Kobra Kai Returns to Sweep the Leg of Streaming TV

Much like House of Cards was for Netflix, The Handmaid’s Tale was for Hulu, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel was for Amazon, Cobra Kai is for YouTube. Which is to say, these are the shows that were so good and so acclaimed that people had to sign up for the streaming platform in order to watch them. While Cobra Kai hasn’t yet received the mainstream acclaim of its predecessors, it’s certainly good enough for people to consider subscribing to yet another streaming service.

SEASON PREMIERE: When last we left off with Cobra Kai, the All-Valley Karate tournament was once again the setting for high drama. Johnny Lawrence had gotten the Cobra Kai dojo back on top, but he’d corrupted young Miguel to do so. Season 2 will see Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso build up their respective dojos, a rivalry that begins to bleed into the new generation they’re training. Streaming on YouTube

SERIES PREMIERE: The biggest reason to look forward to the debut season of Bonding on Netflix is that it's headlined by Brendan Scannell, who was last seen on the beleaguered TV adaptation of Heathers. Here he plays a recently out gay man who re-connects with his high-school best friend (Zoe Levin), only to find out about her secret life as a dominatrix. All that plus the excellent D’Arcy Carden moonlighting from The Good Place? Sounds very good. Streaming on Netflix

SPORTS: Don’t look now, but the NHL Playoffs are heating up at the end of the conference quarterfinals. Few things in sports are as thrilling as a Game 7, and that’s what we have tonight, with the defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals trying to avoid a first-round upset at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes. 7:30 PM ET on NBCSN

NEW EPISODE: The clash of reality stars continues this week on The Amazing Race. The teams race to Laos — a first-time destination for this long-running show — and face a potentially disastrous Double U-Turn. 9:00 PM ET on CBS

ALSO TONIGHT

• Jane the Virgin features a surprise 30th birthday party, and since Rogelio’s the one throwing it, it’s going be something to see. 9:00 PM ET on The CW
• The preview for this week’s Survivor touts that “alliances start to crumble,” which is always the best part of a Survivor season. 8:00 PM ET on CBS
• The Real Housewives of New York City promises the return of Mario Singer, Ramona’s philandering ex. The tease is that Ramona and Mario might get back together, but it’s also important to know that Ramona is a lunatic who knows how to work the press. 9:00 PM ET on Bravo
• Riverdale sees Jughead (Cole Sprouse), FP (Skeet Ulrich), and Gladys (Gina Gershon) on the trail of a missing Jellybean. 8:00 PM ET on The CW

Joe Reid is the senior writer at Primetimer and co-host of the This Had Oscar Buzz podcast. His work has appeared in Decider, NPR, HuffPost, The Atlantic, Slate, Polygon, Vanity Fair, Vulture, The A.V. Club and more.