Official KITANA Thread (long first post)
Official KITANA Thread (long first post)
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posted11/02/2008 06:48 PM (UTC)by
Member Since
02/19/2004 05:54 PM (UTC)
What's all this then?
I was bored and figured I'd hop on the "Official character x Thread" bandwagon and make one about one of the characters that I have an unhealthy obsession with....
Kitana
Those who know me probably won't be surprised that this is an absurdly long post that goes on at great length. Hey, I made one on Sareena a while back...only fair I did one on Kitana, eh? Basically, I'm going rant about my thoughts and opinions on Kitana's progress throughout the years.
Feel free to chime in with yours.
Mortal Kombat II
Kitana made a pretty impressive splash in her MKII debut. She stood out for me in a very big way for quite a few reasons. At the time female characters in fighting games was still something of a novelty, and Sonya didn't impress me in the first one. Kitana was hot...well, Katalin Zamiar was hot, (take that people who say "Oh, how can a pixelated character be hot"). The blue bathing-suit, the legs, long jet-black hair....okay, I'll move on.
And the fans. It's easy to forget because it's become a trademark, but those were bad ass. Just thought that was so cool. She fought with fans....FANS....but they had knives in them and shit and she could fuck you up with them. I also loved her victory pose...she takes a bow with them. Just something so cool and bad ass about that. A sexy assassin with fans who takes a bow after she fucks someone up. Too cool for school.
And of course, the big thing that endeared her to be: her story. I remember being very intrigued by her in MKII. She was introduced as one of Shao Kahn's personal assassins...eg: a bad guy....but they suggest she might be up to something. Sold me. Then you find out her deal in her ending: as she was working as Kahn's assassin she learned that he had actually killed her real parents, taken over her realm, and raised her as his own daughter. And of course, that Mileena was actually a clone meant to replace her.
That by itself makes Kitana's story a lot stronger than a lot of the other characters in the series. Evil characters turning good has been kind of overdone in MK, but Kitana was the first to do it. She's raised by Shao Kahn to be his daughter and loyal assassin....serves him for thousands of years....only to find out it's all a lie. And even though this is the only life she's ever known, she decides to turn against Kahn (pretty much joining the losing side in Outworld) and vows to restore her home world. Whether out a strong sense of justice or revenge...or feeling betrayed that she'd been lied to her whole life and that Kahn tried to replace her with a clone despite years of loyal service...or overwhelming guilt over the fact she'd been killing people in the name of the man who destroyed her home....or likely all of the above.
Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
And from here we go into MK3. Supposedly she and the other ninja characters were supposed to appear, but time ran out or they figured they could make more money by releasing an expansion...but regardless, Kitana wasn't completely absent from MK3, making little cameos in Liu Kang and Sindel's endings. Anyway, she did appear for real in UMK3, this time portrayed by Becky Gable. In retrospect, the outfit they had Kitana wearing probably didn't really suit her...but at the time, being twelve years old, I didn't mind all that much. Only thing was the bun. I hate that damn hair bun. Some will argue it makes sense to keep her hair tied up during battle...but that's why this is a fantasy. Kitana and the other female character are so cool, they can fight even with absurdly long hair flying around.
Gameplay-wise, Kitana took a step down in UMK3. I suppose it's not that surprising considering she was beast in MKII...they probably thought they had to tone her down. I'm not familiar with the tier-lists, but despite being toned down, Kitana still wasn't a terrible character. I still liked her. Too bad her Fatalities blew. That's one thing that's hindered Kitana through the years. Ever since MKII, she hasn't had very stirring or memorable finishing moves....except for maybe her Monty Python killer rabbit Animality.
Story-wise though, Kitana was going strong here. She had a lot going at this time. She herself was in trouble for killing Mileena and on the run from assassins Kahn sent after her. Among them, Jade. She also was trying to get to her brainwashed mother Sindel and turn her against Kahn and she might have also been tied with Rain. And there was Mileena who was resurrected, although we don't know for certain if they actually ran into each other at this time.
I liked the thing with Sindel. When it was just MK3, I liked the idea of her having a feud with Kitana. Nice fairy-tale element, the evil step-mother and her daughter. Course, we find out that Sindel is actually Kitana's real mother and that she really isn't evil. Nevertheless, Kitana and her mum did have a confrontation, which ended with Sindel being freed from Kahn's hold over her. Even though they don't say it, I like to think that this was indeed crucial to Shao Kahn's defeat at Liu Kang's hands. Not just because as a Kitana fan, I can therefore say "See, my favorite character did do something important." But also from a storytelling standpoint...that plot point should be crucial to the storyline.
It's nice that Kitana got a little happy ending to her saga with Sindel, but in retrospect, considering how little has been done with Sindel since, maybe it would've been better if they kept that going and developed it into an actual feud. Oh well.
Things also pan out well with Jade who proves to be a loyal friend. I like the friendship between Jade and Kitana, though I wish there was some more developement to it. We can hypothesize why Jade means a great deal to Kitana and why she valus her as a friend...Jade perhaps being the only thing in Kitana's life that wasn't a lie created by Shao Kahn. But we still know very little about Jade's side of the equation. But that's more of a Jade discussion.
We also don't know for sure how things turned out with Rain. We assume Kitana turned him against Kahn, but we don't know what happened from there. There's also the popular speculation that Rain has some kind of crush on Kitana although this has never been stated in the games. I always liked the idea and wouldn't mind if it became an actual factor. Adds some drama to the otherwise dull romance with Liu Kang and also consider that in Armageddon we see Rain is evil and going around telling people he's a Prince of Edenia.
Movies, TV shows, and other Media
I don't know if I'm a minority, but I've never been real keen on Kitana's portrayal in outside the games. Sure Talisa Soto was hot and granted in MK1, it make sense that her character would be very mysterious and not have a lot of attention given to her...but beyond that, they never really delved into what makes Kitana interesting.
Namely, that she was once genuinely loyal to Shao Kahn. They either ignore it or act as though it never happened...which leaves Kitana as little more than a very dull archetype: the noble princess. In Defenders of the Realm, I was always hoping for an episode that would involve Mileena or someone to appear and tell the other good guys that Kitana was lying to them about herself and that she was once a loyal assassin for Shao Kahn (those who read my Kitana fan fic may remember I ended up doing that scene myself). But no. Those hopes were dashed to pieces when I saw an episode that flashed back to when Kahn conquered Edenia and they showed a fully grown Kitana watching the whole thing. Damn it!
Two things I blame the TV shows and comics and stuff for are the misonceptions that 1) Kitana's loyalty to Shao Kahn only the result of some magic spell and 2) Kitana is just a typical boring princess archetype. Not only would the whole spell thing really not make a whole lot of sense, it also cheapens Kitana's story on many levels. As I said earlier, what makes Kitana's story really worth a damn, is that she was raised to be an evil, cold-blooded killer. However upon learning the truth about her past, she changed herself and became a good person. That's what makes her interesting and a developed character. What a spell does is eliminate that developement in exchange for cheap grade-school logic. It shallows Kitana's character and her story. "No, I was never evil...it was allllll just a spell."
