Jarek

Soon I’ll have revenge. -- Mortal Kombat: Armageddon Bio

Jarek is a fictional character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series. He made his debut in Mortal Kombat 4.

About Jarek
First debuting as a playable character in Mortal Kombat 4, Jarek was depicted as the brutish and short-tempered second-in-command of the Black Dragon clan. In the games, he initially utilized special moves and fatalities popularized by Kano, a trait later explained by stating that Jarek was once a student of his. Jarek's lack of originality caused him to be labeled as a somewhat uninspired character by the Mortal Kombat fanbase. He would later gain his own unique moveset in Armageddon.

Storyline
Jarek made his first chronological appearance in Mortal Kombat: Special Forces. Kano freed him and other Black Dragon members from a United States Special Forces detention facility. Kano had proposed to reform the Black Dragon clan, but in reality merely wished to use them to slow down any Special Forces agents who may have followed him. Jarek was stationed as head of security at a downtown office which the clan was using as a front for their activities. While there, he was confronted by Major Jackson Briggs on the building's helipad. Jarek was soon defeated and brought back into custody.

Shortly before the events of Mortal Kombat 4, Jarek was able to escape to Edenia after learning of Kano's apparent death. Now thought to be the last surviving member of the Black Dragon, he was pursued by Sonya Blade and Jax who were seeking to destroy the last remnants of the clan forever. However, seeing that all of humanity was faced the threat of Shinnok's invasion during this period, they decided to focus their attention on the new threat, and Jarek agreed to help his sworn enemies defeat this common foe. After the destruction of Shinnok's forces, he resisted allowing himself to be turned over to the Special Forces. The encounter concluded with Jarek running off to Sonya and trying to throw Her from the cliff but Sonya managed to evade Him, with Jarek's aparent death in the process. 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 side of the Forces of Darkness, the sorcerer would give him the ability to enhance the strength and capabilities of his fatalities, and he 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 defeats Blaze, and the chi from all the other warriors begins to flow through the firespawn and funnel into him. He starts to feel as if Death itself were guiding his actions. Sealing off the crater, Jarek begins to perform the other fighters' own signature fatalities on them, eventually finishing them all.

Biographies

 * Mortal Kombat 4: "Believed to be the last member of Kano's klan, the Black Dragon,, Jarek is hunted down by Special Forces agent Sonya Blade for crimes against humanity. With the emergence of a much greater evil, Sonya focuses her strength on the new menacing Quan Chi. Jarek now finds himself fighting alongside Sonya and Earth's warriors to help defeat the evil Elder God, Shinnok."
 * Armageddon Bio Kard: "Long thought to be the last remaining member of the Black Dragon, Jarek had served as Kano's second-in-command. After his master's apparent death, Jarek fled to Edenia. Shinnok's attempt to take control of the realms seemed to leave him no other choice, and so Jarek joined forces with his sworn enemies, Sonya Blade and Jackson Briggs."


 * Armageddon: "What was done to me by the Special Forces could only be described as brutality. But that's fine. I can take it. What angered me was that somehow Jax found me. I'd covered my trail, kept to the shadows. But still I was routed out. Jax dropped me into a ravine, assuming that would be the end of me. It would have been if I hadn't thrust my weapon into the cliff wall to slow my descent. I was badly injured, so I went into hiding. My rumored death would be the ultimate camouflage as I regained my strength. Obsessed with thoughts of revenge, I traveled all over the realms looking for ancient texts that would show me a fatality worthy of my betrayer. But my injuries made perfecting these new techniques a very painful task. My frustration turned into rage and I no longer cared who had sthumb|300px|right|Jarek's bio card.old me out. I would kill them all - a sentiment Quan Chi apparently shared. Quan Chi recognized the carnage I had left behind as I practiced my new fatalities on the good people of the realms. He was impressed and offered to help me increase their power and effectiveness. All I needed do was fight beside the Forces of Darkness in Edenia. The means of enhancing my fatalities would reveal itself, and all my enemies would be there for the slaughter. Soon I'll have revenge. The time will come to finish them all."

Signature moves

 * Tri-Blade: Jarek throws a star-shaped exotic blade at his opponent. (MK4, MKG)
 * Cannonball Roll: Jarek crunches himself to a ball and hurls himself to his opponent. Jarek also had a vertical version of this attack in which he launched himself upwards. This move was borrowed from Kano. (MK4, MKG)
 * Rhino Stomp: Jarek slams his body to ground, creating a small tremor and damaging the opponent. (MK4, MKG, MK:A)
 * Lasso Snatch: Jarek snatches a lasso towards the enemy, and if it connects, he brings the enemy over his body and slams him down, making him bounce. (MK:A)
 * Tricky Switch: Jarek attempts to grab the enemy, and if successful, he will push him to his side and then kick his back. (MK:A)
 * Flying Legs: Anchoring himself to the ground with his rope, Jarek impulses himself feet-first towards his opponent. (MK:A)

