Rain (Mortal Kombat)
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Rain is a character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series.
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[edit] About Rain
Rain is one of the sons of Argus (along with Taven and Daegon), giving him the affinity of being half-god. He betrayed his homeland Edenia during the invasion of Earthrealm, and served Shao Kahn as one of his top assassins for years. As a half-god and an Edenian, he has the ability to control water (unlike his brothers, who can control fire). He first appeared in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and Mortal Kombat Trilogy, as a purple palette-swapped Ninja.
[edit] Storyline
Rain is from the ancient realm of Edenia. As a small child, he bore witness to the invasion of his home world at the hands of Shao Kahn. During the chaos that ensued, Rain was smuggled away while his adopted father stayed behind to perform his duties as a general in the Edenian army. Edenia's armies were crushed in the Outworld invasion, and Rain's adopted father was subsequently killed by Kahn.
Thousands of years later, Rain mysteriously returned during the invasion of Earthrealm and was attacked by Kahn's extermination squads. Given the choice to fight for Kahn or be killed, he knowingly turned his back on his homeworld, and he chose to side with Shao Kahn. Either out of fear, cowardice, or ulterior motives, he aided Kahn in his plans for the conquest of Earthrealm. Trained in the art of combat, Rain fought whole-heartedly to destroy Earth's warriors.
Rain evidently learns of his true Edenian heritage, referring to himself as a prince of the realm in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon's Konquest mode, but he still chooses to fight on the side of evil. He wishes to kill both Taven and Daegon in order to be able to win the ultimate prize and power promised from defeating Blaze. Rain confronts Taven in Arctika, but he is beaten in battle, eventually escaping in a watery portal.
In Rain's Armageddon ending, it is revealed that he is actually the half-brother of Taven and Daegon, being the son of Argus whose identity his father had tried to keep hidden. Imbued with the power of Blaze after defeating him, Rain becomes a full god, and Argus proclaims him as the new Protector of Edenia. However, Rain instead uses this power to enslave the realm. Argus, having ascended to the status of Elder God after Rain's own ascension, is unable to stop him.[1]
[edit] Combat characteristics
[edit] Signature moves
- Mind-Control Orb: Rain projects a light-blue sphere of water at his opponent, which shatters as it hits. A successful hit allows Rain to move his opponent's body in any direction for a split-second. (UMK3, MKT)
- Shocking Bolt: Rain raises his arm and summons a blue lightning bolt that smashes down on opponents, bringing them in the air to set them up for combos while they fall. This attack was given to Nightwolf in Mortal Kombat: Deception, but it only knocked opponents to the ground instead of bringing them into the air. Nightwolf retains this attack in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, but Rain was also given the move once again. He now raises both his arms and the attack brings opponents into the air as before. (UMK3, MKT, MK:A)
- Super Roundhouse: Rain's roundhouse sends his opponent clear to the other side of the screen. It does less damage than other characters' normal roundhouses, but it can set up opponents for combos that other characters' roundhouses could not. The third consecutive super roundhouse will not clear the opponent to the other side, but in spite of this, an infinite Super Roundhouse combo is possible under certain conditions, giving Rain a reputation as one of the cheaper characters to play. (UMK3, MKT)
- Water Blast: Rain shoots a jet of water at his opponent. (MK:A)
- Mystic Vapors: Rain creates a puddle of water below himself, sinks into it, and reappears behind his opponent. (MK:A)
- Windy Feet: Rain jumps into the air and lunges forward feet first, propelling himself with a constant blast of water. (MK:A)
[edit] Appearances in other media
[edit] Film
Played by Tyrone Cortez Wiggins, Rain made a brief appearance in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. He was killed by Shao Kahn for not torturing Kabal and Kurtis Stryker. Stock footage of his demise is used for Baraka's death in a later scene.
[edit] Television
Rain made an appearance during one episode of Mortal Kombat: Conquest where he was played by Percy Brown. Shao Kahn sends him to kill Kung Lao so as to eliminate Earth's Grand Champion before the next tournament. Rain does battle with the monk, whom he is able to damage greatly, but Rain also becomes injured during the fight. As Kung Lao's friends arrive, Rain escapes in his weakened state. He appears later in the episode after being trailed by Siro. While the two are in combat, Kitana intervenes, forcing Rain to flee once again. Kitana then reveals that she and Rain were once friends, but he had become seduced by the power offered by Shao Kahn and chose to betray his homeland of Edenia.
Rain also appeared in an episode of the animated Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm series. He was portrayed as Kitana's ex-fiance who was thought to have been killed in battle against Shao Kahn thousands of years ago, sparking jealousy in Liu Kang. He went unmasked throughout this episode.
[edit] Character development
Rain was originally meant to appear in Mortal Kombat 3, but didn't actually appear until Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Rain was originally a red herring inserted by the game developers; a character shown in the game's intro sequence who did not actually exist within the game itself. Many MK fans searched for him in vain (due to Midway's "ninja ban" during the release of Mortal Kombat 3, there were no palette-swap ninjas in this game, and many fans were waiting for at least one ninja), with the eventual realization of his status as a joke character (named after a Prince song, Purple Rain) dawning. He would however, soon make an actual appearance in the 16-bit console versions of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and Mortal Kombat Trilogy as a full-fledged character with his own history, techniques and fatalities.
[edit] Trivia
- There are numerous in-game references to Rain's origin as a joke character based on Prince's song Purple Rain:
- When Jade defeats Rain in Mortal Kombat: Deception's Konquest mode, she says "Purple? Rain chooses his wardrobe most curiously."
- In Deception, one of the "backwards speeches" by the residents of the Chaosrealm states, "His name is Rain, and he wears purple. Purple Rain, get it?"
- In Armageddon's Konquest mode, Taven fights Rain. Rain introduces himself as the Prince of Edenia. Taven's response before the fight is, "Well, 'prince', let us see what you can do!".
- One of the codes in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 activated the message: "Rain can be found in the Graveyard."
- Although Rain is considered a joke character by many (considering his pointless role in the arcade version of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3) and has only appeared in a handful of games, he has a large fanbase.
- His bio, before it was retconned, had him as an ex-member of the Lin Kuei who left to work for Shao Kahn. This bio was allegedly given to Tremor, a difference being that Tremor went to work for the Black Dragon instead of Shao Kahn.
- In Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, it was said that Rain was born of royal blood and is actually the half-brother of Taven and Daegon. As his ending claims that he becomes a "full god" upon absorbing Blaze's energy, it is revealed that Argus is his father, which contradicts his Mortal Kombat Trilogy ending in which it was stated that his father was an Edenian general killed by Shao Kahn. It is, however, also stated that Rain was hidden away when Taven and Daegon were sealed, so it's possible that the general was chosen by Argus to be Rain's surrogate father while in hiding.