Mortal Kombat 4/Gold
Not unlike what happened in MK3, Kitana was actually supposed to be in MK4. But this time she was left out because they felt there weren't enough new characters. So they altered her appearance a bit and made her Tanya (I wonder though, were Tanya's moves like the Flipping Split Kick and the Drill Kick meant to be Kitana's moves, or did they think of those after?). And again like in MK3, although Kitana wasn't on the roster, her presence was still felt in the story. While it was disappointing that Kitana was left out of the game, it actually might have been better. I like Tanya as a character and I remember being worried after reading Liu Kang's bio...where he attempts to rescue Kitana, but fails....that she might be dead.
Fortunately, Kitana was not and she appeared in Liu Kang's ending. This of course is where the idea of Kitana and Liu Kang being in love...which was first introduced in the movies...became part of the game's canon. I was furious about this when I first saw it. I'm not the biggest Liu Kang fan and I didn't like the idea of my girl associating with him.
However, as time went on, I grew to accept it. If you read between the lines, it does make sense that Kitana would be in love with Liu Kang. And it adds a little something extra to her story...though I do stil get irked when it's suggested or Kitana is presented as little more than "Liu Kang's girlfriend." She has a lot more going for than just Liu Kang. She brings more to Liu Kang's story than he brings to hers.
Anyway, they expanded MK4 into MK Gold with Kitana on the roster...with a recycled UMK3 outfit sans mask. I didn't own a Dreamcast, so I denied the chance to play as Kitana and the other characters who came back in Gold. Unfortunately, this is probably the weakest of Kitana's stories. She escapes her dungeon and fights to free Edenia. She also plays a part in Kung Lao & Goro's thing. I would like to have seen more of a feud with Tanya, but what really what made this was Mileena's involvement.
Kitana's rivalry with Mileena is, IMO, the best rivalry in Mortal Kombat. Some will point to the Scorpion/Sub-Zero thing...but personally, I think it's nowhere near as deep and actually kind of sloppy with the retcons and confusion. The Kitana/Mileena thing works best because you can really understand why Mileena hates Kitana so much and you can actually feel kind of bad for her. And as seen in Gold, it's not just Mileena wants to simply kill Kitana...she wants to fight and defeat her in battle. Meanwhile, Kitana doesn't purely hate Mileena. After Gold, she has Mileena imprisoned rather than having her executed which suggests that Kitana does believe Mileena can be reformed. And that's the thing with Kitana and Mileena. It's not really Mileena's fault she is the way she is. And it's not Kitana's fault either. It's a rivalry where you don't really want to see either of them lose...rather you want them realize who's really responsible for the whole thing: Shao Kahn.
Deadly Alliance
In my opinion, Kitana's indivual story in Deadly Alliance is very underrated. I wouldn't say this was her best story, but it's not as bad as some accuse it. We learn that shortly after MK4, Kitana learned that Shao Kahn had survived MK3, so she sets out with a pre-emptive strike to take him down once and for all. Allied with Goro, she cripples Shao Kahn's forces...which is what forced him to seek help from Shang Tsung...which is what led to him assassinating him with Quan Chi (course the revelation that it was a clone kind of pisses on the impact).
The last few battles against Kahn's forces end in stalmate...which Konquest suggests keeps frustrating her. The last battle leads to Goro's "death"...which was a bad blow to her, since she'd come to see him as a friend. Then of course Shao Kahn is supposedly killed and just when she thinks she can go home, she learns of the Deadly Alliance and Liu Kang's death...which no doubt was another bad blow. And despite all this, she rushes off with Kung Lao to get trained by Bo' Rai Cho to fight. Apparently, she doesn't finish her training, but ends up fighting Quan Chi anyway.
Not that bad of a storyline. I don't know about anyone else, but I found it interesting that Kitana continuously keeps pushing herself to keep fighting despite quite a lot of bad things happening to her. I played up Kitana's stress in my fan fic....maybe a little too much....but I liked that MK:DA established Kitana's tendency to overwork herself.
However MK:DA is where I started noticing complaints about Kitana's story getting stale and I also noticed the feeling that she'd been going soft. I think the soft thing has to do with Kitana being a bottom tier character gameplay-wise and also because a good deal of her story in this game is being upset over the deaths of Liu Kang and Goro. I think some felt it made her seem very weepy.
Sadly for our dear mopey Princess, things don't work our well in the battle with Quan Chi. He is a powerful sorcerer and as pointed out, Kitana was going through a lot of stress...which I'm sure Quan Chi gladly exploited to his advantage. She ends up being killed which only leads to her being resurrected and brainwashed by Onaga, which leads to....
Deception/Unchained
Even though I hated the idea of Kitana joining the growing list of characters to die and be resurrected, I saw silver-lining in the prospect of she serving Onaga. Since she was once evil, I thought the ordeal could lead to Kitana being confronted with something I'm believe always haunted her: the fear of becoming evil again. All seemed well at first...she's used to imprison Sindel. She ends up fighting Jade. Good oppurtunity to let them have the spotlight and I also liked the role-reverself of Sindel now having to deal with a brainwashed Kitana.
It was my hope that during the course of being under Onaga's control, Kitana would do something so horrible and unforgivable that when she snapped out of it...she'd freak the hell out. I thought that maybe I might get my wish when it was announced she'd be part of Unchained. The first half of her bio details being under Onaga's control and she even states that she had already killed in his name. Good, good....
Then comes the second half of her bio: while under Onaga's control, she learns the secret to his power is the Kamidogu. And she hopes to use that against him. THAT'S IT?! Made all the more pointless because it's not like the Kamidogu thing was a big secret....SHUJINKO ALREADY KNEW THAT! Made her completely superfluous and that she disregarded being under Onaga's control only enraged me. Then her ending involves a cliffhanger leading to Armageddon. One thing I did like though is that they show Kitana is getting very frustrated with constantly fighting. Playing along on the whole stress thing from MK:DA. I liked that.
Shaolin Monks
I was not pleased with Kitana's portrayal in Shaolin Monks. I was not pleased with a lot things in Shaolin Monks, but this is a Kitana thread, so I'll keep just on her...
One thing I was dreading...from the moment they announced MK:SM and released a picture of Kitana, Mileena, and Jade in a boss battle...was that they would incorporate the dreaded spell. Later, they released a video on IGN which...surprise...reveals that when you fight Kitana you have to free her from a spell. I went Super Saiyan learing that. Then I finally play the game but was pleased to learn that the story was such a trainwreck that there was no way it could be canon.
However...it ultimately doesn't matter either way. Contrary to belief, even if the whole spell thing in MK:SM is canon, it doesn't change Kitana's backstory. She was still raised by Shao Kahn. She still served him. She still turned against him. All intact. All MK:SM adds is this: at some point after learning the truth about her past, Kitana was caught and put under an evil spell to make her loyal again. All it adds is unneeded plot baggage and really just makes Kitana's story confusing. She was loyal to Kahn, then turned against him....was put under a spell to make her loyal again....then joined up with Earth's warriors.
