It’s no exaggeration to say that Skybound’s Energon Universe, an interconnected continuity of various popular Hasbro properties such as Transformers and G.I. Joe, has been an unequivocal success not only crushing sales charts but even scoring Eisner Award wins. Now entering its third year, the Energon Universe has no intention of slowing down anytime soon with the launch of M.A.S.K., the new ongoing comic series from the creative team of Dan Watters and artist Pye Parr. Based on the eponymous ’80s toy and cartoon franchise from the ’80s, M.A.S.K. (an acronym for “Mobile Armored Strike Kommand) follows Matt Trakker and his network of specialists as they combat the nefarious Miles Mayhem and his organization of V.E.N.O.M. in a secret arms race for deadly weapons from this planet and beyond.
Though perhaps never reaching the same heights of popularity as Transformers or G.I. Joe, the property still retains a dedicated fanbase over the decades. With the release of the new M.A.S.K. book this week, Skybound is aiming to bring in both old and new fans alike. The Beat had the opportunity to chat with Watters and Pyre about the newest ongoing series in the Energon Universe. The creative team revealed some of the updates for the popular franchise and tease which character they hope fights a Transformer.
Taimur Dar: I remember from the letters page of the Destro miniseries that Dan admitted not having any prior familiarity with G.I Joe at all. As a property, M.A.S.K. definitely has a dedicated fanbase but I wouldn’t put it on the same level of cultural penetration as Transformers or G.I. Joe. I only know about M.A.S.K. because of parody sketches on Robot Chicken. How much did both of you know about M.A.S.K. before going into this project and what attracted you to it?
Pye Parr: I thought the same thing before we started, actually. It didn’t seem as big as a property as G.I. Joe or Transformers. But personally that was my favorite of the three. That’s the one where I had lots of the toys. I didn’t really have G.I. Joe toys as a kid.
Dan Watters: I missed it all the first time around because I’m a few years younger than those franchises. Like Pye said, we didn’t really get G.I. Joe in the UK because it was too American coded and they decided not to bother. They switched it to Action Force. M.A.S.K. was definitely something more I was aware of in the cultural consciousness. It looked a little bit weird and had a specific aesthetic. G.I. Joe you could be looking at a sailor or soldier or mutant and it was all G.I. Joe. Whereas M.A.S.K. had a specific look which was a dude in a mask that made him look like an alien. I think that stuck with me as a kid. I always remember thinking it was something that clearly had a lot of potential and would be interesting to dive into. When our editor Ben Abernathy came to me after Destro and said, “We’re thinking of launching a fourth Energon Universe ongoing.” My head immediately went, “Please be M.A.S.K.! Please be M.A.S.K.!” I don’t know it inside out but I could see the potential.
Taimur Dar: At this point, I think it’s safe to say Dan has a reputation for writing villains such as the aforementioned Destro miniseries a few years ago and the Shredder ongoing series from IDW. The Energon Universe has no shortage of great baddies like Megatron, Cobra Commander, Starscream, and countless others. You have an interesting take on Miles Mayhem as a conspiracy theorist. How did you develop this reinterpretation of Miles Mayhem and making him distinct from the other Energon Universe villains?
Dan Watters: It was finding that negative space around Cobra Commander, Destro, and Megatron because those are iconic villains since the ‘80s and cornerstones of the Energon Universe. I just wanted to make sure Mayhem felt distinct from them and his own goals and agenda. That was interesting to figure out. If you go back and look at the M.A.S.K. cartoon from the ‘80s, I don’t really know what they want. They’re doing bad guy stuff because they’re bad guys. That was enough for that era and that audience but it’s definitely not enough for the Energon Universe. Finding what was pushing Miles Mayhem’s buttons was an interesting thought experiment and challenge. Making him too crazy for Cobra was an interesting starting point. Cobra Commander does not come to this guy because this guy is too unpredictable for him and that’s saying a lot. Having [Miles Mayhem] be absolutely barking mad felt like an interesting way to take him. He’s a lot of fun to write.
Taimur Dar: I love the wide range of work that Pye has showcased in recent years whether it’s the covers he’s drawn for Super Creepshow or interior work on projects like New Gods. How would you describe your creative and artistic sensibilities that drew you to this M.A.S.K. book?
Pye Parr: I’ve been a fan since I was a kid which was an immediate thing. And like Dan said, when Ben called and said they got a new gig and if I would be interested, I was secretly thinking, “Please be M.A.S.K.! M.A.S.K.!” Just because I love drawing cars and tech. It’s got those in spades. That was the main thing. I know lots of people don’t enjoy drawing cars but I much prefer that to other stuff. [Laughs].
