Mortal Kombat, the 1995 film adaptation of the popular video game franchise, misunderstood how Scorpion's spear works, and the video games later had to retcon the movie's depiction of Scorpion's weapon. One of the most iconic characters in pop culture, Scorpion is a gaming legend, synonymous with Mortal Kombat and a constant in the series. The kunai, a Japanese leaf-shaped blade with an attached rope, is his weapon of choice, and when the game was translated to screen, the kunai's replacement was especially strange.
Paul W.S. Anderson's film adaptation of Mortal Kombat looked to the Midway Games' 1992 installment in the franchise for its cast and story. The debut Mortal Kombat game is rudimentary with two-dimensional graphics that lack finer detail, and one casualty of this was Scorpion's spear, which proved to be a mystery. The game's graphics couldn't clearly depict where Scorpion's weapon came from or how it worked, so the filmmakers misinterpreted the kunai's mechanics in the film, among Mortal Kombat's many other problems.
Mortal Kombat depicts the kunai as sentient: a hole opens in Scorpion's palm, and a snake-like creature emerges, striking where Scorpion wills it. For some time, fans took the film's depiction of Scorpion's weapon as canon, and the television series Mortal Kombat: Conquest even reinforced this theory. In the video game, however, there is no sentient snake emanating from Scorpion's palm, and improved graphics in subsequent installments would show the kunai in clearer, more realistic detail as a concealed blade as opposed to a living serpent. This discrepancy baffled newcomers to the series and veterans alike.
The reason for the error is understandable in hindsight. The original Mortal Kombat graphics were basic, and they made it impossible to see where Scorpion's kunai came from or exactly what it was. It just vaguely appeared from his hand, giving off the impression that it could be organic, which was what Anderson and his team assumed in 1995. Once the video game's visuals caught up, the spear is a part of Scorpion's arsenal, not a deadly snake.
While the depiction of a bloodthirsty serpent emerging from a Scorpion's hand was the result of a misunderstanding, it isn't too far-fetched considering Mortal Kombat's video game lore and the fantastical elements imbued in other characters. The upcoming 2021 reboot has a lot to improve on, and a more faithful, modern depiction of Scorpion's kunai is a good starting point.
