So did Raiden technically cheat or interfere with Liu's fight against Sub Zero? To me thats how it looked
shareI would say "technically" he didn't cheat. But yes Raiden totally placed the water buckets before the fight in a effort to help Liu win.
shareI wouldn't call that cheating. Perhaps it would have been if Raiden was like "Okay, here's the deal Liu, this dude has ice powers so imma leave a couple of buckets of water for you to toss at this fool once he goes into ice mode" but that's not what happened. How it actually went down was very subtle/indirect assistance that Liu Kang ultimately had to figure out on his own. He would never have even thought to use the water if not for Kitana's advice, so really she helped him more than Raiden did.
shareYup!
It's kinda funny that they didn't believe that they're chosen one could beat Sub Zero on his own. Yet nobody helped ol Johnny out or gave him the heads up he was fighting an undead demon that could breath fire.
I have to disagree with that framing. Despite a quick start, Sub Zero was getting wrecked by Liu Kang in that fight. I don't think some very subtle/cryptic advice that had to be figured out on his own about how to deal with an unfamiliar ice power gimmick, equates to not believing he could win on his own. We don't know what off screen advice Johnny Cage may have gotten about Scorpion but he did seem to know what was up when the mask came off. Luckily he happened to be laying right next to a battle shield and throwing spear right when he needed it.
shareStill, Raiden and Katana both were obviously concerned that Liu could lose to Zero. If Raiden was confident that Liu could beat him on his own why bother leaving the buckets and why have Kitana say anything? It's not like the ice was a surprise, Sub Zero showed his cards during the opening dinner.
I suppose Johnny could have been given advice off screen but there's no evidence to suggest it actually happened.
Still, Raiden and Katana both were obviously concerned that Liu could lose to Zero. If Raiden was confident that Liu could beat him on his own why bother leaving the buckets and why have Kitana say anything? It's not like the ice was a surprise, Sub Zero showed his cards during the opening dinner.
I suppose Johnny could have been given advice off screen but there's no evidence to suggest it actually happened.
The cryptic & indirect advice was ultimately insignificant compared to Liu Kang's own skill and adaptability in that fight. The same way he was given advice throughout the film & leading up to his fight with Shang Tsung. If there was any serious concern about Liu's ability to handle the situation then it would have made absolutely no sense to beat around the bush with riddles. We'll just have to agree to disagree on this point.
shareRegardless of Liu's skill and adaptability at the end of the day if Raiden hadn't purposely left the water buckets Zero would have won.
shareNah, Sub Zero was getting his ass handed to him & about to lose, so the ice shield was a defensive, desperation move to keep Liu Kang away from him. All Liu had to do was hang back outside of the shield's range to wait it out or go find his own bucket of water. At best Raiden saved him some time.
shareHow can anything be considered cheating when Sub Zero has super powers? It wouldn't be cheating if Liu Kang brought a gun, it's no longer hand to hand combat when your opponent can create projectiles to throw at you or freeze you with mist.
share