IDW - Revolution: M.A.S.K.

Written by: Brandon Easton

Art by: Tony Vargas

Colours by: Jordi Escuin

Letters by: Chris Mowry

Edits by: David Hedgecock

Publisher: Ted Adams

Plot

One year ago, nine recruits are brought in to a secret training facility for a new project, to use their natural skills to fight the Cybertronians using high tech vehicles and other things.

The team are soon introduced to each other, and make their first impressions with each other. Miles Mayhem, leader of the facility, calls in Dr Mindbender from the collapsed Cobra group to help him identify which recruits would be perfect for his team.

Despite knowing him from before the training program, Manheim is disappointed by how Matt Trakker is performing, and thinks he has grown weak. On the other hand, he does find Vanessa Warfield's no-nonsense attitude and refusal to leave things to chance very refreshing and has her join his team.

Later, the team are taken outside to test out the vehicles and some prototype masks, and has Evans and Watkins take the wheels, however during the test, Manheim sabotages them, and causes the vehicles to malfunction and kill the two trainees. The rest of the trainees react to this in different ways, which Manheim examines to further sort his teams out.

Later again, the trainees are given a mask each, and are allowed to train with them, during it Sylvester accidentally shoots a physical spear from his hard-light generator helmet, impressing Manheim further, and getting him a place on the team.

Later still, the trainees are taken to the Canadian Rockies, where they are led to a train filled with innocent civilians, but which is also set to explode in a short amount of time. Matt wants to save them, but Bruno forces him to retreat, and detaches the detonating carriage from the rest of the train, killing the civilians, but protecting the team, giving Manheim is final team-member. Back at the base, the recruits are trying to cope with the mission, and Manheim reveals to Vanessa that the civilians were actually just holograms that he projected there...

In the Present, the newly formed MASK team, led by Matt Trakker arrives at a GI Joe base, where they are introduced as Manheim's new team, leaving out the truth that his REAL team is VENOM.

Characters

M.A.S.K.

Matt Trakker/Spectrum

Brad Turner/Eclipse

Julio Lopez/Gulliver

Gloria Baker

V.E.N.O.M.

Vanessa Warfield

Sylvester Rax/Stiletto

Bruno Sheppard

Project Spectrum Members

Miles "Mayhem" Manheim

William Evans Killed in MASK Vehicle Test

Marcia Watkins Killed in MASK Vehicle Test

GI Joe

Scarlett

Random Joes

Cobra

Dr Mindbender/Armand Singh

Other Human

Passengers on the Train (Holograms)

Judge Banks (Mentioned)

Matt's Parents (Mentioned)

Manheim's Past Allies (Mentioned) Dead

Notes

• This issue acts as a the "pilot" issue for the new MASK series. As such it doesn't really have much to do with the bigger Revolution storyline...I'm pretty sure the GI Joe cameo at the end was a last minute thing to make it fit...
• Throughout this issue we are made to believe that Manheim is choosing the best members of the team for the MASK program, but is actually recruiting for VENOM, a black ops counterpart to MASK.
• The purpose of the two different teams leads into Manheim's own ideals, where he likes to cover all his bases, and leave nothing to chance. Therefore, if MASK aren't able to legally deal with a mission, he'd logically send in VENOM to cover for them.
• Despite him being abducted and experimented on by Manheim for the MASK program, Blitzwing doesn't appear here...awww
• From the dialogue we can guess that Matt Trakker has been in trouble with the law, but wants to change his life for the better.
• Manheim is meeting with Dr Mindbender to assess his team and find his ideal team?! How can people NOT know he is evil?!?!
• The members of the program here were chosen because they have displayed some technopathic traits, explaining their abilities with the masks and vehicles.
• It's quite appropriate that the only other franchises from the Revolution to actually appear here are from GI Joe, which was an earlier attempt to bring MASK into Hasbro's fiction, with Matt Trakker being a Joe there.