Summary
- Mortal Kombat 1 strikes a balance between violence and humor, delivering gruesome Fatalities with a lighthearted tone and self-awareness.
- The game is filled with Easter eggs and references to pop-culture, with Johnny Cage being the main source of these nods to movies like Indiana Jones and Aliens.
- Johnny Cage's pop-culture references extend beyond the story mode, appearing in his character intros as well, including nods to iconic films like Full Metal Jacket and Silence of the Lambs.
Though it had its self-serious phase in the mid-2000s, the Mortal Kombat franchise has always had a more lighthearted, tongue-in-cheek tone than many of its fighting competitors. Even though players can rip out each other's spines and spray blood across the arena, Mortal Kombat's violence has mostly been delivered with a sense of self-awareness from its creators. That's especially true with NetherRealm's most recent entries, with Mortal Kombat 1 being no exception.
In many ways, Mortal Kombat 1 is the most violent and gruesome entry to date, featuring the most realistic portrayals of some truly horrific Fatalities and Brutalities. But in many ways, Mortal Kombat 1 is also one of the most jovial entries in the franchise, with a strong tongue-in-cheek tone present throughout the entire experience, and plenty of self-referential jokes and jabs to break up the violence. Another element that helps to make Mortal Kombat 1 a lighter experience is its wealth of Easter eggs and references to the wider pop-culture world, and being the roster's loudmouth, it's only natural that Johnny Cage is the source of the vast majority of these.
Johnny Cage's Introduction Is Ripped Right Out of Raiders of the Lost Ark
One of Mortal Kombat 1's best Easter eggs comes right at the start of the game when players first take control of Johnny Cage. As his chapter opens up, fans of the Indiana Jones franchise will immediately notice some similarities between Johnny Cage's dramatic entrance, and the opening of Raiders of the Lost Ark, with practically the movie's entire opening jungle sequence being remade with Johnny Cage taking on the role of the mysterious adventurer.
This sequence goes far beyond just a throwaway Easter egg, with Cage's entire first set of fights occurring during this Indiana Jones-esque backdrop. And as if that wasn't enough, Cage even makes another reference to the series later on in Mortal Kombat 1, exclaiming "holy Ark of the Covenant".
Johnny Cage Makes a Not-So-Subtle Aliens Reference
Perhaps Johnny Cage's most obvious reference, right before Earthrealm's protectors are about to jump in and "save" Mileena from Shang Tsung, Kenshi shouts "Get away from her", to which Cage finishes "You [insert expletive here]". Though horror movie fans will immediately recognize this line from the climactic ending of James Cameron's Aliens in which Ripley squares off against the Xenomorph Queen, Kenshi and Kung Lao don't get the reference, prompting Johnny Cage to explain the quote, saying "You know, the movie! Tiny girl, ginormous alien".
Reptile's Powers Remind Johnny Cage of Another Horror Movie Icon
A much faster Easter egg than the last two, Johnny Cage references another classic horror movie icon a bit later on in Mortal Kombat 1's story mode. After breaking out of Shang Tsung's laboratory and foiling Quan Chi's soul-stealing plans, Cage and the rest of Earthrealm's protectors find themselves in the Outworld capital city of Sun Do, where they're tasked with infiltrating a festival and making their way to a portal on the other side of the city.
In an attempt to create a distraction for the group, Reptile turns invisible, to which Johnny Cage remarks he didn't know he could "go full Predator". Upon arriving back in Earthrealm, Cage delivers another quick pop-culture reference, this time asking Liu Kang for a martini, shaken, not stirred, of course being a reference to James Bond movies.
Other Pop-Culture References Found in Johnny Cage's Mortal Kombat 1 Intros
Johnny Cage's pop-culture references don't stop at Mortal Kombat 1's story mode, however, but also appear frequently during the character intros before a match. These references range from Cage exclaiming that he's been "Miyagi'ed" by Liu Kang, giving his best impression of Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs, and name-dropping movies like Full Metal Jacket, and even referencing Mortal Kombat's own animated movie spin-offs like Scorpion's Revenge.
Mortal Kombat 1 is available now for PC, PS5, Switch, Xbox Series X/S.