#i'm noob

[bb-ants]

Inspired by a tweet that said Bi-Han(t) was the shortest Lin Kuei

Bonus:

#mortal kombat #mortal kombat 1 #mortal kombat 11 #mk1 #mk11 #scorpion #hanzo hasashi #smoke #tomas vrbada #sub zero #bi han #short-zero #smol-zero #bi-hant #sareena #noob #noob saibot #I'm still new to mortal kombat so I have no idea if sub-zero and noob are actually the same person but I needed a fourth person

[thebuttonblossum]

I love the Tumblr side of the Murder Drones Fandom, gotta be one of my favorite genders

#murder drones #the tiktok side be fighting each other to the death over nuzi and envy and we're just over here like haha nitties noobs maybe even nass #we're all just a bunch of neurodivergent people universally agreeing that nitties we're the greatest invention #if i could i would take everyone within md tumblr and study y'all under a microscope/pos #this includes myself btw #i'm watching me too #we are the closest group of people out there to achieving world peace #nitties life is best life #preach

[omo321]

Kaito felt himself tensing as she finally turned the tap off and walked over. She placed the pitcher roughly on the table within his reach and stepped away to lean over the armrest. Although he didn't look up at her, he felt her heavy glare on him. "Thanks," he mumbled as he reached for the pitcher and was careful not to spill any water on the couch or the floor as he started slowly soaking his makeshift dressing. "Now explain," she demanded with a strained tone.

Did a fanart for one of my favorite fics "Secrets within" by Hebiaczek (chapter 19).

#it's an au with dragon shifters but you can't really tell here (I can't draw dragons anyway rip) #tbf theres so much going on in that fic besides dragons #love the characterizations and dynamics #having read more of their fics - the author is just really good in general #I tried drawing several other scenes from it before but failed #turns out emotional scenes are difficult to frame in one picture and I'm a noob at comics #so I went for a more quiet one #Aoko gets fluffier every time I draw her #(good.) #aoko nakamori #kaito kuroba #magic kaito #dcmk #omom #fic fanart

[vaguely-concerned]

I understand intellectually just how ludicrously convenient, not to say integral, transporter technology is for the fully automated luxury gay space communism functioning of the star trek universe. but I do somehow feel that there should be more attention paid in-universe to the fact that when you step into one of those things you are playing russian roulette with your immortal soul. we should at least see some people do the sign of the cross or something before they step into one. it probably goes under the 'flying is actually statistically safer than driving' category of thing, I'll acknowledge, but the worst a plane (or spaceship) can ultimately do is crash and kill you. when the transporter malfunctions it will straight up divide the universe by zero and make you an evil twin while it's at it

#I simply think a system that means you can be downloaded to quark's holosuites at the mistimed flicker of an atom #probably would be regarded with a bit more awe and tremor. is all #the transporter is a capricious god that demands o'brien's attention and suffering as its sacrifice #star trek #star trek ds9 #ds9 #i'm a trek noob but already I am like 'why does ANYONE dare to use these things it's the greatest threat to galactic security' #in 'past tense' they literally oopsie delete all of starfleet for a hot minute!!! hello!!!!! can anyone hear me!!!!! #I'm sure people have been talking about this since the sixties but I can't get over it

[miss-von-bat]

@abbeyofcyn

This was my VERY first time ever coloring digitally. I literally just got my Wattpad for my birthday in November. This contest really broke it in. This was such an awesome learning experience and i know this is nothing compared to so many amazing artist submissions but i'm very proud of this! looking at all the other submissions made me want to learn more techniques and get better. but i've lost feeling in my fingers gone through 2 drafts and I think it's time to move on to my next challenge :P

#abbeyofctiys #rottmnt #noob artist #i'm just a baby

[crystalbeastsquidney]

felt like drawing some guys with pokemon

#please reblog my art i'm dying scoob #sareena #sareena mk #kuai laing #sub zero #bi han #noob saibot #mortal kombat #mk11 #mkx #pokemon #i'm not tagging all these fools #tho the darkrai is meant to be saibot #my art #click for better quality

[cienie-isengardu]

I feel like if Bi-Han didn't love Kuai or was abusive it would've been stated. It'd also bring into question why Kuai would care to avenge him if he was treating him like trash. It's not Bi-Han is the only person he cares for, Tomas is literally right there. Like Kuai was jumping through hoops for this man and unless Bi-Han was some master manipulator which doesn't fit Bi-Han's personality since Bi-Han makes it really apparent when he doesn't like someone.

