M.A.S.K. S1E17

Mystery of the Rings

Miles Mayhem holds up a ring while his masked agents look on.

At a Renaissance fair, Matt Trakker and Scott are guests of a Duke whose country needs money. V.E.N.O.M. robs the fair of antiques to cover the theft of the Mystery Ring, one of a set of three that together are said to reveal where a medieval ruler hid his treasure. M.A.S.K. guards the Duke, who wears the second ring, but V.E.N.O.M. knocks him out and takes it. Matt works out that the letters engraved in the rings are Roman numerals matching the stones of an ancient sundial called Sunhenge, where the Duke's archaeologist is digging for the third. Scott and T-Bob follow without permission, find the treasure, and are caught in the crossfire when Mayhem arrives.

Coming Soon!

Here is a treasure hunt in which the person who finds the treasure is never the person who solved the riddle. Matt Trakker and Scott are guests of a Duke at a Renaissance fair, where one display holds a Mystery Ring with a letter engraved inside the band; there is a set of three, and together they are said to reveal where a medieval ruler hid his wealth. V.E.N.O.M. robs the fair of a handful of antiques, M.A.S.K. correctly reads that as cover for the ring, and from there the plot becomes a relay of people tailing one another.

The pattern worth naming is that everyone in this story is following somebody else's work. Matt plants a tracer on the Duke's car, V.E.N.O.M. waits for the Duke to leave home wearing the second ring and is content to play the spider while others find things, Scott and T-Bob trail Matt out to the ruin without permission, and the Duke's archaeologist does the actual digging before the rest of them turn up. Mayhem's parting complaint, that he did all the legwork, is the best line of the episode because it is the one every party could have said.

The puzzle is handled with more patience than the title promises. The Duke explains that the Mystery Ring carries a V inside its band, then, after he loses the second ring, that it carries an X; the third ring, said to hold the key to the treasure, is lost. The computer's wireframe views of stone pillars and altars marked with Roman numerals give the audience something to look at while Matt reasons, and the idea that the letters are numerals for a sundial is the kind of clue a young viewer can solve a half-second before the hero does. Sunhenge itself, with two blue beams of light rising from the ruin against the sky, is a pleasing piece of landscape for the finale.

The smaller threads are warm. Scott and T-Bob are trying to take a snapshot for a postcard to Gloria, and the best the camera manages is a picture of one thief's boot, a gag that shrinks the villains to the size of a joke without spoiling the later threat. The robbery at the fair is a neat bit of costume drama: V.E.N.O.M. agents in gold armor and orange capes wheel a yellow canister through the tents, a disguise that suits the setting and would look absurd anywhere else.

The standout is the children's discovery. Scott and T-Bob climb a golden rock face while a helicopter fires pink and green blasts at them, look through a hole into a cavity heaped with gold, crowns, jewels and a chest, and escape with T-Bob's dome stuffed with treasure. The children carry the plot here, and the animation gives the scramble a sense of height and tumble that the earlier fair scenes lack!

The weakness is the hunch at the center of it. Matt's deduction runs from the letter X to ten on a sundial, and from there to Sunhenge, with no step in between except that he has a feeling; the show asks us to accept that the engraved letters match the stones because the plot needs them to. It is the kind of leap an episode of this length has to take, and the pace never gives the audience time to doubt it, but the route from jewelry to location is thinner than the rest of the puzzle's care deserves. Scott's unauthorized trip, followed by Matt's mock threat of discipline, is also a family beat the series returns to often.

Placed among the early episodes, this is a gentler, puzzle-box story with a good eye for period setting. In an episode where everyone follows, the children who trail Matt out to the ruin are the ones who first lay hands on the treasure.

The M.A.S.K. wiki lists the episode's location as Sunhenge, England, and records Vanessa Warfield as Jackhammer's co-driver on the mission, manning its laser turret.
The M.A.S.K. wiki records a drawing error in the Renaissance fair scene: when Duke Windsor bends down to give a little girl a balloon, her hair changes from brown to blond between shots.
The M.A.S.K. wiki notes that when Scott orders T-Bob to zoom in on the thieves and take pictures, T-Bob runs after them instead of using his scooter mode.
The M.A.S.K. wiki says Gloria Baker is mentioned only, listing her among the agents not in action; the postcard Scott and T-Bob hope to send her is the reference.
The M.A.S.K. wiki records the safety tip as Scott and T-Bob telling another kid not to ride a skateboard on the street and to use private property instead; Wikipedia says each episode ends with a safety tip.
The M.A.S.K. wiki's voice cast for this episode lists one actor, Graeme McKenna, as both T-Bob and Duke Windsor, and Sharon Noble as Vanessa Warfield, the M.A.S.K. Computer and the skateboarding boy.
The M.A.S.K. wiki describes the Jackhammer toy as carrying an extra machine gun on the turret, giving it five cannons where the cartoon version has four.
The M.A.S.K. wiki notes that the Jackhammer and Cliff Dagger appear only in season 1 of the cartoon and are absent from the Racing Series.

