# The "Karate Kid" Questions **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 22, 2004, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401 "2004-07-22T20:09:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/21 "2004-07-24T07:42:44Z")
> [@Trunk](#): > > can we pause and just appreciate how awesome Karate Kid was? Yes we may. _Damn_ fine movie. Adolescent angst + martial arts action + Buddhistic pacifism + Mr. Miyagi kickin’ ass = awesome movie. Yeah, I know, Pat Morita can’t do those moves in real life. But who didn’t cheer like a maniac when the frail little old Japanese guy made short work of the gang pounding on Daniel at the back fence? Miyagi was Yoda before Yoda, man… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Abbie\_Carmichael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@Abbie\_Carmichael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abbie_Carmichael)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/22 "2004-07-24T07:51:13Z")
> [@Eats\_Crayons](#): > > He [still looks like a kid](http://us.imdb.com/gallery/granitz/1368/Events/1368/RalphMacchioENetwork_Vespa_323961_400.jpg?path=pgallery&path_key=Macchio,%20Ralph)!!! You would too if you were Dick Clark’s love child. ---
**Author:** ![Optihut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/edb3f5/32.png) [@Optihut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Optihut)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/23 "2004-07-24T13:48:12Z")
> [@rjung](#): > > Miyagi was Yoda before Yoda, man… 😃 Are you just referring to the bouncing Yoda of Episode II or where did that conclusion come from? Colour me confused (as Karate Kid is from 1984 according to imdb). ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/24 "2004-07-24T14:03:16Z")
> [@Optihut](#): > > Are you just referring to the bouncing Yoda of Episode II or where did that conclusion come from? Looked to me like he was playing off the “Who da man?” commercial. Go with your first thought. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/25 "2004-07-24T14:13:45Z")
On the subject of _Karate Kid_, the [imdB quote page for that movie](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087538/quotes) lists two exchanges, one between Daniel and Johnny, the other between Daniel and his mother, that I can’t for the life of me remember hearing or seeing despite having watched the movie at least a dozen times. They’re the two exchanges at the bottom of the quote page. Were these in some Special Anniversary Edition deal that I haven’t heard about? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/26 "2004-07-24T14:39:40Z")
I remember > [@](#): > > Ever stop to ask yourself if maybe HE > [obviously referring to Kreese] > might be wrong? At least, about some things? but I think it was spoken by another Cobra. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/27 "2004-07-24T14:52:52Z")
What I found odd and amusing is that the Japanese title for the film is _Best Kid_. The distributors had a film with a Japanese word in the title, and they change it? ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/28 "2004-07-24T15:03:37Z")
I _loved_ The Karate Kid. It wasn’t until Karate Kid II that I knew how old Ralph Macchio was. He’s one of those people who will just never look like a bona fide grown-up! As for Mr. Miyagi, hubby and I still quote him in day-to-day life occasionally. Ferinstance, if hubby is having a tough time solving a particularly difficult computer problem, I’ll say something like “You _still_ haven’t fixed that?” and he’ll reply in his best Miyagi voice “not yet”. Just like Miyagi catching a fly with chopsticks. The Karate Kid was just one of those awesome feel-good movies that played across generations and, in general, rocked. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Cheatem\_Undhow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/13edae/32.png) [@Dewey\_Cheatem\_Undhow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Cheatem_Undhow)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/29 "2004-07-24T15:32:21Z")
I caught _Midway_ on TV awhile back and realized that a younger Pat Morita is one of the Japanese bridge officers. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/30 "2004-07-24T18:53:06Z")