Seriously this is the guy who told Quan Chi his plan was insane to his face and Bi-Han's social skills are kind of lacking. You cannot convince me this guy was some puppet master. I'm not saying Bi-Han is dumb but he's not this master manipulator intent of using his brother's emotions.

Also why would he even bother? Seriously Bi-Han's main priority is survival, why would he care to manipulate his brother if he didn't care for him given it's not like he benefits from Kuai being around.

Kuai Liang was introduced as the younger brother of Bi-Han in Mortal Kombat II (November 1993) and their brotherhood has been a vital part of lore for literally three decades now. After such a long time, I too think if alive Bi-Han was ever meant to be seen as the abusive or uncaring brother, the source would outright say so already. Instead Mortal Kombat gives us a conflict between younger Sub-Zero and Noob Saibot, the resurrected yet corrupted by the dark magic version of Bi-Han. A corruption acknowledged by Kuai Liang himself, like he did in Mortal Kombat Armaggeddon:

And even within that conflict between alive Kuai Liang and Wraith Bi-Han, Noob Saibot was not always written as the vile creature out there to kill or hurt his younger brother for fun, which can be especially seen in an alternative timeline[1].

Did Kuai Liang idolize his brother? Most likely yes, as Bi-Han was his closest family he had and with unnaturally advanced ice skills, the older brother rose through ranks to the point Grandmaster acknowledged him as the most cunning Lin Kuei assassins. However it is not like Kuai Liang was completely blind to human Bi-Han’s flaws - the degree may vary from one source to another, like between one of the oldest Mortal Kombat comics (“he was stubborn in many ways”) and Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind (“The dreams. For a long time, I thought the worst thing that I could become was my brother. I was wrong.”). The closest example I can think of in which Kuai Liang outright calling original Sub-Zero to be evil comes from Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm TV animated series (1996) and even then it was said in context of serving the forces of Darkness, not if Bi-Han was abusive brother[2].

Yet within strictly game timelines, Kuai Liang may be angry at Noob Saibot, he may be disappointed by his brother’s (post mortem) choices but as far as I managed to check, he had never accused Noob Saibot of not loving him, or being uncaring or abusive when the man was alive. In contrast, Mortal Kombat 1 (2023) actually gives us Smoke’s accusation that MK1!Bi-Han was always cold to him and though this is not necessarily equal to being abusive, the game hints at an uneasy relationship between those two brothers. I don’t think original and alternative Kuai Liang has ever accused his Bi-Han of anything similar. Quite opposite actually, in MK11 Kuai Liang stated he thought (alive) Bi-Han shared the same values as him - while Noob Saibot noted that Kuai Liang always mimicked him. What may itself imply Kuai Liang's principles were inspired by elder brother.

The source material uses the word “corrupted” specifically to describe Noob Saibot, as to highlight that Noob is not the Bi-Han’s original self. Kuai Liang uses that word, and of all people he is the one that knew the best what kind of man Bi-Han was once. Otherwise I believe younger Sub-Zero would already remark that Bi-Han as an evil Wraith is no different from his human self and so far Kuai Liang did not say anything like that.

