The internet is no stranger to unusual crossovers, but a recent blend between Baraka from the Mortal Kombat series and Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States, has to be up there as one of the least expected. The meeting of the two comes in the form of an action figure that combines the body of the cannibalistic mutant Baraka from Mortal Kombat with the head of the former president.
Obviously, the inspiration for the figure is the similarity between their names, but the juxtaposition between Baraka—known for his brutal finish moves and animalistic nature—and Barack Obama, who is largely defined by his calm demeanor and poise, makes for a hilarious combination. Plus, the serious expression on the figure makes it look like the 44th President is truly preparing for battle.
With the latest Mortal Kombat movie spurring a resurgence of popularity for the series, fans have flocked to Reddit to show off fan art, cosplays, and other interesting creations, but Redditor darthraxus's "Baracka Obama," comes across as an oddly compelling piece. While the head appears to be a custom order piece, the body is that of the 1/12 scale Baraka figurine from Storm Collectibles, meaning that the figure is approximately 8 inches tall, and comes with a variety of different attachments, including the Tarkatan's deadly blades that protrude from his forearms.
In the background of the photo, there are a few other presidential-looking busts that could hint at the possibility of more mash-ups, with commenters jokingly calling for figures of "Ronald Raiden," which would combine the 40th president and Mortal Kombat's god of thunder, and "Al Goro," which would blend together the 45th vice-president with the four-armed, eight-foot-tall, Shokan champion. With the success of Baracka Obama, and the photo also suggesting that darthraxus has a deep interest in customizing figures, a line of Mortal Kombat-inspired presidential figures seems more like an inevitability.
With both the success of the recent movie and Mortal Kombat 11's Aftermath expansion, Reddit has also seen a rise in Mortal Kombat cosplay. Just recently, a group of three cosplayers, Mina Kess, Candylion, and Armored Heart, put together an immaculate cosplay of the characters Mileena, Kitana, and Skarlet, the latter of which had drawn the attention of Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon on Twitter back in April. Another die-hard fan immortalized Sub-Zero as a massive thigh tattoo, opting to use an image of the 2021 movie version of the character as played by Joe Taslim.