Animal X: Natural Mystery Unit the Complete Season 1

Episode 4: A Safari of a Different Kind

Featured Cryptid: Mngwa

our episode opens up in the grasslands of Tanzania, Africa where we see the saber-toothed cat-like cryptid called the Mngwa resting on a rock all the while it is being watched by a bounty hunter in the tall grass named Nile, whom of which takes aim at the elusive cat. however the cat runs away before he can fire a shot which frustrates Nile. we then see Agent M appear out of the tall grass katana in hand to stop the Mngwa in its tracks, however Nile pushes agent M aside and the two start to fight each other allowing the Mngwa to escape. Nile blames Agent M for allowing his prey to escape, however Agent M blames Nile for allowing his prey to escape as well. however their feud is interrupted by an incoming transmission from Domino whom tells his son to stand down, as he was the one who hired Nile to hunt down the Mngwa in his place after Agent M failed to capture the Chupacabra last episode. Agent M is frustrated by being reminded of his humiliation at the hands of Animal X, however he then has a brilliant plan and proposes an alliance to Nile, saying that if the two of them work together they can take down the Animal X natural mystery unit once and for all. Agent M then whispers his plan into Nile's ear and the two shake on it. after that, we cut to Animal X HQ where we see Daniel and Natalie sparring in hand-to-hand combat in the training room, Natalie lecturing to Daniel that if he is to be a full-time Animal X Agent he needs to know the art of self-defense if he is to fight the Black Dot, as well as the occasional rogue Cryptid. Natalie then punches Daniel in the face without warning knocking him down, which makes the other Animal X Agents watching (and Rodney) look away. Daniel then gets up, asking Natalie what that was for. Natalie then tells Daniel that he was supposed to block her punches, followed by Daniel asking how he was supposed to know that. Natalie then grabs Daniel by the arm and slams him on the ground followed by her telling Daniel that he needs to stop asking questions and just listen to her. Rodney is worried about Daniel and tries nuzzling him to wake him up, followed by Daniel telling the little rod that he's fine. Natalie then helps Daniel back up on his feet, telling him that it's about time they have a break from training. Daniel then grabs a water bottle and starts drinking while Rodney and Natalie watch, Natalie asking Rodney what he's going to do with him. Bill then contacts Daniel and Natalie, telling the two to report to his office immediately. the two then enter Bill's office where Bill tells the two that he has a mission for them: there have been sightings of the Mngwa in Tanzania, Africa and that they need to go there and make sure it doesn't go anywhere near human settlement. Daniel, Natalie, and Rodney then hop into the X-jeep, Natalie activating flight mode before taking off. the four then arrive at Tanzania and land in the middle of a lush grassland where Daniel gets out of the vehicle and sees herds of zebras, gazelles, giraffes, and a pride of lions as well, Rodney zipping around with excitement while Daniel tells Natalie that it looks like they're in the middle of a safari, before Natalie tells Daniel that they're on a safari of a different kind as they're after the Mngwa. Daniel asks Natalie what the heck a Mngwa is, and Natalie opens up the Cryptozoologicon and reads an excerpt talking about the Mngwa, explaining that the Mngwa is a surviving member of the Machairodontids, a subfamily of saber-tooth cats usually found in Africa and Asia. while most of the saber-tooths died out due to being out-competed by conical-toothed cats (lions, tigers, leopards, etc.) the Mngwa somehow did not. the two then hear rustling in the bushes, Natalie whipping out her twin electric batons while Daniel and Rodney hide behind her for cover. however Natalie drops her weapons when a mysterious ginger kid steps out of the tall grass. Natalie then asks who he is, and he tells the two that he's on their side and that his name is Marcus. however the three are attacked by Nile, who tells Marcus that he will pay for making him lose his prey, however Marcus whips a pistol out of his holster and tells Nile to back off. Nile then whips his knife out of his pocket and charges at Marcus, who shoots the knife out of Nile's hand with his pistol and tells Nile to back off and leave them out of this, followed by Nile retreating. we then cut to the following night where Daniel and Natalie camp out in front of a campfire while listening to Marcus's story, Marcus explaining to the two that he was a former Animal X agent who deserted the organization because he wanted to "help out cryptids in his own way", followed by Daniel asking who the big scary guy with the dreads was. Marcus then explains to the two that his name was Nile and that he's a bounty hunter that hunts cryptids for money who was hired by the black dot to kill the Mngwa, Marcus telling the two that he's here on a mission to stop Nile and the black dot from capturing the beast. Natalie is suspicious, saying that Bill never told her of a "Marcus" who worked for animal X asking what his last name is. Marcus tells Natalie he doesn't know what his last name is, saying that he grew up as an orphan not knowing who his parents are, showing the two a keychain he has as the only thing he has left from his family. Marcus pats Daniel on the back, telling him if he wants to see some cool moves. Marcus then shows off some of his mad fighting skills to Daniel, followed by Daniel applauding while Natalie recognizes Marcus's fighting style as the same as Agent M's. Daniel asks Natalie what's wrong, followed by Natalie telling Daniel that she finds him suspicious. Daniel tells Natalie that she's just jealous he's got better moves than her, followed by Daniel