This is especially seen in Mortal Kombat 11 (2019) and Kuai Liang’s anger is understandable as Noob Saibot supported Kronika and Cyber Sektor that attacked and killed his clan members. However, as Sub-Zero’s ending shows, when he decided to study each second of Bi-Han’s life to understand what made his older brother the way he was, he tried to understand why Bi-Han’s embraced “Sektor’s corruption” and why "reveled in the vile power given to him by Quan Chi"

not why Bi-Han did not love him, or abused, or manipulated. Those have never been a matter of doubt, only the process of adapting into the darker side of Lin Kuei and life as Wraith . So once again, corruption by power - or even being a merciless assassin, does not necessarily mean Bi-Han was a bad brother. I know that for the majority of fandom one equals the other, however Kuai Liang has never accused Bi-Han of being on purpose cruel or uncaring toward him. If anything, the problem lies in the fact that Bi-Han embraced all the bad things that happened to him. Again, like the ending says, Kuai Liang needed to reshape Bi-Han's life (events) not Bi-Han’s whole character to get back the beloved brother he missed. So the problem did not lie in Bi-Han’s character itself, but in things that happened to him. 

And frankly, there is a lot to say about the fact that Bi-Han rarely speaks about honor in contrast to Kuai Liang, and how in general he is more aware of Lin Kuei’s dark deeds than his brother ever was. The original Sub-Zero seems to be much more disillusioned with how the world works and thus better at adapting to its cruelty. He even warned Kuai Liang in the past to never trust anyone, especially a family, and it is like the opposite act to manipulation. At the same time, Kuai Liang too was accused of having a “frozen heart”.

I think that ultimately it all comes down to what fans want - a tragedy about two brothers that by twist of cruel fate are destined to be enemies or story about a survivor of abuse/pathological system coming in terms of his trauma and realizing his brother was not a good man and building for himself a new, healthier life. Each story has a great potential on its own, however I personally feel that Mortal Kombat has never truly gone with the second scenario. Kuai Liang being blind to his brother and clan’s darkness may make sense when he does not have an outside relationship that made him rethink his own brotherhood with Bi-Han. Yet Kuai Liang, even a much older, experienced man still recognizes Noob as the corrupted version of Bi-Han, not the same man just with a different outfit. Despite all the bad blood between him and the Wraith, he has never truly abbadon hope to save his brother’s soul, so at least to me, it doesn’t sound like a man freeing himself from abuse and trauma by rejecting an evil family. 

And also, if we agree that Kuai Liang was either so indoctrinated by the clan or lacked any other support to recognize the abuse when it happened to him, then the same benefit of doubt should be given to Bi-Han, as he grew up in the same pathological environment. You can’t excuse one survivor of abuse and then condemn the other. The brothers dealt with their trauma in different ways but this is not good victim vs bad victim contest.

As for Bi-Han manipulating anyone... he was introduced in Mythologies: Sub-Zero as the most cunning Lin Kuei assassin and Noob Saibot was too hinted to be smart and biding his time while serving Shinnok, Quan Chi and Shao Kahn. So I believe he could be pretty cunning when needed. But yes, the man doesn't feel like a person bothering with manipulation for the fun of it. Sub-Zero, like all cryomancers in general(?), was a pretty straightforward man. Like I mentioned before, from source material it seems to me he rather kept warning Kuai Liang about not trusting anyone (and he did that as Noob Saibot too in MK11's intro dialogues) than playing on his younger brother’s loyalty. But to be honest, we don't have enough sources to say for sure how growing up in Lin Kuei looked for both.

SIDENOTES:

[1] Sadly, MK11 did not fully utilize the conflict between Redemption (Kuai Liang) vs. Recognition (Noob Saibot!Bi-Han) alluded by the official BIOs and intro dialogues. Frankly, the mentioned game barely did anything with their brotherhood in main story mode, however the intro dialogues paint an interesting take on brothers feelings toward each other, especially Noob’s one toward Kuai Liang, as they differ from original timeline Noob. Back then he was out there “free from compassion” [MK Deception]

and at least twice tried to murder his brother (attack on Lin Kuei/MK Armageddon and Noob-Smoke’s ending/MK Deception), while in the MK11’s intro dialogues for example, he does not side with Frost - who from story mode perspective was the logical ally, as she wanted to kill Kuai Liang. Instead Noob openly dislikes and disrespects her and even criticizes his brother for trusting her in the first place. Similar thing happens with Geras ordering Noob to bring Sub-Zero to Kronika and suddenly Noob goes with his standard “only death are my kin” 

Geras: Bring your brother to Kronika. Noob Saibot: The dead are my clan now. Geras: Do you serve or do you not? 

while he has no problem acknowledging his and Kuai Liang’s brotherhood. The intro dialogues in second timeline definitely played a different angle than Noob as Bi-Han completely stripped of his humanity. And again, sadly NRS did not dwell on it in the main story.

