Channel Awesome
Register
Advertisement
Mortal Kombat: Annihilation

NostalgiaCritic-48793932

Date Aired
November 17th, 2008
Running Time
21:28
Website
Previous review
Next review


(NC appears without his trademark goatee)

NC: Hello, I'm the Nostalgia Critic. I remember it so you don't have to. You know I was pondering the other day when--

(he reaches up to stroke his chin, then realizes he has no beard) Oh, yeah. You might be wondering why I don't have a beard to stroke while I ponder. Well, that's because I made a very foolish bet the other day at Ask That Guy With the Glasses. I bet him that John McCain would win this recent presidential election, instead of that... other guy; I forget his name [Barack Obama]. I think it was on the news once. So, since I lost that bet, I had to go ahead and shave my beard off. What can you do? Well, I hope you're happy, Mr. Glasses, sittin' there all high and mighty in front of your bookcase! (beat) Hello?

Ask That Guy: (appears without a goatee as well) Oh! Ello-hey. Didn't hear you come in.

NC: Wait a minute, why did you shave your beard? I thought the contest was if McCain lost, I had to shave it off!

Ask That Guy: No, I thought the contest was if I didn't post the video with the contestants answering the questions in a week, I had to shave my beard. P.S., it's coming soon.

NC: Well, this is great. We both shaved our beards off when neither of us had to. What the hell else could happen?

Chester A. Bum: (also without a goatee) HELLO! Am I on the inter-ma-net?

NC: What?! Why the hell did you shave your beard off?! You weren't even part of the contest!

Bum: I just wanted to belong. I saw everyone else shaving their beards off, so I decided to, too! Will you guys be my friends now?

NC: No! God! How'd you shave that thing anyway? I didn't think you had a razor.

Bum: I put Cheez Whiz all over my face, and then I let loose a bunch of hungry rats! They were so happy! I named them all Darrel.

NC: Aw, dude, don't tell me anymore.

Bum: That's also how I wax my bikini area.

NC: (disgusted) Dude, stop! (normal) You weren't even part of the contest. You didn't have to change.

Bum: What?

NC: Change!

Bum: CHANGE! YA GOT CHANGE?! (simultaneously with NC) Aw, come on! Help a guy out, will ya?

NC: (simultaneously with Bum) Oh, jeez! Get him out of here, will ya?

Bum: I'll give you a cheese wax!

NC: PISS OFF!

Ask That Guy: Just to let you know, that video is coming, I assure you.

NC: GET OUTTA HERE!

Ask That Guy: Oh, right. (clears throat) This is That Guy With the Glasses saying: "There's no such thing as a stupid--"

(NC throws something at him, and he falls over)

NC: Great, so I shaved off my beard for nothing. What a waste. (sighs) Well, even though I will no doubt grow another one, I can't help but feel saddened by the loss of my cherished friend. He's been on my lips for years, and now, with the whisk of a razor, he's gone. I'm not usually a sentimental person, but I feel it only necessary to pay homage to the first and original beard that has been on my face for what seems like eons. So, you wonderful scraps of face fuzz. This... is for you.

(A montage of scenes of NC when he had his beard--grooming it, stroking it, etc.--set to Sarah McLachlan's "I Will Remember You". He is shown reading and laughing, with a close up of the beard with a face on it.)

NC: Goodbye, Beardy. Goodbye.

(A still shot of NC, with beard, pointing at the camera)

Text: Beardy 2003-2008

NC: I'd personally like to thank Sarah McLachlan for writing the most overused montage song of all time. But I'd also like to thank Green Day for being the second runner up with "I Hope You Had the Time of Your Life." [actual title: "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)"] Sorry, Green Day. It's just... McLachlan's song was a little bit sadder. And this is a time for mourning. I'm the Nostalgia Critic, I remember it so you don't have to. (He actually gets up and walks away, then moments later comes running back to the chair) That's right, I have a review to do! (clears throat) You know, I was pondering the other day why so many people got offended when I reviewed the movie Mortal Kombat.

