end of Resident Alien season 3, it's very clear to which category of character he belongs.

Resident Alien season 4 has wrapped filming, and a teased release window means the batch of episodes could arrive as early as this year. Details surrounding the story's continuation are pretty much non-existent at this point, but it's clear that the Mantid will return as one of the show's primary antagonists. That being said, Resident Alien has a habit of taking its extraterrestrial characters down a very specific path. If the same blueprint is adhered to for the Mantid, it would be annoyingly predictable.

I Would Hate For Harry To Win Over The Mantid Like He Did With Joseph & Heather

The Mantid needs to stay a bad guy in Resident Alien season 4

Although introduced in Resident Alien season 2, Enver Gjokaj's Joseph Rainer only started to really come into his own as a proper character in season 2. The Grey/human hybrid is unquestionably a villain at first, and a really good one. Eventually, Harry makes an ally out of Joseph and enlists him in saving the planet from the Greys' attempts to make Earth uninhabitable to humans. The redemption story is good, but it isn't season 3's only instance of this.

If the Mantid's story also goes this way, I would be incredibly disappointed at the lack of creativity from the Resident Alien writers' room.

Heather (Edi Patterson) the Blue Avian also made her debut as an opponent to Harry. Granted, she was only really an obstacle for in-universe istrative reasons, but Harry was still able to remove the roadblock when he romanced her and carried on with his plot to save the world. So, that's two aliens who once stood in Harry's way who eventually crossed over to be on his side. If the Mantid's story also goes this way, I would be incredibly disappointed at the lack of creativity from the Resident Alien writers' room.

The Mantid Could Easily Be Resident Alien's Scariest Villain Yet

Harry was Resident Alien's last great threat from outer space

Resident Alien's Grey Aliens have been the only consistent threat throughout the show's run so far, but they've been easy to forget about since none of them have names. They're pretty intimidating because of what they can do, but it would be a stretch to call them truly scary. Before them, the last great alien villain was Harry himself, who spent most of season 1 trying to figure out how he could repair his Earth-destroying device and wipe out all human life. So, the Mantid presents a rare opportunity to have an alien villain who remains fearsome.

Little is known so far about the Mantid's mysterious past, but his ability to shapeshift and desire to eat living beings are enough to make him a formidable foe for Harry and company. Furthermore, the fact he's revealed to have successfully taken Harry's place and left Tudyk's character stranded aboard the Greys' Star Wars-inspired moon ship means pretty much all the other characters are at risk from the carnivorous insectoid. Hopefully, Resident Alien season 4 keeps this creepy reputation intact instead of transitioning the Mantid into yet another ally.