Cobra Kai Characters Who’ve Gotten Way More Popular Since The Beginning

Cobra Kai’s popularity is big enough that even after getting to see season four, fans are already hoping Netflix drops the completed fifth season early. A large part of the reason for that is the series’ characters. People have fallen in love with the way Cobra Kai approaches even its minor characters.

And while everyone is used to characters like Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso taking up all the camera time, the show has far more than that. There are arguably too many characters in Cobra Kai, but there are some that have experienced some massive growth in popularity from their introduction.

9 Yasmine Shifts Her Personality After Being Mocked

Yasmine spent the early parts of the series trying to bully Aisha for not conforming to her narrow standards of beauty. But the moment Aisha learned karate and stood up for herself, Yasmine completely changed her behavior.  After disappearing for several episodes, Yasmine reappeared with a new, humbled mindset. These days, she just wants to enjoy her life at school and go out with her nerdy boyfriend. Yasmine could use a bit more screen time to develop beyond being Demetri’s girlfriend, but she’s still much more popular now than she was before.

8 Moon Is One Of The Only Non-Violent Characters On The Show

Moon was Yasmine’s partner in mean girl activities for the majority of the first season. She had no problem with her friend’s cruel treatment of anyone who wasn’t with their in-group… until she saw Yasmine get embarrassed. After that, Moon decided she wanted no part of violence whether it was physical or emotional. Since then, she’s been a sweeter, nicer character that avoids violence entirely. The problem with Moon these days is that with the switch to things being more karate-focused, the viewers don’t get to see her much.

7 Devon Lee Perfectly Fits Into Eagle Fang’s Karate

One of the more recently added characters, Devon went from a nobody to a fan favorite quickly. Initially, Johnny recruited her just so he could have someone who could help him in the women’s division. A member of the debate team, the show set the character up as a joke to be easily written off… only to make her a perfect addition to Eagle Fang.

Devon adds a bit of intelligence to the otherwise headstrong organization, but she also has the killer instinct and desire to be a winner that fits Johnny Lawrence’s mindset. Though she didn’t progress very far in the tournament at the end of the year, she definitely roundhouse’d her way into everyone’s heart.

6 Hawk Regained His Compassion And Apologized For His Actions

Hawk has been on quite the ride since the beginning of the series. He began as a quiet kid with no confidence until joining Cobra Kai gave him strength and conviction. Before he knew it, he was bullying the kids who once bullied him. But after a change of heart in season three, Hawk turned to the ways of Miyagi-Do karate and gave up the aggression of Cobra Kai. Still, Season 4 showed him atoning for what he’d done to his friends… and giving him the chance to give Kyler one more beatdown.

5 Kenny Payne Tries His Hardest To Fit In Amongst His Peers At School And Dojo

It’s hard not to like a character who takes the advice everyone always offers: dance like no one’s watching. There’s only one problem: in Kenny’s case, literally everyone was watching, leading to Anthony LaRusso and his friends bullying him. It doesn’t take long before Kenny takes to learning karate to defend himself from the ruthless bullying he’s experiencing at school.

Over time, he goes from being terrified to being a decently talented fighter despite his diminutive size. There’s been an implication that he’s going to be a much darker character come Season 5, but when everyone has been able to see how he got like this, most fans are still in his corner.

4 Demetri Learns To Believe In His Own Training

Demetri wasn’t really much of a character at first. While he attempted to join Cobra Kai, the moment he saw how ruthless its teachings could be, he immediately got out. In the year since then though, he’s become one of the lead students of Miyagi-Do, and while he’s one of the characters often tested the most, he continues to use his knowledge of karate only to defend himself or others. Demetri’s growth in Season 4 led to him being able to keep up with some of Cobra Kai’s strongest fighters. Demetri is a welcome change to all the characters who change allegiances every episode.

3 Terry Silver Establishes Himself As A Bigger Villain Than Kreese

Fans have been asking for Terry Silver since the second season brought back John Kreese. And in season four, they finally got their wish. Terry is just as over the top as he was in the third Karate Kid film, and it’s great. He’s just as driven and insane as he was in the third film. Though at first, it was easy to believe he was just there to be a cowed assistant to Kreese, the end of Season 4 proved otherwise. Not only is Silver just as much of a villain as his former friend, but he’s proven even more cunning and dangerous.

2 Amanda LaRusso Helps Ground Daniel In Real Life Situations

In the hands of less talented writers, Amanda could have been a much worse character. She could have been someone who was barely present since she doesn’t have any actual fighting ability. And when she was present, she could’ve fallen into the boring and gross trope of being the nagging wife. Instead, Amanda’s someone who can poke fun at how absurd the karate rivalries are without actually detracting from the action. She tolerates all of it though, while doing most of the work keeping their car dealership going. She’s also one of the first people to point out how Daniel and Johnny Lawrence have more in common than they want to believe.

1 Chozen Toguchi’s Change In Character Makes Him The Best Former Villain

Chozen was one of the most dangerous Karate Kid villains in the original film trilogy. Though he claimed he was fighting for honor, he really just wanted to prove he was better than Miyagi’s student. In the end, he challenges Daniel to a fight to the death and is lucky that Daniel chose to spare him. But since he’s returned he’s a completely different person. He’s quieter and less cocky, but he’s also a much better martial artist than he used to be. Though he didn’t appear in Season 3 for very long, from the looks of things he’ll play a major part of Season 5.