Cobra Kai season 5 episode 8: What happened in the competition to enter the prestigious Sekai Taikai tournament?

Cobra Kai season 5 finally debuted on Friday, September 9, 2022, on the popular streaming platform Netflix and it has garnered attention from both, critics and the audience since its premiere.

Hayden Schlossberg, Josh Heald and Jon Hurwitz are the creators of the series. The official Netflix synopsis of the 5th season of Cobra Kai reads:

"The battle for the soul of the Valley may be over, but the war is just beginning. . . Following the shocking results of the All Valley Tournament, Sensei Terry Silver is expanding the Cobra Kai empire and trying to make his "No Mercy" style of karate the only game in town. With Kreese behind bars and Johnny Lawrence setting karate aside to focus on repairing the damage he's caused, Daniel LaRusso must call on an old friend for help. . . As Terry leads Cobra Kai into a new regime, Daniel, Johnny and an old ally join forces in a battle that goes way beyond the mat."

Cobra Kai season 5 episode 7 ended on a thrilling note with Johnny and Daniel giving a fake lawyer's number to Kreese and with Cobra Kai getting ready for world dominance under Terry's guidance. Viewers are eager to know how episode 8, titled, Taikai, of the series' season 5 will unfold.

So, without further ado, let's dive in to find out what happened in episode 8 of Cobra Kai season 5.

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A recap of Cobra Kai season 5 episode 8: Taikai

Who is Gunther Braun and what did he decide?

Episode 8 of Cobra Kai season 5 introduces Gunther Braun, who is the lead representative of the prestigious Sekai Taikai Tournament. At the very beginning of the episode, viewers can see Terry trying very hard to impress Braun and other representatives by showing off his dojo and promising to make the tournament a global phenomenon.

However, Braun clearly states that they are only looking for the capabilities of the students. At the time, Daniel and his group make an appearance on the spot to announce their interest in the epic Sekai Taikai Tournament as well.

Braun is quite curious and eager to witness what the two dojos have to showcase and decides to declare a competition between them, where both teams have to display their methods of training and the skills of the students.

This competition is extremely vital for both dojos as it will decide whether any of them are worthy of taking part in the prestigious tournament or not.

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What happened at the competition?

Episode 8 of Cobra Kai season 5 reveals that there will be two fights, one between two male students and one between two female students from the rival groups.

Terry does not take much time and decides that Kenny and Tory will be competing from their side, however, Miyagi-Do takes some time to figure out who they are going to choose for the competition. Later on, Miyagi-Do chooses Hawk and Sam.

During the fight between Kenny and Hawk, Kenny comes quite ferociously at Hawk and gets a point at the very start of the match. Hawk strikes next but the referee does not give him a point as the referee is hired and manipulated by Terry. Kenny then finishes Hawk off with his freshly learnt silver bullet technique and Hawk loses the match.

During the match between Tory and Sam, Tory disappears and Devon takes her place in the competition. Initially, the referee is seen being partial towards the Cobra Kai, but later on, Sam, with her father's suggestion in mind, gets three points by making each point absolutely obvious, leaving no room for the referee to fault her. Sam wins the match.

Braun declares that Cobra Kai has been chosen, however, they highly appreciate Miyagi-Do’s karate style as well. It was also announced that both dojos will compete in the prestigious tournament.

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Watch episode 8 of Cobra Kai season 5, which is currently streaming on Netflix.