Black Mask (character)

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Black Mask
Orpheus, Black Head, Underworld Boss, Ted Kord
Abilities
  • Criminal mastermind
  • Expert hand-to-hand combatant and marksman

Black Mask (Roman Sionis) is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics.[1] Created by Doug Moench and Tom Mandrake, the character debuted in Batman #386 (August 1985).[2] He is commonly depicted as a brutal and ruthless crime lord in Gotham City who has a fixation with masks and derives sadistic pleasure from the act of torture. Black Mask is one of the most enduring enemies of the superhero Batman and belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up his rogues gallery.[3]

The character has been substantially adapted from the comics into various forms of media. Black Mask made his

second season of the Arrowverse series Batwoman, portrayed by Peter Outerbridge
.

Fictional character biography

Origin story

Black Mask, as he originally depicted from the 1980s to the late 1990s, prior to his horrific further disfigurement that led to his black skulled feature, on a pin-up page of Batman Villains Secret Files & Origins #1 (October 1998). Art by the character's co-creator Tom Mandrake (pencils and inks).

Black Mask's origin story was established in his first appearance. Roman Sionis was born to wealthy and self-absorbed parents, who cared more about their social status than their own son. The doctor carelessly dropped him on his head, and his parents covered up the entire incident so that their high society friends would not find out. He was attacked by a rabid raccoon at the Sionis family country estate, and his parents forbade him to mention the incident to anyone. Roman's parents continued to associate with them to maintain their social standing, and forced Roman to befriend their son. His parents' hypocrisy had a deep impact on Roman, and he grew to resent them and the "masks" that they wore in public.[6]

Roman was given a high-ranking position in his father's company. He met and fell in love with working-class model Circe, though his parents did not approve of the relationship and forced him to break it off. Roman burned down his family mansion and inheriting their fortune and business. Roman lacked his father's business acumen and eventually ruined Janus Cosmetics by funding a failed line of face-paint make-up. Roman had the staff chemists create a product that was rushed to the market without proper testing. Circe then broke up with him in front of his entire staff.[6]

Bruce Wayne offered to bail Janus Cosmetics out on the condition that Roman gave up control and allowed Wayne to appoint his own board of directors. Roman broke into the cemetery where his parents were buried. A lightning bolt struck him into a nearby stone. Roman took the incident as an omen of his "rebirth" and entered the crypt, and using its shattered pieces to carve an ebony mask as the crime lord.[7]

Criminal career

Within a month, Black Mask had assembled a group of dozens of criminals, leading to the creation of the

Sionis Crime Family, better known as the False Face Society, using the Sionis crypt as their base of operations. Each member of the False Face Society wore a distinctive mask, and the gang's crime spree spread rapidly throughout Gotham, eventually attracting the attentions of the police and Bruce Wayne, now operating as the vigilante Batman.[8] To settle old scores, Black Mask murdered three Wayne Foundation executives and kidnapped Circe, forcing her to don a mask laced with Janus Cosmetics' toxic makeup, sparing her life but permanently disfiguring her face. Black Mask then threatened Circe into rejoining him, giving her a "mannequin" mask intentionally designed to mock her former life.[8]

Batman eventually managed to deduce Black Mask's identity and correctly predicted that Bruce Wayne would be Sionis' next target.[8] To set a trap for Black Mask, Bruce held a masquerade ball at Wayne Manor, and Sionis infiltrated the ball and lured Bruce to the mansion's conservatory to kill him. Bruce disarmed Sionis, forcing the latter to retreat to his hideout with Robin (Jason Todd) secretly following him. While Batman and Robin fought his underlings at the graveyard, Black Mask escaped through a false bottom installed in his father's coffin and headed to his family estate. Black Mask then entered his old bedroom and set fire to the old toys inside, intending to burn the mansion to the ground to symbolically kill his old identity as Sionis. Before Black Mask could escape, Batman flung a Batarang-attached cable around the crime lord's knees, causing him to fall face-first on the burning floor just as the bedroom's rafters began to collapse. The rafters pinned Black Mask's face into the pile of burning toys, and although Batman and Robin were able to tow him out of the fire, Sionis' mask had been burned onto his face.[9] Black Mask was subsequently sent to Arkham Asylum, where he remained behind bars until the international terrorist Ra's al Ghul freed all of its inmates. Black Mask was not amongst the criminals who followed the Joker in searching for the one behind the breakout and thus never took part in the "war" against Batman's allies and loved ones. As this tale was the last "canonical" one to take place on Earth-One, it can be assumed that Black Mask remained at large.[10]

Following

Zero Hour", and resurfaces shortly thereafter to kill rival mobster "Dirty Dan" Doyle in an ambush shootout.[12]

Black Mask is later approached by the

No Man's Land
" story arc.

