#Cobra Kai really needs to start putting Daniel in red | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

crimsonblackrose · 2 months

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Before

I guess it's kind of an orange red, but those mirrors are not nearly as orange as that one shot had been.

If they're just now taking off the larusso auto plate does that mean that Johnny's been driving around for months without a liscense plate?

Miguel has a skateboard

This is kind of funny since it's the club Miguel lied to his mother and said he was instead of karate. Though it might be a reference to something else. Miguel also changed up his art and posters and moved things around a little.

The put a tape player in from Pioneer.

Custom molded snake lol. It's kinda cute.

He finally has a real license plate.

After

lol they're on friends street

I always enjoy the Miguel and Johnny opening.

I think this is confirmation that Robby sleeps on a couch and that it's a one bedroom where his mom has the bedroom. They don't even have a pull out bed.

Shannon came back for medication. Rick says he's taking her to Cabo-adjacent. She's been gone for a few days.

Robby was right to kick this guy, his friends Trey and mustache guy no longer with mustache are probably after him.

The next thing she grabs is more pills

They're in apartment 3

She says she'll call the next day.

Robby asks about bills because he doesn't and then it's cut off. I don't know if that's doesn't have enough money or the ability to do so.

Rick is supposed to pay that month.

All the photos of Mr. Miyagi's ancestors were in Okinawa. Did they bring those home with them after Tkk3? Because Daniel hasn't been back right?

Sam dear, the cutting yourself off and stopping what you want to say because of the people around you is one of the biggest issues you had at the start of your relationship with Miguel. Now you've added Robby to the mix.

The front of the house where all the parking is is dirt.

Mr. Miyagi has a white canoe (I think it's from the film or they're attempting the one from the film) and it's sitting out out front with the cars but opposite of the cars.

Daniel seemed to have realized sparring in the back with the giant rock is a terrible idea so they're up front with the cars with a sand circle.

Daniel's says it's been a long time since there's been more than one student in Miyagi-do. I wonder if he means he and Julie trained together at one point or counts that, or if he counts himself and Sam together. Or if he means all the way back to Sato and Mr. Miyagi.

Johnny's classes are an hour. He has a 4 pm class and a 5 pm class.

If I'm not wrong season 1 and 2 are the only times Johnny has money from this venture right? Where he's not scraping by?

That's an interesting landline also a good sturdy printer

Johnny gets a new term he's unfamiliar with and thinks prank call. He really needs Miguel to like help him with interactions.

I never noticed their pun food shirts before. I love it. Cobra Kai and Miyagi do truly break up all the childhood best friends. So far we've got Sam/Aisha (repaired temporarily), and soon Demetri and Eli, and eventually these two.

Also Hawk's nicknames are unoriginal, shithead 1 and shithead 2 aren't creative.

Aisha's choice is a little better (Though i mean still mean) Mary-kate and asshat.

Chris is such a sweetie, he held the door open for them last time and is stepping forward to introduce himself. Johnny these kids are getting mean, you gotta do some more work. Your chat only worked on Miguel. Ope, forgot Miguel had one too: Assface and douchebag. Do we not get the other kids name?

did I miss something? I don't remember Johnny saying yes to kreese. I guess that was supposed to be a leave you hanging and then he's back. I love his pointly little cowboy shoes.

Okay that's what I thought, Bert joins first. See I thought they were the other childhood friends but clearly not.

There's white cubbies in the corner seems like that's where the bags and shoes go.

I always assumed near the door, but I guess the entire floor isn't a mat just the center. And I'm honestly surprised how many people wear shoes over it when not in an actual lesson.

oh wait Kreese is being respectful of the mat. The red and black now I get where Johnny got his eagle fang color scheme from.

Kreese already taking advantage of the crumb Johnny gave him and encroaching. Tomorrow became today. He should've kicked Kreese out and told him to come back tomorrow.

Robby isn't wearing shoes to train, but Sam is.

Robby's kind of dressed Daniel-esq with the pants under his shorts.

Johnny introduces Kreese as a visitor which makes me think the agreement was he could come to one class and no more. Mr. Kreese is just an observer. Yeah he's trying to draw a line that Kreese walks right over.

The dab joke and the snake hiss

I originally thought was embarrassing for Johnny to have happened in front of Kreese. But also very telling of how much they love Johnny and the class. Because they had to have all practiced that. But then after the dallies seeing Kreese say fall in and all the cobras fall in a circle behind him giggling makes me think it's a time honored tradition for cobras to be a little silly.

However, as much fun as they're having, maybe not the best choice with a guest around.

I also feel like they're very good at telling Johnny's moods and Aisha going straight for the second punch being a joke seems a little out of character based on how they a. Know Kreese is there and b. know that Johnny's sounding kinda pissed off.

5am corner of Fulton and Raymer

To be fair I think if Johnny had explained who Kreese was they would've been much more serious. He did tell them to ignore Kreese, but at the same time he could've been someone trying to determine if they were good enough or if Johnny was a good enough sensei and whether their dojo would stay open or not. Like an inspector of sorts.

Emergency is at the North Hollywood location, which we haven't been to yet. Vic got taken by Tom Cole without letting there be a counter along with top two sales people during the last week of the month on purpose for timing. So Tom Cole is wasting money stealing Daniel's staff.

the North hollywood coffee station:

Amanda is right. Daniel said he could balance teaching and doing work. It's weird anyway that the kids are there to study from him during the day and that he can't be at work during the day. It's not like Shannon's home. And Sam is Daniel's daughter, so why not evenings after work? And this is a big thing that means they're short on people and Amanda needs Daniel there, the company needs him.

Sheila runs errands as well. He told Amanda to call Sheila to go get a suit from his closet, so I guess Sheila has a key to the house?

Even though his compromise is let's sell 10 cars in one day, it really does show how good Amanda and Daniel work together.

I am surprised they tried to sell the car in the showroom and not in one of the offices. I figured anyone would want that to be private.

To Danny and Mandy. It's interesting because I think the only one whose called him Danny other than himself in this moment is Terry Silver. Though that might've been Danny-boy.

The glasses they're drinking out of look weird. Almost like vases.

She told the service team they can go home early. What if there were more people who wanted to buy cars? Just because they met their quota for the month doesn't mean people have to go home or that they don't need to sell more cars.

Mechanic drops wheel in middle of floor, why other than to give Daniel an idea?

ah yes cement mixer my beloved/beloathed. I forgot the kids mix the cement themselves before hand.

Johnny's cement friend is named Cutter and the company is called Panorama City Cement

The goal I guess is to make them scared of cement, according to Kreese who seems disappointed that they're just mixing cement.

Cutter's only doing this because Johnny's paying off his bar tab, so they must be drinking buddies.

There is pretty much no food in Robby's fridge. But he drinks 2% milk. Though the milk jug is almost empty. He also had one microwave half eaten container and one take out container and one 7 up.

The keene apartment

Daniel this thing holds two bonsai's surely it'll also hold students, he says without testing it.

The poor Koi fish that live in there

This isn't particularly safe either. I know we tend to note all the unsafe stuff Johnny puts his students through, but the amount of rocks and stuff around and probably under that balancing board, not to mention how much algae and stuff is on the ground of that pond. Plus it's a floating wooden disc, you slip and that thing hits you in the head???? Not to mention the board is wet.

Pretty much both cobra kai and miyagi do students are making valid arguments for safety and all are being ignored.

Johnny should've started hosing the first batch of kids down long before they all got out.

Proud of Robby for being honest and transparent. Sorry for being snappy my mom left and missed some bills. I.e. the power went out and I've got no food and no parental unit.

Robby's house part 2:

Daniel should've told Johnny as soon as Sam told him.

Robby is eating Corn pops with water. At least the water hasn't been shut off. But still.

It looks like Robby or Shannon put up a white board calendar...outside their apartment???

Why? Also wish I could read it.

Daniel ready to adopt Robby.

Amanda: You have to talk to his parents, he has parents.

Daniel: I tried his mom.

Amanda: He also has a dad who you know.

Literally the way she's looking at him and speaking is like, I love you but you're a dumbass.

Monday 9-12 intermediate class (So longer than the 1 hour classes he mentioned over the phone)

Tuesday 407 Beginner class.

Wednesday 12 to something Advanced.

It must be summer or something.

In the next shot Beginner karate is smudged, so Kreese leaned against it.

Wednesday 12-3 Advanced training

Thursday 9-12 conditioning

Friday 10-2 outdoor training. So i guess every Friday he takes them on a field trip?

Saturday 9-12 eEginner

Sunday Open schedule

Frank owed dues.

Proud of Johnny for turning down free booze from Kreese (Tallboys)

Kreese wasn't originally supposed to come back the next day for a third lesson, but he's working on it for sure.

Miguel's got keys and bringing food over because Carmen doesn't want Johnny eating slim jims for breakfast any more. 😂

Johnny's added two new take out menus to his fridge and moved Robby's photo up to eye level.

Also how on earth can Miguel tell from a 2010 photo of Robby in soccer gear and glasses that that is Robby? Like if he flipped it over to the back and it said something like Robby Keene's soccer at such and such school for such and such team I'd get it. But I can't tell that's Robby so how can Miggy?

Kreese is being a dick to the mini mart owner who last we saw seemed to be on better terms with Johnny due to mutual unhappiness over rent being raised.

Kreese bought Johnny his favorite Coors but can version. How much money do you think Coors gave cobra kai to be Johnny's beer? It's in every episode. Do you think William Zabka actually has to drink it or do you think they fake the cans and bottles and put like soda in them or something?

Kreese's almost all of us could've meant silver until he said my condolences.

Johnny saying "you don't know what you're talking about man" is maybe the only standing up to himself he does. And he is being honest. Daniel is unaware of the situation.

Kreese moving in and Daniel not clocking the way he shrugs off Kreese's hand and moves away always gets me.

No Daniel, no. You came to ask if Robby could live with you or if he knew that Robby didn't have a home, but completely skipping that and not saying and it and just making assumptions...infuriates me. Yes you don't want Robby anywhere near Kreese, but also neither does Johnny. And Johnny has a right to know where Robby is and his situation. I believe this is has Robby been kidnapped part 3. Fueled extra by mongoose brain. I want to know how the conversation with Amanda goes after this. Like did you talk to Johnny? Yes. What did he say about Robby? We didn't talk about Robby. Honestly, Daniel should go in the dog house for that one. You can't just adopt/steal a kid without parental permission Daniel.

#mumbling about shows

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taughtdefense · 11 months

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sender curls up against receiver in their sleep .

these past few days have been intensely emotional & twice as hectic. as it stands, it seems like none of the miyagi-do students have had time for a break. it’s constant, nonstop movement from everyone, who are kicked into high gear. with you very recently getting out of the hospital from your near death experience, & robby very recently rejoining miyagi-do, & with the miyagi-do senseis ( & amanda, wade & vanessa, too ) planning on how to take silver down, there’s barely been any time to properly train with all three senseis. sensei toguchi seems to be incredibly capable ( you really like the fact that he keeps weapons on him to attack/defend himself from enemies if need be — you do something similar in various other lives ). you’ve not really spoken to mr. toguchi yet, only to introduce yourself to him, but if daniel trusts him to train his kids, then you trust him, too.

as for wade & vanessa, your parents are in the middle of the US right now, working their own jobs. while they’re doing that, they’re simultaneously on the lookout for any signs of terry’s reign of terror reaching past california.

as for you right now, you’re currently still feeling all sorts of joy with robby rejoining miyagi-do. to say you’re relieved about him leaving cobra kai is an understatement.

your injuries are still a little tender, & sometimes you struggle to put on or take off a shirt. you’ve been trying to hide your pain from everyone so they don’t worry about you, but none of your friends are stupid. you know that they know you’re still struggling with day-to-day activities, & that’s not even mentioning the mental ramifications of your near-death experience has had on your psyche. the medical-grade bandages are helping keep the stab wound from getting infected, & the medical-grade stitches are top-notch, so there’s that. you’re probably going to have a scar on your vessel, but a scar is better than being dead. so, you’re being extra careful not to push yourself too much in daily activities. it’s mostly for robby’s benefit, as opposed to yours, so he doesn’t have to keep worrying over you. mr. larusso & johnny are very adamant in not letting you train until you fully heal.

it’s something you only half agree with. you need to be ready in case something happens, but you also understand their worry in you pushing yourself too much in your current state.

it’s the middle of the night, & you’re laying in bed with robby, an arm wrapped protectively around his waist, staring up at the ceiling. you can’t seem to shut your brain up enough to fall asleep, which is what your body needs. you keep replaying the past few days’ events in your mind, picking apart every single idea the adults have had to take down silver, going through hundreds of potential outcomes.

if silver somehow catches wind of miyagi-do’s plans, what would he do? before you can stop, your mind quickly begins to spiral down that dark rabbit hole. what if that newcomer, sensei kim, makes tory or talia go after sam sam, just to get to daniel? what if silver has someone hurt robby to get johnny? you won’t let either of them out of your sight.

you’re fine with being silver’s punching bag. let him beat you up, let him give you another scar. you can handle that. what you won’t be able to handle is your friends & senseis getting hurt because of him. hell, in a heartbeat, you’d willingly go through all of that over & over again, as long as it keeps your friends & senseis safe.

your mind races with these various thoughts & you struggle to calm down, your expression flickering to one of fierce, protective determination. you shift your position slightly, wrapping your arm tighter around robby, your pupils flaring blood red in rage when you start thinking about silver hurting someone else, someone you care about. stingray was hospitalized by silver. mr. larusso was recently hurt by him, too, & finding that out had been fucking rage-inducing.

your own head rests on the two pillows against the headboard. it’s dark in your bedroom, but you can see robby perfectly. your racing thoughts are cut off when @taughtpain suddenly curls up against you in his sleep. you instinctively react, very carefully maneuvering yourself so he’s more comfortable with the way his head is on your chest, pulling him in closer to your body. your simulated heartbeat is calm, steady & soothing. you’re so fucking in love with him it hurts. you might not be able to fall asleep right now, but you can make sure robby’s own sleep isn’t disturbed. gently, as not to wake him from his sleep, you card your fingers through his hair. after a moment, you plant a tender kiss to the top of his head.

you then pull back a little, gazing down at robby asleep on your chest, carefully watching over him. all parts of you - both human & eldritch - are screaming at you to keep him safe from harm, no matter what it takes, because he’s the most important person in your life. almost everyone & everything else comes second to robby’s safety, happiness & general wellbeing. you love him. everyone around you knows that, long before you even realized it yourself. you’ve proven that again & again. you almost died for him. of course you’re going to protect robby. you reach for the blankets which became bundled around your waist some time ago, carefully pulling them up around robby’s shoulders. you need him to be safe. you won’t let him get hurt, if you can help it. not by landon, not by kenny, not by anyone.

#taughtpain #answered.#in character. / season 5.#main verse.: miyagi fang. — ❝ i ached for warmth & peace. the universe laughed at me. ❞

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pilvimarja · 2 years

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hi, what coloring do you use in your gifs?

Hi! I always make my own color adjustments, usually from scratch, though I do have a small folder where I've saved some gifs with specific adjustment settings, especially if the scene was challenging to color adjust and I know I'll need to gif the same setting again in the future.

This isn't a proper tutorial, but I thought I'd show how I color adjust this very basic example gif of Johnny and Daniel at the Christmas party. Now, I'm by no means an expert at Photoshop (and I use a pretty old version of it) or giffing, so this is just my personal process.

Anyway, here's the gif before and after coloring (and sharpening):

I use Photoshop CS5 and I do all my coloring with adjustment layers from the layers menu. I usually like to start with the curves tool, which to me kind of acts like "turning the lights on" in the gif :D

(I'll put the rest under a read more cut)

Next I add a selective color adjustment layer. I use this to fine tune and tweak specific colors in the gif. The color grading and lighting in the early seasons of Cobra Kai is often kind of ugly with lots of yellows and greens in the image, so I usually try to make the color palette more natural with the selective color tool. It's a bit more challenging when Johnny and Daniel are both in the same gif, because their skin tones are very different and I always try to preserve Daniel's beautiful olive skin, but playing with the reds and yellows can sometimes make Johnny look really red in the face haha.

Sometimes I also add a color balance adjustment layer for even more fine tuning of specific colors or the "main tone" of the gif.

I don't use it every time, but in this specific gif I also used a hint of additional brightness with a brightness and contrast layer. Sometimes I follow this step with increasing/decreasing the overall amount of light with a levels layer, and I might enhance the colors with a hint of vibrance.

I also don't do this final step with every gif, but sometimes I like to use a hue/saturation layer to remove unnecessary colors from the gif to decrease its size/make it less grainy. In this gif I remove all blue, magenta, green and cyan, because they only showed up in a small, specific spot near Daniel's collar.

