| The Mask is Always Greener on the Other Side Part 1 | |
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| Season 1, Episode 1 | |
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| Air date | August 12, 1995 (USA) September 3, 1995 (UK) |
| Written by | Duane Capizzi |
| Episode guide | |
| Previous The Mask (film) |
Next The Mask is Always Greener on the Other Side Part 2 |
The Mask is Always Greener on the Other Side: Part 1 is the first episode of The Mask: The Animated Series.
Summary[]
After causing him nothing but trouble, Stanley Ipkiss gets rid of his mask by burying it in quick-drying cement, but must retrieve it to save Peggy and Milo after Pretorius tricks Stanley's friend and coworker, Charlie, into building a "house of tomorrow" and kidnaps them.
Plot[]
Stanley, in his apartment, bemoans about his bad luck with women, though he hopes that having a date with Matilda, the security guard who works at his bank will work this time, only to endure another tirade from Mrs. Peenman for "thinking too loud". A seething Stanley becomes tempted to wear the Mask to teach his landlady a lesson, but he stops himself, deciding that she's not worth it. However, the alarm from the bank goes off and he decides to put it on, transforming into his alter-ego, The Mask, who takes a moment to shove exploding cigars in Mrs. Peenman's mouth before going over to the bank to stop the robbery.
After messing with the getaway driver and dispatching him (along with wrecking the getaway car), The Mask enters the bank, but Matilda had already managed to dispatch the rest of the robbers. Unfortunately, The Mask comes in and (dressed as a knight), boldly announces his rescue of Matilda, who is horrified by his green face and mannerisms and runs off. The Mask decides to pursue her (while dressed as Romeo), which unfortunately allows the robbers to escape in their wrecked vehicle.
The next morning, Stanley wakes up and discovers that he is late for work, so he gets up and dresses himself in a hurry, but then he bumps into Peggy, who tells him he (as The Mask) has made the front page, and begs him to give her real new stories to put on with his alter-ego The Mask, but Stanley (still remembering that she sold him out to the mobsters), refuses to do it for her. Though she promises not to tell anyone that he and The Mask are the one and same person, he still refuses to do it.
Meanwhile, a sinister-looking man concealed by the shadows reads through the newspaper on last night's incident. Having observed The Mask's activities for some time, and expressing interest in his powers, he orders his henchmen to find the true identity of The Mask and report back immediately.
At the bank, the police are investigating, and Mayor Tilton is keeping everything under control, while he is making sure that his new statue is the top priority. After a mishap involving Stanley's rundown car, the Loaner (which makes noises that imitate gunshots, startling Tilton), Stanley awkwardly greets the Mayor before entering the bank. To his heartbreak and dismay, he discovers that Matilda has decided to quit after being mortified by The Mask's overly passionate approach, plus the fact that he knew her name. Charlie acts suspicious towards Stanley (a reference to the end of the original film when he tried to take the mask for himself after Stanley threw it into the river), but Stanley denies it. As if on cue, Lt. Kellaway and Detective Doyle approach them, with the former accusing Stanley of being The Mask as he was not only seen at the bank, but also at his apartment building as well. Stanley tries to deny involvement, but Kellaway is unconvinced and warns Stanley that he will be watching him. Stanley returns home just as his neighbor Francis Forthwright tasks him with looking after her baby son Baby.
Meanwhile, the sinister man's henchmen, having watched Stanley and Kellaway's conversation while disguised as police officers, report back to him that the police suspects that Stanley is The Mask. Intrigued, the figure decides that they must get to Ipkiss before they do. Instead of sending his henchmen to carry out the job knowing that The Mask's unpredictable powers may be too much for a normal human being, he assigns his main goon, Walter, a hulking, mute man, with bringing him Stanley.
Back at the apartment, Baby is watching cartoons, while Stanley is complaining about the times his-alter ego has gotten him into trouble, unaware of the closet door where the mask is being held opening. Baby sees it and crawls over to it, and just as Stanley finishes his rant and contemplates getting rid of the mask, he is too late to notice Baby putting on mask, turning him into a wild and destructive version of himself. Mayhem ensues as Stanley tries to remove it from the infant, who proves to be just as strong and chaotic as the adult Mask, thrashing him around the room while Francis returns and knocks on the door, unaware of what is actually happening inside. Stanley manages to grab Masked Baby and takes the mask off him. Finally fed up, Stanley takes the mask over to a construction site and throws to a cement filling where Mayor Tilton's new statue is placed above it before walking off, happily singing to himself about finally being rid of the mask.
