Welcome back to the Dangerotic blog, Besties! On the previous site we had an on-going series called “Distressing Your Damsel,” where we discussed methods of capture and peril for our poor, unsuspecting heroines. One of the things I actually found so exciting about starting over here on Dangerotica.com is having an excuse to start over and sort of reboot that series. So…here we are!

I want to start with one of the perils I don’t use in my own writing very often…even though I know I probably should, and even though lots of you regularly ask for it: UNMASKING.

The Classic Domino Mask (Minimal Eye Mask): A small, usually color-matched mask that covers just the eyes and upper third to half of the face, sometimes in a stylized shape. It leaves the rest of the face, hair, and mouth completely exposed.

From a design sense—This is probably the most iconic style of mask for superheroines, probably because it leaves their hair free and highlights, rather than actually obscures their pretty faces. It gives the heroine more of a “street-level vigilante” or noir vibe rather than goddess-like icon status. And lets just be honest, there’s something kind of sexy about this style of mask.

In canon (as in why a heroine might chose this style)—It’s the quickest and easiest to put on. I also always thought it seemed the easiest to improvise; anyone could find, buy or create a mask like this without raising too many questions. In fact, my heroine the Scarlet Dove always wore a mask like this because I could picture her walking into a party/costume store and finding a Mardi Gras mask or something like it pretty easily.

In peril/unmasking scenes—This minimalist design is the quickest and easiest to remove. It allows for the sudden, shocking reveal — one tug and you’re looking straight into her eyes with nothing left to hide behind. Or it can be intimate in the worst ways—rough fingers against her skin, working under the edges, peeling them up, then slowly peeling the rest of the mask off while she whimpers or pleads helplessly…

The Full Iconic Cowl: A semi-rigid or structured hood that covers the entire head and often the neck/upper shoulders. Usually features eye slits or lenses, and a strong silhouette. It completely changes the shape of the head.

From a design sense—This style of mask becomes instantly iconic, not to mention instant brand recognition. The silhouette can be so strong (as with the Bat-family) that even from a distance or in shadow you know exactly who the heroine is.

In canon—This is probably the style that would provide maximum identity protection. It also provides the most actual protection, like armor. Also, it also adds intimidation, whether we’re talking about those “creature of the night” vibes with the Bat-family—or a more iconic ready for battle motif, as with Captain Marvel. Either way the full cowl just possesses a very mythic quality.

In peril/umasking scenes—This is one of the most dramatic to remove. Pulling a full cowl off usually involves lifting it over the head, allowing her hair to cascade out and down and completely transforms the silhouette from iconic to damsel in distress. It feels like unwrapping a gift, or maybe removing her armor.

The Full Mask / Hood: A tight-fitting fabric or suit-material hood that covers the entire head, usually with large eye lenses of some kind. I guess we’re thinking mostly the Spider-peoples with this one.

From a design sense—I’ve honestly never considered giving my heroines a mask like this because I feel like it’s more suited to a visual medium: The big eyes let the character emote and connect with readers/viewers even when fully covered. It also reads as slightly alien, or at least very mysterious—but we spend so much time in my heroines’ heads, that might be pointless. Plus, masks like this have always made me a little claustrophobic just thinking about wearing one.

In canon—This is obviously the maximum level of identity protection. It’s also very aesthetic, so a heroine who is really focused on her gimmick (oops, there’s my wrestler showing) might opt for a mask like this.

In peril/unmasking scenes—I guess I’d have to say the same for this style as the cape and cowl, maybe even more so. Very dramatic, very slow peel revealing the whole face a bit at a time. There’s really no way to remove these masks quickly.

The Tech Visor / Deployable Helmet: Sleek, high-tech goggles, a partial visor, or a full retractable helmet with glowing or transparent lenses, HUD elements, or mechanical hinges. It can look futuristic, armored, or tactical. Sometimes it opens like a motorcycle helmet or slides up.

From a design sense—This mask is about the tech. It is usually more about function than identity protection. I chose it for Ener-G; her visor is how she gets information on the alien threats she faces, as well as many other modes such as scanning, tracking, energy levels, etc.

