Karate Kid: Legends

Skippable, and it is the franchise's crossover rather than its continuation. The one thing it does that nothing else could is put the two continuities in the same room: Mr. Han from the 2010 remake and Daniel LaRusso from the Miyagi line turn out to be connected by a piece of family history, and after fifteen years as separate properties they are now one.

That is a satisfying piece of housekeeping and it is most of what the film has. At ninety-four minutes it is the shortest entry by a distance and it moves at a pace that leaves nothing room to land: a new protagonist arrives in New York from Beijing, acquires a love interest, a rival, a subplot about a boxer with debts and a tournament, and all of it resolves inside an hour and a half. The training montage, which is the one sequence this series has never rushed, is over in about ninety seconds.

Ben Wang is genuinely good and deserves a better vehicle. He plays Li Fong as someone who already knows how to fight and is trying not to, which is a different premise from every other film here, and the one thing the script does well is keep returning to why.

Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio are clearly enjoying themselves and are both in supporting roles. If you have watched Cobra Kai and want to see how the two lines join, it answers that. If you have not, it will not mean much.