The big thing that gets me with Kitana in Shaolin Monks is how they downgraded her into a damsel in distress. In the original story, Kitana feigns loyalty to Kahn while secretly helping Earth's warriors, then later kills Mileena and by MK3, escapes Outworld on her own to seek out Earth's heroes...establishing her as a strong, independent, and effective character, capable of walking this tightrope between both sides, fight off her deranged clone, and eventually evade the evil empire out to kill her. However in MK:SM, Kitana is shown having to be rescued from her evil spell by Liu Kang and later needs to be rescued yet again because she gets taken prisoner. Basically, they turned her into a total victim. And let's not even get into her getting chumped out by Mileena and her "romance" with Liu Kang...
But on the plus, I did like how Kitana looked in MK:SM. Her outfit was a nice update of her original MKII attire. I just wish they didn't use that damn hair bun.
Armageddon
And now finally, we come to Armageddon. It was very nice to see Kitana was vastly improved after MK:DA. Her ending was.....somehow, not even "ridiculous" seems to cover it. I gues...hopefully...we can add it to the pile of nonsensical endings that don't really mean anything and should be thought too much about.
Now we just wait for her bio. I'm very interested in what she's going to be doing. Her Unchained ending suggested she'd be the one to gather the good guys together....yet Johnny Cage is doing it. She's mentioned in Nightwolf's bio as passing the anchoring of Liu Kang's soul onto him. The impression I've gotten so far...or at least I'm hoping for...is that Kitana is setting out to do something very important or personal on her own. As I stated many, many times at great length in the months leading to Armageddon, I hope that Kitana is looking to end Shao Kahn once and for all...seeing as he is the source of all her problems.
I also hope we'll get some kind of mention of her reaction to being under Onaga's control. Won't have to be much....just something. That it was a grim reminder of her years serving Shao Kahn would suffice.
She didn't appear in Konquest...which I think is a good thing, because if she did show up, she probably would've ended up fighting Taven for no reason and only getting her ass kicked for it. I'm curious what her thoughts are on Taven, seeing as he is an Edenian figure and potential successor to Argus. There's also still Mileena, but I'm hoping Kitana will be more concerned with other things. Probably won't be brought up, but I also wonder what she thinks about Rain going around claiming he's a Prince.
The Future
I hope Kitana survives Armageddon and hopefully she is the one to destroy Shao Kahn once and for all. Or at the very least, plays a crucial role in his death. I think she's earned her happy ending...though I hope she doesn't end up with Liu Kang. Little too wish-washy for my taste. I think she should retire along with most of the "classics." However, if she should return, I can't say I'd be THAT upset.
Only thing is if they bring Kitana back they need something new for her to do. The "princess" thing has gone as far as it can go. I want Kitana to become a bad ass again. What I think should happen is during Armageddon something so horrible happens to her she renounces her title as princess and just goes rogue. The ordeal leaves her darker and more bitter, so she returns more to her assassin roots. I'd like to see where she would go from there after having her life be destroyed a second time.
Final Thoughts
Fuck...that was long.
But yeah...Kitana is my favorite character. In my opinion, she has the best storyline in MK and the best rivalry, too. She's a well-developed and interesting character with a rich history and even now still has some untapped potential. Her relationships with the numerous other characters she's interacted with are all pretty intriguing and worth exploring.
If there was a "main heroine" to Mortal Kombat, I think it would be Kitana. She's arguably the female icon of MK...as Ed Boon said, she and Mileena are probably the female Sub-Zero & Scorpion. Not that those things matters...but it's nice feather to have in her cap.
So thus ends an extremely long rant expressing my devotion to a fictional video game character.
How about you?
I was bored and figured I'd hop on the "Official character x Thread" bandwagon and make one about one of the characters that I have an unhealthy obsession with....
Those who know me probably won't be surprised that this is an absurdly long post that goes on at great length. Hey, I made one on Sareena a while back...only fair I did one on Kitana, eh? Basically, I'm going rant about my thoughts and opinions on Kitana's progress throughout the years.
Feel free to chime in with yours.
Mortal Kombat II
Kitana made a pretty impressive splash in her MKII debut. She stood out for me in a very big way for quite a few reasons. At the time female characters in fighting games was still something of a novelty, and Sonya didn't impress me in the first one. Kitana was hot...well, Katalin Zamiar was hot, (take that people who say "Oh, how can a pixelated character be hot"). The blue bathing-suit, the legs, long jet-black hair....okay, I'll move on.
And the fans. It's easy to forget because it's become a trademark, but those were bad ass. Just thought that was so cool. She fought with fans....FANS....but they had knives in them and shit and she could fuck you up with them. I also loved her victory pose...she takes a bow with them. Just something so cool and bad ass about that. A sexy assassin with fans who takes a bow after she fucks someone up. Too cool for school.
And of course, the big thing that endeared her to be: her story. I remember being very intrigued by her in MKII. She was introduced as one of Shao Kahn's personal assassins...eg: a bad guy....but they suggest she might be up to something. Sold me. Then you find out her deal in her ending: as she was working as Kahn's assassin she learned that he had actually killed her real parents, taken over her realm, and raised her as his own daughter. And of course, that Mileena was actually a clone meant to replace her.
That by itself makes Kitana's story a lot stronger than a lot of the other characters in the series. Evil characters turning good has been kind of overdone in MK, but Kitana was the first to do it. She's raised by Shao Kahn to be his daughter and loyal assassin....serves him for thousands of years....only to find out it's all a lie. And even though this is the only life she's ever known, she decides to turn against Kahn (pretty much joining the losing side in Outworld) and vows to restore her home world. Whether out a strong sense of justice or revenge...or feeling betrayed that she'd been lied to her whole life and that Kahn tried to replace her with a clone despite years of loyal service...or overwhelming guilt over the fact she'd been killing people in the name of the man who destroyed her home....or likely all of the above.
Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
And from here we go into MK3. Supposedly she and the other ninja characters were supposed to appear, but time ran out or they figured they could make more money by releasing an expansion...but regardless, Kitana wasn't completely absent from MK3, making little cameos in Liu Kang and Sindel's endings. Anyway, she did appear for real in UMK3, this time portrayed by Becky Gable. In retrospect, the outfit they had Kitana wearing probably didn't really suit her...but at the time, being twelve years old, I didn't mind all that much. Only thing was the bun. I hate that damn hair bun. Some will argue it makes sense to keep her hair tied up during battle...but that's why this is a fantasy. Kitana and the other female character are so cool, they can fight even with absurdly long hair flying around.
Gameplay-wise, Kitana took a step down in UMK3. I suppose it's not that surprising considering she was beast in MKII...they probably thought they had to tone her down. I'm not familiar with the tier-lists, but despite being toned down, Kitana still wasn't a terrible character. I still liked her. Too bad her Fatalities blew. That's one thing that's hindered Kitana through the years. Ever since MKII, she hasn't had very stirring or memorable finishing moves....except for maybe her Monty Python killer rabbit Animality.
