The Mask: Animated Series

The Mask: The Animated Series
Genre	Superhero Surreal humour Action/adventure Comedy Slapstick
Based on	The Mask by John Arcudi Doug Mahnke Mike Richardson
Developed by	Duane Capizzi
Directed by	Russell Calabrese
Voices of	Rob Paulsen Tim Curry Jim Cummings Tress MacNeille Kevin Michael Richardson Neil Ross Heidi Shannon Ben Stein Mark L. Taylor Frank Welker
Theme music composer	Keith Baxter Christopher Neal Nelson
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	54 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Joe Bacall Tom Griffin C.J. Kettler Bob Friedman Mike Richardson Phil Roman Tom Ruegger
Producer(s)	Gary Hartle
Running time	30 minutes
Production company(s)	Dark Horse Entertainment Film Roman Sunbow Entertainment New Line Television
Distributor	Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Release
Original network	CBS
Audio format	CBS StereoSound (1995-1996) Dolby Surround (1996-1997)
Original release	August 12, 1995 – August 30, 1997
Chronology
Preceded by	The Mask
Followed by	Son of the Mask

The Mask (also known as The Mask: Animated Series) is an American animated television series based on the film of the same name. The show ran for three seasons, from August 12, 1995 to August 30, 1997 on CBS, and spawned its own short-run comic book series, Adventures of The Mask. John Arcudi, former writer of the original comics, penned two episodes of the series. It originally was played during the CBS Kidshow line-up on Saturday mornings, but after being cancelled, it was moved to Cartoon Network (where the live-action films were also aired). The show also ran in syndication.

Overview

Much as with the Beetlejuice animated series before it, The Mask: Animated Series took many elements from the source movie but dropped characters and changed certain other persona. Reporter Peggy Brandt (Amy Yasbeck's character from the film) is the main female character in the series. Tina Carlyle (Cameron Diaz's character in the film) is absent. However, the events of the film are alluded to, as Charlie knows that Stanley was the Mask (though thinks Stanley threw it away), and Stanley is still upset over Peggy selling him out to the mob (given that Stanley and Peggy were never treated as a potential couple, there may have remained some bad feelings over that though The Mask himself sometimes tries to woo her). A gypsy named Madam Suspiria at one point claims that the Mask is the most powerful artifact in the world when she remarks "The most powerful artifact in the world and this idiot keeps it with his laundry". Unlike in the movie, Ipkiss is able to use the mask in daytime as well as at night.

Niko and Dorian Tyrell, the two primary antagonists of the 1994 film who died during the course of it, do not appear in the animated series. However, an early draft of one episode was to have the ghosts of Niko, Tyrell and their deceased henchmen to return to Edge City and wreak havoc. The plot was to involve both of the ghosts and their gangs to break the remaining gang members out of jail, regain their areas of influence and resume their war against one another. However, the script would determine that they join forces in an effort to exact revenge against Ipkiss. Both Matacena and Greene were approached in order to reprise their roles, but eventually the episode was scrapped.

The series, despite having a "realistic" setting in the fictional town of Edge City, often relies more on Tex Avery-style humor and on occasion, breaks any meaningful laws of reality; one episode featured the Goofalotatots, parodies of the Animaniacs, treating them as if they were naturally alive. Another featured the Mask becoming a personal assistant to the President of the US, with the job merely handed to him (the president was a caricature of no real president; it should also be noted that former Mask comic writer John Arcudi wrote both example episodes, a stark departure from his usual writing). Police officers are portrayed as idiots who can't see even obvious clues.

Also continued from the film was the consistent visiting by The Mask of the Coco Bongo; a fictional, glamorous night club frequented by the Edge City well-to-do, which was based on the Copacabana in New York City. In the episode "A Comedy of Eras", in which Dr. Chronos manipulates time so that the future Edge City becomes a corrupted, Nineteen Eighty-Four-like dictatorial society ruled by the villainess, features a Coco Bongo which has been destroyed – a development that horrifies and enrages The Mask and provides him with the motivation to ultimately defeat Dr. Chronos.

During the late 90's, Rob Paulsen appeared on the US TV talk show Donny & Marie. When talking about his role as Stanley Ipkiss/The Mask, Paulsen said, "I get to be Jim Carrey for a whole lot less cake".^[1]

