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Who is the bigger MK Jobber: Reptile or Baraka?
- Thread starter Deleted member 12790
- Start date
The comics revealed that Reptile's value to Shao Kahn and Kotal Kahn was as a spy and not really a fighter, so I'm willing to give him a pass. Reptile actually wasn't even supposed to compete in the first tournament, but sort of fell into it thinking he could win and possibly revive his race. One character I would nominate is Noob, as much as I like him. Bi-Han was the shit as Sub-Zero, but as Noob, who seemingly has one of the most useful powersets on paper (shadow clones, portals, etc.), he's routinely treated as a sandbag in the current timeline. Other than surviving the Soulnado, he's been pretty underwhelming; maybe Quan Chi was better off leaving him as a cryomancer.
While Baraka and the Tarkatans are seemingly your generic cannon-fodder fantasy monster race(and they still kind of are), MK11 actually gave the Tarkatans a story and culture, with Baraka being their no nonsense, shitkicking, battle-wise leader. MK11 did a lot to redeem the Tarkatans, and Baraka especially. A lot of characters treat him with respect in MK11. Scorpion calls Tarkatans legendary warriors. Sonya wants to know how to earn his respect. Skarlet and Kollector are jealous of his position in Shao Kahn's army. As a lifelong Baraka fan, his treatment in MK11 is something that makes me incredibly happy.
So while Baraka got that redemption, Reptile never did. While Baraka was the bigger jobber before, Reptile is now the bigger jobber on the merit that he has no redemption, and is now relegated to being a Krypt easter egg that you repeatedly smash with a hammer so you can get items. Until Reptile gets his redemption, he will remain the bigger jobber.
So while Baraka got that redemption, Reptile never did. While Baraka was the bigger jobber before, Reptile is now the bigger jobber on the merit that he has no redemption, and is now relegated to being a Krypt easter egg that you repeatedly smash with a hammer so you can get items. Until Reptile gets his redemption, he will remain the bigger jobber.
Kotal being a jobber actually hurts because he had a ton of potential
That;s another thing. Noob Saibot died like a bitch to Scorpion and then died like a bitch again to Nightwolf, after jobbing for Quan Chi the whole time. Then he comes back in MK11 and does what, gets his ass kicked some more. At least Ermac ripped some arms off. At least Reptile is, uh, I don't know he is a lizard. That's kinda cool. At least Baraka redeemed himself in MK11. BUT WHAT DID NOOB SAIBOT EVER DO BESIDES SOUND LIKE DR. CLAW.
The format was OK in MK9 since the game has a lot of warriors and some of them only appear in a specific part of the story (MK1, MK2 and MK3). But MKX was awful since due to the limited number of "bad guys" it feels like you are constantly fighting against the same baddies over and over again.
And to think this guy was the successor of Shao Kahn. :|
The design and moveset is OK but the story makes him so weak when he is instantly defeated by Kombat Kids the moment he is introduced. And the Ls kept coming afterwards.
During this generation, both Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter introduced an Aztec themed fighter, hyped him up and then turned him into a complete jobber in their respective story modes.
Baraka, for sure. Name a defining characteristic of Baraka from other Tarkatans, other than being a slightly more competent fighter.
At least Reptile turned into Onaga in the original timeline.
At least Reptile turned into Onaga in the original timeline.
I'll have to go with Kotal Kahn as well. He got beat by Jade, then he gets captured and crippled by Shao Kahn. That's excluding him losing to Kung Jin in his first appearance in MKX.
WTF even is this?
Dude looks like he should be cutting up shawarma or something :V
Hey, that move is no joke:
He's right. Even Baraka had a better showing in MK11 than Kotal.
Straight up JCVD with that split. Goro should've known not to mess with that hip flexibility.
Even though I thought this was the case before Aftermath, can we all agree that the biggest jobber is none of the options listed?
Kotal Khan:
- Defeated by Kombat Kids in MKX
- Deafeated in his own MKX trailer
- Turned on in MK11 story mode by his lover for being weak
- Back broken in MK11
- Decapitated in MK11 Aftermath
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Then you can slap me around and call me Krazy with a K. I know you got a temp ban, and this post is from a few weeks ago but I really disagree with you. Johnny is my favourite character in the series and he's a total jobber across most of the media he's in.
