Created by Doug Moench and Tom Mandrake, the mobster villain known as the Black Mask made his first appearance in Batman #386 (August 1985). We now know he will be portrayed by Ewan McGregor in the upcoming film ‘Birds of Prey’ due out in February.
How are sales looking on Batman #386 at this point?
The first thing you should ask yourself when speculating on the success of a villain book, is whether the villain is interesting enough to generate a strong demand? In the case of Black Mask the answer, as some background context will confirm, would be: yes.
The true identity of the Black Mask is Roman Sionis. In the comics, Sionis was born to uncaring parents and was even dropped on his head at birth by a careless doctor. Obviously his life was cursed from the beginning. It only got worse. Even though his parents were wealthy socialites (his father’s company: Janus Cosmetics was one of the most successful in Gotham). So wealthy was Roman’s family, in fact, that they regularly cosied up with Gotham’s wealthiest citizens: including the Wayne’s.
In the comics, Roman and Bruce know each other, but when Roman takes over and destroys the family business, Wayne’s offer to help backfires since Roman is a straight out psychopath.
Thus begins Roman’s life of crime. He becomes the founding member of the ‘False Face Society’, and it is in that capacity that he comes into contact with the Batman.
So barring Warner’s changing the character completely (which, news that leaked the other day suggests, is possible! But see below), this background makes for a compelling onscreen villain who can generate a real sense of menace.
That’s probably the reason why Black Mask has already appeared on live action shows (played by Todd Stashwick, for example, in the TV series ‘Gotham’ where he is known simply as "The Mask"), and appearing in various animated features.
Although Sionis’s role as the antagonist in ‘Birds of Prey’ will be his first ever big screen appearance, the character has pop culture clout.
Also, his inclusion in the live action DCEU may have been a planned event for some time. If you look closely, a billboard featuring the ‘Janus Cosmetics Corporation’ can be seen all the way back in the 2017 film ‘Justice League’. Nonetheless, official confirmation that Black Mask would be coming to the big screen was only established in August of 2018, with McGregor’s participation announced in November, 2018.
Batman #386 (August 1985) – First Appearance of Black Mask
How has the news of his upcoming movie appearance affected sales?
The sales on Batman #386 have been gradually building in terms of sold prices. Since the news was announced, prices have, predictably, skyrocketed with strong returns especially on higher grades.
In July of 2018, Batman #386 was selling for around $200.00 in certified 9.8. After the news was announced, prices shot up: an eBay sale went for $299.00 on 08/07/2018 and immediately after that, on 09/19/2018, a best offer sold for exactly $400.00. And…that’s more or less where it’s stayed. Although the occasional sale has reached the $500.00 mark (01/30/2019, eBay fixed price sale), today FMV in certified 9.8 stands at: $400.00.
Should you buy at those prices?
Let’s put this in perspective. This is a Copper Age minor key. Other comics from this period in the Batman run have a value of between $20.00-$100.00 dollars depending on if they’re keys or not. Yes, Black Mask is a great villain, yes, Batman comics are currently undervalued. Unfortunately, I don’t think Black Mask is in the top five of the Batman rogue’s gallery, and I wouldn’t buy this comic today for $400.00. With the news that leaked the other day that Warner may radically alter the character for his big screen appearance, I’d say now is a pretty good time to sell, even better, wait until just after the 'Birds of Prey' trailer drops.