[2] Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm actually referred to events from the Mortal Kombat film (1995), in which Liu Kang killed Sub-Zero thanks to Kitana’s advice to use an element “that brings life”. Even the scene of original Sub-Zero’s death was similar to the one from the movie, minus of course the violence/impaling itself. Yet the film outright stated that Scorpion and Sub-Zero were slaves under Shang Tsung’s power, so in that case, “Bi-Han” wouldn’t be on Mortal Kombat Tournament on his own free will for all we know.  The full dialogue about MK:DotR!Kuai Liang’s reasons for joining the good guys side below:

Sub-Zero: It is true, I was once Lin Kuei  and fought for the forces of darkness. But that was long ago…Back when my brother was still alive…It has been many years now since Liu Kang faced my brother in Mortal Kombat. [...] Sonya: So, why’d ya turn on your clan anyway? Jax: Girl, your parents ever teach you the word "tact?" Sub-Zero: After his death, I realized that my own brother was innately evil and without honor… I could no longer fight for what my clan believed in…That was when I decided to help you. Jax: Then why the disappearing act? Sub-Zero: In spite of what I knew, I was too filled with hate to go on. So I sought seclusion to try and find inner peace. Sonya: I guess what we’re all wondering is…can you ever really forgive Liu Kang for icing your brother? Sub-Zero: What Liu Kang did, he did to save Earth. He fought with honor and great purpose.

It was cartoon intended for children so it is make sense that brutality and complexity was reduced to acceptable norms, however A) “Kuai Liang” still didn’t call “Bi-Han” and evil/abusive brother and needed time to sort out his feelings, including hate (for Liu Kang) and  and B) saying “Bi-Han” and in general Lin Kuei were evil was the easiest way to explain why he changed sides than saying anything else (this point is actually relevant to “Kuai Liang”’s feeling for Lin Kuei/Bi-Han seen in the second episode - he may consider them evil but he would fight Scorpion to avenge what he did to Lin Kuei and wondered if Liu Kang could beat “Bi-Han” without Kitana’s advice so his feelings definitely aren’t one dimensional. I think it is safe to assume he was still processing his emotions and relationship with Lin Kuei/"Bi-Han") 

I guess this cartoon may be one of the reasons why people tend to consider Bi-Han to be an evil brother while painting Smoke as the only one Kuai Liang's brother that should matter. Still, a source is a source, so I’m bringing it to the table. 

#mortal kombat #my replies #bi han #sub zero #kuai liang #bi han and kuai liang brotherhood #noob saibot #beside the mk defenders of the realm i don't think kuai liang went so far to openly call bi han an evil person? even the snow blind started #like that only to show us that kuai liang's trauma has nothing to do with bi han and only with his own pride that led to tragedy? #i truly think that after 30 years if bi han was meant to be abusive asshole the sources/Kuai Liang would say so already #noob saibot is corrupted version of bi han and kuai liang acknowledged that #yet there is no “oh yes this is my brother he died but overall he did not changed much when it comes to make my life miserable” #and i'm gonna trust kuai liang's words more than any fans headcanons lol

[bi-lil-guy]

YOU'VE HEARD OF "KISS ME YOU ANIMAL" NOW GET READY FOR:

HOLD MY HAND, AUTISM CREATURE! ❤

#hiei yyh #kurama yyh #gabriel may #bi han #noob saibot #kano mk11 #kung jin #tomas vrbada #kaui liang #hanzo hasashi #mk kabal #erron black #mileena #shang tsung mk1 #ALSO PLS HELP I'M STARTING TO LIKE HIM UNIRONICALLY SOMEONE EUTHANIZE ME #vergil sparda #trafalgar law #roronoa zoro #charlotte katakuri #lord sesshomaru #portgas d ace #rosinante corazon #ichigo kurosaki #chad yasutora #mk fujin #kite hxh #byakuya kuchiki #feitan portor #mr. wing hxh

[laismoura-art]

Kuai: Imagine a life like this. You dig your way out of a hole, scream your lungs out in hope someone will listen, refuse to elaborate, and within two months... you die!