Matt Trakker

Bruce Sato

Alex Sector

Miles Mayhem

Cliff Dagger

Sly Rax

Vanessa Warfield

Scott Trakker

T-Bob

A fortune-teller's glowing crystal ball lights a fairgoer crowd as a bride in white looks on.

A gray-haired man with a mustache looks off to the side at the fair.

A gray-haired man in a purple suit walks past a little girl with Matt Trakker beside him.

The man in the purple suit sits on a barrier while Matt Trakker stands beside him.

The purple-suited man and Matt Trakker walk across the fairground under pennants.

Fairgoers crowd around a glass case holding a pink disc.

A crowd surrounds the glass case while two men walk past under a spotlight.

The purple-suited man holds up a ring between his fingers.

A boy and a red-haired girl with ice cream talk to a chef-hatted vendor.

A girl in a yellow dress runs with an ice cream cone as T-Bob rolls behind her.

Scott watches T-Bob who leans on a low wall near a thatched booth.

T-Bob swings his arms wide with an owl perched on his open head.

Scott sits on a wall behind T-Bob as a woman in a long orange dress passes.

Scott walks past a striped pole as T-Bob hops toward a booth.

A knight in gold armor and a cavalier in orange push a pink cart holding a yellow tank.

The knight and the cavalier wheel the pink cart with a yellow canister through a tent.

A gold-armored man in a gas mask crouches beside a masked cavalier behind a curtain.

A masked cavalier in an orange cape leaps over a man collapsed in purple.

Scott and T-Bob watch the fairgoers from behind in front of a maypole.

Scott points toward a stall as T-Bob walks off.

T-Bob bends over a man in a blue uniform lying flat on the ground.

Scott looks worried beside T-Bob under strings of flags.

A photograph shows a costumed thief and a woman in pink.

Matt Trakker speaks with a serious look from inside a car.

Matt Trakker rests his chin on his hand in thought.

A red wireframe truck splits into cab and trailer beside a glowing orange line.

A pet shop with animals in the window sits on a city street.

Alex Sector checks his wristwatch while holding a white mouse.

Alex Sector rests a hand on a counter holding a wire cage in his shop.

Scott and T-Bob walk a hedge maze toward a statue as a white bird flies.

Scott reaches out a hand to T-Bob in a meadow.

A stone mansion stands behind a trimmed hedge.

Matt Trakker watches through a diamond-paned window.

The purple-suited man gestures in a library with a crest on the wall.

The gray-haired man looks sideways as Matt Trakker stands at a desk in the library.

The purple-suited man opens both hands as he explains in front of the bookshelves.

A hand with a blue ring points at a wall crest while Matt Trakker watches.

A pale blue sedan seen from the front with its headlights on.

Alex Sector, a dark-haired M.A.S.K. agent and Matt Trakker watch a screen in a command center.

Matt Trakker in armor listens as Alex Sector speaks.

A monitor shows the gray-haired man in purple stepping into a pale blue sedan.

A monitor shows the pale blue sedan driving away from the forest clearing.

A red tractor truck waits near trees with the mansion in the distance.

A gloved hand grips a steering wheel while the road ahead shows in a mirror.

The pale blue sedan drives along a dirt road beside a forest.

A car tire spins up sand beside a disc half buried in the dirt.

The gray-haired man in purple drives the sedan with a ring on his hand.

Sunlit tree branches fill the sky from below.

A dark helicopter flies over the treetops.

An old man slumps over a steering wheel as a visored agent in a blue uniform looks in.

A red sports car with a lightning bolt speeds along a desert road.

Two V.E.N.O.M. agents in masks ride in a vehicle with an orange glow.

The red car and truck follow a long road toward the distance.

