Sindel



Sindel (also called Queen Sindel by her regal name), is a character in the Mortal Kombat series of fighting games.

About Sindel
Sindel is an exceptional character in the Mortal Kombat series (and in fighting games in general) in more than one way. She is a distinctly older and mature character, with flowing grey hair and a regal attitude befitting of her role as Queen of Edenia. Another factor that contributes to her uniqueness is the fact that at one point in the series, she was actually undead. In spite of her gloomy, gothic appearance, Sindel is benevolent in nature. She rules the realm of Edenia alongside her daughter, Princess Kitana. Sindel's power appears to be more one of an inner, ethereal nature, however, and she has a natural affinity with aerial magic, as evidenced by her ability to levitate and manipulate sonic waves.

Storyline
Sindel's storyline begins tragically 10,000 years ago, when her kingdom was invaded by Shao Kahn, and she was forced to watch as her husband, King Jerrod was killed, her people enslaved, and then-infant Kitana adopted by Kahn as his daughter. This proved too much for her, as a mother, wife, and queen, and soon after the invasion, she committed suicide.

However, this would not be the end of her. Gaining aid from the Elder God Shinnok, Shao Kahn would conspire to bring her back to life, but not in Outworld. Instead, her resurrection would take place on Earth, which would allow Shao Kahn to step through the borders separating the realms and claim her for himself, thus forcing a merger between Earth and Outworld. She would also be revived in a brainwashed state, with no knowledge of her past and having complete loyalty to Kahn. After the sorcerer Shang Tsung failed to secure Earth via the Mortal Kombat tournament, Kahn implemented this plan, and was partially successful; Sindel was reborn just as was planned, and Kahn was able to garner a partial merger of the realms by her revival before Earth's warriors defeated him. However, Kahn didn't just lose Earth in his defeat; Kitana - realizing that her mother was alive - succeeded in procuring an audience with her and convincing her of her true past, thus turning Sindel against the emperor. As Kahn's defeat also succeeded in separating it from their homerealm of Edenia, Sindel took up her rightful place on its throne, and vowed not only to rebuild their home, but to also bring down Shao Kahn for his many crimes.

However, those plans had to wait, as one of Sindel's people, the daughter of an Edenian ambassador to the realms named Tanya, betrayed her homeland and allowed the Netherrealm forces of the fallen Elder God Shinnok to invade the palace. Though Kitana got away, Sindel herself was captured and held in her own dungeon until Shinnok's forces were defeated. Enraged at this latest invasion on her kingdom, Sindel sent Kitana to form an alliance with the Shokan armies and lead them into battle against a weakened Shao Kahn while she continued to help restore Edenia to its former beauty. Unfortunately for her, Edenia was once again invaded, this time by the Dragon King, Onaga, who had slain Kitana and her Earthrealm allies and resurrected them under his control. She is once again confined inside her own prison, this time guarded by her own daughter (an effective plan, as Sindel could never bring herself to fight against her own flesh and blood, even for her own freedom), but was freed by Jade. Now, she scours Edenia for more information on Onaga that might lead her to a way to free Kitana from his control.

Possible Future
In her Mortal Kombat: Deception ending, Sindel locates Onaga's tomb, and discovers not only that the one who imprisoned her was only a surrogate body for the Dragon King's spirit, but also inscriptions written in a strange form of Ancient Edenian that would have allowed Onaga's faithful priests to transfer his soul into another body. Using this knowledge - and Onaga's hubris of allowing Kitana deal with Sindel and Jade instead of attacking them himself - she plunged her Kwan Dao into Onaga's still-entombed body's heart and shouted the incantation, transferring Onaga's soul back into his body, but preventing his heart (the source of his regeneration powers) to fully restore itself, essentially forcing him back into death and breaking his hold on Kitana (and, presumably, her revived allies, as well).

It is assumed that her ending will not happen, as both Sindel and Onaga are set to appear in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, though what will happen is yet to be revealed.

Movie appearance
Sindel appeared in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation and is eventually turned to the good side by Kitana. She is first believe to be the key to closing Shao Kahn's portals to Earth, then her daughter is believed to be the key. She only has a limited role in the movie, and is noted for her cheesy lines of dialogue. When she is brought back to life, her change in alliances occurs, and she wears a symbolic white dress to denote this. She is portrayed by South African actress Musetta Vander.

Trademarks

 * Her Banshee Scream she has had for years up to MKD and MK:A.
 * Sindel's Gray hair with a black streak (In, Annihilation, her hair was switched. It was Black with a gray streak).
 * Her purple battlesuit (even though it's different from Kitana's bodysuit).
 * Glowing white eyes (In Annihilation she had Green eyes).

Memorable Moves

 * Banshee Scream: Sindel screams and stuns the opponent for a free hit. (MK3, UMK3, MKT, MKD)
 * Levitate: Sindel uses her flying abilities to float in mid-air. (MK3, UMK3, MKT)
 * Fireball: Sindel fires a ball of fire from her mouth. **She could do this while floating in the air as well. (**MK3, **UMK3, **MKT, MKD)
 * Double Fireball: While floating in the air, Sindel could fire 2 fireballs from her mouth. (MK3, UMK3, MKT)

Fatalities

 * Scream of death: Sindel screams with such force that her opponent's skin rips off of its body and a skeleton covered in flesh remains. (MK3).
 * Death Spin: Sindel wraps her opponent in her hair, then pulls it back quickly. The victim spins at an impossible speed, until bones and blood splurt out, leaving nothing behind (MK3).
 * Kwan Dao Spin: Sindel tosses her opponent in the air above her, then pulls out her Kwan Do and begins twirling it in the air. As the opponent falls onto it, he/she is chopped up into pieces (MK:D).
 * Super Screamer: Sindel screams with such force that her opponent's body is torn to pieces. (MK:D).

Other finishers

 * Field Goal – She kicks a field goal and says "That Was Fun". (MK3, UMK3, MKT)
 * Animality: Sindel turns into a neon purple wasp. She buzzes over to her opponent and repeatedly stings him/her in the neck until both disappear off the side of the screen.  She then reappears in her human form (MK3).
 * Hara Kiri: Sindel gracefully leaps into the air and backflips, only to land (less gracefully) on her head, snapping her own neck, drawing blood (MK:D).

Trivia

 * Sindel was one of several MK3 characters who were not officially named until the game neared completion. During production, she was nicknamed "Muchacha" and "The Bride" by the programmers.
 * Sindel's Star Scream fatality was translated as a fatality for Fujin, only Fujin uses the power of strong winds to rip apart the flesh of his opponent.
 * The original Sindel costume used for filming game footage was red. It was digitally tinted purple for the game.
 * Her "that was fun" quote from Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 was used in the second movie.
 * Sindel is said to have been inspired by Marvel Comics' Banshee, who appears in the X-Men series as the two characters use the power of high sonics to attack their enemies and fly.
 * She is the first character in the Mortal Kombat series who used the power of flight as both a move used in combat and as a win pose.