Johnny Cage, Sonya Blade & Jax | Wasted Plotential

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#MortalKombat #JohnnyCage #SonyaBlade

[@k3lvinbr]

the problem with the jonny dying rewrite is that in that case, we would had to stick with two fucking sonia's voiced by ronda the entire game.

[@soniediganter3888]

You assume that he'd leave the cast 100% the same, when he has no issue recasting the shit actors

[@ZenKrio]

I love there "Johnny dies" idea and how it spirals into a really good story.

[@roenebula7438]

I wish Sonya met her past self wonder how they would have went about things like past Sonya probably would ridicule present Sonya for hooking up and having a child with Johnny Cage which result into both Sonya's fighting.

[@wickdaline8668]

Finally, someone else reads my mind! I know General Blade would have told Lieutenant Blade about how she feels or used to feel about Johnny for sure. Instead of Cassie lecturing her mom's past being about how Johnny's changed.

[@powerninjasuperior482]

Yeah exactly this is what should have happened and it show present Sonya can't believe her past self would say harsh things about their daughter and Johnny and they fight each other making present Sonya of course be victorious and be taught a lesson.

[@DrakeVagabond]

How would Cassie even word a report that didn't lead with Sonya being the one who gave the orders? I've written reports before, and I can't comprehend that she would leave those crucial details until the later half of a document. Especially since she would want it to be know that her mother died a hero and that she didn't abandon her.

[@MusicoftheDamned]

Clearly Cassie used the in-universe style guide, The Miser's Dramaticus, because yeah, even if it obviously pained her to think about it, there's no logical way that report wouldn't start with "Under the orders of late commanding officer Sony Blade..." or something like that. This is especially true since I'm pretty sure the Earthrealm forces weren't around for the Diabolus Ex Machina that is Kronika just undoing all the damage they did with her bullshit powers, so at the time still thought Sonya's sacrifice had actually meant something.

[@staylurking4461]

MK11 Johnny Cage past self from MK9 two different characters I swear just like Sindel.

[@masterfulwarriorplus5398]

Sonya isn't a character if her story don't revolve around Kano so I always wonder how her character will be represented if Kano not in a game with her.

[@bensonburner7037]

Her stories in 9, X and 11 don’t revolve around Kano for the most part. In 9 they don’t really interact after Chapter 2, in X they share 1 scene together and in 11 she has a fair amount of stuff to do before the two Kanos get involved.

[@nicholase82]

In MK 4 she just went after the last if the Black Dragon.

[@The4thSnake]

Whom I believe was going to be Kano originally.

[@meanz6287]

Exactly in games, comics and movies her story always revolve around Kano that's why I believe they decided to make Sonya and Johnny have a kid as a side plot for Sonya similar to what they did with Jade being in a relationship with Kotal Kahn so she don't look like she follows so much behind Kitana I love Sonya she's the first lady of Mortal Kombat but story wise always remain the same.

[@omarxperez]

@@meanz6287 and it’s sad that it took them 11 games for sonya to finally kill kano as well as time is reset now so it doesn’t fucking matter. this games story is so stupid cause we can finally move on from the rivalry between the two but sonya has nothing to do afterwards making the statement true ab her character revolving around solely kano when it shouldn’t anymore

[@GreaserMan]

Johnny went from basically being Earthrealm Champ in MKX to, as you said, literally disappearing from the story half way through MK11. Sigh.

[@TheDigitalApple]

Jax’s and Sonya’s ending in MKX should be used more often of Netherrealm introducing an idea between games and not doing anything with it!

[@machine1685]

Honestly, I would keep Jacqui and keep that Kombat Kids as a unit and the main group. By the end of MKX they all finally gained a sense of comradery and respect, so let's see it on display in MK11. Not to mention we didn't get much of Kung Jin - Jacqui interactions and Takeda - Cassie. Also, I would add Frost to the group, or atleast a new iteration of her. Have that her being replaced is what sets her off against Sub-Zero. I mean, Sub-Zero is a title that can be held by different people. Why not just say Frost is the default title of his apprentice?

[@aleanddragonITA]

I would keep Jax in the Game basically have Jacqui as a NPC that recycles Jax, Sonya and Cassie Moves

[@PandaKnightsFightingDragons]

I'm more than a little late but I feel like Kuai Liang's OG codename would make for a more appropriate default apprentice codename

[@PhillipOnTakos]

Honestly with Johnny and Sonya kinda becoming the main heroes of this timeline them being the focus of MK11 would make way more sense than focusing on past versions of characters who hadn't had a part in this trilogy in any major way aside from Liu Kang.

