M.A.S.K. - M.A.S.K. Raven (1986)

For my first real post on this blog, let's take a look at a cool '80s toy I got the other day - Raven from M.A.S.K. 

For those who may not know, M.A.S.K. was a cartoon, toy brand, comic etc. in the mid-80s that revolved around two teams - Mobile Armored Strike Kommand (M.A.S.K.) and the Vicious Evil Network of Mayhem (V.E.N.O.M.).  I'll leave it up to you to find out who were the good guys and bad guys. Each member of the team had one (or several) vehicles that could turn into some other sort of vehicle and/or an attack/defense mode. Each figure also had a 'Mask' that they wore that had some sort of special power.

The first series of M.A.S.K. toys (produced by Kenner after their Star Wars run) came out in 1985, and Raven is one from the second series from 1986. 

In it's "Stealth Mode," Raven is a Corvette C4 and is driven by M.A.S.K. agent Calhoun Burns and his "Gulliver" mask, which has the power to shrink or enlarge people or objects.

Calhoun Burns in the cartoon

Calhoun's Gulliver mask

Raven in Corvette mode

 But, like all M.A.S.K. toys, Raven isn't just a normal car. It can also change into an "Armed Seaplane" in its defense mode. Like all M.A.S.K. cars it comes with Calhoun and his mask, although I don't have the figure, just the vehicle. Raven also came with two orange discs that could be put in the front of the car, and when you pull a mechanism on the back, and then press the button on top of the car it shoots them out, although I don't have the discs for it either.

Raven in seaplane mode

To transform Raven, you press what would be the license plate on the back, and that causes the "turbo thrusters" to pop up. Next, there is a button on the side of the car that you press to flip around the front of the vehicle. The tires on the front and back also flip over and you can pull up the "particle blasters" inside of them. The "reverse gull wing doors" also come down to reveal the M.A.S.K. logo and the inside of the car, complete with seat belts. 

All in all, Raven is a cool little car with several cool gimmicks. It also looks great in its stealth and defense mode. Sometimes with M.A.S.K. toys, only one form looks nice and the other, not so much. 

More M.A.S.K. reviews will be posted in the future.