Degrassi: The Next Generation/Manny Santos

Manny Santos
Degrassi: The Next Generation
Actor	Cassie Steele
First Appearance	Mother and Child Reunion (1)
Last Appearance	Don't You Want Me (2)
Series Billing	Billed
Episode Count	97
Notable Episodes	3x14 - Accidents Will Happen (1) 3x15 - Accidents Will Happen (2)

Character History

Saved Emma from an internet predator. Went on a date with Craig Manning. Had sex with Craig and got pregnant. Dated J.T. and broke up with him. Was called a slut by her Emma, Darcy and her father. Broke up with Craig because he did coke.

Season 1

Young, innocent Manny enters the scene as best friend to Emma. The two are very much inseparable throughout the entire first season. At times however they two disagree, particularly when Manny decides to become a cheerleader and befriend Paige and Hazel, some of the older squad. Later however, Manny decides she can balance both cheering and keeping from being another "plastic girl," like Paige.

Season 2

The season starts out exciting for Manny, as the new kid Craig shows interest in her. The flirtation at first seems like that's all there is, but mid-season Manny decides to ask him out. The date seems to go well for Manny, but Craig remembers the story a little bit different. Later in the season when Paige's rapist spends a day at Degrassi, Manny begins to showcase a new attitude, a foreshadowing of what is to come.

Season 3

Manny wants to be hot, not cute or adorable, but HOT! And she begins the new school year with a bang, flaunting her new jeans. Manny's look helps her attract Sully, but the guy she really wants is Craig. After hooking up with him, Manny later finds out she is pregnant. As a result, Manny gets an abortion and crawls into a social hole, only to be rescued by JT with a relationship budding.

Season 4

Manny's short lived relationship with JT ends early on in the year, when she can't deal with his constant immaturity. Next, she inadvertently splits up Spinner from girlfriend Paige, and the two become special friends. At a mid-year dance, they finally hookup once Manny is able to forget the things that happened last year. But after learning of Spinner's role in the school shooting, Manny no longer wants anything to do with him. The end of the year Manny and Paige battle things about over an array of issues, but when all is said and done they make friends. Manny, at the end of the year, gets a part in Kevin Smith's new movie.

Season 5

Manny starts out the year wanting to continue her acting career. When her father won't let her act she is kicked out of her house and is forced to live with Emma. New kid and aspiring filmmaker Peter offers to help Manny make an audition tape, but he gets more than he bargained for when a drunk Manny strip teases for him and his camera. When Manny refuses to date Peter he sends the video of her and her bare breasts out to the whole school. This move gets Manny kicked from The Spirit Squad. Later Manny has more problems to deal with when she finds out not only does Emma have an eating disorder but she has been secretlyhttp://1.media.tumblr.com/VL3fOzCbUovryhx1jpIXYateo1_400.jpg dating Peter.

Season 6

After Darcy's jealousy of Manny and Spinner's past relationship led to a nasty fight between the two girls in the season five finale, they become friends again. Darcy, the new Spirit Squad captain, invites Manny back on the squad as the team's choreographer and this year Emma has a new romantic dilemma but Manny sticks by her side and tries her best to make this year free of "Emma Drama-rama". When a 16-year old new student named Mia Jones auditions for the squad, both Darcy Edwards and Manny are impressed with her. She is soon revealed to be a single mother. While Manny doesn't mind, Darcy becomes very judgmental towards her and despite her impressive skill, does not allow her to be on the squad. Manny won't let that decision stand, so she and Mia confront Darcy about her unfair decision. After the confrontation indirectly causes a huge fight between nearly everyone in the gym, Mia gives up to avoid any further problems. Manny would've quit as well had Mia not convinced her otherwise. Later in the episode, If You Leave, both Manny and Darcy reinvite Mia to join the Spirit Squad to help them win the cheering competition (possibly showing that Darcy was asking for forgiveness). But Mia turns down the offer since Lakehurst killed J.T.

Captain Darcy and new squad member Peter get some dangerous ideas on how to raise money for the new uniforms. Darcy and Peter decide to sell revealing photos of Darcy online. But their ideas make Manny doubtful. Manny tells them to stop the pictures as it is creepy however Darcy doesn't listen. Manny: "An online admirer paying for photos. That's not creepy at all."

When Craig returns to Toronto in "What it Feels Like to Be a Ghost", Manny notices a different Craig, not her same boyfriend - but she soon comes across the reason behind his strange behavior - he was doing coke Even though she knew, Manny decided to stay with Craig and when she felt that she didn't fit into "his little club", for a little "boost", so she started using cocaine with Craig.

Manny can't take Craig and his cocaine. She tries to stay by his side but he ends up choosing the cocaine over her. So Manny dumps him with these words, "I'm ruining the best one or two days of your life: I'm dumping your ass, Craig. Goodbye." Meanwhile, Ellie is determined to stay by Craig's side through all of this. So when Craig gets a spot opening for Taking Back Sunday, Ellie thinks its all over. Backstage Craig manipulates with Ellie's feelings for him to try and get his cocaine back. Ellie sees through this trick and throws the bag back in his face.Craig then proceeds to take the entire bag of cocaine, trying to numb the roller coaster of losing his girlfriend and his best friend. So when Craig starts to sing, his nose bleeds, signifying him overdosing on cocaine, and it seems in that moment Craig realizes that he has a real problem. When Ellie and Craig get to the airport, Ellie gives Craig a ticket to Calgary, where Joey will be to take him to therapy. Craig admits to Ellie that he did truly love her, and she says that that is not the point, and leaves in tears.

Manny tries to get over Craig, and uses Liberty's birthday as an excuse to throw a party. Emma thinks that only a few people will come, so she agrees to it. Meanwhile, Sean and Emma try to have some alone time until they hear screams. Outside, JT has been stabbed and after being rushed to the hospital, he is pronounced dead. Manny is slowly going into a relationship with Damien, a boy she danced with at the party.

After the murder of JT, Manny's parents decide to reconcile with her after realizing that life was too precious and short to keep a grudge against their own child, and they want her to move back home, possibly because of what happened at Emma's house. That situation briefly created a problem for Emma, Sean, and the rest of the school. They all objected to Manny dating a boy that attended the same school as the boy who killed JT. At least for the time being, Emma and Manny are on good terms and still the best of friends.

Memorable Moments

Pulled Paige's hair in Season 4. Pulled Darcy's hair in Season 5.

Quotes

• Are you coo coo bananas?