Story-wise though, Kitana was going strong here. She had a lot going at this time. She herself was in trouble for killing Mileena and on the run from assassins Kahn sent after her. Among them, Jade. She also was trying to get to her brainwashed mother Sindel and turn her against Kahn and she might have also been tied with Rain. And there was Mileena who was resurrected, although we don't know for certain if they actually ran into each other at this time.
I liked the thing with Sindel. When it was just MK3, I liked the idea of her having a feud with Kitana. Nice fairy-tale element, the evil step-mother and her daughter. Course, we find out that Sindel is actually Kitana's real mother and that she really isn't evil. Nevertheless, Kitana and her mum did have a confrontation, which ended with Sindel being freed from Kahn's hold over her. Even though they don't say it, I like to think that this was indeed crucial to Shao Kahn's defeat at Liu Kang's hands. Not just because as a Kitana fan, I can therefore say "See, my favorite character did do something important." But also from a storytelling standpoint...that plot point should be crucial to the storyline.
It's nice that Kitana got a little happy ending to her saga with Sindel, but in retrospect, considering how little has been done with Sindel since, maybe it would've been better if they kept that going and developed it into an actual feud. Oh well.
Things also pan out well with Jade who proves to be a loyal friend. I like the friendship between Jade and Kitana, though I wish there was some more developement to it. We can hypothesize why Jade means a great deal to Kitana and why she valus her as a friend...Jade perhaps being the only thing in Kitana's life that wasn't a lie created by Shao Kahn. But we still know very little about Jade's side of the equation. But that's more of a Jade discussion.
We also don't know for sure how things turned out with Rain. We assume Kitana turned him against Kahn, but we don't know what happened from there. There's also the popular speculation that Rain has some kind of crush on Kitana although this has never been stated in the games. I always liked the idea and wouldn't mind if it became an actual factor. Adds some drama to the otherwise dull romance with Liu Kang and also consider that in Armageddon we see Rain is evil and going around telling people he's a Prince of Edenia.
Movies, TV shows, and other Media
I don't know if I'm a minority, but I've never been real keen on Kitana's portrayal in outside the games. Sure Talisa Soto was hot and granted in MK1, it make sense that her character would be very mysterious and not have a lot of attention given to her...but beyond that, they never really delved into what makes Kitana interesting.
Namely, that she was once genuinely loyal to Shao Kahn. They either ignore it or act as though it never happened...which leaves Kitana as little more than a very dull archetype: the noble princess. In Defenders of the Realm, I was always hoping for an episode that would involve Mileena or someone to appear and tell the other good guys that Kitana was lying to them about herself and that she was once a loyal assassin for Shao Kahn (those who read my Kitana fan fic may remember I ended up doing that scene myself). But no. Those hopes were dashed to pieces when I saw an episode that flashed back to when Kahn conquered Edenia and they showed a fully grown Kitana watching the whole thing. Damn it!
Two things I blame the TV shows and comics and stuff for are the misonceptions that 1) Kitana's loyalty to Shao Kahn only the result of some magic spell and 2) Kitana is just a typical boring princess archetype. Not only would the whole spell thing really not make a whole lot of sense, it also cheapens Kitana's story on many levels. As I said earlier, what makes Kitana's story really worth a damn, is that she was raised to be an evil, cold-blooded killer. However upon learning the truth about her past, she changed herself and became a good person. That's what makes her interesting and a developed character. What a spell does is eliminate that developement in exchange for cheap grade-school logic. It shallows Kitana's character and her story. "No, I was never evil...it was allllll just a spell."
Mortal Kombat 4/Gold
Not unlike what happened in MK3, Kitana was actually supposed to be in MK4. But this time she was left out because they felt there weren't enough new characters. So they altered her appearance a bit and made her Tanya (I wonder though, were Tanya's moves like the Flipping Split Kick and the Drill Kick meant to be Kitana's moves, or did they think of those after?). And again like in MK3, although Kitana wasn't on the roster, her presence was still felt in the story. While it was disappointing that Kitana was left out of the game, it actually might have been better. I like Tanya as a character and I remember being worried after reading Liu Kang's bio...where he attempts to rescue Kitana, but fails....that she might be dead.
Fortunately, Kitana was not and she appeared in Liu Kang's ending. This of course is where the idea of Kitana and Liu Kang being in love...which was first introduced in the movies...became part of the game's canon. I was furious about this when I first saw it. I'm not the biggest Liu Kang fan and I didn't like the idea of my girl associating with him.
However, as time went on, I grew to accept it. If you read between the lines, it does make sense that Kitana would be in love with Liu Kang. And it adds a little something extra to her story...though I do stil get irked when it's suggested or Kitana is presented as little more than "Liu Kang's girlfriend." She has a lot more going for than just Liu Kang. She brings more to Liu Kang's story than he brings to hers.
Anyway, they expanded MK4 into MK Gold with Kitana on the roster...with a recycled UMK3 outfit sans mask. I didn't own a Dreamcast, so I denied the chance to play as Kitana and the other characters who came back in Gold. Unfortunately, this is probably the weakest of Kitana's stories. She escapes her dungeon and fights to free Edenia. She also plays a part in Kung Lao & Goro's thing. I would like to have seen more of a feud with Tanya, but what really what made this was Mileena's involvement.
Kitana's rivalry with Mileena is, IMO, the best rivalry in Mortal Kombat. Some will point to the Scorpion/Sub-Zero thing...but personally, I think it's nowhere near as deep and actually kind of sloppy with the retcons and confusion. The Kitana/Mileena thing works best because you can really understand why Mileena hates Kitana so much and you can actually feel kind of bad for her. And as seen in Gold, it's not just Mileena wants to simply kill Kitana...she wants to fight and defeat her in battle. Meanwhile, Kitana doesn't purely hate Mileena. After Gold, she has Mileena imprisoned rather than having her executed which suggests that Kitana does believe Mileena can be reformed. And that's the thing with Kitana and Mileena. It's not really Mileena's fault she is the way she is. And it's not Kitana's fault either. It's a rivalry where you don't really want to see either of them lose...rather you want them realize who's really responsible for the whole thing: Shao Kahn.
Deadly Alliance
In my opinion, Kitana's indivual story in Deadly Alliance is very underrated. I wouldn't say this was her best story, but it's not as bad as some accuse it. We learn that shortly after MK4, Kitana learned that Shao Kahn had survived MK3, so she sets out with a pre-emptive strike to take him down once and for all. Allied with Goro, she cripples Shao Kahn's forces...which is what forced him to seek help from Shang Tsung...which is what led to him assassinating him with Quan Chi (course the revelation that it was a clone kind of pisses on the impact).
The last few battles against Kahn's forces end in stalmate...which Konquest suggests keeps frustrating her. The last battle leads to Goro's "death"...which was a bad blow to her, since she'd come to see him as a friend. Then of course Shao Kahn is supposedly killed and just when she thinks she can go home, she learns of the Deadly Alliance and Liu Kang's death...which no doubt was another bad blow. And despite all this, she rushes off with Kung Lao to get trained by Bo' Rai Cho to fight. Apparently, she doesn't finish her training, but ends up fighting Quan Chi anyway.
