Why do The Fighting Dragons from Jackie Chan’s The Karate Kid not appear in Cobra Kai? Details explored

Netflix’s Cobra Kai continues the story of The Karate Kid film series, bringing back original characters like Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence. The series focuses on the members of the titular dojo as they train in martial arts and participate in international karate tournaments.

However, the franchise's fans have noticed a major element missing from the show. While the series features several dojos who compete against each other, The Fighting Dragons, who were seen in Jackie Chan starrer The Karate Kid reboot (2010), do not make a single appearance during the show’s six seasons.

The Fighting Dragons have remained absent from the Netflix show as they are a Kung Fu-based studio, and the series only revolves around karate–based dojos. At the same time, 2010's The Karate Kid was not considered a part of the same universe as other films until the announcement of the upcoming Karate Kid: Legends, which connects the two worlds.

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The reason behind The Fighting Dragons’ absence from Cobra Kai

The Fighting Dragons are a Kung Fu studio, seen in the 2010 remake of The Karate Kid. Their leader, Master Li, teaches his students to fight aggressively and show no mercy to their opponents. The dojo’s star student, Cheng, is known for being a tough and skilled fighter.

In the movie, the Fighting Dragons act as antagonists as they are the main rivals of the lead, Dre Parker. Even though they have a lot in common with the Cobra Kai dojo from the original Karate Kid, the Fighting Dragons do not ever appear in the Cobra Kai series.

One major reason is that the 2010 Karate Kid movie was not originally part of the main Karate Kid story. It was meant to be a remake and not a direct sequel. The setting was in China instead of the US, and the movie focused on Kung Fu instead of Karate.

Hence, the events and characters from the film were not connected to the Netflix series or the original movies. The film finally became a part of the original universe with the announcement of Karate Kid: Legends, which is set to be released in theaters on May 30, 2025.

The upcoming film brings back Daniel LaRusso from the original franchise and Mr. Han from the reboot film as they team up to teach a new student. Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan are reprising their roles as LaRusso and Han, respectively.

Even though the 2010 movie is now connected to the main story, the Fighting Dragons still do not appear in Cobra Kai season 6, likely due to their fighting style. The Sekai Taikai tournament in the show’s final season is for Karate dojos and has nothing to do with Kung Fu.

Another possible reason the Fighting Dragons do not show up in the show is that they might not exist anymore. At the end of The Karate Kid reboot, Dre defeats Cheng in the Kung Fu tournament, and all of Master Li’s students turn against him.

They bow to Mr. Han instead, showing that they no longer support their old master. This could mean that the Fighting Dragons broke apart after the tournament, which rules out their potential appearance in Cobra Kai.

Now that Karate Kid: Legends is bringing back characters from the 2010 movie, there is a possibility the Fighting Dragons could return in the future, but for now, they remain separate from Cobra Kai.

The final part of Cobra Kai season 6 will premiere on Netflix on February 13, 2025.