Lights Out

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of sexual content and cursing.

Josh’s mask is a custom, 3D-printed mask that he made specifically for posting on his Faceless Man account. This account plays into the trend of “MaskTok,” a group on the social media platform TikTok in which people post videos of themselves wearing and acting in masks. Josh’s specific niche is “thirst traps,” which are videos designed to arouse and entice the viewer. However, in the context of social media, Josh’s mask is representative of the anonymity of all content creators, even those who do not wear masks. Aly realizes periodically how she and other viewers create a fantasy version of Josh who does not exist and with whom they want to have sex.

At the same time, Josh’s mask is a symbol of his shame and fear related to his father’s crimes. Josh does not want people to recognize him, and the mask protects his identity for himself, his mother, and his stepfather. Josh also mentions struggling to look at himself in the mirror, and he knows that his thirst trap videos indicate a possible idolization of his father’s crimes. The mask, then, serves two purposes for Josh: It prevents him from acknowledging his own past and identity, and it distances himself from that past for his viewers, allowing them to view his provocations as safe fantasies rather than real crimes.