Not that bad of a storyline. I don't know about anyone else, but I found it interesting that Kitana continuously keeps pushing herself to keep fighting despite quite a lot of bad things happening to her. I played up Kitana's stress in my fan fic....maybe a little too much....but I liked that MK:DA established Kitana's tendency to overwork herself.
However MK:DA is where I started noticing complaints about Kitana's story getting stale and I also noticed the feeling that she'd been going soft. I think the soft thing has to do with Kitana being a bottom tier character gameplay-wise and also because a good deal of her story in this game is being upset over the deaths of Liu Kang and Goro. I think some felt it made her seem very weepy.
Sadly for our dear mopey Princess, things don't work our well in the battle with Quan Chi. He is a powerful sorcerer and as pointed out, Kitana was going through a lot of stress...which I'm sure Quan Chi gladly exploited to his advantage. She ends up being killed which only leads to her being resurrected and brainwashed by Onaga, which leads to....
Deception/Unchained
Even though I hated the idea of Kitana joining the growing list of characters to die and be resurrected, I saw silver-lining in the prospect of she serving Onaga. Since she was once evil, I thought the ordeal could lead to Kitana being confronted with something I'm believe always haunted her: the fear of becoming evil again. All seemed well at first...she's used to imprison Sindel. She ends up fighting Jade. Good oppurtunity to let them have the spotlight and I also liked the role-reverself of Sindel now having to deal with a brainwashed Kitana.
It was my hope that during the course of being under Onaga's control, Kitana would do something so horrible and unforgivable that when she snapped out of it...she'd freak the hell out. I thought that maybe I might get my wish when it was announced she'd be part of Unchained. The first half of her bio details being under Onaga's control and she even states that she had already killed in his name. Good, good....
Then comes the second half of her bio: while under Onaga's control, she learns the secret to his power is the Kamidogu. And she hopes to use that against him. THAT'S IT?! Made all the more pointless because it's not like the Kamidogu thing was a big secret....SHUJINKO ALREADY KNEW THAT! Made her completely superfluous and that she disregarded being under Onaga's control only enraged me. Then her ending involves a cliffhanger leading to Armageddon. One thing I did like though is that they show Kitana is getting very frustrated with constantly fighting. Playing along on the whole stress thing from MK:DA. I liked that.
Shaolin Monks
I was not pleased with Kitana's portrayal in Shaolin Monks. I was not pleased with a lot things in Shaolin Monks, but this is a Kitana thread, so I'll keep just on her...
One thing I was dreading...from the moment they announced MK:SM and released a picture of Kitana, Mileena, and Jade in a boss battle...was that they would incorporate the dreaded spell. Later, they released a video on IGN which...surprise...reveals that when you fight Kitana you have to free her from a spell. I went Super Saiyan learing that. Then I finally play the game but was pleased to learn that the story was such a trainwreck that there was no way it could be canon.
However...it ultimately doesn't matter either way. Contrary to belief, even if the whole spell thing in MK:SM is canon, it doesn't change Kitana's backstory. She was still raised by Shao Kahn. She still served him. She still turned against him. All intact. All MK:SM adds is this: at some point after learning the truth about her past, Kitana was caught and put under an evil spell to make her loyal again. All it adds is unneeded plot baggage and really just makes Kitana's story confusing. She was loyal to Kahn, then turned against him....was put under a spell to make her loyal again....then joined up with Earth's warriors.
The big thing that gets me with Kitana in Shaolin Monks is how they downgraded her into a damsel in distress. In the original story, Kitana feigns loyalty to Kahn while secretly helping Earth's warriors, then later kills Mileena and by MK3, escapes Outworld on her own to seek out Earth's heroes...establishing her as a strong, independent, and effective character, capable of walking this tightrope between both sides, fight off her deranged clone, and eventually evade the evil empire out to kill her. However in MK:SM, Kitana is shown having to be rescued from her evil spell by Liu Kang and later needs to be rescued yet again because she gets taken prisoner. Basically, they turned her into a total victim. And let's not even get into her getting chumped out by Mileena and her "romance" with Liu Kang...
But on the plus, I did like how Kitana looked in MK:SM. Her outfit was a nice update of her original MKII attire. I just wish they didn't use that damn hair bun.
Armageddon
And now finally, we come to Armageddon. It was very nice to see Kitana was vastly improved after MK:DA. Her ending was.....somehow, not even "ridiculous" seems to cover it. I gues...hopefully...we can add it to the pile of nonsensical endings that don't really mean anything and should be thought too much about.
Now we just wait for her bio. I'm very interested in what she's going to be doing. Her Unchained ending suggested she'd be the one to gather the good guys together....yet Johnny Cage is doing it. She's mentioned in Nightwolf's bio as passing the anchoring of Liu Kang's soul onto him. The impression I've gotten so far...or at least I'm hoping for...is that Kitana is setting out to do something very important or personal on her own. As I stated many, many times at great length in the months leading to Armageddon, I hope that Kitana is looking to end Shao Kahn once and for all...seeing as he is the source of all her problems.
I also hope we'll get some kind of mention of her reaction to being under Onaga's control. Won't have to be much....just something. That it was a grim reminder of her years serving Shao Kahn would suffice.
She didn't appear in Konquest...which I think is a good thing, because if she did show up, she probably would've ended up fighting Taven for no reason and only getting her ass kicked for it. I'm curious what her thoughts are on Taven, seeing as he is an Edenian figure and potential successor to Argus. There's also still Mileena, but I'm hoping Kitana will be more concerned with other things. Probably won't be brought up, but I also wonder what she thinks about Rain going around claiming he's a Prince.
The Future
I hope Kitana survives Armageddon and hopefully she is the one to destroy Shao Kahn once and for all. Or at the very least, plays a crucial role in his death. I think she's earned her happy ending...though I hope she doesn't end up with Liu Kang. Little too wish-washy for my taste. I think she should retire along with most of the "classics." However, if she should return, I can't say I'd be THAT upset.
Only thing is if they bring Kitana back they need something new for her to do. The "princess" thing has gone as far as it can go. I want Kitana to become a bad ass again. What I think should happen is during Armageddon something so horrible happens to her she renounces her title as princess and just goes rogue. The ordeal leaves her darker and more bitter, so she returns more to her assassin roots. I'd like to see where she would go from there after having her life be destroyed a second time.
Final Thoughts
Fuck...that was long.
But yeah...Kitana is my favorite character. In my opinion, she has the best storyline in MK and the best rivalry, too. She's a well-developed and interesting character with a rich history and even now still has some untapped potential. Her relationships with the numerous other characters she's interacted with are all pretty intriguing and worth exploring.
If there was a "main heroine" to Mortal Kombat, I think it would be Kitana. She's arguably the female icon of MK...as Ed Boon said, she and Mileena are probably the female Sub-Zero & Scorpion. Not that those things matters...but it's nice feather to have in her cap.
So thus ends an extremely long rant expressing my devotion to a fictional video game character.
How about you?
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lol, you crazy son of a bitch! (Not as crazy as me, of course! 
