Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge Blu-ray Movie Review

Round 1. Fight!

Reviewed by Randy Miller III April 30, 2020

I haven't played a Mortal Kombat game in years. In fact, I probably lost interest in the brand more than two decades ago, just a few years after the first arcade game pulled in crowds like a magnet at arcades worldwide. I first saw the original MK at a local bowling alley and still remember skipping a few frames to gawk at its unique graphics and bloody fatalities. That bowling alley finally closed its doors after six decades in business but Mortal Kombat lives on, doubling down on the bone-crunching action and ridiculous, over-the-top finishers with each new installment. Over the years it's grown from a controversial Street Fighter wannabe to a full-blown franchise with two live-action movies (and a third coming in 2021), comics, toys action figures, a "blood, sweat, and tears" scented candle, and more. Warner Bros. Animation carries the torch with their all-new animated feature Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge, the first of several interlinked stories designed to deepen the history of its most iconic and celebrated characters.

I was somewhat skeptical going in, having exactly zero fond memories of the two forgettable 90s live-action films -- outside of that infectious theme song -- and a general feeling that the franchise had been gradually beaten to death since 1992. But damn, I had a lot of fun with this one: Scoprion's Revenge is a love letter to fans that seems to capture the franchise's most magnetic elements and does so with complete reverence to its earlier "2D" years as well. Although the core story isn't exactly groundbreaking -- fighters gather to compete in a brutal Mortal Kombat tournament hosted by powerful warlock Shang Tsung for control of Earthrealm -- it serves as a sturdy template for all the action, drama, and brutal fatalities that will likely please anyone who's played and enjoyed at least one game in the series.

[Spoilers ahead] Its title promises revenge and that's what bookends this 80-minute feature, as Grandmaster Hanzo Hasashi witnesses the murder of his family and fellow Shirai Ryu clan members at the hands of a rival clan headed by ninja Sub-Zero. The two face off and Hanzo dies but is resurrected by sorceror Quan Chi in the Netherrealm, a hellish afterlife. Quan Chi proposes a second chance for Hanzo to compete in Mortal Kombat; Hanzo agrees and returns to life as "Scorpion", vowing to avenge his family and clan by killing Sub-Zero in the tournament. [End Spoilers]

But this is far from a one-man show, as the bulk of Scorpion's Revenge follows other familiar faces on their road to Mortal Kombat: fallen Hollywood star Johnny Cage, Special Forces agent Sonya Blade, Shaolin monk Liu Kang, thunder god Raiden, and more. This provides a more balanced focus which works well to bulk up an otherwise standard revenge story: there's a little bit of Once Upon a Time in the West, several nods to 1980s action spectacles, and a whole of Enter the Dragon, which all adds up to a pretty damn entertaining little film loaded with all the blood and gore that's made the franchise (in)famous. Plenty of attention was paid to the gritty visual elements and squishy sound design, as both capture the same "look, but don't look" recoil factor present during Mortal Kombat's most stomach-churning fatalities. As mentioned earlier, I'm no expert but was able to pick out more than a few neat little Easter eggs and other nods to specific games, and I'd imagine that anyone more dedicated to the series will enjoy themselves even more. Simply put, it was obviously made by fans for fans and I'm already looking forward to the next chapter.

This direct-to-video feature arrives from Warner Bros. and plays like many of their recent DCAU releases, from the animation style to its great A/V treatment and a collection of short but sweet extras. A 4K edition is also available (review forthcoming), as well as a few store exclusives aimed at collectors and superfans alike. But the Blu-ray will be enough for most, and it's one of the nicer surprises to come from a mostly superhero-fueled animation studio.

Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The direct-to-video Scorpion's Revenge looks to be right on par with Warner's other DCAU features, showcasing its appropriately dark and often scratchy appearance with very few chinks in the armor. Colors run the gamut but mostly lean towards muted tones, with exceptions being bold primaries and elemental effects such as lava, lightning, and ice. It's all very stylized but will look comfortably familiar to die-hard fans of the franchise, from the one-on-one combat angles -- a mixture of dynamic three-dimensional movement with occasional "2D" flourishes -- to the up-close-and-personal "X-ray" sequences that showcase its more brutal, bone-crushing acts of violence. Heavy textures are almost non-existent, as Scorpion's Revenge relies more on color and limited linework for its visual formula.

Although some of the establishing shots and background characters can a bit chunky and inconsistent, as a whole this is a pleasing effort that will likely continue with future installments. A few standard-issue compression shortcomings can be seen along the way -- mild banding on harsh gradients, as well as a few stray artifacts -- but they're mostly kept under control, with this Blu-ray holding its own as a respectable representation of the source material.

Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

As expected, the DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix brings the pain with plenty of hard hits and squishy sound effects, many of which display strong channel separation, discrete panning, and rear channel presence to heighten the film's atmosphere. Dialogue and background noise is balanced nicely, whether it's in a crowded area or empty forest, with individual characters spaced out nicely to create a relatively wide sound stage that's regularly supported by plenty of action. While the original score didn't immediately grab my attention, that's not exactly a complaint -- the Mortal Kombat games I'm familiar with didn't always rely heavily on dramatic, sweeping cues either. Simply put, this is an effects-focused and often punishing lossless track that gives die-hard fans exactly what they want.

A few foreign dubs and subtitles, including English (SDH), are included during the main feature and select extras; these are formatted nicely with no blatant errors and synced perfectly with the audio tracks I sampled.

Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This two-disc set (one Blu-ray, one DVD) arrives in a keepcase with a promotional insert, Digital Copy code, and a matching slipcover. Like its A/V presentation, the extras are on par with most DCAU direct-to- video releases.

• From Epic Game to Extreme Animation (4:57) - MK co-creator Ed Boon, writer Jeremy Adams, director Ethan Spaulding, producer Rick Morales, and senior artist Tony Goskie briefly discuss the franchise's history, its over-the-top violence, black comedy, and fusing it all together for this new animated production.

• The Weapons, Wardrobe and World of Mortal Kombat Legends (7:08) - The same participants, along with prop designer Cary Lockwood, background painter Tim Szabo, and background designer Hakjoon Kang, return for a visual overview of the film including costume design, concept art, character origins, and more.

• Mortal Kombatants (4:36) - A like-minded run-through of the main characters and their place in the MK universe that also includes voice actors Joel McHale (Johnny Cage) and Jennifer Carpenter (Sonya).

• The Savage Sound Design of Mortal Kombat Legends (3:44) - This one features many of the above participants, as well as Rob McIntyre and DJ Lynch of Sound Rebels Post Production Sound Services.

• Filmmaker Commentary - Producer Rick Morales and screenwriter Jeremy Adams sit down for a candid and enthusiastic track that covers the film's early development, pitching a Daffy Duck opening gag, the background designs, MK lore, fleshing out the characters, casting voice actors, 1980s movie violence, favorite scenes, Billy Jack stunt doubles, the 1995 live-action film, Liu Kang's mullet, world- building, and much more.

• Trailers for Superman: Red Son, Wonder Woman: Bloodlines, and Batman: Hush.

Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I didn't expect much out Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge coming in blind, but this is a very well-done animated film that really seems to capture the franchise's most iconic and engaging elements. I have a feeling that die-hard MK fans will love it even more, from its solid visual design and great audio mix to the countless little Easter eggs scattered around. Warner Bros.' Blu-ray presentation is pretty damn good too, pairing a strong A/V presentation with a nice little collection of extras that all feature key members of the cast and crew. If you're like me you'll be looking forward to the next chapter, so now's a good time to get in on the ground floor. Highly recommended.