Bi-Han: Well shit, Hanzo, your life sounds pretty tough!

Hanzo:

Hanzo: He's describing a cicada.

Bi-Han: Nope, I'm pretty sure he's talking about you.

Kuai: It does fit Hanzo a little bit tho

Inspired by the incessant screaming of the cicadas outside🙃

They just go: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

#I'm almost screaming along in solidarity #good thing: Spring is finally upon us!🌺🪻✨️🌈 #bad thing: cicada season go brrrrr #subscorp #hanzo hasashi #kuai liang #bi han #scorpion #sub zero #noob saibot #mortal kombat #mortal kombat incorrect quotes #brother in law Bi-Han #cicadas

[shatouto]

armor made him Worse so i took it all off

#bg3 #shadowheart #i'll be doodling more of my mishaps bc i'm such a noob at this game it's rly funny #that's his top surgery mark/scars btw in case you wanna know. he got it done at a cleric's (not shadowheart) #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 tav #oc: lorame

[pinklemondemon]

I tried to draw @archie-sunshine OC because I really, really, liked him. And needed to do something to stave off the hunger because I'm not cooking at 1AM.

Also also I'm a noob at drawing transformers (and in general too) so if it's not accurate you're allowed to send me to the shadow ream

#tf oc #transformers #hopefully i wont cringe at myself too much when i wake up later #primus save me #also idk how tag works because I'm a tumbrl noob #my messy art #gift art

[phatkochi]

Wait dumb question but I'm actually p confused, is Nacha being Francis' ex wife & Anastacha being his daughter actually canon or was it just a popular headcanon that everyone in the fandom started adopting?

#/gen #sorry I'm a noob y'all 😭 #tnmn #that's not my neighbor #thats not my neighbor #francis mosses #milkman #nacha mikaelys #anastacha mikaelys

[kiralena]

I don't know if this has been done already 😄

my apologies for my lacking editing skills 😅

#good omens #good omens meme #women jelling at cat meme #Aziraphale #Crowley #Jim #Gabriel #this took me about 3 hours to edit...I'm such a noob #being silly today #good omens humor

[aealzx]

I have too many thoughts I want to barf at once 8 |

First, disclaimer, I do not know sign language. I just look things up online and draw them. Sorry if stuff is inaccurate. |D

Second, hoooooooooo boi. Have you guys who are rottmnt fans read The Aftermath by Starrcrossrose on AO3? 8′D I started reading it because I wanted more fluff, but excuse me as I stamp this as the very first story I’ve ever read that legitimately made me cry. Not in the oh no I feel things but I’m fine an hour later. But I actually had water tears falling from my eyeballs. And I just sat at my desk for an hour or so feeling like my day was full. It was amazing.

That, and my interest/enjoyment with drawing sign language, and the idea for the change in how Leo’s name is signed in this was my motivation for drawing it. It took a lot longer than I thought it would 8 | 

This is from the end of Chapter 12, and he’s actually wearing a hoodie and a bio hazmat suit in the scene, but I wanted to have him fully visible for this, so I elected to not draw those. Also I forgot he was wearing a hoodie under the suit |D oops.

....... I can’t remember what else I was going to say X’D Formatting this for tumblr was mildly annoying. have fun and give @starrcrossrose a big fat hug for being an amazing writer. This story, specifically CH12 has both made me feel inferior and given me motivation to write better. XD I hope she doesn’t mind the fanart |D

#my art #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rottmnt #the aftermath #the aftermath spoilers #fanfic fanart #donnie #rise donnie #pretend sign language #noob sign language #fanart #starrcrossrose #I choose love #what do I even tag this as #I'm still a noob at this #hhhhh tagging people makes me anxious |D #please excuse the hyperfixation #why am I up it's 4 am #worst time to post

[cienie-isengardu]

Your latest post has finally spurred me into asking you this. Based on his bio, his intros with Liu Kang, and everything else you brought up, what do you think about Tomas being the traitor instead of Bi-Han? Or, if NRS really wanted to go all out with the 3D era references in MK1, both Bi-Han and Tomas being traitors, and being the New Era Noob-Smoke? Or Sub-Smoke, rather, due to Bi-Han being Sub-Zero.

