Raiden



"Thunder take you."

- Raiden's Mortal Kombat (2011) Battle Cry

Raiden (雷電) is a character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series. He is one of the few original characters, debuting in the first Mortal Kombat game.

About Raiden
Raiden is the eternal God of Thunder and former protector of Earthrealm. After the second defeat of Shinnok, he ascended to the status of Elder God. Being a god, he possesses many supernatural abilities, such as the ability to teleport, control lightning and fly. As a god, he is used to thinking in terms of eternity rather than normal human lifespans, and as such he has a radically different outlook on life.

Appearance
Although being formless and ethereal, Raiden often takes form on mortal planes. As such, he appears as a fully-grown man wearing predominately white robes and a blue vest, his face usually shadowed by a straw hat. The effect is enhanced by his glowing blue eyes that radiate with electricity and long white hair, befitting of his god-like status. In Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance one of his outfits is finished by a flowing blue cape. Lastly, his power is so great that he constantly radiates with lightning energy, electricity constantly dancing and crackling around his being. In Deception and Armageddon, his visage is warped by Onaga's malevolent aura when he sacrifices himself, reforming as a dark warrior dressed in black robes and dark armor, his eyes changed from a soothing blue to a belligerent red. His cape was changed to a subdued red and appears tattered at the end. Due to the events of Mortal Kombat (2011), this change was rendered null.

Alignment
Good, although recently, he has been depicted as an angry and vengeful god who, in his game ending, killed Shujinko for endangering Earthrealm (in other words, he's tired of humans putting the world in frequent danger, and he wants Earthrealm to stay safe). Interestingly, his MK ending also humorously depicted him inviting other gods to compete in Mortal Kombat, and it resulted in the destruction of Earth (however, this was before his role as a mentor to the heroes had been established).

It's worth noting that in production art unlockable in the "Krypt" in Mortal Kombat: Deception, the new Raiden design used after the revival of Onaga (black and generally darker in appearance than in previous games), is described as belonging to "Dark Raiden." Additionally, during an encounter with Shujinko in Konquest mode, the new "dark" Raiden offers to train him and warns him that he's "not the Thunder God you once knew."

In MK 2011, Raiden appears in his original form, although his "Dark Raiden" outfit is his alternate costume.

Trademarks

 * His conical, straw Chinese coolie (harvester) hat, one of Raiden's most recognizable features.


 * Has electricity running across his body in MK, MK4 / Gold, and MK: Deadly Alliance.


 * He became notorious for yelling randomly while performing his Torpedo move in MKII. Fans originally believed that he was yelling Japanese phrases. Interestingly, others thought that he was actually speaking English, and thus Raiden's phrases were misinterpreted as "Get back in the car!", "Gimme ma money!", "Freddy bought a car!" or even "Your mother's from L.A.!" Midway soon revealed that Raiden was merely speaking gibberish and not actual Japanese or English words. This was featured in the VH1 program I Love 1992, when one of the cast thought Raiden said "Santa Monica!" (Raiden was voiced by Midway employee Jon Hey in the first two games.)


 * A saya (katana scabbard) appears on one of Raiden's secondary costumes. However, he is never seen using the sword.


 * Glowing white, occasionally blue (then red in MKD and MKA) eyes. (In Mortal Kombat: Conquest he had deep blue eyes). Dark Raiden however has red eyes. Now, glowing white in Mortal Kombat (2011 video game).

Powers and abilities
Raiden is the god of thunder and lightning, and as such, he is immensely powerful and has complete control over electricity. He usually keeps behind the scenes in the games and rarely fights, although one notable exception was in Deception, where he fought both Quan Chi and Shang Tsung, and was able to hold his own for most of the fight. Using the element of lightning, Raiden can fire torrents of lightning or concentrated blasts. He also has the ability to fly, which he uses to fling himself at an opponent and shove them into a wall. He also has the ability to teleport to another destination by transforming his body into an ethereal state. Despite his godly status, he is not indestructible and has limits, though it is unlikely he can ever truly be killed. Raiden, like any other god, will have his powers taken away should he enter a domain not native to him, with Outworld being the most prominent example of this. His powers can return to him once he returns however. It is also because of his godly status that he is forbidden to directly participate in any Mortal Kombat tournaments unless he takes on a mortal form.

