History Heartwarming / CobraKai

* During Valley Fest, Hawk pulls Demetri onstage during the performance to help him with his part. Earlier in the episode, he chastised Demetri for using Cobra Kai's reputation to score with girls despite not being a part of the dojo. In a way, he's helping him back up his claims so he doesn't look like a jerk in front of everyone. Seeing as in the next episode, their friendship spirals downwards, it's the last nice thing Hawk does for Demetri.

* When Johnny finds out that Kreese has been lying about his "resume", Kreese confesses that the events of his life after losing Cobra Kai are not only anything BUT badass, but in fact have left him a broken man. Johnny gently reminds him of the Cobra Kai motto -- "Defeat does not exist in this dojo" -- which inspires Kreese to return to the dojo under Johnny's leadership. (And while this moment is ruined by the fact that Kreese ultimately was playing him like a fiddle, but that takes nothing away from how Johnny ''wanted'' to redeem this man who was the closest thing he ever had to a father figure.)

** A bit more than the above: with the revelation that Johnny and Carmen are expecting, this makes Miguel and Robby not only friends, but virtually step-brothers to each other as well.

** Daniel being willing to give former Cobra Kai kids a chance even against Robbie's opposition and willingly telling his students about his experience with Terry Silver which is clearly very personal to him so they will understand that people can change.

* Combined with [[Awesome/CobraKai Awesome]], Johnny's HeroicSecondWind, caused by seeing his and Carmen's unborn baby's ultrasound. It drives him enough to defeat several of Cobra Kai's senseis who gave him a good beatdown. It really shows his drive that he will live enough to live with his new family that he has a second chance.

* All of Daniel's family and students (plus Johnny and Chozen) helping him out of his HeroicBSOD by reminding him of all the good he's done and that they are always by his side.
-->'''Amanda:''' And what I believe in now is standing up to Terry Silver. It's the right thing to do for you, for me, for our family. Sorry it took me so long to realize.\\

* Johnny thanks Demetri (who had arrived at his apartment as his tech assistant) for helping him get set up with a new phone and a tech plan so he can start gig-working. It's a small and subtle moment, but Johnny's appreciation is genuine and he seems to be getting over the idea that being a "nerd/geek/dork" is a bad thing.

** Daniel's adherence and love of Japanese culture as a whole. It's never shown as being fetishized for Daniel, and you can tell it's a way he remembers his father figure Miyagi, whom almost certainly taught Daniel everything he knows as his surrogate son.

* Shannon being not at all upset that Johnny "knocked up Carmen," being honestly happy for them, and helping Johnny get set up with some real work. It would be easy for her to resent Johnny getting a second chance to be a decent father, and committing himself to not making the mistakes with Carmen and their baby that he made with Shannon and Robby. But Shannon is honestly pleased that Johnny is trying to be a better person, to fix and learn from his mistakes, and she's sincerely proud to support him in that.

* It took four seasons, but finally, Sam and Tory are, if not friends, at least no longer enemies. Tory comes clean to Sam about Silver fixing the All-Valley, Sam gets a good look at Tory's home life and finally understands why the girl has so much rage and need to vent it, and the two join forces to bring Silver to justice, fighting side-by-side to see it done. They may cross fists in the future, but they've acheived a level of respect and understanding for each other.

* Keeping with the series' theme of people who seem to be entirely disconnected actually becoming friends, Tory and Devon bonding over similar upbringings, having a mom who was terminally ill and taking up karate because they felt they owed it to themselves to prove what they were capable of.

* [[PapaWolf Johnny taking care]] of Eli after Kenny uses the “silver bullet” on him. He’s become fully protective of his former student and holds no I’ll will against him after they butted heads and he left him for a new Sensei two times. It shows how Miyag-Fang has truly blended into one dojo as well as Johnny not taking the past personally anymore.

* Meta one from the school fight: Creator/MaryMouser [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZ5MrGWDyaI injured her hand and missed almost an entire day of filming]], meaning the entire filming schedule had to be rearranged so that all of the sequences not involving Sam could be filmed in her absence and everything she was needed for would instead be filmed the following day. Mary initially wanted to fight through the pain and continue shooting, only for one of the directors to insist on giving her the rest of the day off so that she could go to the hospital and get it treated properly, even though this meant the entire cast and crew would have to adjust at the last minute and film huge chunks of the fight with limited preparation.

