‘Mantis’ Review – Netflix’s Spin-Off Boasts Fun Action But Is Lacking Character
2023’s Kill Boksoon became one of the most successful South Korean Netflix Original Films ever, somewhat unexpectedly. It was good, an action-packed assassin thriller with a heavy dose of family drama that gave the endless debate about work-life balance a deadly twist. In this entertainment climate, a success of that magnitude practically mandates a sequel or a spin-off, and thus here we are with Mantis, a weaker, more superficial follow-on in the same universe from the same creator, Byun Sung-hyun, and writer-director, Lee Tae-sung.
Fans of Kill Boksoon need to rest assured of one thing, at the very least – it’s still a messy, action-packed good time, with a smattering of entertaining and well-choreographed action set-pieces that occupy a good chunk of the runtime. It’s everything else that’s weaker. The tight character focus is exchanged for a broader examination of the John Wick-style assassin underworld and its arcane internal politics, and Mantis is simply a less interesting avatar through which to explore it.
That underworld, you may recall, was radically altered by the climactic events of Kill Boksoon, with the title character having taken out the leadership of the most prestigious assassin organization, MK. In their absence, the company and the underworld both descended into chaos, with all the remaining companies violating the previously stringent rules of engagement in order to fight for scraps in the power vacuum.
Into this world steps Mantis (Yim Si-wan), back from a hiatus, and with designs on starting his own company alongside another MK trainee, Jae-yi (Park Gyu-young). Meanwhile, Mantis’s mentor Dok-go (Jo Woo-jin, Narco-Saints), who was forcibly expelled from MK back in its pomp, sees an opportunity to assume control of the floundering company, which may bring him into conflict with his former student.
This three-way battle for supremacy seems ripe for character drama, but that’s not really the approach that Mantis takes. The POV characters are largely used as lenses through which to view different elements of the assassin underworld, and the fractious politics become the spine of the story, which is a bit like the first John Wick movie being about the Continental and not about John and his dead dog. Mantis lacks the mystique for that comparison, too. He’s a great fighter, but his primary characteristics are being arrogant and brash, more concerned with his own self-advancement than with any deeper considerations.
It’s all an imagery thing. Mantis was barely mentioned in the first film, but he’s the focal point here largely because he strikes a compelling figure with his curved pincer-like blades. That kind of thing is easy to market a movie around, but it’s not especially easy to build a movie around, and the script strains against Mantis’s lack of distinguishing characteristics. His arc is primarily a will-they-won’t-they romance with Jae-yi, a more interesting character with, I think, a better claim to being the movie’s protagonist, but no such luck.
Fans of Kill Boksoon won’t necessarily feel short-changed by Mantis. It’s a solid action flick that delivers where it counts – in the stabby excess – and has a similar enough vibe that there’s some comfort in returning to the universe. But it’s undeniably a weaker film overall, with a less engaging protagonist, a less coherent thematic through-line, and a more unclear reason for being beyond simple brand leveraging. These days, that’s to be expected. But I can’t imagine anyone eagerly anticipating the next spin-off in this minor cinematic celestial body, which I think says it all.
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