‘Cobra Kai’ Recap: Season 5, Episode 5 “Extreme Measures”

Julia
8 Min Read
Curtis Bonds Baker/Netflix

This episode, Amanda and the kids are in Ohio, and Daniel is not handling it well. But a new lead about Silver comes through. Meanwhile, Johnny continues to try and resolve things between Robby and Miguel, and a couple more familiar faces return.

Warning: Spoilers exist in this dojo.

Whistleblower

We open at the flagship Cobra Kai dojo, and Stingray is back. While Tory warms the class up, Silver talks with Stingray, where we find out that thanks to his loyalty, Silver hooked him up with an apartment. Outside, an all too familiar car is waiting for Stingray. It’s Johnny’s previous Cobra Kai car (the one he completely abandoned). In the trunk, a gi with Stingray’s name is waiting.

Meanwhile, Daniel looks positively awful. Chozen tries to offer comfort, but it doesn’t really help. He soon notices something that came in the mail: a newspaper clipping of Kreese’s trial with a photo included of Stingray’s testimony. Written on it is the word “liar” and an address. Chozen convinces Daniel to go there. They arrive just as Stingray is going inside, and Daniel recognizes the car. They go to Stingray’s (incredibly swanky) apartment. Daniel mentions the car and then the newspaper clipping, trying to explain that Silver is bad. He figures out what actually happened, but Stingray won’t hear it or admit it. Daniel gets a little more aggressive and causes Stingray to fall right onto his now broken Playstation.

The Karate Parent Trap

Robby and Miguel are at Olive Garden and are annoyed but not fully surprised that Johnny got them both there. Johnny arrives and a very enthusiastic server follows. Johnny tries to match the energy, but Miguel and Robby are sick of it and leave. Later, Johnny gets them both at his place where a makeshift escape room is set up (which backfires in the sense that Johnny reversed the lock and literally threw away the key. So, they’re locked in.) The boys are again annoyed, and Miguel is able to leave when Rosa (fully dressed for the occasion) shows up.

Daniel shows up next asking for Johnny’s help. He lays out the Stingray situation (which would sound normal if he didn’t look like that one Charlie Day meme). Johnny doesn’t want to get involved though. Shortly after, they sit, and Johnny mentions Daniel’s appearance and Amanda. Daniel shares that she’s in Ohio and laments the situation. Johnny isn’t sure how to help but he knows that Daniel and Amanda will figure things out. Daniel points out the escape room and Johnny explains. Daniel adds that maybe if the two of them had fought way back when without tournament rules, they might have worked the rivalry out of their systems. After a playful dig by Johnny, Daniel thanks him and leaves.

Curtis Bonds Baker/Netflix

Johnny and His Two Sons

Johnny takes Daniel’s remark to heart and tells Robby and Miguel to fight it out. They start half-heartedly until Miguel gets in a good kick that escalates things. They carry it into the stairwell and to the second level of the complex, which is when Johnny really starts to get nervous. As they continue, flashes from the season 2 finale fight are interspersed. But before Miguel can knock Robby over the railing, he stops. He didn’t get into karate to hurt people. He asks why Robby didn’t hold back, and Robby admits he just wanted the fight to end, but if he could take back, he would. Johnny reaches them and is relieved they’re done. He accidentally slips the baby news. Robby and Miguel are thrilled, and both go to hug him.

That night, the three dig into an Olive Garden feast at Miguel’s. Carmen comes home and is surprised, but happy, to see Robby and glad they worked things out. When she mentions the bruises, Johnny assures he did not do that, though Daniel gave him the idea. He tells her they aren’t working together but probably should.

Flash to the Past

In Ohio, Amanda’s cousin Jessica arrives to take Amanda and the kids to dinner. And because this show loves a good throwback, this Jessica is the very same one from The Karate Kid III. At a bar, the adults send Sam and Anthony off to play a game while they go the counter for drinks. Anthony plays the game while Sam scrolls on her phone. She sees a video of the incident between Kenny and Anthony at the waterpark. She’s upset he didn’t get her, but he didn’t want his sister swooping in. He explains everything with Kenny and how Robby is the reason it wasn’t worse at the tournament.

Jessica knows something is up but before Amanda can dig into it, a few of their former high school classmates being heckling them, with one woman mentioning a nickname Amanda used to have. When things settle, Amanda fills Jessica in on everything and shares her frustrations, but Jessica can sympathize with Daniel. She saw firsthand how Silver terrorized him back in the day. A bit later, the woman remembers Amanda’s nickname and grows more antagonistic. A fight breaks out, but Sam saves the day with an epic kick and they run out. When they get back, Sam offers to teach Anthony some karate, because it’s good to know how to fight back sometimes. Meanwhile, Jessica again reminds Amanda about Daniel and Silver. Amanda agrees she should cut Daniel some slack.

Surrender and Defeat

Daniel gets home and Chozen packs to return to Japan, but he doesn’t want to. Daniel says he needs to let the fight go so he doesn’t lose his family. Chozen is disappointed and believes he failed Daniel, but Daniel owns up to the failures and plans to make amends with Stingray and Amanda. He goes to Stingray first but he’s not home. But Silver’s there. Daniel surrenders but Silver doesn’t care one bit, throwing some hefty comments at Daniel that incites a fight. It does not go well for Daniel who gets beat pretty bad.

In a voiceover, Tory tells someone about how she’s been struggling. Scenes of Robby fixing Johnny’s lock, Amanda with Daniel, and Johnny arriving at the LaRussos’ plays out. We see Tory, who adds that she wants to know there’s an endgame. It’s revealed she’s talking to Kreese and he ensures her that Silver is going down.

Cobra Kai season 5 is streaming now on Netflix. Keep up with our season recaps and additional coverage here.

Nerds and Beyond is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Share This Article
By Julia
Julia is a writer/editor/content assistant for Nerds who joined the team in 2019.
Leave a comment