(Footage of the original Mortal Kombat)

NC (voiceover): I, of course, pointed it out for the ridiculous piece of whore that it was, but I was surprised to find a lot of people enjoyed it. Why? I mean, okay, it's certainly not as bad as some other films I've reviewed on here, but why do so many people consider it a satisfying movie?

NC: Well, a lot of folks have e-mailed me, saying that it's not really so bad once you compare it to the sequel that came out two years later: Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.

(Footage from said movie)

NC (voiceover): I don't think I've ever gotten so many requests to do one movie. Practically every day, someone was asking me to review this. Well, I gave into peer pressure and have decided to look over this shit madness in all its glory.

NC: Even the cover gives the strange order to "Destroy All Expectations." Well, judging by the first film, I can safely say that I have NO expectations! So this shouldn't be that disappointing. You wanna take a look? So do I. Let's jump right in.

(The title sequence starts up)

NC (voiceover): Oh, I'm sorry. I seem to have popped in the first movie . These are obviously the exact same credits.

(he pulls the tape out to confirm) No, it says Annihilation on there. Maybe they just printed it on the wrong cartridge.

(The title sequence resumes)

Yeah, look at that. It's the first movie. It even says right there. (The title flips to its side) Wait, what? (the title flips back and pushes forward to spell "Annihilation")

NC: (unamused) Oh, my God, they used the exact same opening! No difference at all! How cheap are these a-holes?

NC (voiceover): Why did you even need to CG a new title? Were there no red crayons at the drug store to cross it out and just write Annihilation over it? (a quick still of this being done)

NC: Wow, these guys are really going the extra mile!

NC (voiceover): So it starts out with a "mortal rekap" of the first film. Liu Kang won the championship; Raiden never shut up; Johnny Cage and Sonya got together, I guess; and they even got out with some evil emperor's daughter called Kitana or something. I don't know, she was in the movie for, like, a minute. And they all live happily ever after.

NC: (dramatic closeup) OR DO THEY?

NC (voiceover): It turns out the evil is approaching as it starts raining Cirque du Soleil on our heroes, who find themselves surrounded by some nasty henchmen. But our fearless fighters are confident, as Liu Kang gets on his guard, Kitana readies for battle, Sonya prepares for... (Sonya appears, now played by Sandra Hess) Who the hell is that?

NC: That's not Sonya. That's, like, a totally different actress. Raiden, what the hell's goin' on here?

(Raiden is now played by James Remar)

NC: AH! You're not Raiden! Johnny Cage, who are all these people?

(Johnny is now played by Chris Conrad)

NC: AH! You're not Johnny Cage! So, wait a minute. If you're not Sonya, you're not Raiden, and you're not Johnny Cage, then what does that make me?

Sonny the Cuckoo Bird: COO-COO FOR COCOA PUFFS! COO-COO FOR COCOA PUFFS!

(NC screams and falls over)

NC (voiceover): Actually, it turns out they got all new actors for these characters. Which is kind of strange, because the first film indicates that there will definitely be a sequel! So don't you think they would've had the actors sign on for that?

NC: (as Linden Ashby, talking to his agent) Frank, you're my agent! You gotta get me out of this movie sequel! I know I did the first one, but they don't even have enough money for a new opening sequence! (beat) Uh-huh. (beat) Uh-huh. (beat) Oh. All right, I'll just have to fake my own death. (sigh) I can't go back.

NC (voiceover): So we certainly see a bunch of lightning and cool looking creatures, but... just who ARE these sideshow rejects that are threatening our heroes?

Shao Kahn: The Earth was created in six days. And on the seventh day, mankind will rest... in peace!

NC: Oh, God, Jehovah's Witnesses...

NC (voiceover): No! It turns out that all these baddies are working for the evil emperor of darkness. What's his name?

Raiden: Shao Kahn.

Admiral James T. Kirk: (from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan) KHAAAAN!

NC (voiceover): Ah, yes, Shao Kahn: the only evil overlord who dresses up like McGruff the crime dog.

Shao Kahn: As long as the portal remains open, your world becomes my world!

NC: (as McGruff) And take a bite outta crime!