Taimur Dar: The original M.A.S.K. cartoon featured the character Bruce “Magic” Sato, a blatant Asian stereotype who constantly spoke in Confucian riddles. The Robot Chicken parody sketch I mentioned perfectly described him as “fantastically offensive.” He’s not in the first issue, but I’m really curious how you updated him?
Dan Watters: You’ll see him very soon. He’s a core M.A.S.K. character. I think you can look at that stuff from the animation that there was an attempt for diversity but approached extremely ham fistedly. If they had an Asian character they just list all their Asian stereotypes. You can just not do that. [Laughs]. You can have these characters and diversity without reducing them to stereotypes and that’s the goal here.
Taimur Dar: Stepping outside the M.A.S.K. book very briefly, Generative AI is a huge topic and issue. Just last week, Martin Scorsese announced he’s embracing AI. I’d love to hear your thoughts and opinions on AI.
Dan Watters: In no uncertain times, I won’t touch it with a shitty stick. It’s anathema to creativity. I hate and loathe it.
Pye Parr: I’m with Dan. I try not to think about it. I’m sticking my head in the sand. I don’t want anything to do with it and don’t want to see it. It got to the point where it was fairly triggering on social media whenever you saw a relentless barrage of AI crap. I don’t want to talk or think about it.
Taimur Dar: Team books can definitely be difficult for both writers and artists. Is it a challenge with this M.A.S.K. comic or something you relish?
Dan Watters: It’s definitely a challenge because it means you’re trying to hit emotional beats and character depth while spreading that out and making sure everyone gets their moment in the sun. Doing something like M.A.S.K. we have the runway and space. We don’t have a team book in four issues and make sure eighteen people get a focus. What we are doing with the book in terms of treating like a M.A.S.K. network specifically means we can bring people in and have them drop out as need be. That’s the entire setup of the story. It’s a global team and when Matt Trakker needs you when something is happening near you that requires your expertise means we can accomplish a couple of characters at a time before it becomes overwhelming. That’s something that comes from the cartoon. But it means we can focus on a couple of characters a time before it becomes overwhelming.
Pye Parr: There’s something nice about drawing a single character over and over again because you get to drill down and refine the way you draw them. One of the challenges of doing many characters is you’ve got to start from scratch almost every issue. If there’s a new character or car I’ve got to learn all that over again. On the plus side you’re never bored. Drawing the same vehicle five thousand times would be hellish but at least I’ve got a few different ones to do.
Taimur Dar: I’ve only recently come to appreciate how collaborative these shared universes are, in particular with artists and designs. Obviously, Matt Trakker and other characters appeared in other books before the launch of this M.A.S.K. book. I’m curious Pye, how much was already established and what are you designing and creating from scratch?
Pye Parr: Yeah some of it had already been established already like Matt Trakker and Miles Mayhem so I had used the work that had gone before. But I still changed stuff. What hadn’t been established was the technology where the mask disappear in the back of the guy’s neck. There were a few panels where Matt Trakker turned up and he left the helmet on the desk. So we had the opportunity to change stuff like that. But little things like that nobody is going to notice. Some [things] we’ve gone from scratch because there’s not much gone before. Others Ben and Robert are keen to look a certain way. So you’ve got to base it around a previous version of the character or not. So it’s a mix of both.
Taimur Dar: I think a huge part of the success of the Energon Universe is that it is interconnected but the books do stand on their own. So when characters from different books meet like Duke from G.I. Joe or Optimus Prime from Transformers, it does feel special. Are you keeping this M.A.S.K. book separate for the most part or can we expect characters from other Energon Universe books pop in?
Dan Watters: It won’t take too long. The interesting thing for me from the get-go was looking at all the crazy things that had been happening in the world. What happened in Transformers led to the formation of G.I. Joe. G.I. Joe exists because of Transformers. M.A.S.K. now also exists because of things that happened in those books. Earth is changing and things are moving very quickly. This is Matt Trakker’s response to it. It is very intrinsically a part of all that but we are taking a minute to get our feet under the table and establish what M.A.S.K. is. We have some really fun stuff coming up that plays with elements from both those franchises in ways I don’t think you’ve seen before?
Taimur Dar: For you Pye, is there anything on your wish list to draw from the Energon Universe like a character?
Pye Parr: It would be fun to get a Transformer. I don’t care which. This is something I’ve had in my head and has absolutely nothing to do with the story but I would love to have T-Bob fighting a Transformer.
Dan Watters: T-Bob versus Grimlock!
[Laughter]
Taimur Dar: Finally, what can you tease to get fans excited for the new M.A.S.K. book?
Dan Watters: I don’t know what we’re allowed to tease! It’s a high octane book and a new angle on the Energon Universe that you haven’t seen yet. It’s something new from the ground up. You don’t need to know anything about M.A.S.K. going in.
Pye Parr: I would say that good guys don’t always win!
M.A.S.K. #1 goes on sale Wednesday, June 10, 2026.
