After a yearlong break, Cobra Kai strikes again with its fourth season, now available to stream on Netflix. With the various dojos battling for the soul of the valley, the series is back in full force with high kicks, swinging punches, and conniving senseis. Sworn enemies since the 80s, Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) find themselves teaming up to defeat evil, which has taken the form of the ruthless Cobra Kai dojo led by John Kreese (Martin Kove).
They will have their hands full, as the cruel sensei Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith) has returned to help Kreese dominate the All-Valley Karate Tournament, and they're not playing nice. Full of montages with kids punching cement blocks set to classic rock music, and bloody showdowns breaking out at both the school and arcade, there are plenty of shows like Cobra Kai to check out if you've binge-watched Season 4 all in one sitting or if you are practicing self-control and spacing it out. Here are 10 comedic, action-packed TV shows to watch if you love Cobra Kai.
GLOW
A bunch of unemployed, unknown actresses during the 80s ditch the scripts and screen tests for mats and leg warmers in GLOW, the fantastic Netflix original series detailing an unlikely troupe of athletes rising to become champions. Based upon the actual television program from the 80s, Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, the show follows a bunch of down on their luck women who decide that any job is better than no job at all. The cast is filled with comedy treasures, including Alison Brie, Betty Gilpin, Kate Nash, Ellen Wong, Jackie Tohn, Gayle Rankin, and former WWE wrestler Kia Stevens as failed actresses who wind up on television as fierce wreslters.
Stand-up comedian Marc Maron co-stars as Sam Sylvia, a washed-up, cocaine-addicted director who begrudgingly accepts the task of directing the show, and he is filled with hilarious one-liners as he drags his feet throughout the daily struggles of existence and body slams. Unfortunately canceled before it could conclude with its planned fourth season, GLOW is both thrilling and hilarious as the women go through training and slowly become skilled wrestlers that can fight with the best of them. That’s entertainment!
Chuck
When highly sensitive, classified government secrets fall into the hands of a nerdy computer service expert who works at a technology store in Burbank, California, he finds himself coming under attack from spies across the world. Zachary Levi stars as Chuck Barkowski, a clumsy computer tech whose life revolves around working at the Buy More, until he opens an email and accidentally downloads hundreds of government secrets into his brain.
CIA agent Sara Walker (Yvonne Strahovski) and Colonel John Casey (Adam Baldwin) are sent to protect Chuck at all costs, and they find themselves in frequent scuffles in the aisles of DVD collections and television sets as Chuck is a magnet for trouble. Not only is Chuck a fantastic spy story, but it also includes hysterical slapstick comedy as Chuck fails to acclimate to the world of trained assassins and government agents while completing his daily tasks of fixing malfunctioning computers. His co-workers at the Buy More provide most of the comedy, including his best friend Morgan (Joshua Gomez), Lester (Vic Sahay), and Jeffrey (Scott Krinsky), who cause more trouble than good amongst all the kicking and punching.
Warrior Nun
Warrior Nun is an epic saga about a woman coming into her newfound powers and unleashing them onto both heaven and hell. Based upon the comic book character Warrior Nun Areala created by Ben Dunn, the Netflix original fantasy series follows 19-year-old Ava (Alba Baptista) after she’s given new life and resurrected in a morgue when a mysterious, ancient halo is placed into her back. She’s then recruited into the Order of the Cruciform Sword, which is made up of weapon-wielding and action-packed nuns and Catholic priests who make it their mission to protect not only the coveted halo in Ava’s back but to send various demons wandering the streets of Spain back to hell.
Kung Fu
The CW series, Kung Fu, matches Cobra Kai's passion in blockbuster battles where the underdogs always thrive. Olivia Liang stars as Nicky Shen, a star college student who ditches school and travels to China to join a monastery where she trains for three years in the martial arts. Upon returning home to San Francisco, she finds that her family and entire neighborhood have been plagued by ruthless gangs and murderous crooks, so she takes matters into her own hands.
With flying fists and running kicks, she protects her family while also hunting down a deadly assassin who killed her mentor in China. Based on the 1970s television series under the same name, Kung Fu is an inventive, modern action series with high-speed chases and showdowns breaking out across the San Francisco hills.
