Cobra Kai Filmed (But Cut) a Scene With Karate Kid Part II's Theme Song

When I think about The Karate Kid franchise, two songs immediately come to mind: “You’re the Best” by Joe Esposito and “Glory of Love” by Peter Cetera. The former, famously used at the end of the original movie, didn’t appear on the Netflix show Cobra Kai until its final episode, a decision very carefully and specially made by its creators. The latter, the love theme from The Karate Kid Part II, was vaguely alluded to on the show but never used. However, it turns out the team filmed a scene for the song, it just didn’t make the final cut.

One of the show’s creators, Jon Hurwitz, recently did a Q&A on X and was asked why “Glory of Love,” a song so closely connected with Karate Kid, was never used on the show. “We actually filmed a goodbye scene between Daniel and Kumiko in season three that had them slow dancing to ‘Glory of Love,'” Hurwitz said. “It was really sweet and one of my favorite scenes that didn’t make a final cut.”

For context, season three of Cobra Kai saw Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) return to Okinawa, Japan where the story of The Karate Kid Part II took place. There, he reconnected with his love interest from the film, Kumiko (Tamlyn Tomita), though it was largely platonic. “At the end of the day, it felt a little too intimate considering Daniel is a happily married man,” Hurwitz continued. “It also didn’t help that the song was expensive and the episode was running long. Felt like an unnecessary beat for the storyline that could cause unintentional story complications.”

So there you have it. “Glory of Love” by Peter Cetera (and famously covered by New Found Glory) was going to be in Cobra Kai but circumstances just didn’t warrant it. But they tried. They always tried. It’s one of a very, very few obvious callbacks the team behind the show didn’t end up making—and basically every time that happened, it was the right call. Plus, in its place, we got an even better Karate Kid Part II tribute with four seasons of Chozen, played by Yuji Okumoto, which was glorious on its own.

Cobra Kai is now streaming in full on Netflix. If you haven’t watched it, it’ll make you feel like this song does:

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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