 This article is about a ranger in Hikari Sentai Maskman.
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Ryo Asuka (飛鳥 リョオ Asuka Ryō, 39): A former disciple of Chief Sugata who was chosen to be part of the M-Project, which gave him the ability to transform into X1 Mask (X1マスク Ekkusu Wan Masuku), a predecessor to the main Maskman team.
History
Ryo abandoned Sugata's unit after his girlfriend Yuko was killed during an ambush by Tube, causing Ryo to doubt his ability to protect the world since he was unable to protect the woman he loved. Ryo arrives to help the Maskman team when they are overpowered by Magma Doggler. With Takeru's help, Ryo regains his self-confidence and assists the team in defeating Magma Doggler, but at the cost of his powers. At the end, he leaves the Maskman team to teach martial arts to children with a renewed sense of hope.
Ryo did not participate in the Great Legend War because he had already lost his powers.
X1 Mask
X1 Mask
Ryo Asuka transforms into X1 Mask at the command of "Change Power!", causing a line of Aura to descend over him as his suit forms around him; he does not need any transformation device.
Arsenal
- Gas Buckle - Ryo can release a deadly gas from his belt buckle.
- Lightning Attack - Ryo can produce a lightning bolt using his Aura and can direct it towards his enemies.
His prototype suit was powerful enough to block attacks of Magma Doggler.
Design
X1 Mask's outfit consists of a green body suit with black boots, gloves and vest, a white scarf, and a face-like helmet with a jewel on the forehead. The helmet itself was based on a rejected design from an earlier draft of Maskman titled "The Fiveman" (no relation to the later series Chikyuu Sentai Fiveman), although the rest of the body is different from the concept art. The helmet is also very similar in the design to the ones by Team Battle Fever in the sense that X1's helmet has a visor for each eye and a sculpted mouth and nose.
Ranger Key
X1 Mask Ranger Key
The X1 Mask Ranger Key (X1マスクレンジャーキー Ekkusu Wan Masuku Renjā Kī) is a Ranger Key released as part of the Ranger Key Set: LOST EDITION. It is unknown if it will appear in a future crossover. Of course as with all Ranger Keys, should it exist, it would be able to transform one, i.e. Gokai Silver, into X1 Mask.
However, Ryo lost his powers beforehand, so it is unknown if his powers were to turn into a ranger key.
Behind the scenes
Portrayal
Ryo Asuka is portrayed by Shinji Higashi. As X1 Mask, his suit actor was Naoki Ōfuji (大藤直樹 Ōfuji Naoki).
Notes
X1 Mask concept art
- X1 Mask, along with Magne Warrior from Choudenshi Bioman, were considered prototype "sixth warriors" seen in later "Super Sentai" shows. The 30 Sentai Encyclopedia mentions X1 Mask in the "Sixth Hero" Special File.
- In the original "Fiveman" draft, X1 was the codename of the leader and would've worn red instead of green. The rest of the team would've been colored black, blue, yellow and pink, the same colors used in the actual Maskman roster.
- His name was "Roy" in the Philippine dub.
- His name was "Liu" in the Brazilian dub.
