| “ | Water is the essence of our spirit. It has the mystical power to heal or cause damage. | ” |
— Rita Santos[src]
| ||
Rita Santos is a major supporting character in the series Mako: Island of Secrets.
Rita was the principal of Suncoast High and also a mermaid; but far stronger and much more experienced than the other merpeople.
Pre-Series[]
Rita was born to an unnamed mermaid in the Mako Pod in late 1970s. During her childhood, she met another hatchling named Veridia, and the two quickly became best-friends. Rita began attending Mermaid School in the Mako Pod with her, and eventually they both graduated and received their own Moon Rings. One day, she met and fell in love with a human named Harry. Knowing their love was strictly forbidden by mermaid laws, Rita cast the Legs Spell and eventually the Mermaid Council realized what she was doing, and who she met. Her best-friend, Veridia, became the head of the Mermaid Council, and furious, she had no choice and banished Rita, breaking their friendship. She left her pod, and began to live on land with Harry, who was already her fiancé. Before their marriage, Harry tragically passed away, leaving Rita alone. At some point before or after his death, Rita had a pet cat named Poseidon, who became her new best-friend. Rita eventually became a teacher in Suncoast High, and later, she became the principal. Despite this, Rita promised herself to never return to her pod, a decision she ultimately breaks many years later.
Biography[]
Although Harry passed away, Rita has been successful on land and was the principal of the local high school. She has survived and protected her true identity by keeping a somewhat cool and distant outer image.
A photograph of Rita as a mermaid alongside her human fiancee, Harry.
Although a bit lonely sometimes, Rita has more or less adapted to her life.
That is until three young mermaids turn up and ask for help. Rita is torn- she gave up mermaid life, and she doesn't want three reckless young mermaids blowing her cover, but Rita can't turn them away. As she becomes their mermaid mentor and guide, Rita discovers that although there are complications, the mermaids bring companionship and laughter back into her life. Though she truly loved being a mermaid, she still refused Lyla's offer to return home and become one of the pod again, stating that her life now was on land.
Rita's usual role is to provide knowledge and wisdom on magic whenever the merpeople need it and does not usually get involved in their adventures. The one exception is in "Reunion" when her ex friend at the time Verida, reveals her intentions to deal with Zac personally when she learns he has unlocked a merman chamber. Fearing for Zac's life, Rita follows her and threatens Veridia with her own powers when she nearly attacks Zac. Rita and Veridia make amends after Veridia realizes that Rita was right about Zac being a friend and that some land people can be trusted, even agreeing with her when Rita expresses hope that one day the world of land and sea will become one.
In season 3, Rita quit her job as Principal of Suncoast High and decided to go back to the pod. Now Rita teaches at mermaid school, replacing Ondina in her position while maintaining residence on land.
Physical appearance[]
Rita is a very pretty adult mermaid with red hair in Season 1 and brownish-auburn hair color in Season 2 &3, and green eyes. She wears clothes in different colors and she is seen wearing a seahorse necklace. At school she wears her hair in buns and ponytails and at home her hair is loose in natural waves or half up. Her hair length changes over the season being longer medium length in the first season to passing her shoulders. As a mermaid, her hair is let down and she has an orange-scaled tail with an orange-scaled top. She’s the only mermaid with pierced ears.
Mermaid Powers[]
Rita possessed all standard powers and abilities of a mermaid native from the sea but far stronger and much more experienced than the other mermaids. As a powerful mermaid, she is vastly skilled with magic and even invented methods of her own. Rita can speak the language of dolphins. She was also the only merperson to display the power to detect fellow invisible mermaids. Rita owned her original Moon Ring, which she used to kept sealed for years in a seashell, and gave it to either Lyla or Nixie when they mastered their powers. However, by the events of Season 3 and her reconnection with her pod, the Mermaid Council gave her another and she wears it ever since.
- Mermaid Powers
- Hydrokinesis: The ability to create, control, and manipulate liquid water at will. As a mermaid native, she displayed this powers many times. Rita can fill a water ball with magic, granting it a degree of sentience and allowing it to float and fly with great speed.
- Hydro-Thermokinesis: The ability to heat and boil the water. She displayed this powers to vaporize a water ball thrown at her.
- Atmokinesis: The ability that all natural born merpeople have. It is the ability to control the weather, particularly storms. Rita was shown using this power to create a storm in a jar and was able to control wind, rain, and lightning.
- Volume Reduction: The ability that all natural born merpeople are shown to have, with this power, merpeople can shrink objects. Rita mentions that it can be extremely useful to a mermaid caught in a cave-in or in an encounter with a killer whale.
- Invisibility: The ability that all natural merpeople are shown to have. It allows them to stay invisible for a while, and it's only temporary.
- Invisibility Detection: The power to see invisible merpeople. She is the only mermaid to display the power to detect fellow invisible mermaids.
- Zoolingualism: Some sea-born mermaids have the unique ability to understand and speak the language of sea creatures (for instance, dolphins and whales). Rita can speak the language of dolphins.
- Mermaid Abilities
- Moon Spell Control: An essential skill that every merperson has to learn to master properly, as it lets them survive the Full Moon's spell without letting it control them. As a mermaid native from the sea, she learned it when she was hatchling.
