By Malice Intended

One of the few “high points” in the short history of movies adapted from video games was 1995’s Mortal Kombat.  Though mediocre when evaluated on its own merits, it was easily miles better than the execrable Street Fighter and Double Dragon adaptations.  It also seemed destined to become a franchise until the abysmal Mortal Kombat: Annihilation put such plans on indefinite hold.  With a new installment of the ultra violent video game series being released next week, it goes without saying that interest in a cinematic reboot is at a fever pitch.  In lieu of a new film, Warner Bros has recently released the first installment of the new web series Mortal Kombat: Legacy.

The series, which is essentially a serialized extension of last years well-received short film Mortal Kombat: Rebirth, premiered this morning at 3am EST.  Three hours before that, a debut trailer was released.  The series chronicles the extensive back stories of each character, showing how they all happened across each others paths.  Each of the ten installments is about 12 minutes in length.  The cast includes the criminally underrated Michael Jai White as Captain Jackson “Jax” Briggs.

The series is written and directed by Kevin Tancharoen, who also helmed Mortal Kombat: Rebirth.  He has assembled formidable talent both behind and in front of the camera.  Award winning fight choreographer Larnell Stovall has been charged with accurately translating the super-powered fights of the games to the small screen.  His occasional collaborator Michael Jai White is more than able to execute any plan that Stovall lays out to the letter.  Tancheroen himself understands the poetry of body mechanics, as he has considerable background in dance choreography.

Mortal Kombat: Rebirth clearly showed the influence of today’s more popular superhero films, portraying many of the characters as part of an extensive rogues gallery.  This new series takes a more mysterious approach.  Only those who are intimately familiar with the franchise will recognize any of the characters as antagonists or protagonists.  Though Mortal Kombat: Legacy was done on a limited budget, it uses its resources in a deceptive manner.  It was the feel of an expensive action picture.

If there is one area in which Mortal Kombat: Legacy will eclipse its predecessors, it’s the action.  Fight choreography was in a very different place in 1995.  Today’s stunt performers are much more learned and innovative then those of generations past.  They are artists in their own right.  Fighting is what Mortal Kombat has always been about.  This series likely won’t do anything to bolster the recent “video games as art” movement, but it will surely supply ample entertainment value for fans.

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