Glad you enjoyed it buddy, it's a wonderfully easy show to binge watch and while really cheesy it's so well done, and really captures what made the original film such a lasting legacy. I did think things got a little silly in S2 but still really enjoyed watching it and looking forward to S3. Best bit of S1 is Spoiler Where Johnny recounts the events of the first film to make Daniel out to be the bad which is something that had been floating around in popular culture for a while
Gah, that fight in Season 2 Episode #10 is still so kickass. That long shot in the hallway still fascinates me to think about. That the fight was filmed in just a weekend is so mind-blowing. I'm glad they managed to nail it. I really hope Season 3 matures Johnny, especially his dialogue. It's so cringy listening to him sound like an abusive, out-of-date, too-cool-for-school (feelings) dumbass. You have the perfect excuse to age him up after the cliffhanger in the Season 2 finalé, so take it and get rid of the cringe. I'm begging you, team! God, I hope COVID-19 doesn't murder the fights in Season 3. I really want to see another elaborately structured fight again, hopefully focusing more on the girls this time. :|
I could have sworn it was mentioned that the season hadn't been film yet but hey, that's better than nothing!
I don’t know the Luddite Johnny is what makes the character so funny, he reminds me of that member my friends or family group that just missed out on the technological or social revolution. I would dislike him immensely in real life though.
The series doesn't really do a good enough job of portraying these things as pathetic, though. Like, if the series was constantly making fun of Johnny for being an idiot and abusive I'd feel different but instead he's emotionally abusive to a bunch of kids and adults and they only get away with side comments under their breath that don't stick. The series is siding with Johnny by making him into a badass and centering itself on his rudeness without showing enough character development to off-set or reduce his assholery.
He's definitely coming around. Having Kreese steel the dojo from him was his final wake-up call. You can tell he really cares about those kids. He wants to help them, even if it his methods are a tad-bit unorthodox. He doesn't want to see them fall like he did, and Hawk is the canary in the coalmine.
Johnny is a straight shooter, and not a PC one. It's refreshing that he challenges the over coddling of today's youth. The real world doesn't give everyone a trophy and there are things you need to prepare yourself for, and Johnny is excellent at doing that with his students. And they help him modernize as well. That's part of the fun. Two different eras learning from each other.
What over-coddling? What trophies? Hell, even then this is just a sport. For fun. Furthermore, the real world isn't a natural competition, it's an artificial competition meant to keep workers at each others throats so the wealthy and privileged can run out the backdoor with all the money. Cooperation is the key, standing up to power is the key. Responsible adults teach children to solve problems with words first, violence second. The idea that Johnny's bullshit cowboy "Yeah, look at how cool I am because I stopped learning shit after high school" mentality is in any way legitimate is ridiculous. Learn how to talk like a grown up Mr. Lawrence, express your feelings and take the stick out of your ass.
Loving the show. I will say that I did find it a bit silly that after the big fight, nobody thinks to blame the school though. Lets review (without any plot relevant spoilers): Girl gets on loud speaker and announces to the *entire school* that she is about to start a fight. She has time to wander the halls looking for her target. A fight then ensues and escalates to include several groups of students. After about 5 minutes with multiple groups fighting, a total of two teachers show up and later one security guard wanders in. One teacher then leaves. Sooo... after the announcement which occurred before the bell, no teacher held their students in class until the girl announcing the fight could be stopped (or at least escort the target to the next class). No teachers thought to, I dunno, maintain a presence in the hallways? The fight was exciting, and the consequences will resonate for a long time, but really, this school is grossly negligent surrounding student safety.
My wife and I were both screaming, "Where are the teachers?!?" at the TV during the build-up, then the fight started and we forgot all about that. Sadly, in this day and age, where schools have been underfunded and understaffed, this may be more realistic than we might have expected only a few years ago.
This entire generation of kids have been victims of the "everyone gets a trophy" attitude and don't understand things like winning and losing happen. And when they get that dose of reality, they can't handle it. And your last sentences are completely off base. The real world is a competition--one where those that can seize the day do, and those that can't don't. Maybe they do, but part of making kids into responsible adults is to teach them that they can't whine their way out of problems. They need to win and lose so they don't fly off the handle when they can't get their way. This everyone gets a trophy generation is actually more violent than others because they don't know how to deal with problems since they HAVE been coddled. Johnny is a straight shooter--he actually has more wisdom than you give him credit for. There is such a thing as right and wrong. There is such a thing as winning and losing. Sometimes you have to just suspend disbelief and roll with it. That fight would have had the police there in minutes. I don't think it could have possibly lasted nearly that long. Maybe teachers wouldn't physically get involved, but cops would. There absolutely would be a lawsuit after Miguel's injury and chances are there would be firings in the school. The fight would make news. If the students don't respect the teachers' authority, the fight would still happen. You would also have to figure that there would be cameras that would have captured a lot of the action. I don't know HOW well schools are monitored, but in this day and age, I would think pretty well. There would be suspensions, expulsions and arrests. Probably every single student in the fight would at minimum, be suspended. Tory would have to be expelled and arrested. Robbie of course is on the run. Sam would be in trouble too. Everyone. They all have cellphones and someone would call the cops.
More like when they get a dose of the 'real world' they realize that the 'real world' is bullshit full of artificial constructions meant to keep us at odds with one another over an artificial scarcity. And, again, you've provided no specifics. So what if kids get a participation trophy? It's a hobby, not tear down and traumatize your fucking kid over a dumb hobby. What even is this based on? Miguel gets shit on by a bunch of poorly raised douchebags in the first episode, tries to resolve the issue without violence and then defends himself to the best of his ability with violence when the time comes. That's functioning like a normal human being. Children aren't out here demanding anything unreasonable, they're demanding not to get abused. Johnny isn't a straight shooter, either, if he were a straight shooter he'd be explaining things like a normal adult: "Hey, those guys are being douchebags and unfortunately aren't going to listen to words. Let me teach you how to kick their asses. It's going to hurt to get there but I definitely think you can get there. No worries if you don't want to do it but I do think you'll enjoy kicking their asses the next time they decide to be douchebags." Four simple sentences all spoken without being a piece of shit.
You mean successful people. The real world doesn't have participation trophies. The whole concept is coddling and stupid, which gives kids a false sense of winning and the inability to handle losing. That's why adults these days have tantrums when things don't go their way. If a kid is traumatized over losing a game or a sport, that's on you as a parent for raising such a wimp. Losing teaches you plenty in life, as handling it is a vital lesson. Miguel was a complete wimp until Johnny taught him how to stand up for himself. Yes, those people in the first episode were douchebags. And they pushed Miguel around and there was nothing he could do. But they tried that with Johnny and paid a severe price. The real world has douchebags and abusive people. How they are handled will affect how they act in the future. Once Miguel learned how to defend himself, thanks to Johnny, his life improved dramatically. The above is how you feel, but sometimes there are lessons that have to be taught, and Johnny did a great job teaching Miguel. Ironically, Johnny's lesson about mercy came back and bit Miguel on the ass. I don't blame Miguel for that one, but it did happen. That's actually one of the beauties of this show. Had Miguel taken the Kreese path, he wouldn't have been hurt.
It's a few months too late, but it's great news. This is one of the best shows on TV. The worst part is that I see myself mowing through the 10 episodes in a day or two.