Three V.E.N.O.M. agents in helmets and armor stand outdoors.

A dark blue helicopter with red trim flies through the clouds.

Miles Mayhem in a blue uniform and visor leads three masked agents.

Miles Mayhem strides away as his masked agents move off to the right.

Matt Trakker sits in a red car's open door as Alex Sector talks to him.

Matt Trakker in gray armor leans over to look at the slumped driver.

A V.E.N.O.M. agent in an orange suit and gas mask stands under the sky.

Matt Trakker leans toward the window as Alex Sector and a masked agent look on.

Matt Trakker, Alex Sector and a masked agent stand by the open sedan on the sand.

Matt Trakker stands next to the open door of the pale blue sedan.

A framed photograph lies in an orange-lit room beside a dark robot.

T-Bob sits at a desk in a dimly lit room as a dark-haired boy looks on.

T-Bob stands with his hands on his hips and an open mouth.

T-Bob holds a photograph of Scott up to his face.

A hand holds a photograph of Scott smiling in front of a golden chair.

A dark-haired man in a red jacket holds a blue map with yellow rectangles.

A helicopter and two vehicles stand on a desert plateau as figures gather.

Hands warm over a fire in a stone fireplace.

The purple-suited man stands by the fireplace while Matt Trakker leans on a bookcase.

The gray-haired man in purple looks down thoughtfully in the library.

Matt Trakker stands facing a lattice window with his back to us.

Matt Trakker stands behind the lattice window.

Scott joins Matt Trakker behind the lattice window.

Through lattice bars, a garden maze holds a sundial at its center.

A wireframe of stone pillars stands on a gridded plain on a black screen.

Alex Sector, Matt Trakker and a dark-haired agent study a map screen.

A wireframe grid shows stone altars marked with Roman numerals.

The red car and red truck wait in a forest clearing in front of the mansion.

Scott waves a greeting beside T-Bob on a dirt road.

T-Bob stands upright on his legs with his arms at his sides.

A hand points to a treasure chest on a gold pile seen through a grid.

V.E.N.O.M. agents stand over a captive in a yellow jacket while Miles Mayhem faces them.

A masked agent grips the chest of Miles Mayhem's uniform as another stands at right.

Miles Mayhem and three masked agents walk across the sand.

Two blue beams of light shine skyward from a distant ruin.

Two V.E.N.O.M. agents sit in a vehicle in masks.

A red armored truck races across the sand in a cloud of dust.

A masked driver in a red scarf and white helmet sits behind the wheel.

The two masked V.E.N.O.M. agents drive on in the truck cab.

Scott rides T-Bob like a scooter across the desert.

A dark helicopter flies close as Scott holds onto T-Bob.

Scott and T-Bob climb a steep golden rock face.

A green energy blast hits the rock as Scott and T-Bob jump back.

Miles Mayhem pilots a helicopter while a red car flies below through the windshield.

Miles Mayhem sits strapped in the helicopter pilot seat.

A heap of gold, jewels, crowns and a chest lies in a rock cavity.

Scott and T-Bob peer down through a hole in the rock.

Miles Mayhem grips a helicopter control wheel with white gloves.

Scott slides down the rock face as T-Bob tumbles beside him and a pink beam passes.

Scott tumbles upside down down the slope as dust puffs up.

Scott walks toward the rock as T-Bob hides beside it and dust billows.

Scott holds open T-Bob's dome that is full of gold and jewels.

Scott and T-Bob stand at the foot of a large rock as red cars sit at the left.

Scott, T-Bob and a gray-armored agent stand before a cracked rock wall.

Scott, T-Bob and a gray-armored agent head into a cave at the cliff base.

An armored agent hugs a man in a yellow jacket in front of the red truck.

A man works under a red car's hood while Scott and T-Bob sit nearby.

Scott polishes a red car as T-Bob wipes the window with a cloth.

Scott looks at T-Bob next to a red car.

A blond man in a light shirt gives Scott a thumbs-up beside T-Bob.

A blond man in a light shirt ruffles Scott's hair.

Scott rides T-Bob down a driveway beside a house with a red roof.

A boy in a red helmet sits by a skateboard as Scott and T-Bob help.

Scott crouches beside the hurt skateboarder while T-Bob stands behind them.

DISCUSSION

Comments launch with the forum.

The mask.toys forum and the comment threads beneath every article come online together. Drop your email below and we will let you know the moment they go live.