Black Mask later becomes the leader of a cult, whose trademark is ritual scarring, foregoing his mask and disfiguring his face to resemble a blackened human skull until Batman and the

Blackgate Penitentiary
, though the crime lord escapes before the city is made a part of the country again.

In Catwoman vol. 3 #16, Black Mask begins a drug trafficking ring and decides to move his organization into Gotham's East End.

Holly Robinson
on the verge of being tortured. Enraged, Catwoman engages Black Mask at his penthouse, where the crime lord falls from the top of the building.

In Act Two of

Batman Family. As Black Mask returns to continue torturing the Spoiler for entertainment, he finds that she has escaped and subsequently tracks her down. Although she escapes his clutches once again, the Spoiler supposedly dies due to the injuries inflicted on her and the willful negligence of Leslie Thompkins
.

Black Mask later infiltrates Oracle's Clocktower in an attempt to expose her to the mob, and Batman attacks him in a blind rage. Fearful that Black Mask will kill Batman, Oracle activates a self-destruct device in the tower to get Batman to save her. In the storyline Batman: Under the Hood, Black Mask then becomes the overlord of Gotham's underworld, gathering enough financial resources to purchase an Amazo android and a large supply of kryptonite. [14] Allied with reporter Arturo Rodriguez and later Mr. Freeze, Black Mask begins a campaign to discredit Batman; while Rodriguez slams Batman in the press, Black Mask commits a series of murders disguised as the Dark Knight. The real Batman eventually exposes Rodriguez and captures Black Mask, but the crime lord kills the escorting officer transporting him to jail and escapes again.[15]

Later, a series of attacks by the Red Hood (revealed later as being Batman's presumed deceased protégé Jason Todd) causes Black Mask to lose power and money to this new rival.[16] The assassin Deathstroke later approaches Black Mask, offering him a place within the Society. Eager to strengthen his increasingly tenuous grip on the underworld, the crime lord accepts. However, the Red Hood is even able to elude the Society's members; eventually he completely dismantles Black Mask's control over the city's organized crime. Black Mask then continues to threaten the most important people in Catwoman's life, prompting her to retaliate by shooting Black Mask's jaw with her gun, killing him. After the shooting, Selina Kyle passes the mantle of Catwoman to her friend Holly, who is soon arrested for Sionis' murder. During the Gotham Underground storyline, dozens of would-be crime bosses attempt to fill in the vacancy created by Black Mask's death.[17]

In Blackest Night, Black Mask is resurrected as a Black Lantern and attempts to show Catwoman why "shooting him in the head was a bad idea". In an attempt to scare Catwoman, Black Mask goes after her sister once more. He demonstrates the ability to fly and reorganize the structures of buildings. Poison Ivy manages to stop Black Mask by trapping him inside a mutated pitcher plant, its digestive juices dissolving his body as fast as his ring could regenerate it.[18]

The New 52

In

Night of the Owls; Sionis attempted a hunger strike to try to regain his mask. When the Talons attack the Asylum, Dr. Arkham gives Sionis his mask back to telepathically influence the inmates into attacking the Talons and keep anyone from following Arkham to his safe room. Black Mask then attempts to use his abilities on Batman, but fails and is forced to escape the asylum.[20] Black Mask later resurfaces to re-assemble the False Face Society, coming into conflict with the Mad Hatter while doing so (who considers Black Mask an enemy due to their similar mind control abilities). Batman intervenes and puts an end to their battle and Sionis is sent back to Arkham Asylum.[19] During the Forever Evil storyline, Black Mask appears as a member of the Secret Society of Super Villains when the Crime Syndicate arrive from their Earth.[21] Black Mask and his False Face Society crash the Rogues' battle against Mr. Freeze and Clayface to claim the bounty on the Rogues.[22]

