Mortal Kombat is known for many things, but chief among them is its gruesomely gory Fatalities. However, there are other types of finishers in series as well. Starting with Mortal Kombat II, the games introduced "Friendships" (where the winner granted their opponent mercy and offered gifts or other friendly gestures) and "Babalities" (where the winner – self-explanatorily – turned the loser into a baby version of themselves).
Things got even crazier in later sequels, such as Mortal Kombat 3, which introduced the idea of "Animalities." These finishers, as the name suggests, made the winners of the fight turn into animals to kill their dazed opponents. However, which character had the best Animalities and which character had the worst?
10 BEST: Jax As Lion
In Mortal Kombat, Major Jackson "Jax" Briggs is a tough, straightforward, and no-nonsense soldier for the (fictional) military branch of The Special Forces, alongside partner and fellow Mortal Kombat combatant, Sonya Blade. So, it makes sense that his Animality would be transforming into a strong lion that mauls and kills his opponent. While there are certainly flashier and more unique animals that other Mortal Kombat characters transform into, the proud lion and its no-nonsense, straight-to-the-biting attack fit Jax's personality perfectly. Also, it's satisfyingly gory as well.
9 WORST: Johnny Cage As Kangaroo
Mortal Kombat's resident-wise-cracking former movie star, Johnny Cage is one of the most overtly comedic characters in the series. That's why his Animality transformation into a comedic kangaroo sprite makes a certain amount of sense. It harkens back to other media like the goofy Kangaroo Jack film (or, really, just that famous sequence from the film) as well as the 1978 Elliot Gould-starring kangaroo boxing film Matilda (not to be confused with the '90s kid film).
However, there are many reasons why this Animality ranks so low on this list. For one, the sprite looks a little too goofy (or not goofy enough, as Kangaroo Jack-esque sunglasses might've actually helped matters). Secondly, the subsequent attack is also pretty bloodless (without the humor of something like Mileena's skunk Animality to make up for it). It's certainly not the worst, but it's still disappointing (much like Kangaroo Jack, funnily enough).
8 BEST: Kitana as Rabbit
Princess Kitana of Edenia is the former stepdaughter of Outworld dictator (and Mortal Kombat II & III's end boss) Shao Kahn and the half-sister of the deranged Mileena (or, more accurately, Mileena is Kitana's half-clone, but why quibble?) Kitana is also one of the proudest and most regal of the Mortal Kombat cast, and always brings an aura of strength and leadership to her appearances. This makes her Animality, where she transforms into a small, cute bunny rabbit, all the more incongruous and humorous. And, beyond the comedic factor of the Animality (as well as the unavoidable Monty Python comparisons), it's also a pretty bloody one as well.
7 WORST: Noob Saibot As Anteater
It's pretty common knowledge among Mortal Kombat fans that Noob Saibot was named after series creators Ed Boon and John Tobias ("Noob Saibot" being both of their last names spelled backward). Meanwhile, Noob first appeared as a secret character in Mortal Kombat II, where he was just a ninja sprite painted completely black with no backstory to speak of. It was once rumored (and since confirmed) that he is in fact Bi-Han - the original Sub-Zero who was killed by Scorpion in the first Mortal Kombat tournament – returned as an undead Revenant.
Unfortunately, Noob's anteater Animality isn't that great. Unlike Smoke, whose Animality was a bull painted pitch black, Noob just turns into a regular old, brown-furred anteater. And, worse, there's no blood! Noob's anteater just quickly sucks up the opponent with its snout. The Animality is sort of humorous, but not enough to make up for the lack of character consistency or (more egregiously) the lack of gore.
6 BEST: Kabal As Skeletal Rhinoceros
Kabal, first introduced in Mortal Kombat III, was an instant fan favorite. He had those cool, unique hook swords, an awesome Darth Vader-like mask, and a Mad Max-esque post-apocalyptic vibe that made him stand out among the game's other new combatants. He also had a great move set (including the combo-inducing spin dash attack), and some classic Fatalities (such as scaring the soul out of his opponents by revealing his grotesque face under the aforementioned mask).
And even his Animality was pretty metal! Unlike a lot of the other Animalities on this list, his wasn't just a regular rhinoceros (which is already pretty rad), but a skeletal rhinoceros. It belongs on an album cover. Unfortunately, the gore is minimal, but it makes up for that in style alone.
5 WORST: Stryker As T-Rex
Unlike Kabal, Stryker – a police officer who's more "Paul Blart with a baseball cap" than a badass John McClane-type – was immediately derided by the Mortal Kombat fan community. While there are certainly defenders of this character, they are few and far between (and getting fewer and farther between, based on current events).
So with that said, the actual Animality itself is fine – a T-Rex is a cool animal and the gore is decently bloody (if a bit too derivative of Liu Kang's Dragon Animality). The problem is due to Stryker himself (which is why it's being placed in the "Worst" category). It seems like a major waste to give such an awesome animal to such a lame character. AKAB forever, baby!
4 BEST: Sub-Zero As Polar Bear
Sub-Zero turning into a polar bear is a no-brainer, right? Kuai Liang (the second Sub-Zero after the first Sub-Zero became the aforementioned Noob Saibot) is a talented cryomancer of the Lin Kuei ninja clan, and thus his Animality should appropriately address his substantial ice powers. And while technically animals from cold climates like the penguin or seal could fit that description, a polar bear is both known for living in the snow and being a nasty and brutal apex predator. It's a perfect combination for a great Animality.
3 WORST: Reptile As Chimpanzee
Reptile was first known for being a secret character in the original Mortal Kombat game (as a green palette-swapped ninja with both Sub-Zero and Scorpion's moves, but none of his own). Then, in Mortal Kombat II, Reptile became the reptilian ninja (with the invisibility, acid spit, and long tongue) that we know and love today.
This brings us to his Animality, which is that of a chimpanzee. First of all, that doesn't make much sense (he's already a reptile!) And, sure, there's obviously some ironic comedic value to this choice (it had to be purposeful by the developers to subvert expectations). But, like Noob's before him, there's not even any blood or gore! Worse, unlike Noob's, Reptile doesn't even kill his opponent - he just chases them off-screen! Pathetic.
2 BEST: Liu Kang As Dragon
Liu Kang's bloody dragon Fatality – where he transforms into a giant green dragon and chomps his opponent in half – was first introduced in Mortal Kombat II and was only later retrofitted into being an "Animality" in Mortal Kombat III (and later in the film Mortal Kombat: Annihilation).
But, despite that, it's still a cool Animality as dragons are always cool (unless they're Spyro). Furthermore, it fits with the character. Liu Kang is a Chinese Shaolin monk and the dragon Liu turns into is styled after traditional Chinese dragons. And again, dragons rule!
1 WORST: Scorpion As Penguin
Look, Scorpion's Animality is a no-brainer. He should've turned into a... you know... scorpion. The problem is, Scorpion wasn't in the original Mortal Kombat III and was only added in Ultimate Mortal Kombat III five months later. This allowed Sheeva to turn into a giant scorpion for her Animality before him, and thus forced the developers to make Scorpion's Animality something else.
The problem is, unlike Reptile turning into a chimp – which seemed deliberately ironic – Scorpion's Animality as a penguin seemed too much like the afterthought it most likely was, which was a shame.