Mortal Kombat: Conquest

Mortal Kombat: Conquest is a martial arts TV series from the United States, created by Juan Carlos Coto and based on the Mortal Kombat video game franchise. Threshold Entertainment and New Line Television produced it, and it was syndicated for a single season that ran from October 3, 1998, to May 22, 1999. The show is a prequel to the games, centering on the original Kung Lao, played by Paolo Montalban, who protects Earthrealm alongside his bodyguard Siro, played by Daniel Bernhardt, and Taja, a former thief played by Kristanna Loken. It was among the first live-action television shows based on a video game to air in the United States, with only the live-action parts of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! coming before it. The series also had similarities to Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.

Long ago, Earth was a beautiful planet full of natural resources, and the power-hungry Shao Kahn wanted to add it to his conquered realms, called Outworld. To defend Earth, the Mortal Kombat tournament was created, where the planet's fate is decided by battles between fighters from Earthrealm and Outworld. Five hundred years in the past, the monk warrior Kung Lao defeated Shao Kahn's sorcerer, Shang Tsung. When Kung Lao spared his life, Shao imprisoned Shang in the cobalt mines.

Kung Lao then had to train the next generation of warriors to sacrifice themselves for Earth. He formed a partnership and friendship with two warriors: Siro, a former bodyguard, and Taja, an ex-thief. In the mysterious city of Zhuzin, the thunder god Raiden guides and watches over Kung Lao and his new friends. The three fight various evils from Outworld and Earthrealm, including the imprisoned Shang Tsung, who swore revenge on Kung Lao for his defeat, and the seductive Vorpax, also imprisoned in the mines with her own agenda.

The main cast includes Paolo Montalban as Kung Lao, Daniel Bernhardt as Siro, Kristanna Loken as Taja, Tracy Douglas as Vorpax, Bruce Locke as Shang Tsung, and Jeffrey Meek as both Raiden and Shao Kahn. Recurring game characters include Chris Casamassa as Scorpion, J.J. Perry as Sub-Zero, Audie England and Dara Tomanovich as Kitana, Sultan Uddin as Noob Saibot, Adoni Maropis as Quan Chi, Megan Brown as Mileena, Percy "Spitfire" Brown as Rain, Jim Helsinger as Reiko, Jon Valera as Reptile, Robin Thomas as Shinnok, Paula Leggett Chase as Sindel, Cory Everson as Sheeva, and Matthias Hues as Fujin. Notable guest appearances include WCW wrestlers Meng and Wrath, who filmed separate episodes because Conquest aired right after TNT's top-rated show WCW Monday Nitro. Former QVC model Dorian John played the barmaid Magda in the episodes "Twisted Truth" and "Quan Chi".

Threshold Entertainment, which produced the Mortal Kombat film series, made Conquest with New Line Television, the TV arm of the film distributor. Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution handled distribution. The show was filmed at Disney-MGM Studios in Orlando, Florida. Warner Bros., which eventually owned the Mortal Kombat property, syndicated the series until TNT picked it up, airing the remaining new episodes and repeats of the first-run syndication run. Because it had a lucrative timeslot after WCW Monday Nitro, Conquest was very popular, but developer Joshua Wexler said this led to higher budget costs than expected. The cancellation was not announced right away, and rumors of a second season spread. However, TNT ended the show, leaving it with a cliffhanger. The planned second season would have resolved the ending and matched the Mortal Kombat timeline.

The series was released on DVD in the United Kingdom and Australia, where it had a more successful TV run. Unofficial UK collections combine unrelated, edited episodes into themed discs, and some covers have spelling errors. In Germany, several episodes were released one per disc, with two discs focusing on Kreeya and Sub-Zero. DVDs also came out in Portugal, again with many spelling errors on the covers. In 2015, Warner Home Video released Mortal Kombat: Conquest - Season One on DVD in Region 1 for the first time.

In 2010, 4thletter! ranked Conquest sixth on its list of "The Top Ten Most Ridiculous Things to Come Out of Mortal Kombat." In 2011, 1UP.com featured the series in "The Top Ten Times Mortal Kombat Went Wrong," calling it a "wire-fu disaster."