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Cobra Kai started off as a small spinoff of the Karate Kid movies, but it quickly grew into a phenomenon. Between nostalgia for the original films, the action-packed karate and the heartfelt characters, fans can’t get enough of the series. In fact, it’s become one of Netflix’s top performers. With Season 5 only weeks away, Netflix just released some photos that blew the minds of all Cobra Kai fans.
One photo revealed that Kenny will be one of the main Cobra Kai students in the new season, and another one showed that Robbie will be officially rejoining Miyagi-Do. However, the photo that has fans exited is a shot of Sean Kanan as Mike Barnes. The thing is, his Cobra Kai debut might be totally different from what fans are expecting.
Cobra Kai has made regular use of its source material by having all kinds of Karate Kid characters return to the franchise. Along with its original cache of characters, John Kreese returned in Season 2; Ali Mills cameoed in Season 3, along with Kumiko and Chozen, and Terry Silver headlined Season 4. With all of those appearances, fans have been holding their breath to see when and if Mike Barnes would return. Now, it’s officially happening in Season 5. For a quick recap, Mike Barnes’ only appearance in the Karate Kid franchise was in the third movie (which might be a basis for Season 5 in more ways than one). At that time, he was a rising star in the martial arts world, so Terry Silver hired him to beat Daniel LaRusso at the All Valley Karate Tournament — and he nearly did. Barnes was a much better fighter than Daniel, and from the looks of Netflix’s promotional photo, Barnes hasn’t forgotten his title as “Karate’s Bad Boy.”
The question that arises, though, is how Barnes will factor into the series. It’s possible that Terry Silver will simply call him in to assist with his expanding Cobra Kai franchise, but it’s also possible that he will be secretly related to another character. After all, it seems like everything in Cobra Kai is always connected, even to an unrealistic degree. With that in mind, it’s possible that Barnes could end up being Tory Nichols’ or Miguel’s father, although the latter option is probably not possible since Miguel went to find his father in Mexico.
