Customer Reviews

The Mask Omnibus Volume 1 (v. 1)

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I loved the movie with Jim Carey, this comic is nothing like it. Quite the opposite as a matter of fact. Its dark, bloody, twisted in a light hearted way. "Big Head" as hes referred to by the public, is a killing machine taking lives with a joke to boat. Basically there is an ancient mask that is found and through out this volume different people get there hands on it and become something they never thought they could. Its a fun read, something to read when your bored or have time to kill. I love this comic, I love the humor, how nonchalant the acts are performed, and how you cant help but love Big Head.

As a big fan of the gleeful 1994 movie The Mask (New Line Platinum Series), Doug Mahnke's artwork, and the comics form in general, I was pleased to see Dark Horse collecting the long-out-of-print comics that inspired the film (as well as two of the sequel volumes, The Mask Returns and The Mask Strikes Back). The book, while not what I'd expected based on the movie, was fun in its own way. It's much darker in tone and more adult in content, and if you're extremely attached to the character Stanley Ipkiss from the movie, the upcoming Adventures Of The Mask Omnibus (collecting comics based on the early-90s cartoon show based on the movie that was based on these comics... yikes, say that five times fast) seems likely to be much more fun for you.

On the other hand, if you're interested in an examination of the core idea of The Mask- that it empowers the id of the wearer, for good or (more usually) ill- you're in the right place. Just know in advance that these comics were very much published in the late 1980s through early 1990s, and it shows- in the mob-based plot, in the significant violence, even in the "grim & gritty" inkwork (particularly in the later chapters). Comics trends have changed since then, thankfully, but The Mask may rise above the excesses of its time to be a classic in its own right.

First off this is not the same as the film if you want to see more similar to the film i recommend the comic: "the adventures of the mask" as it is more carntoonish look at the charicter big head. This comic is darker and more edgy then many oter comics you will read. I dont feel that this comic truly hits its stride until volume two but it is a handy collectors item and allows for a look into the life of many wearers of the mask. I am a huge fan of the mask series and the film but for a youth audience i would recommend the adventures of the mask.