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Did this take a while? Yes. Does this season contain some of my favorite song ideas? Also yes.
What if Cobra Kai was or had a Musical? Well, this is what I think a couple of the songs in Season 4 would be like.
Now, for the first song, I originally had an idea of making a song out of Daniel and Johnny’s conflicting teaching styles ala Hell’s Greatest Dad, but then I had a better idea: a reprise of Black and White, but this time it’s Kreese singing it directly to Robby, telling him about how Johnny was the best there was but Robby has more potential than he ever did, and if Robby follows Kreese’s instructions. The end of the song has Robby considering it for just a moment…before outright saying, “....yeah, no.” And then going back to training by himself.
And then, a Tory solo, basically you know that moment that Tory has of her bitching and moaning about Sam and her richness to Robby in Season 4? It’s basically that but a song. It’s very reminiscent of The Girl Who Has Everything from Tangled but like, an inverse. “She gets to be the girl who has everything, the world’s on a golden string, wrapped on her hand.” Like that. I’d probably call it Golden String.
And after that, another reprise. Yeah, sorry, I know there’s a lot of reprises already but this is like, the fourth out of six seasons, there’s bound to be a bunch of reprises. Anyway, it’s a reprise of Second Chances Don’t Exist but it’s Robby singing it directly to Sam. It clearly shows that Tory’s words got in his head a little bit, and it carries a bit of the same messages as Shifting the Narrative and Clockwork, Robby saying that Sam’s all out of luck and that she’s used him for too long, and that he’s going to be the first person to tell her that she’s not getting what she wants.
Then, a Kreese and Silver duet, it’s 100% The Other Side from The Greatest Showman. It revolves around Kreese trying to convince Silver to come back to Cobra Kai. Kreese is saying all kinds of shit about how he doesn’t belong living a peaceful, fulfilling life with his smoking hot wife and thriving business, he belongs in an American teen karate dojo indoctrinating kids into the Cobra Kai cult. That’s a joke, he doesn’t say that, but he does say that Silver belongs in Cobra Kai. Then Silver claps back with how he’s living his best life and he doesn’t need a teen karate dojo to feel complete, he literally has a line asking if Kreese has anything better to do than this. It ends with Kreese leaving while holding one last line, smirking because he already knows he wormed his way into Silver’s head. I’ll call the song You Know You Want It.
And then, odd choice for the next song, I know: a Kenny solo. I’d call it A Brand New Day, and it’s a soulful, upbeat song about how Kenny’s luck has always been down but at this new school, in this new town, it’s all going to work out in his favor. It’s something you’d hear in a musical coming-of-age movie while the protagonist is rushing to school. The basis would definitely be Almost There from Princess and the Frog, mostly because soul is in Kenny’s blood (I’m black, I can make that joke, trust). The tone would drastically shift when Kenny gets caught dancing by the bus, and he sings the last altered chorus in a much sadder and uncertain tone as he walks to his seat on the bus. As he sits down, he sings the last words, “But it’ll be all uphill…from here.”
Okay, here’s where that song I mentioned a little earlier as what could’ve been the first song comes in. It’s a song between Daniel and Johnny, taking place in that part of Episode 2 when they decide to try out each other’s style. It’s similar to Hell’s Greatest Dad in my mind but also, funnily enough, Pandemonium from Trollstopia. That show has some peak music, I swear. Anyways, it would start with Daniel teaching Johnny about the peaceful, counter-focused ways of Miyagi Do, with a serene instrumental full of light drums, ukeleles, and trumpets. And then Johnny’s verse starts and all of that turns up to eleven, the drums get more intense, ukeleles become guitars, and trumpets become fucking war horns. He teaches Daniel about the rough and tumble, offense-focused ways of Eagle Fang. Daniel cuts in, saying that it’s all suspiciously similar to Cobra Kai, but Johnny cuts him off, singing a verse about how he’s not teaching villainy, he’s teaching stuff that’ll help his students defend themselves. The heart of Eagle Fang lies in that of strength, but not strength for the sake of power, but strength for the sake of protecting oneself and those you love. Daniel’s like, “Wow, Johnny, that’s actually pretty-” and then Johnny goes, “And also being BADASS”. I’d call it Fire and Ice (placeholder name).