And there! That's how I color my gifs! I don't know if this method works for you, but I hope you found this helpful :)

#asks #pilvimarja edits #gif coloring process #my daily tarot once again encouraged me to share and help others so this is my attempt to do so 😁

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variousqueerthings · 3 years

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Daniel LaRusso: A Queer Feminine Fairytale Analysis Part Two of Three

Part 1

Part 3

6. Sexual Awakenings part 1: Love, Obsession, & Size Differences

[Insert that post talking about the creators making sure that Daniel’s antagonists were much bigger than him so that the audience would sympathise, spawning 10000 size kink fics]

I’m sure this won’t awaken anything in Daniel

Corporate wants you to find the difference between these two pictures

The hallmark of feminine fairytales tends to be growing into womanhood, with all those symbolic sexual under/overtones, searching for a prince, encountering monsters (or evil stepmothers), on the surface tending to be quite passive/reactive, but actually being about young girls and women getting out of their environment and choosing to tussle with those deep, dark desires – monsters. They’ve got to function within the limitations of power that they have – escaping an abusive situation through marriage, chasing forbidden desires under the guise of duress, asking questions about sexuality through things like symbolic plucking (flowers) or consumption (fruit) or pricking (needles), etc.

Daniel isn’t striking out to find his fortune or win a girl or a kingdom Like A Man, he’s not a threat to Silver, who – like Jareth in Labyrinth – is in control for almost the whole of the narrative, he’s not actually able to do much more than react until he makes the decision to stop training, and even then he’s immediately ganged up on and assaulted, needing to be saved by Miyagi while he stands and watches, bloodied and bruised.

Daniel’s journey in the third movie is to be forced into an impossible situation, seduced by Silver, and then prove that whatever violence Silver did to him isn’t enough to destroy him. It is incredibly similar to Sarah’s in Labyrinth, who by the end declares: “you have no power over me,” and that’s her winning moment. Not strength, not wits, not a direct fight, (although Daniel does fight Barnes and gets beat up again – only winning in in the end by taking him by surprise, unlike in TKK1 or TKK2 where you could argue that he proves himself to be a capable physical opponent to Johnny and Chozen), but by declaring that whatever power was held over her is now void.

Daniel’s narrative isn’t satisfying in the same way, because the dynamic of Silver and Daniel only accidentally emulates this - it’s not an intention on the side of the film-makers.

When Miyagi tells Daniel that he has strong roots, when he tells him not to lose to fear and Daniel wins over Barnes (in an almost fairytale-esque set of events), on paper he’s defeated whatever hold Terry Silver has over him. In the film itself though, Daniel never defeats Silver (which will likely be confirmed once he returns in Season Four). Daniel cannot simply say “you have no power over me,” and see Silver shattered into glass shards.

The film is a contradiction: It wants to be a masculine sports film, but it exists in the same realm as Goblin Kings seducing young girls with the promise of: “Just fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave.” Unlike Sarah, Daniel doesn’t claim the power that’s been promised to him on his own terms. His subtextually sexual awakening is so corrupted that all he can do is pretend it never happened.

Still, Daniel proves in the film that his strength is not in his fists. It’s in his praying to the bonsai tree that’s healed despite a violent boy brutally tearing it in two.

These looks on Daniel and Silver though?

So why does Silver become obsessed with him? What’s up with all those red outfits (that he doesn’t wear in Cobra Kai)? What does the temptation reveal about Daniel? How does it recontextualise TKK1 and TKK2? Is Daniel bisexual? (yes).

Ah, beach-Daniel, in your red hoodie and your cut-off jorts. Iconic hot-girl summer vibes.

If you didn’t want me over-analysing this, you shouldn’t have put him in so many red outfits and then have this man leering at him like he wants to eat him alive.

Surface-level it’s not hard to read into a Dude Story: Masculine power fantasies are about strength in a very direct way. Fighting, control, suaveness – and if you’re not the most traditionally masculine of guys, asserting dominance through being a good lover or intelligent or overcoming that unmanliness in some way through beating the bully or convincing the hot girl to go out with you, levelling up in coolness. Being A Man. It’s not too dissimilar from Daniel’s arc in the first movie, if you watch it without taking later events into account, although Daniel is never interested in proving himself as a man, and more in making Miyagi proud. Still, he does win and gain respect, and arguably “get the girl,” although Ali’s interest in him was never dependent on the fight.

7. Sexual Awakenings Part 2: Sexual Assault, Liberation, and Queerness

Feminine power fantasies are often about sex. Metaphorically. More accurately it’s “owning sexuality.” Even more accurately: “Freedom.” They also inhabit a fluid space in which empowerment through monstrous desires and non-consent can happen at the same time. And on top of that, many of these “fantasies” are actually being written by men, so whose fantasy is it really? A lot of them are based in oral traditions so presumably they were originally from the mouths of women, even if modern iterations (starting with Grimm’s collections) are filtered through cis men’s perspectives.

All of that being acknowledged: In Angela Carter’s “The Company Of Wolves,” Red Riding Hood unambiguously sleeps with the wolf. Belle discovers her freedom from expectations and unsuitable suitors (and in some versions, evil stepsisters) by falling in love with a Beast (the original novel was written by a woman, the 18th century Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve). Jareth informs Sarah of his obsessive devotion to her in Labyrinth. To lean into horror for a moment – Buffy is stalked and eventually has relationships with both Angel and Spike, Lucy in Coppola’s Dracula (which I have mixed feelings about) is raped by the werewolf and Mina is stalked by Dracula, The Creature Of The Black Lagoon kidnaps Kay (the lead’s girlfriend) – subverted in both The Shape Of Water in which Eliza forms a consensual relationship with the amphibious sea-god and in the short-lived horror series Swamp Thing, in which the connection is purposefully framed as seductive…

and in The Karate Kid Part Three Daniel LaRusso punches a board until his hands bleed because an attractive, older man tells him to and in this moment he gives in to what he (thinks he) wants.

Not all of those examples are equal. Some are consensual, some are hinted as abusive and/or stalkery, all of them have large age gaps, and a few are outright non-consensual.

But they’re all fantasies.

They’re all power-fantasies.

Except for Daniel, because he’s a man and the idea that being obsessed (lusted) over by an older man who keeps you in his thrall, specifically because you tickle his fancy for whatever reason, because you’re beautiful, breakable, different – could in any way be considered empowering is a difficult concept to wrap your head around. It doesn’t contain that “but I’m a good girl, I’d never go off the path and pluck flowers if a bad wolf told me to, honest,” societal context or the social context of rape culture. It’s closest comparison is closeted (perhaps even unknown until that point) queer identity.

There have recently been some comparisons of Daniel LaRusso to Bruce Bechdel in Funhome (and everyone who says that Ralph Macchio ought to play him in the upcoming movie: you’re right and I’m just not going to enjoy it as much without him). I’ve written a post about Sam being the heir to his legacy and trauma, specifically as a queercoded man. It’s not dissimilar to the plot of Funhome in a lot of ways.

The other interesting source that’s been going around in connection with Daniel is the essay “The Rape of James Bond,” which discusses the use of sexual assault as a plot device for women and not for men: “About one in every 33 men [in the US] is raped. … [your statistically average, real life man] … doesn’t have a horde of enemies explicitly dedicated to destroying him. He doesn’t routinely get abducted, and tied up. Facing a megalomaniac psychopath gloating over causing him pain […] is not the average man’s average day at the office.” That last bit is just a descriptor of Terry Silver, (although I take issue at the blasé use of psychopath).

The two part youtube essay Sexual Assault of Men Played for Laughs posits that there is nothing more de-masculinising than the threat of sexual assault and therefore any narrative that features this “rightfully” must mock any man who has been a victim or who fears being a victim of sexual assault. It is feminising. There is nothing more humiliating – and therefore unheroic – than a man dealing with sexual assault.

So what do we feel when we see an attractive young man being put into a vulnerable position by an older man? A trope associated with female characters, a trope that is considered unpalatable for men (see reactions that happened when the hint of sexual assault was introduced in Skyfall).

Was it the fact that he was being threatened, or the fact that James’ next line is: “what makes you think this is my first time?”

Some thoughts added by @mimsyaf are around the idea of safety in how a lot of cis women might relate to this narrative through Daniel’s eyes. He’s not a woman, he has – societally – more power than a girl or woman would have, which makes this a different watch to, say, if Danielle were to go through the same narrative. Daniel doesn’t carry that baggage of rape culture, or of the male gaze that you might find in a similar scenario of Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Christine in Phantom of the Opera (and once more the age differences between these characters and the men who love/lust over them are substantial), which makes the narrative “safer” to engage with.

I agree with that, although as a transmasc person I also come at it differently. I specifically like to headcanon Daniel as a trans guy and find his fraught interactions with masculinity through his own non-toxic lens relatable, as well as the way other boys and men react to it – also I think Terry Silver is hot. I know there are people who write Terry Silver with female OCs, which is also a form of empowerment.

On the flipside putting Daniel in this space runs a risk of fetishising him as a queer youth who is either Innocent and Pure, or a bisexual stereotype that deserves to be assaulted for not being a real man. After all, Real Straight Men don’t run the risk of sexual assault.

Alas, the road to empowerment never did run smooth.

The comparisons between the way Daniel is treated by the text and how female characters are often treated in texts are undoubtedly there. Through Ralph Macchio and TIG’s casting and the direction and acting, but also within the text itself.

It might not be with the same purpose as Neo’s symbolically trans journey, but it puts the whole narrative that Daniel’s going through from TKK1 under a different light than if there had only been one movie that ended on a triumphant sports win and a girlfriend.

Johnny’s masculinity and the use of tears as liberation, now that’s a whole other analysis….

#daniel larusso #terry silver #the karate kid part three #the karate kid #cobra kai #ck #cobra kai meta #part two of three #we're going into labyrinth and james bond in this one fellas #(non-gendered fellas)

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cades-outsider · 4 years

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Miguel + Robby X Reader Pt: 2

Warnings: May be sad to some! This is also THE special I’ve been working on and now it’s completed! It is over 5,000 words long this is part 2!

The Choice

You smile as you see that is was Miguel, but guilt trips over you as your smile slowly falters but you pick up the call none the less.

"Hello?" You question as you play with the hem of your tank top.

"Hey baby! What time should I come over?" Miguel questions excitedly through the phone.

"Um, we're having dinner at eight so maybe 7:30 and we can spend some time together if you'd like?" You question wanting to make sure Miguel was okay with it.

"That sounds perfect I'll be over in less than an hour!" He exclaims as he rushes around his room out of breath.

"What are you doing?" You question with a chuckle.

"I'm looking for...- something to wear..." He breathes out as he throws a shirt across the room.

You giggle at his goofy ness, you lean your head back against the couch again with the phone in your hand "well I'm wearing something red, so maybe if you want you could to so we could match" You joke.

"That sounds amazing babe! Thank you, love you!" Miguel says making kissing noises to you from the phone.

"Love you!" You say as he hangs up and you drop your phone on your chest randomly as you sink back into the couch.

Your eyes widen internally as you remember Robby was in the room, your whole body freezes internally as you wince for Robby.

Slowly you peak one eye open as you look towards Robby's way, to see him not there...?

You open both your eyes fully as you look around confused as to where Robby could've been or went.

You sigh as you walk upstairs to your room to get ready for the family dinner, your dad Daniel wasn't back yet so you decided to get ready until he arrived.

You glance through your closet as you look for an out fit, you knew you were wearing something red as you said. So you picked out a red thigh high flow-y like dress and a small white cardigan to go over it with some white slacks.

By the time you finished hair and slight makeup it was 7:20 when the door opened and you walked downstairs to see if it was Daniel.

"Hey dad" You say as Daniel walks through the door.

"Hey kiddo" He reply's as you walk closer to him.

"Sooo were having a guest over for dinner" You say bashfully.

Daniel raises his eyebrow as Amanda walks out of the kitchen taking a break from cooking while the food boils.

"Her boyfriend" She says excitedly with a smirk as she points to you while saying 'her'.

"Oh? Well what's his name?" He questions as he loosens his tie.

"His name is Miguel and he's uh in Cobra Kai..." You say, putting it out there.

"Oh?" Dad asks as he stops unloosing his tie.

"Yeah so please don't judge him just by that! He's such a sweet boy!" You interject now panicking.

"Hey sweetie, if it means this much to you... then I guess I could put it aside for you" Daniel sighs with a small smile, only wanting to make you happy.

"Thank you! Oh and Robby's staying as well" you let him know as you hear a knock on the door.

"That should be him, I told him he could come over early so we could spend some time together" You say excitedly as you rush to the door before opening it.

"Hey baby!" You say excitedly as you pull Miguel into a hug to which he smiles lovingly at and rests his head on your shoulder.

"Hey babe" He chuckles at how excited you were.

You grab his hand as you walk him over to the kitchen "are you nervous?" you question swinging your intertwined hands together.

"Very" He says as his voice starts to shake.

"Hey-" You stop him "-you're going to do amazing Miguel" You smooth as you place a kiss onto his cheek giving him confidence as he nods.

"Mom, dad this is Miguel" You introduce as both Daniel and Amanda turn around.

Amanda smiles sweetly as she walks over to Miguel as does Daniel "it's a pleasure to finally meet you Miguel" She says as she pulls Miguel in for a hug.

"It's nice to meet you Miguel" Daniel says as he holds his hand out, to shake Miguel's hand to which politely takes.

"It's nice to meet you to Mr. and Mrs. LaRusso" Miguel says nervously.

"Alright now don't go getting yourselves in trouble" Daniel chuckles as you both walk to your room.

"We won't dad!" You reply chuckling as you open your door, leaving it open so Amanda or Daniel wouldn't get suspicious.

"How was i?" Miguel says nervously.

"You were amazing as always Miggy, they loved you so far!" You encouraged excitedly as you press a kiss to his cheek.

"Nervous cannot explain how I feel right now, I feel like Demetri when he try's to talk to Yasmin" Miguel jokes causing you to laugh and lay your head on his shoulder whilst holding his hand.

"Kids! Dinners ready!" Daniel yells from downstairs as thirty minutes had already passed. Miguel looks at you nervously before nodding his head try to encourage himself, you nod your head letting him know he was okay.

Both you and Miguel walk downstairs seeing Sam walking to the table as well, and Anthony was not here as he was at a sleep over with his friend.

You lead Miguel to the table setting him down as Robby walks into the kitchen sitting down in front of your view causing your nerves to fly up from what almost happened in the back patio.... or what did happen.

"Would you like to say grace?" Amanda asks Daniel as we all began to hold out our hands connecting them together.

You bow your heads down as Daniel says grace before lifting your heads back up when he's finished.

Everyone starts putting food on their plates and when satisfied you began eating "so Miguel, I hear you're into karate?" Daniel asks, your eyes immediately wander towards your dad with pleading eyes though doesn't pay attention to it.

"Uh- yes sir I am" Miguel speaks up confidently causing you to smile.

Daniel hums in content "I hear you are in cobra Kai am I right?" He asks holding eye contact with Miguel.

Your body freezes for a moment, not knowing how this would play out. Your dad could be a tricky one, Miguel looks up frozen in place as well for a moment before he speaks up.

"That I am Mr. LaRusso" He smiles sweetly, proud of himself.

Daniel nods his head "you can call me Daniel if you'd like, Miguel" he reply's sincerely causing your excitement to rise.

"Thank you Mr- Daniel" Miguel shyly says almost stumbling over his words.

Daniel smiles as he looks over to Amanda nodding "So Miguel, would you like to come over next time for dinner?" She asks crossing her hands together.

"I'd love to Mrs. LaRusso" Miguel says happily.

Less than an hour and dinner had ended, both Daniel and Amanda went into the kitchen cleaning up while they talked about Miguel and how nice he was compared to being in Cobra Kai.

"Oh my god Miguel you were amazing!" You say excitedly as you brace him into a big hug, he immediately excepts.

He lets out a huge breath of relief "oh my that was nerve recking" he sighs.

"Oh baby, you were amazing" You recite as you grab both of his hands and intertwined them with yours before pressing a long kiss on his lips, smiling as you do so.

You both stay silent for a little bit, just holding each other until you hear Daniel talking in the other room "I like him, he puts off good vibes" He says to Amanda, your heart warms even more as well as Miguel's; happy that his girlfriends parents except him, especially Daniel.

Miguel smiles happily in the crook of your neck, you don't notice Robby walk by and neither does Miguel as Robby starts groaning internally. He really did like you, love you even but he knew he wouldn't amount to Miguel seeing as your parents liked him now.

Sure your parents loved Robby but that was only because they didn't know his true intentions in the beginning. But after spending time with you, Daniel, and Amanda he grew comfortable with them completely dissing his original plan to make his dad jealous.

Robby sighs defeated as he walks out the back patio taking a seat on one of the pool chairs, looking up at the semi stars that were starting to appear.

"Is it okay if I use the bathroom?" Miguel shyly asks, pulling away from the hug a little.

"Of course baby, it's down the hall to your left" You comment placing a kiss on his cheek as he walks to the bathroom.

You sigh happily as you began to wander outside finding your way to the back patio to see Robby laying in one of the chairs looking up at the stars.