Signature moves

 * Teleport: At will Raiden would vanish and reappear behind his opponent. (MK, MKII, MKT, MK4, MKG, MK:D, MK:A, MKvsDCU, MK 2011)
 * The enhanced version is called Sparkport and will have Raiden appear behind the opponent and quickly teleporting back in front.
 * Electricity: Raiden sends a bolt of lightning flying at his opponent. In MK 2011 this is known as Lightning. (MK, MKII, MKT, MK4, MKG, MK:DA, MK:D, MK:A, MKvsDCU, MK 2011)
 * The enhanced version is called Bolt. Raiden fires two bolts, one behind and one in front of him. The one behind him wraps around the map hitting the opponent in the back.
 * Torpedo: Raiden flies at his opponent and pushes them against the wall. He could perform the move in the air. In MK2011, the move is named Electric Fly. (MK, MKII, MKT, MK4, MKG, MK:D, MK:A, MKvsDCU, MK 2011)
 * The enhanced version is called Thunder Fly. This increases the attack's speed and damage.
 * Shocking Touch: Raiden grabs his opponent and holds them in the air while electrocuting them, then punches them to the ground. In MK 2011 this is named Electrocute. (MK:DA, MK:D, MK:A, MK 2011)
 * Shocker: Raiden grabs his opponent and electrocutes them. In MK 2011 this is the enhanced version of Electrocute. This lets Raiden grab the opponent one step farther. (MKII, MKT, MKvsDCU, MK 2011)
 * Vicinity Blast: Raiden performs a closer range version of his lightning, but with more knockback and a wind effect to it, which can be charged up. In MK 2011 it can't be charged. (MKvsDCU, MK 2011)
 * The enhanced version is called Vicinity Burst. This knocks the opponent back.
 * Projectile Cancel: Raiden cancels out his Lightning or Vicinity Blast when charging it. (MKvsDCU)
 * Reverse Electricity: Raiden sends a bolt of lightning in the other direction hitting an opponent from behind. This appears partially as the enhanced version of Lightning. (MKT, MK 2011)
 * Electric Slide: Raiden slides across the floor and hits his opponent with his shoulder, electrocuting them in the process. (MK:DA)
 * X-Ray Move - Shock Therapy: Raiden sends a beam in thumb|250px|rightclose range, when connects blinding the opponent. Then he teleports behind the opponent and elbows their back damaging their spine, heart, and ribs. Raiden then teleports in front of them and delivers a chop directly at his opponent's forehead, damaging the skull. Raiden finally sends a bolt of electricity through his opponent's head making them fall down. (MK 2011)

Fatalities

 * Electric Decapitation: Raiden sends a surge of electricity into his opponent's head and it explodes. In the Super Nintendo version of MK, the electricity reduces them to a pile of ash and a skull. In MK 2011, this move has become a part of his grab. (MK, MKT)
 * Invisible Electrocution: In the Game Boy version, Raiden teleports into the ground and rises as a mass of electricity. He then proceeds to cover and shock his opponent, electrocuting them to death. (MK)
 * Explosive Uppercut: Raiden crouches down and sends a vicious electrically-charged uppercut to his opponent blowing them into pieces. (MKII, MKT)
 * Electrocution I: Raiden grabs his opponent, holds them a few feet off the ground, and sends electricity into their body which causes them to explode. (MKII, MKT)
 * Electrocution II: Raiden lodges his hands into his opponent's chest, lifts them over his head, and sends surges of electricity into their body making them explode. (MK4, MK:DA)
 * Staff Shock: Raiden calls for his staff, lodges the end into his opponent's chest, lifts them up and shocks them until they're dead. This was also Raiden's first in-game use of a staff. (MK4)
 * Godly Essence: Raiden charges up a ball of energy similar to the intro of Mortal Kombat: Deception. He then fires it at his opponent thus blowing him and his opponent into pieces. (MK:D)
 * Lightning Strike: Raiden calls down lighting until it strikes his hand and he fires lighting out of his other, shocking his opponent until his opponent blows up. (MK:D)
 * Electrocution III: Raiden charges electricity into his hand and grabs his opponent, sending it through their body. The electric shock burns off all the opponent's flesh, leaving behind their burning skeleton. (MKvsDCU)
 * Electric Slam: Raiden grabs the opponent, zaps them for a bit, then flies up in the air with them. A couple seconds later, the opponent falls back down and lands headfirst in the ground. (MKvsDCU)
 * Just A Scratch: Raiden electrocutes his opponent's arms off, then electrocutes his/her legs as well. He then grabs his opponent and slams his/her head onto the ground, crushing it. (MK 2011)
 * Transplant: Raiden teleports behind the opponent and rips out the brain and an organ from the torso. He then casts lightning on them and puts them back in place. The head starts to glow, and blows up. Then the same thing happens with the torso. (MK 2011)

