Daniel LaRusso

Template:Charact

> I know I said you have to... let go of your anger and show forgiveness, but... when the fight comes to you, you have to be ready to fight back.
>
> Daniel LaRusso to Robby Keene, Mercy

**Daniel "Danny" LaRusso** is one of the main protagonists of *The Karate Kid* trilogy and *Cobra Kai* television series.

Daniel was a bullied high school student whose life changed when he was mentored by a wise karate sensei, who taught him both valuable life lessons and self-defense. Daniel was able to use this training to protect himself and others, winning several championships and beating aggressive opponents that challenged him.

Thirty years after his initial training, Daniel settled down in the valley and became married with two children, and is the owner of an auto-dealership chain called LaRusso Auto Group. He retired from karate and used martial arts as a gimmick to promote his business. When his high school rival Johnny Lawrence resurfaced and opened Cobra Kai Dojo, Daniel was inspired to teach Miyagi-Do Karate to a new generation of students.

Their rivalry had higher stakes then before, and things escalated during a school brawl that involved Daniel's daughter, Johnny's star student, and estranged son. The aftermath of the brawl found Johnny and Daniel as reluctant allies, and they were forced to join forces once again when John Kreese challenged their respective dojos in the All Valley Karate Tournament.

## Personality

> You know me, I've always been a bit of a hothead, so...
>
> Daniel LaRusso to Miyagi's tombstone, Counterbalance

Throughout the saga, Daniel is consistently friendly, fairly relaxed and open-minded. When first arriving in California he easily makes friends before the confrontation with Johnny and in later life he is shown to be a friendly and easy-going boss.

Daniel is also frequently heroic. He tries to stand up for Ali at the beach, rescues several people during a fierce storm and (perhaps zealously) takes it upon himself to protect people from the negative influences of the Cobra Kai Dojo. Matching this heroism is bravery. When necessary, Daniel demonstrates an ability to overcome fear or difficult odds to do what is right or stand up for himself. Equally, he is prone to panicking in the face of threats. Before learning Karate he freaks out when forced to participate in the tournament, and he is mentally assaulted and worn down in the face of Barnes and Terry Silver. However, he eventually finds the resolve to overcome this fear and panic. In addition, he faces his duel with Chozen, knowing it is to the death, without flinching.

As a teenager it was quite easy for Daniel to fall in love. However a major problem was keeping his girlfriends.

Linked to his tendency to panic is his reaction when faced with a resurgent Cobra Kai. He manipulates the rent of innocent shop owners and conducts a crusade against Johnny's dojo. However, he realizes his mistakes in these reactions and re-dedicates himself to his mentor's teaching of balance. Daniel later proves to be a fantastic influence on Robby. Which causes Johnny to further resent him as he was hoping to try and make amends with Robby.

Daniel, however, does have difficulty with the concept of giving old enemies a second chance, especially when they've proven themselves detestable people many times over. This was largely caused when John Kreese and Terry Silver purposefully tried to ruin his friendship with Mr. Miyagi and have him brutalized at the tournament.

Daniel's current rivalry and distrust of Johnny and Cobra Kai is not only based on their past disdain, but also his disgust at Johnny's inability to learn a lesson since then and at how much Johnny has wasted his life. Though most of their hostility has been due to misunderstandings and outside sources. However it could also be that some of his anger towards Johnny might be due to Mr. Miyagi saving him from Kreese and never saying thank you.

After starting Miyagi-Do Karate he becomes so focused on being Mr. Miyagi and training his students to defeat Cobra Kai that he ignores his wife Amanda and job which angers her, though Daniel manages to make it up to her.

After learning that Kreese is back at Cobra Kai Daniel is shocked and angry, showing he still holds a grudge against Kreese and hasn't forgotten the latter's past actions against him and is further disgusted by Johnny for even letting the man who nearly killed him back into his life. However Daniel doesn't seem to quite understand that despite everything Kreese was the closest thing Johnny had to a father.

Daniel also has a habit of always assuming the worst, especially when it comes to Johnny and Cobra Kai as he wishes not for Johnny to ruin his family's life as he has his own.

