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Know that the mask destroys one identity while creating another. Know that the mask recreates its wearer. Know that, through the sublimation of personality, inhibitions die and the nature of the wearer is altered--so that deeper drives and more primitive instincts rise to the surface.
„
~ Black Mask
“
I'm not happy, you all know, I'm not happy, and despite appearances... ...this ain't a damned smile on my face.
„
~ Black Mask to his capos.
“
If you have a gun, you can rob a bank...but if you have a bank, you can rob everyone...
„
~ Black Mask.
“
Know that the mask destroys one identity while creating another of greater power. As Roman Sionis I was weak, but as Black Mask...there is no one stronger.
„
~ Black Mask.
Roman Sionis, better known by his persona Black Mask, is a major antagonist in the DC Universe, specifically serving as a major antagonist of the Batman franchise.
He is a prominent enemy of Batman and Catwoman and he is the archenemy of the the Red Hood (jason todd). He is a ruthless, greedy, and egotistical criminal who mainly enjoys the well being obsession for the great course of Power and will Eliminate anyone of whom will cross paths with him and to get what he wants, just for the sake of Maintaining and for control by becoming corrupt as of maintaining territory of the Gotham City Underworld as a Whole.
Black Mask was once the son of a very wealthy couple that died in a fire, which he caused intentionally. He got their money and their company, but soon went bankrupt. His company was then later saved by billionaire Bruce Wayne which then Sionis hates him for taking everything he had earned thus resulting in him becoming one of Gotham City's most ruthless crime lords. His mask is carved out of the Black Coffin of whom housed his father in prior to his death.
Despite being sent to Arkham Asylum, his mild insanity is overshadowed by his greed that he was often reconsidered to be relocated to a regular prison instead of an institution due to knowingly and competently committing his crimes.
Black Mask is an extremely ruthless, callous, greedy, sadistic, egotistical, and cold-blooded crime lord. Already a power-hungry and cruel man even prior to officially claiming his moniker; Black Mask, Roman Sionis grew more in resentment from the neglect shown to him by his wealthy and elitist parents. Though presently sufficient in marketing talent, Sionis nonetheless lacks any proper business acumen, to the point that he brought his business to the brink of financial ruin before being bailed out by Bruce Wayne. He also shows a rather petty side of himself when he came to hate Bruce Wayne for doing him such favor, pridefully viewing the act as an undermining of his own ability.
Long before first becoming a supervillain, he had a fascination with masks. Over time, his taste and approach such as making all his men wear different masks as well as executing people by forcing them to test out his solution laced with poisonous chemicals. Over the years, Sionis would further distort this obsession to include being even more openly sadistic, preferring to torture people with knives and forced cannibalism. His sadism resulted in him becoming one of the few members of Batman's rogues gallery that the caped crusader holds genuine hatred and disgust towards.
Biography[]
Past[]
Roman Sionis was born to a rich and influential family in Gotham City, his father being a very successful industrialist. His parents were fake, presenting and miserable elitists who only cared about maintaining their social standing and public image. As such, when a doctor accidentally dropped Roman on his head following his birth, they were more concerned about preventing their high society friends from finding out than they were for their son's well being. During his childhood, Sionis was attacked by a rabid loose raccoon at the family's country estate, but his parents forbade him from telling anyone about the incident.
Sionis' parents would frequently dragged him around to parties and would force him to become friends with the children of other wealthy families in Gotham City, including the young Bruce Wayne. In reality, his parents hated social climbing nouveau riche types like the Waynes, but they continued affiliating themselves with them to preserve their public image. Sionis was deeply affected by his parent's hypocrisy, and he grew to despise them and the "masks" that they wore in public.
After his high school graduation, Sionis was given a high ranking position in his father's company; the prosperous Janus Cosmetics, where he fell in love with a working class model named Circe. However, he was outraged when his parents disapproved and demanded that he break off his relationship with her. This proved to be the last straw for Sionis, who proceeded to literally burn down the family mansion, which killing his parents in the process.
With his parent's deaths and his troubles seemingly gone, Sionis was free to propose to Circe and inherited his family's fortune and Janus Cosmetics. However, Sionis lacked the business acumen needed to successfully run the company, running it into the ground by funding a failed line of face-paint makeup. In an act of desperation, he poured his money and resources into an experimental waterproof makeup, which he quickly released to the public without proper testing; the makeup turned out to be a deadly toxin that left hundreds of women disfigured. Following the incident, Circe, whom was a gold digger, broke up with Sionis in front of his entire company staff. Afterward, Bruce Wayne, now head of Wayne Enterprises, bought out Janus Cosmetics, relinquishing control from Sionis and appointing his own Board of Directors,
The Mask, Roman Sionis made from his father's coffin.
