Mortal Kombat: Conquest (stylized on-screen as Mortal Kombat: Konquest) was a television program TV series which aired from 1998 to 1999. The series is based on the fighting game series Mortal Kombat, and acted as a prequel to the first Mortal Kombat film. Conquest was canceled after just one season (22 episodes).
Show Summary[]
In a dark and mythical re-telling of classic tale of good versus evil, the TV series 'Mortal Kombat Conquest' follows the fierce warrior Kung Lao and his comrades Taja and Siro on the their quest to protect the earth realm from falling under the control of the evil conqueror of realms Shao Kahn, ruler of the Outworld. Vital to the survival of mankind are warriors who can compete in Mortal Kombat. While combatants from Outworld have magic and darkness on their side, fighter from the Earth Realm have only their strength, both physical and mental, and belief that their cause is just and right.
Will good triumph over evil?
In Mortal Kombat Conquest it will not.[1]
Plot summary[]
Kung Lao, Raiden, Taja, and Siro were the main characters in Mortal Kombat: Conquest (pictured right to left)
"In each of us there burns a soul of a warrior. In every generation a few are chosen to prove it. Centuries ago, in a time of darkness and fury, that fate befell three strangers. A monk Kung Lao, an exiled guard Siro and a thief Taja who have to defend our earth realm from the forces of Outworld. By fighting for their lives, by fighting for their honor and by fighting for their realm. In a tournament called Mortal Kombat."
Many millennia ago, the Earth was a young and desirable planet. Powerful and rich with natural resources, the vicious megalomaniac, Shao Kahn wanted Earth as part of his growing collection of conquered realms known as Outworld. To protect the Earth (Earthrealm) from Shao Kahn, Mortal Kombat - a tournament in which the fate of the planet is decided in battles between competitors from Earthrealm and Outworld - was created. Five-hundred years in the past, the monk warrior, Kung Lao defeated Shao Kahn's sorcerer, Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat. When Kung Lao spared his life, Kahn imprisoned Tsung in the cobalt mines.
Kung Lao now had to train the next generation of warriors, who would give their lives to save the Earth. Kung Lao creates a partnership and friendship with two warriors: Siro, a former bodyguard and Taja, an ex-thief. In the dark and mysterious city of Zhu Zin, Kung Lao and his new friends are guided and watched over by the thunder god, Raiden. The three now battle various assortments of evils of both Outworld and Earthrealm, including an imprisoned Tsung, who swore eternal revenge on Kung Lao for his humiliating defeat and his ally; the sultry and seductive Vorpax who is also imprisoned in the cobalt mines and has an agenda of her own.
Characters[]
Main characters[]
- Kung Lao (Paolo Montalbán)
- Siro (Daniel Bernhardt)
- Taja (Kristanna Loken)
- Vorpax (Tracy Douglas)
- Shang Tsung (Bruce Locke)
- Raiden and Shao Kahn (Jeffrey Meek)
Recurring characters[]
- Baron Reyland (John Reilly)
- Geneviere "Jen" Reyland (Jennifer Renton)
- Omegis (Angelica Bridges)
- Kiri (Sung Hi Lee)
- Ankha (Tahitia Hicks)
- Siann (Dana Hee)
- Mika (Jaime Pressly)
- Sora (Renee Tenison)
- Kreeya (Fabiana Udenio)
- Qali (Roshumba Williams)
MK game series characters[]
- Scorpion (Chris Casamassa)
- Sub-Zero (J.J. Perry)
- Noob Saibot (Master Sultan Uddin)
- Quan Chi ('Adoni Maropis)
- Kitana (Dara Tomanovich)/(Audie England)
- Mileena (Megan Brown)
- Rain (Percy 'Spitfire' Brown)
- Reiko (Jim Helsinger)
- Reptile (Jon Valera)
- Shadow Priests (Unknown portrayers)
- Smoke (Computer animated)
- Goro (Computer animated)
Mortal Kombat Conquest Episode List[]
Mortal Kombat: Conquest Episodes
Trivia[]
- In the episode "Debt of the Dragon", the Black Dragon crime organization is featured.
- The episode "The Serpent and the Ice" featured a cameo by Smoke in the very last scene before the credits. It was spoken by the Lin Kuei master that he would hunt down the now rogue Sub-Zero. This storyline never came into play, possibly because the show was cancelled prematurely.
- The episode "The Master" features a character named Master Cho. It is rumored that he is the prototype of Bo' Rai Cho.
- The episode "Unholy Alliance" features an alliance between Shang Tsung and Quan Chi, which is the premise for Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance.
- Former WCW wrestlers Meng and Wrath also made guest appearances.
- Guest stars Angelica Bridges, Sung Hi Lee, Dana Hee, Jamie Pressly, Renee Tenison, Kathleen Kinmont, Candace Miller and Suzanne Stokes all posed nude for the adult magazine, Playboy. Another guest star, Eva Mendes, was also featured doing an interview in one issue.
- Due to budget constraints, the costuming department was unable to afford any bras for the female cast members.
- The series originally aired on the WB Network and was later picked up by Turner Network Television, which aired the remaining new episodes as well as broadcasting the previous ones in syndication. The show was very popular, but according to the show's developer, Joshua Wexler, this resulted in higher budget costs for the show than anticipated. The cancellation was not announced at first and rumors of a second season circulated. However, TNT pulled the plug on the show leaving it with a cliffhanger ending. It was said that the last two episodes were a dream Kung Lao had, making what happened not true. The cliffhanger ending would have been resolved in the second season, which would have summed up the series and corresponded with the MK timeline.
- Former QVC model Dorian John played the barmaid Magda in the episodes "Twisted Truth" and "Quan Chi".
- Martial artist J.J. Perry guest-starred as Sub-Zero in the third episode, "Cold Reality"; ironically, he briefly appeared as Scorpion for a fight scene with Sub-Zero in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.
- Going by the game and movie story line, MK: Conquest should be taken place some time in the year 1400.
- This series is the only time where Sub-Zero is shown to have a sister and Raiden is surprisingly more lax than any of his counterparts in the games or film.
DVD Availability[]
All episodes are available in one complete set on Region 1, the set was released on March 31, 2015.
External links[]
- Mortal Kombat Conquest
- Mortal Kombat Conquest on Wikipedia
- Mortal Kombat: Conquest at the Internet Movie Database
- Mortal Kombat Conquest DVD Volume 1 (Official Australian Release)
- Mortal Kombat Conquest DVD Volume 2 (Official Australian Release)