Syzoth, more commonly known as Reptile, is a reptilian character from the Mortal Kombat video game series. He is a member of the Saurian race from the realm of Zaterra, one of the few survivors of his kind after his world was conquered by Shao Kahn. He has since served the Outworld emperor as a spy and assassin. Unlike many other henchmen, Reptile does not strive for power. He is caught in a delusional state of mind, obsessed with finding the last remaining members of his race, or freeing his homeworld of Zaterra from Outworld's grasp. Thus, he always remains loyal to Shao Kahn, only obeying other masters to survive and reach his goal of returning Zaterra to its former glory. While well-meaning and sincere, his obsession is so important to him that it causes him temporary fits of insanity.
History[]
Original timeline[]
Reptile, supposedly the last of the Saurian race, had served Shao Kahn for many years. During the Mortal Kombat tournament in Earthrealm, he served as bodyguard to Shang Tsung and would spy on the Earth kombatants, only challenging those of exceptional strength and skill. When Outworld lost the tournament, Reptile returned to Shao Kahn's side and would later participate directly in the Outworld Tournament.
Though the false tournament ended in another victory for Earthrealm, Reptile survived and would join Shao Kahn's invasion force as they assaulted Earthrealm. The Saurian assassin would again be defeated and retreat along with the rest of Kahn's forces. Following the failed Earthrealm invasion, Reptile would find himself in the employ of Quan Chi and the Brotherhood of Shadow, aiding them in bringing about Shinnok's conquest of the realms. Shinnok had promised Reptile that he would restore the Saurian race to their former glory once he had succeeded in dominating the Heavens, but Reptile eventually came to realise that the fallen Elder God had no intention of honouring the deal and he escaped back to Outworld.
Reptile remained at Shao Kahn's side for the next several years, aiding the emperor in his ongoing war against the recently liberated realm of Edenia. However, while away on a mission, Shao Kahn was assassinated by the Deadly Alliance of Quan Chi and Shang Tsung. Reptile returned to Kahn's fortress to find his master slain, and with no other master to turn to, he fell into a state of insane rage and fled into the wastelands of Outworld. While scouring the wastes, Reptile encountered the cyborg ninja Cyrax who was on a mission for the Outerworld Investigation Agency. He attacked the cyborg, but before he could deliver a killing blow, he was struck by the vampire Nitara. Reptile made a hasty withdrawal, but decided to track Nitara and Cyrax from a safe distance.
Reptile's pursuit of his adversaries led him to an underground antechamber filled with lava. Both Nitara and Cyrax had vanished, but the Saurian had found something of greater interest: a group of holy men who stood vigil over what appeared to be a dragon egg. As Reptile gazed upon the egg, it cracked and rays of energy shone forth, enveloping him. Reptile's body underwent an astonishing transformation as he was possessed by the spirit of the reborn Dragon King, Onaga.
Reptile's consciousness was completely suppressed while his body was occupied by the spirit of the Dragon King. However, he would regain himself when the Earthrealm Shaman Nightwolf performed a binding ritual that would drag Onaga's soul down to the Netherrealm, supposedly trapping him forever.
The last that is seen of Reptile is him joining the Forces of Darkness in the Battle of Armageddon. Like all the other kombatants, Reptile is killed.
Alternate timeline[]
For the most part, Reptile's activities remain the same during the earlier events of the altered timeline. He appears during the Mortal Kombat tournament, appearing in the first match against Johnny Cage where he is defeated. He also appears during the Outworld Tournament, spying on the Lin Kuei ninjas Sub-Zero and Smoke in the Living Forest. During the invasion of Earthrealm, he battles against Kabal and Kurtis Stryker. Following this defeat, he is not seen again.
In the years following the death of Shao Kahn, Reptile has entered the service of Kotal Kahn, the new emperor of Outworld. Though he serves his new master faithfully, he continues to bide his time in the hope that one day he will be able to restore his native race.
New Era[]
In the New Era, Syzoth's species is no longer extinct and thrives in the undergrounds of Outworld's Zikandur province. Syzoth himself, however, was cast out of Zaterran society due to his ability to shapeshift into a humanoid form. He sought to make his fortune elsewhere, joining a travelling carnival in order to make money. During this time, he even found love, taking a wife and having a child.
At some point, Syzoth was forced into the service of Shang Tsung, who took his family hostage. To ensure his family's safety, he had to aid the evil sorcerer with his horrific experiments, but Tsung secretly had Syzoth's wife and child killed anyway. It is believed that Tsung even developed his own shape-shifting ability by experimenting with Syzoth's genes.
Following the latest Outworld/Earthrealm tournament, Liu Kang sent Kenshi Takahashi, Johnny Cage and Kung Lao to investigate Shang Tsung. Along with the Tarkatan Baraka, they discovered that Tsung was conducting vile genetic experiments, but were soon captured and imprisoned within the dungeons beneath the sorcerer's laboratory. Syzoth came down to help heal Kenshi due to the loss of his eyes and attempted to have the prisoners placed in seperate cages, but the heroes fought back, overpowering the Super Tarkatan slaves and Syzoth himself. Syzoth begged for death, but Baraka spared him. Then, Shang Tsung appeared and scolded Syzoth for his failure before flooding the dungeon with toxic gas. He also revealed that he had killed Syzoth's family long ago, enraging the Zaterran who then lunged at him, but the sorcerer teleported away before his servant could lay a hand on him.
