Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm (1995)

Fighters from Mortal Kombat tournaments from other worlds and dimensions are invading Earth through dimensional tears, using it as their practice ground, and for more sinister purposes. An elite group of highly trained fighters has been assembled to locate these intrusions and fight off the aliens before Earth is laid waste, and its dimensional structure is destroyed.

Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm (br: Mortal Kombat: Os Defensores da Terra) is an animated series of Mortal Kombat. Produced by Threshold Entertainment and Film Roman, it aired on the USA Network's Action Extreme Team animation block for a thirteen-episode season from September to December 1996, back-to-back with the animated series Street Fighter.[1] The series serves as a combination of an alternate sequel to the first Mortal Kombat film and the events of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3.

History
The series focused on a group of warriors assembled by Raiden (spelled Rayden in the series) to defend Earthrealm from invaders who entered through portals from various other dimensions. The assembled warriors included Liu Kang, Stryker, Sonya Blade, Jax, Kitana, and Sub-Zero, with Nightwolf functioning primarily as tech support but still joining the fray on several occasions. The warriors operated from a hidden base from which Nightwolf and Rayden monitored the portal openings; warriors flew in dragon-shaped jets to deal with riots. Shao Kahn was an archenemy throughout the series, despite appearing in only four of the series' thirteen episodes, being responsible for allowing other realms to invade Earthrealm.

The characters and their backgrounds were mostly continuous with the film's depiction and series canon, although many original characters unique to the show were introduced and some elements from Mortal Kombat 3 were included. The episode's plots share little relation to that of either game, although the character designs are based on their MK3 and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 sprites (except for Kitana, whose design looks like a mix of her MKII and UMK3 visuals). . Kung Lao, Johnny Cage, Mileena, Sindel, Goro and Kintaro were not shown nor referenced in the show, while characters based on Reptile, Baraka and Jade were featured.

The ending involved Kitana leading an Outworld rebellion against Kahn. The show's most notable aspect was that it provided the debut of Quan Chi, who would go on to become a major antagonist in the game series.

General information

cartoon series format

Duration 30 minutes

Creator(s) Ed Boon

country of origin United States

original language english

Production
Producer(s) Film Roman Productions
Threshold Entertainment
Clancy Brown Cast
Brian Tochi
Olivia d'Abo
Cree Summer
Luke Perry
Dorian Harewood
Todd Thawley
Ron Perlman

Exhibition

Original broadcaster USA Network

Original broadcast September 21, 1996 - December 14, 1996

seasons 1
episodes 13