You walk over to the other chair beside him before taking a seat now making it known that you were there.

"Hey Robby..." You say awkwardly.

"Do you need something?" He asks, almost rudely.

"I-uh no- but I just wanted to talk about what happened earlier" You mumble.

He looks over meeting your piercing eyes "nothing happened" He reply's bluntly before looking back at the moon lit sky.

"Come on Robby- please" You plead, it was honestly making you feel really guilty; both ways.

You were going to tell Miguel of course but first you wanted to try and clear the air with Robby. "Alright you want to talk? Go ahead, speak" He reply's before sitting straight up staring you down.

You fumble as you place your hands in your lap "I just want to know what it was? What did it- almost feel to you?" You question, curiously.

Robby sighs running a hand over his face the ring on his pointer finger shining in the moon light "I liked you a lot Y/n, before I had even known about Miguel- heck I didn't even know you had a boyfriend until then" He starts.

"What did you feel?" Robby finishes as he searches your eyes for honesty.

"I- I guess I felt butterfly's and I know it's wrong because I'm with Miguel bu-" Robby cuts you off with a kiss, sealing his lips against yours placing his hand gently on your cheek.

You didn't kiss back, but you didn't pull away neither. You were mostly in shock, until a voice you all to know spoke up; one that always sounded happy when he got to see you after classes and during lunch.

Broken. That's what Miguel's voice sounded like "Y-y/n?" He questions causing you to push Robby away, coming back to your senses.

"Miguel..." You force out, your heart beating loudly; so loudly you could've sworn you heard it through your ears.

"Y-you- we just- what-?" His voice trembles, feeling his chest tighten.

"Miguel I can explain" You start, nervously.

"Please explain to me the boy you said not to worry about were licking lips with yours" He says sadly as his face turns into frown, his shoulders drop: feeling defeated.

You couldn't say anything, you couldn't get yourself to even squeak anything out. It was all to overwhelming, almost like something you'd see in a movie but only worse.

"That's what I thought..." Miguel says sadly as he feels a tear fall out of his eye, he walks away and starts making his way home with his head hung low.

IF YOU CHOOSE MIGUEL

No, no, no, no this could not be happening right now. Everything was going so good, you wouldn't let this ruin your amazing relationship with Miguel so you ran.

You ran after Miguel, the love of your life halfway down the road you spot Miguel holding his bike with his hands as he speed walks.

You run faster trying to catch up with him "Miguel!" You yell out catching his attention causing him to stop in place and turn around.

You finally make it to him all the way and you jump into his arms causing him to stumble "I'm so sorry Miguel! I froze I didn't know what to do! I know it was wrong of me but I was frozen and words cannot describe how sorry I am that it almost happened a second time!" You start crying slightly as you slowly felt like the love of your life was slipping away from your hands.

Miguel doesn't hug back to in pain, and shock "what do you mean second time?" He mumbles as you pull away from the hug trying to collect yourself enough to speak.

"Early when I got home I taught Robby some karate moves while my dad was out and we fell and he leaned in but I pushed him away and he said he understood" You say crossing your arms.

You were thankful that it was a fully lit neighborhood so you could actually see Miguel and he could see you.

"I know sorry isn't going to replace the emotions I made you feel today but if you let me i will continue to make up for it for the rest-" But before you could get another peak out you felt lips against yours.

The lips you loved against yours more than anything, his lips. The soft touch of his hands as they wrap around your waist almost hugging you.

This is what magic felt like, you now knew that what you felt with Robby wasn't a flame heck it wasn't even spark. It was just teenage emotions.

Miguel pulls away and pulls you into a tight hug "Y/n I love you and I forgive you I'm sorry" He apologizes.

"No baby you have no reason to apologize it's all me and I'm sorry" You say pressing another kiss against his lips.

"Let's go meet your family now, including your sensei"

IF YOU CHOOSE ROBBY

You let Miguel walk away, you didn't chase after him like how the end of a movie is supposed to go. You chose Robby.

You didn't know what it was about Robby but you chose him, of course Miguel was your first love and you would never forget him but you felt a flame between yourself and Robby.

You let out a shaky breath as you turn to Robby to see him with his hands in his pockets and a guilty expression on his face.

"I choose you Robby Keene" You say softly.

His head snaps up at that, not used to having anyone choose him "what?" He asks, thinking he heard you wrong.

"I choose. You. Robby Keene. I want you" You reply more clearly this time as you take a couple steps closer to him.

"Are you sure? What if you feel like you didn't make the right choice later? And get tired of me?" He questions, suddenly feeling his insecurity's strike up.

"I made the right choice Robby, and I want you" You state as you place a hand on his cheeks gently.

He melts in your touch "okay... I believe you" He sighs heavily.

"I want you to- no Y/n I need you" He caves finally breaking his walls down, letting you see the most vulnerable state of him.

You both lean in for a kiss, pressing your lips against one another feeling fireworks explode in the background of it all.

A few weeks passed before you and Miguel talked again, you both talked it out like adults and even though your first love figure would still be there you both went for someone new.

Miguel said he understood your decision knowing that it made you happy which is all he ever wanted. Miguel started seeing Sam after a couple weeks before the breakup.

You and Robby decided to wait a couple weeks before going straight into the relationship, soon you both got together and even had a couple double dates with Sam and Miguel.

You both got your happy ending.

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marvelous-imagines · 4 years

Text

Still loving you

Johnny Lawrence x reader

Request: Awesome! If I may submit 2, 1) where reader likes Johnny, and Johnny is going back and forth with Daniel bc of Allie, and reader breaks it off with Johnny and angst then they get back together. (it's hardly anything like the request and I just realized that and I'm so sorry)

Warnings: mild language. Angst. Fluff at the end!

@jojosgirlkat1dluvr

You Was Seated at a booth with your boyfriend Johnny and his friends at a dinner, listening to them joke around and and just talk about how their karate training went today. You was seated beside Johnny who had a arm wrapped around you, his red cobra Kai jacket on you as you leaned into his side.

"God the waitress is hot, I'm gonna ask her for her number next time she comes around" Bobby, one of Johnny's friends said, causing the rest of the gang to laugh at him.

"she's twice you're age idiot, she's not going to" johnny laughed out, eating a French fry off your plate which makes you swat his hand away playfully.

"oh yeah? 20 bucks says I can?" the boy bets, making you shake your head at him.

"you're honestly betting on it?" you lift a brow at him, shaking your head. Tommy throws 20 dollars on the table causing the rest to do the same.

"if she gives you her number you're not only winning this money, but my respect Bobby" Dutch tells him. You roll your eyes at the boys and finish up your food. After a few minutes the waitress came back to hand you your bill, which Johnny payed for, and you nearly choked on air when Bobby give the older woman a smirk while leaning back in his seat.

"hey babe, I was wondering if maybe I could get you're number?" he said confidently, looking the woman up and down. She scoffs and shows him a ring on her finger.

"I'm married asshole, the only thing you're grabbing is a ride out of here" she growls while stomping away. Everyone at the table burst out laughing, including yourself. Bobby flips you all off and stands up. Causing everyone to follow him out the door.

"you really know how to speak to the ladies Bobby" Tommy laughed, slapping him on the back as you all walked outside into the night air. Johnny still having a arm slung around you pulls you closer. But you can feel him tense up, looking up at him your about to question him what's wrong, but then you see his eyes focused on the new kid larusso and Johnny's ex girlfriend ali.

You couldn't help but feel a bit jealous, you knew he still felt a little something for the girl. He always gave her lingering glances, his eyes lighting up with anger when the larusso boy hangs around her.

It made you feel a little pinge of hurt whenever you would catch him staring at them, especially since you and him has been dating for nearly a week or two now, you feel so in love with the boy, he was so sweet towards you, funny and loving person. And he was so handsome, any woman would kill just to be in your position, having Johnny Lawrence have his arm around them. But you didn't feel as lucky when he looked at ali...

"look at that loser, who the hell does he think he is strutting around here?" johnny seethes while looking at the two, watching how Daniel put his arm around ali. But poor Daniel stops in his tracks like a deer caught in headlights when he sees Johnny and his gang.

"oh no...." Daniel muttered, "maybe we should go..." he looks to ali. But Johnny, pulling his arm away from you stops him from moving by pushing his shoulder, causing Daniel to stumble back some.

"where do you think you're loser?" johnny asks with a smirk, the anger in his blue eye's caused you to give Johnny a confused yet angered look.

"don't be mean to the poor kid Johnny, let's just go" you said trying to get him to leave the boy alone. But he doesn't listen, Johnny's friends watching this go down with snickers and chuckles like it was funny. But for you, it was far from it.

"look man, I don't want any trouble I'm just trying to grab something to eat with my -

"you think I'm gonna let you get away with what you done larusso?" johnny questions while pushing Daniel back again.

"johnny stop being such a jerk and just let us be" ali spoke while standing behind Daniel.

"yeah Johnny let's just go please?" you say but Johnny only scoffs at you.

"and let this loser -

"johnny please?" you whisper, placing a hand on his shoulder trying to get him to calm down. But he doesn't even pay attention to you.

"I don't wanna fight man, but I will if you don't back off" Daniel says in defense, causing Johnny to laugh at him mockingly. You feeling anger bubbling up inside you at how childish your boyfriend was acting.

"did you hear that boys? Larusso thinks he can beat us!" johnny snickers, but Daniel shakes his head.

"just let us go prick"

"who you calling prick loser!" johnny grabs Daniels jacket and ali grabs Daniel while you push Johnny back, his glare falling on you.

"leave him alone Johnny! God you're acting like such a child! Picking on someone so - so innocent!" you say, face flushed with anger. Johnny rolls his eyes and looks away from you.

"so what? You're taking his side now?" he asks, venom dripping from his voice. You scoff, watching how he glares at the ground, jaw tense and fist clenched. "is he taking you to? Stealing you away from me like he did ali?" he questioned with the same harsh tone.

You feel a wave of shock and disappointment wash over you. "why would you even think that? For one thing he never stole ali Johnny, she broke up with you! And another I'd -

"then what the hell do you call that!" he points at ali and Johnny, ali holding Daniel back as he glared at your boyfriend. You feel a wave of fresh anger and glare at Johnny.

"of you can't stop being such a asshole then I'm leaving you Johnny! So you can choose right now, either leave them alone or I'm leaving" you state, crossing your arms. You expected Johnny to calm down, to wrap his arms around you as his tough guy facade washes away for a split second to keep you with him. But you was wrong, instead he let's out a un-amused chuckle.

"go then! See if I care! All you do is nag me over stupid shit like this!" he motioned toward the fight, his once blue loving eyes cold and heartless. You feel hot tears filling your eyes as your bottom lip trembles. You only stare at him hoping he would realize what he said and take it back. But he doesn't, he only gives you a glare.

"okay then, I guess that's that..." you muttered, tears falling from your eye's as you push past him and leave him standing there with his friends, Daniel and Ali.

You walked home that night, heart broken into a million peices. You had thought Johnny was different, that he was the sweet heart of a man whenever you both started dating, the sweet things he would say to you, the way he couldn't stand not holding your hand every second. You thought his soft kisses and exclaims of love for you was genuine, that he actually loved holding you close to him, loved you...

But now you know that was all a lie, the Johnny you thought you knew was just a dream you couldn't even have... Once you was home you laid in bed and cried, the pain of knowing that Johnny didn't love you hurt, the feelings you felt for him apparently unrequited.

The next morning at school was unbearable, seeing him laugh and joke around with his friends as if nothing ever happened, as if he didn't end things with you. But the next few other days was worse, so bad you skipped a day of school, that day being today. You was laid in bed just reading a magazine when your phone rings, ignoring it you continued reading the dumb magazine in hopes of taking your mind of things, but the phones insistent ringing forced you to throw the magazine down and reach over your bed to grab the ringing phone off your bed side table.

"hello?" you grumbled into the phone, but you feel your heart drop, the dark cloud of sadness you've pushed away for the day came right back.

"hey y/n, I know you really don't -

You hung up on Johnny, tears swimming in your eye's. His voice sounded glum, cracking slightly as if he was on the verge of tears. But you knew he wasn't, at least that's what you thought. Because over these past week he seemed happy without you.

Just as you was about to pick the magazine back up the phone rings again, this time you wipe your eyes harshly and pick the phone up.

"look Johnny I -

"it's Bobby, and before you hang up I wanted to let you know that Johnny has been a absolute mess without you... He hasn't been showing up to training at the dojo lately, he's skipping school and he won't even barely talk to us..." he explained, and even though you wanted to forgive Johnny, you knew that it should be in person.

"if he really wants to fix things tell him to meet me at the dinner..." you muttered while playing with the phones curly cord.

"what time?" Bobby sounded relieved and happy. You let a small smile grace your face.

"tomorrow evening at 3pm" you said, hearing Bobby bid you goodnight before hanging up.

You sigh and laid down on your bed, wondering if forgiving would be the right decision. Or if not forgiving him was the wrong....

The diner was full, friends laughing at one another, family having a great time. And then there was you, waiting at a booth by the window alone. It was nearing 3pm, but Johnny was nowhere to be seen. You sigh and can't help but feel slightly disappointed by his absence, you thought he'd actually missed you, regretted his decision that unfortunate night outside this diner.

Looking down at your watch you see Johnny was already two minutes late, sighing your ready to stand up, deciding Johnny needed some time to gather his thoughts...

But you sat back down when you spot Johnny walk through the doors, blond hair a mess atop his head, black cloth that's usually tied around his head gone. He wore a faded old t-shirt and jeans, his blue eye's holding a glum glow about them as he looks up and spots you, quick to stride over and slip into the empty booth with you. You give him a emotionless expression as he opted for gazing out the window.

"penny for you're thoughts?" you asked harsher then meant to. But Johnny looks at you, big blue eye's holding nothing but regrets.

"I - I'm sorry for what happened that night... I was wrong for saying what I did... For pushing you away -

"being a big jerk?" you added to the list. He nods and looks back out the window with a deep sigh.

"I miss you y/n... Please just - forgive me" he whispers, voice holding a genuine hurt tone to it. You sigh looking over Johnny's face, taking in how miserable his eyes are, showing the misery he truly was in over this past week. Reaching over the table and grabbing ahold of his hand you give him a gentle squeeze, causing him to look up with a hopeful glint.

"as much as I hate how you was doing Daniel that night... I suppose I forgive you" you muttered, his face lighting up as he tries to say something but you cut him off "if we start dating again I expect you to leave Daniel and Ali alone Johnny" you explain, giving him a pleading look, begging for him to at least listen to you, promise you.

"okay, done. But if he starts it I'm not letting the little prick walk all over me y/n" he tells you with a serious look. Which causes you to roll your eyes.

"only if he starts it and throws the first punch" you confirmed with a small little smile. Johnny squeezes your hand that he held in yours atop the table as he gives you a little smile of his own.

"and one last thing to discuss..." you trail off, looking away from his concerned and confused eyes.

"what is it?" he swallowed thickly, worried by the look in your eye, how you looked afraid, hurt and skeptical.

"stop making me feel like I'm only just you're friend... I see how you look at ali, the only reason you hate Daniel so bad is because he - what you claim, stole her away from you..." you struggle to look at him, knowing your insecurities was starting to boil over the top. "I know she's prettier and -

"y/n you're the most beautiful woman I've ever lied eyes on, if you even for a moment think I'd ever leave you for ali your wrong. I love you, more than anything and nothings gonna change that" he interrupted your train on insecure thoughts. You feel your heart skip a beat and melting at his words, the way he gazed at you with love and truth, a genuine smile on his face as he let his eyes roam every detail and feature about you.

"johnny - I love you too..." you stuttered as you felt a wave of emotions hit you. Causing tears of happiness to form in your eye's. Johnny let's a little smile tug at his lips as he leaned closer, halfway across the table to cup your cheek.

"I know ya do babe, and like I said before, I love you more" he gives you a quick peck on the lips before bringing your hand up to his lips placing a lingering kiss to your knuckles. Heart fluttering at his sweet little kisses.

That day in the diner you and Johnny sit and talked for hours, his eyes on you never leaving once. He regretted the night he had hurt you and pushed you away, but he knew that if he kept his promises to you that nothing could ever keep you both apart.

A/n: here it is! I hope it isn't as bad as I believe it to be lol, it was rushed. I've been incredibly busy with work and have hardly any time to myself lately!, but here's this and then I'll work on the other one!

#johnny lawrence #johnny lawrence x reader #johnny lawrence imagine #cobra kai #daniel larusso #Daniel larusso x reader #Daniel larusso imagine #the karate kid #william zabka #ralph macchio

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asphodel-storm · 3 years

Text

So. If Cobra Kai were DC.

First off, the man who is the source of most problems, John Kreese:

Kreese’s mentor was an agent of the League of Shadows/Assassins planted within the military. Kreese was invited to take his place after his death. He trained with Ra’s al Ghul after the war and then left to found Cobra Kai as a covert recruitment operation for the League (not every Cobra alum became an assassin, only the ones Kreese saw that potential in). Johnny was on the path to recruitment and it was the loss against Daniel and resulting fallout that changed that. Kreese has been on League business every time he’s been ‘dead’.

