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The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask!

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The Mask:
I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask!
Publication information
ScheduleMonthly
FormatLimited series
Publication dateOctober 2019 – January 2020
No. of issues4
Main character(s)
  • Mitch Kellaway
  • Kathy Matthews
  • Abner Mead
Creative team
Written byChristopher Cantwell[1]
Artist(s)Patric Reynolds[2][3]
Letterer(s)Nate Piekos[4]
Colorist(s)Lee Loughridge
Editor(s)Daniel Chabon

The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask! is an American dark comedy-horror supervillain comic book limited series written by Christopher Cantwell,[5] drawn by Patric Reynolds, and published by Dark Horse Comics from 2019 to 2020 as a revival of the semi-anthological self-titled comic book series and franchise. The series chronicles the events following the mask being once again unearthed after twenty years by politician Abner Mead, who aims to use it and the "Big Head" reputation to run a campaign to become President of the United States, opposed by a now-Mayor Kathy and retired Detective Kellaway.

The series received a positive critical reception.[6][7] An audio play adaptation of the series by GraphicAudio would release in 2021,[8][9] starring the voices of Eric Messner and Keith Richards as Big Head.[10]

Premise

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Twenty years ago, a mask of unknown origin and limitless power was buried in the concrete of an apartment building's basement floor by Mitch Kellaway, Edge City and the world at large having all but forgotten the mysterious green-faced killer known as "Big Head".[11] Only after struggling politician Abner Mead acquires the mask in 2019,[12] and uses its power to gain favour of the general populace and run for office as President of the United States, going up against now-Mayor Kathy Matthews (previously known simply as "Kathy") on her own campaign, as well as a returning Kellaway.[13]

Characters

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Main article: List of The Mask characters
  • Mitch Kellaway – A retired police detective and former wearer of the mask who returns in order to face the new Big Head.
  • Kathy Matthews – The mayor of Edge City and a former wearer of the mask, running for the office of U.S. President.
  • Abner Mead – A struggling politician and the current wearer of the mask, using the "Big Head" rep to run for President.

Publication history

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In July 2019, Dark Horse Comics announced a new The Mask limited series to be in development from writer Christopher Cantwell and artist Patric Reynolds, entitled The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask! and following a new wearer of the mask as he runs for president as Big Head.[14]

Cantwell said that the "truest thing for me is that the protagonists are Kathy and Kellaway, as they've always been. Of course, now they're decades older. So, they're at once new characters to jump into, but have their shared history as well",[15] with Cantwell himself as having "channeled a lot of anger and frustration into this book. Everything seems so absurd and abusive and invasive now, even the things that say they're trying to help you, or make your life better. It's not true—they're stealing your data, destroying your privacy, and dividing all of us into these tribal factions. Add into that global stress on resources and climate change, and you get quite a melting pot of chaos. The media traffics in hyperbole, but there is also an awful lot of hard evidence pointing to humanity being on the very brink of catastrophe. This story is set on that cliff's edge. Maybe it's even set after the fall, during the terminal velocity descent."[12]

The series was published by Dark Horse Comics across four issues from October 16, 2019, to January 22, 2020, and collected as an omnibus edition on June 10, 2020.

Audio play adaptation

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On September 11, 2021, Graphic Audio and Dark Horse Comics announced an audio play adaptation of I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask! to have been developed for release in two days,[8] without the involvement of Christopher Cantwell,[9] and starring the voices of Eric Messner and Keith Richards as Big Head.

References

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  1. ^ Grunenwald, Joe (July 11, 2019). "The Mask returns, runs for president in new series by Cantwell and Reynolds". Comics Beat. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  2. ^ Grunenwald, Joe (December 23, 2019). "Exclusive Preview: Big Head fires up his base in Dark Horse's The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask! #3". Comics Beat. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  3. ^ Spry, Jeff (August 16, 2019). "Big Head Is Back In Dark Horse Comics' New Ultraviolet Revival of The Mask". Syfy. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
  4. ^ Quaintance, Zack (January 23, 2020). "One Hot Panel: Marauders, The Mask, and Wonder Woman #750". Comics Bookcase. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  5. ^ Guest Author (October 13, 2019). "I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask: An Interview with Christopher Cantwell". Comic Watch. Retrieved May 26, 2025. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  6. ^ Patterson, Corey (October 16, 2019). "Review: The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask! #1 Vows To "Make America Green Again"". Monkeys Fighting Robots. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  7. ^ Cole, Alexander (January 27, 2020). "Comic Review: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask! #4". Sequential Planet. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
  8. ^ a b GraphicAudio [@GraphicAudio] (September 7, 2021). "Coming soon! @DarkHorseComics at GraphicAudio! The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask. The series that inspired the hit film returns with gruesome hilarity from the showrunner @ifyoucantwell of AMC's Halt and Catch Fire and Hellboy's @patric_reynolds" (Tweet). Archived from the original on September 7, 2021 – via Twitter.
  9. ^ a b Connolly, Spencer (September 7, 2021). "Mask Writer Claims Dark Horse Adapted His Work Without Telling Him". Screen Rant. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  10. ^ Messner, Eric (September 13, 2021). "Dark Horse Comics: The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask! [Dramatized Adaptation]". GraphicAudio International. ISBN 978-1-6488-1903-2
  11. ^ Dedmon, Tanner (October 16, 2019). "The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask! #1 Review: Grim Politics Multiplied by Twisted Humor". ComicBook.com. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  12. ^ a b Cantwell, Christopher (October 13, 2019). "I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask!: An Interview with Christopher Cantwell". Comic-Watch. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
  13. ^ Nolan, Liam (January 13, 2020). "The Mask Takes The Oath of Office and Becomes POTUS in Dark Horse Preview". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  14. ^ Chiu-Tabet, Christopher (July 11, 2019). "The Mask Returns in "The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask!"". Multiversity Comics. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  15. ^ Welch, Kyle (September 23, 2019). "Christopher Cantwell And Patric Reynolds Stump Speech On "The Mask: I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask!"". Multiversity Comics. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
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