)
That was a long and amusing post. Definitely some funny bits were in it.
It's in-depth and I agree with a lot of what you're saying. Gameplay-wise, she hasn't been good in that many games. In MK2 and MKG, she is real good. In UMK3, MKT, and MKDA, she's pretty bad. In MKA, she's decent.
I think both Eagle Claw (Ying Jow Pai) and Ba Gua Zhang fit her. I personally like her with Eagle Claw better and it was better than Ba Gua in the gameplay department.
Story-wise, she definitely has a well-developed story, and I would like to see good closure with her being one of the main people in Shao Kahn's destruction. Imo, it's better for her to survive and retire from the series, perhaps having some mentioning in the stories of the next-gen MKs.
If she does return, I think she should kind of stay away from the whole Princess thing. With Taven becoming the Protector God of Edenia (at least I think that'll happen), Edenia should be much safer now. Imo, Sindel dying and Kitana taking her place as Queen of Edenia is rather predictable and makes things too easy and convienient. I'd rather Sindel stay alive and still rule as Edenia's Queen.
Kitana, tired of fighting and perhaps from such responsibilities as being Princess, should either renounce her title or something else. Maybe part of the next-gen story should involve Sindel wanting to pass on the title of Queen of Edenia to Kitana but with Kitana refusing due to having to accept a huge responsibility and get involved with political and military affairs.
So what could Kitana do? I'm not sure on the whole "going back to assassin roots" thing. Then again, perhaps she secretly enjoys or misses her assassin past in some small way. Hmm, I don't know...But I think that she could go against a path for her that she may not truly want, which would be to rule Edenia.
The Liu Kang/Kitana romance, I don't hate it, but I just want it to be properly developed. I don't think them being together in the end will work, not just because it's too sugar-coated, but it's also due to Liu's spirit not being able to stay in the living worlds for too long as well as Kitana's responsibilities in Edenia.
The friendship between Kitana and Jade needs to be explored and expanded on as you had stated. It's kind of interesting how Jade, someone who isn't related to Kitana, would be much more of an actual sister to Kitana as opposed to Mileena, Kitana's clone. I'd like to at least see Jade in the future since Kitana has had a bigger and more developed story.
There are also other characters like Mileena, Tanya, and Rain....I'm not sure about them. You know that I don't like Tanya so I'd rather she were gone. Rain, I don't know...He has potential to be in the next-gen games as a threat to Taven and Edenia and all that. Mileena...hmm...hard to say...
For the media portrayals, they were just ok... I'm not a fan of the MK Malibu comics, and I find their dialogue to be rather cheesy and phony.
I find that her appearance, fatalities, and special moves haven't really changed all that much throughout the years, and I find that kind of disappointing. Her one new move in MKA is basically a bluish/purplish version of Jade's teleport move. She did have some new moves in MKSM, which were kind of interesting.
Overall, Kitana is an iconic character in MK and one that I believe should have closure to her story with MKA.
That was a long and amusing post. Definitely some funny bits were in it.
It's in-depth and I agree with a lot of what you're saying. Gameplay-wise, she hasn't been good in that many games. In MK2 and MKG, she is real good. In UMK3, MKT, and MKDA, she's pretty bad. In MKA, she's decent.
I think both Eagle Claw (Ying Jow Pai) and Ba Gua Zhang fit her. I personally like her with Eagle Claw better and it was better than Ba Gua in the gameplay department.
Story-wise, she definitely has a well-developed story, and I would like to see good closure with her being one of the main people in Shao Kahn's destruction. Imo, it's better for her to survive and retire from the series, perhaps having some mentioning in the stories of the next-gen MKs.
If she does return, I think she should kind of stay away from the whole Princess thing. With Taven becoming the Protector God of Edenia (at least I think that'll happen), Edenia should be much safer now. Imo, Sindel dying and Kitana taking her place as Queen of Edenia is rather predictable and makes things too easy and convienient. I'd rather Sindel stay alive and still rule as Edenia's Queen.
Kitana, tired of fighting and perhaps from such responsibilities as being Princess, should either renounce her title or something else. Maybe part of the next-gen story should involve Sindel wanting to pass on the title of Queen of Edenia to Kitana but with Kitana refusing due to having to accept a huge responsibility and get involved with political and military affairs.
So what could Kitana do? I'm not sure on the whole "going back to assassin roots" thing. Then again, perhaps she secretly enjoys or misses her assassin past in some small way. Hmm, I don't know...But I think that she could go against a path for her that she may not truly want, which would be to rule Edenia.
The Liu Kang/Kitana romance, I don't hate it, but I just want it to be properly developed. I don't think them being together in the end will work, not just because it's too sugar-coated, but it's also due to Liu's spirit not being able to stay in the living worlds for too long as well as Kitana's responsibilities in Edenia.
The friendship between Kitana and Jade needs to be explored and expanded on as you had stated. It's kind of interesting how Jade, someone who isn't related to Kitana, would be much more of an actual sister to Kitana as opposed to Mileena, Kitana's clone. I'd like to at least see Jade in the future since Kitana has had a bigger and more developed story.
There are also other characters like Mileena, Tanya, and Rain....I'm not sure about them. You know that I don't like Tanya so I'd rather she were gone. Rain, I don't know...He has potential to be in the next-gen games as a threat to Taven and Edenia and all that. Mileena...hmm...hard to say...
For the media portrayals, they were just ok... I'm not a fan of the MK Malibu comics, and I find their dialogue to be rather cheesy and phony.
I find that her appearance, fatalities, and special moves haven't really changed all that much throughout the years, and I find that kind of disappointing. Her one new move in MKA is basically a bluish/purplish version of Jade's teleport move. She did have some new moves in MKSM, which were kind of interesting.
Overall, Kitana is an iconic character in MK and one that I believe should have closure to her story with MKA.
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i like Kitana. a lot, actaually, more than Mileena. Mileena's attacks imo are cooler, but her story is garbage compared to Kitanas.
In MK2 i loved her kiss of death fatality. I thought it looked awesome, as did she. I liked her storyline as well.
MK3 gave her a much better storyline because she learns that Shao Kahjn took over Edenia! I liked her new look as well.
MKG let her learn that Mileena was her clone, and i liked that. She didn't change much, though.
MKDA gave her her own look from Mileena, and it looked awesome! Her story was good, but it now starts to falter.
MKA gave her a lackluster story imo. Still, it was pretty good.
I love Kitana, but i hope she's not in MK8.
In MK2 i loved her kiss of death fatality. I thought it looked awesome, as did she. I liked her storyline as well.
MK3 gave her a much better storyline because she learns that Shao Kahjn took over Edenia! I liked her new look as well.
MKG let her learn that Mileena was her clone, and i liked that. She didn't change much, though.
MKDA gave her her own look from Mileena, and it looked awesome! Her story was good, but it now starts to falter.
MKA gave her a lackluster story imo. Still, it was pretty good.
I love Kitana, but i hope she's not in MK8.
