Sindel



"You are pathetic and weak!"

- Sindel's Mortal Kombat (2011) Battle Cry

Sindel is a character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series. She made her debut in Mortal Kombat 3 with a very important role in the storyline. She can also be seen on the side of the MK3 arcade cabinet.

About Sindel
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 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. She has a natural affinity with aerial magic, as evidenced by her ability to levitate and manipulate sonic waves.

In Mortal Kombat: Deception, creator Ed Boon describes Sindel as a challenging character in more ways than one. Although, Sindel is not one of the main characters in the series, she was involved in a big part of the game. This had to do with the fact that her rule over Edenia was a target to many other rulers like Shao Kahn, Shinnok, and Onaga. Sindel was one of the few evil characters to turn good in the series.

Powers and abilities
Being an Edenian, Sindel possesses an array of mystical abilities. One of her trademark abilities is her ultrasonic, super-loud screaming. The strength and its properties seem to differ on the focus. This ranges from sonic blasts to a fierce soundwave that can outright blast an opponent's skin clean off. She can tone this down to a degree to paralyze the unwary. Another of her mystical powers is her prehensile hair which can be used as both a throw and a finisher in Mortal Kombat 3, where it would grow to extremely long lengths and be able to wrap itself around the opponent. Another of Sindel's distinguishing characteristics is her ability to levitate. Apart from serving as her win pose, she can use this to evade enemy attacks and deal damage simultaneously.

Signature moves

 * Banshee Scream: One of her most well-known signature moves. She screams at super high volume, and it stuns the opponent, giving her a free hit. In MK 2011, this move is called Yell. (MK3, UMK3, MKT, MK:D, MK:A, MK 2011, MKX)
 * The enhanced version is named Scream. The range has been increased and the duration of the stun is extended, as well as causing a high-pitched ringing noise.
 * Levitate: Sindel uses her flying abilities to float in mid-air. (MK3, UMK3, MKT, MK 2011)
 * Star Screamer: Sindel fires a purple fireball at the opponent. She can do this while floating in the air as well. In MK 2011, she can also fire a lower version of this projectile from a crouching position. It is also named Fireball in MK 2011. (MK3, UMK3, MKT, MK:D, MK:A, MK 2011, MKX)
 * The enhanced version is named Power Fireball, and the enhanced lower version is named Low Fire. The fireball produced is stronger and knocks the opponent down.
 * Double Star Screamer: Sindel could fire two fireballs from her mouth. (MKT)
 * Sliding Foot Grab: Sindel slides towards the opponent. If she connects, she grabs onto the opponent's feet, causing them to wobble, then brings her own feet over to kick the opponent in the head. (MK:D, MK:A)
 * Hair Whip: Used as her grab move in previous incarnations, Sindel wraps her opponent in her hair and sends them flying to the other side of the arena. (MK3, UMK3, MKT, MK 2011)
 * The enhanced version is called Hair Toss. Sindel will slam the opponent multiple times before releasing them.
 * Step Up: Sindel performs a gymnastic front walkover, kicking the opponent. If the move connects, she follows it up with a backward aerial cartwheel which kicks the opponent upward. (MK 2011, MKX)
 * The enhanced version is called Step Over. Instead of hitting the opponent with a cartwheel, Sindel cartwheels over the opponent and then kicks them away.
 * X Ray Move - Queen B: Sindel grabs her opponent's leg with her hair, then she kicks her opponent in the groin, then she brings her elbow down on their knee, breaking it and uses her Banshee Scream to send her opponent flying in front of her. (MK 2011)

Other moves

 * Throw: Sindel grabs her opponent and levitates off the ground, taking them with her. She then spins herself and the opponent around, then tosses them back to the ground. (MK 2011)

