Diego

Diego was a saber-toothed tiger that was part of a herd of animals after living out a number of experiences that united them all. He is the secondary antagonist-turned-tritagonist of Ice Age, the tetartagonist of Ice Age: The Meltdown and Ice Age: Continental Drift and a supporting character in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs and Ice Age: Collision Course.

Initially a cunning and remorseless hunter in a pack of other sabers, Diego was to deliver a human baby to his pack leader, Soto, as revenge upon the humans. During his interception of the child, Diego met a mammoth named Manfred and a sloth named Sid, who had already taken the child and, in time, convinced the saber to leave his old pack and join up with them as part of the herd.

Role in the series

Personality
As a saber-toothed tiger, Diego was made for action, with a usually curt demeanor: short for words, Diego was not one to be trifled with. Initially a sharp hunter and a harsh speaker, Diego's demeanor softened as he joined a herd with Manny and Sid. Loyal to the herd, Diego was always one to step in and take action. Diego at times, can be abusive, mainly towards Sid as the latter would often joke with him. Nevertheless, Diego still cares about Sid and everyone else in the herd.

Even after joining the herd, Diego maintains his pride and therefore is shown to have a short temper when he is insulted. He once angrily choked Sid when the sloth made fun of his fear of the water. His pride is also displayed when he had a discussion with Shira who called him soft for caring about others. He denied it when Manny and Sid saw that he had fallen in love with Shira.

Though Diego lived with other herbivorous animals, he curbed his natural instincts as a hunter. As a result he was able to live peacefully with other animals and only hunted when necessary. His composure, however, was shaken when Shira caught his eye. As time passed, Diego and the pirate developed feelings for each other, and later got married after Shira's captain, Gutt was defeated.

Like his mate, as time passed, Diego develops a fondness for children and plans on starting a family with Shira. After stopping the mother asteroid two kids, Lily and Andrew began to admire the sabers and Diego takes the chance to entertain them with a story about the journey.