Sionis was driven mad from losing everything he had; unable to admit to his own mistakes that ruined his life, he turned his hatred towards Bruce Wayne. Breaking into the Sionis family crypt, he was struck by a lightning bolt, sending him flying head first into a nearby stone; Sionis took these events as an omen of his "rebirth". Carving a mask from his father's ebony coffin, he murdered three Wayne Foundation executives, planning to eventually assassinate Bruce himself to fulfill his revenge. In the ensuing battle with Batman, Sionis' mask became permanently burnt into his face as a living death mask, ironically granting his wish of removing all traces of his former identity. In the years that followed, he would become one of Gotham City's most ruthless and sadistic crime lords, commanding the False Face Society, an army of masked henchmen. With each loss to Batman, his empire shrank and his sadism grew.
During No Man's Land, Black Mask forgoed masks and the False Facers, he instead carved up his own burnt face to resemble a human skull, leading to the creation of the Sionis Crime Family.
Among his many crimes were the destruction of a community center on Gotham's East End, the painstaking murder of Catwoman's brother-in-law, and driving her sister Maggie insane by forcing her to eat her husband's corpse. His action's against her family lead to Catwoman seemingly killing him in revenge, attacking him in his penthouse and sending him falling to the street below.
War Games[]
Believed to be dead at Catwoman's hands, The Black Mask survived, and when Gotham City's gang wars erupted, part of a "war game" created by Batman that went horribly wrong. They created a power vacuum in the underworld that he could exploit to build a criminal empire. He murdered Orpheus, a costumed gang leader secretly working with Batman to end the unrest in Gotham, and he took the tragic hero's identity and gained the trust of the teen hero Spoiler. This way he learned information vital to his cause before he betrayed and tortured her. Following Batman's plans, the fake Orpheus rallied all the factions, revealed his true identity and initiated a spree of carnage. Black Mask became the undisputed ruler of the entire Gotham City underworld.
The End[]
Deathstroke later approached Black Mask offering him a place within the Society. Black Mask was eager to strengthen his increasingly tenuous grip on the underworld since Batman was targeting his operations. He accepted the offer and Captain Nazi and Count Vertigo were sent after Batman. However, these villains were defeated, and Batman ultimately prevented the Society from securing a foothold in Gotham.
In an attempt to "improve himself" after this debacle, Black Mask threatened the most important people in Catwoman's life, from Slam Bradley to Holly Robinson. Still thinking that Catwoman adhered to a strict no-kill rule, Black Mask was caught by surprise when Catwoman took revenge by shooting him in the head and blowing his jaw off.
After the shooting, Selina Kyle passed the mantle of Catwoman to her friend Holly Robinson. Not long after, Holly was arrested for the murder of Black Mask.
Black Mask II[]
Black Mask II
In the "Battle For The Cowl" storyline, a new Black Mask surfaces. He had drugged several of Arkham Asylum's inmate, which including the Great White Shark, Posion Ivy, Killer Croc, Victor Zsasz, Jane Doe and the Scarecrow as a total, with a substance that can kill when triggered. Black Mask is then quickly acknowledged as the leader of the group when he blows up much of Arkham Asylum. He then prepares for his ascension by destroying Two-Face and Penguin's reign and becoming Gotham City's crime lord again. Eventually, the new Black Mask is revealed to be Jeremiah Arkham, administrator of Arkham Asylum. After being defeated by Batman, he is then imprisoned in the Newly rebuilt Arkham Asylum in the end.
Blackest Night[]
During the Blackest Night event, Roman Sionis was reanimated as a member of the Black Lantern Corps and intended to hunt down and kill Selina Kyle. However, when Selina refused to show him any fear, Roman decided to provoke her by torturing her traumatized sister Maggie. Although Black Mask was eventually stopped, the experience proved too much for Maggie who later becomes an adversary of Catwoman.
New 52[]
Black Mask's history was altered for the New 52 continuity. Roman Sionis managed to survive being shot by Catwoman and eventually turned himself in at Arkham Asylum in exchange for medical treatment. Jeremiah Arkham only became Roman's brief successor while Roman himself recovered from his injuries. It soon becomes evident that Sionis is also more unhinged than before, as he now believes his iconic mask to be sentient and is compelled to carry out its wishes.
It's later revealed that Black Mask's origin had been changed for this continuity as well. Roman was the son of Richard Sionis, a powerful crime lord who founded the False Face Society and was known by the criminal underworld as "The Mask". With the help of his right hand David Franco (a.k.a. White Mask), Richard lorded over a large criminal empire that spanned across America and Europe. However, the False Face Society eventually split into two halves. One half remained loyal to The Mask while the other half accepted White Mask as their new leader. Roman Sionis desired to reunite the splintered society by taking control of both halves as Black Mask. He tracked down and killed David to usurp leadership of his faction before ending his elderly father's life while disguised as a nurse. With the False Face Society whole again due to Black Mask's efforts, Roman focused his attention on eliminating the gang's competition.
