By Nora Henze
The masks are on again! The ninth season of “The Masked Singer” started on Saturday evening. Moderator Matthias Opdenhövel (53) welcomed the jury – as always, presenter Ruth Moschner (47). Singer Alvaro Soler (32) was allowed to take part in the puzzles as a new permanent jury member, while presenter and experimental fan Jenke von Wilmsdorff (58) was there as a guest juror.
However, this evening did not only have one surprise in store. While the reveal of the okapi at the end of the show caused astonished faces, a mask didn’t even appear.
Where is the Martian mouse?
Opdenhövel presented nine masks: Ice Princess, Fire Extinguisher, Mustang, Kiwi, Santa Claus, Lulatsch, Martian Mouse, Okapi and Troll.
After the first performances, the Mars Mouse was announced, but it simply didn’t show up. While Moschner and her colleagues waited anxiously for the singing mask, the Martian mouse only left a message.
Moschner was deeply disappointed: “Isn’t she coming? She can’t not come now!” Opdenhövel’s explanation continued to leave the jury in the dark: “She was already there and isn’t coming today. I can understand your disappointment. I’m on the verge of tears too. We’re all surprised too.”
There really was a “Grande Dame” in the Okapi, as Wilmsdorff suspected – ESC star and singer Katja Ebstein (78) Photo: picture alliance
The audience wondered what the reason for the sudden cancellation was: perhaps an appearance in the “Giovanni Zarrella Show” that was taking place at the same time? Or had the Martian mouse suddenly become ill? Of course, Matthias Opdenhövel didn’t let his cards be seen and instead sent the next mask onto the stage: The Okapi.
78-year-old ESC star is in the Okapi
The animal from Africa presented itself as a color-loving interior design fan. However, in the clues, the okapi revealed that it didn’t always have its colors: “Myself and everything around me seemed colorless.” Only a rainbow helped the animal to a happier life.
However, to help the guessing team, Opdenhövel had a novelty with them: the jurors can have an extra clue presented to them per show from an evidence safe.