[@manuelpalacios9419]

My man doing magic with the characters

[@redacted2275]

My God, you've changed only minor details that resulted in a story so much better and more coherent that it makes me feel like a buffoon for liking NRS' melodramatic crap even a little... because your story is motivated by logic, NRS' story is motivated by keeping the Briggs in the game no matter what. It feels cheap now.

[@mr.checkyourself4672]

I didn't mind Sonya and Johnny Cage ever being a couple cause even in the original timeline they were hinted to be a thing which was develop from the first Mortal Kombat movie and Annihilation but I don't they don't have kids in the next timeline I'm still surprise they pulled off them having a child in a Mortal Kombat game never saw it coming.

[@jm4050]

Its funny you mentioned older Johnny getting killed, because I had an idea where they would be in a mission that involves the 2nd generation of Black Dragon (Kira, Jarek, Kabal) in alliance with Red Dragon (lead by resurrected Mavado) fighting Special Forces (which includes Takeda and Kung Jin) where Kira and Mavado kill older Johnny and Jacqui respectively. This leads to Cassie having a rivalry with Kira, Takeda having a rivalry with Mavado, and younger Johnny, seeing himself dead, eventually has to fulfill a father figure role for Cassie with little or no understanding of it. Sonya also having to follow suit.

[@wickdaline8668]

A mother and daughter duo between Sonya and Cassie is wasted potential for me. As seen in Cassie's chapter in MK11 before immediately killing Sonya off in said chapter. Just to replace her with a Sonya that Cassie never grew up with.

[@013GRM]

It’s kind of funny how you mentioned the turtles’s dumbing down, as I had recently seen a video talking about that movie and how much it seemed to looked down at it. And yeah, it tends to be very frustrating when creators try to pull that shot with past iteration. Genuine like the new direction you had. Having Johnny be the one to die and the mother and daughter be the one to work things out. Especially with the context of johnny being the one that Cassie was closer to. I can’t think of many stories where it’s the father who dies and thus the daughter and mother are the ones left . It’s usually the mother, both or it’s the son who deals with it. And the only instance with the daughter that comes to mind was not a very good one (life is strange). And yeah, kind of fucked up how after all they went through, THAT is their ending in aftermatch. WTF!?

[@VigilantKnight005]

The switching of roles would definitely make Johnny and Sonya's character arcs much better.

[@LocaltheStream]

Damn it Snake... I want this game too. You keep proving you have better vision and care for the characters then the studio who owns them

[@topcat59]

Honestly I really like the idea that pass Johnny would hold a grudge on his daughter for leaving him behind. Since that makes a lot of sense, since Johnny in the past was a complete asshole who only cared about his reputation and it took a few arcs for him to drastically change from being Hollywood boy to ground hero. It’s a shame they never implement that in the story.🐱

[@stefcannon2580]

I really like your idea for Sonya and Cassie especially!

[@mitchellalexander9162]

7:54 CYBER Sonya Blade Sounds like an AWESOME Mid Tower Boss and why the Fuck aren't the Current Writing team THIS Creative?!?!

[@KingKong-dq6kj]

Do you honestly think they give a shit? Spoiler alert: THEY DON'T

[@Xehanort10]

Since MK 11 Sonya is voiced by Ronda Rousey I'm surprised there wasn't a scene where she wanted to kill herself after losing a fight or quit the Special Forces for not blindly loving her.

[@a.a.2752]

every time i watch one of these i get a little mad because your versions are so much better it's really a shame they've got characters with a lot of untapped potential

[@Butterism]

