If not the fiery Scorpion, fans of Mortal Kombat will likely instantly recognize Sub-Zero and his signature mastery for ice. Unlike other fighting game characters, Sub-Zero makes no hesitation when it comes to freezing his opponents solid before aiming for the swift kill. It's his chilling Fatalities, alongside the gory killing blows of others, that made Mortal Kombat such a controversial franchise. However, it's also his iconic rivalry with Scorpion that made it have such a mark to the hearts of fans.
Sub-Zero has more to offer than just his signature blue garb and his brutally icy finishers. His rivalry with Scorpion and his tricky identity made him a iconic character in the franchise. However, what else does Sub-Zero offer to fans?
10 Originally Just Named Ninja
It's interesting to note that Sub-Zero's original character design comes from way back into the earliest stages of Mortal Kombat. In fact, the Sub-Zero concept came from John Tobias, who wanted a mysterious character "Ninja" to star in a now-cancelled Midway Games project prior to the first Mortal Kombat game.
Interestingly, despite the name "Ninja," his concept would have had Chinese inspiration. Apparently, Tobias would use the supposed Lin Kuei clan of Chinese-based assassins as inspiration for the Ninja concept. Sub-Zero would also retain a Chinese-inspired motif in subsequent appearances.
9 The Controversial Lin Kuei
As mentioned, John Tobias wanted the "Ninja" character to star in a cancelled game idea prior to Mortal Kombat. Interestingly, it seems this first project would have revolved around shinobi (Japanese ninjas). According to Tobias, the Li Hsing book The Chinese Ninja Connection became his inspiration for the ninja game concept. This controversial book claims that a China-based clan of assassins called the Lin Kuei may have influenced the Japanese shinobi.
By the time the team thought of palette swapping the ninja character, Tobias added that he wanted to incorporate the Chinese-based ninja and the Japanese-based shinobi into each of these characters. Hence, this may have resulted in Sub-Zero's Lin Kuei being Chinese-inspired, and Scorpion's Shirai Ryu being Japanese-inspired.
8 Interesting Naming Conventions
In addition to having a distinct Asian inspiration, many facets of Sub-Zero's character have Asian origins - especially with regards to names. For instance, the younger Sub-Zero (Kuai Liang) can have his name translated as either "good + foreigner from another kingdom" or "cool + swift and cool." Interestingly, despite MK's Lin Kuei originating from Outworld, Kuai Liang was born in Earthrealm. It's unknown whether Sub-Zero's origin is directly referenced by the "foreigner" translation or not.
Even other names attached to Sub-Zero have Asian origins. For instance, his Kori-Blade is a direct reference to the fact that "Kori" is Japanese for "Ice." Meanwhile, his Deadly Alliance uniform had Chinese characters for "Ice Dragon's," and his alternate costume adds another character for "Ice."
7 Hunter And Hunted: A Reused Concept
Lore fans might remember that in Mortal Kombat 3, Sub-Zero quit the Lin Kuei and became the rogue assassin Tundra. Back then, the Lin Kuei already sent the cyberized ninjas Cyrax, Sektor, and Smoke to subdue and eliminate the traitor Tundra. Thankfully, Tundra managed to help Smoke recover his memories and help him in his fight against the two cyber ninjas. Interestingly, this story - and even the Tundra concept - referenced an old concept Tobias had for the character even before the first game.
Interestingly, Sub-Zero's first name in the early MK prototype would've been Tundra. However, a design team member suggested "Sub-Zero" after the assassin Sub Zero, which Arnold Schwarzenegger's character in The Running Man fought in the film. Meanwhile, Tobias already had a "Hunter and Hunted" concept ready for the palette swapped Ninja concept in MK but used it for MK 3 instead.
6 Design Became More Complicated Than Anticipated
Sub-Zero started with very simple costumes due to technical limitations of hardware at the time. However, his designs started to evolve as graphical power evolved across the years. As a result, his unmasked MK 3 appearance became a stark contrast to his masked costume to stir speculation about his identity. Moreover, his iconic red scar would become a mainstay throughout the series.
