M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994– )

A paralyzed African-American scientist builds a powerful exo-skeleton in order to walk again, and uses his new abilities to fight crime.

Creators:

Sam Hamm, Sam Raimi

Stars:

Carl Lumbly, Roger Rees, Christopher Gartin

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Carl Lumbly	...	Dr. Miles Hawkins (22 episodes, 1994-1997)
Roger Rees	...	John Stonebrake (22 episodes, 1994-1997)
Christopher Gartin	...	Taylor Savage (22 episodes, 1994-1997)
Galyn Görg	...	Lt. Leora Maxwell (22 episodes, 1994-1997)
Gary Graham	...	Capt. Ken Hetrick (9 episodes, 1994-1995)

Storyline

Miles Hawkins thought he had it all -- money, brains, a great family and a killer serve. A bullet changed his life. Left him paralyzed. Now, today, it's about to change again. Hawkins has invented a "harness." It's a piece of cutting edge technology with a headgear which allows the transmitters in the brain to bypass the spine. Translation: he can walk again. Actually, he can do more than that. He has more than he had before. Increased strength, speed, agility. The one thing he can't do is be normal. Either he's in a wheelchair, or he's in this techno-getup. Can't take a stroll in the park like you or me. What's he to do? At first a reluctant hero, Hawkins is drawn into a world of fighting crime because the violence which turned his life upside-down is doing the same to the world around him. While in the harness and headset, he assumes the identity of the Mantis and fights back. He's armed with a sophisticated array of hi-tech tools like the Chrysalid, a prototype police vehicle that ...

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Plot Keywords:

scientist | african american | acronym in title | paraplegic | exoskeleton | 

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Taglines:

Call me... the Mantis!

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Genres:

Action | Sci-Fi

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Details

Official Sites:

SciFi Channel's Mantis Site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 August 1994 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Renaissance Pictures, Wilbur Force Productions, Universal TV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

M.A.N.T.I.S., the highly-watched TV movie on which this series was based, featured a predominately African-American cast and racism was a major issue in the story. Fox executives thought that the racial focus of the movie was "too grim and too realistic". Except for Carl Lumbly, the African-American actors from the movie were replaced in this series. Lumbly, Gina Torres, and Christopher M. Brown stated in interviews that they were very disappointed that the tone of the series was changed.

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Connections

Referenced in Crysis (2007)

User Reviews

an excellent black superhero show!

i saw this show when i was 7 years old. even back then it was a cool show. there weren't-and still aren't-many black superheroes out there, save for Spawn, Blade, & Bishop; and this show introduced a cool concept. basically, a paralyzed scientist creates a bio-suit that allows him to walk and he uses it to fight crime.

after it was canceled, re-runs aired on the sci-fi channel for a while. the only way to see it now is on video.

worth looking into if you're looking for a new black superhero.