Abhiroop Das
Created by Ben Edlund, ‘The Tick‘ adds a contemporary spin to the titular superhero, who is known for playing on the suspension of disbelief that is unique to the genre. When he arrives in his blue suit, we don’t know about his past, his real name, his motives, or even the reason he is called the Tick. However, he doesn’t seem to have any answers for these questions either, which is what makes his shenanigans that much more unpredictable. As he joins hands with Arthur Everest and takes down one supervillain after another, one question rises to prominence faster than any other: what truly lies behind the mask. Almost amusingly, we never get a good look behind the cowl, even when it is supposedly the Tick’s day off. The mystery behind this fashion choice, however, has a lot to do with who the Tick really is in his heart. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Tick’s Mask is Effectively a Part of His Body and Characterization
At no point in the two-season run of ‘The Tick’ do we ever see the eponymous superhero give us a peek into what is behind the mask, much less take off the suit, and it is likely for good reason. This has been the tradition for almost all of ‘The Tick’s history, both in the original comic and its subsequent adaptations, and adds to the fact that we practically know nothing about the Tick’s personal life. Neither his face, nor his name, past, or even biological nature is ever made explicit, which suggests that the suit might be the narrative device that is holding all these mysteries together. Given that the Tick doesn’t seem to remember anything from his past aside from being a superhero, chances are that he is not even a human, and that the mask is not just a mask, but an intrinsic part of his physical makeup.
Apart from the Tick, there don’t seem to be many superheroes who boast an absurd amount of physical strength without having any mechanical augmentations. Superian, arguably the strongest in the world, is an alien, which makes one wonder if the same can be said about our man in the blue suit. In that case, it would make sense for the suit and the mask to be the Tick’s subconscious imitation of what a superhero looks like, and because he has no recollection of making it, even the question of living without it seems redundant. There is also a joke in the second episode of the show that waves away the sudden difference in costume design, where the Tick goes from having a foamy suit to a more armored one before settling for more of a hard shell. This indicates that life beyond the mask isn’t necessarily something the Tick has ever envisioned, much less acted upon.
One Rendition of the Tick Famously Doesn’t Sport a Full Mask
While the Tick has almost always had his face partially covered, for a brief period of time, that was not the case. In Fox’s nine-episode run of ‘The Tick,’ also created by Ben Edlund, actor Patrick Warburton essays a version of the superhero where his entire face is visible. The removal of the eye and nose cover makes for a major stylistic departure from the show, and especially from the comic and animated series, but it is not without reason. Edlund himself noted that Warburton is a comedic actor known for his visual humor, and that “there was no way to cover his eyes and get the same range, intensity, and specificity of emotion. With face unfettered, Patrick has created a three-dimensional, hilarious., totally convincing Tick.”
In contrast to Warburton’s version of the Tick, which also comes with remote-controlled antennas, Peter Serafinowicz’s portrayal of the character remains minimalistic to an extent, providing a more accurate design while retaining the comedic beats that make this superhero unique. Given that the Tick is a satirical take on superheroes, such eccentricities of design are to be expected. Maintaining a double identity and meshing in with society has often been a staple for superhero character arcs, but the Tick completely does away with that element and instead embraces the absurdity of a superhero who has no specific reason to be good but chooses to save lives anyway.
Read More: The Tick Season 3: Why Was it Canceled?
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