Additionally, in MK: Deception, Sub-Zero now wore uniform that took inspiration from Dynastic-era Chinese battle armor. Sadly, fans criticized this uniform for its similarities with the costume of Shredder, the main antagonist of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Meanwhile, his future appearances would again lean back towards his classic, sleeker outfit. Interestingly, his Shaolin Monks appearance received the most revisions. In the game, character lead Mark Lappin said he almost did 10 passes on the design to get it to the variation used in the game.
5 The Scar Symbolized Development
Fans would easily recognize Sub-Zero amongst his palette-swapped peers because of two things: his blue garb and his iconic red scar. In fact, his scar's appearance evolved through the years - and not just because of design decisions. At first, his red scar served as a "mark of death," and it consistently ran through his forehead and across his right eye.
Interestingly, this mark would become blue in Deadly Alliance. This change in color marks Sub-Zero's growth in power, courtesy of the Dragon Medallion. Additionally, his scar almost disappeared in Deception but once again becomes prominent in Armageddon.
4 Controversial Set Of Fatalities
A lot of Sub-Zero fans love his character not just for his story and costume, but also his Fatalities. Sub-Zero retains two signature moves from the first Mortal Kombat, that being his sliding kick and ice blast. Meanwhile, MK 2 would start emphasizing his ice abilities with two new Fatalities. These included Freeze, which involves freezing the enemy and then shattering them in place. They originally replaced this move with the Ice Shower but returned it after fan reception at the arcade.
Meanwhile, his Spine Rip Fatality became a point of controversy in its release. This Fatality, inspired by the Predator franchise, involves Sub-Zero ripping the opponent's head with the spine still attached. In other version of Mortal Kombat, Spine Rip gets replaced with another Fatality. This Fatality became so controversial that it got removed throughout MK 2 and MK 3, returning only in Ultimate MK 3.
3 Possibly More Than Two
As fans might remember, Sub-Zero in Mortal Kombat served as an alias used by two individuals. While Kuai Liang uses the Sub-Zero identity in most games, lore implies more individuals used this codename before. For instance, in the Mortal Kombat: Conquest TV series that preluded the events of the first film, Sub-Zero had a lister named Lisa. Given that the Conquest show took place at least a hundred years prior to the first film, it seems this Lisa served as the sibling to another Sub-Zero.
Moreover, it seems Sub-Zero taught Shujinko his freezing abilities. However, this isn't possible as this event took place hundreds of years before Deception. Interestingly, MK designer Josh Vogel revealed that the Sub-Zero that taught Shujinko served as the ancestor to both Bi-Han and Kuai Liang.
2 The Batman Connection
Fans might remember pitting Mortal Kombat's Kombatants against the DC Universe's heroes and villains in Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe. Interestingly, this game pits Sub-Zero against Batman. According to MK co-creator Ed Boon, Sub-Zero is similar to Batman given their nature as "brooding, mysterious, and dark" characters. This connection has an interesting impact inside and outside the MKvDCU game.
For instance, Sub-Zero becomes Earthrealm's version of the Caped Crusader in his MKvDCU ending. Meanwhile, Scorpion's guest appearance as a DLC character in Injustice has him say "You are no Sub-Zero!" to Batman, possibly referencing both MKvDCU and Scorpion's rivalry with Sub-Zero.
1 A Recurring Story
The tragic tale of the brothers Bi-Han and Kuai Liang finds a similarity with the tale of Taven and Dagon. In MK: Armageddon, the god Argus put half-gods Taven and Daegon to sleep in their quest to save Edenia in a future attack by Shao Kahn. Unfortunately, due to Shinnok's machinations, Daegon attempts to kill Taven in Armageddon.
In terms of the Sub-Zero siblings, Bi-Han's descent to darkness led him taking the codename Noob Saibot and siding with Quan-Chi. Additionally, Noob ends up attempting to kill Kuai Liang in Deception.