History WesternAnimation / MortalKombatDefendersOfTheRealm

* CrossThrough: "Resurrection" is the third part of a four-part storyline aired on November 16, 1996 about a "Warrior King" chasing down a powerful MacGuffin through four (otherwise unrelated) USA Network Saturday morning cartoons. Two notes regarding this: unlike the other three parts, this episode features ''only'' the MacGuffin, with the Warrior King himself only appearing as an unexplained shadow for all of five seconds; and the American ''WesternAnimation/StreetFighter'' cartoon was one of the other four cartoons in the storyline, making this the closest the two DuelingGames have ever come to interacting.
* CruelMercy: In episode 9, rather than finishing Shang Tsung, Raiden chooses to spare him... so that he can face Shao Kahn's wrath.

* HatePlague: In "The Secret of Quan Chi", a boy pulls out a gem that temporarily causes most of the heroes to yell at each other.

* MissionControl: Nightwolf serves this role for the heroes.

* RememberTheNewGuy: Stryker, Nightwolf and the younger Sub-Zero are treated as if they've always been there despite not being in the first movie.

* GirlinessUpgrade: In most Mortal Kombat incarnations Sonya is portrayed as a tough-as-nails career soldier for whom the mission always comes first. In this series she is portrayed as much more stereotypically feminine, at one point making a facial pack and complaining that she has to hang out with men all the time.

* Chickification: In most Mortal Kombat incarnations Sonya is portrayed as a tough-as-nails career soldier for whom the mission always comes first. In this series she is portrayed as much more stereotypically feminine, at one point making a facial pack and complaining that she has to hang out with men all the time.

* Chickification: In most Mortal Kombat incarnations Sonya is portrayed as a tough-as-nails career soldier for whom the mission comes first. In this series she is portrayed as much more stereotypically feminine, at one point making a facial pack and complaining that she has to hang out with men all the time.

* AdaptedOut: Johnny Cage, Kung Lao, Mileena, Sindel, Jade, Noob Saibot[[note]]Unless you count his appearance as the older Sub-Zero in a flashback to the first movie[[/note]], Goro, Kintaro, Chameleon and Khameleon. Baraka and Reptile are also this to a lesser extent.

* DownerEnding: Due to the series' cancellation after one season. [[spoiler: Outworld is in chaos with Shao Kahn gone ''(but there is a very good chance that he'll return anyway)'', Kitana's rebellion to restore Edenia fails, and there is no indication whatsoever that Earthrealm's invasions will stop.]]

* EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses: Princess Kitana. She is one of the heroes who is trying to stop Shao Kahn.

* ForgotAboutHisPowers: Many characters seem to neglect certain abilities.
** At the beginning of "Old Friends Never Die", Stryker uses his gun in target practice, but he never uses it in actual kombat.

** Ermac also never uses any special moves in "Abandoned".

* TheGodsMustBeLazy: Shao Kahn and Outworld decided to break the rules of the Mortal Kombat and take over Earth Realm despite losing the tournament. This should mean that the Elder Gods should smite Kahn and Raiden should destroy any of his forces that try to enter Earth Realm. Instead, Outworld is allowed to repeatedly attempt to invade without consequence and Raiden tells the Defenders that it's their job to protect their realm, with him only occasionally helping.
* GoshDarnItToHeck: It's pretty obvious what the "Realm of No Return" is [[{{Hell}} supposed to be]], which adds levels of horror whenever somebody gets banished there by Raiden. Thinking about it, using the official term of Netherrealm would have been acceptable, but likely the name was not canon by then.

* InformedFlaw: In "Acid Tongue" Jax loses his cybernetic arms and repeatedly acts like he's weak and useless without them. This is despite the fact that he's still the most musclebound member of the team and was capable of climbing up a mountainside with his bare hands.

''Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm'', also known as ''Mortal Kombat: The Animated Series'', is an AnimatedAdaptation of the ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' games. It aired on the Creator/USANetwork's USA Cartoon Express animation block from September to December 1996.

* LighterAndSofter: This series tones down the violence considerably.

* GoshDarnItToHeck: It's pretty obvious what the "Realm of No Return" is [[{{Hell}} supposed to be]], which adds levels of horror whenever somebody gets banished there by Raiden.

**

* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Komodai and Karbrac for Reptile and Baraka, respectively, to the point where "Karbrac" is almost a total anagram for "Baraka".

** In the Liu Kang vs. Sub-Zero scene in this series, Kitana sported her outfit from the series, and Sub-Zero (the elder) was finished by Liu Kang throwing a water bucket to him, [[HoistByHisOwnPetard freezing him]]. In the first movie, Kitana wore a different outfit, and Liu Kang finished Sub-Zero by throwing said water bucket to him, but [[spoiler:the water became a big spearhead, and nailed Sub-Zero to the wall ''and then'' got himself frozen]].

* TeamPet: Kiba, Nightwolf's wolf. He serves this role for the heroes whenever he doesn't merge into Nightwolf.