Then Learn Fly is a long ass episode, jesus christ. Anyways, the next song is a reprise of You Know You Want It, it takes place when Silver bursts into the Cobra Kai dojo to yell at Kreese. Silver rants about how his life was all fine and dandy until Kreese had to come back and dredged up the past, getting in his head. Kreese calls him out about his happy ending bullshit, about how he was never really complete. Silver retorts and Kreese responds with how he doesn’t trust anyone in the world more than he trusts Silver (gay) because he knows they're the same (still gay). It ends with Silver agreeing to rejoin Cobra Kai.
And then, it’s time for my second favorite mentor-mentee dynamic in the show, that being Robby and Kenny. Their song is called Challenges, and it’s Robby-dominant, he’s singing to Kenny about how life will bring you challenges and no matter how much you run, they’ll catch up eventually. He says the best thing he can do is use what he already has to conquer those hardships. It’s supposed to be uplifting, and it’s also supposed to feel more Miyagi-Do based than Cobra Kai based because that’s what Robby is. He’s filtering Cobra Kai’s harsh teachings through Miyagi-Do’s to try and make Kenny strong without making him a dick. Think Dangerous from EPIC the Musical.
And then, surprisingly, a Daniel song. It’s very similar to My Little Reason Why from Steven Universe Future in tone, and it takes place when Daniel and Miguel are talking in the autoshop. It’s basically a prolonged version of that scene, with Daniel re-iterating something Miyagi once told him as he tends to do. He tells the story of how he blew his college savings on a trip to okinawa, came back with more than he had before, and then used that to open a bonsai tree store. The song is mostly about how nobody’s path is a straight line, and compares Miyagi-Do’s teachings to life-it’s basically just that scene as a song. It would be short, maybe a minute and a half long? I have no clue what to call it though, lol.
Now, for my favorite song idea of this season. I really wanted to give Bicelphy a song, but despite being a very good episode, it’s plot is all over the place to the point where I can’t find anywhere to actually put a song. But I guess it’s good because the lack of songs prepares the viewers for this absolute banger. It takes place when Hawk gets his mohawk shaved off by Cobra Kai, but at first, only Robby walks in, it’s not the entire gang. However, he has a message to send. They have a little spoken dialogue with Robby saying that Hawk hasn’t actually grown any since leaving Cobra Kai, that he’s still the same old bully he was when he was in the snake dojo, he just changed targets. Guess it doesn’t matter what he does, just who he does it to. And then, Hawk goes to attack, and Robby catches his fist, and that’s when the song starts.
They start fighting while Robby is singing about how Hawk thought he could get away with one meek little apology to one person, and that the consequences of his actions wouldn’t catch up to him. The bridge is him recounting Eli’s crimes, which leads into the chorus.
And then the second verse is still Robby-heavy, but Eli also has a few lines, calling Robby a hypocrite for acting like he’s a complete saint, but Robby counters, saying most of his transgressions were accidents, but Hawk was a straight up fucking villain.
And then, the last kind of verse. Now, the basis for this song would be Nerdy Prudes Must Die, so after the second verse, I want a segment that’s like ‘Who will pray for me’, but not exactly ‘Who will pray for me’, or too much like ‘Who will pray for me’. Really the best vision I have for it IS ‘Who will pray for me’ so it’s hard to imagine something similar but different. This song would also have inspiration from, oddly enough, Play My Way by Jakeneutron. It would be a mix between soft, hard, and alternative rock, and the visuals would be kind of horror in a way. It ends with Hawk proclaiming that he’s not a monster, referencing his solo song in Season 3. I’d probably call it Karma Came Back.
