Masks #3

Masks continues to standout from the crowd. Now approaching the halfway point of the series, Chris Roberson, Dennis Calero, and Alex Ross are giving you a cross over event like nothing the big two can offer. They have created a wonderful starting point for anyone interested in breaking into their great pulp universe, while simultaneously expanding that world and telling an exciting story with rich characters.

Anytime you have a comic book with a large cast, there's always the fear that it's too much. It's easy to spend so much time introducing and developing everyone that the story gets lost in the shuffle. Roberson continues to toe this line quite well. This month he brings one more hero into the mix, which might mean we're approaching the breaking point, but this is the final addition to the roster. He wisely splits everyone up in this issue, with each of the main heroes using their various connections to try and find out who is behind the Justice Party. Meanwhile, Green Llama and Miss Fury get a slightly larger role as they discover what the Black Police have been doing with the innocent people they haave been arresting. The most interesting part of the issue, though, belongs to the Black Bat and Zorro. We see the continuation of their origin stories, basically. Neither has yet donned a mask, but the idea of the hero's mantle being passed is invoked to inspire them to stand up against the injustice they are facing.obviously, Rafael is a descendant of Zorro, but Quinn is said to be a relative of Brian O'Brien - "The Clock." The Clock is a pretty obscure Golden Age hero and an interesting choice given that he never has previously been connected to Black Bat. I'm very intrigued to follow the evolution of these two, but especially Black Bat, who will be getting his own book very soon.

Masks #3 is a solid chapter in the continuing story. It may be relatively light on action and the plot is somewhat transitional in terms of the overall story, but those are the only reasons why it may not make as strong an impression as the first two issues. The cast is all here now, so from here on out things are bound to really heat up. Don't forget, this is a team of vigilantes with no qualms about killing bad guys. This story won't end with someone being locked up in an Asylum, there's gonna be hell to pay. If you aren't tuning in to Masks every month to see what happens, you're missing out.