Man, you always deliver! I was never into Mortal Kombat and my introduction was the Mortal Kombat X gameplay movie, so my impression was it was all about the Cages. You got me interested in the lore of the story and I think I've seen all your videos on this. I especially adore your wasted plotential videos. Nothing is more annoying than what could have been. It's what got me into Mortal Kombat Khronicles. Speaking of which, I'm not caught up (I read a couple of chapters here and there) but I really like your premise of Johnny being the one who dies instead of Sonya. Personality wise, old and young Johnny are pretty different people and I do enjoy a good angst and "coming-to-love-your-new-obtained-child" storyline. Any chapters on this premise? Especially the point you made where Sonya and Cassie wouldn't be close per say. As I said before, my introduction was with X and that includes the comics. (I'm a sucker for the gruff dad and child trope. It's why I love Batman and Robin, it's why I love Joel and Ellie, it's why I love Mando and the Child, and it's why I love Hanzo and Takeda. Why I picked up the comic to begin with.) So I did like the idea of it being the woman putting work/duty above her family. Though the whole thing was dropped in the game. Point is, I would love to see more of this dynamic. To finish off, here's a list of my favorite intros. They're all great, but these just have the right amount of character, burns/roasts and humor. I HIGHLY suggest y'all check out the full list if you haven't yet. And try Mortal Kombat Khronicles! Sindel: "Your mother must be stopped, Cetrion." Cetrion: "Be careful how you speak of Titans, mortal." Sindel: "I know a thing or two about women undeserving of their positions." Jade (Revenant): "Queen Kitana demands your presence at the Spire." Sindel (Revenant): "That can wait. I have other matters to attend to." Jade (Revenant): "All those years a slave and you still don't understand obedience." Kitana (Revenant): "Are you ready to join me, Mother?" Sindel: "I will not fight you, Kitana." Kitana (Revenant): "Like I didn't fight you?" Sindel: "Shao Kahn's scavenger." Kollector: "Shao Kahn's prize." Sindel: "I am nobody's prize, leech." Sindel (Revenant): "Jax enjoyed his time as a revenant." Sonya (Present): "Fuck. You." Sindel (Revenant): "Struck a nerve, have I?" Sindel: "I know you're in there, Jerrod." Ermac: "Jerrod is only a small part of us." Sindel: "The strongest part." Reptile: "I feel sorry for the Edenians." Sindel: "Why is that, Reptile?" Reptile: "Our Matriarch fought to defend her people." Sindel: "You are the one who cloned Kitana." Shang Tsung: "Mileena was my finest work." Sindel: "Is that sadness I hear, sorcerer?" Shang Tsung: "Tell me of my future, oracle." Sindel: "Shao Kahn will claim your soul to power my own." Shang Tsung: "Meaning you are not yet on my level." Sindel (Revenant): "I have had dealings with megalomaniacal control freaks before." Kronika: "You compare me to Shao Kahn!?" Sindel (Revenant): "So, you're not stupid. Just incompetent." Quan Chi: "You always were my favourite puppet." Sindel (Revenant): "Not Hanzo or Bi-Han?" Quan Chi: "Unlike them, you were always so easy to break." Tanya: "Finally ready to fight for your people?" Sindel: "I am." Tanya: "Good. Then die for them." Sindel: "You twisted the mind of your Dr. Quinzel." Joker: "Making her like me was the most fun I've had in years." Sindel: "I've no patience for men such as you." Joker: "The Blackest Night falls from the skies..." Sindel (Revenant): "What are you babbling about, jester?" Joker: "Hmph. I expected a queen to be more well-read."

[@daianspahava8279]

This actually was very interesting my man, love it. Also you think that maybe you could do Jade next cause I feel MK really went all out by making her basically a follower to kotal instead of a edenian and bodyguard that has protected her best friend kitana for years, also I think that most people in the comments like the romance but where the hell is their common sense, it’s out of nowhere and kotal is nothing but someone who’s been as bad as shao khan especially for killing bread thief’s, instead of oh taking down the remnants of shao khans forces that would be aligned with him and his ideals in mkx

[@KeyBladeMaster-Dan]

I was literally just binging some Wasted Plotential and then this popped up on my feed what perfect timing ^__^

[@jasonblundelldobebussing]

5:31 she's kinda bad tho, is that frost?

[@TheGraveKnight]

My best bet is that they didn't have any ideas on what to do with Soyna and Johnny going forward, so they killed off the Present Sonya so they could do the 'maybe Johnny/Sonya isn't so bad' idea again. At least, that's how it felt to me anyways

[@connorharnage6697]

While I do disagree with the comparisons, I understand your complaints about Vera. At least Zio in AC 3 had a relationship with Haythem and a damn good one at that. So even if we don't know the dynamic between her and Connor, we at least have some attachment due to the Haythem sections. Vera was never even mentioned until MKX and was only shown in a barely-cannonical comic. If I were NRS, I would have made Jax's wife an existing character, like Kira. You'd have to change Jackie's appearance a little but it's not like her design is that memorable to begin with. As for story, remember that throw-away line of Eren Black killing Kobra? I highly doubt two lesser Black Dragon members would he sent to Outworld so maybe Black attacks the two in Earthrelm and Jax, still reconciling with the fact that he's alive again, joins in to help. Over the next few years, with his urging, Kira leaves the Black Dragon and fall in love, eventually getting married and having this new version of Jackie Briggs. Is it bad? Yes. Does it sound like total fanfiction? Also yes. But it's better than hinging an entire character arc on a character who doesn't even make an appearance in any main game

[@Bedtryme]

You have better ideas than the games. They don’t deserve to be that deep but I DIG IT. Lol

[@yapyapthedestroyer2562]

I read some of your sindel intros, I must say good job. Really neat little detail of having revanant skins having different dialogue like in mkx, nice touch.

