Tory and Sam found common ground in Cobra Kai season 5, but they aren't exactly friends. Ultimately, this is how season 6 needs to leave it.
Cobra Kai season 5 had Tory Nichols and Sam LaRusso put their differences aside to work together to bring Terry Silver down, but season 6 should refrain from making them true friends. As the final season of the Karate Kid spinoff show, season 6 is expected to tie up all the loose ends left throughout the series. However, too idealistic of an ending comes with many risks when it comes to what previous seasons spent years setting up.
From the moment that Tory was introduced in Cobra Kai in season 2, she became a clear rival for Sam. She quickly developed a relationship with Miguel Diaz and later Robby Keene, both of whom were Sam's exes. Then, their rivalry was solidified during the huge karate battle that broke out at West Valley high school, when Tory's brutality seriously injured Sam and caused significant emotional trauma. However, this is all in the past since Tory and Sam began to work together to bring down the corrupted Cobra Kai dojo. Still, they aren't exactly friends, and it should stay that way.
With all that went down between them, it hardly seems healthy for Tory and Sam to enter a real friendship. Sam had significant trauma after her experience with Tory at the high school, and it took her quite a while before she stopped having panic attacks when confronted with the idea of karate. She eventually was able to face her fears and go against Tory at the All-Valley Tournament, just for Silver to pay off the referee and give Tory the win. This wasn't all Tory's fault, but she still has a great responsibility for a lot of pain caused.
Of course, this isn't to say that they can't work things out and move on, but friendship might not be their best choice. This is especially true since, now that Silver has been dealt with, the rivals can finally face off against each other in a fair fight and determine who the true champion is. They don't need to do this out of hatred or because of a need for revenge. Instead, a good old-fashioned rivalry—made up of equal parts respect and determination to defeat one another—is precisely the kind of exciting dynamic the duo needs going into Cobra Kai season 6.
It's even more critical that Sam and Tory don't give up their rivalry in Cobra Kai season 6 since nearly all the show's other feuds have been resolved. Robby and Miguel have fully fleshed out their differences and will share a baby sibling in the upcoming season. So, they must get along and put their combative past behind them. Then, there is Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso, whose rivalry has been central to The Karate Kid and Cobra Kai. They may always be competitive, but overall, they have become something of friends.
With everyone burying the hatchet, it's even more important that the spirit of competition be kept alive in Sam and Tory. It would be great to see them face off for another battle and have them go into it with all the enthusiasm (though perhaps a little less rage) as their previous fights. Then, no matter who wins, it's fun to end Cobra Kai with the understanding that they would continue to face off in future tournaments and that, by repeatedly challenging each other, they would be guaranteed to continue growing. Cobra Kai is all about passionate rivalries, so it needs to leave a few intact here and there.
0 Comments