WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Season 4 of Cobra Kai, streaming now on Netflix.
The stakes were highter than ever in the Season 4 finale of Cobra Kai. Everyone agreed that whoever lost the All Valley Karate Tournament would shut down their dojos. So, when Miguel left the tournament early, it was clear something big was going on. However, Miguel didn't just leave the tournament; he ran away to Mexico to find his father. While that might have been the biggest Season 4 twist, Miguel’s decision was a long time coming and can be traced back to the season’s saddest moment.
Because of the high stakes, Daniel LaRusso’s Miyagi-Dos and Johnny Lawrence’s Eagle Fangs teamed up for parts of the season. They did so in a bid to beat the Cobra Kai students once and for all. Unfortunately, though, Daniel and Johnny’s dojos had to face each other in the tournament semi-finals, pitting Miguel Diaz and Eli “Hawk” Moskowitz against each other.
It was immediately a tense fight, but before either of them could land a point, Miguel appeared to reinjure his back. Luckily, it turned out to be a relatively minor injury, but Miguel still wasn’t sure if was going to be able to fight. So, Johnny went in to give him a pep talk, but that didn’t go over very well. Instead of listening to Miguel, Johnny tried to push him back into fighting. He told his student and surrogate son to prove that he was a man by showing Daniel and everyone else that he was the best.
Johnny’s heart was in the right place. He wanted Miguel to win, and he wanted to keep being his sensei. However, as usual, he made everything about his rivalry with Daniel. Miguel reluctantly agreed to return and fight, but he clearly wasn’t happy. Then, he didn't show up for the fight. Johnny probably pushed Miguel too hard in that moment, but Miguel’s decision to run a way to Mexico can be traced back to an earlier exchange between the two.
In Episode 8, “Party Time,” Terry Silver beat up Johnny, and after that, Johnny went home and got drunk. So, when Miguel, who had a rough night of his own, stopped in to talk about prom, he found Johnny and helped him into bed. Just as Miguel was about to leave, though, Johnny stopped him, and through his drunken stupor said, “I want to be a father to you. I really do … I just suck at it.” It’s a touching moment as the two of them finally made a true, father-son connection. Miguel couldn’t have been happier when he responded, “You’re doing just fine. I love you,” but Johnny’s response ruined everything, becuase what he said was “I love you too, Robby.”
All at once, that perfect moment and three and a half seasons worth of relationship building came crashing down. Although Johnny was drunk, his saying Robby’s name made Miguel wonder why Johnny was good to him in the first place. Maybe Johnny was just “practicing” with Miguel so he could get Robby back and make good. Maybe that was what Johnny really wanted. Maybe he didn’t really care for Miguel after all. Clearly all of those thoughts sent Miguel on a spiral, and those feelings manifested at the tournament. So, that was why Miguel ran off to Mexico -- to find the father figure that Johnny declined to be in his drunken stupor.
Cobra Kai's four seasons are available to stream now on Netflix.