In canon—Well, see above. A heroine with access to this kind of tech is going to use it. Even if she’s not worried about protecting her identity, whatever tools, uses, protections, built-in comms, targeting, etc.—are going to make her a more effective.

In peril/unmasking scenes—This is probably the least about the “unmasking” and the most about stripping away the advantages the visor/helmet provides.

This might be a bit of a side tingent, but; when I was growing up I thought all superheroes/heroines had to have the “mild mannered” secret identities. Like, I thought that was one of the rules of the genre, and why they all wore masks, whatever the style. Of course, it should be noted that my predominant superhero experiences were with the television and Saturday morning cartoon versions. I collected some comics for a very short period, mostly just X-Men books (Generation X was my favorite), and entirely in the 90s. So, I held this presumption about secret identities even up until the MCU really got underway. I remember being surprised when Tony Stark revealed he was Iron Man at the end of that first movie, and then it went on to blow my mind how no one in the MCU really protected their identity, or even hid the fact they were a superhero (except for Spider-Man, which didn’t last long but then came back, I guess—and Dare Devil, who seems to be the only one it ever really mattered for).

Okay okay, before I digress too far… I guess that predisposition is part of why all of my heroines wear masks mainly to hide/protect their identities. Maybe it’s funny then too that I basically always chose the domino/minimalist eye mask style—which would be the least effective in that endeavor.

Actually, to be honest, that’s one of my favorite fictional truths of the Perilverse; that those masks effectively hide my heroines’ identities.

Doubly funny then is that my heroines are also basically “nobodies,” what identities are they even protecting?

To be honest, that’s part of the inspiration for making Bombshell/Miranda a member of the billionaire Ashton family, and ending up as a public facing figure within Ashtoncorp—so that unmasking her could be more of a peril eventually. Now if she’s ever unmasked, even the average thug, especially in Warden City, will probably recognize who Miranda Ashton is. Further, if she’s exposed there could be legal repercussions for her and the company.

Meanwhile, if say, Hyper Star is ever unmasked…

That criminal is just gonna be like “Who da fuck is this?”

No one is going to know Kit Brookes, unless they’re just really into former child-prodigy biochemists for some reason.

I feel like I’m getting a bit rambly here, but bear with me—because I think that’s the first reason I don’t do unmaskings too often in my peril writing: Most of my heroines’ secret identities are normal women who the villains wouldn’t know, and that always just feels sort of anticlimactic.

I also hesitate to include that particular peril too often, because it feels like a major bell that can’t be unrung: Her mask removed. Her identity exposed. If not publicly, then at least amongst the criminal underworld, word is going to spread as to who she is…right? It may not end her career, but it also doesn’t feel like a peril you can do over and over with the same heroine.

BUT even as I’m writing this, I’m beginning to think about it differently. Maybe this outside perspective is not the best vantage point for me to be analyzing any given peril.

As you know I like to be in the heroine role—experiencing the peril… So what if I was tied up right now…
Helpless…
How would I be feeling about being unmasked…

I’m straining against the ropes that bind my wrists and ankles to the cold metal chair, the green-and-gold suit still clinging to every curve like a second skin that no longer protects me. My chest rises and falls hard, the fabric stretched tight across my petite breasts with every defiant breath.

“You won’t get away with this!” My voice comes out sharp, almost steady. “When I get free—”

Your gloved hand lifts, slow and deliberate, and the words die in my throat.

Your fingers hover just in front of my face. I can feel the heat of them.

OOC: Yikes! The power exchange hit hard and immediate. Wrists trapped, legs immobilized, but my face, the most delicate part of me, is completely defenseless…

I shift again, feeling the ropes catch tightly on the gold cuffs of my sleeves, where my arms are pinned, bound, and for a second the old fire tries to rise—Lady Jane, the one who walks into danger with her chin high and gaze fierce and steady…behind my green domino mask…

But now those fingers—your fingers are brushing the edge of that mask.

A soft, almost gentle pressure. Testing. Claiming.

I jerk my head, but there’s nowhere to go. The ropes creak. My curls bounce around my shoulders. Your other hand comes up to hold my jaw, firm, not cruel—yet…just absolute. I can’t look away.

