‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3 Recap & Review: A New Threat Emerges

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Cobra Kai Season 6, Episode 3 “Sleeper.”

With the senseis and students of Miyagi-Do reaching a better understanding of each other, the dojo is operating at an all-time high. But at the mid-way point for Cobra Kai Season 6 Part 1, tough conversations and a shocking revelation shake up the protagonists. As for the antagonists, they are becoming more formidable with the introduction of a powerful and ruthless fighter.

After being the star for the majority of The Karate Kid franchise, Ralph Macchio not only delivers a strong performance in this episode, but he steps behind the camera for his biggest directorial credit yet. Continue reading to discover all the surprising moments with our Cobra Kai Season 6, Episode 3 “Sleeper” recap.

‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3 Has an Explosive Start

The episode opens at the LaRusso household as the LaRusso’s, Diaz’s, Lawrence’s, and Chozen (Yuji Okumoto) prepare the place for Carmen Diaz‘s (Vanessa Rubio) gender reveal party. Chozen asks Johnny (William Zabka) if he prefers a girl or a boy, but he says it doesn’t matter. However, he does comment that girls are “easier,” which stuns Daniel LaRusso (Macchio) and Chozen.

They hear a knock at the door, but all that’s left is a mysterious package that isn’t addressed to anyone. Johnny and Daniel hear ticking coming from the box and suspect John Kreese (Martin Kove) sent over a bomb. Johnny tells Daniel to stay completely still so as to not accidentally set it off. In the kitchen, the rest of the families hear a small pop as Johnny walks in covered in pink paint. Carmen realizes that the package was for their gender reveal and they all celebrate that Johhny and Carmen are having a baby girl.

Kreese Deals With a Rebellious Student in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3

Transitioning to the dojo in the jungle, Kim Da-Eun (Alicia Hannah-Kim) tells Kreese that her students are much stronger than the students in the United States because of the rigorous training they go through. The students are shown working on a new move called the Viper Attack that leaves the opponent’s head open for a strike. Yoon Do-Jin (Daniel Kim) perfectly demonstrates the move as Kim Da-Eun explains how he’s her best student and that his family has trained under them for generations.

Another student, Kwon Jae-Sung (Brandon H. Lee) steps up acting cocky, and performs a more direct approach to the technique. Kim Da-Eun yells at him for not following the lesson and sends him away to clean her grandfather’s toilet. She tells Kreese that Kwon’s rebellious attitude is a distraction to the rest of the students. Kreese agrees that the team is only as strong as its weakest link and plans to deal with Kwon Jae-Sung himself.

Tory and Sam Lose Their Competitiveness in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3 “Sleeper”

At Miyagi-Do, Tory Nichols (Peyton List) and Sam LaRusso (Mary Mouser) attempt to spar with one another but they’re holding back from landing a hit on each other. Devon Lee (Oona O’Brien) tells Robby Keene (Tanner Buchanan) and Miguel Diaz (Xolo Maridueña) that their respective girlfriends lost their edge ever since they’ve become friends. Devon approaches Johnny and questions Tory and Sam’s ability to lead Miyagi-Do in the Sekai Taikai if they don’t have their fighting spirit anymore.

Meanwhile, Eli “Hawk” Moskowitz (Jacob Bertrand), Kenny Payne (Dallas Dupree Young), Chris (Khalil Everage), and Nathaniel (Nathaniel Oh) are excited to learn where this year’s Sekai Taikai is being held as it’s traditionally in a different country every time it’s held. When Daniel and Amanda arrive and proudly watch over practice, Johnny tells Daniel about Tory and Sam’s issue and asks how they plan to deal with it. Referring back to Johnny’s earlier comments about girls being easy to deal with, he tasks Johnny with handling it. Johnny tells Devon to prepare her house for some guests to come over that night.

Mr. Miyagi’s Secret Past Comes to Light in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3

Daniel cleans up Mr. Miyagi’s (Pat Morita) old stuff from the dojo to make space for Chozen to move in. LaRusso remarks it should be a good place for him to stay temporarily until the Sekai Taikai, but Chozen says he has no plans to go back to Okinawa even after they compete in the world tournament. As they move Mr. Miyagi’s bed, they uncover a secret hatch in the floor that hides a chest of belongings from his past.

Daniel and Chozen question if they should even open it, but Amanda says it’s worth learning more about their former sensei. They find boxing gloves, old coins from China, and a newspaper clipping about a man who was violently assaulted and robbed by someone named Keisuke Miyagi, thinking it’s a secret brother of Mr. Miyagi’s. They find a passport that has Mr. Miyagi’s face, but the name and birthdate are wrong, belonging to Keisuke Miyagi. With the three of them confused, Amanda suggests they go to the address mentioned in the passport for some answers.

Kwon Has No Respect for His Senseis in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3, “Sleeper”

After Kim Da-Eun introduces Kreese to her students, he gives them a brief history of training Johnny to be the best but explains how he was ultimately defeated by Daniel, a student with far less training, who had more heart. He asks the students what the best way is to deal with an opponent with more heart. Yoon answers that they need to have even more heart, which makes Kim Da-Eun and Kreese smile. Kwon on the other hand says that kicking the ribs to stop the opponent’s heart is the way to go. Just as Kim Da-Eun is about to punish him, Kreese approaches Kwon and says he’ll show him just how serious he is.