Mr. Miyagi:

Mr. Miyagi was a Green Lantern. The ring chose him a while after he received his medal of honor and he was protecting the universe secretly during the Karate Kid movies. When Daniel overcomes his fear in TKK 3, Miyagi retires and the ring chooses Daniel.

Daniel LaRusso:

Daniel was a Green Lantern for years (a secret from everyone except Amanda and Miyagi), but the lantern’s power never replaced karate for him because karate is part of the balance that allows him to use the ring in the first place. The ring started to reject him during the period where his resentment of Johnny was overpowering his will (season 1-ish). It chose him again when he got a handle on that, but by then he had already turned his attention to teaching and empowering young people. He gave it up and it chose his daughter after she overcame her own fear at the end of season 3.

Samantha LaRusso

Samantha LaRusso was chosen by a Green Lantern ring after overcoming her fear and facing Tory at the end of season 3. She enters season 4 as a newly minted super hero.

Tory Nichols

Tory witnesses Sam as a Green Lantern early on. She has a lot of anger inside of her and seeing her rival - the girl who in her opinion was handed everything in life - chosen by cosmic power pushes her over the edge. Kreese encourages and feeds this anger, of course, though he does it with the intention of making Tory a better assassin. When a Red Lantern power ring chooses her that’s honestly a bonus.

Johnny Lawrence

Johnny was nearly recruited to the League of Assassins as a teenager - he would have been shipped off to official league training after highschool if he hadn’t lost to Daniel (and, likely, if Kreese hadn’t impulsively burned that bridge before remembering the larger plan). Instead, he was approached by the representative of an anonymous east coast billionaire after high school and paid to use his connection to the ‘late’ John Kreese - and pre-assassin training - to infiltrate and sabotage some activities the League of Shadows had going in the Valley. He never learned the full extent of what the League was or his or Kreese’s connections to it during this time (like, he probably could have if he’d tried, but he’s Johnny). He was inconsistent at best in his vigilantism after that, putting on a mask and patrolling more when he needed an outlet than based on the needs of the community. He was briefly the ‘Batman of the Valley’ when Batman first franchised out into Batman Inc. He’d given that up for years by the time he met Miguel, but dusts off his cape when he learns of new League operations in the Valley in season 4 (likely being run by Terry Silver).

His ‘cape’ is actually a red leather bodysuit. He definitely calls himself something like DeathFist or DeathFang or whatever in the long tradition of people in red bodysuits being called stuff like that (DeadShot, DeathStroke, etc.).

Miguel Diaz

Miguel will hit the streets patrolling with his mentor, but the transition to vigilantism also hits him at a time when he’s realized he probably shouldn’t have Johnny on such a pedestal so he’ll also use the opportunity to strike out alone or with friends. The transition also comes at a time when Miguel has noticed certain changes about himself he can’t explain - like how he destroyed Demetri’s tv with lasers that shot out of his eyes when he got a bit too competitive about Mario Cart.

Yeah, the bad man Carmen moved them to escape was not connected to organized crime. He wasn’t Terry Silver. He was General freaking Zod. Why does General Zod live in Ecuador? He’s building up forces there. Anyways, Miguel is half Kryptonian and just awakening to his powers since his body has been healing from the school fight. The injury was a kind of catalyst and as he heals he’s also becoming invulnerable. So much for his rivalry with Robby, right? Nope, that’s still on.

Robby Keene

Kreese thinks a mistake he made with Johnny was not bringing him into the fold sooner and getting him excited about the prospect of the League of Shadows. He knows very well that Robby will march out of Cobra Kai forever if he mentions anything about assassins before he’s ‘ready’, but he does start letting him know about the secret society of warriors and introduce him to some alumni who are with the league now. Maybe show off some missions where they actually intervened for good. Essentially, he makes him feel like he could be part of something - something that feels like family - which is bigger than himself (which is already an established part of his schtick).

As part of this pre-assassin buttering up, Kreese procures something special for Robby - gloves laced with kryptonite. He told him it would only level the playing field between him and Miguel, but it is enough to weaken Miguel enough to be killed. The plan is for Robby to go in thinking ‘Miguel is pretty much indestructible even with these gloves’ so he goes all out and kills him and then while he’s dealing with the trauma of having killed him Kreese can pull him fully into the League. While the plan won’t work, the path to it will see Robby getting a lot more weapons/assassin-specific training than Johnny did.

He will eventually take over Johnny’s suit and code name.

Eli ‘Hawk’ Moskowitz

Kreese’s plan for Robby is a more elaborate and thought out version of his original plan for Hawk. Hawk was never really a top priority for Kreese, but he spiraled so nicely that it seemed he could be plucked off into assassin-dom early. He saw Tory and Robby as better prospects than Hawk for long term use in the valley in part because he expected to have Hawk shipped off to train under Lady Shiva by now. He just had to rip the murder bandaid, and the plan was to push him until he killed Demetri.

Because Hawk was on the fast track, and because he was so good at convincing himself he didn’t care what he’d done to Demetri’s arm, Kreese actually already let him in on the true nature of Cobra Kai. He didn’t know for long before leaving and its not like he had any strategically vital info, but he knows enough to make him a loose end. Kreese sends the Cobras (minus Robby, but possibly including a Tory who isn’t quite used to her new power yet) after him. Hawk is murdered. And isn’t that a waste?

Kreese set it up, but when the likes of Tory and Robby almost leave over it he pins it on Kyler ‘going overboard’ and says it’s fine, they can save him. Hawk gets thrown in a Lazarus Pit and rises confused and angry. Under the grips of Pit Madness he temporarily forgets a lot (like leaving Cobra Kai and reconciling with Demetri and Miguel, but also things like his parents. Kid is a very angry blank slate.) and since most people think he’s dead its pretty easy to send him to the League. He’ll turn up again a few months later, when the League sends a squad to secure their interests in the valley. He breaks off when he can’t quite kill Demetri in a fight, but he doesn’t remember why and roams around the valley causing trouble or helping out as he sees fit until Demetri can get through to him (Demetri’s eternal struggle).

He doesn’t call himself Red Hood, but you get the gist. Hawk is already a code name.

Demetri [Insert Surname]

Got Eli back only to lose him for good. He thought. Until Not-Red Hood shows up and causes problems. But the slippery assassin keeps getting away before he can really talk to him! Miguel is steadily developing Super Powers and wants to help, but things are also heating up over in the Main Conflict and Demetri is left chasing Hawk alone a lot of the time.

Maybe it’s that determination that causes his latent metagene to activate.

Demetri only ever thought super speed was the second best superpower, but he rethinks that after he has it. In hindsight, his smart ass does fit the speedster profile and Eli definitely can’t get away now!

His lightning when he runs is blue.

And yep, that’s all for now. I’ll never write a fic for this ‘verse it’s just fun to think about. More so about how after the San Fernando branch of the League of Shadows is destroyed the kids can all make up and form a cool super team. Also, if I were to write fic, it would be Demeli. As I'm sure anyone I've interacted with in this fandom knows.

#cobra kai #hawk cobra kai #demetri cobra kai #eli hawk moskowitz #daniel larusso #Johnny Lawrence #john kreese #sam larusso #tory nichols #robby keene #mr miyagi #the karate kid #binary boyfriends #demeli #dc comics

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elsonambulo · 3 years

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@rvspberryjvm wanted finger kink, so he gets finger kink with a little breathplay in the form of Terry/Johnny.

Tbh I'm not sure this qualifies as finger kink? Not even sure this is sexy but I tried and I felt evil and cackled writing it so that's enough for me for now :3

The thing about Terry Silver is that his hands don't seem like they should belong to him until you realize there's no other hands he could have.

Not that Johnny spends a lot of time thinking about Terry's hands. Of course not. It's just hard to not give them at least a passing thought when Terry likes putting them all over him.

"Where's your head at, pretty boy?" Fingers curl in Johnny's hair and pull his head back, and he bites his lip to keep from making a sound. He's already being fucked on all fours and clearly into it; he doesn't need to give Terry another reason to feel smug. Above and behind him, the man in question lets out an amused sound.

"You know I like it when I can hear you," he says. Johnny doesn't bother to open his mouth, because he knows what Terry also likes; a few seconds later Terry's other hand lets go of his hip and reaches forward to grasp his jaw instead, forcing it open. The moan Johnny lets out is definitely a sound he's heard from himself often since starting this thing with Terry, but it doesn't make it any less embarrassing.

A hoarse whisper in his ear: "That's right, there's my good boy," before his hair is let go, the fingers on his jaw tightening as if to make up for the small mercy. Their grasp loosens for just a second, but only so Terry can shove two of them in Johnny's mouth, and Johnny can't help himself: he starts sucking.

Because when Johnny had first shaken hands with Terry, he had been surprised. The man had stocky hands, not at all elegant, but his long fingers curled around Johnny's hand like they could envelop it if Terry willed it so. No calluses, but not really smooth either. Not a working man's hands, but not the prissy lotioned up things Johnny would expect from a man who dressed to the nines either.

From there he couldn't help but notice them, and Terry clearly caught on, because he took every opportunity to brush a hand on Johnny's arm, fix his collar condescendingly, even ruffle his hair once or twice while Daniel seethed somewhere behind him.

And if he couldn't touch Johnny, Terry made sure to keep his hands front and center: twirling a pen, holding a coffee cup, patting down his ascot. It drove Johnny insane, until the day he decided to confront Terry after hours in the Cobra Kai dojo, and Terry had popped up out of the shadows and put him on his back from one second to the next. He had the gall to not even say anything, just grinned at Johnny, put a knee on his stomach, and proceeded to undo his own slacks with careful precision; fished his hard cock out and started stroking slowly with those long thick fingers while Johnny could do nothing but watch.

Terry came all over his fingers and all over Johnny's shirt, didn't even bother to clean up before standing up and tucking himself back into his slacks. "I'll be seeing you, Mr. Lawrence," he had said, grinning with all his teeth before turning away to walk into the office, his fingers still dripping with his own cum.

A primal, desperate part of Johnny thinks he's been trying to suck the taste from Terry's fingers ever since that night, begging for what he was denied even now that they've done more than just a one-sided jerk off session.

Terry forces another finger into the O of his mouth, just for a little bit, then wrenches his hand away so he can grab both of Johnny's hips as he fucks him faster. Johnny whimpers, and at this point he doesn't know if it's more from his mouth being suddenly emptied or from being fucked so hard. It hurts almost, but Johnny breathes and moans through it. He's not a pussy.

Besides, he knows if he takes it like Terry likes him to, Terry will reward him in turn.

It isn't long before Terry comes, draping himself all over Johnny's back and bites at the back of his neck, just below the fuzz of his hair. Johnny cries out, and Terry laughs shortly, still grinding into Johnny slowly, working his release in as far as it will go.

He pulls out and flips Johnny onto his back, making sure to keep his legs spread like Johnny's some blushing maiden who's going to get shy on him all of a sudden. Johnny doesn't really care; all he cares about is the pleased smile on Terry's face, the one that means not even a drop of cum has left Johnny's hole yet.

Terry leans over him and kisses him, soft and slow, muttering praise into his mouth while Johnny simultaneously tries not to melt under him and not hurry him along. Luckily for him, Terry must be feeling generous tonight, because he backs off after a few seconds and then slowly slides a finger into Johnny's hole, slides it out, and then slides back in with two.

Johnny throws his head back. This - this is what he likes, for Terry's fingers to reach deep inside him, stretch him out even after he's already taken dick, make him feel the bumps of his knuckles and the pads of his fingers as he gets all his cum out. A dick is almost too smooth for Johnny - something Terry picked up on fairly early into this thing of theirs, which is why they always do it like this. Terry gets to manhandle Johnny, come inside him, and then gets to move him around some more as Johnny gets what he came for.

And see, Johnny would feel ashamed, has felt ashamed, at how he wants to know that something foreign is in his body (none of that romance novel crap, where people fit their bodies together like two puzzle pieces. No. Johnny wants the uneven spread, the slight discomfort of several somethings moving within him). But it turns him on a little, to feel the slight humiliation, to know he's good for it as long as he can physically feel that it isn't supposed to be there.

Aside from that, nothing can really be more shameful than getting it on with your psycho former sensei's equally psychotic sugar daddy (benefactor, Daniel always insists, but Daniel is weirdly stuck up about anything to do with Terry Silver, though he won't explain why. Johnny gets a little thrill thinking that maybe Daniel noticed Terry's hands too, and is jealous.)

Terry's up to three fingers now, and Johnny wriggles from the oversensitivity, but clenches around him all the same. He wants to come, needs to come; a little pain is worth it. Terry laughs, at him not with him, and Johnny's face burns even before Terry slides a hand up his torso and pinches one of his nipples.

"Fuck," Johnny breathes out, then does it again, louder when Terry punches in with his spread out fingers and bites his other nipple at the same time.

He feels his cock throb, and God he's so so close, he can feel it, he just needs Terry to slide in a fourth finger, maybe even a fifth and he'll be good to go.

But of course Terry doesn't do that, because Terry's a sadistic bastard. Slowly, so Johnny knows exactly what's going to happen here, Terry slides his hand up to Johnny's throat and lets it rest there. Johnny's breath catches, and he feels tears spring into his eyes- tears he successfully withheld until now. That must be why Terry decided to do this.

The thing is, Terry likes seeing Johnny cry, and Johnny likes not giving him the satisfaction if he can help it. And in the end, Johnny can never help it, because if nothing else works, Terry will pull out his trump card.

The hand is still just there, not doing anything, even as Terry's other hand is busy between Johnny's legs. Johnny clears his throat, and still his voice comes out raspy as he whispers, "Please."

Please not this. Please do it. Please don't bring this here. Please replace his fingers with yours.

Terry licks his teeth, a predator playing with its food, and before Johnny can wonder for the millionth time how Terry Silver can make him feel like the prey animal he isn't, the hand squeezes at his throat, lightly at first and then tighter, tighter, tighter.

Johnny gasps for air, he can feel his face turning red, and he wants to claw at Terry's hand but he clenches the bedsheets instead, arching up into the hold and riding Terry's still moving fingers. No mercy, not even for yourself.

Terry laughs again, this time loud and delighted, and he pins Johnny with his gaze the way he's got his body pinned at two opposing points, and that's how Johnny comes, staring into wild eyes and sobbing from the intensity of it.

The fingers in him jab at him one last time, the fingers around his neck squeeze once more, before Terry pulls away and pats his thigh in a mockery of care, making sure to smear cum on it. "Good job, golden boy. I can always count on you for a good time." Johnny flushes, but still silently sends out thanks to whatever higher power there might be for Terry not pulling out the nickname during sex. It's happened before and Johnny always comes immediately, and that particular shame isn't one he really likes to visit.

He lies there, catching his breath, already knowing he's about to knock out, and he thinks that maybe next time he gets fucked like this, he wants to wake up to it already happening. Terry would like that, probably.

He very carefully doesn't think about how this thing between them was never meant for planning ahead.

#finger kink #breathplay #sleeptalk nonsense #me: terry/john-no-not-that-one-;)

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aestheticsuwu · 4 years

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When Our Eyes Met

Robby Keene x Doug Rickenberger

A Huge thank you to @oceluna , for giving me the boost I needed to upload this new ship !

We are blessed for having this beautiful human (@oceluna ) being for giving us a part of their time to create wonderful LawRusso content and other ships !💖😊

( Binary Boyfriends + SamxMiguel + Lawrusso ) Part 3

.... ..... .....

He should've know having Sam and Demetri as friends would only cause him trouble . Now he's being forced on a date but he didn't even know who Hawk would set him up .

For all he knows Hawk would pick a random stranger , why did he think that life would go easy on him . He really can't catch a break , okay maybe he's exaggerating a little bit .

He thinks he's allowed to be dramatic , atleast they had already decided what Demetri was going to wear , black flannel shirt with a white shirt underneath and some skinny jeans .

Heading out to go home to change as well , but not before assuring Demetri that everything would turn out fine . Hawk was in love with Demetri ass and well , vice versa .

....

He went to the kitchen to grab something to drink , his dad was there serving a cup of juice . Quickly going to cupboard and handing over the glass to his dad .

" Me and Daniel are going to watch a movie later , order some pizza wanna join . "

" I would love to dad but I got a date . "

" is she hot ? "

" Is actually a blind date . "

" She's blind ? " His dad had a funny look as he was confused , Dad L came in laughing along with Robby .

" John the person isn't blind , it just means both people don't know what they look like . Robby be safe , i want the 3 of you back at 10 "

"you got it , dad . "

Hugging his Dad L , before leaving to go change .

Johnny makes sure the coast is clear before pining Daniel against the counter .