Characters

Main characters

• Stanley Ipkiss/The Mask (voiced by Rob Paulsen) – The primary protagonist of the series. Instead of getting rid of the mask as in the movie, he kept it, and whenever he tries getting rid of "The Mask", he gets into trouble and is often forced to use the mask to overcome these problems, eventually coming to actively rely on the Mask to fight supernatural enemies (even facing Satan at one point). Stanley Ipkiss is portrayed as a push over good guy, once described as "repressed, with an overactive superego", but inside of him he has a "wild man under the surface, just waiting to get out". Meanwhile, The Mask, unlike his violent comic book counterpart, is more of a mischievous superhero, who, as Stanley had put it, "Would rather go to water polo night at the Coco Bongo than fight crime". The Mask is also apparently even aware of the surroundings when he isn't being worn as during one episode Stanley attempts to control the Mask with the Sister Mask which seems to work at first only for the mask to go back to normal and state the sister mask doesn't work at all (though this may actually be due to The Mask and Stanley sharing knowledge). The Mask also works when broken (when the Mask was split in two each half still works but only does half the transformation, finally allowing Stanley and the Mask to converse). To date the only thing that truly affects The Mask is the Common Cold which throws his powers out of whack and will result in the death of both The Mask and the wearer. Also, The Mask's powers are quite dependent on the restraint of its wearer's personality; in one episode, Stanley tries to act like The Mask would in order to improve his life at Dr. Neuman's counseling; while Stanley becomes more assertive and confident, The Mask stops functioning properly, due to it bringing out the repressed sides of his personality. Due to the different personalities The Mask and Stanley have, they often refer to each other as separate people (such as The Mask remarking "Oh Stanley is going to hate me in the morning"). In "Split Personalities", it is revealed that the Mask always wanted to give Stanley a wedgie (he even manages to give him a "half-wedgie"). In the same episodes (as pointed out by Stanley), possibly the only thing The Mask and Stanley have in common is their lack of success with women (though Mask has more luck and self-confidence in this area, failing only due to the interference of other characters). The Mask is shown to be very impulsive, fun-loving and cynical and several times has been shown to have a humongous appetite, once eating twenty pizzas in one bite, loves dancing and impressing ladies at the Coco Bongo, his favorite nightspot, and giving atomic wedgies to his enemies and people who annoy him or Stanley. The one redeeming feature of The Mask is his desire not to hurt anyone as shown in "Sister Mask" where he was most displease that his array of gag guns were now firing real bullets as oppose to "Bang flags". The Mask does have a big-heart and cares for others and comes to rescues them when in need, especially his friends like Milo and Peggy.
• Milo (vocal effects provided by Frank Welker) – Stanley's dog (whose breed is a Jack Russell Terrier) and sidekick. He is a frequent wearer of the mask as well and is shown to be quite intelligent, able to understand human language.
• Lt. Mitch Kellaway (voiced by Neil Ross) – A police lieutenant for the Edge City Police Department who's constantly trying to prove Ipkiss is the Mask. A running gag of the show is that he receives atomic wedgies from the Mask due to him constantly hunting him and accusing him as a menace to Edge City. He often fails in capturing the Mask unlike the original movie who succeeded once in proving that Ipkiss is the Mask. He's cynical, paranoid and overzealous in believing that every big crime and disaster is caused by The Mask, (while most of the time it isn't), and that he's link to other criminals and villains. His appearance is drastically changed from the original movie where he was portrayed as short, middle-aged man whereas in the series he appears taller and younger as his comic book counterpart.
• Detective Doyle (voiced by Jim Cummings) – Lieutenant Kellaway's dimwitted and yet lazy partner. Doyle is occasionally seen eating a doughnut or a candy bar. Unlike Kellaway, he's somewhat friendly to the Mask and thinks of him more of a hero than a villain. In a running gag, Kellaway shouts out his name when ever Doyle says or does something stupid.
• Peggy Brandt (voiced by Heidi Shannon) – Stanley's reporter friend. She sold out Stanley to Dorian Tyrell's gang in the movie, causing their strained relationship. An earlier draft had her murdered by Dorian Tyrell when he first puts on the Mask. In this series however, she is still alive and their friendship was repaired when Peggy rescues him (several times later). She constantly tries to up her career in the tabloids biz usually leaving her in sticky situations that results in The Mask saving her.
• Charlie Schumacher (voiced by Mark L. Taylor) – Stanley's friend (from the movie) who is now a bank manager at Edge City Savings and Loans. He knows Stanley had the mask, but he thinks he got rid of it like in the film. He appears not to know the Mask is Stanley, most likely because he never saw Ipkiss wearing the mask. He usually looks out for himself, tries to score women, has Stanley do his work for him, etc., but still acts as a "friend" to Stanley. He's quite proud of his status of bank manager and never misses an occasion to remind Stanley that he is. Even though he pretends he'll help Stanley progress through his own career - in the very first episode -, he appears to be totally unable to be happy for him whenever he gets promoted - even getting jealous of him - "Double Reverse" -, or starting to cry about it - "Boogie with the Man". He does not hesitate to fire Stanley - "Broadway Malady" - and in the same episode, isn't even grateful enough after Stanley rescued him to give him more than "his old job" back. In "Magic", he is making Stanley busy on purpose after he heard how pretty David Steelmine/Vicky Pratt is supposed to be, so he can't hope to go to a date with her. Overall, Charlie is beyond selfish, mostly a coward, loves to feel hierarchically superior to Stanley and uses him whenever he wants to. It is quite mysterious to what extent Stanley does consider him a "friend", regarding his actions.

Recurring characters

• Dr. Arthur Neuman (voiced by Ben Stein) – Stanley's therapist and the only character to be played by his movie portrayer. He doesn't believe that Stanley is The Mask and thinks "The Mask" is the side of Stanley who wants to be outrageous and impulsive. In one episode, the mask falls into Neuman's hands, and he becomes a super villain. Dr. Neuman rampaged throughout the city, claiming everyone suffered from a disease he called Ipkissian Maskosis. He was determined to kill Stanley and even goes as far as to spring Pretorius from prison to aid him (a running gag however was that Dr. Neuman refused to believe the mask worked, even when he had it on).
• Mayor Mortimer Tilton (voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson) – The egotistical mayor of Edge City. Though not evident in season one, season two reveals that Mayor Tilton is corrupt (often using the city's budget for elaborate celebrations, which contrasted with the film counterpart who is trying to end corruption). In "Flight as a Feather," it is revealed that Mayor Tilton once dated an exotic dancer named Cookie BaBoom, who crashes his Bavariaville ceremony and threatens to blow herself and the Mayor (to whom she refers as "Mortimer") with two megatons worth of dynamite strapped to her body (which The Mask strips off and makes into a cocktail). Despite his selfishness, Tilton is a person of genuine gratitude, visibly by the fact that he often thanks the Mask for saving the city and frees him from any legal trouble that he causes (much to Kellaway's chagrin). He is loosely based on Mayor Mitchell Tilton from the film.
  • Smedley (voiced by Cam Clarke) – Mayor Mortimer Tilton's white nerdy assistant.
• Agnes Peenman (voiced by Tress MacNeille) – Stanley's cranky, mean-spirited landlady. She was one of the many sources of Stanley's aggravations during the original film due to her verbal abuse towards him, causing her to be often the butt of The Mask's many practical jokes. In "Mask au Gratin", it is revealed that Mrs. Peenman has a niece named Jennifer who works as an archaeologist. In "Split Personality", the bartender of "The Silent Hulk" bar reveals Mrs. Peenman's first name as Agnes.