** On a meta level, the fact that the show's creators managed, like showing us how Kreese and Terry Silver became life long friends, to reference the events of ''Film/TheKarateKidPartIII'' in a way that was appropriate to their own story just shows how much they love the entire franchise, including the movies that [[{{Sequelitis}} aren't so highly regarded]].
[[AC:"[[Recap/CobraKaiS3E8TheGoodTheBadAndTheBadass The Good, The Bad and The Badass]]" (3x08)]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Meta]]
* The overwhelmingly positive reaction the series has gotten for being a great example of a modern take on a classic piece of beloved nostalgia, and how to do it ''right'' when so many revived [=IPs=] have been getting it wrong. Instead of depicting Johnny and Daniel as out of focus, past their prime, and/or making them the butt of numerous "Haha, they're ''old'' now!" jokes, it shows that both of them still have room to change and grow as individuals and both of them still have a lot to offer the younger generation that has put trust in them. The showrunners' love for the original films is readily apparent with the way it treats the story and characters with the utmost respect (without coming off as overt pandering), and it succeeds grandly in getting old fans and brand-new viewers alike to care equally about both the familiar older characters and the newcomers.
* While most people who watched the original film pegged Johnny Lawrence as little more than a jerkass bully, William Zabka actually felt enough sympathy for Johnny to come up with a backstory that explained how he came to be such a jerk in the first place, and believed that deep down, there was a decent guy hiding underneath that unpleasant exterior. 34 years later, his personal headcanon would become official canon, and Zabka would get a chance to show the fans a nobler side of Johnny that they got only small glimpses of in the movie.
* The entire show is a labor of love for both William Zabka and Creator/RalphMacchio. Their friendship and love of making the original movies are what started it. Together, they executive co-produced it, meaning that they're putting in time and money behind the camera as well as in front. And it shows in both the nostalgia and thought put into the show.
* The entire show is also a tribute to Pat Morita and his character, Mr. Miyagi. A vast majority of Daniel's character arc is taking on Miyagi's legacy as Miyagi-Do's sensei (this time to an entire class), with many tributes to Mr. Miyagi himself such as Daniel promoting bonsai trees for his car business, Daniel visiting Miyagi's grave as a means to seek wisdom, Daniel opening up Miyagi-Do and passing on Miyagi's teachings to a new generation of students, Daniel and Kumiko reading Miyagi's letters to Yukie as a reminder that Miyagi always has Daniel's back, and Daniel learning more Miyagi-Do techniques from his former rival, Chozen (who also happens to take on Miyagi's legacy as well). Even Episode 5 of Season 1 is dedicated to Morita, with a picture of him and Macchio, alongside a slogan that reads "In loving memory of Noriyuki 'Pat' Morita (1932-2005)."
* The Miyagi-Do dojo features several items - pictures of Miyagi's ancestors, the "Karate is for defense only" scrolls, the little drum, etc. - brought over from Okinawa. Given that the show's focus on Johnny makes referencing the [[Film/TheKarateKidPartII events in Okinawa]] difficult, it's nice to see the second film acknowledged in subtle ways before Okinawa made an appearance in season 3.
* The first season alone got quite a few actors from the franchise saying they'd love to make an appearance sometime, including several from the latter two terribly-regarded films that no one could blame them for wanting to forget. And the producers actually took them up on it, with appearances by Lucille [=LaRusso=] and John Kreese in Season 1 (the latter promoted to the main cast), Bobby Brown, Tommy, and Jimmy in Season 2, Kumiko, Chozen Toguchi, Ali Mills, and even the girl that Daniel saved in the typhoon (Yuna) in Season 3, and Terry Silver for Season 4. Even Creator/HilarySwank has gone on the record to say that she'd love to see Daniel and [[Film/TheNextKarateKid Julie Pierce]] interact someday, as well as Sean Kanan (Mike Barnes's actor) outright stating that "you haven't seen the last of him" (and he does appear for two episodes in Season 5).
* The reaction of fans (as well as cast and crew) of Thomas Ian Griffith returning to acting as Terry Silver for Season 4 was nothing short of overwhelmingly positive. Cast and crew of the series took it to social media to promote Griffith's reappearance as the sinister, ponytailed billionaire. Even Griffith's Instagram account, which has not been very active prior to his promotional reveal, managed to grow from about 7,000 followers to currently 18.8k. Goes to show just how beloved his character is to fans of the ''Franchise/TheKarateKid'' franchise and ''Series/CobraKai'' (granted, as he was arguably the main highlight of the polarizing ''Film/TheKarateKidPartIII'').
* The crew's response to the passing of Creator/EdAsner, saying what little time they got to spend with him in what ended up being his final acting role was always a joy, and he was constantly cracking them up right to the end.
* Prior to the release of Season 4, the cast [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lGsQ855oY4 sent a surprise message]] to Creator/AndrewGarfield after learning how much he loved the show.

