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Sonya's partner is a character who appears in various spin-offs of Mortal Kombat. His death at the hands of Kano served as the catalyst for Sonya Blade's grudge against the Black Dragon's leader.

Appearances in Various Media[]

Mortal Kombat (Malibu Comics)[]

Lieutenant Lance

Lieutenant Lance

In the Blood & Thunder story arc of the comic Mortal Kombat published by Malibu Comics, Sonya's partner is Lieutenant Lance.

Lance was a Special Forces member who was not only Sonya's partner, but also a close friend. He assisted her in her bid to capture Kano. After the pair tailed Kano to Shang Tsung's island, Lance participated in Mortal Kombat to stop Kano once and for all. Kano, however, proved he was the stronger fighter and killed Lance by ripping his heart out. Sonya, grief-stricken, would then be partnered up with Jax Briggs.

Lance sported a retractable cybernetic arm that could extend a good few meters. The arm was also able to conduct electricity, shocking his opponents upon contact.

Mortal Kombat (1995 film)[]

In the 1995 film Mortal Kombat, Lieutenant Bill van Hoven was a member of the Royal Netherlands Marines who joined the elite unit Joint Eurasian Anti-Drug Task Force alongside Sonya Blade and Jax Briggs.

The taskforce had located three important Black Dragon members in Hong Kong: Crimmons, Shamoboa, and Kano. For these three targets, Van Hoven suggested "take them in or take them out." Kano was van Hoven's top priority during the mission, as he had been tracking him around the globe for the last three years.

Van Hoven's callsign was "Bell Whiskey" and he led the third squad. He had faith in Sonya, who had been planning the operation. The whole operation went SNAFU as the Black Dragon seemed to be aware of the taskforce's plans. Upon landing from the helicopter, all units were ambushed by the mercenaries and took heavy casualties: three members were down in the first squad; Moresby, leader of the second squad, was shot and possibly killed; and Van Hoven's team went completely radio-silent.

After ordering the first and second squads to retreat, Sonya went to find van Hoven's team, taking three of the troopers in the reserve squad with her. The team searched streets and alleys in the worst area in Hong Kong. Eventually, Sonya found van Hoven, lying prone on the garbage-strewn pavement, one of his arms under his head as if he were asleep with a pool of blood surrounding him. She thought van Hoven was hurt but quickly realized he was dead. One of the troopers turned van Hoven over, only to find that his eyes were open and staring, an expression of horror on his face. His throat had been cut so deep that Sonya was afraid for a moment that his head might come off entirely.[1]

Later during the tournament, Kano, described how he killed van Hoven by "putting a big smile on him, ear-to-ear" to taunt Sonya.

Mortal Kombat (novel)[]

In the 1995 novel Mortal Kombat, Cliff LoDolce is a martial arts sensei and fiancée of Sonya Blade.

When Cliff refused to use his martial arts abilities to help the Black Dragon, Kano shot him six times from behind.

Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm[]

In the episode "Familiar Red" of Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm, Jax Briggs revealed that five years ago, Sonya and her partner Wexler were staying at a motel as part of a surveillance operation. Sonya had left the room to buy coffee and returned to find it in chaos. She was unable to find Wexler and instead found a bomb planted by Kano. She managed to escape the explosion but the blast knocked her unconsciousness. After she came to, her captain informed her that Wexler was killed. Following the incident, Sonya began to train for the Mortal Kombat Tournament in order to defeat Kano.

Mortal Kombat: Legacy[]

In the web series Mortal Kombat: Legacy, it is mentioned that Sonya's partner was killed by Kano.

Trivia[]

  • Sonya's deceased partner killed by Kano does not appear in any Mortal Kombat game nor official prequel comic by far. The only similar background story for Sonya is that in the story mode of the 2011 game Mortal Kombat, Sonya tells Johnny Cage that many Special Forces members were killed because of Kano.
  • "A Slow Boat to China", the first issue of Blood & Thunder, borrows liberally from the comic Mortal Kombat Collector's Edition published by Midway in detailing Sonya's dogged pursuit of Kano alongside her Special Forces comrades, and his escape onto Shang Tsung's ship that is en route to the tournament. In Midway's version, she went on the ship with a Special Force member named Jake. However, Jake was not killed but captured by Shang Tsung's Masked Guards.
  • Lance is the only version of Sonya's partner who has a physical image by far. He is killed during the Tournament unlike his other counterparts, who are typically killed by Kano prior to the events of Mortal Kombat.
  • Wexler from Defenders of the Realm is named after Joshua Wexler, a writer and producer from the Threshold Entertainment.

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. The name and death of Bill van Hoven is detailed in the novelization of the 1995 film.
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