Antagonists

• Pretorius (voiced by Tim Curry) – The primary and recurring antagonist of the series. He is a mad scientist who had his own head removed from his body and placed on tiny, spider-like robotic legs, which could attach to a larger android body. His plans always revolved around either obtaining or controlling the Mask (Pretorius is one of the few characters in the series aware of The Mask's true identity), or as part of some increasingly insane "science experiments" which if carried out would result in the death of thousands or even the end of mankind. He mostly pronounces Ipkiss' last name as "Ipp-kiss" and when his plans fail he often says: "Mental Note..." followed by something he needs to remember to do the next time. In the episode "Sister Mask", Pretorius did eventually gain the mask and as with Dorian Tyrell, he retained his own personality while wearing it (while the mask is said to release one's own inhibitions, those who have no inhibitions seem to retain full conscious control while wearing the Mask such as the Joker in the DC crossover). Ironically, he's attracted to the bizarre powers of the mask, once stating to the Mask: "If you were a woman, you would make the perfect bride." A thought that disgusts the Mask. Pretorius was also likely a parody of drug dealer/mob boss Eugene Rapaz from the original comics as both of them share the same face (though Rapaz wore small, rounded-lens dark glasses while Pretorius had round optic implants that looked similar as well) and is also named after Doctor Septimus Pretorius from Bride of Frankenstein.
  • Walter – Pretorius's 6 and-a-half-foot tall, and indestructible goon, but not as murderous and cruel. He is mostly seen working for Pretorius though sometimes he appears on his own. He chased the Mask for several episodes, but when he obtained the wooden mask and it failed to work for him (a moment taken directly from the original Dark Horse Comics in which "Walter" was a recurring character), he simply dropped it. Walter remained a recurring character throughout the series. He is strong enough to actually break the Mask in two (an impressive feat as only seconds before the Mask withstood being hit by cars and run over by a steamroller without a scratch). In "How Much is that Dog in the Tin Can", it was revealed that he was locked up in the same prison as Willamina Bubask. He can't use a mask.
  • Pretorius's Henchmen (various voices) – The henchmen of Pretorius are shown to wear black and purple outfits. They are often seen carrying out Pretorius' criminal errands to prepare for any of his criminal plots.
• Lonnie the Shark (voiced by Glenn Shadix) – A mobster who has sharp teeth and a hairdo that resembles to a shark's fin. Lonnie has his own biker gang that cause chaos within Edge City. Lonnie once disguised himself as a Barney the Dinosaur-style kids TV host in "Baby's Wild Ride". They attempted to rob a bank in "Malled" and tried to steal the XAW battleship in "The Green Marine".
  • Pete (voiced by Charlie Adler) – Lonnie the Shark's lazy sidekick. He always invents any excuse of "feeling pain" on any part of his body in order to ditch the gang's dirty work for his fat companions.
  • Biff, Muffy, and Brad – The three tough members of Lonnie the Shark's biker gang.
• The Terrible Two – Dak (voiced by Cam Clarke) and Eddie (voiced by Jeff Bennett) are two slow-witted comic book-obsessed teenage boys who wanted to be superheroes. Driven by this desire, they went into a nuclear power plant in hopes of obtaining radioactivity. They believed that this state would eventually turn them into comic book superheroes when coming on contact with a bug. They succeeded, but forgot to bring a bug, both became ill and were to be sent to a hospital. On the way, the ambulance they were on accidentally released them. Dak fell into a vat of putty while Eddie fell into a pet store and landed in an aquarium, with both assuming the characteristics of what they had landed in. This transformed Dak into Putty Thing and Eddie into Fish Guy in the episode "the Terrible Two". Fish Guy envied Putty Thing because he had "the great scorcher super powers" and he didn't which made him feel left out. Technically, he was a harmless fish sidekick. Even worse despite being a fish, he can't swim or breathe underwater and had a distinctively terrible odor. He was always the butt of many jokes from the Mask. In the episode, "The Good, The Bad, and Fish Guy", he accidentally wore the Mask after Stanley lost it during a fight with Putty Thing, thus transforming him into Shark Dude, a much more dangerous villain that was much stronger and faster than his previous form, and he also shown to have a very egotistical nature, seeing that after he gains the mask powers, he quickly and ungratefully abandons Dak. After Putty Thing landed in a tub of radioactive waste, he gained the power to shoot explosive laser beams from his mouth which was temporary. Also in that episode, Putty Thing also learns how to shape-shift. The two are likely a parody–homage to Mike Myers' titular Wayne's World character while Fish Guy resembles Wayne's sidekick Garth Algar (played by Dana Carvey) and Putty Thing is a spoof of Clayface. It is also possible that the two are a parody-homage to the Bill and Ted movie franchise.
• Skillit (voiced by Jason Marsden) – A mischievous imp who hails from the Shadowland, and can use his own living shadow to suck the shadows out of other people, turning them old fast (only the Mask is immune to this) and allowing him to remain forever young (though he is powerless without his shadow). He is over 4000 years old but, in his own words, doesn't look a day over 12 (because of this when he is captured, he is often forced to do homework). He has known everyone who has ever possessed the Mask such as Attila the Hun, Genghis Khan, Blackbeard, Billy the Kid, and Nimrel (a malevolent corrupted version of Merlin who was transformed into a monster when a magic spell blew up in his face).