[@sunset1199]

Johnny is my favourite character and my main, But I would actually be willing to have him die if it means for a better plot like you explained ^^

[@Sumschmuck]

Mk 11 must've had Skyrim logic Minigun to the shoulder: perfectly fine Single bullet to the knee: crippled for life

[@louisewilson2044]

I think the Johnny dying scenario and Sonya joining Cronica could work. You may not have to get rid of Jax and have him try to get through to Sonya saying that joining Cronica isn't the answer. Given the fact both Sonya and Johnny saved Jax from himself when he was a revenant it could be a way to pay a debt by helping Sonya. Jacqui could also help Cassie in a supportive role since Cassie lost her father and her mother is in no position to help Cassie.

[@aleanddragonITA]

My take is 1)Johnny: I share the sentiment that Johnny was the one that should have died, but would also add the potential of Kronica resurrecting him when she restored the Temple (like you mentioned for Sonya) but he would be captive (or maybe She would free him to convince Present Sonya to become her double agent) so that there still can be an interaction between Past Johnny and Present Johnny 2)Present Sonya: Not only Sonya would have abbandoned Johnny but also gave him the detonator so there would be more tension between her, her Past-Self, Past-Johnny, Cassie and Raiden as that Mission would actually have more negative sides then positives... Making it basically pointless (specially because then Kronica simply undid it) She would then become Kronica double agent for Johnny's life and because she cannot trust Raiden anymore as all the BS MK9 Raiden and Dark Raiden did Because of her the 2 Johnny, Cassie, Her Past & Present herself where not able to take part in the Final Battle but the Kanos would appear revealing Sonya's Betrayal Past Sonya would fight Past Kano, Present Johnny would fight Present Kano, Cassie would fight Present Sonya and Past Johnnny could fight someone else like a NPC or someone send by Kronica to keep an eye on Present Sonya (Kanos' Deaths would be around the time of the Final Battle) in Aftermath Shang Tsung & Fujin would simply says to Sonya that Johnny is now alive so she doesn't need to serve Kronica, they could even reveal that the plan failed and caused Johnny's Death because of Kronica So they would be in the Final Battle with the Kanos that may also have an Easter Egg about Kano having a potential opening to take down Kronica and become SnowBlind's King Kano as Aftermath was done after SnowBlind 3)Present Jax: Jax would have obtained a New Model of Cybernetics Arms that increase their Strength through his will power but because they are prototypes and because Jax's Will would start to waver after his Wife's Death and The Fear that Jacqui may become dependent on Cybernetic Upgrades then the Arms would become weaker He would be around during the Mission and would have tried to save Johnny via lifting the Rubbles but because of his Depression then he failed And this caused his depression to reach the critic point and quit, he would return after being confronted by his past self and being inspired by his younger & more hopefull self into returning into action 4)Jacqui: Jacqui i would keep her as NPC (or as a Playable Character but that's not in the Main Roster) via reusing Jax, Sonya and Cassie Moves 5)Takeda: also NPC/Non-Main(-Semi)-Playable Character that's for the story 6)Kung Jin: He would take Jacqui's Slot in the Main Roster and be in the story

[@skeletor4436]

Would be great for past Sonya and present Sonya to get some kind of interaction about Johnny with past Sonya being disgusted at her and Johnny being a thing and present Sonya assuring that Johnny gets better maybe something similar to what Cassie said with the "he grew up"

[@Kaius.]

babe wake up new wasted plotential dropped

[@nabilahmed579]

Your idea of Johnny being the one to be hard on Cassie letting her mother die or JC is way more better. His arrogance and lack of inexperience in the military would defo work well for his character development. Considering how Sonya is a military soilder of high-rank, she should’ve been approaching way more mature and professional

[@CalciumChief]

0:59 Yeah, this is so stupid. We establish this "green glow" Cages apparently have in what seems like a way to establish new chamption(s) of Mortal Kombat, but nope. We just default back to Liu Kang, only now he's got Ultra Instinct. And does Liu Kang keep Raiden's memories? Guess now, cause Raiden tells him he will advise for as long as he can, but this makes for a pretty bad ultimate being as Liu Kang is what, 24? Even if he keeps the memories of his revenant self, I don't see that helping much.

