The Cobra Kai season 4 finale concluded with John Kreese (Martin Kove) getting taken away in handcuffs; because of this, Kreese’s inevitable season 5 story makes Johnny (William Zabka) and Daniel’s (Ralph Macchio) rivalry worse. The two have been enemies of the opposite dojos since they were teenagers. In the finale of Cobra Kai season 4 though, Daniel suggests that he and Johnny make their own combined style of karate called Miyagi-Fang.
With Kreese locked up, Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith) is now the sole teacher of the Cobra Kai dojo, making it more aggressive than ever. With Cobra Kai season 5 likely beginning with Kreese being in jail, he will need to call someone to bail him out. With no one to turn to, Kreese can call Daniel or Johnny, yet the latter is more likely with him and Daniel’s complicated past. If Johnny and Kreese team up to defeat Cobra Kai, this will also create more considerable friction between Johnny and Daniel.
Kreese will inevitably be in jail in Cobra Kai season 5; Terry will have months to make Cobra Kai even larger, gathering bullies from differing school districts. Since Terry sent Kreese to jail, it is very unlikely the two will reconcile. Also, Kreese has already shown that he is slowly changing his “strike first'' mentality in a few ways. For one, during the All-Valley-Karate Tournament, he disagreed with Terry’s opinion on Tory (Peyton List) illegally fighting to win. Although Kreese and Johnny have had a completed relationship, he is the closest Johnny has ever had to a father at the end of the day. It seems that Johnny and Daniel are on their way to becoming friends again, even agreeing to create their own style of karate. If Johnny breaks Kreese out of jail, though, this is pretty impossible, as Daniel and Kreese’s relationship was never a positive one.
Although Johnny and Daniel have been rivals for years, they have had many moments of almost becoming friends: going on double dates together, listening to the same music, and having common enemies in Kreese and Terry. In a way, Johnny breaking Kreese out of jail erases all the work Johnny and Daniel have done together to defeat them. This will ruin any potential of Johnny and Daniel becoming friends in Cobra Kai season 5. Johnny could even suggest having Kreese join Miyagi-Fang, which will create an even greater feud.
As much as Johnny and Daniel have made amends, they have also broken them along the way. The two have had a competitive relationship for over thirty years, and it is unlikely it will ever completely resolve. With Kreese’s inevitable Cobra Kai season 5 story, their relationship is only destined to get worse.