• Kablamus (voiced by Jim Cummings in a homage to Sterling Holloway) – Joe Blow is a green-haired man who was experimenting on a balloon that would be the greatest balloon ever that won't break. Unfortunately, the balloon overinflated and caused him to fall into the chemicals in his factory. As a result, he gained the power to blow himself up like a balloon and explode without dying (the chemicals he fell into made him unbreakable) and then returning to normal size. His costume consists of a blue leotard, orange pants, black gloves, boots, and a belt with grenades.When he inflates, he sounds exactly like a balloon inflating. He has a special pouch in his costume where he puts different grenades that explode with him. Every time he inflates, he's getting bigger, so when he used the Plutonium primer, he could inflate himself to the size of a skyscraper. Kablamus also can use his power to inflate only parts of his body, like his feet, in order to jump very high. Stanley as The Mask had a hard time in his first encounter with him due to following a reverse psychology written by Dr. Neumann disrupting his powers. Also, Kablamus was successful at reading Dr. Neumann's book and even invaded his office. The Mask managed to defeat him by replacing his Plutonium Primer grenade with a Popcorn Primer grenade. He, then inflates, giving the Mask the opportunity to install a valve, which deflates him. Kablamus returned, angry at the city for not making him Grand Marshal. He makes deadly balloons and hypnotizes the Mask to help him, but the effects wore off and the Mask ignited him and his deadly balloons resulting in him exploding. Kablamus makes a cameo appearance in the episode "Broadway Malady" auditioning for a musical with villain Sir Andrew Bedwetter and then joins him in prison.
• Willamina Bubask (voiced by Conchata Ferrell) – A female criminal whose known crimes were dognapping, grand theft auto, and assaulting an entire police precinct. Milo ended up stumbling upon her dog-napping activities while Stanley was competing in a Chili Cookoff. It was all part of a plan to have dogs taste test each chili recipe for Cheap Chucky. It was revealed that she knew (and fell in love with) Walter when they were in the same prison (though, the heartless giant criminal seems to show no love interest on her). She was defeated by The Mask and was arrested by the police.
  • Cheap Chucky – He was in collaboration with Willamina Bubask into getting dogs to test each chili recipe from a contest he held in order to find the perfect one to market. He was defeated by Milo when he unleashed the dogs from the cells and later arrested by the police.
• Don Julovit (voiced by Cam Clarke in a Spanish accent) – The greatest bandit from Lispan. He arrived in Edge City to take part in the criminal activity where every villain dressed as Santa Claus. He was apprehended by The Mask along with all the other criminals. Unlike Walter, The Terrible Two and Kablamus The Exploding Man, he along with Dynamite Joe were never seen or heard from ever again. He is a parody of Don Quixote.
• Dynamite Joe (voiced by Jeff Bennett impersonating Sylvester Stallone) – One of the sleazy low-lives who disguised himself as Santa Claus at Christmas Time in order to get away with his illegal escapades. He didn't bother to introduce himself and only spoke 3 or 4 times during the entire caper. He stated he had worked with explosives his whole life when confronted with something as extraordinary as Kablamus The Exploding Man. He was arrested along with the other criminals. Unlike Walter, The Terrible Two and Kablamus he along with Don Julovit was never seen or heard from ever again. He is called Dynamite Joe as he was a sleazy explosives expert.
• Chet Bozzack (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) – The high school bully of Stanley who resurfaced when he got a job at Edge City Saving and Loans, though by that time he had more or less reformed himself into a nicer person. Unfortunately, he accidentally wore half of the mask when it was split into two by Walter which reawakens his darker urges and did one of the attacks on Charlie. It is later shown that their Mask sides have something akin to a rivalry to the point that Stanley's mask form willingly abandoned a chance to dance at the Coco Bongo (an almost impossible task at any other time) just for a chance to get even with Chet's Mask form. Upon meeting, the two Mask's proceed to fight using their respective reality warping powers. Stanley and Chet along with their half mask personalities battle ended only when Chet stopped his mask personality from killing Stanley. After Chet was liberated from his half of the Mask and apologizing to Stanley, he was fired by Charlie. Chet then decided to leave Edge City and find a new future.
• Dr. Amelia Chronos (voiced by Victoria Carroll) – A mad scientist whose ambitions of gaining power and dominance through the manipulation of time, often caused quite a lot of chaos through inventions like a machine that kept looping time every half hour for everyone but herself, so that even the Mask could never foil her plans, since by the time he got to her, everything would be reset to a half hour prior (which creates one of the very rare instances of the Mask actually acting remotely serious), a gun that reversed/fast-forwarded time for whoever it was aimed at (so that the person would keep getting younger and younger until he or she became nothing, or became older and older until he/she was dead), a large time portal through which she could summon anything to defeat the Mask (such as prehistoric creatures, robots from the future, etc.) though none of them worked and an actual time machine through which she could travel into the past or future to manipulate events so that she would ultimately be victorious in her quest for world dominance.
• Colonel Beauregard Klaxon (voiced by Jim Cummings) – A southern businessman who helped in the unveiling of a statue that Mayor Tilton hosted. After the statue became a victim in The Mask's antics by making it look like a statue of Mayor Tilton getting an atomic wedgie, Mayor Tilton went along with Beauregard's idea to hold the Edge City Games between Edge City and Centerville at the newly built Edge City Stadium as a way to ignore The Mask. What Mayor Tilton didn't know is that Colonel Klaxon has been dumping nuclear waste underneath Edge City Stadium where the Edge City Games were being held. This resulted in the creation of a swamp monster abducting the Edge City Team. During the tournament, Peggy used a security camera to obtain a confession from Beauregard about Edge City Stadium being built on unstable swamp grounds and the creation of a swamp monster. After the swamp monster is defeated followed by the destruction of Edge City Stadium, Beauregard is then given an atomic wedgie by The Mask and is then arrested by Lt. Kellaway.
  • Billy Bob – Colonel Beauregard Klaxon's henchmen.
