Thanatos

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Thanatos
魔神タナトス
Mashin Tanatosu (Genie Tanatosu)
Thanatos artwork.png
First Appearance: Kid Icarus (1986)
Latest Appearance:

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018)

Title(s):

God of Death

Gender: Male
Race: God
Homeland: Underworld
Affiliated Faction: Underworld Army
Other Allies: N/A
Status: Deceased (defeated by Phosphora)
Voiced By: English:
Danny Mann

Japanese:
Eiji Itō

  • Kid Icarus: Uprising
Actually, I go by "Thanatos", now. The extra "h" is for HAMAZING!

—Thanatos explaining his name change in Chapter 7.

Thanatos (タナトス Tanatosu), previously known as Tanatos, is the god of death and a recurring minor villain in the series. As Medusa's second-in-command, he is the keeper of the Underworld Key.

Characteristics

Appearance

Thanatos artwork for the anime

In the original Kid Icarus, the god of death had a much simpler design as a large green snake with thick, blue lips that resided within Medusa's hair.

In Kid Icarus: Uprising, Thanatos resembles a large chubby genie with a green and cracking skin tone and clown-like characteristics. He has two red eyes with cross-shaped pupils, as well as a large, smiling mouth with blue lips and two fangs. He also has a short, stubby nose, a red jewel embedded in his belly, and a skull ornament at the tip of his head, which seems to have a mind of its own. Thanatos wears silver shoulder armor, a red scarf, and a pair of large, genie-like trousers decorated with yellow and red vertical stripes. In addition, the armor on his shoulders appears to be covered with various branch-like structures that have jewelry hanging from them, as well as bolts of dark energy swirling around them. Thanatos is a shapeshifter and has a multitude of transformations that he can use during battle, including a matryoshka doll-like version of himself, a pot with his face in it, and a bat-like creature. He can also change into a cloud of bats to warp around the room he is battled in. In addition, some of his transformations include various items and objects from the game, such as the Atlas Foot and the blade of Magnus.

Personality

Thanatos gets easily offended at any remark

Thanatos is very flamboyant, eccentric, and "hamazing" for a god of death and has a very goofy disposition almost all the time. This makes other characters to find him quite annoying (even including the typically upbeat Pit). Thanatos enjoys witty repartee and likes to make humorous conversations and jokes, even to his enemies. He is also very sensitive, easily getting offended when ignored or told to shut up. Despite him being loyal to Medusa and not wanting to give up the key, he insisted on handling things more civilly at first, wanting Pit and Palutena to hang a while and catch up due to, as he puts it, "Prefers honey to vinegar".

Thanatos is also noted to be very lazy. When questioned by Palutena why he, a god of death is not the ruler of the Underworld (the land of the dead) and does not outrank Medusa, he simply claims that he does not like climbing the corporate ladder due to the larger amount of work one has to put in and that it is not the Underworld's style to have a strict hierarchy, Palutena claims this is not a straight answer and he simply just covers up his ears and pretends not to listen while making ridiculous sounds. Because of this, Pit can't tell if Thanatos is just weird or dim.

In Thanatos Rising, the god of death shows a more sadistic side that belies his clownish appearance and nonchalant demeanor by eagerly attempting to destroy a human town and lamenting when his attempt was stopped by Pit, calling it his "lovely carnage", showing that he may not be as foolish as he seems.

Abilities

Thanatos's athlete's foot transformation

Despite his eccentric and flamboyant demeanor, Thanatos proves to be a very capable fighter. Thanatos's main power is his ability to shape-shift, allowing the god of death to assume whatever form he desires. During his boss fight, Thanatos is capable of transforming into a bat, a foot, a martyoshka doll, a sword with several spears, and an urn. Thanatos is very adept with his shapeshifting powers, able to morph even the smallest parts of his body as shown in the Thanatos Rising anime short where he transforms his hand into a large mace to attack Pit.

On top of his shapeshifting abilities, Thanatos also displays other magical feats. Thanatos has the ability to levitate in mid air, which seems to be his preferred method of travel as he's never seen walking. In battle, Thanatos can toss skull-shaped blasts of dark energy and fire dark fireballs from his wings. Thanatos can also use his magic to enchant other objects as shown in the anime short where he causes the Trojan Horse-like tank to sprout wings and fly. Thanatos is also capable of teleportation and can communicate with the other gods via telepathy.

