Reference
J
 |
Jade is a childhood friend of Princess Kitana. While her motives were unclear, she, alongside Kitana and Mileena, served Shao Kahn as his personal assassin. When Kitana finally turned against Shao Kahn, Jade was ordered to capture her for the Emperor. She ultimately chose to join her friend and has since loyally assisted Kitana in her quest to free their native realm and restore its beauty. Now residing in the freed Edenia, Jade is a General of the Edenian Army and continues to dutifully serve Kitana and her mother Queen Sindel.
As a female assassin adorned in a green skin-tight outfit, Jade was initially very similar in appearance to Kitana and Mileena, with the only noticeable difference being her tanned skin and bronze fans. She appeared first as a hidden, unplayable character in Mortal Kombat 2, and would later become a regular character in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Her main weapon of choice is a staff, but she also used razor-edged boomerangs in earlier games.
It is assumed that Jade was the backup plan of Shao Kahn during the second tournament, in case his own warriors would fail to withstand the fury and anger of the Earthrealm warriors. In fact, although she was not present in the first Mortal Kombat tournament, she was hiding in the shadows, watching the events unfold. From there, she would have to return to Outworld and report to Shao Kahn.
Like Kitana, Jade's origins lie not in Outworld, but in the realm of Edenia. While it is not certain whether or not her parents made any significant contributions to Edenia, it is known that they were loyal and faithful subjects who loved King Jerrod and Queen Sindel. There isn't much information on Jade's background and early life, aside from the fact that she has been Kitana's friend since childhood. Kitana was only a newborn when Shao Kahn had slain her father and conquered Edenia, and was raised as his own daughter, growing up with no knowledge of the realm or her real parents. It is unknown what the exact circumstances of Jade's upbringing were and what, if anything, she knew about Edenia. Regardless, Jade and Kitana grew up to be Shao Kahn's personal assassins and became best friends.
At the time of Mortal Kombat Trilogy, Kitana had been sentenced to death after being tried for treason in the high courts of Outworld for murdering Mileena during the events of Mortal Kombat 2. She escaped the evil realm, and fled to Earthrealm. Shao Kahn became enraged, and appointed Jade and Reptile to venture into Earthrealm and capture her. Jade was assured that Kahn wanted her back alive, but Reptile was secretly told to bring Kitana back by any means necessary, up to and including killing her.
The two then ventured to Earthrealm to find Kitana. However, Jade found herself torn between loyally carrying out Kahn's orders and betraying her friend, or joining her against the Emperor. She ultimately decided to help Kitana, and thwarted Reptile's assassination attempt. With his defeat, the path was cleared for the two women to join Raiden and his Earthrealm kombatants in the battle against Shao Kahn and his forces. Of immediate importance however was Kitana's personal mission to reach and warn the resurrected Queen Sindel about their true past together. Jade's assistance had made that possible, and Kitana was successful. With Sindel's memories recovered, she too would turn against Shao Kahn, who was shortly afterward defeated by Liu Kang. After Kahn's defeat, Kitana would go on to free Edenia from Outworld.
Jade was not present during the events of Mortal Kombat Gold. It can be assumed that she was assisting Sindel in Edenia's restoration. In any case, it was at this time that Tanya betrayed Edenia to Shinnok, and earned Jade's wrath.
Years later during the time of Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance, Kitana and her armed forces, along with Goro and his Shokan army, embarked on a war against the weakened Shao Kahn and his remaining Outworld army. She'd later join her Earthrealm allies against the Deadly Alliance of Quan Chi and Shang Tsung. It is unknown what exactly Jade was doing during this time. She was either still in Edenia, assisting Sindel, or fighting alongside Kitana's armies in the background (similar to how Baraka was apparently serving the Deadly Alliance, but was never actually mentioned during the game).
In Mortal Kombat Deception, it was revealed that Jade had attempted to join Kitana and her allies in the battle against the Deadly Alliance, but had arrived too late, finding her friend's body lying on the ground with the other Earthrealm warriors. Heartbroken, Jade knelt beside her fallen friend's side, and noticed a large creature approaching. She hid nearby, where she witnessed this evil menace, Onaga the Dragon King, resurrect the bodies of Kitana and her fallen friends. While they were resurrected, they were also placed under an evil spell and were told to meet up with the force controlling them at the Living Forest.
Jade followed in secret, only to discover that they were going to invade Edenia and hold Queen Sindel prisoner. Jade returned to Edenia to find Queen Sindel behind bars and guarded by her own daughter. Sindel could have fought for her freedom, but she couldn't strike her own daughter. Jade attacked Kitana and managed to trap her in a cage of her own while she freed Sindel. Kitana then began shouting for the guards to capture them, forcing Jade and Sindel to flee to the portal into Outworld. Before they went through the portal, Jade caught a glimpse of her enemy, Tanya, standing next to Onaga.