The next song is a Tory solo that portrays her in a MUCH better light. It takes place after her conversation with her aunt, and in this version, Tory holds out for a day or two before going to Amanda, and she happens to work multiple jobs those days, which sucks for her but also works for me because her cycling through those jobs can be the visuals for this song. This song is similar to Surface Pressure from Encanto, it shows just how much Tory has on her shoulders, everything she has to do to keep her family afloat and take care of two people. Amanda’s words kind of echo in her head, but she denies needing help from anyone, saying she’s been doing just fine. I think this song should be country, just because I think it’d be funny to draw inspiration from 9 to 5 by Dolly Parton lol. Also, Survivor by Reba MacEntire. I’d call this song Long Enough because the chorus will probably have a line like, “I’ve been doing this long enough” or smth.
Next up, another Binary Brothers song, a kind of hype-up song in the same vein as You Are Ladybug from the Miraculous movie. It centers around Demetri trying to re-ignite the fire in Eli, telling him that the mohawk was not who he is. Demetri lists Eli’s crowning achievements, but Eli counters with ‘but I was The Hawk then’. Demetri keeps trying to encourage Eli, while not mentioning all the crimes he committed just yet. It tries to paint Hawk in a positive light, but Eli’s guilt eats him up while he protests. I don’t have many ideas for this one, and really it’s only here because I think it pretty much has to be. I’d call it Back to Reality, and it’ll definitely have references to Back To Me in there.
And after that, a Hawk solo. I want this number to be BIG, because it’s one of those huge, self-reflection, realization numbers that shows Eli’s journey so far. The first verse revolves around Eli mourning the Hawk, about how the hair was the only thing keeping the weakness from creeping back up on him, how it made him feel stronger than he’d ever been in his life, and now that it was gone, it felt like all of that strength was ripped from his body. The instrumental for this part would be soft, solemn, mournful of the man Eli used to be.
And then after the chorus, it starts to pick up, slight traces of guitar in the second verse where Eli recounts the achievements of the Hawk, and then, halfway into it, he remembers the crimes of the Hawk, the overflowing hatred and aggression that filled his being at that time that caused him to hurt so many people, even his best friend, his other half. He questions if the Hawk is even worth mourning before the second chorus starts up with electric guitars and drums, much louder and passionate than the first:
Is this the end of an era?
Is this the end of my spark?
Uncertainty plagues, whatever remains
And seeps through the cracks in my heart
Is this the start of new age
Is this the beginning of something new?
And does it start with me walking away from you?
Then, a bridge where Eli debates himself, internally questioning if he even deserves the chance to bounce back, if he should even get back into the karate war. It goes on like that for a while before a suspenseful silence.
I should probably mention the visuals for this song because they’re important. Most of this song takes place in a starry void that represents Eli’s thoughts. For the bridge of the song, it has Eli literally fighting the Hawk, similar to how the actual show had Miguel fight a dark version of himself when he was in that coma. They fight all throughout the bridge, until suddenly, they stop, and Hawk extends a hand to Eli, obviously telling him to slip back into the Hawk. Eli almost takes it, their hands get really close…and then Eli doesn’t shake Hawk’s hand, instead walking past him as an altered chorus plays over a choir-like sound:
This is the end of an era
But it’s not the ending of mine
Ejected the wrath, to form a new path
A road of angelic design
This is the start of a journey
One that was long overdue
And that journey began by walking away from you
Yeah, so, in this musical version, Eli never goes back to the Hawk, he just stays Eli for the rest of the series. This song shows Eli outgrowing the Hawk, accepting that he doesn’t need it, he never needed it, he just needed the confidence and strength to get back up again and keep pushing through. And of course, it would be called End of an Era.
Next episode, the song is a Silver solo that has a jazz type beat in a similar vein to Smile Like You Mean It by Paranoid DJ, it’s about how everyone has a weakness that can be exploited, a weak spot, an Achille’s Heel. He’s singing this to Kenny after the sparring match with Robby, with Robby standing by and listening. Robby tries to cut in multiple times, but he gets cut off and bumped aside by Silver, who just keeps on singing his funky little beat with sinister undertones. He tells Kenny that even though every future opponent is tough, they all have a wound you can rub salt in. That would be an actual lyric, lol. If you think this is Silver’s ‘villain’ song, you’re mistaken, it’s just a fun little song for him. I’d legit call it Achille’s Heel.
