Mike Barnes returned to the Cobra Kai season 5, and the show was close to confirming a popular season 1 theory fan theory. One of the villains in The Karate Kid Part III, Mike Barnes was one of the toughest opponents Daniel LaRusso ever face. Despite Karate Kid 3 not being as well received as the original, Barnes’ return had been wished for by audiences for a long time and teased by the show itself.
From the Daniel LaRusso Karate Kid movies, Mike Barnes was the only Karate Kid villain left to appear on the show. With Terry Silver returning in Cobra Kai season 4 and being the main villain of Cobra Kai season 5, Mike Barnes showing up at some point seemed inevitable. Still, most Mike Barnes theories were wrong.
Johnny’s Repair Store Boss In Season 1 Was Theorized To Be Mike Barnes
In Cobra Kai’s very first episode, when the series showed what Johnny Lawrence’s life looks like now 30 years after The Karate Kid’s All Valley tournament, the character briefly speaks to his boss over the phone. Johnny appeared to be working for a furniture or repair store, and his boss’s name was Mike. While nothing suggested that Cobra Kai would one day incorporate elements from The Karate Kid 3, the mention of the name Mike was enough to spark theories about Johnny’s boss being Mike Barnes. Those theories gained even more traction after Mike Barnes and the events of Karate Kid 3 were referenced in Cobra Kai.
After Johnny’s phone call to Terry Silver mentioning he knew a sensei or two in the Cobra Kai season 4 finale, several theories tried to explain how Mike Barnes could appear in Cobra Kai and where he had been all this time. Curiously, Mike Barnes’ actual introduction in Cobra Kai season 5 revealed that he owned a furniture store, which could have very well been the one Johnny worked for in Cobra Kai season 1. However, Cobra Kai season 5 later debunked that theory by establishing that Johnny Lawrence and Mike Barnes had never met before. It’s difficult to say whether that season 1 theory callback was intentional or not.
Why Mike Barnes’ Cobra Kai Return Was Better Than All Absurd Theories
Mike Barnes being Johnny’s boss from Cobra Kai season 1 was just one of the many creative Cobra Kai fan theories regarding the villain. Another popular one was that Mike Barnes was Miguel’s father and that the Bad Boy of Karate had become a dangerous criminal after his fight with Daniel LaRusso at the All Valley tournament. Another theory was that Terry Silver would simply call his old business associate for help and that Mike Barnes would once again be a henchman for Silver. None of those theories would really add much to Mike Barnes as a character, plus they would have made the Cobra Kai universe feel a lot smaller.
The Cobra Kai universe already feels quite small, with key Karate Kid cameo characters running into each other and all the main storylines happening over the Valley. Cobra Kai did play with the audience’s expectations regarding Mike Barnes and other recurring Karate Kid characters but in a good way. When Barnes was eventually introduced in Cobra Kai season 5, the show was self-aware enough to make a big moment of it – from Daniel dramatically saying Mike Barnes’ name to the camera slowly revealing the character’s face. In of the story, Mike Barnes’ role in Cobra Kai was simple yet made a lot of sense – Barnes had moved on from his “Bad Boy” days.