Other finishers

 * Friendship: Raiden generates a miniature version of himself named Kidd Thunder. (MKII, MKT)
 * Animality: Raiden turns into an electric eel and electrocutes his opponent until they explode. (MKT)
 * Fergality: After inputting a code on the Sega Genesis version of MKII, Raiden would turn the enemy into a smoking version of Probe Ltd. employee Fergus McGovern, who worked on that port of the game. (MKII)
 * Hara-Kiri: Self Electrocution: Raiden charges himself with electricity until he explodes. (MK:D)
 * Babality: Raiden lifts his hands up and lighting appears from it until a thunderbolt almost strikes him, making him crawl into a ball, thus causing him to cry in fear. (MK 2011)

Mortal Kombat
In the first Mortal Kombat movie, Raiden is portrayed by Christopher Lambert and remains the guiding god of thunder, bent on doing all within his power to help the warriors of Earth gain victory. According to the movie, Raiden is forbidden from directly interfering in the tournament of Mortal Kombat. Raiden also possesses a sense of humor which the other characters seem not to share, often prompting him to apologize after making dry remarks.

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation
In the critically-panned 1997 sequel, Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, Raiden is portrayed by James Remar and is revealed to be low in the hierarchy of the gods, as he must seek their guidance when the emperor of Outworld, Shao Kahn, begins his invasion of Earthrealm. Raiden had a tattoo of a dragon on his right shoulder blade that was given to those who carried his family's bloodline. (It also allowed its bearers to travel between realms.) Shao Kahn also carried this same tattoo, and was revealed to be Raiden's brother while Shinnok was Raiden's father. (This is a non-canon event created specifically for the film that was likely a failed attempt by the screenwriters to shock viewers.) Mileena and Cyrax sported temporary versions that flew off when they were defeated. Many fans dismissed this as just another example of how far-fetched Mortal Kombat: Annihilation was from the games. Raiden does not have his movie tattoo in either Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance or Mortal Kombat: Deception; this can be seen on his alternative outfits as both have one of his shoulders bare, and in the games, his status among the Elder Gods varies so much it could be said he had attained the power to traverse realms at some point and never needed such a mystical tool.

Lambert is rumored to reprise the role of Raiden in the upcoming second sequel Mortal Kombat: Devastation

Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm and The Journey Begins
Clancy Brown provided the voice of Raiden in the 1996 animated series Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm. Raiden also appeared in the animated film Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins

Mortal Kombat: Conquest
Jeffrey Meek played an oddly, less-serious yet still wise Raiden in the live-action series Mortal Kombat: Conquest.