NC (voiceover): He's also accompanied by his queen, Sindel, who also also happens to be Kitana's--

Kitana: Mother!

NC: Mother? (He looks between them) Did she give birth when she was 2?

(A MILF Alert sign comes up over a picture of Sindel)

NC (voiceover): So Shao Kahn fights Raiden, as he makes fun of his George Washington haircut, as they show off their effects that are so lame, that even the Angry Video Game Nerd could pull them off. (NC makes the "Burn" gesture and sound) Cage wants in on these crappy effects and enters himself into the battle. BUT that turns out to be a bad idea.

Shao Kahn: FOOL!

Sonya: Johnny!

(Shao Kahn snaps Johnny's neck)

NC: (appalled) Johnny Cage dies? (beat) THIS FILM'S LOOKING UP ALREADY! How soon do the other characters get it?

(Replay of Johnny dying, with the "wa-wa" machine/shrug gag this time)

NC (voiceover): So the rest of the heroes escape the Emperor by entering some sort of underground cave. Here, Raiden tries to explain exactly what's going on.

Raiden: I believe he has resurrected your mother to keep these portals open indefinitely. By reuniting you with her, his spell will be broken. Your mother's soul will be at peace, and his portals closed.

NC: Isn't that cute? They think we give a crap!

Kitana: How could the Elder Gods allow this?

Raiden: They do not know. But Kahn--

(The "KHAAAAN!" clip plays again)

Raiden: --must be stopped or your world will perish.

Liu Kang: I beat Shang Tsung, I can beat Kahn.

(KHAAAAN!)

Raiden: You are no match for Kahn.

(KHAAAAN!)

Sonya: If anyone's going to kill Kahn--

(KHAAAAN!)

NC: All right! Enough with the "Khan"s!

(KHAAAA--)

(NC stops Kirk by pointing at him angrily)

NC (voiceover): So the story is actually kind of hard to follow. I guess they have to split up and roam between the realms of the human world and Outworld as the Emperor slowly merges the two worlds together. Their goal I guess is to just find a way to stop the Emperor and his evil queen.

NC: Sounds simple enough. So how are we gonna travel?

NC (voiceover): By using the cage balls from American Gladiators, of course! Just watch these things move!

NC: And that's not my crappy editing or anything. That's really how they move!

NC (voiceover): Look at these things. It's like taxis for gerbils. On top of that, two people have to ride on it, facing each other, thrusting forward and heaving their bodies to make it go.

NC: This is like the most awkward amusement park ride in the world!

NC (voiceover): (mimicking a commercial announcer) When visiting Six Flags, be sure to ride the Fuck Ball!

A little graphic comes up over the scene to make it look like a commercial

NC (voiceover): Hours of uncomfortable, unpractical and all-around unenjoyable fun! It's like the Tunnel of Love, only it's a Fuck Ball. Must be at least this perverted to ride.

An arrow points to Raiden

NC (voiceover): (normal) Meanwhile, we cut to the temple of the emperor where we see him discuss the takeover of Earth with his father.

Shao Kahn: The merger has begun. Earth is under attack, and IT IS GLORIOUS!

NC: I am act-ing.

Shinnok: Did you make Raiden beg for his life before destroying him?
Shao Kahn's smile fades, and he does a front flip down off his throne...for no reason

NC: Thank you, that was very necessary.

Shao Kahn: Raiden...is of no concern to us.
His father glides across the floor, the camera in a first person view watching him, and the camera also moves closer to NC

Shinnok: YOU LET HIM LIVE? I have no use for excuses-

NC: Okay, get out of my personal space, floaty!

NC (voiceover): So Liu Kang and Kitana are attacked by the only robot who wears dreads (Smoke), as they continue through another action sequence where people are just jumping around on strings. It's like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Bullshit, there's so many strings in this movie I keep thinking there's a puppet master at the top of the screen!

Bela Lugosi (from the movie Ed Wood): Pull de string! Pull de string!

NC (voiceover): But then they're saved by a familiar face, Sub-Zero. Well wait a minute, didn't he freeze to death in the first movie?

