The Mask (comics)
| The Mask | |
|---|---|
| The Mask Cover to Adventures of the Mask #1 | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Dark Horse Comics |
| First appearance | (as 'the Masque) Dark Horse Presents #10, (as the Mask) Mayhem #1 |
| Created by | Mike Richardson, Randy Stradley, Mike Badger John Arcudi Doug Mahnke |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Stanley Ipkiss |
| Team affiliations | None, None |
| Notable aliases | the Masque, Big-Head |
| Abilities | Enchanted mask empowered by Loki grants the wearer invulnerability and the power to alter reality in a variety of destructive ways Superhuman strength, durability, speed and agility Increased intelligence at the loss of sanity, inhibitions and self-control |
The Mask is a fictional comic book character created by Mike Richardson, Randy Stradley and Mike Badger (as the Masque in Dark Horse Presents #10, (1987)) and John Arcudi and Doug Mahnke (as the Mask in Mayhem #1, (1989)), appearing in comics published by Dark Horse Comics. It is about a magic mask that gives anyone who wears it physical invulnerability and a number of reality-defying powers (for instance, the ability to produce useful objects out of thin air), but also lowers the wearer's inhibitions and amplifies the repressed parts of the wearer's personality.
The series begins with the mask being found in an antiques shop by Stanley Ipkiss, a neurotic loser who everyone takes advantage of. Trying the mask on, he is transformed into a wacky being with an abnormally large bald green-skinned head. After exploring his new abilities for a while, he goes on a rampage, taking lethal revenge on everyone against whom he holds a grudge, from the motor mechanic who always overcharges him to his old first-grade teacher. Eventually after many adventures of vengeance, Stanley becomes corrupt with power and verbally abusive toward his girlfriend Kathy. Kathy eventually kicks him out and tries to keep the mask since Stanley had bought it for her as a gift. Stanley then breaks into her apartment and steals the mask while the police investigate a domestic violence call. Terror ensues as Stanley under the possession of the mask nearly kills them all. Afterwards he heads home and takes off the mask only to be shot in the back by Kathy who has put two and two together and figured out the identity of "Big Head". The mask then falls into the hands of Stanley's girlfriend Kathy.
A storyline about Kathy's experiences with the mask was planned, but never saw the light of day; the series continues with Kathy giving the mask to a police officer, Lt. Kellaway, for safe-keeping. Disregarding her warnings, Kellaway tries the mask on, and sets out to clean up the city. Despite his good intentions, his methods become increasingly bizarre, and soon Big-Head is the target of a police man-hunt. (The world at large, not knowing about the mask, assumes it's always the same big-headed green-skinned freak; nobody realises that he might have a secret identity.) When he nearly kills a friend and colleague who got in his way, Kellaway realises how badly things have gone wrong, and swears never to wear the mask again.
In the next storyline, the mask falls into the hands of a small-time mobster, who (as Big-Head) becomes the city's pre-eminent crime boss.
After another storyline, in which four teenagers find the mask and take turns trying it on, Arcudi and Mahnke left the title, handing it over to a succession of guest writers and artists.
Collections
- The Mask (it collects the Ipkiss and Kellaway storylines)
- The Mask Returns (the crime-boss storyline)
- The Mask Strikes Back (the storyline with the four teenagers)
- The Mask: The Hunt for Green October (the storyline with a failed cartoonist and his 10-year-old dumb daughter on Halloween)
- The Mask: World Tour (the storyline where a burglar with split personality syndrome enters the dimension of Dark Horse Heroes)
- The Mask: Southern Discomfort
- The Mask: Toys in the Attic
In addition to the ongoing series, there have been a number of specials, including:
- Joker/The Mask, a collaboration with DC Comics in which the mask falls into the hands of Batman's nemesis the Joker.
- Marshal Law vs. The Mask, the mask is applied to a superhuman serial killer as part of a secret government experiment which inevitably goes disastrously wrong, requiring Marshal Law to take down a nemesis who is not only immune to his usual ultra-violence, but can warp reality according to his psychotic whims.
- Grifter/The Mask
- Lobo vs The Mask, alien bounty hunter Lobo is hired to find the "Ultimate Bastich", a being who has decimated numerous planets. His hunt leads him to Earth, where a petty thief has become Big Head. In a battle that decimates Manhattan, Big Head finally offers to "help" Lobo foind the "previous wearer". The duo head through space, causing mass destruction, though it's obvious Big Head is leading Lobo on. In a space truck stop, Lobo ultimately wins the mask for himself, putting it on and causing even more damage. A black hole sends him back in time by a month and he ultimately ends up being the Ultimate Bastich himself. Realizing this(and waking up on Earth, tossing the mask in the same spot the thief found it), Lobo breaks the time loop when he meets his past self- and turns his past self in for the reward money.
Adaptations and spin-offs
A film version of The Mask was released in the United States on July 29, 1994, starring Jim Carrey in the title role, along with Cameron Diaz.
The film was loosely based on the early issues of the comic book series. The film version is much lighter and cartoonier: the mask's effects are zany, but not particularly evil, and Carrey's Stanley Ipkiss is a nice guy who uses the mask (mostly) for good purposes and gets a happy ending. The bloody violence of the comic book is nowhere to be found in the film adaptation. Originally it was planned to be a dark horror film, but when Carrey got the role of Ipkiss, they redid the movie to be a vehicle for Jim Carrey's unique style of comedy.
The movie version of the character has subsequently appeared in an animated TV series (with Rob Paulsen as Stanley Ipkiss/The Mask) and his own comic book series.
A sequel, entitled Son of the Mask, was released in 2005, but it was a box office flop.