| “ | Long ago, the gods banished me to Persia. I was forced to scrounge for food on the edges of the world, hiding in forests, devouring insignificant human farmers for my meals. I never got to fight any great heroes. I was not feared and admired in the old stories! But now that will change. The Titans shall honor me, and I shall feast on the flesh of half-bloods! | ” |
–Dr. Thorn, the Manticore, in The Titan's Curse | ||
The Manticore is a monster in Greek mythology. He appears in the form of a school teacher by the name of Dr. Thorn.
Mythology
A manticore is similar to a sphinx, as it has the face of a man, the body of a lion and the tail of a scorpion. It can shoot poison spines out of its tail.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
The Titan's Curse
When Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Thalia Grace arrive at Westover Hall because Grover Underwood claims to have found two incredibly strong demigods, they are stopped by two of the teachers. Thalia uses the Mist to fool one of the teachers, but the other named Dr. Thorn is not completely convinced. During the dance the school is having, Dr. Thorn takes the two children and Percy rushes after them. When he enters the hallway, he finds Nico and Bianca di Angelo, but Dr. Thorn stabs Percy with a spike he shot from his scorpian tail and reveals himself to be a manticore. Being unable to fight him in his weakened state, Percy goes along with the manticore and tried to contact Grover using his Empathy Link. The manticore reveals that he is under orders from the General to capture the two half-bloods in order to recruit them in Kronos' army.
However, as their transportation arrives, the manticore is attacked by Annabeth, Grover, and Thalia. The manticore is able to hold them off until Artemis and her Hunters arrive, claiming the manticore as their prey. Annabeth jumps on his back and stabs him with her knife, but it jumps off the side of the cliff and vanishes, bringing Annabeth with him as a prisoner. Artemis later questions Percy about the manticore and agrees to hunt it an the monster he claimed they would have soon. The manticore later delivers Annabeth to Luke Castellan, who uses her as bait in order to lure Artemis into a trap.
The manticore appears again in the presence of the General and Luke. He informs the two of Zoë Nightshade and her companions, currently questing for Artemis. The General belittles the manticore for his lack of results and denies him his request for a command of his own. The General then sends the manticore out of the room.
The manticore later appears again, cornering the questers on a dock. He claims that he will defeat the demigods himself in order to prove himself, but keeps them alive so they can witness Thalia killing the Ophiotaurus in order to defeat the gods. Thalia is tempted by the possibility, but refuses. The manticore then attacks and almost kills them all until Percy sends an Iris Message to camp and pleads with Mr. D for help. The manticore is then covered in vines shortly after and is turned to dust.
Abilities
Manticores are extremely powerful monsters, with many deadly abilities:
- Spiky Scorpion Tail: A manticore's tail is one of their main weapons, and with it they can accurately shoot spikes at high speeds, or use it as a jabbing weapon, similar to real scorpions.
- Poison: The tail and the spikes a manticore can shoot are poisonous. While the poison will not kill, it will cause the victim to suffer intense pain, almost to the point of blacking out.
- Durability: Manticores are very strong and durable, being able to survive several strikes in battle, even by Celestial Bronze.
- Agility: Manticores are very fast and agile. They are even able to climb on walls or move quickly on uneven surfaces.
Appearance
A manticore's face remains human, but has a lion's body and a long, scorpion-like tail that can shoot spikes. The manticore also has two different colored eyes, one being brown and the other blue. These eyes remain as two separate colors whether the manticore is in human or monster form.
However, while Percy had initially considered Dr Thorn (a fierce manticore) to be very intimidating, he admits that standing before Atlas, Thorn looked like a "silly wannabe soldier", while Atlas was the real deal, who did not even need a uniform, as he was a "born commander."
Film
The Sea of Monsters
The manticore from The Sea of Monsters film.
A manticore serves as the quaternary antagonist of the film, and is a henchman of Luke Castellan where he replaces Agrius and Oreius as Luke's top henchmen. He captures Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Tyson when they arrive on the Princess Andromeda. During the climactic battle at Polyphemus' lair, the manticore attacks Percy and they engage in an intense fight, where Percy is quickly overwhelmed by the beast. However, before the manticore can kill Percy, it is incapacitated on accident by Kronos as the Titan awakens. In the aftermath of the battle, the manticore kills Annabeth (who is later revived by the Fleece) before it was killed by Grover Underwood and Clarisse La Rue.
Daniel Cudmore had portrayed the Manticore during filming, but his scenes were cut from the final film, and was replaced with a CGI character.
Known Manticores
- Dr. Thorn
- Unnamed Manicore (mentioned in Camp Half-Blood Confidential)
Trivia
- The manticore is originally a man-eating monster from Persian (Iranian) mythology. Dr. Thorn makes a reference to this by saying the gods had banished him to Persia (Iran).
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