-Kim) is a South Korean martial arts master and the granddaughter and pupil of Master Kim Sun-Yung. As a little girl in 1980, Da-Eun wasn’t allowed by her grandfather to train in Tang Soo Do, and she watched the Americans John Kreese and Terry Silver learn instead. However,Da-Eun proved herself worthy, and she eventually mastered the"Way of the Fist,“becoming a sensei as feared and formidable as her grandfather.
Master Kim joined when Terry promised Cobra Kai’s expansion would bring her family’s karate to the world.
InCobra Kaiseason 5, Master Kim Da-Eun and a host of other senseis were brought to California by Terry Silver to head up his multiple Cobra Kai dojos. Master Kim joined when Terry promised Cobra Kai’s expansion would bring her family’s karate to the world. Da-Eun joined Silver at his Cobra Kai main dojo, where she applied her cruel tutelage to Tory Nichols, whom Kim did not trust or see her potential.Kim was disgusted upon learning that Terry bribed the referee at the All Valley, and she returned to South Korea after Silver was beaten and humiliated by Daniel LaRusso.
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John Kreese traveled to South Korea to reunite with Master Kim Da-Eun inCobra Kaiseason 6, part 1 Together, they led a new South Korean version of Cobra Kai to the Sekai Taikai tournament. Yet Master Kim is also repulsed by Kreese’s underhanded tactics against Daniel LaRusso. InCobra Kaiseason 6, part 2, Master Kim Da-Eun found anunexpected love interest in Chozen Toguchi(Yuji Okumoto). A leopard on the verge of changing her spots,Master Kim Da-Eun’s skills and personal code of honor place her above Terry Silver as a Cobra Kai sensei.
2John Kreese
Cobra Kai’s Original Sensei Still Believes In “No Mercy”
John Kreese is a Vietnam war hero, karate champion, Cobra Kai’s co-founder, its original sensei, andKreese is perhaps the most dangerous villain inThe Karate Kidsaga. In ‘Nam, Kreese studied Tang Soo Do karate under Captain Turner, and he exhibited great skills and courage. Kreese also saved the young Terry Silver’s life when they were in a POW camp. Upon returning to the United States, John and Terry created the Cobra Kai dojo, with Silver as the money man while Kreese instilled his"no mercy"philosophy on his students as sensei.
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Kreese’s greatest success as a Cobra Kai sensei was Johnny Lawrence. In 1982 and 1983, Johnny became a two-time All Valley Under 18 Karate champion under Kreese’s guidance. However,Kreese’s life fell apart afterJohnny lost to Daniel LaRusso in the 1984 All Valley, and John showed his cruelty and disregard for his students. Cobra Kai’s dojo went out of business, and Kreese’s revenge plot against LaRusso inThe Karate Kid Part IIIalso failed. Kreese vanished from the karate scene for 30 years until Johnny Lawrence reopened the Cobra Kai dojo in 2017.
John Kreese teaches his Cobra Kai pupils:“We do not train to be merciful here. Mercy is for the weak. Here, in the streets, in competition: A man confronts you, he is the enemy. An enemy deserves no mercy.”
John wasted no time ingratiating himself with Johnny and stealing the Cobra Kai dojo from under him. Since his return, Kreese has been the primary villain ofCobra Kai, eternally diabolical and lacking remorse. Yet,Kreese remains an effective teacher to the right students.John’s personal interest and affection for Tory Nicholsmolded her into his finest protégé since Johnny Lawrence. Ultimately, there would be no Cobra Kai without Sensei John Kreese, who embodies the snake dojo’s"strike first, strike hard, no mercy"credo.
1Johnny Lawrence
Sensei Lawrence Brought Cobra Kai Back To Prominence
Johnny Lawrence rebooted Cobra Kai in 2017 and becamethe best sensei the dojo has ever seen. As a troubled youth, Johnny found Cobra Kai karate as his means of escape from his rich, overbearing stepfather, Sid Wienberg (Ed Asner). Johnny was Sensei John Kreese’s prize pupil, the leader of his Cobra Kai gang at West Valley High, and a two-time All Valley Under 18 Karate Champion. But when Johnny lost the 1984 All Valley title to his rival, Daniel LaRusso, and Kreese attacked him in the parking lot, Lawrence quit karate and his life fell apart.
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In 2017, a down-on-his-luck Johnny decided to open a new Cobra Kai dojo to find a sense of direction. Incredibly, Johnny succeeded, as his 1980s throwback"badass"philosophy found willing students, and Sensei Lawrence remarkably transformed a group of bullied West Valley High teenagers into genuine karate practitioners.Johnny’s greatest success is Miguel Diaz(Xolo Mariduena), who he loves like a son. Johnny led Miguel to become the 2018 All Valley Under 18 Karate Champion. It’s safe to say that the best version of the Cobra Kai dojo inCobra Kaiwas when Johnny was its main sensei.
Johnny didn’t train his biological son, Robby Keene (Tanner Buchanan), under the Cobra Kai banner, but they are now together as father/sensei and son/student at Miyagi-Do.
Improbably, Johnny Lawrence was only Cobra Kai’s sensei for the first two ofCobra Kai’s six seasons. After Kreese stole Cobra Kai from him, Johnny founded Eagle Fang Karate before merging his new dojo with Daniel LaRusso’s Miyagi-Do. InCobra Kaiseason 6, Johnny fuses his own strike-first tendencies with Miyagi-Do’s defensive approach and focus on self-betterment, and it works. Yet at heart, Johnny epitomizes the black and gold of Cobra Kai.There would simply be no 21st-century renaissance of Cobra Kai without Johnny Lawrence leading the way.Because he’s shown the capacity to learn, grow, and change while remaining a badass, Johnny Lawrence is the bestCobra Kaisensei.