[@rcblazer]

I think everyone I have ever seen talk about MK11's story has gone into detail why past Sonya's story arc is so poorly written, and I have to agree with them all. It's like Netherrealm knew casting Rhonda Rousey was a mistake, so they tried to avoid giving her anything complicated to work with.

[@billmcdermott9647]

Your intro ideas are excellent

[@MusicoftheDamned]

10:20 = Of course Kung Jin's mother is dead. His coming out killed her. /s (Not that I would be surprised to learn this is true knowing Netherrealm Studios.) Speaking of the Kombat Kids, it's a shame that Jacqui is basically so boring that the most notable thing about her is she's a "Tier-induced Scrappy". Two whole games with her and about the only thing we find out about her as an individual person is wanting to join the military against her father's wishes despite her love for him...and that's it. Everything else we find out about her is either generic sass or in relation to someone else, i.e. Cassie, Jax, Takeda, etc. Ugh. What happened with all of the Kombat Kids save for Cassie is even more of a waste than not having gone this route story-wise, even if Jennifer Hale's voice acting talent likely would have still been utterly wasted on the utter waste that is Kronika.

[@justnubz]

“Read the full report lieutenant” Ok *reads full report “I reread the files”. Would have been nice

[@maggotcupcakes5458]

This is going to be good

[@pious83]

Let's be honest, Jax has always been marred by wasted plotential.

[@YouWantIt1Way]

woah Jax is fun to play in MK 11

[@sortofrican]

Even though this is just a concept idea, it goes hard af

[@prodigal_rebel_2062]

1:25 Kerri Hoskins (Who played Sonya in MK3-MKG) would also have been a better choice than Ronda or heck even Bridgette Wilson for that matter.

[@humaneshadow300]

@Trevor White Maryke Hendrikse would be best pick or Lisa Ann Beley maybe Tabitha St Germain

[@soupermoviecritic8511]

Rhonda’s voice acting was just pure horrendous. They should’ve never hired her in the first place and how many hertz the character but the brand itself. But NRS does a great job doing that to them selves.

[@MilestheDirtyMindedGoblin2099]

Honestly true, it just has no emotion and is bland

[@wintersoldier164]

I think we should get tekeda and jaqui wedding

[@darthceasar3690]

ngl i would tear up if the story has kronika offer sonya a life where her husband that bring goof to her life alive and more time with her daughter.

[@TheAuthorStudios]

This kinda shows a big issue with Fighting Games in general: Fan-favourite characters need to return, but often have nothing to do in the story So you either go the MK route and give them an underwhelming and mostly pointless role, like Jax Or go the other way and just don't have them in the story, like half the cast of Guilty Gear Strive. Neither options are really good.

[@darthmisogyny3828]

Like Soul calibur 5 and get rid of alot of fan favorites like Taki for a new generation of characters only to flop lol

[@darthmisogyny3828]

@PlanetCheat also not wait too damn long to retire new characters. I agree with Tekken doing it right especially the 3 year gap between T2 and T3 helped alot. SF3 suffered the same issue by getting rid of the the Sf2 fighters for new characters years after the Sf2 characters built a solid fanbase

[@redacted2275]

Jax is not a fan favorite, he's NRS writers' favorite.

[@fatalwaffle1715]

Cool Video.

[@desrochessimon3044]

Can you imagine a conversation between Sonya and her past self?

[@humaneshadow300]

Both complain about Johnny cage 😂 and her present self defending Johnny sometimes her past self still had hard time opening up.

[@DaPhenomAce]

If 4thsnake ever makes a MK short film or comic, the story will be amazing

[@TevyaSmolka]

I was happy Johnny cage and Sonya blade became a married couple and having there kid was really awesome and badass.

[@tristanchriesmon1056]

Since kronika reversed time and restored the bone temple wouldn't that make Sonya alive?

