Name: Manta
Debut: Super Mario 64
Did you know? Manta was not something invented by Super Mario 64. This is actually a clever reference, a public domain cameo from something else! It's called "animals" and it is one of my favorite works. Check it out sometime!
Manta's first appearance is in Super Mario 64, where it has a Special Ability... and a Reward! You know it has a reward because of the Star called The Manta Ray's Reward, but you know it has a Special Ability because it trails bubble rings behind it! Swimming through a ring will replenish Mario's oxygen, making this manta an ideal Support party member when paired with a mammal on an underwater stage. Unfortunately, MultiVersus removed the Support role, so Manta will probably never be playable in that game. It will never get to provide Rick Sanchez with oxygen underwater. Wubba lubba dagnabbit!
The Manta Ray's reward is a star. It gives Mario a star if he swims through enough rings.
"Hi, it's me! Phantamanta! Can I join your manta post?"
Hi, Phantamanta! I'm sorry, but no. This post is about regular ol' manta rays. You are some kind of shadowghost made of magical electroslime. You have plenty of material all on your own, I promise!
"That's alright, I understand! I'll just be waiting outside until you're free to hang out! Trailing electric slime all over town."
Sounds great! Goodbye.
There have been a few different manta rays throughout the Mario series! There's Ray from Super Mario Galaxy. There are the goggle-wearing Jumbo Rays from NSMB Wii, and the big manta from Mario Kart 8 that uses a similar design. But there is one ray appearance that I find most fun of all.
Yeah, it's Mario Kart Tour again! Sorry! Just kidding, I'm not! Look at this. This is the Fire Manta Glider, one of a few variants of the base Manta Glider. With its gaping mouth flanked by cephalic fins, this particular manta model is the most realistic, and as a result, I think the best, because real mantas are one of the animals that we've normalized despite them being absolute freaks. And how can you make it even better?
Lore Implications, that's how! This may seem like just a depiction of a manta ray with a flame pattern, but this is the Mario world. Fire Mario isn't just an outfit swap for Mario, it's a power-up form! I think Fire Manta Glider is confirmation that manta rays, and presumably any other creature, could use power-ups if they wanted to and were in the right situation. We've seen blocks with Tanooki tails. A cartilaginous fish using a Fire Flower is far more normal than THAT!
