TheMortal Kombatmovie has garnered commercial success since its release in theaters and on HBO Max last weekend. However, the film has been somewhat divisive among fans of the game series though. At times loaded with fan service and at others stilted dialogue and some missed opportunities, reception has been overall good for the newest screen adaptation forMortal Kombatand its future. Naturally, the discussion about introducing the movie’s new protagonist Cole Young into the games has cropped up online, but for many, it doesn’t really feel necessary.
Mortal Kombathas historically been filled with one of the most interesting casts of characters, especially after having added much more diversity between the veritable rainbow of colored ninjas, and for many that sat somewhat at odds with the introduction of Cole Young in the new movie. The unnecessary trope of injecting an “everyman” character for viewers works in the movie, but for the video games, it wouldn’t really capitalize onwhat madeMortal Kombatsuccessful.
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Cole Young Wouldn’t Add Much to Mortal Kombat
While theMortal Kombatmovie didn’t nail portrayals of all its characters, its obvious strengths came in the times that it did. Kano, Liu Kang, Scorpion, and Sub-Zero are so well-known among fighting game and gaming fans at large that Cole kind of pales in comparison when set against legitimate icons of the industry. Again, while he works in the film, he would stand in their shadows in-game.
His relationship to Scorpion in the films is also already fulfilled in the game, given Kenshi’s son having trained with Scorpion and the other Shirai-Ryu. Scorpion has already fallen into an impromptu father role with Takeda after Kenshi’s death, so that emotional role in the story is essentially already filled. And there are already so many viable characters that are already established in thelore ofMortal Kombat.
While theMortal Kombatmovie got a lot right, much of that success is rooted in characters and stories that have already existed for decades now. Many characters that have direct impact on the lore ofMortal Kombatbeing waylaid to include a character from the movie would likely click with fans comeMK12or whatnot. And suffice it to say, ultimately after watching the movie imagining a moveset for Cole Young would likely just feel basic in comparison.
To be fair, it’s not to say thatCole Youngshould never make his way into the series. Rather, the character should be given more time to develop before being thrown into the fray with some of the most recognizable and powerful fighting game characters in the history of the genre.
Mortal Kombat 11is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.
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