Akuma VS Shang Tsung

Akuma VS Shang Tsung is the second episode of Death Battle, featuring Akuma from the Street Fighter series and Shang Tsung from the Mortal Kombat series in a battle between soul-manipulating fighting game antagonists.
==Interlude==
Wiz: Street Fighter. Mortal Kombat. Kings of the fighting genre. And every good fighter needs awesome villians.
Boomstick: Like Akuma, the ultimate badass of martial arts.
Wiz: And Shang Tsung, the sorcerous vanguard of doom.
Boomstick: He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick.
Wiz: And it's our job to analyze their weapons, armor, and skills to find who would win... a Death Battle.
==Akuma==
Wiz: Akuma, master of The Fist. Known as Gouki in Japan, he is a living weapon, ten times stronger than nearly every other street fighter.
Boomstick: Plus, he looks friggin' awesome, I totally want me some red, glowing eyes.
Wiz: Akuma has dozens of powerful special attacks, including the Gohadoken, a powerful blast with precision control. He can even use the almighty Shinku Hadoken, which is, basically, a giant fireball of death.
Boomstick: Man, if I ever fire a Hadoken in real life, I'mma die happy.
Wiz: Akuma also uses the Shoryuken uppercut, a teleport ability, a swift multi-striking hurricane kick, and the Hyakkishu, A.K.A the Demon Flip.
Boomstick: Also, Akuma's got tons of different Super Arts, but two really stand out. First there's the Kongo...Kokuretsuza... how do you say that?
Wiz: No idea.
Boomstick: Well, I'm pretty sure that's Japanese for "Fuck You Up!" 'Cause basically, Akuma punches the ground and things explode.
Announcer: K.O.
Boomstick: He shattered a whole friggin' island just by punching it. Holy shit!
Wiz: But that's not the deadliest move up his nonexistent sleeve.
Akuma uses his deadliest move against Dan Hibiki and his health depletes afterwards.
Wiz: The Shun Goku Satsu, also known as the Raging Demon, literally means "Instant Hell Murder."
Boomstick: Man, I'm going to totally name my first kid that. The Raging Demon at full power is fatal, this guy's a frickin' onslaught of pain!
Wiz: That's right, Boomstick. Akuma lives for one thing, and one thing only: fighting. He travels the world day and night searching for worthy opponents. He's an unstoppable human Holocaust, losing only once to his brother Gouken, but after a brutal rematch...
Boomstick: Oh hey, look. He can finger paint!
Wiz: It was rumored that Akuma sacrificed his soul to a demon in exchange for the strength to defeat Gouken, but this has been declared non-canon.
Boomstick: Akuma's got one major problem, though. His stamina is absolutely pathetic. He can dish out the pain, but he sure can't take it.
Wiz: It's crucial for Akuma to have total control over the fight. He takes an extremely offensive approach, always moving, always attacking.
Boomstick: Yeah, screw defense! Give me more ways to hurt people!
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Akuma: I am Akuma, and I will teach you the meaning of pain!
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==Shang Tsung==
Wiz: Shang Tsung is the cunning sorcerer from Outworld, and scheming pawn of Shao Kahn. He's extremely adapt in magic and a well-rounded fighter.
Boomstick: This guy can shoot Flaming Skulls, which is totally awesome, but where the heck does he keep them? I mean seriously, how many skulls can a person carry around with them?
Wiz: Tsung can teleport around the battlefield with the special move called "Hot Escape."
Boomstick: Wah! Sucker punch, bitch!
Wiz: He can morph into whomever he wants, giving him tons of different skill sets. It's like fighting a hundred different foes combined into one.
Boomstick: Man, I wish I could morph into anybody I wanted. I could have some fun with that! He also has a razor-sharp Straight Sword, though he usually keeps it hidden for a surprise attack.
Wiz: Shang Tsung possesses one other strange but useful ability. Long ago, when he was caught cheating in the Mortal Kombat Tournament, he was cursed by the Elder Gods to rapidly age until an untimely death. The only way to prevent this fate would be to absorb the souls of his victims.
Boomstick: He can literally eat your soul. Your soul! Not only can this heal him, but he gets the memories of the souls he devoured.
Wiz: This helps him copy the moves of other fighters when he morphs.
Boomstick: So really, his curse became his deadliest weapon. Good punishment there, gods.
Wiz: Shang Tsung has lived and fought for over a thousand years. His sorcery, powers, and brutal Fatalities are rivaled by few, and he's claimed the title of grand champion of Mortal Kombat several times, almost bringing about the winning streak necessary to allow Shao Kahn to invade Earthrealm, key word being "almost."
