Being Related to Mr. Miyagi, Part II
My thoughts after re-watching the Karate Kid II
Last month, I wrote about being related to Mr. Miyagi after watching the first two seasons of Cobra Kai on Netflix. Today, I watched the Karate Kid II with my teen-aged daughter, and we were both struck by how wrong the movie was. Which is unfortunate because I love the entire Karate Kid franchise and I am looking forward to season 3 of Cobra Kai which is scheduled to air in January. The Karate Kid II earned more money at the box office than the original and it is still my favorite Karate Kid film.
My daughter has been to Okinawa twice. The first time, our hotel was right next to Kadena Air Force base and there were no villages in the area that looked anything remotely like the one depicted in the movie. The second thing that struck my daughter was Mr. Miyagi’s accent. He was supposedly born in Okinawa in 1925 and had emigrated to Hawaii years before the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941. Why did Mr. Miyagi speak with a Japanese accent? He could have at least spoken Okinawan when he was in Okinawa. It’s almost as if Okinawan culture and Okinawa itself took a backseat to the movie. Okinawa is a beautiful island and it’s a shame that there weren’t even background scenes of Okinawa in the movie. But that will be rectified with season 3 of Cobra Kai which was filmed in Okinawa!
