Reginald Parker was a reporter for Santa Barbara Sentinel as well as a crime fighter going by the name of The Mantis. His main focus was taking down the Camino Drug Syndicate. However, in the end it turned out he wasn't doing it to be a Good Samaritan, but to steal millions of dollars in drug money. He is portrayed by Miles Fisher.
Character Biography[]
The Amazing Psych-Man & Tap-Man, Issue 2[]
In The Amazing Psych-Man & Tap-Man, Issue 2, Shawn and Gus are chasing after members of the Camino Drug Syndicate when they trip. When they get back up and give chase, they find the men they were chasing unconscious and tied up on the curb. The police arrive to take them away and find a card from the Mantis on hand, and Gus and Lassiter see the man on the roof next door.
Reginald then appears as himself at the police station, trying to get an interview with Lassiter, who refuses to talk to the Santa Barbara Sentinel after the 'Detective Dipstick' incident. Shawn then divines where the next deal will be, but when they arrive the Mantis has already taken care of it. Shawn, jealous of the Mantis, begins to try and discover who The Mantis is and one up him. When the next drug deal is going down Shawn arrives while the Mantis is there, the two get in a fight with Shawn jumping on his back and biting him, before The Mantis knocks him out, steals his clothes, and puts the Mantis clothes on Shawn. Later, the Mantis sends back Shawn's dry cleaned clothes.
The Mantis tells the police where the next Camino trade will be, however when they get there they find the Mantis with blood on his hands next to a murdered body. The Mantis runs away, and the police believe that the Mantis is the killer. Shawn on the other hand, despite his rivalry with the Mantis, realizes he isn't the killer. With the information from the dry cleaning, Shawn and Gus get the Mantis's address by stealing it from the Dry Cleaning place. They are shocked to see that The Mantis is Reginald, but they're there to help prove him innocent. He doesn't know this however, and beats them up until they explain themselves. He says that the man was his mole inside the Caminos, and he was trying to help him. Reginald says he's going to retire the Mantis, however Shawn convinces him that they can stop the Caminos. The Mantis, and Shawn and Gus (dressed as The Catch and Tap-Man) go down to stop the Caminos. The police are there as well. Shawn and Gus distract the Caminos while Reginald takes them out.
The Mantis (middle) with The Catch and Tap-Man
Later, Shawn arrives at Reginald's apartment to thank him, but is shocked when he finds it totally cleaned out. Shawn realizes that Reginald wasn't trying to stop the Caminos for good, but to steal their drug money. Shawn turns up dressed as the Catch as Reginald is trying to leave, and they brawl. Shawn is doing pretty well for himself, until Gus arrives as Tap-Man and accidentally throws sand in Shawn's eyes. However, Juliet and Lassiter come to the rescue, and the Mantis runs away. They give chase, but Shawn goes around back and bodychecks Reginald, knocking him to the ground, and he is arrested.
Trivia[]
- His surname is designed to evoke Peter Parker, the friendly neighborhood web-slinger of Marvel Comics - and films.
- The Amazing Spider-Man is one of the most popular comic book titles for the character.