[@theshogunblaze3656]

you should’ve added Stryker to this one, i honestly believe he should be retconned to be apart of the special forces somewhat similar to his MK Legacy counterpart

[@nabilahmed579]

We don’t need anymore characters being forced into that boring group. Stryker and kabal works well as police SWAT team which can expand into storylines such as order and freedom, which can bring in chaosrealm and orderrealm

[@theshogunblaze3656]

@@nabilahmed579 I doubt they’ll retcon kabal back into the police force, why would a former terrorist be allowed to be on the SWAT team in the 1st place? Maybe expanding the special forces beyond just a Jax and Sonya wouldn’t be ‘boring’ and as much as I liked Kurtis when I was younger, a police officer as a fighter is pretty boring

[@nabilahmed579]

@@theshogunblaze3656 I mean, they did put Johnny and kenshi into special forces who are way cooler than Stryker considering they have more powers. I do agree with retconning kabal at that point in mk11 to swat officer next game would be stupid. It would only work in mk9 which is what I was referring to in my original reply

[@theshogunblaze3656]

@@nabilahmed579 what’s one more character? imo he can be retconned to be more of a gadget/tech/intelligence character instead of a traditional cop… Erron black is pretty much his replacement when it comes to be a gun specialist, besides he probably hasn’t come back since police brutality is such a decisive topic nowadays

[@goldenhorse4823]

As someone who never played MK and only watched your videos I agree

[@SoulReaper2367]

Another wasted potential video i like it mate

[@tsorome7913]

Honestly I wouldn’t mind seeing johnny cage as main character of the story cause mortal kombat 9 and 10 gave us a glimpse on how powerful Johnny can be would be interesting fresh take

[@tristenwade1262]

Tbh, the timeline was going to rewind anyways so having johnny cage dying wouldn’t be a bad thing! I mean, its not the first time he’s died lmao

[@MSGSlayer1]

5:31--🤗

[@humaneshadow300]

I swear sometimes I would wish that wb and nrs hired you as a writer

[@frederickdawson2253]

Could you do the potential and wasted potential to Takeda? I feel like netherrealm really dropped the ball with him... With him only being in MKX he's the most beloved ad unique of the combat kids... Neitherrealm really created a diamond accidentally ad threw it away

[@RyomaHoshi22]

You know what confused me. How dose Past Sonya appear when present Sonya is dead?

[@ShockwaveFPSStudios]

4:16 Wow you actually got it right this time instead of showing clips of Wanted Bebop & Rocksteady where they were compitent.

[@zombieslayer8234]

“Get woke” -Jax and will we get a wasted plotential for Call of duty zombies? (Is what I meant to say)

[@The4thSnake]

What do you think THIS was?

[@Megacharzardx]

Just wondering if your going to do the restructuring of the story mode like you did for mk9 cause I really liked that video and would like to see it for the injustice franchise

[@alex_-yz9to]

> All the weird shit in this game This is what happens when they put people who dont understand the diffetrnce between "M for mature" works and "Mature, Rated M" works. Its easy to just mention some Fucked up shit in dialogue but its hard for it to actually have an effect or... shock of all shock an effect an actual purpose in the plot!

[@dozzy9984]

About what you said with Sonya replacing Jax, I would go further - have her detest working alongside Kano, to the point that it's not Raiden who talks reason into her, but Kano who tries to kill Cassie nearby (or even better, have Raiden be wrong about about Cassie ceasing to exist if either of her past parents die and have both Kanos trying to kill Cassie and past Sonya, with Sonya choosing to save Cassie, dying soon after past Sonya gets killed, making it a sacrifice to save her daughter - but that would only work if NRS would be consistent with the rules of time merger outside of two birds one stone rule, because if Cassie should cease to exist after eiher of past parents die, then that should also mean that revenants should gradually become less dead and more good as the story progresses, to the point that they all would become alive when Kitana killed Shao Kahn). Overall if they would be consequential with changes to the past characters influencing all present ones, instead of just present self and immediete family, then it would be a cool concept seeing how Kronika gradually loses all her allies but Geras and Cetrion, due to changes those characters experience or cause during the story (like how Shao Kahn's death should unrevenant revenants). Also, replace Kollector with D'vorah and give his roster spot to Triborg (that would have 3/4 3 slot presets that would change him into either of 4 borgs) and have Cyber SubZero in story and when Shao dies present one gets cybernetized as revenants get unrevenanted, then during final battles have him rewire Frost and her army to be under his control, instead of frying her brain. That would be so karmatic to her and cathartic for him. And I know that stuff like Shao Kahn dying would have so much more consequences that should pretty much revive Shinnok (because I doubt they would attack when Earthrealm is at their strongest with almost no hero dying), leaving Kronika happy and disappearing. Honestly, the whole only one Raiden rule should pretty much revive Shinnok (especially if he knows that decapitating him makes Kronika take action), but let's say it's his godhood that causes what his present self did to stay.