And then, a Robby and Tory love song, these two HAVE to have one. They’re my favorite teen couple…or at least they were, before Season 6 RUINED THEM (fuck season 6, all my homies hate season 6). The scene would be very different from canon. It would start with Tory venting about everything going on in her life, her struggles, the responsibilities on her shoulders, the consequences of her actions, and how she’s probably just screwed everything up again after the party. After the second stanza, Robby cuts in, singing about how Tory’s a better person than she thinks she is. He admits how he’s seen a softer, stronger, better side of Tory ever since he started training with Cobra Kai. Then in the second verse, Robby drops his own lore about how everyone he’s ever cared for has either thrown him away or abandoned him, which is mostly why he admires Tory’s devotion to her family. Tory sympathizes and the next chorus starts up, ba di ba, the last chorus has them both singing together., normal love song stuff. I hate that I don’t have as many ideas for this one as others, but it is what it is. It’d take inspiration from Stronger Together from the Miraculous Movie and maybe Loser, Baby from Hazbin Hotel. I’m thinking of either calling it Stronger With You or Stand By You.
Next, one you actually might not have expected, a Miguel solo. A sad as fuck Miguel solo to contrast the upbeat love song we just got. It would take place after Johnny says “I love you too Robby” to Miguel. In this version, it starts after Miguel finds some random guitar in Johnny’s house and decides to start playing it and sings his emotions, normal musical shit. The song is about how Miguel being lost, how he’s never really fully known who he is, and the fact that he doesn’t know anything about his father. He’s had a dad-shaped hole in his heart, and Johnny had a son-shaped hole in his heart, so Miguel was hoping they could help each other, but now Miguel realizes that he was wrong to think that, and thinks he’ll never be a true son to Johnny, not the way Robby is. And the ending of this song would foreshadow the Mexico arc, with the last couple of lines being about how he’ll walk down his own road to find out where it began. It’d be similar in tone to I Will Be Okay from Helluva Boss, and also Everything I Ever Thought I Knew from Tangled The Series. And I’d maybe call it Take His Place, and the lyrics for the chorus would be like, ‘If I could take his place, be worthy in your eyes, take the opportunity he’d gone and thrown aside’. And then at the end of the scene, Miguel would flip the guitar over, and see the words written on the back of it:...’For Robby’. And now, for the (probably) penultimate song of this season, a reprise of Karma Came Back, but sung by Kenny to Anthony during the locker room scene. Same message, same instrumental (with a little more soul in it maybe), and the horror cranked up to 11.
And now, finally, the last song of CKTM Season 4: the Johnny and Robby duet. The INEVITABLE Johnny and Robby duet. The Johnny and Robby duet that practically has to happen and it happens exactly when you think it happens. It’s definitely taking inspiration from More Than Anything from Hazbin Hotel. It’s Johnny and Robby reconciling, they’re apologizing, they’re crying, they’re hugging, they’re singing at the top of their lungs, etc. The song would be called Try Again, and it’ll have aspects of Fall Again, Second Chances Don’t Exist, Clockwork, Who Are We, everything, it would almost be a medley, all saying that they’re going to try again.
And that’s the end of this season, we have two more posts to go. Well, more like, one and a half. Yeah, sorry to break it to yall but Season 6 is deadass so abysmal that I couldn’t think of good song ideas that didn’t just rewrite the whole damn thing, and I’m not here to rewrite, so Season 6’s not getting a post. Also I wanted to throw a Sam song in here about no one understanding the pain and trauma she’s experienced, and frustration over everyone wanting her to just let it go, but I couldn’t find an appropriate place to put it except Miguel’s song so I basically had to choose between them, and Miguel didn’t sing, like, at all this season, so I had to give him something. Anyways, hope yall enjoy, and as always, make your criticisms and suggestions known I’d love to read them.