Syzoth and the others managed to escape from the laboratory when Baraka used his own superhuman strength to break down the dungeon door. The group fled through the Living Forest on their way to Sun Do to warn Empress Sindel and Liu Kang of Shang Tsung's treachery. Along the way, Syzoth told the others about his people's mistreatment by Outworld's surface-dwellers and what little he knew about Shang Tsung's collaboration with General Shao. The group soon encountered the demoness Ashrah, who had come to Outworld to hunt down her sisters who were now in the service of the Outworld sorcerer Quan Chi. With similar goals, the group allowed Ashrah to accompany them and they soon caught up to Quan Chi, who was in the process of fusing thousands of warrior souls into a single entity: Ermac. The heroes fought off Ermac and Quan Chi's other minions before destroying the sorcerer's soul stealer machine, releasing the spirits of the Living Forest that had been taken from the trees.
Syzoth managed to knock out Quan Chi and the group captured him, taking him with them as they travelled to Sun Do. When they arrived in the city during a nighttime festival, most of the party disguised themselves as partygoers while Syzoth used his camouflage ability to sneak around the city unseen, guiding the way for the others and creating a diversion for the imperial security forces. While the disguised group traversed the festival grounds, Syzoth activated several fireworks, sending the public into a panic. General Shao spotted him atop one of the buildings, deducing that his presence meant the Earthrealmers were also nearby, and so Reiko and Li Mei chased after the Zaterran. Reiko tagged him with a shuriken, causing Syzoth to fall to the ground, though he recovered and turned invisible again, leaving trails of green blood in his wake. Eventually, Li Mei and Reiko caught up to Syzoth, but he resisted arrest, knowing he would be executed by General Shao despite Li Mei offering to hear him out.
With support from Kenshi, Syzoth regretfully defeated his captors before being attacked by Kitana and Tanya. Knowing he had no time to explain himself, Syzoth defeated them as well. As Johnny's group was surrounded by General Shao and his guards (with Quan Chi escaping in the confrontation), Syzoth and Kenshi heroically swung down from a rooftop to aid them. Syzoth personally confronted Shao, threatening to reveal his conspiracy to all of Outworld, but Shao disagreed, claiming that dead men tell no tales. Despite this, Syzoth proved victorious, and he and the others fled for the portal as more guards closed in.
Powers and abilities[]
- Shapeshifting - Reptile's form has changed numerous times over the course of the MK franchise. However, it is quite possible that this shapeshifting is involuntary.
- Hung Gar - Reptile's favoured form of martial art.
- Force Ball - A blast of energy that knocks opponents off their feet and sends them flying.
- Acid Spit - Reptile can spit globs of corrosive acid at enemies, blinding them and even causing fatal wounds. All Saurians are supposedly capable of spitting acid and many of Reptile's fatalities involve using acid to dissolve opponents.
- Chameleon Effect - Like a chameleon, Reptile is capable of blending into his surroundings, essentially becoming invisible.
Appearances in other media[]
Mortal Kombat (1995)[]
In the 1995 film, Reptile appears as a computer-generated reptilian creature. During the Mortal Kombat tournament, Shang Tsung has Reptile spy on Liu Kang and Kitana to ensure that the Outworld princess does not ally herself with the human kombatants. After Goro is defeated, Liu Kang and Johnny Cage travel to Outworld via a portal and Reptile discretely follows them.
While wandering the desolate wastelands of Outworld, Liu Kang senses that he and Johnny are being followed. Walking up to a ruined building, he reaches out to what seems to be thin air only for Reptile to suddenly appear. As Reptile claws at him, Liu throws the creature against a statue lying on the ground. Tendrils emerge from a cavity in the statue's chest and pull Reptile inside. Liu watches as the statue then comes to life, taking on a human form clad in ninja trappings similar to those of Scorpion and Sub-Zero.
Reptile attacks Liu Kang, sending him crashing through the wall of the ruined building. After a lengthy fight, Liu manages to defeat Reptile with his Bicycle Kick, sending him flying back out of the hole in the wall. Upon defeat, the statue becomes inanimate again and Reptile emerges from its torso, his body seemingly ravaged by the multitude of insects and mini-beasts that tumbled out of the cavity with him. Before Reptile can get away, Liu Kang finishes him by stomping on him and smearing him into the ground.
Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge[]
Reptile makes a minor appearance in this animated film. During the tournament, he battles against Sonya Blade in a swamp, but is killed when Sonya decapitates him with razor-wire.
Mortal Kombat (2021)[]
In the 2021 film, Reptile (referred to by his true name Syzoth) is sent to Earthrealm by Shang Tsung to assassinate Sonya Blade as she has been attempting to gather up Earth's chosen fighters for the next Mortal Kombat tournament. He ambushes Sonya, Kano and Cole Young, wounding Kano by scarring the right side of his face. Working together, Cole and Kano manage to immobilize Reptile. Kano then kills the creature by ripping its heart out.