* Tory is genuinely upset with what Silver did to Daniel and even more horrified that Kreese sees it as a good thing. As much as she hated Sam, Amanda’s kindness must have really made its mark on her as she's concerned about someone she doesn’t really know all that well. She’s done with collateral damage and wants nobody to get hurt.

* Eli reworks his pectoral tattoo of the Grim Reaper to a stylized lotus trinity, symbolizing his more enlightened view and as an appreciation to Miyagi-Do for setting on the right path.
* Miguel and Sam hanging out with their respective boy/girl posse; Demetri and Eli try to help Miguel figure out how to placate Sam's (imagined) choler while Yasmine and Moon advise Sam on how to come across with Miguel without sounding unapologetic. This is an especial far cry for the girls since Season 1 when they were a very shallowly-connected clique; even for the boys Miguel, Demetri, and Eli had only stuck together back then because they simply felt they were the resident losers. But now the two groups stay together because they legimitimately consider each other friends.

* Now this might seem like a weird choice for a Moment of Heartwarming, but it's when Daniel [=LaRusso=] in his 50s[[note]]who was recently beaten to a pulp by a vengeful Terry Silver, which triggered his PTSD[[/note]] realized why [[BewareTheNiceOnes Mr. Miyagi]] in his 50s would walk away from a fight despite being an unbeatable [[OldMaster Miyagi-Do master]]. They avoid [[MartialPacifist conflict]] not because Daniel and Miyagi are too weak to fight. It's [[ForYourOwnGood because]] of how despite winning against foes, it's the [[InnocentBystander people around them]], especially their loved ones, that get hurt in the process, leading to [[NotQuiteTheRightThing Pyrrhic victories]] and [[NiceJobBreakingItHero unintentional suffering]] despite their [[DestructiveSavior best intentions]]. It showcases maturity in Daniel, even if it happened during his [[HeroicBSOD lowest point]].

* Seeing Johnny practice Miyagi-Do, set to the classic theme music, tugs on the heartstrings in the best way. It's also nice seeing Daniel train in Eagle Fang. Both of them are gaining a greater understanding of the other's style. What really sells this is the ''mood'' each of the two bring to their teachings. When Daniel is training Johnny, he does (as Amanda would put it) "enjoy it a little too much", but you can also tell that he is taking great pride in being able to share Miyagi's wisdom with Johnny and helping him become a more balanced person. Johnny, for his Eagle Fang training, also enjoys what he's doing to Daniel a little too much, but he ''sincerely'' encourages Daniel the whole time, constantly saying things like "You got this!" In the end, even Daniel manages to get into the testosterone-soaked mood, cheering "YEAH!" at the top of his lungs when he finally climbs to the top of the chain.

* Now this might seem like a weird choice for a Moment of Heartwarming, but it's when Daniel [=LaRusso=] in his 50s[[note]]who was recently beaten to a pulp by a vengeful Terry Silver, which triggered his PTSD[[/note]] realized why [[BewareTheNiceOnes Mr. Miyagi]] in his 50s would walk away from a fight despite being an unbeatable [[OldMaster Miyagi-Do master]]. They avoid [[TechnicalPacifist conflict]] not because Daniel and Miyagi are too weak to fight. It's [[ForYourOwnGood because]] of how despite winning against foes, it's the [[InnocentBystander people around them]], especially their loved ones, that get hurt in the process, leading to [[NotQuiteTheRightThing Pyrrhic victories]] and [[NiceJobBreakingItHero unintentional suffering]] despite their [[DestructiveSavior best intentions]]. It showcases maturity in Daniel, even if it happened during his [[HeroicBSOD lowest point]].

** The fact that even ''Kyler'' does not side with Silver and [[EvenEvilHasStandards appears to show genuine disgust toward the latter's actions in his body language and facial expressions]] are a small but nevertheless existent sign that ''anyone'' may be capable of finding redemption, even if Kyler [[FakeUltimateHero falsely attempts to take credit]] for [[BlatantLies seeing through Silver and finding Cobra Kai "cultish"]] afterwards.

** The fact that even ''Kyler'' does not side with Silver and [[EvenEvilHasStandards appears to show genuine disgust toward the latter's actions in his body language and facial expressions]] are a small but nevertheless existent sign that ''anyone'' may be capable of finding redemption, even if Kyler falsely attempts to take credit for seeing through Silver and finding Cobra Kai "cultish" the whole time afterwards.