[@insanemakaioshin]

A lot of MKX's Ladder endings would've made a better MK11, like Raiden invading Outworld & Johnny learning about Edenian Longevity.

[@chriswilson7288]

Gawd how NRS didn't have a intro about a bullet to the knee man ugh nice one .

[@yunehversomi1458]

One can’t help but wonder what the Red Dragon is actually doing throughout all of this. Their rival gang is actively helping some time wizard reset the world. I know they’re just used to keep Kenshi or Takeda conveniently out of the picture and likely don’t have objectives or motives currently but what if they did.

[@HunterForHire422]

I kinda forgot past Johnny was supposed to be an asshole given how little he does in the story.

[@Fox2000xx]

NRS should take notes

[@kdera7698]

This guy can make every story good, no matter how shit they are.

[@Matt620]

I wouldn't say "truer" to the characters. I would say it brings out a depth to the characters we would've never seen. Cassie becomes a goddamn tragic hero, and Sonya's fall to Kronika makes perfect sense. It even ties in to that adorable "guest fighters" spot for MKX

[@ShadowSearcher31]

If there is one newcomer I’d remove from the mk11 roster I’d have it be Kollector, he literally serves no purpose than to be a generic goon, it’d also fill up the roster for another character to rejoin or to have a new character that’s interesting. Kotal used to be a general, so why not add more people with proper military rank to outworld. You can also have the netherrealm have that one good character who stands out, like kitana and Bo Rai Cho are to outworld. You can also explore the previously unexplored realms like orderrealm, chaosrealm, or Vaeternus(hell, I didn’t know Vaeternus existed before looking it up). Maybe re-add khameleon, since she was in the 2010s timeline via an intro reference, or Meat/any joke character and make them legit characters. TLDR: there is so much you could’ve done than make kollector playable

[@newnamek96]

Quick question. Does sindel still have her shang tsung power up from 2011? Did she lose it when she died or did it not go away? I know she was already naturally powerful.

[@nabilahmed579]

She lost it when she was revenant but it’s completely unexplained in aftermath

[@newnamek96]

@@nabilahmed579 makes sense.....she was beatable in aftermath

[@windwind3170]

I know that this is a nitpick, but Jax is a widower not a widow.

[@joroa7151]

I usually think you are too nitpicky and overthinking MK too much, but I really liked this video. Fantastic analisys and suggestions for story tweeks and I think MK11 would have been leagues better if they went with your version here. GJ!

[@spiderverse616]

5:33 I wonder who you would of replaced d'vorah with

[@OgIKidd]

What's funny to me is that this video, in a round about way, highlighted a bigger problem with MK11's plot before you even get to the characterizations.... If Dark Raiden is erased and replaced with the past version of himself, then why isn't everyone else? Why do Cassie and Jaqui even still exist in the plot? If Raiden is supposed to be one of the characters who can exist outside of time, then shouldn't he be just unaffected by the shenanigans entirely? Especially when you consider that he can, on a minimal level, affect the events of time by communicating with himself. It almost seems like a better plot for MK11 would've been Raiden going full tyrant (duh), and finding a way to pick off the Elder Gods, with the remaining survivors being Cetreon, Kronica, Geras, and (technically) Shinnok as a suffering head. Have Raiden even pick off remaining MK legacy characters indiscriminately across realms. Which would force the game's roaster to choose sides and form alliances more naturally. In turn giving a real reason for Kronica to actually HAVE to use her time abilities to bring back characters from not just the past, but a point when they were in their absolute prime to have the best chance at stopping a Raiden that's found a way to juice himself up. It would also stop Raiden from bolstering his numbers with Revenants and Cyborgs. As a counter, Raiden uncovers the ability to grant "mortals" a similar temporary God status that he had before turning himself into an Elder God. That way they can at least be unaffected by time like he is. The caveat among the living characters being that their present selves, and potentially their loved ones will be wiped from time if they volunteer to have their past self brought forward. So we're not just getting Shao Kahn or Sindel back, we're getting versions of them that we've never actually seen before. Likewise, this could retroactively plug some holes with regards to how and why certain characters could conceivably beat others. Everyone is at their absolute best from across the entire timeline.