Tomas being the traitor for sure would create more surprising plot twist than what we got with not-so-subtly choice of Bi-Han, as Sub-Zero’s betrayal was hinted in his and Scorpion’s biographies way before the full story mode was revealed:

[...] Under his leadership, the Lin Kuei will come out of the shadows and fight for its place as one of Earthrealm’s great nations.

and

But Sub-Zero's unprecedented moves to cast off Lin Kuei's traditional duties have frozen Scorpion’s enthusiasm. He fears that he may one day have to battle his brother for control of the Lin Kuei's legacy.

A hint also supported by the earliest officially shared Liu Kang vs Sub Zero intro dialogues, especially the “Your actions cost lives, Bi-Han!” and “Earthrealm isn't yours to rule”.

So, in all fairness, the most surprising choice of the Lin Kuei subplot wasn’t Bi-Han’s betrayal per se but rather showing us mainly the already tense relationship between brothers, which in my opinion didn’t fully use the emotional impact the shattered brotherhood could otherwise have had. Of course, the game's storyline is a specific medium and with such a big cast, there is limited space to explore in depth characters’ psyche and thus some plots feel rushed to fit the greater scheme of things. Granted, the storyline and intro dialogues provided us enough nuances to know the conflict between Lin Kuei brothers is not so one-dimensional, even if so far only Bi-Han’s desire for freedom and independence is flashed out, while Scorpion & Smoke’s desire to uphold tradition seems to be solely the “good guys” thing. And don’t get me wrong, characters who have a strong moral sense are cool and inspiring on their own, but Kuai Liang and Tomas through the story mode have never given any real counterargument why the tradition should be upheld in the first place or how it benefit the clan, besides it was their father’s teaching.

(And I do find the “Lin Kuei only serves” mindset disturbing, when one remembers the clan members are trained from childhood to fight, to kill, and if needed to die for Earthrealm and doesn’t that resemble the Umgadi system whose members are denied any ties to family as their  main purpose is to serve the Royal Family? There is a huge difference between an adult person choosing on their own to dedicate their life to service in greater good - a very admirable trait! - and teaching children they are destined to be someone’s servants, because it’s the great “honor” and “tradition” that must be upheld. Just saying.)

Now, Bi-Han as the traitor (more or less) makes sense within the provided storyline, especially if we add the expanded knowledge about his motives and goals coming from intro dialogues. In contrast, Tomas is pretty much sidelined through the course of story mode and really, if not for the direct ties to adoptive brothers and intro dialogues, he could as well not be in the story at all. 

If the story played as it played, I fear Smoke’s choice to betray would not have that big impact, unless the truth about Liu Kang’s role as Keeper of Time came out (and with that his part in Smoke’s family death) or Shang Tsung managed to play on his desire to be seen as a true Lin Kuei while he is constantly denied the respect and omitted by other characters. Bi-Han is just a tip of the iceberg in that regard (and yet not once he denied Tomas right to consider himself the son of the late grandmaster or even his or Kuai Liang’s brother). In all fairness, Liu Kang contributes a lot to how Tomas is treated, as Fire Lord, despite the close relationship to Lin Kuei and being implied to be responsible for orphaning Tomas, literally did not acknowledge him in any meaningful way through the whole story mode. He has never called Smoke by his name, nor called him alongside the Sub-Zero and Scorpion (chapter 1 & 2) and despite Tomas’ fulfilling his duty to Earthrealm and helping in direct way to established Shirai Ruy, his deeds are still omitted in favor of Kuai Liang. 