Currently in Outworld with Sindel, Jade has made it her personal mission to assist her queen in rescuing Kitana from the Dragon King's spell, and to seek justice (or perhaps vengeance) against Tanya, who had betrayed Edenia yet again.
In Jade's Mortal Kombat Armageddon ending, she is given great power by defeating Blaze and through sheer will opened the Pyramid of Argus. All of the darkness in the realms was drawn into it, where it was sealed forever. Jade was regarded as a hero, and the pyramid stood as a testament against anyone who wished to bring harm to Edenia. |
 |
An arena first introduced in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Vast amounts of sand spanned as far as the eye could see, broken up slightly by the ruins of ancient temples scattered along the dunes. The malfunctioned Cyrax remained stuck in the sand here, until he was rescued by Jax and Sonya. |
 |
Jarek was the unlucky, rather dimwitted and brutish 'last member of the Black Dragon'. Making his debut in Mortal Kombat 4, he utilised special moves and fatalities popularised by Kano, as well as a Black Dragon Sword, a weapon with sharp, pointy edges that stuck out from the sword's blade. His overall lack of originality has caused him to be labelled as somewhat of an uninspired character by the Mortal Kombat fanbase. He would later gain his own unique moveset in Armageddon.
He made his first chronological appearance in Mortal Kombat: Special Forces, where he and other Black Dragon members were freed from a U.S. Special Forces detention facility along with Kano, who had proposed to reform the Black Dragon clan (in reality, Kano merely wished to use them to slow down any Special Forces agents who may have pursued him in his quest to obtain an artefact called the Eye of Shitian). Jarek was Kano's best student, and in Mortal Kombat: Special Forces he was stationed at a downtown office (which the clan were using as a front for their activities) when he was confronted and defeated by Major Jackson Briggs and brought back into custody.
Some considerable time later, he escaped to Edenia, only to find himself caught between two fires there: Shinnok and the Special Forces. Reluctantly, he agreed to help his sworn enemies defeat Shinnok. Jarek's short temper, forgetfulness (he seems to not realise that Shinnok is dead, and that the Black Dragon were completely destroyed) and irredeemable bad character would seem to eventually cause his own downfall. Shortly after the defeat and destruction of Shinnok's forces, he fell from a cliff in an attempt to kill Lieutenant Sonya Blade.
Mortal Kombat Armageddon reveals that he survived this brush with death by driving his weapon into the ravine side, slowing down his fall enough so that he only ended up gravely injured. Using his presumed demise as a cover, Jarek went into hiding and began to master new fatality techniques in order to exact revenge on his adversaries. However, he became frustrated with the difficulties that his injuries befell him, and soon he wished to do nothing more than to kill everyone. Quan Chi found Jarek and promised him that in return for aiding the Forces of Darkness, the sorcerer would give him the ability to enhance the strength and capabilities of his fatalities, and would be given a chance to challenge all of his foes at once. Jarek agreed and headed into Edenia to take part in the final battle.
In Jarek's Armageddon ending, he defeated Blaze, and the chi from all the other warriors began to flow through the firespawn and funnel into him. He started to feel as if death itself was guiding his actions. Sealing off the crater, Jarek began to perform the other fighters' own signature fatalities on them, eventually finishing them all. |
 |
Jataaka was one of the sub-bosses in Shinnok's Fortress in Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero, and a member of the Brotherhood of the Shadow. She was one of three assassins serving under Quan Chi and Shinnok, along with Sareena and Kia. They each protected a crystal, which together allowed access to a teleporting device that sent the elder Sub-Zero to Quan Chi's throne room. Judging from Sareena's story, she may also have been a demon from the Netherrealm who was using Quan Chi's magic to sustain her attractive human form. Jataaka fights using a sword from which she can fire projectiles. She was defeated by the elder Sub-Zero. |
 |
Jax was the first African-American character introduced into the Mortal Kombat series, and made his debut in the second game. He is portrayed as an archetypical American hero. In the chain of command of the Special Forces, he is Sonya Blade's direct superior, and clearly the catalysing force of Sonya's impulsiveness. Jax is clear-headed, careful and always keeping a watch on what his men are doing, but when the need arises, he is a beast on the battlefield with the attitude and ferocity of a lion. He unscrupulously makes use of the most advanced technology to improve both himself and his unit.
Jax made his first chronological appearance in Mortal Kombat: Special Forces. The game opened depicting a prison break at the Special Forces' detention facility. Jax, driving along a highway, received a transmission from his fellow Special Forces operative Gemini detailing the escape and the escapees: No-Face, Tasia, Jarek and Tremor. She informed him that they had escaped to a warehouse on the town's south side, likely receiving assistance from an outside source; Jax surmised that source to be Kano. He received another transmission from Lieutenant Sanchez, whose squad had arrived at the warehouse. After the transmission was cut off at the source, Jax arrived at the scene to find the squad destroyed. For this, he swore he would achieve vengeance against Kano. Using prototype bionic implants on his arms in order to enhance his strength, Jax set out to find his enemy.