Sub-Zero: You killed my older brother.

NC: Oh, that was his brother, 7 Degrees Celsius, okay I get it now. (It'd be 44 degrees Fahrenheit)

Sub-Zero: You killed my older brother.

Liu Kang: So why did you help us?

NC: Cause I hated him, he was a douche.

Kitana: We have a common enemy, Sub-Zero, you must help us-

NC: Now wait a minute, she just called him Sub-Zero! Okay okay, maybe it was Scorpion the yellow guy who was the brother in the first film that died. Okay, now that makes sense. So, who are they gonna encounter next?
A picture of Scorpion, with the word "Scorpion" in yellow text to emphasize the point
NC: WHAT IS GOING ON?

NC (voiceover): We saw both of these guys die in the first movie, why are they suddenly back? Did they both have brothers, are they themselves brothers, are they clones, are the same people with different actors, all the other actors are different so how am I supposed to tell?

NC: I've followed lectures of black hole theories less complicated than this!

(Actually, Sub-Zero is a codename which the original's younger brother took after his death, and Scorpion can come back because he was already a ghost, though the movie doesn't really explain this.)

NC (voiceover): Amidst all the fighting, Scorpion grabs Kitana and takes her back to the Emperor.

Scorpion: SUCKERS!

NC: Na-nananana!

NC (voiceover): Meanwhile we cut to Sonya, who looks like she's pretty busy breaking into Jurassic Park, trying to find more pointless fight scenes to participate in. She comes across her counterpart named Jax, who just had the best steroid injection he ever had in his life.

Jax: Alright stand back, stand back, let's see what I'm made of.
He uses his new cybernetic arms to simply rip the restraints off the table he's on

NC: Whoa, it turns out I'm made of awesome!

NC (voiceover): But the lost G. I. Joe action figure comes in to make their escape a little tougher!

Cyrax: (dubbed over by NC) I come free with any Happy Meal!

NC (voiceover): Some ninjas come in as we partake in, gasp, another fight scene!

Cyrax: Behold my accessories, they are all sold separately!

NC: Careful what you hit, one of those buttons might zap Timmy on the electric fence!
A ninja is thrown into a computer terminal, and the scene from Jurassic Park where Timmy gets electrocuted is shown

Cyrax: My batteries are not included motherfucker!

NC (voiceover): Okay seriously, how many jump scenes can you have in a friggin' movie? It's like they're fighting in a trampoline factory.
A montage of the jump scenes, with "boing" sounds played over them
NC (voiceover): Look at these ninjas, the Foot Soldiers were more threatening than them.
Hassan (from Ali Baba Bunny): Hassan chop!
NC (voiceover):So Sonya finds some sort of flammable malted milk or something and blows it at the Tweety bot, roasting him alive.

Cyrax: This is not covered by my guarantee!

NC (voiceover): Then they have to rush out of the building for the biggest, most incredible...green screen explosion you've ever seen in your life.

NC: You know guys, you don't have to blow up everything. Especially if you don't have, oh I don't know, THE EXPLOSION!

(music from Lawrence of Arabia plays)

NC (voiceover): Meanwhile, Liu Kang roams the desert, searching for some form of life that can help him get Kitana back. Instead he comes across--
A brief shot of a wolf leaping through the air, then Liu Kang wrestles with the camera
NC: ...an obvious wolf effect they could not afford. That 2 seconds of mediocre special effects is known as Nightwolf, a Native American warrior that looks suspiciously like Spirit, from G. I. Joe, and is just about as hammy.

Nightwolf: To beat Shao Kahn, you've gotta pass three tests. First one's courage.

Liu Kang: I don't have time for these stupid games!

NC: Oh well, that's not good. The second challenge was stupid games. Hehe.

NC (voiceover): So Nightwolf tries to help him discover his inner beast by showing him past clips from the other movies. That would bring out anyone's raging inner beast. Look, he's turning into the Hulk.

NC: You wouldn't like me when I'm Liu Kang-ry!

NC (voiceover): What Liu Kang didn't know apparently is that when you find your inner beast, hot, half-naked women appear to offer themselves freely to you.