By the end of season 2, Daniel is ordered to close Miyagi-Do after a school brawl resulted in Sam possibly having a broken rib and Miguel being rendered unconscious by Robby. Daniel goes home where he apologies to Miyagi. Daniel, knowing despite his past history with Cobra Kai and his intentions, realizes he's just as much responsible for this disaster. His outlook looking quite grim.

## Fighting Style

 File:Daniel vs johny.png

> Daniel was the best fighter that day."
> "He was the best around."
> "Nothing's ever gonna keep him down.
>
> Chris Cotter, Steve Levy and Randy Scott

Through Miyagi's training Daniel's inherited style is strong in defense and solid in offense, with a notable emphasis on effectively countering his opponent's attacks. These skills assist him during his fights with Johnny and Chozen, the first of which emphasizes his ability to sneak in behind his opponent's guard to strike, whereas in the latter Daniel's karate has become more rounded, due to his experience, allowing to provide effective offense and defense.

During his teen years, Daniel struggled against opponents that were physically stronger, more skilled, and aggressive and dirty fighters. During his fights with Johnny, Chozen and Mike, Daniel struggled when all three fought more aggressively, and when the former and latter fought underhandedly. Despite struggling when his opponents fight more aggressively or underhandedly, Daniel often has one last tactic in the end which allows him to emerge victorious such as the Crane kick, and the Kata which Miyagi taught him.

Even after Miyagi's death in 2011 Daniel still remembers Miyagi's lessons and practices what Miyagi taught him, in particular that karate is only used for defense. He later uses his teachings to instruct Johnny's son Robby, in both karate and emotional balance, which leads to him reopening Miyagi-Do Karate. He also uses Miyagi's techniques to defeat Robby's attackers with astonishing ease and efficiency, which clearly demonstrates just how far Daniel has come from his teenage years when he struggled to take on multiple opponents. During this fight Daniel again displays his style's preference for effective counterattacks; as Daniel notes to Johnny - *"you know I'm not going to strike first."*

Under Daniel's tutelage, Samantha LaRusso, Robby Keene, Demetri, Charlie Brunson, Chris, and Nathaniel would become skilled martial artists in their own right. With the help of his old enemy Chozen, Daniel would later learn about targeting pressure points, something that allowed him to defeat John Kreese in a fight, switching from defense to offense. Notably, in this instance, Daniel strikes first in anger to protect Johnny whose life was in danger. He also deploys the Miyagi pressure point training he received from Chozen. able to render Kreese incapable of fighting back.

## Trivia

* A major factor in Daniel and Johnny's differences is that while both had no fathers, Daniel grew up with love, encouragement and Mr. Miyagi's guidance, Johnny however grew up with advantages and his own mother's love but with everyone he knew or would meet viewing him as a thug and a lost cause.
* In 2018, Daniel was inducted into the Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame.
* One strength and weakness of Daniel's is his loyalty to his family, a trait that was later revealed to have been due to Daniel's mother. However, this loyalty causes Danny to become extremely defensive anytime anyone in his family is criticized or insulted, especially by his rivals, such as Johnny Lawrence, even if the statement about said family member is true.
* Originally, the character was named "Daniel Webber", but after Ralph Macchio booked the part, the character's name was changed to LaRusso to reflect Macchio's Italian-American heritage.
	+ It was important to the cast and crew to have a positive representation of Italian-Americans, due to the harsh depiction of Italian-Americans in media at the time. Mark Kamen, Randee Heller, and Ralph Macchio was presented with a letter of commendation by the Italians Against Discrimination for *The Karate Kid*.
* Daniel's education beyond high school remains unknown, as he frequently spent the money he was supposed to use for college. First on a plane ticket to Japan and again when he uses it to open *Mr. Miyagi's Little Trees*.
* Daniel's father died in 1974, when he was 8 years old. Daniel discusses him again with his mother, fondly recalling a day they all went to Coney Island together, but his father grew ill after.
* His 2010 counterpart is Dre Parker.
* He is a fan of REO Speedwagon.
* His drinks of choice are club soda, Ketel Martinis, and Don Julio 70.
* Daniel is a fan of *Game of Thrones*.