When it comes to certain characters from certain franchises, fans sometimes have an almost unnatural like/love for ones you wouldn’t expect. As in, they can’t imagine the game without them despite them not being one of the true “main characters” or “key villains.” In a certain NetherRealm Studios franchise, Mileena has been a fan-favorite for several titles now. To the point that when she wasn’t in the main game last time around, fans demanded she be put in, and she eventually was via DLC. Fast forward to now, and Mortal Kombat 1 made it clear immediately that Mileena would be here, just in a new form alongside everyone else.
We’ve already gotten multiple looks at Mileena in the game via the various trailers, and stills have been released. But the key thing that many people wanted to see, especially based on character descriptions, was her mouth. Why? Because Mileena is known for her horrifying mouth based on how she was a clone of Kitana mixed with Tarkatan blood which made her more of a monster than a human.
However, in the new timeline, it could’ve been that Mileena didn’t have this “affliction” at all. But in a massive set of reveals yesterday by NetherRealm, they showed a small clip of Mileena’s mouth being revealed, and it’s quite horrifying:
If you’re curious, that’s quite different from how it’s looked in past games. Many versions focused more on the teeth than how the mouth functions, but here, they went full-on horror, and apparently, fans dig it. To the extent that many noted that this was how Mileena was going to look in the tenth title before NetherRealm nixed it:
So it’s good to know that NetherRealm isn’t afraid to return to old concepts to showcase new ideas.
Diving into her new backstory, in Mortal Kombat 1, Mileena is no longer a clone of Kitana. Instead, she’s the older twin and the current ruler of Outworld. The twist is that she’s been infected with the Tarkat Disease, which has made her mouth look like this.
She’s struggling to hide it; if her people discover this disease, it will put her reign in peril. Ironically, Kitana is doing what she can to help her sister stay on the throne, starkly contrasting past titles.
What will happen with Mileena isn’t known, as there are still many unknown variables in Liu Kang’s new world. But Mileena is still freaky, and that’s enough for some.