Infiltrating the warehouse, Jax confronted No-Face and dispatched him. Proceeding into the sewers, he did likewise to Tasia. At this point, Gemini contacted Jax again and informed him that the Black Dragon were using a corporate building as a front for their base of operations. At the building, Jax confronted and defeated Jarek, and his investigation led him to the town of the lost city of Sin Kiang, where he defeated Tremor and discovered a portal to Outworld. Surmising that the portal was linked to Kano's plans of global domination, he entered. The portal led to Outworld, where he caught up with Kano (who had acquired an artefact called the Eye of Shitian through which he could acquire great power). After an exchange of words, the two fought, and Jax emerged the victor. He used the Eye's power to bring them both back to Earthrealm and brought Kano into custody, only to have the criminal escape at a later date. At this point, Jax ceased using his bionic implants.
Jax appeared on the stage of the Mortal Kombat tournaments when Sonya was abducted by Shang Tsung after the end of the first tournament, as a means to appease Shao Kahn after his failure to win. He travelled into Outworld once more, and became acquainted with the other Earthrealm warriors there. Soon he came to learn of the Emperor's dark plans for Earthrealm, and as soon as he had freed Sonya (and inadvertently Kano), he headed back home to warn his government of the impending danger. He would find himself frustrated, however, as not only did Kano escape back into Outworld, but the government did not believe the major.
Jax began to prepare for war covertly, and once more outfitted his arms with bionic implants. After helping foil Shao Kahn's attempt to permanently claim Earth as his own, Jax became the commanding officer of the Outerworld Investigation Agency (OIA). They operated from an underground bunker, and had scouts in various realms, not only exploring and mapping them, but also looking for inter-realm portals that could lead to Earth. He briefly assisted Raiden in the defeat of Shinnok in Edenia, and it was during these events that both he and Sonya would find the Lin Kuei cyborg Cyrax, malfunctioning and trapped in a desert. Returning with him to their home base, they reversed the automation process, restored his humanity, and gained a new ally.
Years later, trouble would occur again, as not only were his agents Kenshi and Cyrax lost in Outworld, but the OIA underground facility was nuked into oblivion by the traitor Hsu Hao. Soon after, Raiden summoned the Earthrealm warriors to the abandoned island of Shang Tsung and asked them to travel with him to Outworld to bring down the Deadly Alliance. Jax used this trip as a cover to track down Hsu Hao and, once he caught up with the criminal, killed him by tearing out his artificial heart.
During the final attack on the Deadly Alliance, Jax along with the other Earthrealm warriors were killed by the Deadly Alliance's Tarkatan warriors. After Onaga defeated Raiden and the Alliance, he resurrected the Earthrealm heroes as his slaves. Their mind control is later broken by Ermac and the spirit of Liu Kang.
During the events of Mortal Kombat Armageddon, Jax is sent by Sonya to investigate the remains of a Tekunin Warship. When he does not return, she assumes Jax has been captured, noting strange readings from his bio-scanners.
In his ending for Mortal Kombat Armageddon, Jax became a full cyborg after defeating Blaze and left the Special Forces. He then took control of the Tekunin by defeating Sektor, an act of revenge after discovering a neural control chip implanted in his brain by Sektor himself. The ending also states that after these events took place it is unknown if Jax would ever return to the Special Forces. |
 |
The Joker is a comic book villain co-created by Jerry Robinson, Bill Finger and Bob Kane, who appears in publications by DC Comics. He first appeared in Batman #1 in Spring of 1940.
An insanely homicidal super-villain, The Joker's white skin, green hair, and blood-red lips belie the chaotic nature underlying his cartoonish appearance. The self-styled Clown Prince of Crime has no superpowers beyond a capacity for incredible violence and a skill for creating deadly mayhem. To make up for his shortcomings, The Joker uses a variety of devices to hurt or fool his opponent, including razor-sharp playing cards, acid-spewing flowers, electronic joy buzzers, bombs and more. His unpredictable style of fighting makes him a difficult foe, even for a trained kombatant. Living a life of crime, he frequently concocts elaborate schemes to entrap his arch nemesis, Batman.
In The Joker's Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe ending, he attains new powers as the worlds separated. With them he soon controlled all of Gotham City, proclaiming himself 'Mayor Joker'. Under his rule, the city devolved into chaos. He now holds a tournament in which contestants are forced to fight to the death for his amusement. The winner will face off against The Joker himself. |
|
| After this year's E3 2010 Expo, what are your thoughts on Mortal Kombat (2011)? |
|
| 139 |
|