getting up and telling Marcus to teach him. Marcus then tries to punch Daniel, only for Daniel to block his punches. Marcus then asks Daniel who taught him that, and Daniel tells him that Natalie taught him. Marcus then looks at Natalie who gives him the "evil eye" look before grabbing Daniel by the arm and telling him that it's time to get some shut-eye. once the two are safe in their tent, Marcus then contacts Nile telling him that he has successfully gained the trust of the two Animal X agents and tomorrow, they will lead him directly to the Mngwa. Nile then asks Marcus if he still gets to kill the darn cat, followed by Marcus telling him that they'll cross that bridge when they get to it before cutting him off. we then cut to the next day where we see Daniel, Natalie, and Marcus walking through the savannah (with Rodney following them from behind) where Daniel finds a tuft of gray fur on a tree branch. Daniel then grabs the fur and gives it to Natalie, followed by Natalie analyzing it with a DNA scanner device confirming it to be from a Mngwa. Marcus is pleased to hear this news, as it means the creature could be nearby. Daniel and Marcus start developing a bromance which makes Natalie even more jealous, however their trek is interrupted when they hear a gunshot noise. the three then rush towards the source of the noise only to come across a Mngwa laying on a rock. Daniel approaches the creature and pets its head, Marcus asking him if he's crazy saying that the thing could tear him to shreds. Daniel tells Marcus to relax, telling him that he managed to stop a rampaging Bigfoot (a callback to episode 1), and notices that the creature has a bullet wound on its side. Daniel wonders what could have happened to it, and Marcus tells Daniel that this was obviously the work of Nile while pulling a sword out of his backpack. Natalie notices the sword and recognizes it as Agent M's katana before Nile shows up and puts Natalie in a headlock telling her that she's going nowhere, telling the animal X agents that he won't let them get in the way of claiming what is rightfully his: the Mngwa's head. Daniel then stands in the way of the injured cryptid, telling Nile that he won't let him get his filthy hands on this poor creature before throwing a rock at his head which angers Nile. Marcus then whips out his katana, pointing it to Daniel while telling him to back away from the Mngwa. Daniel is confused, asking what Marcus is doing. Marcus then walks over to Nile's side while Daniel sheds a tear exclaiming "Marcus, how could you?" and Marcus explains to Daniel that he was never on their side saying that he was merely using them to lead him to his prey. Nile then tells Marcus that he thought it was his prey, followed by Marcus telling Nile that they'll decide once they kill the Animal X agents first. Marcus then takes his casual clothes off revealing his Agent M uniform underneath to the shock of both Daniel and Natalie who are both taken aback by the revelation that Marcus was Agent M this whole time. he then introduces himself as Marcus Amino, codename Agent M and son of the black dot's leader Domino. Rodney then shows up and bites Nile's finger causing him to let go of Natalie, followed by Marcus putting on his mask followed by Daniel telling Natalie to help out the Mngwa while he deals with these goons. Natalie then tells Daniel that it's too dangerous followed by Daniel telling Natalie that he remembered his training and he learned from the best. Natalie then smiles before approaching the Mngwa, using a magnetic device to remove the bullet from its wound. Daniel then tells the two to bring it on, closing his eyes while Marcus and Nile surround him. Nile then whips out his rifle and fires at Daniel, only for Daniel to dodge the bullet followed by Marcus swinging his katana at Daniel only for him to dodge his blade as well. Daniel then punches Nile in the face with an uppercut knocking him out cold followed by Daniel groin-kicking Marcus causing him to fall the ground writhing in pain. Daniel then opens his eyes, looking down at Marcus telling him that he got what he deserved for lying to him. Marcus then gets back up on his feet, telling Daniel that he'll pay for that. Marcus then tries to hit Daniel with his fist only for Daniel to block his attack, followed by Natalie showing up along with the Mngwa. the Mngwa then attacks Marcus only for Nile to show up and protect Marcus, only for the Mngwa to bite off Nile's hand (which explains why he has a cybernetic hand in later episodes) forcing him along with Marcus to retreat while Rodney sticks his tongue out at the two villains. after that, the Mngwa turns its head to Daniel and Natalie and growls at them, only for Daniel to place his hand on the creature's nose followed by the Mngwa recognizing the two as not a threat and walking off into the tall grass. Natalie then tells Daniel that there must be something special about him. the two then smile at each other before we cut to Domino's airship where Marcus reports to his father about his failure to capture the Mngwa. Domino then reminds his son that's the reason why he hired Nile to go after the Mngwa in the first place, because he knew that he was too incompetent to get the job done and that Nile would have brought him the head of that elusive feline had he not interfered with his mission. Marcus apologizes to his father, telling him that he just wanted to make him proud. Domino then smacks Marcus upside the head, telling his son that he needs to try harder if he wants to please him so bad. after that, we cut to Daniel, Natalie, and Rodney returning to Animal X HQ where they report to bill on yet another successful mission. Natalie then whispers into Bill's ear that there's something unique about Daniel, telling him that he seems to have a special connection with animals. our episode then ends with Daniel and Natalie fist-bumping.