Posted in: Comics, Heritage Sponsored, Vintage Paper | Tagged: golden age, Ned Pines, Standard/Better/Nedor

The Adventures of the Red Mask and the Best Comics Mystery, at Auction

One of the earliest and most rare of all Standard/Better/Nedor comic books, Best Comics #4 featured the Adventures of the Red Mask.

Published Thu, 23 Feb 2023 11:47:09 -0600

by Mark Seifert

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One of the earliest and rarest comic books from Ned Pines' Standard/Better/Nedor, Best Comics #4 features the historically important Adventures of the Red Mask. A little-known character due to the difficulty in obtaining the source material and the mystery behind his creator, the Red Mask was a Pacific Islander who defended the people of the island of Kaukura from danger. The character is widely considered to be an early example of a superhero of color in comics. There's a rare opportunity to get a Best Comics #4 (Better Publications, 1940) CGC GD 2.0 Off-white pages up for auction in the 2023 February 23 The Thrillingly Exciting Heroes of Nedor Comics Showcase Auction #40219 at Heritage Auctions.

Adventures of the Red Mask syndicated strip from December 1936 (representative, not necessarily in contents of Best Comics #4).

The Adventures of the Red Mask first appeared as a comic strip in color newspaper inserts from Syndicated Features Corp in 1936. The particulars of the strip and its creator have been the subject of significant research and discussion in recent years, made difficult by the historical obscurity of the material and the fact that its creator is unidentified. Further, few have been able to read much of the source material due to the rarity of the original strip and of the Best Comics series itself. The identity of the Red Mask was kept a mystery throughout the storyline, and the strip was ended before that mystery could be revealed. When later collected in the comic books, the character Red Mask himself was colored as a white man on the covers of Best Comics #2-4. All this said, given the location of the South Seas, the initial action taking place on an island, and the story context provided, the most straightforward explanation of the character based on available information is that he's a Pacific Islander.

The Red Mask material was signed by George West, although this is likely a pseudonym for an as-yet unidentified creator. In syndication, the Red Mask strip was replaced after 26 weeks by a strip called Adventures of Nervy Nerts by another unknown creator named George Scott, thought by some to be another likely pseudonym, possibly the same person as the George West who created the Red Mask.

Best Comics #4 is one of the rarest Standard/Better/Nedor comic books, likely due in part to its unusual large-size, landscape format. There are only five entries for this issue on the CGC census, but there's a copy of Best Comics #4 graded CGC GD 2.0 Off-white pages up for auction in the 2023 February 23 The Thrillingly Exciting Heroes of Nedor Comics Showcase Auction #40219 at Heritage Auctions. Prospective bidders new to Heritage Auctions should check out their FAQ on the bidding process and related matters.