Mortal Kombat: Legacy
Canadian actor Ryan Robbins portrayed Raiden in the 6th episode of Mortal Kombat: Legacy. In the episode, Raiden arrives to Earth to participate to the Mortal Kombat, but is taken into custody by the personnel of an asylum, who mistake him for an inmate. Declaring himself "Raiden the Thunder God" only confirms to the psychiatrist his mental "disease", and he starts a therapy by force, continuously drugged in order to lower his "unusual physical strength". When Raiden, after three months, still refuses to admit he's just a normal human, the psychiatrist has him lobotomized. Raiden, however, heals immediately after, and, after asking the help of an inmate girl, Blue, starts a riot, during which the personnel hits him with tasers, having the only effect of recharging him and making him more powerful. At the end, the psychiatrist hits him in the forehead with a tranquilizer gun, thus incapacitating him. Raiden is lobotomized once again, and left on the hospital's table. In there, he's reached by Blue, who, under his previous instructions, stabs him with a cirurgical instrument, so releasing Raiden from his actual physical form and allowing him to incarnate himself somewhere else. After a thunder storm, Raiden appears in China, ready to take part in the Tournament.

Movie series

 * Son of Shinnok.
 * Brother of Shao Kahn.
 * Mentor of Liu Kang, Johnny Cage, Sonya, Jax, and Kitana.
 * Killed by Shao Kahn.
 * Revived by the Elder Gods.
 * Ascended to Elder God status, joining the pantheon.

Mortal Kombat: Legacy

 * Dropped in Earthrealm to participate in the Mortal Kombat tournament.
 * Locked into the Valleyview Rehabilitation Center for three months.
 * Escaped with the help of another inmate, Blue.

Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe

 * "Your invasion in Earthrealm violated the rules of Mortal Kombat, Shao Kahn. Your tarkatan horde has been rouched by the forces of light. Even now, your allies desert you."
 * "Earthrealm will never succumb to the forces of darkness, Quan Chi. Now, you will face the judgement of the Elder Gods."