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Shinnok-fan64 Wrote:
i like Kitana. a lot, actaually, more than Mileena. Mileena's attacks imo are cooler, but her story is garbage compared to Kitanas.
In MK2 i loved her kiss of death fatality. I thought it looked awesome, as did she. I liked her storyline as well.
MK3 gave her a much better storyline because she learns that Shao Kahjn took over Edenia! I liked her new look as well.
MKG let her learn that Mileena was her clone, and i liked that. She didn't change much, though.
MKDA gave her her own look from Mileena, and it looked awesome! Her story was good, but it now starts to falter.
MKA gave her a lackluster story imo. Still, it was pretty good.
I love Kitana, but i hope she's not in MK8.
i like Kitana. a lot, actaually, more than Mileena. Mileena's attacks imo are cooler, but her story is garbage compared to Kitanas.
In MK2 i loved her kiss of death fatality. I thought it looked awesome, as did she. I liked her storyline as well.
MK3 gave her a much better storyline because she learns that Shao Kahjn took over Edenia! I liked her new look as well.
MKG let her learn that Mileena was her clone, and i liked that. She didn't change much, though.
MKDA gave her her own look from Mileena, and it looked awesome! Her story was good, but it now starts to falter.
MKA gave her a lackluster story imo. Still, it was pretty good.
I love Kitana, but i hope she's not in MK8.
Huh?
Kitana learned about that stuff during her years as one of Shao Kahn's assassins, not during MK3 and MKG...
How'd you get those ideas?
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never mind, then
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Kitana's definitely up there with the characters I care for the most in MK. Not really because of her moves or how well she plays in the games, but her storyline. She has a very well-developped one, and I've seen her character deal with many different types of situations in each game, which consequently causes a new fraction of her personality to be put in the spotlight at a time.
Here's just a few of the sort of "roles" Kitana has played in the past, and that I can remember off the top of my head:
Villain
Though not for a very long time, it is common knowledge that Kitana was once "evil". She served as Shao Khan's personal assassin and killed in his name alongside Mileena. Even though it's fine to say that she was being lied to at the time, she still wasn't being manipulated in any way. Depending on how you look at it (and if you set aside Khan's lies), Kitana was a murderer for the emperor because she wanted to. No one kills out of loyalty to someone else, or because they're forced to: so it is my personal belief that during MK: 2's beginning, she actually enjoyed her brutal job. At least, I like thinking along those lines because it adds extra layers to Kitana's personality. Kind of like a dark side of the princess that is in danger of resurfacing at any given time, depending on the catalyst.
Light Warrior
This side of her really came out following Sindel's resurrection by Khan. Though her primary objective was to free her mother from his grasp, she actually ended up joining the Earth warriors in their struggle against Khan. She kept a concrete relationship with them (Liu Kang in particular
) and aided them, even if indirectly, in bringing about Khan's defeat. Not only did her actions reflect her newfound personality, but her thoughts did as well. I know it's impossible to tell what a story's characters thoughts are, but it's safe to assume given Kitana's storyline around MK3. She went from being a ruthless assassin to turning against Khan and becoming one of the "heroes" of MK. It takes a lot of determination and an incredibly tough mind to be able to switch such parallel roles in so little time, especially considering the fact that Kitana served Khan for a looooooong time: another trait of the true hero that Kitana had become.
Love Interest
Although this is the Kitana that I most dislike, it can't be denied that Kitana eventually had to fit the description as the protagonist's "love interest" around MK4. She was imprisoned by Shinnok and had Liu Kang attempt to rescue her, which eventually led her to "propose" to him during the resolution of that particular storyline (and I still don't believe his ugly-ass rejected someone like Kitana, even if reluctantly. All I'm saying is that I would have jumped into that portal and materialized with her straight into an Edenian mote-- wtf am I talking about? Back to the post). I still think (along with most other Kitana fans) that Kitana is much, MUCH better off playing a strong-willed fighter than the "girl next door" of MK and Kang's stupid self.
Leader
One of my favorite facets of Kitana's personality. We see just how amazingly-well she fits the leader position during the events of MK: DA. It's extremely admirable how well Kitana was able to do everything that she did: form an allegiance with the feared Shokan, gather her troops, and lead them by herself in a pre-emptive strike against a weakened Khan. To me, this showed that Kitana is much more than one of the "good guys" of MK. She's a strong, tough, and decided character who wisely enough knows what she wants and fights for it with everything she's got: whether it be swinging her razored fans and severing heads or using her impressive verbal and persuasive skills to gain allies.
Disheartened Hero
Much like the protagonist towards the end of the movie, Kitana began to feel conflicting emotions as the final battle drew near. This is when we see the emotional side of Kitana come out. Deep down, she's not just a warrior: she's a sensitive character who wants nothing more than peace, and eventually tires of having to pursue that goal through constant violent methods. Seeing this in Kitana made me like her more than before, because vulnerability is a quality in fictional characters that really make them seel that much more real and relatable. Still, and as expected, Kitana decides on fighting for the forces of light and her own realm one last time as Armageddon drew near
As for Kitana's future, I also think a few changes need to occur if she is to return in the next games.
Her rivalry with Mileena needs to come to a close. Yes, this is a very profound rivalry, and it was great while it lasted, but it's time these two "sisters" went their separate ways. And I mean that, because Mileena also nears the top of my favorite characters and I want her back in the future! I just want Mileena to realize that she'll never get anywhere in life trying to take over Kitana's life. I don't mean I want to see her as a hero (hell, no!) because Mileena only fits the evil role, IMO. I'm just saying, forget Kitana and find a new motive in life... find an alternate course of action to attain the power you've always dreamed of.
Her relationship with Liu Kang needs to be put to rest. I'm sorry, but I just don't see Kitana and Liu Kang as a good match. Maybe it's because I sincerely dislike Kang's monotone and hateful being, but seriously, Kitana can do better. And I don't even mean that when it comes to her love life, but her life overall. She has bigger potential that her "love relation" with Kang won't allow her to tap into. She should accept that he is gone forever, and move on.
She should focus more on her personal goals and step away from the "join the Earth heros" role. I'm not saying she should forget about them or refuse to help them if the need arises. What I'm saying is, she should be a little more focused on what's about to blow up in her own realm. For her future, I'd like to see her interact a lot more with Taven (as the new protector of the realm), Jade (as her closest friend and ally), and Rain (as the threat). Sometimes I feel like Kitana's an Earth warrior, and I shouldn't be feeling that way: just have her be more into the affairs of her own realm, acting not as its princess, but its weapon.
Well, that's about it for what I've got to say on Kitana right now. I like her a lot, and felt she deserved a big post (even though it's not as huge as Sonya's
). I've grown to care about her character and story throughout the games, and have always wanted her to come out on top in every one of her affairs in each MK game.
Long Live Princess Kitana!
Peace!
