7 Mortal Kombat Characters Who Should Never Return

When you think of Mortal Kombat, icons like Scorpion, Liu Kang, Raiden, or Sonya Blade might come to mind first as legendary fighters in the series. However, with a fighting game franchise as storied as Mortal Kombat, not every combatant reached any kind of memorable status compared to returning characters. In fact, some faces from the series are so forgettable or lame that they should be lost to time rather than return.

Games like Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection allow players to look back at the series’ history, at least showing them the large roster of characters released during the arcade days. Far more fighters were added in the 3D era of Mortal Kombat, for titles like Mortal Kombat: Deception, Deadly Alliance, or Armageddon. Mortal Kombat: Armageddon still has the largest group of characters ever assembled in the franchise at 62, with some being so obscure that many wouldn’t recognize them if they came back to a modern entry.

7. Jarek

While responsible for one of the funniest arcade endings of all time in Mortal Kombat 4, Jarek is a largely inferior character compared to others. Originally, Jarek was meant to be a successor to Kano as the new leader of the Black Dragon crime syndicate. However, Jarek has always been a poor imitation, lacking the brutal quality Kano possessed while trying to copy almost everything that character did. Jarek’s fatalities were rip-offs of Kano’s in MK4, stealing his eye lasers and heart-ripping with far less flair.

Although Jarek did become more distinct in MK: Armageddon, it was far little too late. At the end of the day, Jarek is just a Kano clone, but without any of the interesting visuals that make Kano interesting, such as the latter fighter’s recognizable cybernetic eye. As Kano has evolved over the years thanks to his depiction in multiple Mortal Kombat movies, there has been less and less reasons to ever bring Jarek back beyond perhaps the occasional Easter Egg mention.

6. Mokap

Charles Golden, aka Mokap, was introduced in Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance with far more importance to that game’s story than you might expect. On its surface, Mokap is a fun idea as a motion capture actor who was transported to the brutal and gory world of Mortal Kombat. This character was originally a tribute to Carlos Pesina, the actor whose movements created Raiden in the first game. Yet, as a legitimate character, Mokap is better left in the past rather than being brought into the future.

Mokap as a fighter is mainly a compilation of multiple legacy characters, including Liu Kang, Ermac, Scorpion, and more. Magic lifts and standard fireballs doesn’t give Mokap any distinct playstyle, a trait not shared by other “gimmick” characters like Meat. It doesn’t help that Mokap’s presence in only 3D Mortal Kombat games don’t help him translate well to the modern 2D titles like Mortal Kombat 1 or any of its sequels.

5. Bo’ Rai Cho

Bo’ Rai Cho, the master of Mortal Kombat staples like Kung Lao and Liu Kang, doesn’t fight like many would expect a martial arts teacher to do. Instead of complex fighting styles, Bo’ Rai Cho vomits and farts on his opponents, causing them to get sick too throughout a battle. A drunken master idea of kung fu is somewhat interesting, as it was displayed with more speed and unpredictability in Mortal Kombat X, but the core moves this character has are somewhat disgusting.

Even for Mortal Kombat standards, seeing Bo’ Rai Cho’s vomit in high definition in a new game feels more torturous than the blood and guts from ripping characters apart. If anything, Bo’ Rai Cho’s drunken fist style would be better on its own, but too much of the character’s identity is tied to the “gross factor” that comes with their known moves. The series may have a better opportunity bringing in a new character that uses drunken fist, such as what Street Fighter 6 did with their new fighter Jamie.

4. Hsu Hao

No character is hated by Mortal Kombat‘s own developers more than Hsu Hao, with Ed Boon himself stating that him and Mavado are two of his least favorite fighters from the series. Hsu Hao is a cyborg character much like Kano, but one who works for the Red Dragon as a sabotage-specialist and manipulator of the Special Forces led by Jax and Sonya Blade. This characters distinct appearance makes him stand out, but his role has become somewhat of a joke since his debut.

Nearly every arcade ending for Hsu Hao has him die, his soul lost, or some other form of destruction with no chance at returning. This is intentional by the developers, who have a keen dislike of the character compared to other fighters. Even in games as modern as Mortal Kombat 11, Hsu Hao is seen as someone killed by Erron Black, the gunslinger who has existed for far shorter than the 3D era Red Dragon member. The more Hsu Hao is depicted as dead, the funnier the joke gets, so it’s better if he stays killed with even more Easter Eggs in the future.

3. Moloch

Known for his strength more than his intellect, Moloch is little more than a beast that seeks to destroy whatever is in front of him. This character acted as a sub-boss in Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, acting as a challenge right before the final fight of that game. This three-eyed Oni has some interesting abilities, such as self-healing and a suction breath that pulls enemies closer, but has far fewer traits that make him a fighter that players remember.

Moloch just pales in comparison to other sub-bosses that have defined the series, with many almost rivaling the final boss of the games they were in. The greatest example of this is Goro, the four-armed Shokan who preceeded Shang Tsung in the first Mortal Kombat. Other figures like Kintaro, the centaur Motaro, or even the rare fusion of Noob Saibot and Smoke have been former bosses who have returned in some capacity, but Moloch’s basic design will likely keep him from being an obstacle for players again.

2. Kai

Oftentimes, fans tend to forget Kai is as old of a character as someone like Shinnok, appearing in Mortal Kombat 4 alongside the Netherrealm boss. Kai was a fighter meant to represent the White Lotus society, the same group of Earthrealm protectors that Liu Kang and Kung Lao are a part of. Similar to the other Shaolin, Kai is a nimble character with mastery over fire, using hand stands and unique martial skills to approach combat in different ways from his peers.

With this level of individuality from the former Midway published game, you would think that Kai would take on a bigger role as time went on. Unfortunately, Kai never got much time in the spotlight, staying in the shadow of legends through cameos and Easter Eggs only. He wasn’t playable again until Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, and by then, his only other appearance was part of a side quest in MK: Deception‘s single-player Konquest mode.

At this point, there are very few reasons why Kai would be in a new Mortal Kombat game, despite his differences that make him fresh compared to other White Lotus characters. At this point, other newcomers like Kung Jin or Takeda fulfill his “high-speed fighter” archetype, so unless his fighting style went through a major overhaul, it would be strange to see Kai in a new Mortal Kombat over other characters.

1. Kobra

Although Kobra has technically made a cameo-like return as one of the multiple Ghostface guest characters in Mortal Kombat 1, the fighter has yet to come back as a full-fledged combatant. Frankly, Kobra should be low on the priority list, as his fighting style is perhaps one that fits Mortal Kombat the least out of any character made for the series. Kobra is a street fighter, a kick-boxer with moderate control over some fire attacks. However, he lacks any of the supernatural flair of other characters, making him extremely basic compared to everyone else.

Kobra’s attire is more reflective of Ken from Street Fighter, so much so that it is hard to tell both characters apart beyond Ken’s iconic red gi. As another forgettable Black Dragon member, Kobra was only seen in Mortal Kombat: Deception and Armageddon, only using basic punches and kicks to fight. Overall, Kobra is far too “normal” to be in a Mortal Kombat game filled with ninjas, cyborgs, gods, and monsters that made the franchise stand out to begin with.

Who do you think is a character that’s never coming back to Mortal Kombat? Leave a comment below or join the conversation in the ComicBook Forum!