For context prior to MK9:
He dies off screen in MK 3 (because his actor used his likeness for another game).
He dies in MKDA against the Tarkatan horde.
He's resurrected by Ermac in Deception and with Liu's absence, he gathers the forces of light only to be thrown aside for Kenshi as the leader in the battle of Armageddon iirc.
Dies at the pyramid, no body to be found, just his head.
Actual wins to his name in MK9:
Half of his wins are from beating two of the jobbers in your poll: Reptile and Baraka. He beats Sonya (who doesn't have a great w/l record herself) and then slaps around another jobber; Kano. The rest of the game, Johnny gets his shit pushed in by friends and foes, and also gets his leg broken by Ermac (another apparent jobber). Nearly died to Motaro (and didn't look like he was giving a good fight). Sindel wipes the floor with him, and then Shao Kahn slaps him with green energy. JC is ko'd for the rest of the finale until after Shao's defeat.
Actual wins to his name in MKX:
He stomps all over Scorpion (another jobber) and Subzero (not a jobber). He wrecks Jax and then proceeds to take on Shinnok. So far, we're looking good and his presence in the story is pretty tight...Until its explained that even though 20 years have passed he has never summoned the green glow again and then proceeds to job to human Scorpion...the man who defeated Shinnok loses to a jobber.
Actual Wins to his name in MK11:
He jobs to himself. He wins against Kano the jobber, A-Aron the jobber, and Sektor (jobber across the series). Then Present JC is shot in the leg, YPast JC is beaten a bunch and both are benched for the rest of the game. There is no excuse for this because Raiden can heal people, we see him do it with Past Scorpion. Past JC being in the final battle would be too dangerous, I get it. Present JC? No excuses.
MK AFTERMATH
Present JC who is a well experienced combatant and military man doesn't appear at all. Past JC mentions that Raiden was able to heal him up so again, no excuses at this point not to have Present JC. Past JC gets a few shots in on Shao Kahn, but proceeds to job to Sindel/Shao Kahn despite the fact that he's just witnessed his future daughter and wife get destroyed, cannot/does not summon the green glow that defeated Shinnok and presumably dies off screen with his family cause we never see them again
EDIT: If you beat Johnny with Sindel, she would have taken Sonya and Johnny to her sex dungeons and force them to fuck in order to breed an army of super warriors...jfc....
EDIT: If you beat Johnny with Sindel, she would have taken Sonya and Johnny to her sex dungeons and force them to fuck in order to breed an army of super warriors...jfc....
Scorpion's Revenge
He's a total incompetent clown who defeats Baraka by dumb luck, he doesn't or can't use his powers and even at the end of the movie, he's fighting random oni and tag teams Kano with Sonya iirc.
And...although I think they're mostly trash, those MK web episodes where Capser Van Dien portrays the character, he's a coward and can't fight all that well either.
Johnny doesn't have a good w/l ratio and his best accomplishments get undermined by terrible writing. Johnny, despite having moments of awesomeness (like you said about Ermac) is a total jobber when the plot requires it of him...but that can be said about a few characters...either way he consistently loses the majority of the time despite NRS hinting at him being something greater in MK9 which only materializes in chapter 1 of MKX. His strongest appearance is in the original Mortal Kombat movie, where he has an uphill battle with Scorpion and wins, then outwits and defeats the reigning MK Champion; Goro, making Johnny Cage the MK Champ.
Regarding your poll. Baraka got his due in MK11. Ermac's significance in the old time line gives him status. Reptile never ends up anywhere significant in the new timeline. He doesn't get a mention in MK11 story mode at all. His only purpose is to run away from you as your hammer his ass in the krypt for coins and a costume. So my vote goes to him...but if Kotal was added to the poll...well there'd be no argument.
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I'm honestly surprised at seeing a lot of Baraka over Reptile votes. It's bittersweet because while I love Reptile and want better show of him in the series, no merit of Reptile is even remotely impressive. He is very much the mutt of the litter in the series with how he's represented and kept down.
