Cobra Kai Season 4: Terry Silver and Daniel LaRusso really are that old

• In “Cobra Kai” season 4, Daniel gets a nasty surprise when Terry Silver reunites with John Kreese.
• The age of the two characters creates confusion as it does not reflect the actual age of the actors.
• In addition, Daniel probably should never have participated in the All Valley tournament, which last played an important role in the season 4 finals.

“Cobra Kai” on Netflix offers, just like the “Karate Kid” films from the eighties, the best entertainment, but one that should not be thought about too carefully. Otherwise you will notice some discrepancies that will leave you in peace. There is just one aspect that literally jumps into you: the age of Terry Silver and Daniel LaRusso.

We know that Terry Silver fought with John Kreese in the Vietnam War in 1968 and was saved there by Kreese. However, Silver actor Thomas Ian Griffith was not born until 1962 and would have been only 6 years old at that time.

But this is not a mistake, because Silver is said to have been born in the Karate Kid universe in 1951, so he would have been 16 or 17 years old in Vietnam and 34 years old in “Karate Kid 3”.

It is surprising to find that Ralph Macchio, whom you know as Daniel LaRusso, is even 6 months older than Thomas Ian Griffith. Due to Macchio’s young appearance, it was not noticed in “Karate Kid 3” that Daniel’s new bad sensei is actually younger than his student.

However, the age of Daniel LaRusso is a real mystery. Daniel is said to have been born in 1966, so he would have been 17 or 18 in 1984, in which the first “Karate Kid” film is set. In fact, Daniel celebrates his birthday in the film, the day before the All Valley tournament, and should have turned 18.

But actually only participants under the age of 18 are allowed to take part in the All Valley tournament. Was an exception made because Daniel was only one day over the legal age limit? Or are adult participants still allowed, although the designation “All Valley Under 18 Karate Tournament” seems to be quite clear?

It gets all the stranger in “Karate Kid 3”, which appeared 5 years after the first film (Macchio was now 28), but takes place in 1985, a year later. Here Macchio competes again in the All Valley tournament and should be at least 18, but actually already 19.

It is possible that the tournament will take place a few days earlier in 1985 because Daniel does not celebrate his birthday in the film. It is much more likely, however, that director John G. Avildsen and the writers did not think too long about such contradictions.

Incidentally, Johnny Lawrence was born in the world of “Karate Kid” in 1967 and is therefore one year younger than Daniel. So his All Valley victories in 1982 and 1983 and his participation in 1984 make sense – after all!

In “Cobra Kai” season 5 you will see Daniel, Johnny and Terry Silver again, with luck even in 2022. The filming of the new episodes has already been completed, so we won’t have to wait long for all the open questions from the Season 4 finals to be answered.