For fans of the saga,Mortal Kombat 11and the recent movie release of the franchise have some clear differences. In general, the latest film was a fair adaptation of the classic fighting game, even if there were some changes to the characters. One of the most obvious ones isthe inclusion of Cole Youngin the story, a tailor-made everyman character for the story.
The cover ofMortal Kombat 11features one of the most important characters of the saga: Scorpion. Unfortunately, the movie did not tell Scoprion’s backstory as it was shown in the games. In fact, there were many details aboutMortal Kombat’s lore that were completely left out of the film. For example, the movie barely mentions the Elder Gods which are key to understanding what the Mortal Kombat tournament is about. Furthermore, the film did not show enough of Scorpion and what it showed was considerably different from what fans had seen in the games.
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Scorpion in Mortal Kombat 11
The tricky part about the events ofMK 11is that it mixes the two previoustimelines of theMortal Kombatsaga. This means that there are basically two Scorpions: the one from the second timeline who just wants to bring back his people, and the one from the first timeline who wants revenge.
However, there are some coincidences between the Scorpions in both timelines. For instance, inMortal Kombat 11, Scorpion is motivated by the genocide of his clan and wants totake some sort of action against Sub-Zeroand Quan Chi. Despite Scorpion’s timeline, he is deeply affected by the fact that he has lost his family. He is moved by the demise of his clan, the Shirai Ryu, and is mostly guided by the feelings of loss he experienced.
Another important difference is that Scorpion seems to be able to transport between realms at will. InMortal Kombat 11,Scorpion actually takes Sub-Zero to the Netherrealm to fight. Even though it is never explained why Scorpion can phase between realms, it has been argued that he has that ability just for being a Revenant which allows him to go to the Netherrealm at will.
Scorpion in the Mortal Kombat Movie
One of the biggest issues withthe recentMortal Kombatmovieis that there is little to no explanation about the lore that was presented in the games. Because of that, there are many things that might not be entirely clear for users who are not fans of theMortal Kombatsaga. The lack of backstory presented in the movie affects many characters, but it is especially clear with Scorpion.
In the movie,Scorpion’s clan is not attacked by Quan Chi, but by just Bi-Hanwho is the master of the Lin Kuei clan. In the game, Sub-Zero does kill Scoprion, but it is through Qua Chi’s manipulations that the Shirai Ryu are destroyed (with which Quan Chi manipulates Scorpion after resurrecting him). This is in contrast to Bi-Han freezing Scorpion’s wife and one kid, while the other survives and is saved by Raiden. At first, it might seem like the change was not too drastic, but Scorpion’s backstory in the movie gets rid of Quan Chi, which undermines the tragic manipulation of the event. It may have been an attempt to make it even more personal or to make it simpler, but that is up in the air given more movies could build on this scene.
As far as Scorpion’s abilities go, there seem to be some differences as well. Although he is still able to phase from the Netherrealm to the Earthrealm, it does not seem likeScorpion can teleport at will. In the movie, one of his descendants manages to summon Scorpion by using his bloody kunai. Scorpion ends up assisting in the battle against Sub-Zero and gives the final blow.
What Changed Between Scorpions
At first glance, it might seem likeScorpion’s game and movie versionsare not so different. Scorpion is still the dead ninja who is brought back and is mourning the loss of his family and his clan. However, the movie’s version of Scorpion is not as complex as whatMortal Kombatfans are used to.
It seems like theMortal Kombatmovie wanted to encapsulate all of Scorpion’s backstory in the image of him and his family frozen so that would be enough to portray the idea that he is against Bi-Han. However, the game did a better job at showing how Scorpion was manipulated to further feed his feelings of loss which is what leads him to act the way he does throughout the franchise. All in all, the movie might not have strayed too far away from the original story, but it can be argued thatthe film did not do Scorpion justice either.
Mortal Kombat 11is available right now for Google Stadia, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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