" Guess we're having the house to ourselves , I was thinking having you in nothing but my shirt -

" Laying down in bed , just waiting for you to join me "

" mhmm " The blonde puts his hand on Daniels ass , he really had the best ass . Daniel arms holds on to his neck , as he pulls him in more closer . He leans in to kiss him .

" for us to talk about our lovely deep emotions . "

Daniel laughs at the face the blond has , he couldn't help it . He gives kiss on the cheek before leaving , with Johnny behind him .

" You really know how to kill a boner , Bambi. "

..... ..... ...

One of the things he and his dad have in common was that they really didn't know how to receive compliments . Here he was blushing and not knowing what to say as Sam and Demetri kept talking .

" Damn Robby , lookin mighty fine ! . "

" So handsome and those jeans , right Demetri ? "

" Agreed that ass is out of this world . "

" Shut up ! "

He quickly shouted as he got to the front seat , He quickly look one last time in the mirror of the car , while waiting for Sam and Demetri to get in . Pep talks were thrown , mainly for Demetri . Arriving , looking through the open glass window , they could see Hawks purple Mohawk , Miguels waving , and a taller boy .

" Hey guys " Miguel came over as the other two stayed back . He stood next to Demetri to reassure him everything was alright . It looked like hawk and his friend were fighting , until the two quickly came over .

" Everything okay ? " Demetri questioned Hawk , gosh Hawk wasn't subtle about his feelings for his best friend with that stare or gaze whatever you want to call it .

" Yeah , perfect ! Robby this is Doug Rickenberger , Doug this is Robby Keene shall we go in . "

They both incline their heads to each other for acknowledgment. Doug was way taller than him and his broad shoulders didn't help Robbys height . He was wearing a Red shortsleve shirt , black jeans and some vans .

They were seated down, everyone was at the table with their individual date . The tables weren't together but enough distance where they all could hear each other . And it was awkward and quiet at first . Sam and Miguel tried to ease the moment , but it was clear him and Doug wish their were somewhere else but here .

It wasn't their first time seeing each other but their encounters were brief. He had seen the tall boy with Hawk before . Once in awhile he would go to his dad dojo , Doug must've seen him those few times .

Also sometimes his Dad and Daniel would do classes together , but usually he would stick with Myagi-Do students .

Sam and Miguel were already in a relationship , so they were having a blast and it seemed Demetri and Hawk were hitting it off . So Here he was making small talk every time it got to quiet .

" so you like karate ? " He internally just cringed at himself but hey he was trying . He guess it wasn't that bad by the chuckle of Doug

" Yeah , what's it like to have two dads - "

" There's no difference , their just parents . Just because their both dudes and i have a mom too "

" I was gonna say what's it like to have both parents that know karate . "

Guess he should've have left the other boy finish , it was just that some people still don't understand that times have changed .

" I'm sorry I got all defensive on you . "

He gave Doug a small smile hoping the latter wouldn't notice how embarrassed he felt .

" Its alright , uhh do you play any other sports maybe soccer . "

Nodding to the question but then realise he had to answer before the mood gets ruined again .

" uh yeah when I was little , haven't played recently actually . Do you ? "

" Yeah I'm on the soccer team . Maybe you should try out , I wouldn't mind having you on the team unless your not good as you are in karate . "

Doug finish with a teasing smirk and a raised eyebrow waiting for the blonde to answer .

" I like to let you know that I was the best player on my team when I was a kid , well that's what my dad and Mom said but I withstand my point . "

Both burst out laughing , and once the waitress come with their food their both smiling at each other .

If felt kinda nice , it was awhile Robby hadn't laughed and gone out with someone that wasn't his friends or his parents .

...... ....... ........ Doug Pov

Doug was friends with Hawk since he joined cobra kai , they would hanged out in School. After school he would go to the dojo or to soccer practice .

Today he was free and had nothing to do , so he easily accepted Hawks idea . But he wasn't expecting said date to be a boy and son of his Sensei.

He wasn't into guys ,but he didn't mind the idea of dating one but he's just never seem to find a guy he would date . Here he was standing in front of his date as Hawk introduces him .

Robby had green eyes and freckles across his cheeck and nose . Dark blond hair and a nice smile . He was short compared to his height , he wore a black shirt with blue jeans .

His brain came to a conclusion : Pretty boy

..... ...... ......

" Do you want get out of here ? "

" Like right now ? "

" Yeah "

The two couples were distracted as they both left the dinner . Grabbing a hoodie from their own car as quickly as they could . Who knows why but they started running without realising they were holding hands . Their laughter was left echoing behind them .

They stopped at the skate park as they got tired . There were few people skating there , he turned to look at Robby once he didn't feel his hand . He watched as he jogged back holding a skateboard .

" Do you know how to skate? "

Holding a skateboard felt unfamiliar to him , handing it back to Robby who was wearing a cheeky smile .

" No , I'm guessing you do . "

" I know a few things . "

He shouldve known by that cocky smile he was lying . He watched Robby do some amazing stuff , he even showed that one hand stand . Then it was his turn , he failed miserably all the times . He asked what was the secret , as he once again falls .

" Its all about balance "

Robby looked up at him as he answered him . He understood the answer , since Mr. Larusso karate did involve balance .

Noticing they were standing close , face to face . Maybe it was the way the moon and street light illuminate the blondes face . Or the way he was smiling at him that he said those words .

" is there something on my face ? "

" Sorry it's just I never knew a boy could be as beautiful as you ... "

Seeing the surprise look and the addition of the blush contrasting his tan skin made his beat faster . God when did he become such a girl . His thoughts are interrupted when Robby quickly steps back , misstep and hurts his ankle .

.... ..... .. ...

Arriving at the dinner place he could see their friends waiting for them at their cars . Holdding on tight to Robby thighs for he wouldn't fall of his back . Chuckling as the boy groans in embarrassment as the others start to come closer seeing their situation .

" Robby are you okay ? Where were you two , we were worried . ! "

" I'm alright Sam , Me and Doug went for a walk and I hurt my ankle , hence why Doug is giving me a piggyback ride . "

" Oh I thought you decided to climb him like a tree cause - "

" Demetri ! " Robby tightens his arms as he shouts to quiet his friend . walking to Sam's car he hears the blonde mumbling while his head nudging against his shoulder .

Meanwhile everyone were saying goodbye he helps Robby get in the car . As gently as he could , he was stopped when he was opening the door . The latter looked nervous as he looked at him while bitting his lip .

" I had a good time , we should do it sometime again if you want or not ? "

" Yeah definitely. I will text you now that I have your number . "

He was already a sucker for that smile that showed off his dimples . Smiling , he leans in to give a kiss on the cheeck but Robby stops him as the blonde leans to give him a quick peck on the mouth .

" Bye ! "

" Bye . " Walking back he couldn't help but look back and wave at the blonde when he catches his eye . shit , he was totally blushing now .

....... ...... ... Robby Pov .......

Sam and Demetri both entered asking questions if he was really fine or in pain . once he assured them that he was alright , Demetri took it as a sign to tease him .

" We want all the info , cause we totally saw you , you slutty marshmallow ! "

Sidenote : Part 3 of the triple date , hope you guys like it . Also what would the ship name be Roug or Dobby . I like Roug ! . Side mentions of Lawrusso because why not . This was supposed to be Apocalypse / Zombie au but this ^^ was made at the thought of a triple date with the binary boyfriends .

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miggydiaz · 4 years

Note

For the salty ask 1, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 14, 16, 20, 22, 23 and 26 for cobra kai pretty please

My answers are so long, so I am putting this under the cut @wonderwolfballoon! Also I just noticed your Daniel icon I SWEAR I’M NOT DRAGGING HIM TO BE MEAN!!!

1. What OTPs in your fandom(s) do you just not get?* My biggest IDGI ships for CK are probably Elimetri or Kiaz. I’m not here to yuck other people’s yums or anything, but I do think there is something to the idea that Migueli isn’t popular because it’s a ship predicated on mutual respect for one another. Kiaz has the obvious enemies to lovers vibe and I just generally don’t sail those ships. Elimetri has... its problems, IMO, most especially around the idea that Demetri has to like... save Hawk from himself? Idk. I just like romances that I feel are based on love and mutual respect and not ...tropes.   I am also not a Lawrusso shipper although I have a lot of those on my dash and you all are great! Again, not yucking yums! Daniel just makes me want to head butt him too much to pair him romantically with anyone 😂 I don’t even want his wife with him. He needs to self reflect~   4. Do you have a NoTP in your fandom? Are they a popular OTP?*   I once saw someone ship Amanda and Anoush and I noped out of that so fucking fast I almost tripped over myself. I’m not sure if they’re popular. I just think some people feel the need to get Amanda out of the way to sail their ship and stuck her with Anoush which... no. Just no. Let Amanda be a messy single queen with a martini hobby, thanks!   5. Has fandom ever ruined a pairing for you?*   Not in CK. I’m lucky because I pretty much stick to my little Migueli bubble and I’m okay with that? Lmao lord knows the Squad on my dash is all about the DISCOURSE™️ so idk if I just don’t feel the need to get sucked into the wider ship wars because we have good healthy debates, but so far, so good.   6. Has fandom ever made you enjoy a pairing you previously hated?*   I never hated it... I just didn’t have many feelings on shipping with this show in general at first. Then I was in the CK tag one day and I saw Migueli fan art. Then I discovered @afurioushawk‘s falconry series and it was all over for me after that! So fandom DID make me love a ship, just not one I hated.

9. Most disliked character(s)? Why? Oh boy. How much time do you have? In some instances, it’s a good thing season 3 happened because otherwise, this would be a multi-page essay on the problems with race and class privilege as it pertains to Sam LaRusso and just some... generally not nice comments about Demetri that I’m conflicted about because I’m not sure if the writers are intentionally trying to write him a specific way and it’s just not translating to me or what. But season 3 revamped both of their images with me a lot. I’m way more flexible in terms of Demetri, but lmao I was the number one Sam LaRusso hater for a minute there (or maybe number 2, I can think of at least 1 other person who was in that boat with me back in like... August/September, but I won’t call them out because I don’t want them to get hate...) However, I have grown a bit in my opinions of Sam, and even though I still think she’s responsible for a lot of shit she NEVER gets held accountable for, I also think that’s a reflection of the adults around her too, and this includes my otherwise unproblematic queen, Amanda.

But honestly, my most hated character (other than the obvious villain that is Kreese) is Daniel. No matter how handsome Ralph Macchio looks in cable-knits, because Daniel has always been a sanctimonious, shit starting drama king and I say that about KK Daniel too. I’m not saying Daniel was the ~true villain~ or anything, or that Johnny was innocent -- I can only drink so much Red and Yellow Kool-Aid -- but Daniel’s always been annoying to me as a protagonist, and turning him into a smarmy wealthy car salesman who is also a class traitor did not do him any favors in my book. I will say, I also like Daniel more in season 3 than I have in previous season, but since he is the adult, I will be mad at him longer than I will be at the kids, ya feel?

10. Most disliked arc? Why?   Johnny’s entire season 3 storyline. The sheer level of REGRESSION at every turn drives me bonkers. It’s like watching him go through all of the stumbling blocks of season 1 all over again, but without the “he’s learning! He’s going to make mistakes!” free pass that I was willing to give him the first time around. He regularly jeopardizes Miguel’s recovery and it’s played for laughs. He fucks up on every level with Robby. He spends most of his time running away when things get hard or too real. He drops the ball completely with Hawk, and like, not to put too fine a point on it, but a lot of Hawk’s issues are because Johnny put Hawk on this ‘flip the script and be a badass’ path and then offered him no guidance for how to walk that path and instead left him in the hands of Kreese. And then he has the nerve to go to Hawk and basically be like “I made you what you are!” lmao yeah Johnny, you sure did, that’s why he’s breaking peoples arms, hoss. And then all of the nonsense with Ali and Carmen, like... if you were planning on teasing KK fans with Ali and him getting back together, why write her as married in the first place? Why even tease the idea of Carmen and Johnny until after you were sure what you were going to do with Ali as a character? Instead, they do what they did in season 3 and it makes him look like a colossal jerk. So yeah. Literally every choice they made with Johnny this season, I hated.

14. Unpopular opinion about your fandom? People who hate Tory are not valid, sorry not sorry.

16. If you could change anything in the show, what would you change? I would have kept Miguel entirely out of Tory and Sam’s beef. Or at least not directly inserted him into it like he was with the kiss. I know the writers thought it was necessary to push Tory to the point of inciting a fight at school, but I am just so exhausted over girls being unable to fight about anything but boys. Also I would bring Aisha back.

20. What is the purest ship in the fandom?   I am probably biased, but I still maintain it’s Migueli. Look, Miguel stood up to Kyler for Eli and Demetri both. Hawk joined CK because he saw what it could do for some skinny nerd who was getting his ass kicked. And he took to CK, really took to it! Even flourished before he started getting mixed messages. And he and Miguel were pretty much inseparable after that. They coordinated their wardrobes ffs. Hawk dubbed him El Serpiente and no one else calls him that — it’s Hawk’s nickname for him. Miguel confides in Hawk only secondary to Johnny, who is like a father to him. The entire Coyote Creek exchange shows they can fight and disagree but... well, to use the cliche, they don’t go to bed angry, you know? They’re square the very next day. Hawk is the first person at Miguel’s side when he gets kicked over the balcony and the LOOK he gives the second floor where Robby is? That boy is out for blood immediately to avenge Miguel. So much of his s3 behavior is fueled by that need for vengeance because MD is wholly responsible for what happened to Miguel. And Miguel is so confused and betrayed by Hawk’s shift in behavior, and yet still holds out hope that Hawk will see through Kreese’s BS and come with him to The Dojo I Refuse to Name. And when Hawk does make that deflection finally, he shows up at MD with Miguel. There’s so much more that I know I’m missing but whether someone ships them or not, that is a tried and true love and respect for one another, a willingness to fight for and defend one another that you don’t often see in TV friendships... or even in most tv relationships. And I just think that’s the best ❤️

22. Popular character you hate?   Daniel, hands down. I mean... I don’t even necessarily hate Daniel, you know? I just think it’s really, pardon the pun, rich that a guy of immense wealth and privilege can’t get a therapist or turn to his far too patient wife for help with his existential crisis over his high school bully opening up a karate dojo to make some money and help a kid who is getting the crap kicked out of him. I get that Daniel’s narrative is necessary for the rivalry, but it does nothing to make him sympathetic as a character.

23. Unpopular character you love?   Tory, definitely! Everyone hates her and then there’s me and the Squad over here banging away on our Coors Banquet cans yelling TORY RIGHTS! Seriously she catches so much flack for a teenage girl who is... the sole income provider for her family? At 17? While caring for a sick mom and a little brother? And fending off a creepy landlord? Tory has it so rough and then she meets a cool girl at her dojo who asks her to hang out at some fancy ass country club which is probably the nicest place Tory has ever been in, and then she gets talked down to and accused of being a thief and has another girl lay hands on her, only to find out that same girl is her new boyfriend’s ex and... ugh. I HATE that Tory gets shit all over when Tory and Sam wouldn’t even have beef if Sam had apologized to Tory as she SHOULD have. Tory isn’t innocent, but damn, I’d be pressed too.   My other unpopular character I love? Nathaniel. Seriously that kid is THE best. He’s a literal child but is out there like I WILL FUCK YOU UP, even though he’s MD. Honestly, his Cobra Kai energy is so ferocious I won’t be surprised if he moves back to CK eventually. Anyway, I love him. 

26. Most shippable character?   Miguel, hands down. It’s because he’s so affable and sweet overall. And because his hair is so fluffy and pettable that no one can resist touching it. I like to imagine that one day he and Hawk are talking about their hair and Hawk makes a joke about how Miguel’s mane is getting so long that it’s going to be bigger than his own, and then he reaches out to ruffle it and internally has a bisexual meltdown because oh no IT’S SO SOFT AND NICE. But uh... anyway, yes. Definitely Miguel.

#ask game #cobra kai #sorry y’all I gotta tag #uh #anti Daniel larusso #anti lawrusso #anti Kiaz #anti Elimetri #it’s not *really* anti those ships but uh... tagging for the culture???#plz don’t flame ship who you ship!!!#Migueli #i hope this is tagged appropriately if you need something else tagged lmk

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pinktintedmonocle · 4 years

Text

Dedicated Followers of Fashion - A Cobra Kai Lawrusso Fanfic - Chapter 1

Daniel raised an eyebrow. “That jacket is certainly something. Where did you even get that?”

Johnny shrugged. “Can’t remember. Had it since the nineties.”

“Oh yeah? Thought you didn’t own any clothes bought after 1989?”

When Johnny wears his sleeveless denim jacket to sparring practice, long buried feelings begin to emerge between him and Daniel. As they try to deal with their emotions, a few iconic outfits from their past make a reappearance.

Set post season 3, so beware spoilers if you haven’t finished it yet.

1992

“John Lawrence, here for the modelling gig.”

The receptionist looked at Johnny over the top of her wire rimmed glasses, pursing her lips in disapproval.

“You’re late.”