As noted by Hades, Thanatos's status as the god of death prevents him from being truly killed and allows him to be resurrected indefinitely, as Hades was able to resurrect him two times.

Appearances

Kid Icarus

Tanatos in Kid Icarus

In Kid Icarus, Tanatos hid in Medusa's hair during the final battle. He was originally thought to be a group of enemies rather than a singular character, it was not until Uprising it was revealed that the snake form is actually being just one of his many transformations. During the fight, Tanatos launches out of Medusa's giant effigy and will sometimes change direction mid-flight. Despite the fearsome description in the manual, Tanatos is not very strong and can be defeated in one hit.

Tanatos.gif
Hit Points Damage Hearts Score (Experience)
1 3 0 100

Manual Description

A snake that lives in Medusa's hair. Tanatos means "death" in Greek. It's really strong and powerful.

Kid Icarus: Uprising

In Chapter 7 of Kid Icarus: Uprising, The Seafloor Palace, Palutena sends Pit to the sea, where Thanatos has set up his base in an underwater palace and possesses a key to the Underworld, which they need to fight Medusa. Upon arriving to the palace, Thanatos gives Pit and Palutena a warm welcome, telling them how lonely its been getting without any fun and begins to go into a long chat, but Pit soon quiets him, much to his dismay. As Pit goes through the palace, Thanatos keeps speaking with the two, trying to start idle chit-chat or make witty repartee, despite how irritating Pit and Palutena find him. Eventually Pit reaches his quarters to find Thanatos awakening, having gotten sleepy for having waited so long, and prepares to battle him.

Thanatos undergoes multiple unique transformations during the battle, the first being a giant matryoshka doll which keeps multiplying into smaller dolls, but Pit manages to find the real (miniaturized) Thanatos in the last one. He then transforms into a giant green-colored Atlas Foot which spreads poisonous powder on Pit but that forms is easily taken down. Next up he transforms into a giant bat while trying to mimic a bat cry (rather poorly), and can split himself up into smaller bats. He then transforms into a giant near-invulnerable vase which shoots numerous skulls at Pit, the only way to attack him being to hit the skulls back at him. He then re-assumes his true form but is quickly defeated, leaving behind the key to the Underworld.

He later reappears during Lightning Battle, having apparently been revived by Hades due to good health insurance. Thanatos takes on the form of a glow dragon (unlike his other forms, this is not a transformation, but just a dragon-shaped aura covering the god), but he proves to be no match for Phosphora, one of Viridi's top commanders, and is defeated once again fairly early in the chapter, even with the energy boost from the free soda.

Idol Descriptions

God of Death, Thanatos
The god of death. Bored with his 9-to-5 guiding the souls of the living to their final resting place, Thanatos turns his work over to the Reapers and leisurely passes his days in a palace deep beneath the ocean.

Thanatos (Transformations 1)
A talented shape-shifter, Thanatos takes various forms to fight. As a sword, the god of death is quick to stab, creating openings with his many points. When he transforms into a foot, a crushing stomp is sure to follow.

Thanatos (Transformations 2)
Thanatos's alternate forms give him dozens of unique attacks. Whether an urn, a bat, or a nesting doll, Thanatos's wild transformations are only to be underestimated by fools with a death wish.

Other Appearances

Captain N: The Game Master

Three Tanatoses appear in the Captain N: The Game Master episode "Mega Trouble For Megaland", where they are seen on Medusa.

Kid Icarus 3D Anime

Thanatos as he appears in Thanatos Rising

Thanatos is the central villain of a three-part anime short in the Kid Icarus 3D Anime, collectively known as Thanatos Rising. He attacks a human army and takes control of one of its vessels, which resembles a Trojan Horse. Pit eventually chases Thanatos into the heart of the machine, and causes it to collapse on him. Despite this, the god survives and reappears at the very end, comically yelling "RAGE QUIT!" before flying away.

NES Remix 2

Thanatos appears in NES Remix 2 as part of Medusa's boss fight just like in the original Kid Icarus.

Super Smash Bros. series

Thanatos appears as one of the numerous collectable trophies in Super Smash Bros. Nintendo 3DS and as a spirit in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Trophy Description

NA Version: Don't be fooled by Thanatos's childish attitude—he's more dangerous than most clowns. And don't expect smiles from the god of death. He serves as Medusa's second in command and, thanks to his shape-shifting talents, can entertain his master with a decent clown act too.

