In Cobra Kai season 4, an old foe from Daniel LaRusso’s past – Thomas Ian Griffith’s Terry Silver – will return to the Valley after being absent for more than 30 years. Silver’s return was set up by flashbacks to Kreese’s military years and a mysterious phone call made at the end of the season 3 finale. It was heavily implied that Silver was the military friend who pledged loyalty to Kreese (Martin Kove) after the latter saved his life.
The impression left by the finale was that Terry Silver will be teaming up with Kreese to help his dojo defeat Johnny (William Zabka) and Daniel (Ralph Macchio) at the next All Valley Karate Tournament. Silver, who is best remembered as the main villain of The Karate Kid Part III, has been featured in the marketing for Cobra Kai season 4, where he’s expected to serve as an antagonist for Daniel and Johnny. For the most part, the show has revealed little about Silver’s role in the challenges ahead as the three dojos continue their preparation for the upcoming tournament. However, what’s known about Silver from Karate Kid Part III has ominous implications for the main characters.
The third installment of the original trilogy introduced Silver as Kreese’s best friend and the co-founder of Cobra Kai. He came onto the scene as a response to Cobra Kai losing the 1984 All Valley Karate Tournament and Kreese being humiliated by Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita). To help get revenge for Kreese, the conniving villain developed a sinister scheme intended to destroy Daniel, Mr. Miyagi, and the bond they shared. As an incredibly wealthy businessman, Silver was able to use his financial resources to create major complications for Daniel, not the least of which being Sean Kanan’s Mike Barnes.
Silver hired Barnes to bully Daniel into defending his title at the 1985 tournament. Through Barnes, Silver engineered conflict between Daniel and Mr. Miyagi, who clashed over whether or not he should enter the tournament. As a result, Silver successfully drove Daniel into seeking his aid. After becoming his new sensei, Silver emotionally and physically tortured Daniel with unnecessarily difficult training exercises. He also tried to corrupt Daniel’s mind by teaching him the principles of Cobra Kai. However, Daniel eventually rejected Silver’s influence and defeated Barnes in the final round of the tournament. This ruined Silver’s plan, as his primary goal was for Daniel to lose. He had hoped that Daniel’s loss would restore Cobra Kai’s wounded image.
Silver ultimately failed to get what he wanted, but that doesn’t take away from the unique challenge he posed to Daniel, the pain he inflicted, or the problems he caused. Silver’s actions cemented his status as The Karate Kid trilogy’s most ruthless and psychotic villain. The presence of a character like Terry Silver in the Valley is sure to bring hardship for Cobra Kai’s characters. But whether or not Silver has changed since Karate Kid Part III remains to be seen. If he hasn’t, his alliance with Kreese certainly spells trouble for the Miyagi-do and Eagle Fang dojos, as well as the students that could fall under his influence.
Cobra Kai releases new episodes on December 31 on Netflix.