Mantis (BW)

Mantis is an Insectron from the Beast Wars II portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

You lot need to calm down and relax, OR I'LL KILL YOU ALL!

Of all the Insectron warriors, Mantis (マンティス Mantisu) is by far the most hostile. He likes peace and quiet and if disturbed he’ll explode into a fit of rage that’s nearly impossible to avoid. Though he seems like an absolute nutcase, he only wants one thing: relaxation. As a member of the Insectrons, he and his cohorts left Cybertron in an attempt to escape the wars that never seemed to go away. He had thought he had found a safe haven on Gaea. Now that the battle has been shifted to his new home, he doesn’t care what side he fights on just as long as everyone leaves him alone!

Unfortunately, he has a constant thorn in his side: Autolauncher, who seeks to crush Mantis and prove he's the best disc-slinger there is. But Mantis' telekinetic control of his discs in mid-flight certainly gives him an advantage.

Fiction

Cartoon continuity

Beast Wars II cartoon

Voice actor: Hiroki Takahashi (Japanese)

Mantis was at rest in some ancient ruins, until a Predacon bombing run woke him up; enraged at his peace and quiet being disturbed, he viciously attacked the Maximals exploring the ruins and came close to terminating Lio Convoy. A sudden display of artillery from Apache took him down. Following this, the Predacons brought the ruins down and Lio Convoy saved Mantis' life. The Insectron rejected the offer of friendship then, merely cackling that they'd meet again... Mystery of the Ancient Ruins The Insect Corps Arrive The Strongest Tag Team? Autorollers Roll Out! Predacon General Offensive! Who Is the Strongest Warrior!? Lio Convoy in Imminent Danger! Fly Out! Planet Gaea Assemble, Thirty-Nine Warriors

Bom Bom manga continuity

Beast Wars II comic

All Hands, Make a Special Attack on the Evil Planet!

IDW Beast Wars comics

Mantis acquired a wide array of combat skills by competing in various athletic and military competitions in the past, including Discmaster. He's also even-tempered and easy-going. Okay. Beast Wars Sourcebook 2

Toys

Beast Wars

• Mantis (Deluxe, 1998)
  • Japanese ID number: C-20

This figure is a redeco of the Predacon Manterror, with the purple changed to blue and the Predacon energon chip changed to a Maximal one. He transforms into a praying mantis, with a pressure-launch disc launcher hidden in each horrible foreclaw.

• More information on Mantis at TFU.info

• Mantis vs Autolauncher (Vs pack, 1998)
  • Japanese ID number: VS-20

Mantis was available both as an individual and in a two-pack with his rival Autolauncher.

Notes

• IDW's Beast Wars Sourcebook describes Mantis as being friendly, good-natured and very approachable. That...is terribly, terribly wrong. Ben Yee's excuse is "I wanted his personality to fit in with the rest of the Insectrons, and thus I made him something else entirely" [1]; after all, the point of a book of character profiles is to completely rewrite the characters, right? Right?