Man, did I love this movie. I think I saw it in the theater about 4 times, I read the book back-to-back-to-back, I sparred with my friends at recess. I begged my mom to buy me a little tree that I could sculpt. (She never did. :() And I was only 9 at the time, but I wanted to get a big ol’ yellow convertible as soon as I was old enough. Happy ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/31 "2004-07-25T03:37:44Z")
> [@Eats\_Crayons](#): > > Oh, geez. I was wondering “hey, yeah, what’s he been up to lately?” and went to IMDB. He [still looks like a kid](http://us.imdb.com/gallery/granitz/1368/Events/1368/RalphMacchioENetwork_Vespa_323961_400.jpg?path=pgallery&path_key=Macchio,%20Ralph)!!! That photo was taken when he was what, 41? Yeah, he and I have what I call Larry Mullen, Jr. disease. Ralph finally looks 30, now that he’s 40. Larry’s 42 in this picture! [![](http://www.showbiz.ie/images/stars/meteors2004-awards-4.jpg) ](http://www.showbiz.ie/images/stars/meteors2004-awards-4.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/32 "2004-07-25T14:31:45Z")
I had some fun with my son about five years ago, when he was taking karate. I popped in the video for him and messed with his head, saying stuff like, “How is Mr. Miyagi teaching Daniel karate? He’s making him wax the cars!” Then, the scene where Daniel loses it and Miyagi shows him what wax on/wax off sand the floor/paint the house actually means, Ivyboy got all excited, jumping up and down and screaming, “He’s teaching him blocks! He’s teaching him blocks!” Oh, the joy of seeing a “classic” through the eyes of your children. ---
**Author:** ![Cubsfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cubsfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cubsfan)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/33 "2004-07-25T16:12:48Z")
> [@Eats\_Crayons](#): > > Oh, geez. I was wondering “hey, yeah, what’s he been up to lately?” and went to IMDB. He [still looks like a kid](http://us.imdb.com/gallery/granitz/1368/Events/1368/RalphMacchioENetwork_Vespa_323961_400.jpg?path=pgallery&path_key=Macchio,%20Ralph)!!! That photo was taken when he was what, 41? > " Damn! Are joking? He looks awful in those pics. Doesn’t even look like the same person to me. He definitely looks 40 in those pics. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/34 "2004-07-25T16:18:43Z")
> [@Stinkpalm](#): > > Damn! Are joking? He looks awful in those pics. Doesn’t even look like the same person to me. He definitely looks 40 in those pics. If you say so. ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/35 "2004-07-25T16:37:10Z")
> [@Happy Lendervedder](#): > > … I read the book back-to-back-to-back,… There was a book? The Elizabeth Shue character was dismissed in the first two minutes or so of KKII (she doesn’t appear). I think Daniel casually mentions she is dating a football player. ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/36 "2004-07-25T16:51:10Z")
> [@The Long Road](#): > > When I was a teen I studied martial arts for a short time and one day a friend tried the “Crane Technique”(which he saw on Karate Kid) while sparring with the instructor. The instructor made **very** short work of him and then commented, “Don’t ever bring some movie BS in here again”. It’s still funny to me 15 years later. He must have done it wrong, because: “If do right, no defense.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/37 "2004-07-25T20:03:16Z")
> [@PoorYorick](#): > > He must have done it wrong, because: “If do right, no defense.” 🙂 You know, this is kind of funny because IIRC Daniel does use it again against his antagonist in KKII and it doesn’t work! So there must be SOME defense against in the movie world (or else Daniel is doing it wrong?). ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/38 "2004-07-25T21:09:41Z")
I think it only works when the opponent doesn’t see it coming. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/39 "2004-07-25T21:14:24Z")
> [@Laughing Lagomorph](#): > > You know, this is kind of funny because IIRC Daniel does use it again against his antagonist in KKII and it doesn’t work! So there must be SOME defense against in the movie world (or else Daniel is doing it wrong?). I think he was simply doing it wrong, or at any rate not well enough to beat Chozen, who was obviously better than that Johnny dude in the first movie. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401/40 "2004-07-25T22:44:43Z")
…and yet, the only DVD version of the movie is the long-outdated, pan-and-scan, no-features-added release from 1998. ☹ Box set, dammit! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-karate-kid-questions/256401.md?page=3)