OOC: Ohhhh…that sense of dread. All I can do is watch, wait, squirm as your hands creep in. Even if I thrash, turn my head, SHOUT! We both know there’s nowhere to go, and no one to hear me… Fuck. That slow dread and helpless anticipation are already making me wet right here at the keyboard…

The first peel is tiny. Just the corner. Cool air kisses the skin beneath, and something inside me flinches harder than any punch I’ve ever landed.

That thin strip of green has been the line between the woman and the icon. Between the body that can be touched and the heroine who cannot. It has framed my eyes, made them hard, made them untouchable. Now it’s sliding—slow, inexorable—across my cheekbone under your control.

OOC: Imagining the feel of your fingers on my face just sent a shiver down my spine. It’s so unbearably, unwelcomely intimate. Tender, teasing, as if I’m all yours now…and I guess I would be. I can squirm or plead, but we both know it’s already too late.

I feel the heroic identity coming off with it.

Every inch the mask lifts—the power drains. Not my strength. Something deeper. The certainty that I am still her. The version of me who stands, who fights…who smiled while putting the mask on before delving into the night to look for danger. That heroic version of me is being peeled away in your very hands.

OOC: When I slip into the heroine role, this is one of those moments I look for—that helpless moment just before… When I know what’s about to happen and I know I can’t stop it. Sitting at my keyboard, typing the words, I still feel that drop in my stomach. As the heroine I shudder in dread—as me…I fucking soak my panties.

My lips part. A shaky breath escapes. Humiliation floods hot under the remaining edge of the mask. You can see the flush starting. You can see the way my eyes are no longer the cool, confident lenses of Lady Jane—they’re just mine, wide and exposed and losing the fight in real time.

The mask slides higher. Over the bridge of my nose. The last barrier.

When it finally comes free in your fingers, the air feels colder than it should. My face is bare. Completely. No more green frame, no more distance, no more armor of identity. Just skin and breath and the sudden, crushing knowledge that the heroine is gone and only the helpless woman in a skintight, skimpy, green costume remains—tied up, flushed and helpless, staring up at you…the one who just took everything from me.

OOC: As the mask comes off my first thought isn’t even about my “secret identity,” it’s just a humiliating rush of exposure. Confirmation of my powerlessness. Feeling the heat in my flushed cheeks. Trying to keep my lips from trembling. Blinking back the tears in my eyes… Knowing you’re seeing all of it—not the heroine any more, but just the frightened, captive woman.

I can see now that unmasking me was less about knowing who I really am, and more about showing me who I’m not: the superheroine. Not anymore. Not in that moment.

Because for whatever reason I put this mask on in the first place—you’ve stripped that from me.
If I was protecting my identity—you’ve revealed it.
If I was trying to intimidate—you’re clearly not…and why should you be?
If I was trying to be a symbol, something greater than myself—you’ve crushed that, proven I’m just a weak, vulnerable woman in skimpy spandex—in over my head…

*Takes deep breath**squirms in my seat* I definitely should be incorporating more unmasking in my peril writing. And even this; the idea of it stripping away my heroine persona rather than revealing the civilian one—is probably still just one of many other aspects and ways to explore that particular peril.

And yes, I do feel kind of silly that it wasn’t always obvious to me as a peril writer. But then that’s one of the biggest dangers for us creative types: the patterns and predispositions our brains settle into. Even—or maybe especially those of us who pride ourselves on being imaginative should make it a habit to reexamine the things we think we know from time to time.

So, that’s what I’d like this series to become with this reboot; not just listing the ways to Distress Your Damsel, but examining them a little deeper, having a little fun with them, and seeing if there are ways to make them even more perilous…and hot.

Now it’s your turn, Besties! I want to know: What aspect of unmasking a heroine is your favorite? What aspects am I still overlooking? What do you think of this format for these articles? What distressing topic should we cover next time?
Head on down to comments and let me know, or you can X me @dangerotica.

But that’s all I got for you today, so I’d better get back to my keyboard and coffee.

Take Care, Talk Soon,

Your bff, L J