• Channel Surfer (voiced by Gary Owens) – A madman who glides using his surfboard and travels by teleporting through televisions as well as manipulation of electricity and whatever is in the television. He was once a man named Raymond Neilsen who went insane after his favorite TV show Pointy Peaks (a parody of Twin Peaks) was canceled due to complaints from viewers. Upon getting into a fit, his TVs fell on him and he emerged from the TV pile as Channel Surfer. He had all of Edge City watch the TV shows he liked and he was able to trap Stanley (wearing the mask) inside the television. He held a challenge for The Mask by mind-controlling the people of Edge City and ended up trapping The Mask in the TV World. Peggy managed to place The Mask in a live broadcast of Channel Surfer's show. The Mask then sucks Channel Surfer into a satellite and shoots him into outer space, although Channel Surfer vows "I will return – same time, same channel!". He makes a cameo appearance in the episode "Broadway Malady" auditioning for a musical with villain Sir Andrew Bedwetter and then joins him in prison which indicates he may have returned. He is obviously a spoof of Silver Surfer, and may have been inspired by the Couch Potato, a villain with television-based powers that The Mask encountered in the Dark Horse Comics series.
• Gorgonzola the Cheese Witch (voiced by Cree Summer) – Her powers include the Cheese-Eye (an eye laser that turns anything into cheese) and the Shot-Cheddar (an extra-sharp cheddar cheese arrow, that is fired from Gorgonzola's palm). This character was created as it was the winner of a contest held by Disney Adventures to create a new villain for the series. Legend says that Gorgonzola is the half-sister of Parmaseana, the greatest dairy farmer in Mesopotamia. After Gorgonzola was caught trying to steal her brother's riches, she was shunned and vowed revenge. Many years later, Mrs. Peenman's niece Jennifer found an amulet during a dig in a Mesopotamian tomb that ends up transforming her into Gorgonzola by the third-quarter moon when she removed it from the Mesopotamian tomb. When the transformation occurs, Gorgonzola plans revenge on the mortals that "treated her like sour milk". This led to the final confrontation with The Mask at Edge Stadium. The Mask managed to turn Gorgonzola's Cheese-Eye attack against her. Once the Mask removed Gorgonzola's amulet and returned it to its tomb, Jennifer alongside everyone and everything was restored to normal. In "Convention of Evil", Gorgonzola popped up as one of the villains attending Pretorius' convention. Pete made a lot of cheese puns around Gorgonzola, where she shot melted cheese at him.
• Sly Eastenegger (voiced by Neil Ross) – An action movie star who shows up in Edge City to use it in his next movie. What no one knows yet is that Sly and the director had a stolen U.S. nuclear bomb used as one of the props. This was part of a revenge plot against the critics that made a bad review of his last movie. He went against The Mask in a Last Action Hero contest with Sly rigging Mask's attempts. When it came to the movie's final scene, Peggy managed to warn Mask and Lt. Kellaway that the bomb is real. The Mask manages to disarm the bomb and Sly Eastenegger is arrested by Lt. Kellaway. He is a parody of Arnold Schwarzenegger, but speaks in the style of Sylvester Stallone. His name is a combination of "Sly" (Stallone's nickname), "Eastwood" and "Schwarzenegger".
  • Director (voiced by Carlos Alazraqui) – An unnamed director of Sly Eastenegger's latest movie who helped Sly in his plot to use a stolen U.S. nuclear missile.
• Phony Frenchman (voiced by Jess Harnell) – A patriotic French terrorist with a bad French accent who conducts plans to benefit his home country of France. He fought The Mask when he lured him to the Eiffel Tower that The Mask had stolen in the episode "Up A Creek." In "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Green Mask," The Phony Frenchman tries to blow up the Edge City Stock Exchange with a brie bomb to cripple the American Dollar to make the French franc the dominant currency in the global economy, but was foiled by The Mask after tying him up with the bomb and throwing it through Dr. Chronos' time portal at her and exploding.
• Satan (voiced by Jonathan Harris) – Appearing in the form of Bub (a human with vampire-like teeth and a demon shadow), Satan appeared as a villain. The first time, he convinced Stanley to sign a contract to make him become a winner without using the Mask. The contract worked, Stanley gaining prices twice and becoming the Bank vice-president, but the Devil then tried to take him (including as the Mask) to the bad place as a payment. However, The Mask was able to discard the contract by challenging and defeating Satan in a dance competition at the Coco Bongo. In "Convention of Evil," Bub appeared at Pretorius' convention when he arrived during Gorgonzola the Cheese Witch's story of her fight with Mask and recapped his fight with Mask after that. When Pretorius comments that they will all join Bub in his domain at his point, Bub states that he doesn't see any halos over either of them.
• The Tempest (voiced by Bud Cort) – Fritz Drizzle is a fired weatherman who was struck by lightning which rebounded from a satellite dish onto him and he was mutated into a freak with the ability to control the weather. Taking the name "the Tempest" He put Edge City into a hailstorm, a blizzard, and a flood. The Mask was able to stop him by opening a manhole which sucked him down, along with the flood waters he created. In "Convention of Evil," he was present at Pretorius' convention. During that time, he did get into a fight with Stinger when he called him "Beeboy". He is not to be confused with the Action Man villain with a similar name, origin, and powers. He resembles Robin from Batman: The Animated Series and has powers similar to that of the X-Men Storm.
• The Hood (voiced by Jess Harnell) – A criminal wanted for loan sharking, smuggling, jewel heists, and other crimes. His true identity is Lawrence Lorenzo who was hired to be the police chief. Hood and his henchmen were planning to kidnap Mayor Tilton at the Coco Bongo Club and Lt. Kellaway was appointed to head up the stakeout with his visiting mother attending. When he and his henchmen kidnap Mayor Tilton as well as Lt. Kellaway's mother, Hood reveals his identity to Mayor Tilton and states that he will dispose of him and take over Edge City. The Mask managed to find Hood's hideout in the Cornitos Chips Factory and lured every policeman there. When Hood threatens to use Mrs. Kellaway as a human shield, she manages to stomp on his foot and beat him down with her purse enough to expose Hood's identity to the other cops while Mask tricked Hood's henchmen into going into the bagging machine. Hood and his men were arrested after that.
• The Stinger (voiced by Stuart Pankin) – Buzz Stingman is a beekeeper who was turned into a bee/human hybrid creature after being severely stung by genetically-altered bees. He had the ability to control the behavior of bees to do his work and also developed a taste for honey. He was able to hypnotized the entire city into building a giant beehive. He was eventually stopped by the Mask who removed his stinger and Buzz was returned to normal. In "Convention of Evil," Stinger was present at Pretorius' convention. During that time, he got into a fight with Tempest when he called him "Beeboy."
