First impressions, acting decisions, concussions, incisions, etc
Well, what a rollercoaster it’s been for us Mortal Kombat fans over the last few months. Game-wise, we’ve had support for Mortal Kombat 1 ending early after poor sales of the ‘Khaos Reigns’ expansion pack, but also the announcement of the Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection, helmed by Digital Eclipse. I’m excited for this Kollection, as Digital Eclipse did fantastic work on the Atari, Street Fighter, and TMNT collections, and judging by the trailer, this looks like it could be the best of the lot. I’m curious how sales will be after WB burnt most of their goodwill with the lukewarm reception of MK1 and the questionable business practices surrounding it. I could probably churn out a hundred articles on decisions they’ve made that I absolutely hate, but that’s not why we’re here. We’re here to discuss the MK2 trailer that was released this week. This should have been a reaction video, but WB seem intent on copyright striking everyone who has reacted to it, so I’m afraid you’ll have to read if you want my thoughts!
I’m going to run through what we see in the trailer, and I’ll give my quick thoughts along the way. Before I start, I want to give a shout-out to the parody ‘Uncaged Fury’ trailer that also dropped. It’s absolutely incredible and gives you an in-universe look at a Johnny Cage movie, which looks straight from the 80s in every way possible. Cheesy fight scenes, one-liners, gravelly narrator, obvious stunt doubles, moves that change from angle to angle, exploding helicopters, it’s all here. Cage is even wearing an almost 1:1 of his outfit from MK11, it’s fantastic stuff. Honestly, I think I may want that movie more than MK2!
Anyway, the trailer opens with Karl Urban’s Johnny Cage ordering a drink in a bar, when a middle-aged man recognises him and tells him that he loved him in “Citizen Cage”…when he was a child. Ten seconds in and we’ve got our first backhand, but it’s verbal. The only correct reply to this is a shadow kick out the door, which sadly does not happen.
Instead, Johnny thanks him, prompting the man to say his movies should get a reboot, but Johnny disagrees, stating that nobody wants that. Is this a jab at fans who complained about the MK reboot? Maybe.
Johnny is then packing his car after what looks like a convention appearance, when Raiden (sporting what seems to be a new MK2-inspired outfit!) and Sonya approach him to join them. He reluctantly agrees and is transported to their new base upon a clifftop.
We then see Kitana (whoaaaa boy, I’m a Kitana main) sparring with Cage, doing some moves that look lifted directly from the game. I’m a big, big fan (pun intended) of what I see here. As a late 80s child, my first real crush was Talisa Soto’s Kitana from the ’95 movie, though the character didn’t really get a chance to shine. They’ve nailed her here, though, from the aesthetic to the moves, and I can’t wait to see more!
Sonya explains to Johnny that Mortal Kombat is a fighting tournament to the death, to which Johnny replies in a way that any sane person would, “fuck that!”
We then cut to what I assume is a flashback set in Edenia, with a menacing Shao Kahn (a role I feel was made for Martyn Ford) killing King Jerrod, in a scene that’s too gory for me to show here. Let’s just say Jerrod loses his hands and Shao Kahn gets confused about how he’s meant to use a hammer, because I’m sure shoving the handle through a person is not it.
We then see a gorgeous shot of the portal stage from the MK2 game, with Liu Kang and what I assume is a revenant soul-sucked Kung Lao facing off. This scene gave me goosebumps as it’s instantly recognisable. I will say that the film-makers must have played the game on the Sega Megadrive/Genesis, as the portal is blue, a stage that was exclusive to the Megadrive. It was a reddish orange in the arcade and every other release.
We then see quick cuts showing some more characters, a returning Kano—who curiously doesn’t have the metal face plate, which I was certain he’d have after being ‘gnomed’ by Sonya—and the biggest controversy of the trailer: Jade.
Up until now, so far so good. No mention of Cole Young (except a blink and you miss it shot), Arcana, or birthmarks, all of which were heavily criticised aspects of the first movie.
Now people are outraged at Jade, not because she’s in the movie, as she is a fan favourite, but because she’s…bald?
Apparently, that’s enough for a significant portion of people to lose their collective shit. So much so, it even caught the attention of director Todd Garner, with him replying to an X user that it will be explained in the movie, and she will evolve as the franchise continues.
Now, is this the look I’d have chosen? No. But is it enough to make me mad? Also no. Actress Tati Gabrielle often has short hair or shaves her head, a look she also carries forward into Naughty Dog’s upcoming video game Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. Quite frankly, I think people have responded abhorrently to this, and I feel sorry for Tati Gabrielle. I hope she’s incredible in the movie and makes all the negative nellies eat their words. Everything else looks fine: she looks badass, has the iconic glowing staff, and the outfit looks decent. I’m excited to see what they do with her after butchering her character in Annihilation. Moving on.
We then get a voice over from Cage explaining he’s not a champion, and that he doesn’t have “transformer arms” or “shoot lightning”, and that Mortal Kombat has nothing to do with him. This is accompanied by an epic shot of Raiden surrounded by lightning, and Liu Kang controlling fire with Shao Kahn walking through it.