Fatalities

 * Deadly Scream: Sindel screams with such force that her opponent's skin rips off of its body and a skeleton covered in flesh remains. In the handheld versions, the opponent catches on fire instead. (MK3, UMK3, MKT)
 * Hair Spin: Sindel wraps her opponent in her hair, then pulls it back quickly. The victim spins at an impossible speed, until bones and blood spurt out, leaving nothing behind. (MK3, UMK3, MKT)
 * Kwan Dao Kopter: Sindel tosses her opponent in the air above her, then pulls out her Kwan Dao and begins twirling it in the air. As the opponent falls onto it, they are chopped into pieces. (MK:D)
 * Sonic Screech: Sindel screams with such force that her opponent's body is torn to pieces. (MK:D)
 * Migraine: Depending on which side the fatality is performed, Sindel yells into her opponent´s ear and the opposite half of their head explodes. (MK 2011)
 * Mouthful: Sindel shoots a Fireball into her hand and shoves it into her opponent´s mouth. She holds their mouth closed until their head explodes. (MK 2011)

Other finishers

 * Friendship: Sindel kicks a football 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 they both disappear off the side of the screen. Sindel then reappears in her human form. (MK3, UMK3, MKT)
 * Hara-Kiri: Neckbreaker: Sindel gracefully leaps into the air and does a backflip, only to land (less gracefully) on her head, snapping her own neck, drawing blood. (MK:D)
 * Babality: Sindel begins to float into the air, but quickly falls down in a fit of tears and yells. (MK 2011)

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation
Sindel appeared in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, retaining her role as Shao Kahn's wife and queen from the games. During the film, she is made general of Shao Kahn's army. An argument between Kitana and Kahn reveals that the latter drove Sindel to commit suicide, which was taken from the games. According to legend, she is first believed to be the key to closing Kahn's portals to Earth, although her daughter, Kitana, is later believed to be the key. On her initial capture and reunion with Kitana, this legend is revealed to be "a lie" and Sindel escapes from the Earthrealm warriors, before later facing Kitana in the final battle. Sindel is initially dominant in the duel but Kitana manages to gain the upper hand and defeats her mother. After Kahn's defeat, his control over Sindel is broken and her change in alliances occurs. She wears a symbolic white dress (rather than her purple-and-black outfit) to denote this. After Jade is fed to a living gargoyle in his palace, Kahn threatens to feed Sindel's "rotting corpse" to the worms if she fails him, perhaps realizing how incompetent his queen is at being a general. Motaro then goads her into failing so Kahn can carry out this threat and be promoted, but Sindel slaps him rather hard across the face. She is portrayed by South African actress Musetta Vander.

Mortal Kombat: Legacy
Beatrice Ilg portrays Sindel in Mortal Kombat: Legacy.

In this continuity, she is still the queen of Edenia, but does not appear to posses the same powers as her game counterpart.

During the invasion of Edenia by Outworld, she appears in flashbacks in the fourth episode, holding her infant daughter Kitana as they are being guarded by two Edenian knights when they are slaughtered by a Tarkatan. Sindel backs away from the advancing creature and is saved by what appears to be her husband, King Jerrod. He promises to see her to safety and they flee from the castle, but Jerrod is killed by Baraka, and Shao Kahn reveals to the shocked Sindel that it was not her husband, but a decoy, Jerrod having already fled.

Once Shao Kahn seized total control over Edenia, he forced Sindel to be his wife and queen and took Kitana as his daughter. Though Shao Kahn grew to truly love Sindel, she could only hate him and spurned his affections. When she discovered Shao Kahn had created a clone of her infant daughter Kitana but with Tarkatan features, Sindel found herself overwhelmed by fear and disgust.

Fearing that Kitana's soul would become corrupted by Kahn's influence, Sindel killed herself by taking a potion, sending her soul into her daughter's as a way of protecting her from Shao Kahn. It wouldn't be for many years later until Sindel's soul awoke in Kitana and revealed to her the truth of her heritage after her father Jerrod's death.