Here's just a few of the sort of "roles" Kitana has played in the past, and that I can remember off the top of my head:
Though not for a very long time, it is common knowledge that Kitana was once "evil". She served as Shao Khan's personal assassin and killed in his name alongside Mileena. Even though it's fine to say that she was being lied to at the time, she still wasn't being manipulated in any way. Depending on how you look at it (and if you set aside Khan's lies), Kitana was a murderer for the emperor because she wanted to. No one kills out of loyalty to someone else, or because they're forced to: so it is my personal belief that during MK: 2's beginning, she actually enjoyed her brutal job. At least, I like thinking along those lines because it adds extra layers to Kitana's personality. Kind of like a dark side of the princess that is in danger of resurfacing at any given time, depending on the catalyst.
This side of her really came out following Sindel's resurrection by Khan. Though her primary objective was to free her mother from his grasp, she actually ended up joining the Earth warriors in their struggle against Khan. She kept a concrete relationship with them (Liu Kang in particular
Although this is the Kitana that I most dislike, it can't be denied that Kitana eventually had to fit the description as the protagonist's "love interest" around MK4. She was imprisoned by Shinnok and had Liu Kang attempt to rescue her, which eventually led her to "propose" to him during the resolution of that particular storyline (and I still don't believe his ugly-ass rejected someone like Kitana, even if reluctantly. All I'm saying is that I would have jumped into that portal and materialized with her straight into an Edenian mote-- wtf am I talking about? Back to the post). I still think (along with most other Kitana fans) that Kitana is much, MUCH better off playing a strong-willed fighter than the "girl next door" of MK and Kang's stupid self.
One of my favorite facets of Kitana's personality. We see just how amazingly-well she fits the leader position during the events of MK: DA. It's extremely admirable how well Kitana was able to do everything that she did: form an allegiance with the feared Shokan, gather her troops, and lead them by herself in a pre-emptive strike against a weakened Khan. To me, this showed that Kitana is much more than one of the "good guys" of MK. She's a strong, tough, and decided character who wisely enough knows what she wants and fights for it with everything she's got: whether it be swinging her razored fans and severing heads or using her impressive verbal and persuasive skills to gain allies.
Much like the protagonist towards the end of the movie, Kitana began to feel conflicting emotions as the final battle drew near. This is when we see the emotional side of Kitana come out. Deep down, she's not just a warrior: she's a sensitive character who wants nothing more than peace, and eventually tires of having to pursue that goal through constant violent methods. Seeing this in Kitana made me like her more than before, because vulnerability is a quality in fictional characters that really make them seel that much more real and relatable. Still, and as expected, Kitana decides on fighting for the forces of light and her own realm one last time as Armageddon drew near
As for Kitana's future, I also think a few changes need to occur if she is to return in the next games.
Her rivalry with Mileena needs to come to a close. Yes, this is a very profound rivalry, and it was great while it lasted, but it's time these two "sisters" went their separate ways. And I mean that, because Mileena also nears the top of my favorite characters and I want her back in the future! I just want Mileena to realize that she'll never get anywhere in life trying to take over Kitana's life. I don't mean I want to see her as a hero (hell, no!) because Mileena only fits the evil role, IMO. I'm just saying, forget Kitana and find a new motive in life... find an alternate course of action to attain the power you've always dreamed of.
Her relationship with Liu Kang needs to be put to rest. I'm sorry, but I just don't see Kitana and Liu Kang as a good match. Maybe it's because I sincerely dislike Kang's monotone and hateful being, but seriously, Kitana can do better. And I don't even mean that when it comes to her love life, but her life overall. She has bigger potential that her "love relation" with Kang won't allow her to tap into. She should accept that he is gone forever, and move on.
She should focus more on her personal goals and step away from the "join the Earth heros" role. I'm not saying she should forget about them or refuse to help them if the need arises. What I'm saying is, she should be a little more focused on what's about to blow up in her own realm. For her future, I'd like to see her interact a lot more with Taven (as the new protector of the realm), Jade (as her closest friend and ally), and Rain (as the threat). Sometimes I feel like Kitana's an Earth warrior, and I shouldn't be feeling that way: just have her be more into the affairs of her own realm, acting not as its princess, but its weapon.
Well, that's about it for what I've got to say on Kitana right now. I like her a lot, and felt she deserved a big post (even though it's not as huge as Sonya's
Long Live Princess Kitana!
Peace!
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XiahouDun84 Wrote:
You say that a lot, but what are you basing that on? Aside from the movies(which were bullshit), where has Kitana been presented as a weak and delicate woman? I'm not seeing Kitana as any more or less weak and delicate than any of the other female characters in this picture here.
I'm basing it on how the developers make her look and act most of the time. You say that a lot, but what are you basing that on? Aside from the movies(which were bullshit), where has Kitana been presented as a weak and delicate woman? I'm not seeing Kitana as any more or less weak and delicate than any of the other female characters in this picture here.
Again, yeah in her stories, she's strong and all that, but I mean...
Pictures like these are what make me like her less, and she's commonly portrayed having these "pretty," flowery qualities.
You said it yourself.... The "princess" thing has gone as far as it could and you want her to be a bad-ass again.
So do I. That's why I wish they'd make her look more fierce and vicious like this...
as oppose to just a piece of romantic eye candy for the guys.
Let's just say they should start making her appear and come off as a stronger character like she is in her stories.
I don't hate Kitana, btw. She's just comes off too "princessy" for me, most of the time, which irritates and unsatisfies me.
and yeah, she does have a lot of fans, whom are mostly horny guys.
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QueenSindel(TheBitch) Wrote:
Again, yeah in her stories, she's strong and all that, but I mean...
Pictures like these are what make me like her less, and she's commonly portrayed having these "pretty," flowery qualities.
Again, yeah in her stories, she's strong and all that, but I mean...
Pictures like these are what make me like her less, and she's commonly portrayed having these "pretty," flowery qualities.
I don't see her "flowery" in the picture. To me, she looks moody and depressed. Now maybe you equate that with "delicate" and "feminine"....but I find Kitana's brooding understandable since her life is mostly just one kick to the crotch after the next.
But okay, so we can interpret that picture differently. But what about this...
...or this...
...or even this...
...which is pretty much the same pose as the picture of Frost you posted?
QueenSindel(TheBitch) Wrote:
You said it yourself....you want her to be a bad-ass again.
You said it yourself....you want her to be a bad-ass again.
Because I know it'll only get worse (just like how way back in MK:DA, I wanted them to stop presenting Scorpion as a shallow dumb-ass...which is what he's ultimately become). Like stopping a leak before it becomes a flood. Also because I want people who accuse Kitana of being a typical, boring princess to shut the hell up.
QueenSindel(TheBitch) Wrote:
...as oppose to just a piece of romantic eye candy for the guys.
...as oppose to just a piece of romantic eye candy for the guys.
Even if you look at Kitana and see her as too feminine or whatever....she isn't JUST "romantic eye-candy." If she had no storyline or character...then yes, she'd just be eye candy. But she does have a story and she is a very well-developed character...more developed than most other characters in the game. That makes her more than mere eye-candy.
QueenSindel(TheBitch) Wrote:
and yeah, she does have a lot of fans, whom are mostly horny guys.
and yeah, she does have a lot of fans, whom are mostly horny guys.
As a male Kitana fan....this comment really pisses me off.
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