“Yeah, I know. I ran outta juice half a mile from the nearest gas station and me and my friend Bobby had to push my Firebird – ”

“Just sign here”, said the woman, pushing a clipboard towards Johnny. “Then take a left down there to get to costume and make-up.”

She pointed towards a corridor with a blood red nail and Johnny squiggled his signature then set off, walking briskly. He knocked on the door and it was quickly opened by a harassed looking man in a brightly patterned shirt.

“Are you the model? You’re very late you know, we were expecting you almost an hour ago.”

“Yeah, I know”, said Johnny. “But my car -”

“I don’t care, just get in here”, said the man, dragging Johnny into the room and starting to unbutton his shirt.

“Right, we need to get your clothes off and the baby oil on. Miranda!”

A small woman with a measuring tape around her neck materialised out of seemingly nowhere, brandishing a bottle of oil. Together, Miranda and the man prepared Johnny for the shoot, styling his hair and oiling him up. They gave him a pair of low rise designer jeans to change into; he quickly took off his own very much not-designer jeans and pulled them on.

“Right!” said the man, clapping his hands together and surveying his handiwork. “I think you’re all good to go! Oh – apart from one thing -”

He handed Johnny a sleeveless denim jacket and Johnny shrugged it on over his bare chest before the man pushed him out of the room and Miranda led him to the set.

After the shoot, Johnny walked up to the photographer.

“Hey, look I was just wondering if there are any more jobs like this going. It’s just I could really use the money and -”

“Oh, there are plenty of jobs like this going. For people who show up on time”, said the photographer, glaring at Johnny before walking off.

Back in the dressing room, Johnny scrubbed the baby oil angrily off his chest. He tugged his own jeans and shirt back on before his eyes fell on the denim jacket, now draped over the back of a chair. He slung it over one arm and left the building, more than ready for a beer with Bobby.

2019

“Maybe our new logo could be an eagle eating a snake”, suggested Johnny, picking up a pencil and beginning a crude sketch.

“Needs to have a bonsai in it”, said Daniel, not looking up from his phone.

“Alright. How about an eagle sitting in a bonsai eating a snake?”

Daniel tutted. “An eagle can’t sit in a bonsai, Johnny. It’s too big, the bonsai would just topple over.”

Johnny dropped the pencil and huffed, crossing his arms.

“Yeah, well, why don’t you try and come up with some ideas, LaRusso, rather than just staring at crap on your phone? What are you looking at, anyway?”

“Your Facebook page”, Daniel answered without missing a beat. “And you’re right, it is crap. Why is there a photo of you pouting while standing in front of a mural of some angel wings?”

“Oh shit, thought I’d got rid of that one”, said Johnny, pulling a face. “Can you delete it for me while you’re there?”

Daniel sighed. “No, Johnny, I can’t delete it for you, that’s not how it works.” He was for silent for a moment, still scrolling, then smiled.

“This one of you and Miguel is nice, though. You at a concert or something?”

“Yeah, Dee Snider, the most badass rocker ever.” Johnny stuck his tongue out and raised his hand to his mouth, two middle fingers held down, mimicking the pose in the photo.

Daniel rolled his eyes. “That jacket is certainly something. Where did you even get that?”

Johnny shrugged. “Can’t remember. Had it since the nineties.”

“Oh yeah? Thought you didn’t own any clothes bought after 1989?”

Johnny threw the pencil at Daniel across the office they had set up in Miyagi-Do. The smaller man caught it easily and scowled, but Johnny just grinned.

“Maybe I’ll wear it for you sometime, LaRusso”, he said with a wink.

“Lucky me”, Daniel muttered, looking back down at his phone.

Johnny wasn’t sure if it was just a trick of the light, but it almost looked like there was a faint blush on Daniel’s cheeks.

**********************************************************************************

Johnny could tell before he even got out of bed that it was going to be a swelteringly hot day. He woke in the early hours of the morning and couldn’t get back to sleep, the sheets sticking uncomfortably to his skin.

Eventually he got up and munched on cereal while aimlessly scrolling through Facebook on his laptop. (He had recently learnt that the box which asked him ‘What’s on your mind?’ was not a space for private thought, and that anything written in there could be seen by anyone else on Facebook. He discovered this after typing ‘How to take down Kreese and also what is cotton candy made of’ and Daniel had replied thirty seconds later with ‘You’re an idiot, Johnny’.)

As the heat continued to build Johnny took a cold shower before selecting an outfit for the day’s training. He threw on shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt and was just about to walk out of the bedroom when the denim jacket caught his eye, crumpled up on the floor of his closet.

Maybe I’ll wear it for you sometime, LaRusso.

Johnny picked it up, and before he could change his mind he shoved it into his gym bag and headed out of his apartment.

**********************************************************************************

“Good work today everyone”, said Daniel, nodding approvingly as the students filtered out of Miyagi-Do, wiping sweat off their foreheads and glugging from water bottles.

“Yeah, getting badass”, agreed Johnny. “Barely any pussies among you now. Well, apart from maybe you.” He pointed at Demetri.

The pale boy looked offended. “Hey, what’s wrong with me? I thought I did pretty well today!”

“You did, Demetri”, Daniel said reassuringly, patting him on the back as he left and frowning at Johnny.

Johnny just smirked and glanced towards the house, thinking longingly of the ice cold Coors Banquet waiting for him in the newly installed refrigerator.

“Hey Sensei!”

Johnny turned to see Miguel standing in front of him.

“You wanna come over to mine for dinner tonight? My mom says you’re welcome to join us if you don’t have any other plans.”

“Not tonight, kid. I’m gonna stay here for a bit, work on some new moves with LaRusso. But another time, yeah?”

“Yeah, of course”, said Miguel with a smile. “See you later, Sensei.” He started to walk out of the dojo, waving goodbye to Daniel as he went before looping an arm around Sam’s shoulders.

When the kids had left, Daniel turned to Johnny.

“You hungry?”

Johnny shrugged. “I could eat.”

He followed Daniel into the house, allowing his eyes to trail down the other man’s petite form. It had been a while since Johnny had seen Daniel train in anything that wasn’t a tracksuit or a gi, but due to the temperature Daniel was dressed similarly to Johnny in shorts and a sleeveless workout top. Johnny watched as Daniel’s long legs carried him out of the yard and inside, a slight sheen of sweat glinting on the tanned skin. Johnny bit his lip and fetched his longed for beer from the refrigerator, taking a swig.

“You want a cold one, LaRusso?” he asked.

“Do you have any beer, or in fact any form of alcohol, that isn’t a Coors Banquet?”

“No.”

“Then I’ll stick with water”, Daniel said dryly. He turned around to start preparing the dinner and Johnny held up his middle finger behind his back.

As Daniel busied himself Johnny opened his gym bag, reaching inside and pulling out a towel to wipe the sweat off his brow. He paused when he saw the jacket, scrunched up in the corner of the bag along with a can of deodorant and a packet of corn nuts.

Maybe I’ll wear it for you sometime, LaRusso.

Lucky me.

He took it out of the bag and pulled it on, feeling the rough denim scratch against his skin, before strutting back into the yard and sitting on the deck. He sipped his beer as the early evening sun beat down, trying and failing to think of something that wasn’t Daniel LaRusso’s legs.

Daniel soon emerged from the house and strode over with two plates of food. When he caught sight of Johnny he stopped mid-stride, mouth opening and closing a few times before he settled on just shaking his head.

Johnny grinned. “What? Told you I’d wear it for you sometime, LaRusso.”

“You’re ridiculous, you know that Johnny?” said Daniel, joining Johnny on the deck and handing him a plate and cutlery.

“I’m ridiculous? You’re the one who has a dojo in an ornamental garden.”

“What, as opposed to a more sensible location for teaching children karate, like a public park or a seedy strip mall with faulty wiring?”

Johnny ignored the jibe and poked at his dinner with a fork, wrinkling his nose in distaste. “A salad?” He put the bowl down. “Think I’ll go and grab a burger.”

“Really, Johnny? You want something hot in this heat?”

“Maybe I do”, Johnny replied, making eye contact with the smaller man.

This time the blush that bloomed on Daniel’s cheeks was definitely not a trick of the light.

After a moment Daniel coughed and looked away. “Come on Johnny, eat your salad. It’s good, I swear.”

Johnny pulled a face again but still speared a carrot and a lettuce leaf with his fork and popped them in his mouth, munching nosily. As green stuff went it actually wasn’t too bad. Not that he would ever tell Daniel that.

**********************************************************************************

After dinner they discussed potential new moves they could teach their students for the tournament, Daniel diligently writing them all down while Johnny lounged on the deck, nursing another Coors Banquet. (“Why don’t you just teach them that move you used on Kreese, the one that made his arms go limp? Then we’d win no problem.” asked Johnny. Daniel had rolled his eyes. “Funnily enough, temporarily paralysing your opponent is considered an illegal move in a karate tournament for children.” “But you can at least teach me, LaRusso.” “I’m not doing that, Johnny. You’d use it on anybody who annoyed you, which would mean practically everyone in the valley would have numb limbs.”)

Eventually Daniel put the pen down and stood up, offering a hand out to Johnny.

“You wanna try putting some of these moves into action?”

Johnny nodded and clasped Daniel’s hand, letting the smaller man pull him up. As he did, Johnny let his thumb rub gently over the back of Daniel’s hand for just a moment, noting with interest the slight but noticeable hitch in Daniel’s breathing as he did so. He thought of the blush from earlier, the way the pink tinge had spread prettily across Daniel’s olive skin, and swallowed thickly. The sensible thing would be to ignore these feelings, to push them back into the distant corner of his mind where they had been dwelling for the past three decades.

But Johnny Lawrence was not good at doing the sensible thing.

Daniel started to warm up while Johnny did a few half-hearted stretches of his own. Then they got into position in the middle of the yard.

“You gonna be able to move properly in that, Johnny?” asked Daniel, eyes flicking up and down Johnny’s denim clad torso.

“I can move in anything, LaRusso. Don’t think you’ve got an advantage over me just because you’re wearing some fancy-ass designer workout gear and $300 sneakers.”

“Whatever, Johnny. You wanna start with the new set of kicks?”

They trained for about forty minutes, moving from the kicks to a new punching technique and then into some blocks (“Can’t we just keep punching?” Johnny had asked. “’Cause you know, the best type of defence is just more offence.” Daniel raised an eyebrow. “That’s the winning attitude that got us into this mess to begin with. Come on Johnny, let’s just try it my way, OK?”)

The sun was low in the sky but it was still baking hot, and Johnny could feel the sweat running down his chest, exacerbated by the heavyweight denim. It was worth it though. Johnny hadn’t really planned what would happen once he’d put the jacket on, but the first time Daniel’s bare skin had come into contact with the fabric he had let out a breathy little gasp. Johnny had then deliberately started to make sure his jacket touched Daniel whenever possible, and by the time they had worked through most of the new moves Daniel was looking dishevelled, hair unruly and falling into his eyes, skin slick with sweat, breath ragged. He lashed out with a front kick and Johnny blocked as planned, but rather than backing off he spun Daniel around and pulled him into an embrace so the smaller man’s back was flush against his chest before dragging his jacket slowly over Daniel’s damp skin. Daniel shuddered and let out a small whimper. He went to move away but Johnny grabbed his wrist and pulled him back in so that they were face to face. Johnny let go of Daniel’s wrist, moving his hand instead to the other man’s waist, letting his fingers rub over the slight swell of softness at Daniel’s middle.

“Johnny”, Daniel breathed, voice breaking, eyes wide, leaning in just ever so slightly.

Johnny gulped. This was dangerous territory; flirting was one thing, but they were now on the verge of something else entirely. An image of Carmen and Miguel flashed into his mind, happily chatting away at their family meal, and he felt a sudden rush of guilt. Daniel was still staring at him with those big doe eyes, and he suspected that if he went in for a kiss the smaller man wouldn’t resist him.

Instead he stepped back, arms dropping to his sides, almost tripping over a rock as he put some distance between him and Daniel (who designs a dojo with freaking great lumps of stone in it, anyway? And Daniel had the nerve to criticise him for being unsafe).

“Uh”, he said, throat dry, voice coming out low and scratchy. “That was good. I mean, good – uh – session. With the new moves.”

Daniel just stared at him for a moment before he seemed to come to his senses.

“Uh, yeah”, he said, clearing his throat. “Good, uh, good work Johnny.”

“Uh, yeah. You too”, said Johnny, gesturing vaguely in Daniel’s direction. They were both silent for a second and then they both spoke at once.

“It’s getting late, I should –”

“So I need to get back –”

They smiled tightly at each other.

“See you tomorrow, LaRusso”, Johnny said awkwardly.

“Yeah. Tomorrow.”

Johnny fetched his stuff from the house and left by the front door, slinging his bag into the back seat of his car. He pulled out of the driveway, glancing for a second in the rear view mirror. Daniel stood in the doorway, watching him, an unreadable expression on his face.

At home, Johnny peeled off the denim jacket and threw it back into the closet. He grabbed a beer from the refrigerator and drank it in one before cracking open another and sitting down in front of the TV. He let a mindless action film wash over him until he felt his eyelids start to droop and he drifted off on the couch to dreams of long legs and big eyes and a soft New Jersey accent that just whispered Johnny, Johnny, Johnny over and over again.

#cobra kai #cobrakaifanfic #cobra kai fan fic #cobra kai fanfiction #Johnny Lawrence #Daniel LaRusso #lawrusso #clothing kink

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ohana · 4 years

Text

When you looked me in the eyes, you finally made me recognize (Cobra Kai Secret Santa)

I'm probably ten thousand hours early because I'm on the wrong continent but still.

Here is my entry for the Cobra Kai Secret Santa hosted by @cobrakaisecretsanta (thank you thank you thank you) for @trashmouth-writes

The request from trashmouth-writes was "Definitely anything with pouty johnny with super lovey dovey Daniel" And it seemed nice to write something Christmas and a bit silly. I hope you like it (if you don't like it, please lie to me)

Summary

"Anyway, yes the advent calendar. I think it's a scam or a trap. Someone is trying to fuck with me."

"Giving you gifts?" When LaRusso's voice rises an octave he seems to be still sixteen.

"Johnny, have you ever thought that maybe someone is simply giving you gifts? Like to make you happy?"

In which Johnny starts to receive an advent calendar from a mysterious admirer.

Lawrusso, of course.

On AO3 too, here.

When you looked me in the eyes, you finally made me recognize

He remembers his first Christmas with Ali. The party, the people, Ali's red dress that she hated but her grandmother wanted her wear (she was beautiful and he hadn't even told her). His mother's laugh and how she kissed his cheek and said that they were such a beautiful couple. Sid saying "You are doing good, kid", maybe for the first time of their life together as family, and "Merry Christmas."

He doesn't remember Robby's first Christmas. He wasn't there. Shannon has sent him a Christmas card, a photo of her and Robby smiling together with some silly hats and "prick" scribbled over the big tree.

He wonders if Robby remembers the Christmas when he was there or it was too late.

He never thinks about the Christmas after the All Valley Tournament. He dreams about it sometimes. Kreese's hands on his neck, LaRusso's face disfigured with pain after Johnny hit him in the leg, the trophy, Bobby's phone calls that he kept not answering and all the "Johnny, open the door" of his mother, the Christmas eve at the beach alone.

It's not that he hates Christmas. He just doesn't care about it.

He doesn't buy chocolate. Damn most of the time he even forgets to buy real food, let alone chocolate (less often than in the past, to be honest. Maybe because Robby sleeps at his house a couple of nights a week, maybe because he's getting old and he can't live only drinking beers, maybe because LaRusso sends him stupid text from the supermarket reminding him to buy green stuff as if they were in a comedy from the 1950s). Anyway. He doesn't buy chocolate that is the main reason why now he's been sitting in his office at Cobra Kai in front of a bag of chocolates for half an hour without knowing what to do. He lifts them up, studies them a bit as if he suddenly could tell if they are poisoned. He googles them too, because now he's the kind of nerd who uses the internet. He writes "scams chocolates" but finds nothing.

He hears a key in the lock and footsteps.

"Diaz!"

Miguel overlooks at the door. His footsteps are still uncertain every now and then but in the last year he has made so much progress that if Johnny celebrated his thanksgiving day his first thank you would be for that kid.

"Yes, Sensei?"

Johnny points to the chocolates.

"Are these yours?"

Diaz looks puzzled. "Er ... no?"

"No, are you sure?" He says. Like a good teacher, like someone ready to listen to his students and not yell at them. "You can tell me."

Diaz looks even more puzzled. "Still no, sorry." He thinks for a second "Why should I have put some chocolates in your office?"

"What the fuck do I know? Why should I put them here?"

"Because it's your office?"

Johnny shrugs. "They're not mine."

Miguel walks over to him and checks the desk as if he were a fucking detective. "Was there nothing attached? No note? A receipt? Nothing?"