[@MilestheDirtyMindedGoblin2099]

Very good comment

[@tobiaswalker7562]

Snake, Netherealm NEEDS to hire you! That's the easiest way to put it!

[@spiderverse616]

I think you dark raiden and revenant idea could still work in your mkk but with a few changes like shinnok could beat fujin into a coma leaving dark raiden to kill shinnok, saving earth realm in place of cassie unless you want cassies arch to be closed with her deafting shinnok ethier way raiden gathers allies like scorpion but in this story he'd be on his side for another reason and others then going to outworld and challenging kotal to mortal kombat and liu kang can kill raiden and take his soul becoming fire god revenant liu kang

[@razorback9999able]

Can you do wasted plotentials of other games like StarCraft II? There are some factions that have wasted potentials like the Kel'Morian Combine and the Protoss pre-LOTV.

[@justnubz]

Her response to her death: “Son of a Witch, seriously?” U apathetic monster

[@christianrapper]

Yep, drop the black characters. Sure.

[@WolffyRay117]

Tbh the dj that has the sub zero skin isn't even that bad in my opinion, he does an alright job

[@greg_tre4rockstar]

Hey 4thsnake honestly It would be cool if you to pulled a Kronika and erased Mortal this Kombat 11 story from existence and create what you and all of us wanted Mortal Kombat 11 to be in the first😂😂!!!

[@The4thSnake]

That's what the Raiden and Revenants episode was.

[@greg_tre4rockstar]

@@The4thSnake OH CRAP I THINK I MAY HAVE MISSED THAT EPISODE😓. My bad Imma go look for it now😅😅

[@noey4560]

Is this Rob Ager? Rob you’re doing VG stories now?

[@vadandrumist1670]

There is one thing I object to, and that is in the beginning where you say Sonya's death makes the events of MK 10 feel pointless. I would say them getting back together at the end of 10 is payoff enough, and the fact that they're still in a relationship in the time of MK 10 does mean that reestablished bond mattered for as far as it got. I mean, just imagine if she lived through 11, but we find out in chapter one that she was again at odds with Johnny. Now that would make 10 pointless. Rather, her death was the next setup that was ultimately botched and rendered truly pointless by the time reset. We can't be afraid to kill characters out of a sense of nihilism, or else all we'll have are characters who can never die, and characters who only exist to die.

[@hugoheavens9863]

Yeah it was never right that Sonya was the one to die largely due to the reasons you stated but also SHE was the one to develop into a good caring mother by the end of MKX while Johnny always had been that. So to kill off Sonya before we really got to see her development, apart from being with Johnny again was a bad call. With Johnny dead we could see Sonya take her development in MKX to the extreme by siding with the villian to try protect Cassie, AS WELL as to try return things to how they should be.

[@dagoss1]

Jax was fun to play wym😢

[@christianrapper]

That’s a younger version of Sonya. I don’t get the problem with the plot line.

[@parrisxsummers]

Not trying to remove the only 2 black characters…

[@The4thSnake]

Removing boring characters. Why are you always trying to make it about race?

[@cepugaming2534]

Wait, how past kano been shot and present kano dead but present sonya dead and past sonya still alive?

[@bensonburner7037]

…because past Kano is from the past and present Sonya is from the present. If something happens in the present it’s not going to affect the past.

[@micah459]

Jax and Jaqui were definitely wasted in this story to the point where I honestly didn't even want them in the game

[@bensonburner7037]

0:33 Sorry but this is incredibly stupid. Just because a character dies doesn’t mean the development they had beforehand doesn’t matter. That’s like saying Darth Vader’s development in Return of the Jedi is worthless because he dies at the end. So stupid

[@SuperBrunout]

Agreed

[@pokemonrampagemake]

It would not be a problem if the build up and death happen in one story, it’s an issue here because there is a long pause between games followed by a very early death, which means that there was no reason to build anticipation in fans

[@bensonburner7037]

@@pokemonrampagemake Also a stupid sentiment

[@pokemonrampagemake]

@@bensonburner7037 In what way exactly? MKX set up a strong foundation for the relationship, but it still did not show the relationship of Cassie and Sonya developing all that much, so when Sonya dies that development is cut short Build up should be followed by payoff, but the payoff was missing in MK11 and it was easy to include anyway, a moment where we see the whole family working together well would have been enough before killing Sonya, because it would show how close the family grew in the two years since they got back together There is nothing wrong with killing off characters, but there is something wrong with killing them off for a less satisfying story than with them alive