Frankly, despite being one of Grandmaster’s sons, Smoke is never taken into account when it comes to holding any title within Lin Kuei, as Kuai Liang is treated as obviously choice, both as the next Grandmaster of Lin Kuei (after Bi-Han) and the new leader of Shirai Ryu (and let’s not forget Scorpion was the strategist/leader during battle, even if technically this was his first war and there were more experienced characters, including Ermac/king Jerrod.) Kuai Liang is a great warrior, no question about that, but it really feels like Tomas is acknowledged only by his adoptive brothers. 

So, if played right, Shang Tsung (or even Bi-Han?) could talk Tomas into joining “the Liu Kang’s opposition”, as he holds resentment for Fire Lord over the death of his family (though that one works best AFTER the big revelation). Intro dialogues also provided information there was a time he did not consider being adopted into Grandmaster’s family as anything good, which of course is understandable, considering it was Grandmaster's men who killed Tomas’ mother and sister for a simple accidental trespassing on Lin Kuei land. 

Not to mention he was not adopted because of compassion per se, but because of Grandmaster’s guilt. Considering how Tomas went from disliking the man and/or situation he was forced into to almost blindly holding to “tradition this”, “traditions that” mindset, I wonder if we should consider him as a potential victim of Stockholm Syndrome?

Also, what is interesting, Smoke looked up to Bi-Han ("And to think I once idolized you."). Granted, we don’t know how young Sub-Zero acted back then, besides being cold to Tomas, as intro dialogue pointed out, but I think there is something to say about Tomas idolizing the one brother that openly challenged their Father’s ideas. We have of course only evidence of Bi-Han’s criticizing Lin Kuei old politics in current story mode however as Sub-Zero’s “frustrations ran deep”  it is possible he was outspoken about the issue before. So it makes sense to assume the idolizing happened back in the days when Tomas (most likely) resented the man that decided to adopt him after his men murdered his mother and twin sister over a trivial matter - and maybe Sub-Zero’s headbutting with Father was what impressed Tomas the most? As in, however cold Bi-Han was, at least he didn’t pretend everything was okay?

Smoke’s BIO gives him the LOYALTY as a main theme

- and despite what happened between the brothers, he still hope for reunion with Bi-Han and refuses to give up his estranged brother to anyone outside Shirai Ryu for judgment, so we can’t say he and Bi-Han had never been on good terms. 

Frankly, the visual side of story mode adds a lot to this feeling, as with exception of like two scenes (awaiting for Liu Kang/meeting room and joining Kuai Liang and Bi-Han after Sub-Zero’s fight with Nitara and Ermac), Smoke is the one standing at Bi-Han’s right side, not Kuai Liang - the de facto second-in-line of succession. 

I won’t lie, this is pretty surprising detail - and who knows, maybe Smoke is supposed to have soome importance after all and/or is the middle child, thus occupying the more symbolic (prestige) place, the same as Bi-Han was usually placed at Liu Kang’s right side, implying his higher status as Grandmaster.

I, for one, would love to see Tomas either betraying Liu Kang on his own or joining Bi-Han, so we could have a new take on the Noob-Smoke team, this time without Smoke being cyberized and cut from memories but also challenging Keeper of Time's choices by characters that weren't the main villains in previous timeline(s). My heart would be bleeding for Kuai Liang as his friendship with Tomas is a great part of Lin Kuei lore but then Tomas, story wise, had valid reasons to resent Liu Kang (death of family, never being acknowledged). I wouldn’t cross out the possibility of Smoke  joining Bi-Han in later events (or pretending to join to spy on him, because you know, Tomas is the master of stealth, so he should be good at that stuff) but I fear NRS is not gonna give him any meaningful focus anytime soon. Johnny was joking how Tomas “got the wholesome sidekick thing down cold.” but looking at MK1’s story mode this is not a joke, just a truth.

#mortal kombat #tomas vrbada #smoke #sub zero #bi han #kuai liang #liu kang #my replies #i'm really here for the possible variants of lin kuei relationships #i want kuai liang & tomas friendship as bad as i want noob-smoke #i'm not picky