The Mortal Kombat franchise has been around for just over three decades now, and in that time it's amassed quite the hardcore following. It's only natural that every individual inside Mortal Kombat's fandom has their own specific favorite character, whether that's staples like Sub-Zero or Scorpion, lesser-known Kombatants, or characters who only appeared once. Adoration for these characters is often made even stronger over time, and any changes made to that character, no matter how small, can be detrimental. Thankfully though, reboots like Mortal Kombat 1 have the perfect opportunity to right those wrongs.
The Mortal Kombat franchise is no stranger to retcons. Over the years characters have had their backstory, their appearance, and even sometimes their entire identity changed. And while that's much less common in NetherRealm's newer Mortal Kombat universe, it can still happen, and Sindel's Mortal Kombat 11 retcon might be the most egregious example.
How Mortal Kombat 1 Will Avoid the Controversy Surrounding Sindel
In the original Mortal Kombat continuity, Sindel is an unknowing slave to the evil Outworld emperor Shao Kahn. Through mysterious visions of the past, Sindel discovers that she was once married to King Jerrod, and the two had a daughter named Kitana. In a Mortal Kombat tournament, Shao Kahn kills Jerrod and steals his homeland of Edenia. At the same time, Shao Kahn takes Kitana as his own daughter and mind-controls Sindel into being his own wife. Eventually, Sindel breaks free from Shao Kahn's control, and defeats him, saving Earthrealm in the process.
In Mortal Kombat 2011, after Raiden reboots the timeline, Sindel is nowhere to be found. In this timeline, it's heavily implied that Sindel sacrificed herself long ago in order to put a protective spell on Earthrealm, keeping Shao Kahn from invading it. Shao Kahn gets Quan Chi to resurrect Sindel, however, and uses part of Shang Tsung's soul to mind control her and make her more powerful. Under the influence of Quan Chi's magic, Sindel then works alongside Shao Kahn to defeat many of Earthrealm's warriors, until she herself falls at the hands of Nightwolf. Sindel then remains an undead revenant for the rest of this timeline, working with Shinnok against Earthrealm.
Mortal Kombat 11's Aftermath DLC then makes some pretty major retcons to Sindel's character. After being fully resurrected from her Revenant form, Sindel tells Kitana that Quan Chi had been controlling her the entire time, and after reconciling, the two head off to seek Kronika's crown. Towards the end of the DLC, however, Sindel betrays Kitana and reveals that she had actually been evil all along. Sindel confesses that she was never under any manipulation, and she was actually the one that killed Jerrod so that she could rule with Shao Kahn. Not only does this twist bring out some major plot holes in the continuity, but it also doesn't really fit Sindel's character, seemingly coming out of nowhere just for the sake of a shock twist. Many fans hated Sindel's retcon in Mortal Kombat 11, but now there's a chance at redemption for NetherRealm.
Mortal Kombat 1 is rebooting the universe all over again, and in doing so, it's already going to avoid this controversy altogether. Sindel hasn't currently been confirmed to appear in Mortal Kombat 1, though with Kitana being the princess of Edenia still, she could definitely make an appearance. And if Sindel does appear in Mortal Kombat 1, then it'll likely be a completely new version of the character. Simply put, Mortal Kombat 11's retcon doesn't matter anymore.
Mortal Kombat 1 releases on September 19 for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