PAL Version: Thanatos might look like he's just a goofy clown, but he's not - he's the god of death, one of the key players in the Underworld Army and Medusa's right-hand man. His shape-shifting abilities play a big part in his clown act, which his master gets a good cackle out of.

Trivia

  • Tanatos is likely a mistranslation of Thanatos, a minor figure of Greek mythology said to be a personification of death.
    • The mistranslated name was referenced in Chapter 7: The Seafloor Palace in Uprising. Thanatos corrects Palutena for referring to him as Tanatos, stating that he changed his name to Thanatos saying the added "H" stood for "hamazing".
  • Ironically, the malevolent Tanatos is named after a daemon rather than a demon.
  • In the Japanese version of Uprising, Thanatos is also described to be a genie (also known as the jinn), a magical spirit from Arabic mythology.


Kid Icarus series characters
Palutena's Army Centurions (Centurion Knight, Centurion Strongarm) • PalutenaPit
Underworld Army Dark Lord GaolHadesHewdrawMedusaPandoraThanatos
Forces of Nature ArlonCragalancheDark PitPhosphoraViridi
Aurum Fleet Aurum Brain (Aurum Pyrrhon)
Space Pirates Space Pirate Captain
Chaos Kin Chaos Kin
Unaffiliated Chariot MasterCrowDogDonDyntosFighterGirlGod of PovertyMagnusNurseOrcosPoseidonPseudo-PalutenaPyrrhonZeus


Classic Kid Icarus series enemies and bosses
Kid Icarus CollinCommylooseDaphneEelEyeEggplant WizardErinusGanewmedeGirinHewdrawHolerKeepahKeronKobilKomaytoMcGooMedusaMickMinosMoilaMonoeyeMonolithNettlerOctosPandoraPlutonPluton FlyReaperRokmanShemumShulmSnowmanSpecknoseSyrenTamamboTanatosTotemTrosTwinbellowsUranosZuree
Of Myths and Monsters BatBig ToeBusy BeeCyclops HopperCyclops SkullEggplant WizardFire SerpentFireballFuzz BallGlobeGruffGubbleKing KrabKomaytoLunusMercMinotaurMonolithOctusOrcosPuttPythagorasReaperShadow MaskSkullwingSlimeSnakeSpitball BlobSpunkySticky TalonStone GolemTotemWormser


Kid Icarus: Uprising enemies and bosses
Underworld Army ArminBelunkaBlusterBoogityBrawny ClawsBumbledropClubberskullCollinCommylooseCoralCrawlerDaphneDark Lord GaolEggplant WizardErinusFire WyrmFort OinkFrozumGanewmedeGirinGloomerangGreat ReaperGuttlerGyrazerHadesHades's HeartHandoraHewdrawIgniotKeronKomaytoLeoxMagmooMedusaMega MusselMerenguyMikMinosMonoeyeMonolithMonomiknoseNettlerOctosOrnePandoraParamushPetribomberPhilsPlutonPorcuspineReaperRemoblamShelboShemumShildeenShootflyShripShulmSinistewSkuttlerSnongSnowmanSpecknoseSplinStackjawSyrenTempura WizardThanatosTortolunkTrailtailTwinbellowsUnderworld GatekeeperVakloomWave AnglerZik & ZakZureeZurret
Forces of Nature ArlonBadootBladerBoom StomperBumpety BombCacawCaptain FlareClobblerCragalancheDibble DopFlageForces of Nature GuardHugwormJitterthugLethiniumLunar Sanctum Control CenterLurchthornMahvaMeebaMegontaMudroneNutskiParashooterPew PewPipPhosphoraReset BombReset Bomb PodSkreetleToxiecapTrynamiteUrgleZert
Aurum Aurum BrainAurum CoreAurum CloneAurum GeneratorAurum PyrrhonBagloBiotaBlitClaxisDohzJyokKolmaNukleenPlixoQuoilRezdaRozSioTaklaxTribyteXonemeZaurumZrink
Palutena's Army CenturionCenturion KnightCenturion StrongarmJuggernautPalutenaPit's Body
Chaos Kin Chaos KinShadow Pit
Other Enemies Chariot MasterDark PitGreat Sacred TreasureMagnusMimicutiePhoenixPseudo-PalutenaSoufleeSoul-Eating MonsterSpace KrakenSpace PiratesTreasurefish