- Limited Transformation: Rita used the Legs Spell to turn her tail into human legs. She can transform into a mermaid ten seconds after physical contact with water. She turns back into a human a few minutes after she is out of the water and when the water on her has fully dried. Once her body is completely dry, she turns back into a human along with the outfit she was wearing before the transformation.
- Enhanced Breath: Merpeople are able to hold their breath without any discomfort for at least fifteen minutes before needing to breathe, and will get unconscious if the time period extends over past those minute.
- Speed-Swimming: The ability that all mermaids and mermen are shown to have. It's the ability to swim at an incredible speed, and as such, their bodies is encased in bubbles because of the incredible high speed. Rita has the ability to swim at a super speed, and dive at depths no human being is capable of, completely protected from its cold and water pressure.
- Aquatic Adaptation: Depending on where they are born and raised, merpeople may be resistant to certain elements in that area.
- Enhanced Senses: Merpeople may have slightly enhanced senses suited to life underwater due to living in the sea. To sea born mermaids, land people smell horrible, even the average hygienic human emits this smell but only mermaids can detect it.
- Endurance: Merpeople are able to swim for days without exhaustion, something which no human has the stamina to do. They can also dive at depths no human could withstand.
- Amphibious: Merpeople's respiratory system can extract oxygen from both water and air, allowing them to breathe freely both underwater and on land.
- Extended Lifespan: While merpeople do age, their lifespan is far longer than that of humans.
Weaknesses[]
Rita has all the typical weaknesses of a Southern mermaid. However, she is still susceptible to Mako's Moon Pool's well-being, meaning if it is destroyed or deprived of its powerful, magical Moon Water, she would perish and die with it.
Behind the Scenes[]
She was portrayed by actress Kerith Atkinson.
Name[]
- Rita is a shortened version of the name "Margarita", meaning "pearl" in several languages including Persian, Sanskrit, and Latin.
Trivia[]
- Rita is the second mermaid to get a second Moon Ring. The first being Aquata.
- She has a pet cat named Poseidon, whom is only liked by Zac, Evie, Erik, Sirena, and Weilan.
- Rita is a close friend with Weilan's Grandmother and she welcomed her in her house when Rita visited Shanghai.
- Harry died before they got married as revealed in "Lyla Alone", although it is unknown how Harry died.
- It can be implied she took on Harry's last name to complete her human identity. Its unknown if she was originally called Rita or shortened it; either way, it gave her a Hispanic sounding name.
- While not stated, Rita likely sleeps in a bed at her house, since Weilan and the girls never mention her sleeping in the grotto.
- She owns a grill, implying she cooks her seafood sometimes or its for having guests over to both maintain her cover and be polite.
- Seeing as Rita can get her own food while out swimming, she likely saves money on food.
- Rita is the only mermaid seen using the power to reveal invisible merpeople.
- Rita wears tortoiseshell jewelry as revealed in "Close Call."
- Rita loves lobster and seafood.
- Rita doesn't want to go back to the pod, however, by the end of Season 3 she quits her job and goes back to the pod, while also maintaining her residence on land.
- The fact she can keep her house implies Rita got a pension upon retiring from the school.
- Rita becomes the teacher of the hatchlings in Mermaid School after Ondina gave up her job.
- Rita was in mermaid school with Veridia and was top of the class.
- Rita wrote a thesis on dolphins.
- It seemed that she and Veridia were very close before Rita left the pod, as stated in the episode "Stay or Go".
- She seemed have made her own potion for mermaids to cure the common cold.
- Rita is the only mermaid with pierced ears.
Appearances[]
| Mako: Island of Secrets: Season 1 | ||||||||||||
| "Outcasts" | "Getting Legs" | "Meeting Rita" | "Lyla Alone" | "Blizzard" | "Dolphin Tale" | "Zac's Pool Party" | "Zac's Return To Mako" | "The Siren" | "Zac Returns To Mako" | "I Don't Believe in Mermaids" | "Close Call" | "Betrayal" |
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| "Battlelines" | "Sirena's Secret" | "Truce" | "Moon Ring 2" | "The Trident Job" | "Where's The On Button" | "Nowhere To Hide" | "Aquata Returns" | "Evie Times Two" | "Zac's Choice" | "Trust" | "Betrayed" | "Decision Time" |
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| Mako: Island of Secrets: Season 2 | ||||||||||||
| "The Seventh Cycle" | "Sticky Situation" | "Discovery" | "A New Tail" | "Bad For Business" | "Stormy Seas" | "Awakening" | "Land School" | "Stowaway" | "Keeping The Secret" | "Only As Young As You Feel" | "Supersized" | "Reunion" |
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| "A New Man" | "Careful What You Wish For" | "First Date" | "The Merman Code" | "The Siren" | "Surprise!" | "The Job" | "New Orders" | "The Last Dance" | "Stay or Go" | "The Truth About Evie" | "The Trident Stone" | "The Chosen One" |
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| Mako: Island of Secrets: Season 3 | |||||||||||||||
| "A Visit From The East" | "Seeing Is Believing" | "Recipe For Success" | "Mopping Up" | "The Puzzle Box" | "New Beginnings" | "Turning The Tide" | "The Way of the Dragon" | "Reversal of Fortune" | "Wishful Thinking" | "Lost And Found" | "Trust Issues" | "Letting Go" | "Age Before Beauty" | "The Legend of Jiao Long" | "Homecoming" |
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Gallery[]
- Main article: Rita Santos/Gallery