"I feel confident, and I feel powerful" — Mary Mouser on how Cobra Kai and Samantha LaRusso helped her

Cobra Kai season 6 premiered with the first of its three-part final season on July 18, 2024. This is the first time the Karate Kid spinoff show has split its season, with the second part arriving on November 15, 2024.

Samantha LaRusso, who plays Mary Mouser, was once again an important part of the season, where she ended up being the female champion for the Sekai Taiakai. This is especially interesting for Mouser, who didn't let her diagnosis of Type I diabetes deter her from doing all her stunts herself over the years and engaged in an action-packed new season that left little else to be desired.

As a brave fighter against the disease, Mary Mouser did not only take this role as a challenge but also took it as an opportunity to better herself. In a 2022 interview with Healthline, the Cobra Kai star shared how the series helped her feel confident, highlighting further how she had come a long way in her life.

"[I] was truly the most uncoordinated, unskillful stunt person you’ve ever met, and I feel like I now at least am to a point where I can decently hold my own, and I feel confident, and I feel powerful when it comes doing karate on the show," Mouser had said.

She further expanded on her experience.

"I kind of joke that I was allergic to exercise before my diagnosis. I was very anti-anything that involved working up a sweat, but since then, obviously, I learned how important it was in terms of managing my diabetes and how for me, physical activity and exercise makes my life with diabetes so much less complicated,"

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Mary Mouser was diagnosed with Type I Diabetes at the age of 13

At the age of 13, Mary Mouser was diagnosed with Type I diabetes, which she continues to battle as of now. In this disease, the pancreas doesn’t produce enough insulin, which has a chance of leading to complications unless managed well.

Despite this, as Samantha LaRusso, Mouser has time and again shown her competence in performing difficult stunts and has always been one of the show's best actors over the years. Mouser has also been an active advocate of diabetes awareness, often taking to her YouTube channel to share her experience with fans.

Samantha LaRusso's character is also of immense importance in Cobra Kai season 6, where she is already the women's team captain in the coveted Sekai Taikai.

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Mary Mouser is not ready to say goodbye to Cobra Kai yet

Though the actress has been associated with the Karate Kid spinoff for years, it seems that she is not yet ready to say goodbye to her fan-favorite character, as she revealed in a recent interview with Glamor.

Speaking about the sixth and final season of the show, the actress said:

"It's all bitter for me right now; I don't want to say goodbye,...The ‘sweet’ is being there and the ‘bitter’ is stepping away."

She added:

"Knowing it was our final season was kind of a blessing because everybody took the time to enjoy every single minute....Even if we weren't working and didn't have to be on set, people came just to hang out, just to be there and be around each other. We enjoyed it for every minute. I shed many a tear, but many a happy tear as well."

Over the next 10 episodes, which would also be the last of the series, Mouser may have an even greater role to play since she is the daughter of "the" Karate Kid, Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio).

The first part of Cobra Kai season 6 is now streaming on Netflix.