Baraka at least has some implications within the story--especially now. He is a leader in form for his kind, and without spitting on the Tarkatans, that's something. It definitely wouldn't be the trait of a jobber. Baraka has power behind him, he can make an impact if he wanted to.
Reptile on the other hand can never catch a break, and that fact is emphasized in his MK4 ending, along with his presence in MK9. Reptile has no out, he's a lap dog to Shang Tsung and Quan Chi. Don't let your love for Reptile cloud you here, if there's a filler fight to be had, Reptile will be there and they'll find a way to make him lose(despite his lethal abilities). I've come to accept that place for Reptile, only because hoping hurts.
As for a persuasive closing, let me remind you who is in the current game, and who isn't(Reptile isn't).
Literally a jobber. Keep voting Baraka though. Maybe the devs will somehow see this poll and think more of Reptile...
Baraka at least has some implications within the story--especially now. He is a leader in form for his kind, and without spitting on the Tarkatans, that's something. It definitely wouldn't be the trait of a jobber. Baraka has power behind him, he can make an impact if he wanted to.
Reptile on the other hand can never catch a break, and that fact is emphasized in his MK4 ending, along with his presence in MK9. Reptile has no out, he's a lap dog to Shang Tsung and Quan Chi. Don't let your love for Reptile cloud you here, if there's a filler fight to be had, Reptile will be there and they'll find a way to make him lose(despite his lethal abilities). I've come to accept that place for Reptile, only because hoping hurts.
As for a persuasive closing, let me remind you who is in the current game, and who isn't(Reptile isn't).
Reptile is such a jobber his only impact in MK11 is to play hide and seek with some dude on Shang Tsung's forsaken island. The dev team needed a jackass in the krypt and Reptile was right there.
Literally a jobber. Keep voting Baraka though. Maybe the devs will somehow see this poll and think more of Reptile...
Reading your post makes it sound like everyone but Sub-Zero is a jobber.
Honestly though...they're all jobbers. You can blame NRS and the chapter system they created. Its not really good and it lacks consistency between character's strengths and abilities. Literally everyone has to job to someone because the poorly structured plot demands it.
Again, JC opens up MK9 and wins his first four fights, and then every fight he's in thereafter he gets the smackdown. MKX he beats down Shinnok and then loses to Human Scorpion later in the game. Its dumb.
I don't think Netherrealm knows why people liked him.
Maybe he was always meant to be a literal reptile but he was way, way cooler as a green ninja palette swap who was secretly a reptile.
I still don't understand how no one looked at that trailer beforehand and questioned why that was the Kotal Kahn reveal.
Baraka gets the vote from me, although there's not much in it. What swings it is that Reptile was pretty much the original badass secret fighting game character, and was still pretty cool until they literally turned him into a reptile. My childhood memories make up for his lameness since.
Could be. The original MK3 team, some of whom remain at Netherrealm, thought that Stryker was just the coolest. No-one else did.
Could be. The original MK3 team, some of whom remain at Netherrealm, thought that Stryker was just the coolest. No-one else did.
It's gotta be Kotal Khan. I actually liked his design and found him to be pretty cool at first... but then I saw the story mode for MKX and MK11. Like, holy shit, dude does absolutely nothing other than get his ass kicked. The only time something good has happened for him was off-camera, as soon as the camera is on him there's someone there to absolutely wreck him as if he was a random background character. It actually impresses me how the story mode managed to make me like the character less than I did before.
Before Mk11 they were tied. After Mk11 Reptile is the bigger jobber. At least Baraka more closely resembles a character this time and at the very least a competent general.
Reptile used to be one of my favorite MK characters when I was younger, but I would say he's the bigger jobber between him and Baraka.
I mean in such short amount of time he has caught so many Ls he is the King of jobbers tbh
Which is fucking wild considering in the comic, Kotal Kahn is a real fucking threat. Shao Kahn was also threatened by him which is why he was locked away to begin with, but then the story mode for the games happen and he's just taking L's