However, it appears his origin has been reverted to being the same as his Post-Crisis counterpart during the Year of the Villain saga.
Other Media[]
Batman (Tim Burton)[]
Though Black Mask does not appear in this movie, the Joker and Alicia Hunt's relationship took inspiration from Black Mask and Circe.
A character loosely based off Black Mask named Richard Sionis appears in the first season of Gotham in the episode "The Mask" as the CEO of Sionis Investments who pits his candidates against each other for a position at his company. Richard makes a reappearance in the opening of season 2 where he ends up being killed.
Richard was later brought over into the main DC Comics continuity as the father of Roman Sionis. Richard Sionis is also the name of Roman's son.
Black Mask has appeared as the main antagonist in the 2020 film, Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn). He was portrayed by Ewan McGregor, who also portrayed Patrick McKenna in Angels & Demons.
Black Mask appears as one of the main antagonists of the second season of the CW Arrowverse series, Batwoman. He is the mysterious leader of the False Face Society and a sadistic crime lord, who is notable for wearing a black mask, who puts a dangerous drug known as Snakebite on the streets of Gotham City.
By day, Roman is a pragmatic and charismatic CEO who plays the "white knight" against Gotham’s corrupt systems. As Black Mask, he is an evil mastermind with a deep hatred of the Crows and masked vigilantes, he is willing to tear down Gotham to enact his revenge. He is played by Peter Outerbridge.
Catwoman: Hunted[]
Black Mask is the secondary antagonist in the 2022 animated movie Catwoman: Hunted.
He is voiced by Jonathan Banks, who also portrayed Mike Ehrmantraut in Breaking Bad and Dirk Moran in Flipper.
Powers and Abilities[]
“
I like to keep the lights on. That way I can always see who's at the table. That way, there are never any surprises.
„
~ Black Mask
Genius-Intellect: He is considered the top strategist and organizer in the Gotham Underworld. He has taken almost full control of the city's underworld on at least two occasions. He killed his parents in a house fire and got away with it by getting his girlfriend to lie for him, confronts a rival criminal boss after paying off his own men to betray him, breaks through Oracle's considerable defenses by bringing plenty of "cannon fodder", and became the king of Gotham's underworld through his ruse as Orpheus wiping out his competition
Leadership: Black Mask commands a small army of thugs and petty criminals that worked for his criminal empire. The thugs that work under him are incredibly loyal and work as mindless drones for his cause. He mainly rules through fear as he has been known to execute employees from time-to-time when they irritate or fail him.
Business Acumen: While Roman was a poor businessman prior to becoming Black Mask, he eventually became skilled enough to maintain a massive criminal empire. Black Mask is the owner of a gigantic criminal empire in Gotham City which has ran for years without being shut down by the police or the Batman. He knows when to minimize his organization to avoid the police.
Mastery of disguise: Has been able to blend in and even fool the Batman with his disguises. He even impersonated Batman himself. He most often uses face putty or plastic masks to hide his skull-head and look like someone else.
Master Torturer: Has been known to torture people into insanity. It is considered his defining skill, as he both physically and mentally tortures them to a degree few could match.
“
All the martial arts ninja training in the world doesn't matter a thinker's damn. The only thing that counts is weather or not you have the will to do what needs to be done. That's why I win even though you beat me.
„
~ Black Mask
Expert hand to hand combat: Black Mask is a skilled fighter and has been seen to be on par with heroes and villains such as Nightwing, Robin, Red Hood, Catwoman, Joker, and at one point the Batman, however, Batman later mentioned that he had been previously exhausted by three days of nonstop fighting in Gotham's citywide gang wars. He was able to defeated a Red Hood impostor trained by Jason Todd and defeated Spoiler in combat.
Master Marksman: Considered by many to be deadly accurate hitting his targets 9/10. He has proven capable of hitting highly nimble athletes (like Jason Todd and Catwoman) in mid-air with relatively little effort and has also shot mid-flight batarangs away from himself.
“
Don't tell me -- you thought I was dead, such a surprise, blah blah blah... Really, Batman. It takes more than a tall building to finish off a legend. I thought you, of all people, would understand that.
„
~ Black Mask to Batman
Peak physical condition: All aspects are considered on par with most adventurers in his time. He can lift and throw grown men through a pool table, lifts a massive stone slab and uses it to bash open a coffin. According to Catwoman his punches are as hard as a pile driver. He is durable enough to endure crashing through a wall, takes a point blank explosion, even survive falling from a skyscraper building. He is fast enough to keep up with Batman in a fight and dodge a rocket launcher blast.
