Mustanaamio Spesiaali

Mustanaamio Spesiaali is a comic book published by Egmont Kustannus in Finland in 2009. The album style comic book is a special edition release containing comic strip stories which delve into the deep lore of the generation-spanning mythos of the Phantom.

Mustanaamio Spesiaali contains 100 black and white pages measuring 17cm x 26cm with Finish text. The five Phantom comic strip stories published within were all originally published in US Sunday newspapers with English text, all written by Lee Falk and illustrated by Sy Barry. The titles are:

  • Walker’s Table
  • The First Phantom
  • The Founding of the Jungle Patrol
  • The Wig
  • Joonkar and the Slavers

The front cover design of Mustanaamio Spesiaali frames the central artwork by Hans Lindahl with a retro, parchment-like border anchored by stylized skull graphics in the four corners of the comic book which also carry to the back cover, immediately establishing the dark, adventurous tone associated with the Phantom. The front and back covers can be seen below.

The striking front cover art depicts a powerful, muscular Phantom towering with his arms triumphantly raised against a fiery red and orange explosion. Below him, a dramatic collage of classic adventure elements unfolds: a burning historical sailing ship tossed on the waves, a skull resting on the shore, a grim-faced blonde man, and a figure crawling out of the water, the telling of the Phantoms origin story in one illustration. Centered below the main figure of the Phantom is his iconic skull symbol, tying the chaotic action scenes together.

Turning to the back cover of Mustanaamio Spesiaali, the design features a massive, faded skull graphic acting as the background for the promotional text. Translated to English, the short description for the comic book reads:

“A wandering ghost never dies!” But how did the legend of the Black Mask, or rather the Black Masks, begin? This nostalgic Black Mask Comic Book Collection tells the story, which brings together the legendary stories of Lee Falk and one of the most famous Black Mask artists, Sy Barry, from years past. The pages of the special reveal, for example, who was the first Black Mask, how the mysterious Jungle Patrol was founded and how one of the Black Masks ended up as an actor in the premieres of Shakespeare’s plays.