We then get Cage fighting Baraka with a bo staff, which may be a nod to Linden Ashby’s Cage using one in the original 1995 MK movie. Baraka shoots his blades at Cage, a move game fans will be familiar with, and Cage very acrobatically dodges them. Seriously, I hope Karl Urban’s stunt double got paid millions, as I think it’s going to be him playing Cage for the majority of the movie. As much as I love him, I can’t see 53-year-old Urban doing many of the fight scenes if these moves are anything to go by. We had better see a nut punch, too.
Now I think Baraka looks great here, infinitely better than in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. But unlike the MK2-inspired design of Annihilation, this Baraka design seems far more MK11-inspired, as his arm swords are made from bone rather than metal, and he has that more tribal look. However, I have seen some people online disagree, saying he looks too CGI, and they didn’t think his voice was right. I think he’s fine, and I’m excited to see what they do with him. I wonder if he’ll do the infamous “chop chop” move and piss the other fighters off as much as it pissed us off back in the arcade.
We then get a few quick cuts as the music ramps up, and we get our first look at Sindel, who appears to be doing her banshee scream to slow down the approach of Sonya’s energy rings. It looks awesome. I’m extra excited as I get the impression it happens at the bottom of the pit stage! Maybe MK co-creator Ed Boon will have a cameo here, dead on the spikes, like he did in the very first MK game!
We also get our first look at Hiroyuki Sanada’s Scorpion in human form (flashback?), with a voice over from him telling Cage it’s time to become the hero he was meant to be, as an imposing Shao Kahn descends some stairs. This scene is undercut by Cage saying “Alright you big ugly fuck, it’s showtime”, which gave me a giggle.
A suited-up Scorpion then traverses the Netherrealm, using his spear like he’s Spider-Man, a scene that’s also drawn some criticism, but I think looks amazing. Besides, he did this in MK: Shaolin Monks!
But the excitement comes at the end of his travels, where he faces off… with Noob Saibot!! I must say, Noob looks lifted straight from MK11, sickles and all!
This is by far my favourite look for Noob, and I’m here for it. He quickly gets a double spear from Scorpion, before the iconic “GET OVER HERE!” bellows out, and by the sounds of it, it’s the original Ed Boon scream! This absolutely makes no sense as it sounds nothing like Sanada, but who cares, I love it!!
Then, in possibly the coolest scene of the trailer, Scorpion pulls back on his spears, separating Noob’s shadow clone, and slicing him in half with his katana. It looks incredible!
Then comes the title card, and Shao Kahn screaming his signature “Finish him!”, followed by some blink and you miss it final clips of mayhem, including Kung Lao throwing his hat, Baraka killing someone with his arm blade, and Kitana doing a fan spin against Shao Kahn’s mask!
The final scene is Kano being held hostage by Noob, voicing his bafflement at Cage not having powers, before Cage replies “just incredibly handsome”, before sliding on the floor underneath Kano’s laser eye blast, as the classic “MORTAL KOMBAT!” yell bellows out. Absolute. Cinema.
Curiously, missing from the trailer are the deadly alliance of Chin Han’s Shang Tsung and Damon Herriman’s Quan Chi. We know both are in the movie, and I wonder if Shang will be taking a back seat to Shao, following his warriors’ defeat in MK1. If it follows lore, Quan Chi will also have an important part in turning Joe Taslim’s Bi-Han from the defeated Sub-Zero, into Noob Saibot. Also missing is the previously (and controversially) defeated Goro, maybe death’s door just wasn’t big enough for the hulk to fit through?
Now, as I mentioned earlier, we also didn’t get a mention of Arcana, Cole Young (outside of a blink and miss it appearance), or birthmarks in the trailer. I have a feeling that Cole will be getting the Annihilation Johnny Cage treatment, if you know, you know. I think this is due to the backlash they got in the first movie, but for the sake of continuity, they should get a mention in the actual film. The trailer at least shows they’ve acknowledged the feedback from the first movie, so they’ll likely be glossed over or improved in some way. I’m so happy the trailer has got the general positive response it has, as I was afraid it was going to be a massive uphill battle, as it feels like very few people in the MK community liked the 2021 movie. Even people who hated it seem to be excited about this one!
I want people to support this so we get more of them, especially since they’ve shown they listen to fan feedback. Now I liked the first movie. It definitely had issues, but I had enough fun with it to put them aside, and I want them to get the chance to learn from it and make more MK movies. What’s the alternative? Shelve it for years again?
I don’t want that, and I don’t think any true fans do either. A franchise can’t change, adapt, or get better while it’s on the shelf. We have to show WB this franchise is worth spending money on, and find a better way to give constructive feedback other than the angry, childish outbursts that seem all too common in the community. Remember, if we don’t support it now, you may never get the version you want.
I think this trailer is full of promise, from the more game-accurate costumes and stages to the overall fun feel that leans into the campiness the franchise is known for. It definitely seems like Cage is the main character in this one, and I’m all in. I had serious doubts when Urban was cast. I had the same popular opinion as most of the community: that he would have been the perfect Kano, but Josh Lawson is currently killing that role. When I think of Cage, people such as Scott Adkins come to mind; he would have been absolutely perfect in both looks and physicality. But having seen the trailer, and the washed-up movie star direction they’re going in with Cage, it’s washed away my doubts. It looks like he’s shaping up to be the heart of the movie, though I’m very curious if they’re going to do the whole Cage/Sonya relationship, as there is quite the age gap.
Needless to say, the trailer has elevated my expectations, and I hope it gets a flawless victory at the box office when it launches 24th October.