High Pain Tolerance/Indomitable will: Black mask has a high tolerance for pain and is will to keep on going to accomplish his goals through whatever means necessary. His pain tolerance is great enough to endure brutal beatings from Spoiler and Catwoman separately, having batarangs lodged in his hand, and kept fighting after getting shot.
Intimidation: A combination of his menacing signature mask, propensity for torture, and his vast influence has made black mask a feared individual in the primal underworld.
Stealth: Black Mask is stealthy enough to get the drop on Spoiler and Orpheus.
Equipment[]
“
I have another face now. One that suits me far better.
„
~ Black Mask.
Signature Mask: Sionis used to wear a black ebony wood mask carved from his fathers coffin as Black Mask, this mask resembled a scowling face and was later fused to his face. However by No Man's Land, Sionis had instead disfigured his face to look like a skull.
“
In the future, always assume the villain has serval hold-out weapons stashed all over his lair.
„
~ Black Mask to Spoiler
.45 Handguns: Black Mask normal carries one or two semi automatic handguns as his weapons of choice.
Thompson Submachine Gun: Black Mask has sometimes carried and used a Tommy gun in combat.
Knives: Black mask has use a variety of knives for torture and combat purposes.
Toxic Masks: Early in his criminal career, Black Mask often made use of masks laced with Janus Cosmetics' defective makeup. A heavy enough dose of the toxic makeup could kill a grown man in thirty seconds when applied to unprotected skin. Roman also occasionally used masks with more diluted amounts of the makeup as torture devices.
Relationships[]
Allies[]
Hamilton Hill
GCPD (formerly)
Gillian Loeb (formerly)
Arnold Flass (formerly)
Maroni family (formerly)
Falcone family (formerly)
Rupert Thorne (formerly)
Roland Daggett (formerly)
Joker
Penguin (sometimes)
Riddler (sometimes)
Bane (sometimes)
Electrocutioner (formerly)
Firefly (sometimes)
Mad Hatter (sometimes)
Mr. Freeze (sometimes)
Two-Face (sometimes)
Clayface (sometimes)
Poison Ivy (sometimes)
Scarecrow (sometimes)
Killer Croc (sometimes)
Calendar Man (sometimes)
Mafia's and Mobsters of Gotham (formerly)
Black Lantern Corp (formerly)
Corrupt cops of Gotham
Corrupt politicians of Gotham
Corrupt business owners of Gotham
Legion of Doom
Secret Society of Super Villains
False Face Society
Other Supervillains (sometimes)
His own henchmen
Enemies[]
Batman - Archenemy; Former business rival
Batgirl
Robin
Nightwing
Batwoman
Jason Todd/Red Hood - 2rd Archnemesis
GCPD
Sarah Essen
James Gordon
Harvey Bullock
Aaron Cash
Justice League
Supergirl
Teen Titans
Harley Quinn
Young Justice
Birds of Prey
Rupert Thorne
Penguin (sometimes)
Maroni family
Falcone family
Roland Daggett
Riddler (sometimes)
Killer Croc (sometimes)
Poison Ivy (sometimes)
Clayface (sometimes)
Firefly (sometimes)
Bane (sometimes)
Calendar Man (sometimes)
Catwoman - 3rd Archenemy and killer
Penguin (sometimes)
Mr. Freeze (sometimes)
Electrocutioner
Mad Hatter (sometimes)
Blackgate staff
Arkham Asylum staff
Other Supervillains (sometimes)
Suicide Squad
Quotes[]
“
Kill him and I will pay you whatever you want. Make him suffer and I'll double it!
„
~ Black Mask in Batman: Arkham Origins.
“
First you fall then Gotham.
„
~ Black Mask during his game over screen in Batman: Arkham City.
“
And between the two of us, little man we both know I'm the one who's not afraid to die.
„
~ The Black Mask
“
Do me a favor and die already! I got a business to run.
„
~ Black Mask's message to the player in Arkham Knight's game over screen.
“
Gotham's my bitch.
„
~ Black Mask plotting to take over Gotham City by force.
“
You're supposed to be dead. Let me fix that for you.
„
~ Black Mask ordering Batman, unaware that he is really Dick Grayson, dead when he notices that he is alive in Batman: Bad Blood.
Trivia[]
Black Mask is similar to fellow Batman villain Hush, in that both are dark reflections on what Bruce Wayne could have become if he suffered from parental abuse during his childhood.
Video Games Gotham Knights Court of Owls (Jacob Kane & Talon) | League of Shadows (Ra's al Ghul & Talia al Ghul) | Mr. Freeze | Clayface | Penguin | Man-Bat | Harley Quinn | Professor Pyg
Video Games Gotham Knights Court of Owls (Jacob Kane & Talon) | League of Shadows (Ra's al Ghul & Talia al Ghul) | Mr. Freeze | Clayface | Penguin | Man-Bat | Harley Quinn | Professor Pyg
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