(Illustration by Yukiyo Oda/Stripes Japan)

The crane kick is no joke! If you’ve seen The Karate Kid (1984) or its spinoff series Cobra Kai (2018-), you probably laughed every time Daniel LaRusso stood on one leg, raising the other leg and both of his arms. The “crane kick” became a cultural icon when the protagonist finished off his rival Johnny Laurence with this tricky karate move. Although the move looks cartoonish, it is not completely a product of someone’s imagination. There is a form of Karate called “Hakutsuru no kata (style of the white crane)” where a karate spreads his or her arms horizontally. This style is based on Chinese martial arts called “Hakkakuken (Fujian White Crane).”

Haru (spring) (Illustration by Stripes Japan)