• Madame Suspiria (voiced by Candi Milo) – A gypsy whose family once held the greatest magic in Carbathia. After being on the brink of being fired from a carnival by its owner Admiral Wombat, she encounters Stanley Ipkiss and learns of his Mask as it was part of her family's magic. Around the same time, she gives Stanley a love potion that spilled on Mrs. Peenman that causes Stanley (and the Mask), Lt. Kellaway, and other males to fall in love with her. She plotted to steal the Mask and siphon its powers to get revenge on Admiral Wombat. When she does, it caused Stanley as The Mask to miss some of his powers. The Mask managed to trick Madame Suspiria into using her magic attacks on him to regain part of his powers. After The Mask manages to get his powers back, Madame Suspiria accidentally gets the Love Potion on her causing Lt. Kellaway, Charlie Schumaker, and every man at the carnival to be attracted to her.
• Sir Andrew Bedwetter (voiced by Jeff Bennett) – A Broadway director that The Mask made enemies with when Andrew made a play adaption of Super Monkey. The Mask crashed the show and his antics made the show successful. While Andrew was preparing his next play against The Mask, his two employees were secretly robbing banks to obtain money to fund it. While in a giant robotic gorilla, he did a musical battle against The Mask and was defeated. After learning what his employees did, Andrew Bedwetter is then arrested by Lt. Kellaway. Andrew and the villains he called to the audition were seen in the asylum doing a musical when The Mask dropped a chandelier on Andrew. He is a parody of Broadway playwright Andrew Lloyd Webber.
• Government Guy (voiced by Frank Welker in normal form, Kevin Michael Richardson in Mask form) – The tyrannical ruler of Edge City in the future. At some point after a thermonuclear crisis, he found the mask and used it to power everything in Edge City. However, he made laws that banned anything related to fun. He wore the mask of the 23rd century, while a time-traveling Stanley wore the Mask he brought with him from the 20th century, thus allowing two people to wear the mask at the same time without the Mask being split in two. Despite wearing the Mask, he is defeated quite easily by The Mask due to his lack of understanding of the powers it grants. He is a parody of Ross Perot.
• Celia N. Airtight – A top researcher at Wrapmaster Corporation until she was fired for knowing too much about the food preserving part. She formed Putterware Corporation and secretly used the Putterware products to turn the leftovers into leftover monsters in her plot to take revenge on Wrapmaster Corporation. Stanley ended up becoming a salesman and later an inner circle for Wrapmaster Corporation thanks to The Mask. Upon escaping a sandwich leftover monster and upon regaining the mask, Stanley became The Mask and fought the leftover monsters. After The Mask defeated the leftover monsters, he subdued Celia N. Airtight and Harold and left them for the police.
  • Harold – Celia N. Airtight's right-hand man.
• Tex Clobber – A bounty hunter that was hired by Pretorius alongside Baxter Simon to capture the Mask so that Pretorius can discover how the Mask can feel no pain. Tex Clobber is a wilderness hunter that uses normal hunting weapons. The Mask manages to outwit both bounty hunters and place a bounty on them.
• Baxter Simon - A bounty hunter that was hired by Pretorius alongside Tex Clobber to capture the Mask so that Pretorious can discover how the Mask can feel no pain. He is a businessman that uses high tech gadgets. The Mask manages to outwith both bounty hunters and place a bounty on them.
• Selina Swint (voiced by Susan Silo) – An international smuggler who was smuggling counterfeit money to Edge City. She ended up getting her bag mixed up with Stanley's bag and traced down his address. When she finds him and the bag full of counterfeit money gone, she plans to obtain both of them by kidnapping Milo. As The Mask, Stanley ends up at the location where Milo is held and manages to rescue Milo. With help from Milo, The Mask was able to subdue Selina Swint who was then arrested by Lt. Kellaway.
• Davida Steelmine (voiced by Cree Summer) – An illusionist-turned-criminal and an old schoolmate of Stanley where she was his crush, unknown to him she harbors a similar infatuation towards him (not enough to give up her life of crime though). She uses illusions as diversion while she robs the actual places while using an illusion of herself during her magic show to throw off suspicion, though she is capable of creating fireballs to attack with, she commonly escapes through her top hat. She originally appeared to steal valuables from Edge City but met her old crush Stanley and makes him an offer to leave with her. He refuses and dons The Mask to stop her. After several failed attempts to woo her, The Mask stops her with his own magic tricks and Davida is defeated in the end. The Mask manages to take her Top Hat escape route after she does an escape trick from Lt. Kellaway's car and dives into her hat. Her original name was Vicky Pratt. She is a parody of magician David Copperfield.
• Cybermite (voiced by Jim Cummings) – A living yet obnoxious computer virus (in a form of a fat termite wearing a leather jacket) who manages to invade and infect Milo's body in Fantashtick Voyage. He grows bigger when ever he eats brain cells and occasionally says some pretty bad jokes. Mask had to go inside Milo which also dragged Lt. Kellaway and Detective Doyle with him. The Mask defeats Cybermite who is then dragged away by the antibodies.
• The Dark Star Trio – A trio of villains who came out of the first issue of Doyle's favorite comic book "The Galactic Avenger." They set out to kill Lt. Kellaway after mistaking him as their superhero enemy Galactic Avenger. Stanley/The Mask defeated the trio by ripping the comic book from whence they came. A spoof of the Galaxy Trio from the Hanna-Barbera shorts.
  • Dragon Lady (voiced by Kath Soucie) - A member of the Dark Star Trio who can transform into a wing-armed dragon, fly, and breathe fire.
  • War Machine (voiced by Jim Cummings) - A robot armed with deadly weapons and ammunition who is a member of the Dark Star Trio. War Machine appears to be a parody of the Marvel superhero of the same name (although he's a robot instead of a man in a suit).
  • Rip Tide (voiced by Frank Welker) - A punky villain and member of the Dark Star Trio with the ability to transform into water. RipTide is a spoof of Hydro-Man.

