Dollar Comics: Batman #386 (re:view)

Welcome to a whole new adventure with... a comic for your dollar! This time I'm bringing some Black Mask as he is literally birthed into the world to bring you some origin realness. Let's dive in!

The story is pretty much a character study of the character. From the offset, he is dropped as a child but their eyes are blackened like you can't read it and you know what they say... the eyes are the window to the soul. Thematically that's what plays throughout the whole comic: the idea of the face and losing yourself to it. This strongly strings the comic to be a really strong standing issue and introduction of Black Mask. 

The issue is like a metamorphosis of the character of Black Mask as a young child they are raised to a figurative mask and he adjourns throughout his childhood. Interestingly enough, he is at a similar age to Bruce Wayne I guess but instead of learning from his fear, he succumbs to it which drives him further down the rabbit hole or should I say a bandit hole. 

His character does have charisma and a certain charm to him which wins over the woman that he employs immediately and ummm... murders his parents so that their "face" is not tarnished. It's really disturbing at how far he can turn at a switch of a button which is further elevated by his controlling manner which ultimately would become his downfall in turning his business upside down. This is further empathised by him "losing face" which will actually lead him to even despise his own name, eventual breakdown and rise of the Black Mask crime syndicate. 

The art styling is quite dark, I guess if it's Batman of course it would be! There are moments of such horror especially the reveal of Black Mask's decaying face of his father or the formulation used to dissolve the face of his victims.

Subscribe? Yes

Quite the strong offering! It reads more like a character study than a comic I'm used to reading as it explores the surface of the psyche of a disturbed character.

Dollar Comics: Batman #386 (reprint of Batman volume 1 #386)
Doug Moench - writer
Tom Mandrake - artist
John Costanza - letterer
Adrienne Roy - colourist
Len Wein - editor