Kobra

"If you're not a member of the Black Dragon Clan, I'm gonna have to finish you!"

- Mortal Kombat: Armageddon Taven first encounters Kobra and Kira at his father's temple

Kobra is a character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series. He made his debut in Mortal Kombat: Deception.

About Kobra
Kobra could be described as Mortal Kombat's stock street brawler character. Infamous for his brutality and savage killings, Kobra shows no mercy to his opponents. Introduced in Mortal Kombat: Deception as the second of Kabal's recruits for the new Black Dragon, he is a gifted young martial artist, eager to put his skills to the test.

Appearance
Kobra ever so slightly resembles Ken Masters from the Street Fighter series. The newest recruit of the Black Dragon has shoulder length blond hair and he wears a white karate gi with black and gold trim; there are symbols all across the front and back of this gi as well. He wears no shirt under his gi, and has a black and gold belt holding it together. He has taped wrists and gloves, and he wears dark baggy pants with yellow trim over bare feet.

For his alternate costume, Kobra wears a black and white hooded jacket; the hood is pulled up onto his head. The front of the jacket is adorned with various symbols. His arms are bare except for wrist guards and black gloves with gold symbols. The back of his jacket has a huge coiled cobra sewn onto it. He wears black sweat pants with yellow stitching down the side. He fights on black and gold gym shoes.

Storyline
For years, Kobra wondered whether his martial arts training would work in a real fight. Even though he has been practicing his skills at his New York City karate school, no one was allowed to really hurt each other. So, he went to New York's back alleys in order for him to put his skills to the test.

At first, he started on street gangs. Then, he went to gangbangers and drug dealers. The thrill and excitement of fighting started to consume him, and he started killing his opponents. He continued his killing streak and added looting to his list when he robbed convenience stores and gas stations. Eventually, the New York Police Department caught him. At this point, Kobra had no clue as to how many lives he had destroyed.

When Kobra was being taken downtown, he heard gunfire and officers shouting. Kabal and Kira had found out about him and came to induct him into the new Black Dragon syndicate. After killing the officers and escaping, Kabal took Kira and Kobra to Outworld, where they worked for Havik, the cleric of Chaos who had brought Kabal back from the brink of death.

He appears in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon's Konquest mode, as Taven's first kombatant, protecting a bridge with Kira in the Botan Jungle that Taven needs to cross. Kira abandons Kobra as he starts battling the newcomer, eventually escaping after he fails to stop him.

In Kobra's Armageddon ending, he defeats Blaze and assumes the power of the gods. He further demands, arrogantly, that the Elder Gods give him control over all realms. They do so, but insist that he must have a queen to rule alongside him, as every king needs one. Kobra assents and chooses Kira to be his queen, and the elder gods transform her into a goddess of death. When Kira kisses Kobra, he is turned into a pile of ashes, as a lesson to all others that make demands of supreme beings like the Elder Gods.

Biographies

 * Deception: "I had always wondered if my martial arts training would work in an actual fight. I trained in school for years. I was the best in my class. But we were never allowed to hurt each other -- REALLY hurt each other. How did I know this attack would break an arm? That this one would rupture an organ? I prowled the back alleys of New York in search of an opportunity to put my skills to the test. I needed to know what kombat really was. I couldn't stop. The thrill of kombat consumed me. I had killed! First it was drug dealers and gangbangers -- it allowed me to justify the violence. But the bloodlust grew. I killed for money, looting convenience stores and gas station. When the law finally caught up with me, I couldn't remember how many had died. Sitting cuffed in the police car, I heard some of the officers shouting and firing their guns. When some chick and a masked guy with bloody hookswords stepped into the light, I knew I was in the company of friends."
 * Armageddon Bio Kard: "Once Kobra was nothing more than a street thug on his way to jail. Though extremely adept at martial arts, he used his skills for intimidation and cruelty. Freed by Kabal and Kira in a daring attack on the police, Kobra was asked to join the newly reformed Black Dragon clan, where his brutal nature would be an invaluable asset."

