WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Season 3 of Cobra Kai, streaming now on Netflix.
Netflix's Cobra Kai is the sequel series fans didn't know they needed. Much like the Karate Kids movies, the show centers mainly on western characters and incorporates some eastern philosophies along with its emphasis on karate. And although the creators of the show haven't cited Japanese animation as an influence, Cobra Kai actually features several tropes and themes commonly found in shonen anime.
As in the Karate Kid movies, the action in Cobra Kai stems from its focus on karate. The show starts with Johnny Lawrence teaching karate to his neighbor, Miguel Diaz, so he can defend himself from bullies. This culminates in Miguel winning the All Valley Karate Tournament at the end of Season 1, but there are several fights outside of the tournament setting throughout the series. Like several shonen anime shows, Cobra Kai seems to take place in a sort of heightened reality where rival dojos are able to constantly break into fights with little to no outside interference.
As serious as certain situations have become, Cobra Kai also still comes with a healthy dose of humor. While some anime shows opt for either a dramatic or comedic tone, many feature a good balance of both and can shift from one to the other at the drop of a hat. It may not happen in quite the same way, but Cobra Kai has pulled off some similar moments, such as Amanda inviting Johnny in for breakfast so he and Daniel don't fight in Season 1. The show also plays with format through the use of dream sequences, including Johnny's dream about Carmen taking the form of a 1980s music video, or Miguel's tournament dream which is symbolic of him fighting for his life. These more artistic moments are somewhat reminiscent of various anime that switch to a different art style in the middle of a scene to signal a tonal shift.
Some live-action anime adaptations have failed in the past because they stray too far from the source material, whether it's the tone, the style, the characters or the story itself. While certain aspects of anime simply don't translate well into live-action, there is still a way to bring these stories to life without altering them too much. Even though Cobra Kai isn't based on an anime, the stylistic choices and narrative themes it shares with various shonen anime series demonstrate that these elements can work in this format. If Cobra Kai can pull it off without really trying, maybe there's still hope for actual live-action anime remakes.