"Of course there was nothing attached, Mr. Diaz! I would have noticed it!" he says waving the bag that in that exact moment drops a small piece of paper. They both watch it as it gently flutters across the desk and if someone walks in at that moment and sees them he will immediately think they are father and son. Which is the truth even if it isn't.

"It's a one!" Miguel screams as if he has solved the mystery.

"I know dummy, I can read. Why is there a piece of paper with a one written on it?"

"Oh." He says, sadly "I don't know."

They stare at the chocolates and the paper for a few seconds.

Miguel takes the bag in his hand. "They look good, fancy. Not something you'll find at the store, mh?"

"How long is it until the next lesson, Diaz?" He asks him.

"At least half an hour."

"Do you want a chocolate?"

The next day in front of Cobra Kai's door there is a bottle of rum with a bow, a number two written on a card and a pretentious brochure explaining how to pair chocolate with rum. He looks around and when he doesn't see anyone that could reclaim it he takes it in his office and then at home. He doesn't have any chocolate left because the self restrain is not his best attribute but the rum tastes quite good anyway. He is freezing and it makes him feel warm.

He talks about it with LaRusso the next saturday. Until that day he received an Anthrax t-shirt and a pack of artisanal mini pizzas.

"Are you sure they're for you? Maybe someone got the wrong address and you're stealing some Christmas presents!" LaRusso suddenly comes alive and starts hopping like he always does when he's excited about something (it's not that he really hops, he just moves faster. Not that Johnny pays any attention to it. Because he doesn't.) "Maybe you're the Grinch of a family that lives near Cobra kai! "

"LaRusso the chocolates were inside my office, a bit too much for a wrong address don't you think?" and then "Who the fuck is the Grinch?"

From LaRusso's scandalized expression, this is not the right thing to say. What a surprise.

"Okay, no wrong addresses. Did you ask Robby? Maybe he ordered them on amazon?"

"Hey we don't do these things in our house, that dark web shit."

"What?!"

"Anyway, why are we here?" They are walking through home improvement stores. Near them only mothers with children, families, people who laugh and joke and talk and Johnny hates them all.

"You know why we are here. We are here because, as I wrote you, I have to buy a Christmas tree." (and I didn't want to go alone, he is about to say. But he doesn't say that. And I wanted to go with you, he thinks. But he doesn't say that either.)

"And you didn't go with Amanda ... why?"

"Because you don't go with your ex-wife to buy a Christmas tree for your new bachelor flat. We're not that civilized."

"I don't understand why you need a Christmas tree anyway." Daniel shows him a tree topper full of ribbons and ruffles and things that shouldn't be in any straight person's apartment. Or in general. "Put that thing down or am I going to have to kick you."

"Mh, and who knows how it would end ..." but he is smiling and there is a tone of complicity in his voice. "I don't want Sam and Anthony to come to my house for the holidays and see a bachelor loft, I want them to see a tree and some presents and decorations. They're already going through divorce and everything, I want at least my home to be normal, cozy." Then a sigh. "Besides, I like Christmas."

"Why? Christmas is just people who don't like each other together and presents that you'll not like."

Daniel bursts out laughing and throws a punch at him. Johnny tries to see nothing in that gesture, in that intimacy. "Oh my god, you really are the fucking Grinch, Johnny Lawrence. I just don't know. I just like it. Maybe because I'm a father and when they were little Christmas was the most magical time of the year for the kids. I don't know...I like waiting for presents, I like lights, I like people, I like the warmth."

"Pffff. If you say so."

"How about this?" LaRusso indicates a tree, not too big, not too naked(Johnny is convinced that in reality in LaRusso hates all the minimalist things he buys, all the apartments with dove gray walls and gray furniture and just pretend because c'mon, just think about how he dressed as a kid there is nothing beige in that man).

"Looks ok." He thinks about it for a moment. "Now do you also want me to help you find some mistletoe to hang around the house or are we finally ready to go?"

"Considering that the only person who walks through the door of my house, apart from my children, is you, should I take that as a suggestion?"

And Johnny nearly risks a head-on against a Christmas tree.

LaRusso is still laughing as they walk out of the shop with bags full of Christmas baubles.

(It wasn't a suggestion, of course. Why would he suggest something like that? They don't have that kind of relationship. There would be no reason to kiss under the mistletoe. Or kissing in general. Obviously. Fuck it. He doesn't think about anything else all night. Fuck it.)

In the end it's Hawk that explains everything.

Miguel and the other students are outside Cobra Kai sharing a couple of beers that Johnny is pretty sure they shouldn't drink but since he found them at the door fuck it. They are triple malt, from a microbrewery and the cap does not even unscrew but they don't really suck.

Hawk lifts one of the bottles, looks at the number on it and then as if it were the most natural thing in the world he asks. "Sensei, did you buy yourself a craft beer advent calendar?"

"Huh?" Says Johnny.

"An advent calendar."

"Huh?" Miguel asks.

"How is it possible that the boy with the Jewish grandparents has to explain to you what an advent calendar is?" And since they don't seem to understand, he continues. "On this bottle there is the number seven, today is December 7th. Were there another six bottles of beer?"

"No." Miguel replies sadly.

"No?"

"But there were six other gifts, each with a number attached to it." Johnny corrects him.

"One a day!" Adds Miguel.

"So it's an advent calendar. One surprise a day until Christmas."

Oh.

"Except if he didn't buy it himself, some chick must have bought it for him. Not bad for an old man, Sensei!"

The kids start speculating about who might have given it to him and looking at all possible advent calendars on their smartphones.

Johnny walks away as a high-pitched voice speaks of "Merry cheesemas". When he gets home he throws the remaining beers in the garbage and turns off the television when the usual Christmas movie appears.

"I think it's a trap" He says to LaRusso the next monday.

"What?" LaRusso looks lost. He is wearing a big scarf but his nose is still a bit red and he looks, Johnny would rather die than say it out loud, cute.

"The gifts with the numbers on it."

"The Advent Calendar?"

Why everyone knows what an advent calendar is?

Johnny nods.

"Is the advent calendar a trap?"

Now Johnny seems like an idiot. Which is not. Definitely.

"These ones?"

LaRusso shakes his head as Johnny points to some plant shears. He hands him an even bigger pair.

"These are more suitable for outdoor bonsai. They won't rust if you don't dry them well after disinfecting them. They are slightly more expensive but last a lifetime." His eyes sparkle when he talks about his stupid plants. Johnny hates him a little.

"A little more expensive?" He looks at the price tag. "I could buy him a real tree with the price, not these miniature trees that you short people like."

LaRusso snorts "But Robby doesn't want a tree for Christmas." He stops for a second lost in his thoughts "If they're too expensive I can contribute, I'd love to." And even if it costs him to admit it, Johnny knows that he is sincere in this. LaRusso is an asshole, a hothead, he believes himself better than others and he can never shut up but he is generous, he really likes to do things for others. Johnny hates him a little.

"Give them to me." He takes the scissors and puts them in the basket. "Anyway, yes the advent calendar. I think it's a scam or a trap. Someone is trying to fuck with me."

"Giving you gifts?" When LaRusso's voice rises an octave he seems to be still sixteen. "Why?"

"What the fuck do I know? Why do people do things? Maybe it's one of your mortal enemies who wants to screw me. Maybe it's Terry Silver."

"We're not talking about Terry Silver." It is true. But they talked about him. One evening in that confused space of time when everything was going to hell, in which while Johnny's life, the Cobra Kai and LaRusso's marriage were falling apart, they found a way of their own to communicate. They found their own dimension.

"Maybe someone you pissed off." He replies.

"Someone that I pissed off? And why would someone I pissed off try to screw you? By giving you gifts by the way? Besides, I think you piss off enough people on your own."

"Pfff. In any case, I threw everything in the garbage. Nobody can fool me like that."

They keep walking into the plant shop.

"Johnny, have you ever thought that maybe someone is simply giving you gifts? Like to make you happy?"

That night when he gets home he takes the panettone and the Zebra bootleg out of the garbage. They are both pretty good.

On Thursday in the advent calendar, he gave up and decided to call it that, he found a small radio. It's the miniature version, with a USB port (Miguel tells him), of the Ali's one that he broke on the beach. Even the songs included are the same ones he listened to at that time. That evening when a Christmas movie is being shown on television, he waits ten minutes before changing the channel.

"I think it's Ali." He tells LaRusso when they meet up the next day for a couple of beers and some Chinese food (for Johnny, LaRusso insists on eating that awful raw fish that costs more than cooked fish and tastes like sea).

"What?"

"I think Ali made the advent calendar for me." and then because LaRusso doesn't seem to understand he tells him about the Zebra bootleg, about how most of the surprises seem to come from someone who knows him well and obviously about the radio like the one Ali had.

LaRusso doesn't seem so sure. He stretches on the sofa, where they sat to watch The Grinch because according to Daniel it was not acceptable that Johnny had never seen him, and ventures "Johnny are you talking to Ali lately?"

"Not a word for thirty-something years."

"Then why should she send you an advent calendar? She doesn't even live in the same city as us."

Johnny sighs like he's dealing with an idiot. Which is fair. "Women can never forget someone like me."

"She left you! She hated you!" and then with his annoying voice "Oh don't get distracted this scene is particularly funny!" (it isn't)

Johnny ignores him. "She probably wanted to apologize to me in some way with that radio."

"But it was you who broke it!" and then in a low voice convinced that Johnny can't hear him "My God this guy is really an asshole."

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with being a little jealous. The fact that she didn't send you an advent calendar doesn't mean Ali didn't care about you, she just can't forget me. Try this guy once..."

Daniel throws candy canes in his face.

"Hey ... do you want to stay over?" LaRusso asks him when the film ends. "It's quite late and I don't know how much you've been drinking."

It's not particularly late and Johnny hasn't drunk more than on a normal day of the week. LaRusso's sofa bed isn't even particularly comfortable, even though the sheets always smell good and the pancakes he makes don't really suck (and he's even stopped insisting that Johnny try some kind of tea that tastes like pureed grass). There are Christmas on the front door, which he hates. He really has no reason to stay.

Johnny fakes a yawn. He stays.

The next morning he writes a message to Ali to thank her for the advent calendar on facebook.

He writes to LaRusso "To be honest the Grinch never hated the Christmas, he hated the people, which is fair."

Ali replies "Johnny, what are you talking about? Why should I give you a gift?"

LaRusso replies "You are such an ass. Do you want to help me decorate the tree tonight? "

"Of course I don't want it. Why? Are you too short to put the baubles on it?" He texts back.

"I have beers and we can try the new pizzeria around the corner."

He replies ""Okay but if you're going to put on that ridiculous sweater with the deer and the lights again, I'll have to fight you to get it off."

"It's a reindeer not a deer, for God's sake. And you have a funny way to try to undress your dates, Lawrence."

It's a joke of course. A lame one. It's not that he really wants to see LaRusso naked. Or that LaRusso is his date. (fuck fuck fuck)

He helps LaRusso with the Christmas tree. He doesn't even hate too much.

He doesn't text back to Ali.

After three more days of surprises in the advent calendar, he confronts Carmen.

She listens to him without saying a word but then her doubtful expression melts into a smile. It's a smile that Carmen reserves only for him and in which Johnny initially saw a lot of potential. He saw going out, a lot of sex, even a little romance. Now that the months have passed, including those in which Carmen didn't even speak to him at all, he has learned to see what is really behind that smile, that sweetness: family. They will never be in love but they will always be a family in some way.

"Johnny, my love these days I don't even have time to breathe at work, let alone prepare an advent calendar for someone." And then "Have you ever thought that there is someone else besides us who wants to make you happy?"

Johnny grumbles, replies by making silly allusions to some girl he's met and stuff like that. In front of Carmen's door, he finds himself thinking for the first time in months about his mother, about the way she always took care of him.

Carmen continues talking. "I heard that Robby will probably spend Christmas with his mom. We won't be home celebrating... Do you have someone to spend Christmas with? Otherwise we can try to organize something, I'm sure Miggy would like it."

Johnny thinks of the billionth text that LaRusso sent him to remind him to pack the gift for Robby.

"I'm okay." He replies.

The next day he finds an Atari console with Popeye on it in the advent calendar and it's a trip down memory lane. He liked video games when he was a kid, when he wasn't the popular guy at school yet. He liked listening to music, playing video games and forgetting Sid's remarks, the absence of a father, the lack of friends. Before, in a world where there was no karate, Kreese and Cobra Kai to get lost in. He had almost forgotten about those years, about that Johnny. He wonders what would happen to his life if he stayed that Johnny. Would Ali have stayed? (Or even more than that: would Ali notice and date someone like that Johnny?) Would the friends of the Cobra Kai want him? Would he have been a failure as a father? Would he and Daniel become friends? (he imagines: making lesson with Mr. Miyagi, play video games together, teach him to surf and stay to chill on the beach, listening some music with only one walkman, close, with legs touching)

When on December 18th he finds a portable mini golf (like the ones you see in B-movies, in the offices of successful managers) he invites LaRusso to his apartment to play with it only because he is unable to play something without turning it into a competition , in a fight. Not because he likes to see him. Daniel goes all "Oh" and "Thanks" when he sees that Johnny has put in the fridge all he needs for a martini cocktail and opens his giant brown doe eyes and Johnny doesn't know whether to feel like a shitty person or a fifteen year old on a first date. The only thing he's sure of is that he doesn't know what to do with these feelings. If he could he would kick them, fight them back to their corner because he's not sure he knows how to ignore them now that they're out. He is so angry. With himself, with LaRusso, with that stupid advent calendar and with Christmas too.

He kicks LaRusso's butt at portable mini golf and when it starts getting late he yawns and says he'll have to get up early the next day for some commitments. He doesn't offer LaRusso another drink, he doesn't ask him if he's too tired to stay. He falls asleep on the couch alone.

He goes out two nights in a row. At the bar a woman flirts with him. She is a hot babe, the kind of woman who might not listen to what she says (and who wouldn't listen to what Johnny says) but whose boobs he would surely remember. The kind of woman to have a drink and have a fuck with without either of them looking for more. It would be so easy, he thinks.

Miguel asks "Are you not going out with Mr.LaRusso tonight?" as if he was used to doing it every Sunday, after Daniel saw his kids.

In the advent calendar he finds a small cobra (a fake one, not a real cobra because it would be scary and...deadly probably) with a headband. Seeing the band on the cobra's head doesn't make him think of Ali for the first time in thirty-five years.

Daniel texts him. "Are you all right? Have you become the Grinch?"

He doesn't reply.

On the phone, a delivery boy asks for confirmation of the address to deliver the shopping for Christmas dinner with Robby. Dinner he obviously wouldn't have ordered had it been for him.

Daniel texts him "Remember to take the food out of the fridge two hours before the dinner."

He doesn't reply.

Daniel texts him. "Asshole." (Is he? Probably. Maybe he should have texted him "coward" it suited him more.)

Strike first strike first strike first.

The thing is: Johnny isn't an idiot. Of course he is an idiot in some way, but it's not really the point. He knows with every fiber of his body that this is probably the closest thing he will get to a relationship. Even to be in love. The problem is that everything Johnny knows about love is what he lived in a two-year relationship with a girl, with which he didn't even get along very well, when he was sixteen. After that nothing, he got stuck.

And then he doesn't know what to do with these feelings, he doesn't know how to match his idea of love (that of a sixteen year old with too many hormones, always too angry and so lost) with this sense of intimacy, with this warmth. He doesn't know how to explain to the sixteen year old Johnny who came home angry and wanted to kick LaRusso's butt who maybe, maybe they could be in love with that ridiculous man in the deer sweaters who drives them crazy, makes them question all the choices of their lives and reminds them to buy tree scissors for their son and looks at them with those giant doe eyes that make their knees tremble.

Not to mention the tiny detail that that love may very well not be reciprocated because LaRusso is an idiot.

It would be so easy to strike first. Buy that girl a drink in the pub, turn off the phone, have a good fuck. It would be so easy.

Robby says "Thanks dad, they are great" when he opens the scissors. Robby chews his food and says "It tastes amazing, a lot better than when you try to cook!" And then smiles, like a kid, like a young man ready to conquer the world, to open up to the world and not as a boy with whom his parents have failed many times, who has months of juvie behind him and a lot of therapy sessions to deal with. Johnny looks at him and he's so happy and he feels so bad that he doesn't deserve it that he just wants to punch something. Or drink too many beers and fall into a coma.

"Are you okay, dad?" Robby asks.

It would be so easy.

"Have you ever thought that there is someone who wants to make you happy?"

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve.

("Asshole")

LaRusso is still in his pajamas pants when he opens the door. Since he and Amanda got divorced he has let his hair grow slightly and now they are all messed up on his head and he looks silly.

"I expected you were already dressed to go to work." Says to him.

LaRusso yawns and snorts. "I expected you to respond to my messages." but then adds with a note of concern in his voice "Are you okay? Did something happen with Robby?"

Johnny waves in front of him the replica of the All Valley tournament trophy, still partially wrapped, with the number 24 sticking out among the paper.

