In the most recent trailer for the long-awaited fifth season of Cobra Kai, Daniel LaRusso is steadfast in taking down Terry Silver, which leads him to get into a heated argument with his wife Amanda. Another shot shows Daniel sadly staring at a picture of his family. Will trying to take down Cobra Kai force Daniel down another dark path?
Daniel has always had a bad history with Silver dating back to the events of the third Karate Kid movie. After experiencing a falling out with Mr. Miyagi, Daniel went to Silver for tournament training -- eventually leading to Silver (temporarily) corrupting LaRusso. Knowing how dangerous Silver is, Daniel remains bent on doing whatever he can to ensure that Silver does not succeed in spreading Cobra Kai across the Valley. As his quest to eliminate continues, his relationship with Amanda seems to be getting increasingly rocky. He may lose a lot in order to pursue his ultimate victory.
When Johnny Lawrence restarted Cobra Kai in Season 1, Daniel focused all of his efforts on shutting down Lawrence's dojo, causing his relationship with Amanda to be strained. This trend continued in the second season and although Amanda and Daniel seemed to be on the same page in the third season, Amanda and Daniel appear to undergo another relationship hurdle in the Season 5 trailer. During the trailer, Terry is seen hosting a fundraiser or public event which both Amanda and Daniel are present. Amanda appears to be charmed by Silver's charisma. Daniel argues with Amanda, which could lead to a separation between the two -- at least for the short term. However, that's not all that makes it look like Daniel will be on a downward spiral.
Daniel is alsosporting a new black eye when he’s alongside Johnny and Chozen. Who could land such a hit on one of the most skilled fighters on the show? While some think it may be Mike Barnes, that doesn't seem to be the case. The trailer may be teasing a fight between Daniel and Terry Silver. However, judging by Johnny's battle with Silver in the previous season, Daniel will not fare very well. A further analysis of the scene also shows Daniel with bleeding knuckles and visible stubble, meaning that his fight could have happened a few days or a week after the moment where Daniel is seen solemnly looking at a family photo.
Based on all these hints, it's probable that Daniel may have been fighting one person or even multiple people before facing off against Silver, as Silver appears to be in pristine condition during their face-off. In Karate Kid 3, Daniel punches a guy who was harassing Jessica; he could have gotten into another unrelated scuffle. However, unlike in Karate Kid 3, he doesn't appear to be remorseful of what he's done in the Cobra Kai Season 5 trailer. This hearkens back to Season 4, in which Terry claimed that Daniel always had a bit of Cobra Kai in him.
Daniel's hotheadedness and lust for revenge normally leads to more problems, and the trailer doesn't seem to show anything different. If Amanda briefly leaves him, Daniel's inner cobra may resurface. However, this time, Daniel won't have either Mr. Miyagi or Amanda to reel him in. Without anyone to support him, Daniel may struggle to escape his darkness in an action-packed season.
Cobra Kai Season 5 premieres Sept. 9 on Netflix.