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| “ | Sunny, the Widow, the Master, even my mother lied to me. Pilgrim is the only person who was never afraid to tell me the truth. Kingdoms aren't built on dreams, Eli. They're built on sacrifice and struggle. That's the real world. Not everyone gets a happy ending. | „ |
| ~ M.K. |
M.K. is one of the two deuteragonists (alongside The Widow) of the AMC series Into the Badlands.
M.K. is an orphan boy who is a Dark One, meaning he possesses a strange ability known as the Gift, which enables him to use dark chi powers whenever his skin is cut. He is trained by Sunny, who intends to help him hone and control this unique ability. Overtime, M.K. is kidnapped and used by several people, including Baron Quinn, the Master, and the Widow. Once he escapes, he becomes disillusioned from the current world and begins to follow the false messiah Pilgrim. They wish to bring back the mythical city of Azra, a place where Dark Ones would rule no matter the cost.
He was portrayed by Aramis Knight, who also played Vic in Runt.
Appearance[]
M.K. using the Gift.
M.K. is a young adult with short black hair, who fits the traditional appearance of a Colt in training under Baron Quinn. As the series progresses, M.K. grows his hair out more, eventually putting it into a ponytail. Whenever his Gift is active, his eyes turn completely black.
As Sunny's Colt, M.K. wears the traditional Colt outfit in Quinn's territory, that being a brown vest with a similar overall appearance to the one worn by Clippers, the main difference being that a Clipper's outfit is crimson red. During his time as an acolyte under the Master, M.K. wore the traditional golden Abbot robes. While he was a captive of the Widow, he wore the traditional outfit of her male Clippers.
During Pilgrim's attack on the Widow's base, a mass of explosives is set off, which burns M.K.'s face severely. He begins wearing a mix between his traditional Colt outfit and the robes worn by the followers of Pilgrim.
Personality[]
As a young boy, M.K. describes himself as not being a violent person. He and his mother wanted nothing more than to find a safe place, away from the Badlands. When it became clear that he possessed the Gift, M.K. and his mother searched for a cure until they were separated. M.K. always clung to the "myth" of Azra, believing it to be real, as he wished to find a place of peace in the violent world they lived in. Once he became Sunny's Colt, it was clear that he had potential as a fighter, despite not wanting to be one. His biggest obstacle during his training with Sunny was that he did not enjoy it, unlike most Colts and Clippers who were raised to seek it out. M.K. was always shown to be defiant against manipulative leaders when they tried to control him. The only time he willingly worked for anyone who wanted to use him was Quinn, and that was only because Quinn showed him respect.
After being held captive by the Widow for several months, M.K. became even more cynical, as he now had no more allies to turn to, and began abusing opium. M.K.'s Gift is at one point locked away by the Master, but after he learns that Sunny was the one who killed his mother, he is so emotionally impacted that his Gift reawakens. He then escapes and begins seeking a new life, where he meets Pilgrim. Unlike every other leader he has met, Pilgrim does not immediately try to control him or keep him captive, instead wishing for M.K. and other Dark Ones to bring back Azra, and fix the broken world, even if it means destroying the current one. M.K. seems to fully give into the darkness that his Gift brings, attempting to kill Sunny on sight and fighting with a murderess rage against anyone who opposes Pilgrim.
M.K. is shown to have a strong affection for Tilda, the Widow's daughter. The two of them showed signs of potentially becoming romantically involved before M.K. was taken by the Abbots. However, M.K. was instructed to focus on something that he loved in order to break out of his Dark One state, and would often think of his time with Tilda in order to do so. During an attack on the Widow's compound with Pilgrim, an explosion is set off which burns M.K.'s face. This causes his sanity to slip significantly, and he frequently abuses opium in order to reduce the pain. He then goes into a murderous rage towards the Widow and her allies, although he still cannot bring himself to kill Tilda. After he accidentally stabs Tilda in the stomach, he drops his swords in shock, and when the Widow kills him for revenge, he makes no effort to fight back, showing he may have finally began to feel regret for what he had become under Pilgrim in his final moments.
Relationships[]
Family[]
- Unnamed mother
Allies[]
- Sunny (formerly) - Former mentor
- Tilda (formerly) - Former love interest
- Bale (formerly) - Former best friend
- Ava - Best friend/mentor
- Bajie (formerly)
- Pilgrim
- Cressida
- Nix (formerly)
- Eli
Enemies[]
- The Widow - Archenemy
- Sunny - Former mentor
- Tilda - Former love interest
- Baron Quinn
- Ryder
- The Master
- The Abbots
- The River King
- Bajie
- Castor
- Nix
- Ajax
- Gaius Chau
Powers & Abilities[]
- Martial Arts/Swordsmanship: After being rescued by Sunny from a group of nomad thieves, the latter took him under his wing. Sunny, who was still Quinn's regent back then, trained him in hand-to-hand combat and martial arts. While he was young and not on the level of other warriors such as Sunny or the Widow, M.K. did show improvement over the course of the series, and was able to take down several opponents at once, such as when he and Pilgrim infiltrated the Abbot Monastery.