Jade: With you Liu Kang...I am not afraid.

Liu Kang: (dubbed by NC, muffled through her chest) I can clearly see that. (real Liu) No! My heart...belongs to another.

NC: Your heart belongs to another? Who? Kitana? That chick you've known for less than an hour? How does she own your heart? True you just met this other woman, but give her a few minutes and you'll have known her just as long.

NC (voiceover): Unfortunately the young lady doesn't take rejection well. She transforms into a fearsome ninja and starts whupping Liu Kang's ass. (pretending to be Liu Kang) Uh, is it okay if we go back to having sex? (normal) So it turns out the young woman's name is Jade, and she was just testing Liu Kang! Yeah...that's it, to see if he would give in to temptation. He doesn't, so I guess she's joining him on his quest. I don't know, makes about as much sense as anything else. Meanwhile we see Sonya and Jax as they too roam through the desert. There they come across--here's a big surprise--someone else to fight!

Sonya: Kitana?

Mileena: You wish!

NC: Oh, glad to meet you, You Wish!

NC (voiceover): I seriously cannot believe how many fight scenes there are in this movie.

NC: I mean look at this, it's just two women fighting each other, covered in mud. ...heaving their large breasted bodies onto each other, touching one another, rolling around, grabbing each other's hair, getting all dirty and messy mud all over their bodies, forcing their clothes to cling to their skin ever so tightly, revealing their slim-
Bhargav leans into frame, NC pushes him away
NC: Revealing their slim, feminine figures for all of us to see! Biting and clawing at each other, giving in to their animal instincts, clawing one another like cats, hissing-
Bhargav comes back, from the other side comes Jim Jarosz and from behind NC comes Rob
NC: -and screaming until one of them comes out victorious!
All four of them start cheering and leering, watching the fight intently; then NC realizes they're all there
NC: SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!

Bhargav: Oh yeah, you're a dirty little kitty aren't you? Just a dirty, dirty little kitty, yes you are, you're dir-
The others are looking at him sternly
Bhargav: Uh...yeah.
The other three leave and NC settles back in

NC: ...So after that scene--

NC (voiceover): Sonya defeats You Wish and is suddenly attacked by...um...Bowser's anorexic sister. But is saved by Jax, who puts that computer generated sock-puppet in its place. Meanwhile we see Raiden as he talks to the gods, while he tries to figure out how the Emperor went against the rules of Outworld and Mortal Kombat.

NC: Aaah! A scene without fighting! Take it away, take it away!

NC (voiceover): Raiden then rejuvenates himself, trying to pull off the Billy Idol look, as he meets up with the rest of our heroes. We find out that our heroes have to travel to Outworld to rescue Kitana and...I guess remove the spell from her mother that makes her all vampirish. Faster than you can say "STOP FUCKING FIGHTING!" Another fight scene pops up, as we see Raiden split from the team to take on some more ninjas.

Raiden is surrounded by ninjas, but neither one's made the first move yet

NC: So are you guys gonna hit each other, or...could you maybe stop doing flips and actually attack one another? ...WILL SOMEBODY JUST THROW A PUNCH? (eventually, they get to fighting) For crying out loud, this isn't Mortal Kombat. It's Mortal Ballet!

More of the Raiden fight scene is shown, with "Waltz of the Flowers" from The Nutcracker played over it

NC (voiceover): Well, I've had enough of this fight. Let's see how the others are doing fighting the vampire chick.

Cut to Jax holding an unconscious Sindel by the hair

NC (voiceover): Hey, you fought her off-screen?!

NC: Are you telling me that I missed another possible girl-on-girl action scene? What a rip-off! (sigh) I bet they were fighting in Jello too...

NC (voiceover): So Liu Kang breaks into the fortress to rescue Kitana. I guess it looks like smooth sailing from here.

Baraka swings in from out of nowhere to attack Liu Kang

NC: WHOA!

Kitana: It's a trap Liu.

NC: Oh! Thanks! Were you gonna tell me that before, or after he cut my head off?!