Hanna
Meet Hanna (Esmé Creed-Miles), a 14-year-old dynamite assassin who’s been hunted down by the FBI for her entire life. She’s never known the outside world and lives alone with her father (Joel Kinnaman) in the Polish wilderness where he trains her and helps hone her skills. Evolving into a deadly weapon, when Hanna's rediscovered, she’s forced to go on the run with her father in an attempt to evade the U.S. Government. The series has both breathtaking action sequences and charming coming-of-age moments as Hanna immerses herself in the real world where most teenagers experience heartbreak, take selfies, and drink their first sips of alcohol. Based upon the 2011 film of the same name starring Saoirse Ronan and Cate Blanchett, Hanna is a faithful adaptation while also elaborating on what it's like to be both a cold-blooded killer and teenage girl at the same time.
All American
All American follows Spencer James (Daniel Ezra), a star football player from South L.A. who is recruited to play at Beverly Hills High School by the head coach, Billy Baker, (Taye Diggs). Leaving his home and family behind, he moves to Beverly Hills and stays with his coach as he struggles to adjust to his newfound surroundings while also thriving out on the field. Contending with jealous teammates and complicated love triangles, All American has all the right ingredients for a high-stakes, teen drama while also telling a great sports story. Based on the true story of football player Spencer Paysinger, Coach Baker pushes Spencer to be better and reach for a better future, both on and off the field.
Heels
Heels is a wrestling tale of biblical proportions as it follows the rivalry between Jack (Stephen Amell) and Ace (Alexander Ludwig) Spade, two brothers who are doomed to remain as undiscovered, amateur wrestlers at a local ring in small town Georgia. The older and wiser of the two, Jack, plays double duty as both the show’s main villain and head writer in addition to being a father to his son and a good husband to his wife.
Battling writer's block and modern times, he begins the series struggling to find a way to keep audiences coming back for more while contending with his brother’s uncontrollable jealousy. Created by Michael Wardon, Heels is a love letter to the sport of wrestling, and all its theatrics, heartbreaks, and stale, day-old popcorn. It’s also a brutal look at the underbelly of show business, as it hammers home that the blood and tears shed behind the scenes are just as important as all the glitz and glamour presented on stage to the crowds, whether they’re cheering or booing.
Panic
Teenage boredom proves deadly in Panic, the Amazon Prime Original thriller series about a group of kids in a small town who chase adrenaline and money by risking their lives. Every summer, the graduating class of seniors at the local high school enter a game called Panic, and each challenge gets more dangerous as they attempt to win the final prize which entails thousands of dollars. Olivia Scott Welch stars as Heather Nill, a loner girl barely scrapping by who helps raise her younger sister while her mother falls further into alcoholism. On a whim, she decides to enter Panic, and from there, she finds herself walking a tightrope above tall buildings, batting tigers and her two-faced classmates as she reaches for the treasure at the end of the road. Based on the Lauren Oliver novel under the same name, the series also stars Ray Nicholson, Mike Faist, and Jessica Sula as teens who throw their lives away for a shot at the future.
Friday Night Lights
Clear eyes. Full hearts. Can’t lose. In the town of Dillon, Texas only one thing matters, and that one thing is high school football. On Friday nights, you can find the entire town at the football stadium under the blinding lights cheering on the Dillon Panthers as they try to reach for glory under the direction of Coach Eric Taylor. Portrayed by Kyle Chandler, Coach Taylor is a tough-love, no-nonsense man, and he goes down in the books as one of the greatest coaches to ever yell from the sidelines in film and television history. With the help and support of his wife, Tammy Taylor (Connie Britton), the power couple prove to be an unstoppable force as they help the high schoolers in town realize their full potential.
Friday Night Lights does not romanticize football or the wonder years, and it's oftentimes gritty and unforgiving as it lingers within all the missed opportunities and lost games that the students must contend with. Also starring Taylor Kitsch as Tim Riggins, Zach Gilford as Matt Saracen, Minka Kelly as Lyla Garrity, and Michael B. Jordan as Vince Howard, the incredible cast of characters help bring to life a piece of the American dream amongst bright lights and touchdowns.
Teen Wolf
Varsity lacrosse player by day, werewolf by night. The MTV supernatural series Teen Wolf has a little bit of everything, from horror to screwball comedy, to the teenage blues. Tyler Posey stars as Scott McCall, a shy high school student who sits on the bench for every lacrosse game until one night he’s bitten in the woods by a werewolf while out searching for a dead body with his best friend, Stiles (Dylan O’Brien).
Literally, everything changes overnight, and he becomes the star player on the team with lighting fast reflexes while also contending with monstrous demons and supernatural forces lurking amongst the practice fields and math tests. Together, Posey and O’Brien are like a modern-day odd couple, with Stiles stuttering about as the loveable and painfully awkward wingman to a burgeoning werewolf.