#carnny

I’M LOSING MY MIND OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, you lot, listen:

All these years, one of the things that I thought Cobra Kai needed to work on was developing Carmen’s individual personality, as they are doing with Amanda.

In most of her scenes, we know almost nothing about who Carmen is as a person, her thoughts, her likes and dislikes. We know details about her, like she was married, she is Ecuadorian, she’s an X-ray technician but what about her feelings and thoughts about things other than her son or Johnny? How does she feel about the karate war, about living in Reseda, about her son’s breakup with Tory, even about Robby? It’s never been addressed on-screen.

She’s not had any solo interactions with any other characters other than Johnny, Miguel and Yaya. We’ve only seen her with the Larussos with Johnny being present, though the show’s hinted before that she’s interacted with them and Miguel’s friends on her own.

I get that b/c Vanessa Rubio didn’t have main cast status until season 4, she didn’t have as much screen time, but I thought it was such a shame and I really hoped they would do more with her when they announced that she was getting promoted to main cast. Because I want to get to know Carmen as more than just Miguel’s mum.

I am so happy with the salsa double date coz I think that was my first insight into her as an individual- she’s a woman who likes dancing, who’ll take charge and lead her partner with confidence in that context. In that dancing scene, we see a bit of how Carmen might have been when she was young and all the troubles of the world and responsibilities of adulthood were not on her. She seemed carefree, dancing the night away with a guy she liked. It was something about her outside of her mother role. In that scene, I was watching her, not Johnny. It was beautiful.

So let me tell you, last season I ABSOLUTELY ADORED when she was like ‘Tom Cruise is so handsome’, because that is the first time I recall getting her opinion on something that isn’t related to Miguel or Johnny. Sure the wider conversation was about Miguel, but it was nice to know that she loved Top Gun and was attracted to Tom Cruise. That huge smile she has when she says it makes it even better.

So I really lost my shit when I saw this picture and I hope this scene doesn’t get deleted, because it’s so cute that Johnny is doing something that’s just for her. He ranted about his man crush on Iceman at the time, but I’d like to know that he was listening, paying attention to who or what she finds attractive, even feeling a little jealous. That conversation wasn’t just about his jealousy of/subconscious love for Daniel (who he obvs sees as Maverick), but that Carmen’s reaction was important to him.

And it would be super cute if even she thinks he wasn’t really paying attention to her comment at the time, but then he shows up randomly with this outfit and she’s stunned at how hot he looks and that he remembered what she’d said.

I feel Johnny already does these things off-screen, but I’d like a moment on-screen that is just about him and her. Something to show that he is in love with her as Carmen, as the person SHE IS, not just as the mother of his found son/favourite student.

More behind the scenes!  😍

From Vanessa Rubio insta