Kreese makes all the students carry heavy sacks as they walk up and down stairs as retaliation towards Kwon. Yoon confronts Kwon for his disrespect and shoves Kwon down the stairs. Seeing this, Kreese calls off practice for the day. Kim Da-Eun is angry now that her best student is distracted, but Kreese reassures her that pain will bring out the best in a champion fighter.

Sam and Tory Have Unresolved Issues in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3

Tory and Sam show up to Devon’s place confused why Johnny invited them there. Johnny says that the three girls will have a sleepover together to help their bond and fix their fighting spirit. In actuality, he tells Devon privately that (to his knowledge) slumber parties are known to cause conflict and drama, and he hopes that gives Tory and Sam exactly what they need.

After having fun doing different activities, Johnny uses Miguel and Robby’s phones (which he stole) to send texts and calls to the girls and stir up a fight. They immediately catch on and tell Devon and Johnny that they didn’t expect this kind of behavior under Miyagi-Do. They pack up and wait outside for their Ubers.

Sam can’t believe Johnny tried to make it seem like she’d steal Robby from her, but Tory says it’s not impossible considering she did try to steal Miguel from her before. The two of them start bringing up their past and arguing as Devon and Johnny happen to watch over it. Just when Johnny thinks it’s about to get physical, the girls each take accountability for their actions and apologize to one another. Devon notes that although the night didn’t go as Johnny planned, it might have worked out for the best.

Daniel Questions Who Mr. Miyagi Was in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3

The address on Mr. Miyagi’s passport leads Amanda, Daniel, and Chozen to a boxing gym called Page’s Gym. The members don’t act friendly towards them as they ask questions about Mr. Miyagi. When Daniel pulls out the passport, a man named Shane Page (Tony Cavalero) runs off, so Daniel and Chozen chase after him. Chozen catches up to Shane and restrains him. Shane thinks Chozen and Daniel are the IRS and refuses to talk. When they show him the image in the passport, he recognizes it as Mr. Miyagi.

Back at the gym, Shane says his grandfather and Mr. Miyagi were close since Mr. Miyagi was a silent partner for Page’s Gym. Originally thinking that Mr. Miyagi fled Okinawa to go to America, Shane says that Mr. Miyagi fled America with the help of Shane’s grandfather after the robbery mentioned in the newspaper clipping they found. Seeing how stunned Daniel and Chozen are about this revelation, Shane tells them that his grandfather rarely trusts people, so for him to trust Mr. Miyagi shows how good of a man Mr. Miyagi must be.

Cobra Kai continues as Amanda, Daniel, and Chozen go back to Miyagi-Do, and Daniel questions if it’s worse knowing Mr. Miyagi violently hurt someone or that they’ll never know the full story. Amanda reminds Daniel that this one incident is just one moment in Mr. Miyagi’s life history and emphasizes how good of a person Mr. Miyagi was. This cheers Daniel up for the time being as they go home. Chozen reflects on Amanda’s words to make the most of their time instead of dwelling on the past, so he searches for flights back to Okinawa.

Kwon Shows How Ruthless He Can Be in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3

At night, Kwon confronts Kreese saying that making the other students bully him won’t change him to be good. Kreese tells Kwon that if he wants to be the best fighter at the Sekai Taikai, he’ll have to channel his hate into purpose. After hearing this, Kwon fights with Yoon and two other students.

Kwon taunts Yoon by saying that relying on what he’s being taught makes him too predictable; he’s able to defeat Yoon with brutal, but effective attacks. Kwon claims himself to be the best student as Kim Da-Eun looks stunned watching what happened, while Kreese relaxes in the background.

The next day, Kreese continues yesterday’s lesson by saying they need to be heartless if they want to defeat someone with heart. He tells Kwon to lead the students in the Viper Attack. Kim Da-Eun is impressed by how Kreese managed to control Kwon and notes that no dojo will stand in their way. But Kreese mentions they’re still missing one piece of the puzzle.

Tensions Arise Among Miyagi-Do in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 6, Episode 3

After getting closure, Tory and Sam have no trouble sparring with one another as they give each other their all while still being respectful. Daniel looks at a photo of Mr. Miyagi accepting that his former sensei had his reasons for what happened in his past, but wishing that Mr. Miyagi shared this part of himself. Hawk calls everyone over as they receive a video with more information about the Sekai Taikai.

The announcer says the competition will be held in Barcelona, Spain, which everyone is excited about. But that fizzles out immediately as only six fighters per dojo can compete, with one boy and one girl as captains. The episode ends as all the students, and even Johnny and Daniel, worry about who will make the roster.

From intense fight sequences to emotional character moments, Ralph Macchio’s directorial effort is one of Cobra Kai‘s best episodes so far. Miyagi-Do’s strength is in numbers, so limiting the Sekai Taikai to the best six fighters is sure to stir up some drama. Meanwhile, Yoon and Kwon alone are shaping up to be dangerous foes for the competition. With Kreese leading an angry Kwon, there’s no telling what cheap moves they’ll pull in the Sekai Taikai.

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