The best thing to do is to not consider it the same timeline. Raiden's actions skewed the original timeline as seen here...


Just because the timeline as we knew and loved doesn't exist, doesn't mean they won't cherry pick things here and there.

If you're speaking to the neck break specifically, it was shock value. A useless way to kill off an important character and the most crushing way for the developers to tell us that things are going to be different this time.

Yes, specifically to the neck break.

Liu returned in MKD as a zombie and Kung Lao was still human in MK9. I would have put Kung Lao in as undead from when you see him in the Netherrealm off the hop.

I hope he returns undead in MKX.

Raiden gets a lot of crap but, with the little hints his lame visions gave him, at least he was able to prevent the original Armageddon.