* CanonForeigner: Asgaarth (a bird-man from Edenia), Oniro (Grand master of the Lin Kuei), Ruby (red female ninja and possible {{Expy}} of Jade), Kiba (Nightwolf's pet wolf) and Zara (Kitana's mortal enemy).

* FlatCharacter: Cyrax and Sektor. They don't much of a personality.

** The only ability Kabal is ever shown using is his Nomad Dash. We never see him use his Plasma Blast, Ground Saw, or even his hookswords.

* FusionDance: The few times Nightwolf enters kombat himself, he will magically merge with his pet wolf Kiba and open a can of whoop-ass on the enemies. This happens exactly twice in the whole series. Why the others keep him in front of a computer screen all the time is unknown.

* {{Hypocrite}}: In "Acid Tongue", Sonya criticized Jax for valuing brawn over brains, even though her favorite fighting tactic is rush blindly into battle while screaming "Kombat Time!"

* CruelMercy: In episode 9, rather than finishing Shang Tsung, Raiden chooses to spare him... so that he can face Shao Khan's wrath.

* TheGodsMustBeLazy: Shao Khan and Outworld decided to break the rules of the Mortal Kombat and take over Earth Realm despite losing the tournament. This should mean that the Elder Gods should smite Khan and Raiden should destroy any of his forces that try to enter Earth Realm. Instead, Outworld is allowed to repeatedly attempt to invade without consequence and Raiden tells the Defenders that it's their job to protect their realm, with him only occasionally helping.

* InformedFlaw: In "Acid Tongue" Jax loses his cybernetic arms and repeated acts like he's weak and useless without them. This is despite the fact that he's still the most musclebound member of the team and was capable of climbing up a mountainside with his bare hands.

* LeaderWannabe: Stryker regularly acts as if he's the team commanding officer and . The team's chain of command, if any, is never established in the show and the others repeatedly tell Stryker he has no authority over them.

* MildlyMilitary: Sonya and Jax, both former Special Forces, regularly act like mavericks, particular Sonya, while Stryker, a former riot cop, acts like a military commander.

->''"Much has changed since the last Mortal Kombat tournament. Dark forces of Outworld have begun invading the Earthrealm. These attacks are seriously weakening Earth's dimensional fabric, enabling not only outworlders to enter the Earthrealm, but warriors from other domains as well. Only the most extraordinary warriors can possibly meet this challenge: Liu Kang, Princess Kitana, Sub-Zero, Jax, Sonya Blade, Nightwolf, Kiba, Kurtis Stryker. Driven by purpose and bound by honor, these are the Defenders of the Realm."''

-->'''Scorpion:''' By all the powers of '''evil''', I will not rest until I have my revenge!

* AdaptationalVillainy: Scorpion. True, he's no saint in the games, but is more neutral if anything. Here? His very first line in the show makes it clear what team he's playing on:

* AdaptationPersonalityChange: Sonya is generally depicted as a serious, no-nonsense character in the games. Here, she's very prone to making quips and poking at people.

* AdaptedOut: Johnny Cage, Kung Lao, Mileena, Sindel, Jade, Noob Saibot, Goro and Kintaro. Baraka and Reptile are also this to a lesser extent.

* CompositeCharacter: Stryker has a couple of personality traits from Johnny Cage, who is absent from this cartoon.

** During the flashback to Liu's battle with the elder Sub-Zero, Kitana appears in her look from this series rather than the tank top and pants she wore in the movie.

* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler: Shang Tsung, as he was killed off in the climax of the first movie.]]

** Another Liu Kang kill that was softened for the cartoon was [[spoiler:Shang Tsung]]. Sure, he's still reduced to a skeleton upon defeat, but one: he just turns into bones, instead of actually emaciating, and two: [[spoiler:the bed of spikes where Tsung landed in the movie is absent]].

* DeadpanSnarker: Raiden.

* GoshDarnItToHeck: It's pretty obvious what the "Realm of No Return" is [[{{Hell}} supposed to be]], which adds levels of FridgeHorror whenever somebody gets banished there by Raiden.

---> '''Sonya''': ''What's that sleaze doing here?''
---> '''Jax''': ''Seems like he's putting a ''chill'' on the invasion''.

* AdaptedOut: Johnny Cage (notable, as he was one of the movie's protagonists, and yet not a trace of him is found in this quasi-sequel), Kung Lao, Mileena, Sindel, Jade, Noob Saibot, Goro and Kintaro. Also Baraka and Reptile, after a fashion (a good part of the Tarkatan army looks like the former - including a field commander called Karbrac, a near-rearrangement of Baraka - , and the latter is represented by an entire tribe of saurian green-clad ninjas).

* AmbiguouslyGay: [[ScaryBlackMan Jax]], of all people. [[HoYay He calls Raiden]] ''[[HoYay girlfriend]]'' on at least one occasion, his first response to defending Sub-Zero is [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial "Hey I don't want to]] ''[[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial marry]]'' [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial the guy!"]], and [[BerserkButton flips his lid]] when you call him "blubber butt".

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