Boomstick: Yeah, unfortunately for Shang Tsung, he pretty much sucks at actually accomplishing his goals. He's super powerful, but like most villains, he can never get around some goody-two-shoes getting in the way of global takeover.
Wiz: His only notable victories have included treachery and deceit, but keep in mind, Tsung's not fighting any ordinary meat-heads. He's fighting demons, sorcerers, and gods, and even in defeat, he somehow keeps coming back, more lethal than ever.
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Shang Tsung: You... will... DIE!
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==Prelude==
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. But before we end this debate, I need some cash to buy more rats for genetic testing.
Boomstick: What?
Wiz: From GameFly.
Wiz and Boomstick read out an advertisement for GameFly.
Boomstick: That's 15 days of free games! What are you waiting for? Oh, wait! A DEATH BATTLE!!!
==Death Battle==
Akuma walks into frame when Shang Tsung suddenly appears behind him using his Hot Escape technique. Akuma jumps away to the other side of the battlefield, and prepares to fight.
Tsung shoots a Flaming Skull, which Akuma dodges by jumping over. He shoots two Gohadokens in the air, and Tsung blocks them. Akuma attacks Tsung's feet and knocks him even more off balance by hitting him with a Tatsumaki hurricane kick before knocking him in the air with a Goshoryuken uppercut. While in the air, Akuma hits him a few times and finishes the combo with a Shinku Hadoken. Tsung falls to the ground and Akuma tries to finish him off, but Tsung transforms into Scorpion. Akuma stops and decides to see if this form is powerful enough to fight against, allowing him to get back up.
"Scorpion": COME HERE!
Shang Tsung throws a kunai spear at Akuma, which pierces his chest, and drags Akuma over towards him. He uppercuts Akuma, cueing the "Toasty Guy," Dan Forden, to appear in the right corner of the screen.
Dan Forden: TOASTY!
Shang Tsung then keeps him in the air by hitting him with Flaming Skulls that burst out of the ground. Akuma falls behind him and throws him to the left. He then teleports behind him and kicks him, which Tsung blocks. He fires a Gohadoken, but Tsung uses Hot Escape to get away before reappearing and slashing Akuma with his sword. He then grabs Akuma and tries to steal his soul, which heals some of his health and drains some of Akuma's. Akuma breaks out of it by hitting him with a Tatsumaki. Tsung runs toward him, but Akuma catches him off guard using the Kongo Kokuretsuzan, which knocks him in the air. He then teleports towards him and hits him a few times before throwing him. Tsung then lands on his feet and transforms into Akuma.
The two prepare for battle.
The two Akumas then jump in the air and they attack, blocking each others' moves. One of the Akumas knocks the other into the ground and tries to finish him off using the Kongou Kokoretsuzan. However, the other Akuma grabs him and finishes him off with a Shun Goku Satsu. As one of the Akumas stands with his back to the screen with the iconic heaven kanji (死) confirming the kill, it is then shown that the Akuma lying dead on the ground is Shang Tsung, who shortly turns back into his original form, releasing the souls he absorbed.
==Results==
Boomstick: Oh man, that was way too close!
Wiz: No kiddin', Boomstick! Akuma's raw power and speed pressed a distinct advantage early on, but Tsung's own cleverness and wide array of skills quickly even the odds.
Boomstick: It looked like Akuma had the whole thing wrapped up, but Tsung's morphing trick saved his ass.
Wiz: Akuma's pride for battle almost cost his life, as he stopped to see if his new face was worth a challenge.
Boomstick: After switching up strategies, Tsung managed to steal enough of Akuma's soul for some extra health and new abilities.
Wiz: But it wasn't enough. In the end, Akuma's skills as a fighter proved unmatched.
Boomstick: I mean, Tsung loses to Liu Kang all the time, and compared to Akuma, Liu Kang's the nicest guy in the world. There was no way he could take Akuma's constant punishment.
Wiz: As Shang Tsung isn't used to winning anything on his own, he wasn't perfect in delivering the final blow, leaving him wide open for the experienced Akuma to release his greatest weapon.
Boomstick: The Raging Demon of Instant-Hell-Murder-Awesomeness!
Wiz: And so Shang Tsung fell once again, releasing his devoured souls. Again.
Boomstick: Looks like Tsung's all souled out! Ha-hah! Get it, Wiz?
We cut to the "Akuma" winner card.
Wiz: The winner is Akuma.
