Johnny Cage joins Earthrealm’s warriors in Mortal Kombat 2with his presence likely to require 2021’s sequel Mortal Kombat to hand over an important aspect of the reboot. Mortal KombatThe wisecracking action hero Johnny Cage was surprisingly absent from the Mortal Kombat reboot, though the film still featured many of the franchise’s most famous characters fighting for both Earthrealm and Outworld. A new character named Cole Young (Lewis Tan) serves as the central protagonist of Mortal Kombatwith the film (somewhat divided) placing a heavy emphasis on his training and that of other Earthrealm warriors.
In Mortal Kombat, the special abilities of the characters from the franchise are called their “arcana”, which only those with a dragon mark can use. A descendant of Scorpion (Hiroyuki Sanada) and prophesied to defend Earthrealm, Cole trains to unlock his arcana, with him, Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee), and Jax (Mehcad Brooks) finally succeeding through the film’s climax. Mortal Kombat ends with Cole going to Hollywood to recruit Johnny Cage for Outworld’s coming onslaught, who takes on another arcana-wielding character in Mortal Kombat 2.
While Johnny’s arcana skills from the Mortal Kombat games are definitely showcased in Mortal Kombat 2, that won’t happen right away. Johnny will probably spend a significant portion of his role on: Mortal Kombat 2 undergoing the same arcana training that Cole and Sonya did in Mortal Kombat. In fact, Johnny has to go through the rigors of his arcana training a lot more than they did.
Johnny Cage’s Arcana training should be the focus Mortal Kombat 2
Like Cole, Sonya and Jax, Johnny will be a newcomer to the battle for Earthrealm and the Mortal Kombat tournament. He’ll be even less prepared than she is, though, as Sonya and Jax have researched the tournament extensively and Cole’s visions of Scorpion warn him of supernatural powers. More importantly, the kind of character that Johnny Cage is makes his arcana training all the more mandatory. Not only are Johnny Cage frequent Mortal Kombat franchise deaths something he must train to avoid, but he must also learn humility.
Johnny is known as the most jovial of Earthrealm’s warriors, and although he is one of the world’s greatest martial artists, he tends to let his ego overtake him. Johnny fights for the fate of Earthrealm in Mortal Kombat is an event that requires his ego to be held in check, and he will also need to be fully able to handle the situation using his arcana. Unlike Cole, Sonya, and Jax, Johnny’s inherent stubbornness will likely make his arcana training both more necessary and rigorous under the supervision of Cole, Raiden (Tadanobu Asano), and Liu Kang (Ludi Lin).
Mortal Kombat left the audience with an unequivocal tease of Johnny Cage as one of the main characters of Mortal Kombat 2, maybe even setting up a Cole Young vs. Johnny Cage fight to bring in the last one. However, Johnny’s new entry into the battle for the rich and his arrogance will affect his training. Fighting in Mortal Kombat requires discipline and focus, and Johnny Cage needs both to unleash his secrets in Mortal Kombat 2.
