Our internal e-mail lists have us discussing all kinds of stuff: Asian American identity, representation in the media, the experiences of activism in an academia setting and its progression as we transition to the working, adult world. And sometimes we talk about Mortal Kombat: Legacy, the new live-action web series based on the Mortal Kombat video game franchise. The series is filmed in a darker setting, meaning no campy fighting tournaments or color palettes that use every color of the goddamn rainbow (Mortal Kombat 2, I’m talking to you), and just Seven-of-Nine as Sonya Blade and Michael Jai White from Spawn as Jax in some rough and tumble gun and fight scenes. (I’m sure we’ll have to wait until Part Three to watch them grab people with their legs and attack foes with their metal arms, respectively.)
But most importantly, the director of this series is Thai-American Kevin Tancharoen, who not only redeems himself for previously directing the movie Fame but gives us a reason to talk about both the series, the franchise, as well as an opportunity to humiliate Ernie. Read all of this, after the jump!
Moye: I know Ernie is like totally obsessed with Mortal Kombat but I just learned that the director of the new web series, Kevin is Thai. Cool, right? Basically, Ernie needs to write a new MK post.
Ernie: This comes from an inside joke where I told Moye that I loved this video game when I was 16. I am now almost 35 years old. They also cut out a scene in the new series where all the characters from Mortal Kombat BEAT A DEAD HORSE.
Moye: HAHAHA I just imagined them over a dead horse and the voice goes FINISH HIM!!! And then they just continue to beat it.
Efren: God — I’m trying to remember when I first played that game…I was….18? 19? I used to play Mileena in MK2 (the only decent game in that whole series; Kitana’s evil twin who used sais as her weapon), and could kick anybody’s ass at that game. Why the hell are they bringing up this series again 20 years after it first came out????
Moye: Probably because the new game is coming out next week. Also, Jeri Ryan needs a job. There are diehard fans of this game and most people I know (aka the people I see between the hours of 9a-7p) are super excited about anything MK related.
Edward: Sooooooooo I’m actually gonna comment on the first episode itself and say that I really like it? While fans will criticize the realist take this webisode series is taking, from the shots of Scorpion and Subzero, it seems to combine both fantastical and realistic. Although Jeri Ryan has aged TERRIBLY and she looks like a 55 year old MILF…
Efren: I suddenly had this horrible vision of Ernie in drag dressed like Kitana, fans and all. Must… rinse… eyes… out… with… bleach….
Moye: Now I’m imagining Ernie dressed up as Winnie the Pooh dressed up as Kitana.
Christine: Please tell me the is an animated gif of this to go along with the post.
Tim: What is Mortal Kombat?