==Trivia==
===Production===
*The core connections between Akuma and Shang Tsung are that they are both major fighting game antagonists who are ruthless martial artists with soul-manipulating powers (the Shun Goku Satsu and the Soul Steal, respectively) who serve as arch-enemies to the protagonist of their series (Ryu and Liu Kang, respectively). In addition:
**Both of their arch-enemies would later fight each other in Season 3 of DBX.
*This is one of only two episodes in which the fight animation features health bars for the combatants, with the other being Boba Fett VS Samus Aran (2010).
*In Death Battle's second Q&A, when asked "Akuma's low stamina is actually him just holding back. Why did you use that against him?", Wiz then replied that they didn't since Akuma won.
===Easter Eggs===
*Likely to mimic Shang Tsung's battle pose, the sprite used for Shang's Scorpion form is actually a recolored version of Reptile's sprite from Mortal Kombat 3.
===Errors===
*During Akuma's analysis, Wiz says that Akuma is capable of using the Shoryuken. However, this is partially incorrect, as Akuma's version of the move is named Goshoryuken.
===Other===
*This is the first Fighting Game-themed episode, with the next 15 being Felicia VS Taokaka, Chun-Li VS Mai Shiranui, Shao Kahn VS M. Bison, Ivy VS Orchid, Fulgore VS Sektor, Ryu VS Scorpion, Ragna VS Sol Badguy, Cammy VS Sonya, Ken VS Terry, Sub-Zero VS Glacius, Balrog VS TJ Combo, Ryu VS Jin, Sabrewulf VS Jon Talbain, Heihachi Mishima VS Geese Howard, and Akuma VS Shao Kahn.
*This is the first Street Fighter VS Mortal Kombat-themed episode, with the next four being Shao Kahn VS M. Bison, Ryu VS Scorpion, Cammy VS Sonya, and Akuma VS Shao Kahn.
**This is the first time Street Fighter wins.
*This is the first Villains-themed episode, with the next 32 being Goomba VS Koopa, Eggman VS Wily, Shao Kahn VS M. Bison, Fulgore VS Sektor, Darth Vader VS Doctor Doom, Bowser VS Ganon, Joker VS Sweet Tooth, Venom VS Bane, Shredder VS Silver Samurai, Sephiroth VS Vergil, Ultron VS Sigma, Thanos VS Darkseid, Ganondorf VS Dracula, The Seven Battle Royale, Lex Luthor VS Doctor Doom, Heihachi Mishima VS Geese Howard, Goku Black VS Reverse-Flash, Akuma VS Shao Kahn, Madara VS Aizen, Harley Quinn VS Jinx, Omni-Man VS Homelander, Magneto VS Tetsuo, Boba Fett VS Predator, Black Adam VS Apocalypse, Jason Voorhees VS Michael Myers, Sauron VS Lich King, Darth Vader VS Obito Uchiha, Frieza VS Megatron, Galactus VS Unicron, Bowser VS Eggman, Mahito VS Shigaraki, and Wile E. Coyote VS Tom Cat.
*This is the first episode where Boomstick yells a variation of his pre-fight catchphrase (via saying "What are you waiting for? Oh, wait! A DEATH BATTLE!" during the ad read), with the next 26 being Rogue VS Wonder Woman, Felicia VS Taokaka, Eggman VS Wily, Terminator VS RoboCop, Pokémon Battle Royale, Fulgore VS Sektor, Tigerzord VS Gundam Epyon, Boba Fett VS Samus Aran (2015), Guts VS Nightmare, Solid Snake VS Sam Fisher, Hercule Satan VS Dan Hibiki, Bowser VS Ganon, Joker VS Sweet Tooth, Meta VS Carolina, Mega Man Battle Royale, Dragonzord VS Mechagodzilla, Scarlet Witch VS Zatanna, James Bond VS John Wick, Trunks VS Silver, SpongeBob VS Aquaman, Jason Voorhees VS Michael Myers, Sauron VS Lich King, Gogeta VS Vegito, Phoenix VS Raven, Scooby-Doo VS Courage the Cowardly Dog, and Galactus VS Unicron.
Category:Death Battles
Category:Season 1 episodes
Category:Street Fighter episodes
Category:Mortal Kombat episodes
Category:Animated Sprite battles
Category:Fights animated by Ben Singer
Category:Death Battles with cameo appearances
Category:'Mortal Kombat VS Street Fighter' themed Death Battles
Category:'East VS West' themed Death Battles
Category:'Villains' themed Death Battles
Category:'Video Games' themed Death Battles
Category:'Fighting Game' themed Death Battles
Category:'1990s' themed Death Battles
Category:'Antagonists' themed Death Battles
Category:'Capcom VS Warner Bros.' themed Death Battles
Category:'Earth VS Aliens' themed Death Battles