A few things of note. The Happy Mask Salesman does NOT say that he made the mask to commemorate the occasion. He says the mask was made because of the Song of Healing, and he decides to give to to Link in commemoration. The two things are not one and the same. The Song of Healing heals people of regrets, sadness, and evil. It then channels these things into masks. The Happy Mask Salesman giving Link the Deku Mask in commemoration of his being healed does not indicate that is what he is all about.
Secondly, trying to attribute this to all the masks in
MM is silly. It's the Song of Healing that makes masks out of regret, sorrow, evil, and all of that. This ONLY applies to masks made as a result of that song. I mean, the Romani Mask isn't even a unique mask. Everyone that goes to the Milk Bar has one. I don't see the point in trying to attribute the qualities of masks made from the Song of Healing to all masks. Masks can simply have powers in the world of Zelda, and those powers can come from various things. Note that the Mask of Truth is also featured in Ocarina of Time, so clearly there is more than one of those as well, and it has nothing to do with regrets of the dead or dying.
And finally, I do not agree with the notion that the Happy Mask Salesman is some Grim Reaper/Angel of Death. For one thing, he only came to Termina to track down Majora's Mask, and has no interest in going into town himself. If he was there to heal people's pain or harvest regrets of the dead or whatever, wouldn't he be in Termina doing just that? There's certainly no shortage of regrets or dead in that land. Secondly, why would be spending his time running a Mask shop in Hyrule? And before anyone suggests they are not one and the same, they added elements to the shop in Ocarina of Time 3DS to confirm they intended the character to be the same person. And indeed in Ocarina of Time he explains that he calls himself the Happy Mask Salesman because he is a "salesman" of "happiness", because by selling and trading masks, he is spreading happiness.
Obviously there is something supernatural and unexplained about him. He is implied to know way more than he should, he knows the Song of Healing, his motives are ambiguous, and what was he doing with Majora's Mask in the first place? But if he were some angel of death traveling the land to heal sorrow and regret, why are the only two times we see him, he's running a shop to make profit and spread happiness or concerned only with getting Majora's Mask back? It doesn't really add up at all, I think. I think he certainly has used the Song of Healing to get masks before, but it's simply because he collects and sells the masks, not because it's his job as some angel or grim reaper.
06-07-2012, 11:44 AM
I think we've all agreed that the Happy Mask Salesman is some sort of angelic figure who heals those with regrets before death. And since everyone in Majora's Mask is soon to die inevitably, that's a lot of people to heal! 
But again, not all masks in the world are magical. Some of the masks he owns are probably "normal". Magical, yes, probably. But not necessarily gotten from dead, regretful people.
So what about Romani's Mask? The Garos' Mask? Kafei's Mask? All these masks seem to be passed on from people who do not have regrets.
