Spoilers for the series finale of Cobra Kai are below!
Summary
- John Kreese's redemption arc includes mending relationships and sacrificing himself to stop Terry Silver's revenge.
- An alternate Cobra Kai ending for Kreese involved surviving the explosion, but it was cut for feeling unnecessary.
- Cobra Kai showrunners opted to have Kreese die, which suited his character arc and redemption journey.
After six seasons, Cobra Kai has ended, but the show cut an alternate ending that would have drastically changed the fate of one long-standing character. The sequel series to the Karate Kid films followed the continuing rivalry and eventual friendship of Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso and William Zabka's Johnny Lawrence, along with their families and martial arts students.
The series brought back several characters from the Karate Kid films, with the series following multiple character arcs throughout its run. One character that was brought back was Martin Kove's John Kreese. Kreese was the original creator of the Cobra Kai dojo, first seen in 1984's The Karate Kid. Kove would return to the role of Kreese throughout the films, with Cobra Kai bringing him back to continue his antagonistic ways as a prominent regular character. The finale Kreese received on Cobra Kai was initially meant to include more, but it was cut from the show.
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What Was John Kreese's Ending On Cobra Kai?
The final season of Cobra Kai gave Kreese a bit of a redemption arc. The character was known as a villain, implementing the Cobra Kai dojo's "no mercy" rule. This proved to be the wrong lesson to pass along, especially with his often callous treatment of others. However, following the death of a student, Kreese undergoes self-reflection, seeing the error in his actions. He sets about mending past relationships with Johnny and Tory, hoping to keep them on positive paths, even acting as a father figure to the latter.
Through his actions, the Sekai Taikai tournament can continue despite Kwon's death, which Kreese feels guilty for. He also helps Tory pursue her karate dreams, which she is set to continue beyond the show's closing moments. He also turns control of the Cobra Kai dojo over to Johnny, who was initially reluctant to accept Kreese's apology. Still, he does, seeing there is a sincerity in the troubled figure. Once Kreese feels he has set things right, even with Kim Da-Eun, a character that became integral to his story through the last two seasons, he makes one last move.
Knowing Terry Silver, a villainous cohort he helped introduce into the franchise in The Karate Kid Part III, was on a mission of vengeance against those who crossed him, Kreese decided to make a sacrifice. While the character's arc still wouldn't classify him as a hero, he does aid the leads in a bombastic fashion by killing Silver and himself in a yacht explosion. While the moment felt like a drastic choice, it was also a natural path for a man whose thinking had proven flawed for years, so even in redemption, he follows his own path.
Kreese's Alternate Ending Would Have Given Him A Different Outcome
Kreese actor Martin Kove revealed to Parade that his character had a different ending on Cobra Kai, which was filmed but never used. His arc would have been the same throughout the season, culminating in the yacht explosion that killed Terry Silver. However, after the explosion, there was a scene that would have shown Kreese alive rather than also dying in the blast. As Kove put it:
It was my hand with the ring—just the shot of the hand—taking the magazine that says, ‘Whatever happened to Terry Silver?'
While it was a simple moment, it would have drastically changed John Kreese's fate. As it stands now within the world of Cobra Kai, Kreese died in the same explosion as Terry Silver. The alternate ending would have implied that he survived the yacht explosion somehow, but knowing that he succeeded in dispatching Silver via the magazine headline. It would not have shown more than the actor's hand, lasting mere seconds. However, the svene was cut from the series finale episode.
Why Was The Alternate Ending Cut From Cobra Kai's Finale?
Kove revealed that the Cobra Kai showrunners ultimately said the moment "didn’t feel it was necessary." He added, "It might have been a little hokey to have the guy live through an explosion." Kove's sentiment about unlikely survival is fair, as most audiences may have scoffed at the idea that he could have survived the explosion, especially given his proximity to Silver when the blast occurred. However, the yacht explosion was also one of Cobra Kai's most significant moments, almost feeling out of place on the show, which could have been amplified had Kreese survived.
Even with Kreese's redemption arc throughout the final season, most fans of Cobra Kai would likely agree that the character was better off dying in the yacht explosion rather than living in obscurity. While he earned a bit of redemption, it was too little, too late for Kreese, making his death an appropriate outcome. His death also featured hints of altruism, and the character was unlikely to thrive with the guilt he now felt, making the showrunners' choice to omit the moment the best option for the show. While there may be a future for some of Cobra Kai's best characters, depending on future plans, John Kreese looks to have had his final moments on the show.
Cobra Kai
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- Release Date
- 2018 - 2025-00-00
- Network
- Netflix, YouTube Premium
Cast
-
Ralph MacchioDaniel LaRusso -
William ZabkaJohnny Lawrence
WHERE TO WATCH
- Showrunner
- Jon Hurwitz