DC Rebirth

In the DC Rebirth reboot, Roman Sionis remains one of Gotham's most powerful crime lords. This version of the character dons a black metallic mask and is allied with the Penguin and the Great White Shark in an alliance known as "the Blacks and Whites". Together, they hire the KGBeast to kill Batman.[23] In the Watchmen sequel Doomsday Clock, Black Mask is among the villains that attend an underground meeting held by the Riddler to talk about the Superman Theory.[24] In Teen Titans Rebirth, Damian Wayne keeps Black Mask locked up in his secret prison[25] after learning about his involvement in the destruction of the Arab restaurant Tarbooshes.[26]

Powers and abilities

Black Mask is a criminal mastermind and tactical analyst with vast wealth and resources at his disposal, making him one of the most powerful crime bosses in Gotham's criminal underbelly. He utilizes his various connections to eliminate opposition and consolidates power using fear and intimidation; he is renowned for his brutally sadistic physical and psychological torture techniques, which he uses either to extract information or simply to torment his enemies for entertainment. Black Mask is an expert marksman with firearms, particularly with his signature twin automatic pistols, although he is proficient with melee weapons such as swords as well. He is a skilled hand-to-hand combatant and has displayed impressive levels of stamina and endurance; his high tolerance for pain has allowed him to hold his own against accomplished fighters such as Batman and Catwoman. Black Mask is also an accomplished businessman, impersonator, actor, and escape artist.

Per the events of The New 52, Roman Sionis' ebony black mask possesses hypnosis-like mind controlling abilities that extend through the material of the masks that his henchmen wear, rendering them directly under his control.[27] Black Mask has also killed his victims by applying toxin-filled masks to their faces, poisoning them and leaving their faces hideously shriveled and blackened. His mask also allows him to assume the form of other people, from Ted Kord to Superman, though without assuming their powers.[28]

Other characters named Black Mask

Jeremiah Arkham

In the Battle for the Cowl storyline, a second criminal using the Black Mask alias emerges. His identity is eventually revealed to be Dr. Jeremiah Arkham, who took up Roman Sionis' mantle after suffering a psychotic breakdown from exposure to a variety of mind-altering chemicals from various Batman villains.[29]

Richard Sionis

In DC's line-wide revision of its superhero comics, DC Rebirth, a story presents Black Mask's father Richard Sionis as the precursor to the Black Mask alias, where he was just called "the Mask" and was the founder of the Sionis Crime Family, also known as the False Face Society. When Richard was in the hospital and dying of old age, Roman snuck into the hospital disguised as a nurse and poisoned his father to gain complete control over the False Face Society; he leaves his father's signature mask on his corpse. This story retconned the information that Charles Sionis was his father.[30] Richard Sionis / The Mask was first introduced in the FOX television drama Gotham, portrayed by Todd Stashwick and depicted as an adaptation of Black Mask.

Other versions

Batman: Crimson Mist

In the Elseworlds storyline Batman: Crimson Mist, Black Mask arrogantly dismisses Two-Face's warnings about the now-vampiric Batman, believing himself untouchable until Batman attacks the False Face Society in the form of a monstrous bat, killing Black Mask and several other members.[31]

In other media

Television

Film

Ewan McGregor as Roman Sionis / Black Mask in Birds of Prey (2020).

Video games

Batman: Arkham

Main article: Batman: Arkham
Roman Sionis / Black Mask in a promotional image for Batman: Arkham Origins (2013).

