The Mortal Kombat franchise includes four animated films, which can be ranked from worst to best based on their overall quality. The Mortal Kombat franchise began with the iconic 1992 arcade game, which has since sprouted into a vast media franchise that includes numerous video games, comic books, movies, TV shows, and more. The Mortal Kombat video games have become the highest-selling fighting game series in history, and the franchise as a whole is one of the highest-grossing multimedia franchises ever. With such an expansive catalog, it’s unsurprising that there is a variety of overall quality in the various films contained therein.
The Mortal Kombat movie timeline has been inconsistent and not all releases have been hits, in fact, some of them have been complete flops, but there are some quality films in there as well. The four animated installments began with the 1995 prequel to the first live-action film, titled Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins. There was a big gap between this film and the next animated installment of Mortal Kombat, which did not release until 2020. The franchise has produced an animated movie every year since then, however, with the next films coming out in 2021 and 2022. These four films can be ranked by their overall quality and watchability as follows.
4 Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins
The first Mortal Kombat animated film also happens to be the worst. While Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins probably isn’t the worst film in the Mortal Kombat series, it’s definitely the worst of the animated films. Looking at this film a few decades after its release, the most jarring shortcoming is the ancient animation, which is difficult to watch compared to the more modern installments in the series. The poor animation is a product of the time this movie was released in, so it’s not Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins‘ fault, but it still represents a major issue with the movie, especially when analyzing it in the current landscape.
Even so, Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins has some strong points as well. The film develops some important bits of lore, setting up the Mortal Kombat tournament itself and introducing some critical backstories. The film’s fight scenes are nothing to write home about considering the limitations of its ancient animation, but the set-up of Johnny Cage, Liu Kang, and Sonya Blade lays an important foundation for the rest of the series. The film also introduces Shang Tsung, Scorpion, and the Great Kung Lao, three more massive characters in the rest of the franchise who show up often in the next few Mortal Kombat installments.
3 Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind
Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind is a solid entry in the franchise’s animated catalog. Snow Blind is a direct-to-video sequel to Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms, and its action-packed narrative provides plenty of entertainment. The story follows Kenshi Takahashi and his conflict with the Black Dragon clan, and it includes an important role for Mortal Kombat‘s Shang Tsung. Kenshi is pitted against great odds, and though he ends up losing most of his major fights, he is saved by Sub Zero and Scorpion, who depart Earthrealm after their victory, leaving Kenshi to lead this realm in their absences.
While Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind tells an interesting story, it’s a bit of a let-down when Kenshi, the film’s main protagonist, ends up losing most of his fights. He initially defeats three opponents at once, making it look like he’s going to be an elite warrior, but finds himself severely overmatched after this. Even so, the fight sequences are definitely entertaining, which is one of the most important aspects of any piece of Mortal Kombat media. Moreover, the film’s focus on character development helps make it feel more profound than other installments in the franchise, enhancing its narrative and overall enjoyability.
2 Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms
Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms is the direct sequel to Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge, and it’s definitely one of the best two Mortal Kombat animated films. Battle of the Realms includes tons of fatality moves from the video games, leaving plenty of Easter eggs for game fans to enjoy. It also has similarly good action sequences to Snow Blind, using the game fatalities to cap them off with a bang. Battle of the Realms also includes a hefty number of iconic video game characters, and it takes elements from six of the games in the franchise, making it one of the most lore-rich movies in the series.
The story follows both a massive Mortal Kombat tournament in Outworld and Scorpion’s attempts to prevent the Kamigodu artifact from being acquired by the Elder God Shinnok. Battle of the Realms struggles somewhat to connect its mostly separate storylines, which keeps it from ranking higher, but it has loads of entertaining fights. For fans of the Mortal Kombat franchise as a whole, Battle of the Realms is much more enjoyable because there is a real focus on incorporating as many aspects of the video games as possible, which makes it easier to look past the issues with the film’s uneven narrative.
1 Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge
Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge is the best animated film in the series by a long shot. Scorpion‘s Revenge is the first animated film since Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins, and it is a vast improvement on the original animated film. The story follows Scorpion’s quest to avenge himself after the death of his family and clan following his resurrection by Quan Chi. The other half of the narrative follows Johnny Cage, Liu Kang, and Sonya Blade as they fight in a Mortal Kombat tournament that will decide the fate of all Earthrealm. The tandem narratives work surprisingly well, lending the film plenty of substance.
Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge also benefits from great animation and a whole lot of exciting action sequences that prove an important tribute to the video games. The fight sequences complement the narrative to create an altogether enjoyable film. Scorpion’s Revenge also delivers some important character development, especially for its title character, who is an extremely critical figure in future installments of Mortal Kombat. This is perhaps the most important Mortal Kombatfilm because of its timing and the expectations involved, which makes its success that much more impressive.
