Tekken 7: Much Ado About Kunimitsu II, Why?

Tekken 7 fans almost lost their minds over the weekend when it was revealed that an old character was returning to the franchise. Bandai Namco teased the new character with a short segment in the season 4 announcement video, but very few people clued on to who it was. Finally, over the weekend, we received the news that Kunimitsu of the fox mask was coming to Tekken 7 as a DLC character.

Fans cheered, stans cried, haters groaned, but regardless of the reaction, one thing was clear: Tekken 7 had everyone's attention. Naturally, fans went into overdrive with all sorts of speculations; what would her move set be? Why was her character design a little different? What happened to her all these years.

Soon, it became apparent that there was something different about this Kunimitsu. First off, she took off her mask to reveal a very beautiful young lady. Wait, a young lady? Shouldn't Kunimitsu be a 40+-year-old lady? Had she been cryogenically frozen or something? WHAT IS GOING ON?

Then, Bandai Namco released a video with Katsuhiro Harada, the game's producer, and Michael Murray, the game's designer where they spoke about the new character along with other tidbits about season 4. In the announcement, we learned about a couple of new features, including rollback netcode, and improved content. However, most striking of all was the introduction of the new Kunimitsu.

See, the Kunimitsu introduced in the trailer isn't the same one we were used to, but rather, her daughter, who has been christened Kunimitsu II. What this means is that fans who didn't grow up with the Tekken series will probably never get to meet Kunimitsu. While that is a shame, it doesn't mean that the new iteration of the character isn't someone to get excited about. With that said, let's take a quick look at who Kunimitsu was, and what little we know about the latest iteration.

Who was Kunimitsu?

So, for the sake of those who never got to meet the original Kunimitsu, she was a character first introduced in the very first Tekken game way back in 1994. She then returned in Tekken 2 released the following year. After these two outings, she has been absent from the series—until now.

Her last appearance was in Tekken tag tournament 2, but since the story, there isn't considered canon, we can't take much away from her outing there.

Kunimitsu was a petty thief who left the thieving life to join forces with the Majin clan where she honed her skills as a deadly fighter. She initially considered a protagonist and followed the mantra of the Manji clan: steal from the rich to provide for the poor. However, as time went on, greed crept in, and she started pilfering treasures to enrich herself. Unfortunately, she was caught and ultimately banished by Yoshimitsu, who was the leader of the clan.

With nowhere to go and no skills of note (besides martial arts) she became an air conditioner repairer. In the process of carrying out her job, she came to learn about an incredible treasure belonging to a woman known as Michelle Chang. Determined to obtain this treasure, and unfazed by the fact that Heihachi Mishima also wanted it, she decided to enter into the King of Iron Fist tournament.

While showing off her talent in fighting, she was roundly defeated in the tournament and, therefore, failed in her quest to obtain the treasure. Bereft of confidence and saddened by her failure, she went to live with her grandfather, a swordsmith of some repute. It was while with him that she learned that the sword wielded by Yoshimitsu was a treasure that had been passed from generation to generation in the Manji clan. Filled with a new determination, she sought to enter the second King of iron fist tournament in a bid to obtain the sword. But, crucially, this time she wasn't out to get the sword for her enrichment, but rather to fulfill her grandfather's wish to replicate the legendary sword.

However, just as in the first tournament, she was defeated again. At this point, she was done with the tournaments, and she disappeared from view for a long time.

In the Tekken tag tournament games, she was a lot luckier as the endings in those games see her win against Yoshimitsu, and in the second tag tournament game, she actually steals the sword off Yoshimitsu. Unfortunately, as mentioned earlier, these stories are not canon which means that in the latest Tekken installment, Kunimitsu is still without the sword.

Kunimitsu is an impressive character for many reasons, but one of the most striking ones is that she performed all her exploits despite being blind. She is a greatly skilled ninja who was silent and deadly. As you can imagine, due to her personality, many have tagged her as a villain of sorts. However, the truth is a bit more complicated as she has shown that she has a soft spot for the ones she cares about. She never spoke much and never took off her mask, but if Kunimitsu II is anything to go by, then it's safe to assume that the original Kunimitsu was a very cute woman.

Who is Kunimitsu?

With the story of the old Kunimitsu out of the way, what do we know of the new Kunimitsu? Well, nothing really. She is an entity shrouded in mystery. You'd think that when the new season comes out, we'll learn more about her, alas, this might not happen as it has been revealed that she will not have a story mode and is purely a DLC addition. However, there are a few things we have been able to pick up from the short trailer that was released. One, she is intent on fulfilling her mother's quest, which is to get the legendary sword from Yoshimitsu. Also, it is quite clear that she revers her mother and shares her hatred for Yoshimitsu. Like her mother, Kunimitsu wears a fox mask, but unlike her mother, she seems a lot more talkative and is willing to take the mask off. She is armed with a short sword and a Wakizashi. According to Harada, Kunimitsu II also fights like a ninja, and we can expect some new moves from this new addition to the Tekken series.

As for her heritage, we have no idea who sired Kunimitsu II, but there have been a couple of theories including that Yoshimitsu is her father. The most remarkable one of these theories is the one that says she might be the daughter of One Punch Man's Speed-o-Sonic. While the two certainly share a resemblance, the odds that they are related is incredibly slim.

A younger woman, do we have a problem?

As you have perhaps noticed, Kunimitsu II is a younger woman who is probably in her late teens or early 20s. This seems to continue a trend in which Tekken's female characters are depicted as much younger than their male counterparts (except Eliza of course). So, while the likes of Paul and Heihachi have been allowed to age, female characters are either replaced or kept young by some plot device or the other. This has been identified as a problem by some who believe that female characters should be allowed to age like their male counterparts. The argument against this seems to be that using an older lady to engage in battle might feel weird for some. Also, you could argue that there isn't much of a demographic that would find maining a middle-aged woman appealing. This is, of course, debatable as people fall in love with characters for a variety of reasons, and someone with as rich a backstory as Kunimitsu should be represented better. Does that mean Kunimitsu II is a bad addition to the Tekken series? Of course not! While we have no experience with her, I would say she is another strong female character added to the Tekken series that will only add to the rich lore of this incredible game.

One thing is for sure; the new Kunimitsu is strong as in her trailer, she was shown to defeat Yoshimitsu and capture the sword that her mother spent so long chasing without any success. Here's hoping that we get some more information about her to add to the story.

So, are you excited for Kunimitsu? Will you be using her? Will the fact that she isn't the original Kunimitsu affect your perception of her? Season 4 of Tekken will be released in the fall, and by then I'm sure we'll get a closer look at Kunimitsu, and we can make a better judgment on whether she is a top-tier character that will add to the prestige of Tekken, or not.