When I made Rainbow Trout and he became the member of the SM9 that had light as his element, I thought that it might be fun to have an opposite on the team to sort of complement and contrast him. Therefore I came up with the idea of having a mutant who would have darkness as his element and from there came Black Mask. The choice of animal was simple. I just chose a nocturnal creature, in this case a raccoon. I know that his name has been used in comics before, but I didn't know that at the time, and frankly, it doesn't really matter, because it fits the character in every aspect, from what kind of animal he is to his characterization as a spy and ninja with dark energy powers. ;-) He and his sister, "Ringa," are from an unnamed village only known as the "Village of the Black Mask Tribe" situated in the "Valley of Obscurity" at the base of the "Moonlit Mountains" on the moon of Night-Zox.