"The Karate Kid" (1984): How was Daniel a victim of bullying when everything that happened to him was in response to his actions?

I was severely bullied in Junior High and let me tell you, bullies almost never have a reason to bully you. They do it because it makes them feel superior and better than his victims.

To be honest, Daniel seemed more like a bully to me than Johnny or the other Cobra Kai dudes.

Daniel was the one who chose to intrude in Johnny and Ali's relationship because he wanted to show off and he's the one who got physical first. It wasn't JOhnny's fault if Daniel couldn't take the response.

If you watch the movie, Johnny and his buddies never go after Daniel unless Daniel is doing something shady like going to Johnny's Dojo to threaten him or throw water at them in the bathroom, ruining their joint. Nothing they did was gratuitously cruel. Even that harsh beating happened because they were drugged out so it wasn't on purpose.

Part II, that insane Japanese kid was a psycho, and I agree that Barnes was a bully since he didn't take no for an answer and Terry Silver definitely had a weird obsession with Daniel, he either wanted to beat him or fuck him, it was just weird.