Diksha Sundriyal
In Netflix’s ‘Cobra Kai,’ the audience is kept on their toes as loyalties and alliances shift with each season, and the characters who seem to be villains turn into heroes, and vice versa. One of the wild cards of the story is Tory Nichols, who has been more of a villain since the beginning. Tory is a heavily misunderstood character who is frustrated with the world being unfair to her, which feeds her hatred for Sam LaRusso, whom she considers highly entitled. Over the seasons, however, a different side of Tory comes out, and by Season 6, she and Sam have reconciled all their differences and are fighting on the same side. However, this peace doesn’t last long, and by the end of Season 6 Part 1, Tory is back with Cobra Kai. SPOILERS AHEAD
A Personal Tragedy Affects Tory’s Psyche
One of the defining things about Tory is that she has always felt alone. Her financial situation puts her at a disadvantage, and her being labeled the bad guy, no matter who started the fight, makes her resentful of the people around her. However, things change slowly but steadily, especially after Amanda mellows towards her. At first, Amanda is cautious of Tory and is only focused on protecting Sam, but when she discovers Tory’s situation with her mother, she offers a helping hand, which, eventually, Tory takes, going against even her own expectations.
This marks the beginning of Tory letting go of her anger, and with Terry Silver taking control of Cobra Kai, she feels even more guilty of being on the bad side. By the end of Season 5, Terry Silver goes to prison, and Tory is welcomed with open arms at Miyagi-do and Eagle Fang Karate. It takes her some time to break through her shell, and with Sam letting go of her anger, both become friends. But all of this is undone with one tragedy.
Tory’s mother had been in ill health since the beginning of the series, but she had started to get better, which also improved Tory. But then, she dies unexpectedly, and Tory is left with unprocessed grief. She doesn’t tell anyone about it and enters the fight with Sam to become the team captain for Sekai Takai with a rage fuelled by her loss and the fact that she is all alone once again. When Amanda and the others try to stop the fight, she takes it as a sign that they are all favoring Sam because if Tory backs out, Sam will be the default winner.
The inability to share her feelings with anyone, even Robby, with whom she’d gotten close over the past few seasons, pushes her down the road she’d barely escaped last season. The black hole of her grief consumes all the progress she has made, and she finds herself back with the same insecurities and anger that she’d worked so hard to shed. When she joined Miyagi-do, she’d initially felt out of place but settled after some time. But when she sees the LaRussos telling her to stop the fight with Sam, she convinces herself that they will always prioritize their daughter and that all their acts of sympathy towards Tory have been just for show.
Kreese’s Timely Return Works in Cobra Kai’s Favour
John Kreese cares only about a few people, and Tory Nichols is one of them. When he returns to Cobra Kai, he immediately likes Tory because he sees much of himself in her. They both came from poor backgrounds and had to fight for their keep. Tory’s fire and her talent for karate also made Kreese sympathetic to her. Their bond developed so well that even when Kreese went to prison on false charges, Tory was the only one who visited him.
When Kreese flees prison and brings Cobra Kai back with Kim Da-eun, he is adamant about getting Tory back. At first, she refuses his offer, still angry about him abandoning her against Terry Silver. However, when her mother dies, he is the only one she feels will understand her. It all happens off-screen, but it’s clear that when Kreese found out about Tory’s mother, he reached out to her. Catching her in a vulnerable state, he filled her head with all the nonsense of her not having any real friends within Miyagi-do and promised her everything she wanted if only she’d return to Cobra Kai.
The timing works incredibly for Kreese, and drawing on Tory’s grief over her mother’s death, he can reconnect with her. The fact that Tory thinks Sam will be favored over her in Miyagi-do also pushes her towards Cobra Kai, where she knows she will be made captain and have the chance she wanted all along. So, instead of returning to Miyagi-do and figuring it out, she decides to ditch them altogether and take her chances with Cobra Kai.
Read More: Cobra Kai: The Real Life Inspirations Behind Mr. Miyagi