Signature Moves

 * Windmill Kick: Kobra slides forward a bit and performs a devastating arching Axe Kick which causes the opponent to bounce off the ground allowing for a juggle. (MK:D, MK:A)
 * Burning Fist: Kobra dashes forward with his fist (on fire) extended forward, which knocks his opponents down. (MK:D, MK:A)
 * Tele-Punch: Kobra disappears, leaving a trail of smoke behind, then reappears behind his opponent and punches them down. (MK:D, MK:A)
 * Chi-Blast: Kobra gathers chi and releases a ball of flame forward from the palms of his hands. (MK:D, MK:A)
 * Crouching Chi-Blast: Kobra crouches, then gathers chi and releases a flaming projectile forward from the palm of his hands. (MK:D, MK:A)

Fatalities

 * Heart Shallow: Kobra rips his foe's heart out, but unlike Kano, Kobra slams the heart in the foe's face. (MK:D)
 * 1, 2 Super Kick: Kobra makes his foe bends over, kicks him/her 2 times, and be-heads the foe with a third kick. (MK:D)

Other Finishers

 * Hara Kiri: Self Heart Rip: Kobra pulls his heart out and collapses to the ground, dead. (MK:D)

Endings

 * Deception: (Non-Canonical) "Kabal brought his new recruits to Outworld, where a siege was underway against the Dragon King. Kobra grew impatient. He wanted to join the fray. But Kabal held him back. They were not to attack until the heroes had won. Once the Dragon King was defeated, Kabal gave the order to strike the victors. The new Black Dragon tore through the ranks and left no survivors. Kobra came to realize that he was going to like being a Black Dragon."


 * Armageddon: (Non-Canonical) "Because of his victory over Blaze, Kobra's strength was increased a thousand-fold. Emboldened, he demanded that the Elder Gods declare him Lord of the Realms. They assented, but added that no lord should be without his lady. Kobra chooses Kira to rule at his side, and the Elder Gods transformed her into a goddess of death. With a kiss, Kira extinguished Kobra's life force and reduced his body to dust. Let all who would make demands of the Elder Gods beware."

Character Development
In development, Kobra was called Ken Masters as a placeholder name because of his resemblance to the Street Fighter character. A German magazine received a beta copy of Deception, and published screenshots that identified Kobra as Ken, making fans wonder if Ken was actually in the game. He was also referenced to as "Ben" by the Official Xbox Magazine.

Before Armageddon was released, an early versus render showed Kobra wearing his normal white costume. However, another later and almost completely identical versus screen image showed him wearing a black version. This led to some speculation that Kobra's primary outfit would be changed in color. This did not prove to be true, although the palette swap of Kobra's outfit is indeed black if both players choose the same costume.

Character Relationships

 * Recruited by Kabal to join the newly formed Black Dragon clan.
 * Partner of Kira.
 * Worked for Havik along with Kabal and Kira.
 * Defeated by Taven in Armageddon ' s Konquest mode.
 * Joined the Forces of Darkness in the final battle in Armageddon.

Trivia

 * The United States flag patch on Kobra's alternate outfit is backwards. This is similar to the way members of the United States Armed Forces wear the patch.
 * Kobra's machete in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon was originally going to be Kai's weapon. The machete was later given to Kobra as Kai was given the spiked club.
 * Kobra is the only character to change his weapon from Deception to Armageddon.
 * His Tele-Punch move is used by Smoke in MK 2011.
 * In a Top 10 list hosted by Screwattack.com, Kobra was placed at #5 of the worst characters in the Mortal Kombat series. Screwattack.com describes him as "a direct knock-off (of Ken from Street Fighter) only not being able to pull it off and turn him into a generic white guy."
 * His and Kira's Armageddon endings are uniquely symmetrical as they both involve the winning character as reviving the other and then immediately being betrayed and destroyed.