Roman Sionis / Black Mask appears in the Batman: Arkham video game franchise, initially voiced by Nolan North in Arkham City and Brian Bloom in subsequent appearances.[41][42][43] This version is known for using body doubles.[44]

  • Black Mask makes a cameo appearance in Batman: Arkham City (2011) via its story mode and challenge maps. Additionally, an Arkham City Story reveals that Black Mask previously attempted to escape Arkham City by blasting a hole in a containment wall, but was recaptured.[45]
  • Black Mask appears in the prequel Batman: Arkham Origins (2013).[46][47] Prior to the story mode, Sionis was kidnapped by the Joker, who subsequently poses as him on Christmas Eve and hires eight assassins to kill Batman. The Dark Knight frees Sionis to learn more about the Joker's whereabouts, but is attacked by Copperhead, allowing Sionis to escape. In a side mission, Sionis attempts to rebuild his criminal empire by stashing several drug canisters throughout Gotham City, but Batman finds and destroys them before defeating Sionis and his henchmen. Black Mask also appears in a challenge map DLC pack.[48]
    • Black Mask appears in the companion game
      Blackgate Penitentiary's Industrial Building during a prison riot. If Batman defeats him last, the ending sees Black Mask being apprehended by two guards, one of whom he takes hostage. The remaining guard tries to shoot him, but accidentally hits a gas main that triggers an explosion and burns Black Mask's mask into his skin before he flees the prison.[49]
  • Black Mask appears in the Batman: Arkham Knight (2015) "Red Hood" DLC,[50] in which the titular character tracks down and throws him out of a window to his apparent death.

Other games

Merchandise

Miscellaneous

See also

References

  1. ^ "Gotham: Who Is The Black Mask?". comicbook.com.
  2. ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1
    .
  3. ^ "It's BATMAN vs. the Black Mask's master plan in BATMAN #696". dccomics.com. 5 February 2010.
  4. ^ a b Gonzalez, Umberto (November 1, 2018). "'Birds of Prey': Ewan McGregor in Talks to Play Batman Villain Black Mask (Exclusive)". TheWrap.com. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  5. ^ a b D'Alessandro, Anthony (November 1, 2018). "Ewan McGregor Joins 'Birds Of Prey' As Villain Black Mask". Deadline.com. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  6. ^ a b Batman #386
  7. ISBN 9780345501066
    .
  8. ^ a b c Detective Comics #553
  9. ^ Batman #387
  10. ^ Batman #400
  11. ^ Batman #485-486
  12. ^ Detective Comics #684
  13. ^ Batman #518-520
  14. ^ Batman #635-636
  15. ^ Batman #635-636
  16. ^ Batman #640
  17. ^ Gotham Underground #1
  18. ^ Catwoman vol. 3 #83 (January 2010)
  19. ^ a b Detective Comics vol. 2 Annual #1
  20. ^ a b Detective Comics vol. 2 #9
  21. ^ Forever Evil #1
  22. ^ Forever Evil: Rogues Rebellion #4
  23. ^ All-Star Batman
  24. ^ Doomsday Clock #6 (July 2018). DC Comics.
  25. ^ Teen Titans vol. 6 #20 (July 2018)
  26. ^ Teen Titans Special #1 (June 2018)
  27. ^ Detective Comics vol. 2 #9 (May 2012)
  28. ^ Suicide Squad vol. 6 #9 (2020)
  29. ^ Batman #697 (March 2010)
  30. ^ Catwoman vol. 4 #51. DC Comics.
  31. ^ Batman: Crimson Mist
  32. ^ a b c d e f "Black Mask Voices (Batman)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved April 14, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
  33. ^ "Schedule for Channel 9, Oct. 31st, 2010". Tvtonight.com.au. December 19, 2010. Archived from the original on June 5, 2010. Retrieved December 29, 2010.
  34. ^ Agard, Chancellor (January 12, 2021). "'Batwoman' boss confirms Black Mask is season 2's other big bad". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on January 13, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  35. ^ Mehra, Vansh (March 25, 2021). "'Batwoman' Casts Peter Outerbridge As Black Mask". Deadline. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
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  47. ^ "Batman Meets Deathstroke, Deadshot, And Black Mask In First Trailer". gameinformer.com.
  48. ^ Phillips, Tom (November 28, 2013). "Batman: Arkham Origins story DLC focuses on "key relationship" in comics canon". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on December 10, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
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  50. ^ Carter, Chris (July 3, 2015). "The Red Hood DLC pack for Arkham Knight is disgustingly short". Destructoid. Archived from the original on July 5, 2015. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
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  63. ^ Injustice: Gods Among Us #6 (August 2013)
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External links

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