- The Gift: M.K. is the first individual in the series to be shown using the Gift. While he is initially untrained, he is eventually taken to the Abbot Monastery where his Gift control improves significantly. He eventually has his Gift locked by the Master, but it is unlocked once he learns the truth behind his mother's death. Once his Gift reawakens, he is shown capable of turning it on and off at will, rather than only when he cuts himself like before. The Gift grants him supernatural skill in martial arts and swordsmanship, to the point that he was able to take down opponents like Sunny and the Widow with ease.
- Uncontrollable Gift: Early on the series, M.K.'s Gift is not trained, and only activates when his skin is cut. When this happened, the Gift would only be active for a few moments before turning off and rendering M.K. unconscious. During these few moments, M.K. was essentially unstoppable, able to instantly incapacitate any opponent who did not also possess the Gift. Once his Gift is trained, he is able to use it for as long as he wants, but it is no longer as powerful.
Quotes[]
Said by M.K.[]
| “ | The wars were so long ago, nobody even remembers. Darkness and fear ruled until the time of the barons, seven men and women who forged order out of chaos. People flocked to them for protection. That protection became servitude. They banished guns and trained armies of lethal fighters they called Clippers. This world is built on blood. Nobody is innocent here. Welcome to the Badlands. | „ |
| ~ M.K. describes the way of the Badlands. |
| “ | There's no easy way out of the Badlands. No shortcuts, no deals. I know that now. | „ |
| ~ M.K. after being taken by the Abbots. |
| “ | Dark One: Suicide is the cowards way! Look at you... you're pathetic. M.K.: I don't care. I've got nothing to live for. |
„ |
| ~ M.K. being confronted by his Dark One self. |
| “ | If you want to use your Gift without cutting then you need to find a trigger, a memory... a feeling. One that hurts worse than any knife. | „ |
| ~ M.K. |
| “ | People are either weak or strong. The strong rule and the weak die. My mother was weak, and I'm not gonna be like her! The Gift will make sure of that. | „ |
| ~ M.K.'s cynical worldview. |
| “ | M.K.: I'm gonna save them all. All those people you betrayed. We're gonna rebuild Azra. The Master: You will try. And you will cause great suffering. But you will never see Azra. |
„ |
| ~ M.K. and the Master. |
Said about M.K.[]
| “ | I heard stories about people like him when I was a Cog, but who would ever actually believe that they exist, let alone walk amongst us. Now I know why the Widow wanted to get her hands on him. He's worth how many Clippers, ten? Twenty? A whole army, perhaps. | „ |
| ~ Quinn's discovery of M.K.'s power. |
| “ | Your Gift is the most powerful I've seen in a long time, but you're letting someone else control it. | „ |
| ~ The Master describing M.K.'s potential. |
| “ | I'm scared. What if the Master's wrong? What if there's no rebirth? What if everything just... | „ |
| ~ Ava's last words to M.K. before her death. |
| “ | I knew if I let you go... you would kill us all. | „ |
| ~ The Master's reason for trying to keep M.K. at the monastery. |
| “ | From this moment forward, you shall stand by my side as my most trusted warrior, and my one true son. | „ |
| ~ Pilgrim to M.K., after M.K. saved his life. |
| “ | I'm sorry M.K., I hope you find your Azra. | „ |
| ~ The Widow, after killing M.K. in battle. |
Trivia[]
- M.K. alludes to Sun Wukong, otherwise known as the Monkey King, from the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West, of which Into the Badlands is loosely based on.
- M.K. could be seen as a dark reversal of the Monkey King, who begins Journey to the West committing horrible acts, but as the story continues begins to only do things that are morally questionable, rather than out of malice. On the reverse of this, M.K. begins to story being driven to do terrible things by his Gift, but tries to resist, and as his story continues he falls more and more into the darkness in his heart and ultimately becomes an antagonist.
- Strangely, despite his name being the initials for the Monkey King, his name is actually M.K. and does not actually stand for anything in-universe.
- The Master states that the reason she had to lock away M.K.'s Gift was because if she had let him go with it, he would destroy them all. Considering the Master is shown to have foresight, this may imply that had M.K. not been killed by the Widow, his Gift may have grown to be the most powerful in existence.
External Links[]
- M.K. on the Heroes Wiki
- M.K. on the Into the Badlands Wiki
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 Villains
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