Fatalities

 * Eye Laser: Through no visible means, Jarek shoots a laser beam out of his eye which tears the opponent to shreds. This fatality is borrowed from Kano. (MK4, MKG)
 * Heart Rip: Also borrowed from Kano, Jarek rips the opponent's heart out of his/her chest. (MK4, MKG)

Endings

 * Mortal Kombat 4: Jarek is seen with Sonya at a cliff. Sonya tells Jarek Shinnok died and that he must go with her. He refuses, saying he only wanted to help defeat Shinnok and not turn himself in to the Special Forces. Sonya reminds him he's the only Black Dragon member left, but he retaliates and tries to attack, only to seemingly fall off the cliff. Sonya calls Jax from her transceiver and tries to report Jarek's death. But he was actually hanging on to the cliff. He grabs Sonya's leg and pulls her off the cliff. Jax tries to check if Sonya is still alive, but Jarek stomps on the reciever. He then snares in his victory.


 * Armageddon: "The power of Blaze drew chi from all the kombatants and funneled into Jarek. He suddenly felt as if Death itself were guiding his actions. Laughing maniacally, he sealed off the crater and unleashed a storm of fatalities upon his fellow warriors. None could escape the maelstrom of deadly energy. When at last the tempest abated, Sub-Zero's spine lay quivering next to Kano's still-beating heart. An armless Jax knelt beside the two halves of Kung Lao's body. Jarek has finished them all!"

Comic books
Jarek makes a small appearance in the official Mortal Kombat 4 comic that was distributed with some versions of the game. In it, Sonya had tracked him down to the city of Shanghai. After being confronted on a rooftop, Jarek is able to evade Sonya's clutches and escapes on his motorcycle.

Character development
Jarek's facial appearance was based on Mortal Kombat character designer and modeler Herman Sanchez. Because Jarek had the same moves as Kano, many fans angrily claimed that he is simply Kano in Mortal Kombat 4. This holds some truth since the development team began making 3D models of existing MK fighters and then decided they needed to add some new people as well. Jarek was designed to be the "Kano character." This explains why he shares so many moves with him. The same holds true for Reiko (originally Noob Saibot) and Tanya (originally Kitana). However, Tanya and Reiko had their own original moves, while Jarek only had two (the Tri-Blade and the Rhino Stomp). It is also notable that Jarek is often compared with Kira. The main reason for their comparison is that both are Black Dragon clan members who used moves from Kano. Unlike Jarek, however, Kira has her own set of fatalities and shared some of Sonya's moves as well. In MK4, Jarek was assigned Kano's fatalities, but without an artificial eye like Kano's, he had no viable reason to shoot lasers from his own eyes. This was left anyway and never explained. In Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, Jarek was finally given his own set of moves, thus making him unique from Kano.

The Krypt in Armageddon includes several pieces of concept art relating to Jarek. A sketch of his Lasso Snatch move drawn by Ed Boon reveals that this rope throw was influenced by Scorpion's spear technique. Two possible weapon stances are also shown: one with Jarek holding two leaf swords and the other with him holding two kick axes. The leaf blades were dropped as they did not fit Jarek's unrefined look. In the finished game, he only uses one kick axe.

Game information
Jarek appeared as the boss of the third level in Mortal Kombat: Special Forces. He had the ability to throw blades, taunt, and fire an orb that paralyzed the player if shot. He also makes a cameo appearance in Mortal Kombat: Deception ' s Konquest mode. In it, Jarek can be found in the Netherealm searching for Oni teeth in order to prove his worth to the Black Dragon clan. However, he simply pays the player as Shujinko to find these for him. Jarek also appears in Armageddon ' s Konquest mode during the first training obelisk, representing a generic enemy that the player must fight.

Trivia

 * In early versions of Armageddon, Leaf Blades were supposed to be his weapon.
 * In Armageddon, Jarek borrowed the Dragon fighting style that Sub-Zero had in Deadly Alliance and Deception.
 * Currently, Jarek is the only playable member of the Black Dragon who's name does not begin with the letter K (although there is one at the end). There are other members that share this trait (No Face, Tasia, and Tremor), but they are not playable.

Character Relationships

 * Was a member of the Black Dragon.
 * Escaped from custody with Tasia, No Face and Tremor with the help of Kano.
 * Defeated by Jax in MK: Special Forces.
 * Joined Sonya and Jax to fight Shinnok and Quan Chi in MK4.
 * Seemingly killed by Jax at the end of MK4, however it is revealed that he had not died and went into hiding.
 * Informed by Quan Chi of a technique to kill everyone.
 * Joined the forces of darkness to the last battle in Armageddon.