Look, IDW is bringing us 2 things that might make this world a brighter place. Firstly, they’re bringing us a brand new M.A.S.K. comic series furthering the adventures of Matt Trakker and his mask-powered super-soldiers armed with ostensibly common, surprisingly destructive vehicles. Secondly, they’re creating a shared comic book universe with their over-arching IDW Revolution crossover, an event combining the likes of Transformers, GIJoe, Micronauts, and other 80s/Hasbro properties. Talking with our friends at Newsarama, M.A.S.K. writer Brandon Easton (Agent Carter) and artist Tony Vargas talked about their modern day iteration of the property, how it fits into the Revolution crossover, and how IDW’s M.A.S.K. will honor the spirit of the classic 80s cartoon.
Brandon was asked about his take on the M.A.S.K. franchise.
“This version of Mobile Armored Strike Kommand is contemporary with a slight touch of nostalgia to satisfy the original fans of the 1980s series. I’d describe it as a vehicle-based action adventure sci-fi thriller comic book with updated versions of the classic characters. Unlike your average comic book that has a singular emphasis, M.A.S.K. is unique in the sense that it combines military action, vehicle combat, changeable weapons and helmets that grant superpowers. If the balance isn’t right, it falls apart so I’ve been working hard to incorporate all those elements in a logical, but extremely exciting storyline.”
Vargas added, “If you can imagine taking an old computer and a brand new tablet PC equipped with AR capabilities, smashing them together to make a nice M.A.S.K. jelly. You’ll look at the characters and vehicles and know right away it’s M.A.S.K. That’s really the goal of revitalizing any existing property – to maintain what made it great and really looking for opportunities to make it even better.”
Asked how M.A.S.K. ties into IDW’s Revolution event, Easton exclaimed, “The M.A.S.K. team is very much a part of the Revolution story line. The team shows up early in the event and has a major impact on the outcome. I guess you could say that much of what M.A.S.K. will become is tied to the climax of Revolution. The upcoming M.A.S.K. one-shot is somewhat structured around Revolution so you should consider M.A.S.K. a vital element to the new order within the Hasbro titles. Fans will have to wait to see where we go with all of this.”
So, are you ready for muh-muh-muh-muh M.A.S.K? Sound off!
