Sindel has been through a lot, and many fans of the lore behind the hyper violent Mortal Kombat game are disappointed with the way Sindel’s story has been retconed. But does this big change make sense given the evolution of her character?
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Sindel in Mortal Kombat 3
In Mortal Kombat 3, the ending story reveals that Sindel was a mother and wife before Shao Kahn shattered her life. She killed herself rather than live with Shao Kahn as a husband. However, Kahn resurrected her and forced her into a life of servitude to him. With her memories corrupted, she fights alongside him. During the game, however, she regains those memories before defeating Kahn, using her whip-like hair and banshee powers that Sindel is well known for.
This was just the beginning of Sindel’s story, however, and the future would bring a lot of twists and turns. But back in 1995, she was a good guy that had lost her kingdom, her family, and her memories all at once, giving her an incredibly interesting and tragic backstory that drew fans in. Many wanted to know more of the displaced Queen and how her story continued.
Sindel as a Good Guy
Sindel is considered on the side of good for most of the games, comic books, and even movies from the 1990s. In the movie Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, Sindel is once again brainwashed by Shao Kahn, but regains her memories and her daughter at the end of the movie.
In Mortal Kombat 4, she returns to her land of Edenia on a quest to rebuild after its separation from Outworld. Between 4 and Armageddon (these games are considered the “old timeline”), Sindel helps to battle against the forces of Shao Kahn, rebuild her homeland, and keep her daughter safe.
However, in the apocolyptic Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, nearly everyone is killed including Sindel. Shao Kahn wins the Kombat, giving him the powers of a fire god and condeming the world to live under his boot for eternity. In desperation, Raiden attempts to send a message back in time to himself, hoping to warn everyone against this horrible fate that has befallen the world.
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Thus the new story line begins. The next timeline, which begins with 2011’s Mortal Kombat 9, features a retcon of Sindel’s story that had some fans scratching their heads.
Sindel in Mortal Kombat 9 and X
Once again, Sindel is evil in Mortal Kombat 9 due to the influence of others. Shao Kahn bestows the powers and the souls of Shang Tsung on the resurrected, mind-controlled Queen, giving her nearly limitless powers and an evil that cannot be touched even by Kitana. She murders her daughter in the end, only being defeated as Nightwolf uses his own life force to destroy her.
In Mortal Kombat X, which many may consider one of the best fighting games in the series, Sindel is still dead, but her corpse is resurrected as a Revenant. Players get to see her being controlled once again, brought back to life by Quan Chi. Although she doesn’t seem to be in control of her actions, much like many previous games, she might be a good guy hiding under all that control magic that Shau Kahn, Quan Chi, and others have lain on her. This character is such a perfect blend of sad and intriguing that made fans interested in what would happen next with her.
Sindel as Mortal Kombat 11 DLC
Sindel is considered one of the A+ tier characters for competitive play for Mortal Kombat 11. Her impressively gory Fatalities and sassy attitude against her opponents has won many hearts. However, how does this Sindel’s story match up with the others from previous games?
Sindel’s character is billed as a greedy, manipulative woman who killed her own husband to gain Shao Kahn, someone she considered a stronger man and “better lover.” In it for the power, Sindel’s winning ending scenes really drive home her new and sudden dive into the realm of the evil. Sindel’s bio in the DLC is extreme too:
That doesn’t sound much like the Sindel fans have come to know and love. Although Sindel’s a DLC character and has little to do with the main story, players can make a few conjectures after seeing Sindel’s cut scenes. Sindel’s main look is her Revenant look, her skin is broken, and her eyes glow with an eerie light. Her powers appear to be about equal with her pre-Shang Tsung soul power she gained in Mortal Kombat 9.
So who is Sindel in Mortal Kombat 11? It’s difficult to say, but there are two possibilities. Either Sindel has been retconed into a character that is no longer deeply sad and incredibly interesting. Or she is still a Revenant (although players can unlock Sindel’s human form in the game) reawakened from death, and perhaps being controlled once again, however unlikely that seems. Interactions between Sindel and Kitana, as seen below, could suggest the latter.
In previous games, she’s an interesting enough character that NetherRealms could give her her own movies and comics, but many no longer consider that the case. All anyone can hope for is that Sindel will be able to stand on her own two feet for the Mortal Kombat movie that releases March 2021, if Sindel appear as a character in it at all.
Mortal Kombat 11 is out now for PC, PS4, Stadia, Switch, and Xbox One.
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