Other characters

• Francis Forthwright (voiced by Mary McDonald-Lewis) – One of Stanley's neighbors who sometimes wants Stanley to babysit her baby boy during random moments, which annoys Stanley.
• Baby Forthwright (vocal effects provided by Frank Welker) – Francis Forthwright's baby. Wore the mask on three occasions: part one of "The Mask is Always Greener on the Other Side", "Baby's Wild Ride", and "Mutiny of the Bounty Hunter".
• Bank President (voiced by Jim Cummings) – The unnamed boss of Stanley Ipkiss and Charlie Schumacher whose face is off-screen. The film featured his son, Mr. Dickey, who also works at the bank.
• Arthur "Art" Nouveau (voiced by Jim Cummings) – An art forger who threatened to blow up a dynamite factory unless his demands were met. He only appeared in "The Terrible Twos".

Other mask wearers

Stanley Ipkiss is the owner and wearer of The Mask, but there have been others who have worn the Mask (either accidentally or intentionally). Some episodes focus on this aspect; someone gets his/hers hands (or face) on the Mask and Stanley usually tries get it back with difficulty. The other wearers are:

• Milo – Stanley's dog and one of the main characters. He occasionally wears the mask when Stanley (or someone else) is in trouble. Milo wore the mask in eight episodes (The Mask is Always Greener on the Other Side (Part 2), How Much Is That Dog in the Tin Can?, A Comedy of Eras, Malled, Jurassic Mask,Up the Creek,They Came from Within and All Hail The Mask).
• Peggy Brandt – Stanley's journalist friend. Peggy wears the mask in Counterfeit Mask. When wearing the mask, she sought to give herself an elaborate and feminine makeover.
• Baby Forthwright – Stanley's friend's child and a recurring character. When wearing the mask he sometimes does destruction just to get some ice cream. While wearing the mask, baby very briefly teams up with Lonnie the Shark and his goons, but in the end turns against the mobster. He uses a variation of the mask's wedgie antic: putting diapers on everyone who annoys him. Baby wore the mask in three episodes (The Mask Is Always Greener on the Other Side (Part 1), Baby's Wild Ride and Mutiny of the Bounty Hunters).
• Pretorius – The main villain (See Villains section). Pretorius is a unique Mask wearer as he completely managed to retain his personality and consciousness in control, possibly due to him having no inhibitions which the mask releases in the wearer. He tries to kill Stanley and Peggy by eating them, but is defeated after his invention Sister Mask is used against him. During the chase scene Peggy referred to him as "Big Head", an obvious nod to The Mask's more malevolent comic book counterpart. Pretorius wore the mask in Sister Mask.
• Chet Bozzack – See Villains section. Chet wore the mask (or half of it) in Split Personality which was also his only appearance. He has a "Evil Clown" personality, wear a red suit and was Stanley's worse nightmare, but Chet feels guilty after he lost the control over his evil side and vows to begin a new life.
• Fish Guy – See Villains section. When the Fish Guy wears the mask, he becomes Shark Dude, and is more dangerous than his previous form. As Shark Dude, he has super-strength, sprouts wings to fly, and turns his arms into 6 tentacles. He wears the mask in The Good, The Bad, and Fish Guy.
• Dr. Neuman – Stanley's cynical psychiatrist and a recurring character. Stanley typically goes to see him to talk about his problems and The Mask. Dr. Neumann doesn't believe in The Mask, which he thinks is Stanley's "imaginary friend". This is a running gag of the show. However, he later gains the mask from Stanley, who wanted to get rid of it. Neumann tries the mask on and with it on, becomes crazy and psychotic. He also wears a yellow coat and blue pants with sneakers as well as a huge bow tie with the same color scheme as the Mask's tie. While wearing The Mask, Neumann puts Stanley and other people in straitjackets (using their underwear), believing they suffer from an illness called Ipkissia maskosis. He also teams with Pretorius, but is ultimately defeated and separated from the mask after trying to kill Stanley. Even after this, and the fact that the Mask has appeared in the news and even on television, Neumann is still not convinced. Neumann wore the mask in Shrink Rap.
• Evelyn – A shy, quiet woman and Stanley's one-time date. She owns a dog called Esmeralda who is just as shy as she is. Stanley meets her in Edge City Bank and after some encouraging from Charlie he asks her to come to his apartment. Initially unsure, she goes to Stanley's apartment, but the date doesn't go as planned. Evelyn accidentally puts the mask on and becomes Eve, the first female Mask of the show. Unlike Evelyn, Eve is more loud and wears a dress. Eve is also madly in love with Stanley. Evelyn wore the mask in Bride of Pretorius, which was also her only appearance.
• Government Guy – The tyrannical ruler of Edge City in the future. He wore the mask of the 23rd century, while a time-traveling Stanley wore the mask he brought with him from the 20th century, thus allowing two people to wear the mask at the same time without the Mask being split in two. He is a parody of Ross Perot. Government Guy wore the mask in Future Mask, which was also his only appearance (note the Mask in the future is green due to mold, previously thought to be radiation exposure). Despite wearing the Mask, he is defeated quite easily by The Mask due to his lack of understanding of the powers it grants.
• Ace Ventura – Near the end of the two-part crossover "The Aceman Cometh"/"Have Mask, Will Travel". In fact, the mask hits Ace's rear end, turning it into a head of its own (exactly like Ace's, but colored in a green hue). Afterward, when Stanley was again the Mask, he scrubbed his face repeatedly in horror.
• Nimrel – An evil version of Merlin. He was mentioned to have used the powers of the Mask before.
• Billy the Kid - He was mentioned to have used the powers of the Mask before.
• Attila the Hun - He was mentioned to have used the powers of the Mask before.
• Freddy - He once used it in the episode "Enquiring Masks Want to Know".

Spoofs to other comics

Villains as well as the Mask's transformations were often DC Comics parodies, such as Supermask and Super Salad Man (a spoof of Superman). Some Marvel references were made too, like The Mask becoming Biclops (a spoof of Cyclops), Spiderhyny (alias Spider-Man), Green Surfer (alias Silver Surfer) and Toolverine (a spoof of Wolverine), and a villain that turned into a dinosaur like Sauron. Notable were Skillit (spoof of Mr. Mxyzptlk and Peter Pan, albeit much more malevolent in nature), Buzz Stingman (who was transformed by mutant bees in a similar manner to Swarm) and Putty Thing (spoof of the Batman: The Animated Series version of Clayface, portrayed as a dumb teenager rather than an angry, jaded actor). In Sister Mask episode Pretorius hunts meteorites that each give the power of a member of Fantastic Four

Series overview

Episodes

Season 1 (1995)

Season 2 (1996–97)

Season 3 (1997)

Crossover

A two-part crossover between The Mask and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, another animated series based on a Jim Carrey film, aired on August 30, 1997. The crossover begins with The Mask episode "The Aceman Cometh", and concludes with the Ace Ventura episode "Have Mask, Will Travel". At the time of the original airing, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective was running in the adjoining time slot immediately following The Mask in CBS's Saturday morning lineup. During the crossover, Stanley/Mask and Ace retain their respective animation styles while appearing within the other's show. The crossover also serves as the series finale of The Mask and the second season finale of Ace Ventura.