At the bank, Stanley is still humming to himself until Charlie comes in and takes him to a place called a House of Tomorrow and takes him inside. In the bushes nearby, Walter is watching them. While showing the layout, Charlie explains to Stanley that the House of Tomorrow is still in need of some repairs after a robot dog malfunctions. Stanley tells him that he has no experience with robotics since he's a bank businessman, but Charlie dismisses his claims. Stanley inexplicably brings out the mask and puts it on, allowing The Mask to get back at Charlie by putting him in a Jack-In-The-Box and sending him flying through the roof, but it turns out to be Stanley's imagination. With no other option, he reluctantly agrees to help. Pleased, Charlie instructs Stanley to meet him at 5:00, handing him an envelope for the house's insurance papers to be delivered to the post office before leaving. Stanley begins to have second thoughts about throwing the mask away, but retains his belief that he did the right thing. Before he can leave, he is suddenly grabbed by Walter. Believing it to be a mugging, Stanley tries to buy off the brute, who wordlessly carries him off.
Stanley is strapped to a chair while being probed by various devices until the sinister figure shows up, introducing himself as Pretorius, who reveals that while Stanley is in perfect health, his psychological profile is unique; Pretorius explains that Stanley is a repressed man with a wild side waiting to be released, concluding that Stanley's powers lie within the mask itself. Stanley tries to deny this and accuses him of pulling off an elaborate joke. Offended, Pretorius pulls his shirt open, revealing an android body underneath and presses a button on the chest, causing his head to fly off and sprout spider-like legs, asking a horrified Stanley if there is anything funny about a disembodied head. He then explains that he surgically removed his own head and replaced his body with an android in order to have the means of reducing his supposedly huge workload by sharing it between his head and body. Reattaching his head to his body, he reveals to Stanley the real reason he wants the mask: to create artificial copies of the artifact in order to create an unstoppable superhuman army. Stanley refuses to aid him; anticipating this act of defiance, Pretorius calls for Walter, who is holding Milo in a cage, which he begins to crush in order to persuade Stanley. Before any harm can be done to the dog, one of Pretorius' henchmen walks in, informing him of an intruder, prompting Pretorius and Walter to leave Stanley to consider his cooperation.
The intruder is none other than Peggy, who had followed Walter to Pretorius' hideout in order to get her scoop on The Mask, only to be dismayed when Stanley tells her that he buried the mask. Nevertheless, she frees Stanley, only for Pretorius' henchmen to suddenly return and take Peggy and Milo hostage, just as Pretorius and Walter also return. With no other option, Stanley flees the hideout in order to retrieve the mask, with Walter giving chase. Running into a closet, he pulls a lever, which causes the floor to eject him onto Landfill Park, where the hideout happens to be underneath.
With no time to lose, he races towards the construction site, but to his horror and frustration, he remembers that the mask is underneath Tilton's statue, just as a worker informs him of the quick-drying cement, until Walter shows up and punches the statue, crumbling it to pieces. Stanley attempts to hit him with a sledgehammer, only for it to bounce harmlessly off the behemoth. Backing away, Stanley ends up walking into still wet cement. With Walter closing in, Stanley prepares to accept his fate as the episode ends on a cliffhanger.
Appearances[]
Characters[]
- Stanley Ipkiss
- Milo
- Mrs. Peenman
- Matilda
- Peggy Brandt
- Pretorius
- Mayor Mitchell Tilton
- Charlie Schumaker
- Mitch Kellaway
- Doyle
- Walter
- Baby Forthwright
- Francis Forthwright
- Bank Robbers
- Pretorius' Henchmen
- Construction workers
Locations[]
- Edge City
- Stanley Ipkiss' Apartment
- Edge City Bank
- Pretorius' Lair
- House of Tomorrow
- Landfill Park
- Construction site
Trivia[]
- This episode's title is a reference to the phrase "the grass is always greener on the other side".
- Though it's brief, the scene with Baby Forthwright wearing the mask possibly gave rise to the ill-fated Son of the Mask.
- The face Baby makes when wearing the mask for the first time would later be used when Alvey Avery goes on a rampage to drive his father Tim insane.
- The scene with Masked Baby slamming Stanley around the room was also repeated in that film, with Alvey slamming his father while imitating Bam-Bam from The Flintstones.
