GENERAL/STORY:
T.J. Combo comes from a rather large family.  When he was very young, his father died of cancer, leaving his mother to take care of him, his three sisters and two brothers.  All of the kids were forced to take jobs around the neighborhood (lawn mowing, raking leaves, etc), and when they were of legal age, they were employed at minimum wage.  Combo worked perhaps harder than any of his other family members.  Therefore, he didn't do as well in school, especially compared against his younger sister, Karen, who was turning out to be quite a genius. 

Combo always dreamed of making a lot of money, and helping his poor, overworked mother out.  He decided to pursue a career in professional boxing, since from what he could tell, sports superstars made more money than any other profession.  Combo loved to fight, and he loved boxing - every evening, after working, he used to train in a gym in the neighborhood with an old, retired circuit fighter.  After finishing high school, Combo decided to skip college in order to train. Combo was good enough to earn his way into a minor circuit of the ABA (American Boxing Association).  However, a superstar he was not.  He lost many fights, and it was hard enough for him to break even with his wins/losses.  Combo started to get desperate, and fight beyond his own limits. 

 In what would be his last minor circuit fight (for now), Combo received devastating injuries to both his arms, including shattered bones, torn ligaments, and the muscles in his right arm had been almost completely ripped apart. The medical assessments were very grim.  Some doctors believed that he would never regain full use of either arm.  Others believed that, over time, they might heal to basic mobility.  Some thought he'd never be able to use his arms again.  All agreed that he could never box again.  Thoroughly dissatisfied, Combo turned to his younger sister, Karen.  

By this time, she had gone through college fairly quickly, and was now working in the field of engineering for a rising technological corporation, Ultratech.  Using radical techniques and cybernetics, Combo could regain 100% use of his arms. Unfortunately, Combo realized that, if cybernetics were to be used to restore his arm strength, then it could be used to enhance his arms, and make him into the boxing superstar he dreamed of becoming.  When he proposed it to Karen, she flatly refused.  Combo pleaded with her, saying he wouldn't undergo the surgery to restore his arms unless she included the enhancements as well.  He also brought up their mother; how hard she had worked, how much she deserved a break, and how much he wanted to give it to her.  Karen finally buckled, and agreed, as long as Combo retired from boxing one year after making his fame. 

 By then, he should have enough money to take care of the family, and anything longer than that might risk putting a strain on the cybernetics. The operation went flawlessly.  T.J. Combo now had arms that were 75% cybernetic, which gave him arm speed and strength up to 200% of a normal man.  Returning to boxing after a reasonable hiatus, Combo all but demolished the minor circuit, and quickly made his way to up the world circuit.  Of course, there were rumors abound as to how a low ranking fighter who had suffered a crippling injury was suddenly the world's number one contender.  But nothing could be confirmed, so the rumors remained rumors. Needless to say, Combo quickly became world champion.  Before he knew it, he had more wealth and fame than he had ever imagined.  As promised, he pampered his family, especially his mother.  She was able to spend the last years of her life happy, and finally living comfortably.  But, Combo's excessive wealth went to his head, and going against his sister's wishes, he decided to stay in boxing past the one year. 

 His relationship with Karen became strained, to the point that they stopped talking altogether.  Aside from that, things continued to go extremely well for Combo for several years, but during a particularly tough championship fight, his cybernetic arms suffered severe damage and shorted out during the fight, exposing the truth to all. Combo was stripped of his title, he lost his wealth, and he was disgraced in the entertainment world.  No sponsors would touch him, he was now banned from the ABA, he couldn't even earn a spot as an announcer.  This was truly the lowest of all lows.  As a final salvation, Combo discovered the Killer Instinct tournament.  Held every year by the Ultratech Corporation, the winner of the tournament was granted any one wish he so desired, as long as it was within Ultratech's power (and given the Corporation's might, that was a lot).  Combo figured that if he could win KI, he could get back into the ABA at least, or just wish for unfathomable riches, and let his fame build again from his participation in the tournament. 

 Having no other options, Combo tried out for, and made it into, Killer Instinct 7. Originally, Combo entered the tournament for nothing more than his personal fame.  However, midway during the tournament, one of the other fighters, Orchid, held a conference with him and several other fighters.  She said that she was an agent of a top secret organization, and Ultratech was hiding sinister intentions behind the Killer Instinct tournament.  She asked the non-Ultratech fighters to help her combat the evil corporation.  At first, Combo felt pressured to agree, and would only help this "secret agent" for as long as purposes suited him.  During the battles, Combo saw that much, much more was at stake than his fame.  Combo now lends his skills towards the greater good - preventing Ultratech's plans from becoming a reality.

ORIGIN:
Killer Instinct

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OTHER APPEARANCES:
Killer Instinct 2, Killer Instinct Gold

REVIEW:
Even though he's partially a rip-off of Balrog (how he uses charge up moves), he still has a unique persona and dirty boxing fighting style of his own. He also balances out his series rather and he's well and he's got a pretty funny personality. LMAO, he is also the first character to pull out a machine gun and shoot some shit up in a fighting game... A funny guy indeed.
 

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