Trivia

 * Raiden's MK Vs DC Universe ending implies that he has become like Ultraman (Earth-3's Superman) where his powers are inverted (e.g. Kryptonite fuels his powers, Yellow Sun Radiation weakens them).
 * Raiden's Fatality in the original MK, in which he obliterated his opponent's head with a lightning strike, was drastically altered in the Super NES version due to Nintendo's strict no-blood policy at the time. The decapitation was changed to the opponent's turning into a gray pile of dust.
 * Raiden's name is spelled Raiden in the arcade iterations of the Mortal Kombat games, and both Deadly Alliance and Deception. On the other home versions, his name is spelled Rayden. This was allegedly because of copyright issues as a shoot 'em up was named Raiden, or possibly to keep from confusing of Raiden from the Fatal Fury series, who was seen as a large wrestler. The console versions up until Mortal Kombat 4 and the movies changed the name to Rayden.
 * Ed Boon disliked the way that Acclaim changed Raiden' spelling.
 * Raiden's name is written as 雷電 in both Traditional Chinese and Japanese and 雷电 in Simplified Chinese. It's pronounced as "raiden" (phonetically) in Japanese and "léidiàn" (Pinyin) in Mandarin Chinese. This is simply the Chinese word for "thunder and lightning" that was borrowed in Japanese together with the Chinese characters. The first character (雷) in this word means "thunder", the second one (電/电) now mostly means "electricity" (in ancient times it meant "lightning").
 * Raiden was modeled after the character "Lightning" from the 1986 John Carpenter movie Big Trouble in Little China.
 * Originally, Raiden was not going to be in Deception, and the opening of Deception explained why Raiden would not be in the game. However, this changed after fan complaints, and Raiden remained in the game; the character who would have replaced him, Fujin, makes only a cameo appearance in the Prison stage, and in the Orderrealm during Konquest. Despite this, logically Fujin is still the protector of Earthrealm, as appointed in MK4.
 * In MK3 and UMK3 for both the arcade and home versions, Nightwolf's Friendship had him transform into Raiden and an arcade machine of MKII drop down with two quotes, "Yes, But I Can Do a Raiden Transformation" or "I've Never Seen a Kano Transformation" (despite not actually turning into Kano). This Friendship was omitted in the Nintendo 64 version of Mortal Kombat Trilogy, due to the fact that Raiden was in that game with the same MKII sprite.
 * Raiden was originally going to use his staff as a weapon in MKII, but Midway were forced to omit it due to memory constraints.
 * Of all the Kombat Kode symbols shown in MK3, Raiden's symbol was the eighth to appear if player press the right buttons seven time or in reverse by holding the joystick Up and press the right buttons three times.
 * In the Super Nintendo version of the first MK, by killing the final opponent in the third Endurance Match with Raiden using his Shock to the Head fatality will make Goro appear grey just like the ashes when he defeated the opponent.
 * Raiden's popularity as a "thunder god" and the way fans reacted to him when he made his debut ultimately lead to the creation of other gods such as Fujin (the "wind god"). While they had their own uniqueness, Raiden was still considered to be the most popular of all the gods in the series.
 * He also appeared as a secret character in Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict, NFL Blitz and NBA Jam: Tournament Edition, as well as a cameo appearance in a pinball machine, Bally's 1994 World Cup Championship, in a bonus round.
 * To unlock Raiden in Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict the player had to complete all the challenges. Two of the challenges are called "Unreal Combat". The challenges involved 3 people at once though rather than their traditional 2. Also all 3 people used staff weapons for their melee weapons.
 * In the non-canon Malibu Comics three-issue miniseries Rayden and Kano, Raiden has two female servants named Wynd and Rayne. In Malibu's Blood and Thunder storyline, Raiden did not take part in the MK tournament, claiming that he was not allowed to compete.
 * In the television show Mortal Kombat: Conquest is the only portrayal of Raiden as sort of "laid back" god, where he seems like a normal human (or guardian over Kung Lao) rather than an immortal being.
 * Raiden and Sheeva don't get along in Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm. In Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, he was to partake in an extensive fight scene with Sheeva (Marjean Holden). Despite being in the shooting script (and subsequent novel adaptation), it was cut from the film; Raiden instead fights a pair of Reptile clones while Sheeva instead meets her demise by being crushed by a falling cage.
 * Even though Raiden has been portrayed by Midway employee and martial artist Carlos Pesina in all the original games AND all sprites, Raiden's versus screen image in Mortal Kombat Trilogy is portrayed by Sal Divita, whom is also responsible for Nightwolf, all three cybernetic ninjas (Smoke, Sektor, and Cyrax) and also played Scorpion in a live action clip in Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero.
 * In Deception, Raiden's ending is the only ending to be narrated by himself.
 * Raiden is the first 'god' character to appear in a versus fighting game, as well as the first playable.
 * In his profile from the Brady Games' Official MK4 Fighters Companion strategy guide, Raiden's favorite food is "nuclear buffalo wings".
 * This guide also said that Kidd Thunder is his favorite nephew.
 * It is interesting to note, that both Clancy Brown and Christopher Lambert have portrayed Raiden, because both actors starred in the film Highlander.
 * Interestingly enough, when Shao Kahn killed Raiden in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation his dragon Tattoo did not fly off when he died when all of the others with tattoos did. He explains this in the movie as Cyrax´s, as well as Mileena's being temporary, as they are not in Raiden's bloodline.
 * Raijin Thunderkeg, a character hero from DotA, is possibly based on Raiden because both of them are divine beings of electricity and the storms, have power over lightning and thunder, wear certain hats, and must take a mortal form to participate a battle.
 * In MK 2011, Nightwolf refers to Raiden as Haokah, the Lakota Indian thunder god. However, Nightwolf is Apache, not Lakota.
 * In MK 2011, if Raiden is using his "Dark Raiden" costume, his teleport will be red instead of white.
 * In Mortal Kombat: Legacy, Raiden's blood is blue.
 * If certain X-Ray Moves are performed on Raiden, his hat will fall off, however it will not fall off during Fatalities, similar to Kung Lao's Razor-Rimmed Hat.
 * Raiden's name and status as a god are taken directly from the Japanese thunder god Raijin.
 * Raiden was one of five selected characters to appear in the cover for a special edition of the Mortal Kombat Deception game. The special edition of this game included a metallic card of his character (along Baraka, Sub-Zero, Scorpion and Mileena).
 * Raiden's alternate costume in Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance is his first official appearance hatless.