Customer Reviews

The Darker Mask

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The Darker Mask: Heroes from the Shadows, delivers what it promises: "an eclectic mix...,exploring worlds gritty, visceral and fantastic."

It is also a very R-rated world, with expletives, blood, violence, and drug use. That part is almost a shame, as it reduces the audience for some well-crafted stories. Would the stories lose their grit or their message if "watered-down" to a PG level? I don't think so, but perhaps it is best that the younger set still cling to a less-murky, rose-shaded world of super heroes where justice does win, and the cavalry comes in before the fight is over.

The stories are as varied as the authors in this collection - some of the standouts include THE PICKET by Wlater Mosley, THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN by Alexandra Sokoloff, SWITCHBACK by Ann Nocenti and my personal favorite IN VINO, VERITAS by Peter Spiegelman.

While the stories all have mature themes, the style and characters range from comical to disturbing. As in real life, the price of victory is sometimes dear, and who the real hero is may depend on the viewpoint presented. You may not even root for the lead character in some of these stories, but they will hold your interest.

The expression 'what you see is what get', may not hold credence if you delve into the mystery behind the mind, or more specifically if you are given the ability to see behind the mask that conveniently camouflages each person. THE DARKER MASK makes a magnanimous attempt to take readers beyond the physical and submerge them in a series of images, actions and pseudo emotions.

The cast of contributors is as varied as the stories gracing the pages. They are a virtual who's who in the zone of scientific and fantasy phenomenon. The eighteen stories they present, have diverse yet similar themes. THE DARKER COLLECTION is referenced to works by earlier Sci-Fi authors like Byron Preiss and Michael Chabon. This collection of original prose stories celebrates superhuman beings that fight to save the world(s). The stories have a certain uniqueness, which is enhanced by characters that bring a broader range to what constitutes a hero. These heroes are not predominantly white and male, as in previous tributes. They are more urbanized, and will give readers new legends and new myths, as it equips everyday people with the power and perception to become much more than ordinary. Beings that will help foster a new melting pot, in other dimensions.

THE DARKER MASK: Heroes From The Shadows offers an eclectic mix of bestselling fiction writers and artists: Walter Mosley, L. A. Banks, Naomi Hirahara, Lorenzo Carcaterra, Tananarive Due and Stephen Barnes, Mike Gonzales, Gar Anthony Haywood, Ann Nocenti, Jerry Rodriguez, Reed Farrell Coleman, Doselle Young, Mat Johnson, Peter Spiegelman, Alexandra Sokoloff, Christopher Chambers, Gary Phillips, Victor LaValle, and Wayne Wilson, who commandeer some of the worlds most captivating and most abstract fantasies. The stories are enveloping and provoking; they take readers beyond predictable. Prepare to take a ride that will feel like REM sleep.

Reviewed by aNN
of The RAWSISTAZ(tm) Reviewers

This eighteen tale collection focuses on both the superpowers and personal issues confronting superheroes in their everyday lives. The tales are well written and fun to read as family troubles, economic woes, and ethics become front and center as the mask to hide one's secret identity so one can have a life is treated much darker than most comic books do. Especially strong are L.A. Banks' "Dream Knights" that brings a different reality to Manhattan; "Switchback," by Ann Nocenti starring teenager Mimi learning to restrain her mental powers that she desperately wants to use to manipulate her dysfunctional family members to behave like the Nelsons; Walter Mosley's "The Picket" who takes his alterego name from his mom. Perhaps the most insightful is "Vino, Veritas" by Peter Spiegelman in which superheroes face the truth of their decision processes and the outcome. With drawings enhancing the angst of the superheroes (one look at Gar Anthony Haywood's "Heatseeker" explains why a picture is worth a thousand words as no one will want to mess with that man), this is a strong anthology with no clinkers as all the contributors provide interesting darker looks at those behind the masks struggles with questions of ethics.

Harriet Klausner

Pretty cool and I liked the mix of writers and artists. I hope Phillips and Chambers do this again and use to launch a new genre to compliment graphic novels. A few of these stories and "heroes" were better than the rest, but none sucked. It sounds obvious but there's too much sucking out there now.

The cover of this book is pretty cool. After that, it's all downhill.

This is a collection of stories about low-end superheroes and crimefighters who mostly battle evil on a very small scale. The tales are penned by an eclectic collection of authors, some obscure, some famous within their circles, and they have various backgrounds, but most share one trait: they shouldn't be writing in this genre, and most of them apparently shouldn't be writing at all.

Some take the excuse of their venture into this field to dash off prose so purple that it soars off into ultra-violet. Others have apparently never heard real people have actual conversations, so clumsy and painful is the dialogue they dish up. Yet others decide to embark on mannered experiments in stilted would-be lyricism. So bad are many of these stories that I suspect the editors actually hate their contributors and are deliberately exposing them to public ridicule.

The good: Gar Anthony Haywood's "Heatseeker", about a skip tracer with some unusual but minor powers; Naomi Hirahara's "Tat Master", about, well, a tat master and her uncanny creations; Mat Johnson's "Henchman", about a dude who takes up the life of a henchman for hire; Walter Mosley's "The Picket", about the recipient of a terrible gift; Gary Phillips' "And What Shall We Call You?", about a neophyte vigilante with no gift but that of common sense and the foresight to plan ahead; and Peter Spiegelman's "In Vino, Veritas", about a former member of a superhero team who has a truth-sensing ability.

The bad? Everything else, particularly the stories by Wayne L. Wilson, Alexandra Sokoloff, Ann Nocenti (who should know better), Victor LaValle, and Michael A. Gonzales (who seems to have written his story on a dare to be as floridly over the top as possible).

The plentiful interior illustrations are pretty nice, though.

All the stories are either poorly written, completely predictable, boring as heck, and/or my favorite having nothing to do with a superhero.

One story is about a mob boss who has enemies, so he goes to see a fortune teller only to discover that the fortune teller is actually a ghost of someone he wronged and kills the mob boss. I'm not saying there haven't been ghost superheroes, but this story is in no way a superhero story it is bad predictable horror story at best.

Amazon is kind enough to let you read some of the first chapter written by L.A. Banks. Now I know Banks has a successful series of vampire novels and a fan base, but this is my first experience reading the author's work. I was shocked by how poorly Dream Knights is written. The descriptions are just horrible. Read the snippet for yourself.
"Perspiration soaked the T-shirt and sweater she wore beneath her coat."

The sweat "soaked" the shirt and "sweater"?!
umm...soaked them really? uh gross.

At first I let that slide but then more mistakes in just poor use of adjectives kept piling up.
"Watchers emerged. They peered at her with their dark flickering eyes as their shadow-like, willowy bodies..."

I'm still trying to picture exactly how the "shadow" people have flickering Dark? eyes...wouldn't their eyes just blend in?

"By eleven thirty, she was practically weaving at her desk"
No, the character work does not work as a basket maker. This is Banks describing how exhausted the character is.

If you REALLY think this book sounds cool or I haven't picked on the writer that is in this anthology you are looking forward to reading. I recommend checking your local library or getting this book used.

If you think this book might be okay, I recommend you save your money.