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.
 * The "The Bride" reference is actually rather telling of kung fu cinema's impact on the Mortal Kombat franchise as a whole; one of the inspirations for Sindel's character is derived from Bride with White Hair, a 1993 film from Hong Kong. The title character, Lian Nichang, is shown towards the later portion of the movie as transforming from black haired bride-to-be into a vicious witch with white hair.
 * Sindel's Banshee Screech Fatality was translated as a Fatality for Fujin; only Fujin uses the power of strong winds to rip apart the flesh of his opponent, not his scream.
 * She is the one of the two characters to snap their neck for a Hara-Kiri. The other being Scorpion.
 * Her "That was fun!" quote from her Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 friendship was used in the second movie.
 * She is the first character in the Mortal Kombat series who used the power of flight as both a move used in fights and as a win pose.
 * Sindel was the first dead female character to be revived.
 * Sindel was planned to be in Mortal Kombat 4, but was replaced by Fujin. However, she is not completely removed; she is referenced in Baraka's Mortal Kombat Gold ending where it is her throne that Quan Chi was sitting on.
 * Sindel was one of the characters that were sent flying off the pyramid by Shang Tsung's Flaming Skull attack in the opening of Mortal Kombat: Armageddon.
 * In MK 2011, Sindel can be seen briefly behind (possibly) one of Quan Chi's spawned skeletons, with a sword in her chest.
 * In MK 2011, a broken statue of Sindel's head lies in the background of Jade's desert.
 * Although she has a pair of completely white eyes, in her MK3 ending, she actually has black irises.
 * In MK 2011, Sindel, along with Quan Chi, Jax, and Jade, is one of the few characters whose X-Ray Move does not make the opponent bleed.
 * In MK 2011, Sindel's X-Ray Move is one of the few that does not damage the opponent's skull.
 * Sindel is one of the four characters whose special moves are affected by Headless Kombat, the others being Sonya, Kabal and Kung Lao.
 * Sindel is also the most affected character. She loses four moves: High Fireball, Low Fireball, Hair Whip and Yell.
 * In every game except MK 2011, Sindel's Yell move would cause the opponent to float in the air for a free hit. However, in MK 2011, it just stuns them.
 * In MK 2011, if Sindel is transformed by a Babality in her primary costume, she will not lose any part of her hairline, while in her alternate costume, she will lose the most part of her hairline and only her ponytail will stay.
 * In MK 2011, if Sindel performs her Mouthful Fatality on a masked character or a Cyber Ninja, a sound will be heard when she inserts her hand in the enemy's mouth. This is possibly the sound of the mask or the armor being torn or broken.
 * Lani Minella, Sindel and Sheeva's voice actress in MK 2011, also voices Ivy from the Soul Calibur III, IV and V games, Rouge the Bat in Sonic Adventure 2, and female Dunmer in TES: Skyrim.
 * Lia Montelongo, who portrayed Sindel in MK3, Sareena in MK Mythologies: Sub-Zero, and Tanya in MK4, was the youngest actress to portray a Mortal Kombat character at the time; she was 19 when she portrayed Sindel.
 * In the opening of Mortal Kombat Armageddon Sindel is seen fighting Jarek.
 * Her Mouthful Fatality is the first one in which Sindel uses her Star Scream powers as a fatality.
 * Sindel's hair brush relic in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon is a reference to her Hair Whip powers that had been absent in the move list.
 * Sindel along with D'Vorah and Nitara are the only female characters to have the power of flight.
 * Sindel's Hara-Kiri in MK:D was listed as #8 in a ScrewAttack list of the Top 10 Worst Mortal Kombat Fatalities.
 * Sindel is considered the strongest female character by the creators.
 * In Mortal Kombat 2011, Sindel became the very 1st and only Outworld Empress to ever rule by Shao Kahn's side. Although, she was the very 1st Empress of Outworld, she wasn't known by all. Unlike Empress Mileena, who became the 2nd and so far, the last Outworld empress, Empress Sindel was only known to be the very 1st empress by Shao Kahn's closest assassins and servants. Those being Reptile, Mileena, Motaro, Sheeva, Kintaro, Goro, Noob Saibot, etc. She never really got the chance to rule as long as Mileena did because of her early death in her battle against Nightwolf 25 years before the current Mortal Kombat storyline (Mortal Kombat X).

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