In "The Aceman Cometh", Milo has his brain switched with that of a scientist and is then dog-napped. Stanley in turn hires Ace Ventura to help get him back. At the end of the episode, Ace's pet monkey Spike steals the mask, and Stanley follows them to Miami to retrieve it. In "Have Mask, Will Travel", Stanley catches up to Ace just as he is recruited to solve a case on a space station, leading Stanley to become the Mask and join the investigation.

Controversy

The second season episode, "Flight as a Feather," has never been broadcast on FOX Family channel, the North American version of Cartoon Network, and CBS (though CBS only aired seasons one and three of the show) due to the sequence in which Mayor Tilton signs a deal between Edge City and Bavariaville, which includes heavily implied nudity and references considered too adult for a TV-Y7 audience. This episode has been seen in syndication (namely on local affiliates for The WB and UPN and part of the Big Kids Network, a syndicated line-up of cartoons from the late 1990s) and on international broadcasts in both English and non-English speaking countries (particularly in Mexico, the UK, Australia, and Eastern Europe).

During the ceremony, a black woman in a trenchcoat by the name of Cookie BaBoom (who, according to the Mayor's aide, the Mayor dated at one point, though she was never seen or mentioned in the episodes that aired on CBS, and is an exotic dancer [the mayor's aide nearly calls her a "stripper"]) crashes the ceremony and throws off her trenchcoat to reveal two megatons worth of explosives strategically strapped across her bust and waist like a tube top and an micro-mini-skirt, respectively, and implies that she's going to kill herself along with Mayor Tilton because the Mayor dumped her. The Mask (only interested in retrieving his feather) thwarts Cookie's plan by impersonating a Cockney British bartender who creates a drink called The Bikini Cocktail, using the dynamite strapped to Cookie's body as the main ingredient. Before Kellaway and Doyle can capture The Mask, he distracts them by turning Cookie (who had been spinning around in a blur after The Mask ripped the dynamite off her body) around so her now naked front (which the spectator is unable to see) faces them, causing the two to react sexually to her nude body and collapse. The Mask then asks Cookie if he knows her from traffic school, but the rest of the line cuts immediately to the Bavariavillian woman freaking out over The Mask harassing Mayor Tilton (it's not known whether the jump cut is a sign that a suggestive punchline has been edited, but some fans have theorized that it is).

Principal cast

• Rob Paulsen – Stanley Ipkiss/The Mask
• Tim Curry – Pretorius
• Jim Cummings – Detective Doyle, Joe Blow/Kablamus, War Machine, Colonel Beauregard Klaxon, Art Nouveau, Crisco the Performance Artist
• Tress MacNeille – Mrs. Peenman
• Kevin Michael Richardson – Mayor Mortimer Tilton
• Neil Ross – Lt. Mitch Kellaway, Sly Eastenegger
• Heidi Shannon – Peggy Brandt
• Ben Stein – Dr. Arthur Newman
• Mark L. Taylor – Charlie Schumacher
• Frank Welker – Milo, Baby Forthwright, Riptide, Government Guy

Additional voices

• Charlie Adler – Pete
• Carlos Alazraqui – Director
• Jack Angel – Judge (in "The Green Marine")
• Jeff Bennett – Eddie/Fish Guy, Sir Andrew Bedwetter
• Gregg Berger
• Sheryl Bernstein
• Richard Binsley – Spike
• Earl Boen
• Rodger Bumpass
• Jodi Carlisle
• Victoria Carroll – Dr. Amelia Chronos
• Dan Castellaneta – Chet Bozzack
• Marsha Clark
• Cam Clarke – Dak/Putty Thing, Smedley
• Bud Cort – Fritz Drizzle/The Tempest
• E.G. Daily
• Michael Daingerfield – Ace Ventura
• Jennifer Darling
• Debi Derryberry
• Greg Eagles
• Conchata Ferrell – Willamina Bubask
• Pat Fraley
• Brian George
• Dan Gilvezan
• Lennye Goldsmith
• Michael Gough
• Benny Grant
• Dorian Harewood
• Jess Harnell – The Hood/Lawrence Lorenzo, Phony Frenchman
• Estelle Harris – Lt. Mitch Kellaway's Mother
• Jonathan Harris – Bub/Satan
• Charity James
• John Kassir
• Art Kimbro
• Joe Lala
• Nancy Linari
• Taj Mahal
• Danny Mann
• Jason Marsden – Skillit
• Mona Marshall
• Bill Martin
• Mary McDonald-Lewis – Mrs. Francis Forthwright
• Candi Milo – Madam Suspiria
• Pat Musick
• Joe Nipote
• Gary Owens – Channel Surfer
• Stuart Pankin – The Stinger
• David Prince
• Teresa Radicia
• Roger Rose
• Stu Rosen
• Heidi Ross
• Glenn Shadix – Lonnie the Shark
• Susan Silo – Selina Swint
• Kath Soucie – Evelyn/Eve, Dragon Lady
• Cree Summer – Gorgonzola the Cheese Witch, Cookie BaBoom, Davida Steelmine
• B.J. Ward

Crew

• Gary Hartle – Producer
• Christopher Neal Nelson – Music Score, Main Title Theme
• Keith Baxter – Main Title Theme
• Ginny McSwain – Voice Director
• Rob Paulsen – Theme Song Performer

Home releases

VHS

Six VHS volumes of the series were gradually released from 1995 to 1996, all of which are now out of print.

DVD

Upon the initial DVD release of Son of the Mask, Wal-Mart stores sold an exclusive 2-pack of the movie with the two-part pilot episode of the animated series.^[2]

Syndication

After the series ended its run on CBS it started airing in syndication, mostly on local affiliates and Cartoon Network from 1997–98. Then it aired on FOX Family from 1998–2000 (with "Flight as a Feather" removed due to risqué content). Since 2000 it hasn't been seen in the United States. In Australia, it has been rerun sporadically on Boomerang.

Merchandise

Taco Bell distributed toys based on the cartoon for a short period of time in 1997. In South Africa, the Spur franchise used to give out Mask toys with the kiddies burger.

References

External links

• The Mask: Animated Series on IMDb
• The Mask at the Big Cartoon DataBase
• The Mask at TV.com
• Official Website (via Internet Archive)
• Rob Paulsen on "Donny & Marie".