He reads aloud "World's second best sensei. You are such an arrogant prick."

LaRusso stares at him with a smug look and says "Well it takes one to know one." and "I was referring to Mr. Miyagi, dumbass."

And now he's an asshole.

LaRusso bursts out laughing and Johnny seriously wants to beat him.

"" You ... You are impossible! You are so annoying and you do things like this and I can't stand you! ".

Daniel raises an eye brown. "It looks like you can, instead."

"And you can never shut up, you are unbearable! You get under my skin like some fungus! Nobody makes me feel like that."

Because it is true. He's not sure if he likes it but no one will ever make him feel that way. Nobody before, nobody after. In Johnny's life there will always be a before and after Daniel LaRusso. Not that he'll ever tell that prick who already thinks he's better than everyone else and definitely doesn't need someone to pump his ego even more.

"Hey, hasn't anyone ever taught you just to say thank you when someone gives you a gift?"

"No one has ever taught me a lot of things." And he thinks of Kreese.

LaRusso takes a step in his direction by invading his space and takes his hands (which are still holding the trophy so in reality the scene is more awkward than romantic).

"Yet you have learned so much anyway." He smiles at him, with a smile different from the one of the commercials, more open, more sincere. "And you're teaching a lot of right things to your students too. Under all that No Mercy bullshit you're teaching them a lot. It wasn't a joke, the trophy. I mean it."

Johnny thinks she could almost kiss him. Then he remembers one thing.

"How did you know about the Atari console? I didn't even know you when I was playing video games."

Daniel lights up, like a magician ready to reveal a trick to his audience. "That? Robby told me. Apparently you told him once when you were drunk and sad. He also told me which bootleg you were missing and helped me get some packages. I could have asked Miguel probably but Sam says he can't keep a secret to save his life and I didn't want to risk him revealing my identity. Of course I couldn't think you thought of Ali first than me. He laughs, his eyes shine. "Anyway I could have asked a lot of people. You may not know but there are a lot of people who care about you and would like to make you happy. When you are not busy being an asshole or pushing others away because you are scared it's very easy to care for you, Johnny Lawrence. "

"Have you ever thought that there is someone who wants to make you happy?"

Johnny pins him against the front door and kisses him and for a moment LaRusso freezes and doesn't reciprocate and Johnny thinks he shall punch him because there is no possibility that he has misread this situation. Then Daniel melts into the kiss and kisses him back and it's the opposite of what he imagined when he was sixteen. It's not a battle, it's meeting halfway. It's not a fight, it's peace, it's like coming home and finding a new home at the same time.

Daniel starts laughing in the kiss and Johnny is forced to pull back slightly before he can suffocate and die which wouldn't be a very bright way to start this phase of his life.

"What now?"

LaRusso smiles as if he has discovered some secret and murmurs on his neck "You didn't need the mistletoe at the end."

Johnny sighs because he is an idiot and then kisses him again. He feels giddy, happy.

Daniel budges away from him, without breaking the embrace.

"You know, under these pajamas pants I have some Christmas boxers with a reindeer." He raises an eyebrow "I'm telling you because maybe, maybe you still want to fight me to make me take them off like you did with the sweater."

"Has this atrocious line ever worked with anyone?"

"I don't know, is it working?"

Johnny opens the door "Let's go inside."

#cksecretsanta2020 #lawrusso #cobra kai #daniel larusso #johnny lawrence #cobra kai secret santa

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issa-wasteland · 4 years

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Thoughts I had in mind about Karate Kid 🥋

To start things off Johnny and his friends were bullies to daniel. Daniel not off the hook either cause he started some shit too.

Idk how or why bobby was in that friend group cause you can tell he was the one who had second thoughts about the actions that are being acted on despite his sensei manipulating "no mercy" mindset onto the students. Like how many times he stopped/ tried to stop johnny from hurting daniel or felt bad when he hurt daniel knowing that was not his intention to do so???

Wtf was dutch's problem towards daniel? You'd think johnny really has it out for daniel and beat his face in but it's dutch.

I seriously forget about that other guy in Johnny's lil group

Tommy is dedicated as he was even training with a broken arm and ready to jump on daniel with johnny when they was at school after getting their ass handed to them. I might be a lil slow but I don't understand how tommy got his arm broken cause looking back on the fight between the group and Mr. Miyagi, he didn't do much damage to the boys. Also johnny exaggerated about tommy getting brain damaged from it. Then again it was a grown man vs teens sooo....idk

How did johnny get a black eye if Mr. Miyagi didn't even hit him in the eye?

However put daniel onto this fit should be no where near a movie set or the actors/actresses.

I understand when your friend is seeing a guy and you also tell that guy off when needed but it's like every time daniel came by ali, her friends is just so disgusted by him and I find that funny cause what did he do to Y'ALL personally??? Daniel could be buggin sometimes and just be talkin shit but the way those friends really don't fuck with him is something.

Ali's a nice girl but I never found what was so amazing about her the way johnny and daniel see her. I did love how she socked the shit out of johnny for kissing her without consent and to make daniel jealous.

Daniel had some decent looks throughout the karate kid movies

Freddy lowkey a shitty friend

How the fuck daniel was suppose to know ali and johnny broke up as johnny was mad that ali moved on and daniel just so happen to move to reseda and is taking interest on ali though he didn't know her at the beach. He didn't even know until he got to school and ali told him.

Still til this day I don't like ali's parents

You can feel how you want towards daniel but he had some guts to give ali her radio and asked what's going on after johnny slammed it. Everyone else was just gonna watch a raging boy with a red jacket go off on his ex.

Notice how we never seen the full fight between daniel and dutch.

Tommy's confused and the rest are just watching but johnny is a lil invested to what daniel is trying to say

What was the reason for johnny to stare at daniel like that

Even before the teacher arrived, johnny and daniel were just staring at each other intensely

One of the best sensei/student duo

I never known peace when thinking about how Mr. Miyagi sadly lost his wife and son as he's been alone ever since. Daniel lost his dad at a young age. Let's say few more years later, these two happen to met and although Mr. Miyagi is daniel's sensei, it's also like he is filling that father role that daniel highly respects and wants to owe him back for what he's done for him. He even says something similar to Mr. Miyagi in Karate Kid 2 and sacrificed his college money to go with him. Just like daniel has Mr. Miyagi who is pretty much a caring father, he is the hothead, stubborn son to Mr. Miyagi as that's how I see it. For Karate Kid 3, it was like watching the parent who is fed up with bullies picking on his son after the son did some shit they shouldn't have done in the first place but is sorry and just needs help.

And now in cobra kai, it is true that Mr. Miyagi was alone and didn't have much going on until Daniel came into his life as he was the light in miyagi's life from then on. He helped and watched danny grow into a man with his own life. He gained a family after being so lost for a longtime that he felt like grandfather to Sam. Saddest part is daniel didn't know that about Mr. Miyagi yet feels the same way and how he pretty much wants to say how Mr. Miyagi is his father.

I didn't know that Mr. Miyagi's letter was the heartfelt closure we needed.

Me rn trying to explain this:

#karate kid #mr miyagi #daniel larusso #johnny lawrence #john kreese #bobby brown #tommy #ali mills #dutch

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danwhobrowses · 4 years

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Why ‘The Karate Kid Part II’ Deserves More Respect

So guess what film I finished watching today? Of course, the Karate Kid franchise is considered iconic mainly for its first entry; Wax on Wax off, Skeleton fights, Sweep the Leg and the Crane Kick all cemented its legacy that allowed Cobra Kai to also be such a success. But imagine my shock when the approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes for Part II is 45% - 21% lower than the Jaden Smith ‘The Karate Kung Fu Kid’ version (and Part III is scored 15%, which is also super harsh but hard to debate outside of the magnificence of Terry Silver). Originally this was just gonna be a general post of how much I enjoyed retreading Part II, but upon seeing that score I had to give it my ‘Deserves More Respect’ posts.

It is an off-chance, but if you haven’t watched this film there will be spoilers within, I encourage you to watch it before reading, and maybe watch it again if you have so it’s fresh in the mind

Let’s start with a controversial point shall we? There are several parts where Part II is actually better than the original. Now I know! There’s a lot about the original which is iconic, but nostalgia does blind you to other shortcomings and while it’s easy to sell the first part because of its mystique, a sequel has the added pressure of rising above and developing on old and new themes set by the predecessor. The Premise In case you decided against refreshing your memory. Karate Kid Part II starts with a recap of Part I, a bit of content that was meant to be Part I’s final scene (in the script, not for filming) and then a timeskip. Ali with an i is gone - brutally dumping Daniel for some Football Player before Senior Prom and after crashing his car, Daniel’s mother is in Fresno for work and Miyagi has received a letter from his home Okinawa in news of his father’s fading health. The stage is set for Daniel and the audience to learn more about the iconic Mr. Miyagi and the life he left behind. Okay, so there is bad in this film Part II deserves respect, but it’s not perfect. It definitely gets messy near the end with Daniel’s antagonist Chozen, he mainly took beats from Johnny Lawrence in physically confronting Daniel when he could with a bunch of no-named goons and he fought pretty similarly to Johnny in catch counters and leg strikes. The opening recap did take a lot of time too, while the ending remained somewhat abrupt having just beaten up Chozen to embrace Kumiko (who had a delayed recovery after being punched once). While not bad, a fair amount of retreaded content felt like downgrades of the original; Chozen and Sato lacked the charisma of Johnny and Kreese, the crane kick was far more impressive than the drum technique and the Tournament setting was grander than the O-Bon festival. But, there are Iconic Moments in this film too Part I may have the Crane Kick and the Skeletons and the Training and Sweep the Leg. But people may forget that Part II had awesome moments too.

Like Daniel chopping through 6 Sheets of Ice! If that isn’t one hell of a power play I don’t know what is. It is a moment genuinely impressive in and outside of the 80s cheese universe of Karate Kid, and it gets referenced in Season 2 of Cobra Kai.

Also referenced in Season 2 is Miyagi vs Kreese. While this is the intended ending for Part I, it certainly acted better at the start of Part II, especially given that is foreshadows the situation Daniel finds himself in at the end of the movie. This moment is equally iconic as it completely encapsulates the character of both senseis - Kreese the confident brute brought to a sniveling mouse when size and power failed him and Miyagi the cool-headed and vastly more intelligent fighter still with the cheeky prankster lightness to him as he honks the scared shitless Kreese on the nose. Perfect.

While I did want to cite the Tea Ceremony as well I think the more iconic moment for Part II had to be Miyagi chopping the log during the storm. The storm itself is a very well-done scene which unmasks several characters in the face of adversity. True tension, worry and stakes are sold as the village are in danger of the cruel whims of nature, an act which is all too real for Sato when the house he’s in collapses on him in the calm before his scheduled deathmatch with Miyagi. Not only is this again some great foreshadowing by the rule of three (Daniel asking if Miyagi can chop a log like Sato is doing with a banner and then Miyagi and Sato meeting and seeing Sato fail to chop a log) it proves a pivotal point where Sato turns from aggrieved antagonist to repenting ally. A great show of power and friendship as Miyagi metaphorically breaks the rift between their friendship that weighs Sato down. Okay, we hear you, but how is it better? I do have to preface that I do still love Part I, I have to because in pointing out where Part II is better I have to pick at Part I’s faults. While the ending is messy Part II definitely has much better pacing, until the skeletons scene Part I doesn’t really pick up because it has to set up, Part II while it does recap doesn’t need to worry about it. Giving Miyagi the main plot was definitely Part II’s strongest suit. Part I profited from Miyagi being the ‘mysterious old teacher’ but learning a lot more about his humanity and history was engrossing and it allowed positive development for Miyagi and Daniel, especially their bond as a surrogate father and son when Daniel personally goes out of his way to support Miyagi on a very personal matter. The main characters maintain their charm as well, still a lovely array of life lessons in Part II more than just finding balance, Miyagi teaches Daniel through words and action on taking time to breathe, to refocus when imbalanced, to forgive rather than to harbour hate, mercy, selflessness and humbleness

“never put passion before principle. Even if win, you lose.” - Mr. Miyagi

The scenes involving Miyagi and his father were some of the most deep and emotive of the series up until Cobra Kai, some still haven’t been topped such as Miyagi’s dad’s first words to his son or when Daniel talked about when his father died. And say what you will about Chozen, he does have a lot of Johnny vibes but a lot of the character we believed was Johnny due to nostalgia goggles was more fitting of Chozen’s manner. The story did a great job in making sure Chozen was always an asshole, at times Johnny did at least display honour and grace but Chozen was always sore about stuff and quick to claim dishonour even when he was in the wrong. Contrary to Johnny it’s more about his family than it is about a girl, which allowed a lot more freedom in the plot. Whether you felt Elizabeth Shue’s Ali with an i was prettier than Tamlyn Tomita’s Kumiko is up to personal preference, but the messy-haired Kumiko definitely had a slightly improved presence in Part II than Ali did, with actual focus on her own feelings outside of attraction to Daniel, her ambition to become a dancer directly linking to the O-Bon Festival - which in turn related to the Drum technique - as well as the delicately beautiful Tea Ceremony scene and actually contributing to the final fight (granted Ali wouldn’t be allowed to). Also Daniel didn’t try to eat her face which is a general improvement to the romantic subplot, extra applause has to go to Tomita here too because this was legitimately her first role - Shue had her second so that’s impressive too - and both women had good careers going forward. The increased stakes definitely worked in the favour of Part II as well, as sequel culture is forced to do, but by moving to Okinawa (actually filmed in Hawaii) we opened the door to better suit Miyagi’s world while keeping Daniel the fish out of water. I can’t speak too much for appropriation because there is still kinda some ‘white saviour’ undertones but I didn’t feel like Japan was treated negatively in this light, its culture of the O-Bon Festival and the Tea Ceremony was treated with the utmost respect and explained without pandering, the flute music had definitely stepped up its game for the soundtrack as did the imagery. Can also appreciate that Daniel does go for the Crane kick when fighting Chozen but is parried. Added hat tip has to go to costuming too. A lot of costumes would have to have distinct Kamon such as Sato’s twin fish and Miyagi’s bonsai on a lot of their clothing

Between Sato and Miyagi the colours of their clothes often code their emotions towards each other, with Sato usually in grey and Miyagi in white or cream, when Sato and Miyagi prepare for death they are in black and when Sato wants forgiveness he moves to a lighter shade. While Part I also used black and white to differ Johnny and Daniel, Part II put Chozen and Daniel in the more Japanese-themed Red and Blue. While both men wear red, blue and whites at time, Chozen’s clothes almost devolve from the white he debuts in as his darker side comes out before flat out embracing yellow after his chance to prove his honour in the storm is refused (and he’s in white then), while Daniel often moves to Red or red tones even in his blue shirt. Kumiko also moves from white to blue, sometimes even purple, in set up to the final fight to have the primary colours stand out in the colourful crowd of the O-Bon festival, but even in the blue Kumiko had red to pair her connection with Daniel. Also her Yukata at the festival is just stunning, the Great Wave off Kanagawa print is a nice touch.

Anything else we should know? It might not be much else about the film itself I can tell you, but I do appreciate something I’m starting to call ‘The Rocky Connection’ when it comes to Karate Kid. Like Part I’s ‘You’re the Best (Around)’ was shortlisted for Rocky III, Part II’s song ‘Glory of Love’ was shortlisted for Rocky IV’s theme, losing to ‘Hearts on Fire’, Bill Conti also chose to score this film instead of Rocky IV. I like to pair this with Daniel’s Rocky-esque character, he has that same kind of swagger but a lot more naive and childlike. Martin Kove also gets a nod because those bleeding hands were legit, he had an accident on-set and the footage was kept for the final cut. Tamlyn Tomita wasn’t the only film debut for Part II, B.D. Wong of...well, several famous roles including but not limited to Shang in the animated Mulan, Dr. Wu in the Jurassic Park franchise, Hugo Strange in Gotham and many more, also had his debut here in a minor speaking role when he’s handing out flyers for the dance party to Kumiko and Daniel before the Ice Chopping Scene. So, why does it deserve respect A film that adds to a beloved character in a respectful fashion without having really any god awful moments does not deserve a 4.5/10 rating. It may not have as emphatic an ending or as great a villain but it has a captivating plot and a good pace, better stakes and much more emotionally driven and responsive scenes. A lot of effort and dedication went into this film to explore new dimensions of the main characters in a fashion which was enjoyable and at times heartwarming. And characters are given human moments, even Miyagi confesses himself not to be perfect and it keeps each character grounded. Even to this day parts of Part II are remembered fondly rather than the campness that Part III had outside of Terry Silver and his magnificent ponytail, the fondness also continues to reflect in Cobra Kai with homages and fan theories of Daniel going to Okinawa again and even re-encountering Chozen. Not to mention it grossed $113m on a $13m budget and got nominated for a Best Original Song Oscar (losing to Top Gun) Part II was a good and enjoyable film which deserves far more credit than to be rated this low, for that it deserves respect.

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