Diksha Sundriyal
Netflix’s ‘Cobra Kai‘ reignites the rivalry between Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence, which started in 1984’s The Karate Kid. Picking up decades after they last saw each other, the series focuses on their vastly different lives and how much karate is still a part of them. While a sense of enmity still remains, they have been wisened by age and are ready to put aside their differences, which forms the crux of the TV show.
Taking place in the San Fernando Valley, the show sticks to a few key locations, to which it returns repeatedly. Johnny Lawrence’s apartment is one of the locations that remain the same throughout the show’s six-season run. The fans can visit the location where it is filmed, but it is not in Reseda.
Reseda Heights Apartments are in Tarzana in Real Life
The events in ‘Cobra Kai’ occur in the San Fernando Valley, the same place where the original ‘Karate Kid’ movie takes place. The situation, however, is reversed for characters as in the films. Daniel, who was poor then, lived with his mother in Reseda, while Johnny, who was rich, lived in Encino. In the TV show, it is Johnny who now takes residence in Reseda while trying to get back on his feet by starting his own dojo. He lives in the Reseda Heights Apartment Complex, where his neighbor is the Diaz family.
Reseda Heights is not a real apartment complex in Reseda. The filming for the scenes outside the apartment took place at an apartment complex building located at 18555 Burbank Boulevard in Tarzana. Built in 1965, this building has two stories with twenty-six units to house its residents. While the place doubles for Reseda, Tarzana has a different vibe. It is described as a “tranquil suburban neighborhood,” reportedly named after the fictional character Tarzan. It is close to places like Topanga State Park and Lake Balboa Park. The interiors for the Lawrence and Diaz apartments were filmed in the studio to give the makers of the show the space to do all the action and whatnot, which frequently ends up trashing Johnny’s apartment.
Johnny’s living situation in Reseda has a huge impact on his life on multiple levels. The first thing that the location does is flip the narrative and present Johnny’s life from a different lens, making the audience more sympathetic to him, as opposed to his arrogant self in ‘The Karate Kid.’ The place also sets up his relationship with the Diaz family, particularly with Miguel and his mother, Carmen, with him he falls in love. This anchors Johnny, who had been floating around for a long time, feeling out of place everywhere and, most importantly, without a loving support system that could help him grow. Setting in Reseda Heights changes everything for him.
Read More: What is the Sekai Taikai Tournament in Cobra Kai? Is It a Real Karate Tournament?