NC (voiceover): So Liu Kang fights the worst Spencer's costume you ever saw (Baraka) and takes Kitana out of her cage. Here, Kitana tries to use her magic to break her mother from the Emperor's spell. But her magic doesn't work, as the queen escapes their grasp by doing her Wonder Woman twirl.
Part of the old Wonder Woman theme song plays as Sindel teleports away
NC (voiceover): So, what now?

Raiden: If Sindel is not the key to closing Kahn's portals, then Kahn has a higher allegiance.

Sonya: Wait a second. That tattoo -- I've seen it before.

Raiden: It is a permanent mark that allows safe passage through the portals for the bearer, and his passengers.

NC: You know, I think I just figured out one of the major problems with this movie. There's no story, there's just explaining! "How do we stop Kahn?" "Let me explain." "Where do we go next?" "Let me explain." It's just explaining and fighting and I get enough of that from my own government!

NC (voiceover): So please, explain to us why you have that tattoo.

Raiden: My father is an Elder God.

Jax: If yo father's an Elder God, what does that make Kahn?

Raiden: Shao Kahn is my brother.

Luke Skywalker (from Star Wars: Episode VI - The Empire Strikes Back): NOOOOOOOOOO! Nooo!

NC (voiceover): Alright, enough of these clichés, let's just jump to the final fight scene, where our heroes face off against Kahn and his warriors. But wait a minute, why isn't Raiden coming?

NC: Oh, I know, perhaps he has some sort of foolproof backup plan to sneak in and stop the Emperor, taking him by surprise. So tell us Raiden, God of Lightning, what's your strategy to help our team?

Raiden: I will pray for you all.

NC: ...FUCK YOU, get your ass in there, Thor!

NC (voiceover): I mean, what, is he literally standing somewhere in the back shouting "Don't worry, I'll bravely watch you die from the sidelines!" After he does some serious soul searching, Raiden does finally come to his senses and fight his brother. Finally, a ground-breaking epic duel. God verses god, brother verses brother, an incredible battle that will no doubt be the highlight of-

Shao Kahn takes out Raiden with one blast of energy

NC: WHY WERE YOU EVEN IN THIS MOVIE?!

A Game Over screen comes over Raiden's body, followed by "Suckality"

NC (voiceover): Alright, so our heroes have to deliver the big fight as they use their martial arts skills to their full potential.
Sonya kills Ermac by snapping his neck between her legs

Ermac: (dubbed by NC) Best...death...ever

NC (voiceover): It's up to Liu Kang to stop the evil Emperor now, but in what way should it be decided?

Elder Gods: It will be decided as it should be...IN MORTAL KOMBAT!

NC: HELL YEAH!
NC gets excited about the fight, until Shao Kahn catches a kick from Liu Kang and throws him into a brick wall
NC: Ooh...
Shao Kahn just pummels Liu Kang by kicking him while he's down; NC cringes as he watches
NC: (Hilariously disoriented) Mortal Kombat!
He falls over

NC (voiceover): But Liu Kang gives in to his inner beast and becomes...whatever the hell this is. But so does Kahn, who magically transforms himself into a giant- okay, how can we take this seriously? Howard the Duck (scene from that very film) had better effects than this! So Liu Kang, of course, defeats Kahn, whose father turns into a Rubix cube, they get Kitana's mother back, restore order to the world and they live happily ever after.

NC: OR DO THEY?! ...yeah, yeah, they do pretty much. BUT I DON'T! I mean, this movie makes the first Mortal Kombat look like a masterpiece!

NC (voiceover): I mean nothing in this movie makes any sense or has anything resembling positive entertainment.

NC: So does that make the first Mortal Kombat a good movie? ...no. But it definitely makes it a movie. WHICH IS MORE THAN I CAN SAY FOR THIS PIG SHIT!

NC (voiceover): If you have a chance to pass it up, do so, and never look back as long as you live.

Cut back to NC, drawing a beard on his face with a marker
NC: Oh! I'm the Nostalgia Critic, I remember it so you don't have to! (continues drawing his beard while getting up to leave)

Advertisement