Misty (comics)
Encyclopedia
Misty was a British
comic
for girl
s published by Fleetway
in London
from 4th Feb 1978
until 1984
, after merging with Tammy
on 19 January 1980. It consisted of a collection of many small strips, with the stories themselves normally being three or four pages long. As well as the weekly comic, Christmas
annuals
were also published.
While there were similarities with its Fleetway
stablemates Tammy
and Jinty, each comic had its own focus, with Misty concentrating on supernatural and horror stories. These consisted of complete stories, text stories, and serials. Complete stories focused on come-uppances, monsters and other menaces, tales of sorrow or lightheartedness, and some made their point without supernatural elements, such as Mr Walenski's Secret and Sticks and Stones. Text stories were initially fictional, but later shifted to retellings of true British ghost stories, some of which were submitted by readers.
Misty had no regular characters except for the cartoon witch, Miss T. This cartoon attracted debate among readers as to whether its comic relief weakened or complemented the dark tones of Misty. After the merger, Miss T joined the Edie strip in Tammy, which eventually became The Crayzees when Snoopa joined in the Tammy and Jinty merger on 28 November 1981, and continued until the Tammy and Princess merger on 7 April 1984. "The Cult of the Cat" and "The Black Widow" were the only Misty stories to have sequels, although the sequel for the latter was published in the merger.
, artist on Moonchild (though best-known for drawing Bella in Tammy), Joe Collins, artist on Miss T, Brian Delaney, John Richardson, Badia, Jesus Redondo, Ken Houghton, Peter Wilkes, Eduardo Feito, Bob Harvey, Honiera Romeu, Barrera Gesali, and Mario Capaldi.
, Malcolm Shaw, and (possibly) Barry Clements. Mills is credited with Moonchild and Hush, Hush, Sweet Rachel, and Shaw with The Sentinels.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
comic
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
for girl
Girl
A girl is any female human from birth through childhood and adolescence to attainment of adulthood. The term may also be used to mean a young woman.-Etymology:...
s published by Fleetway
Fleetway
Fleetway, also known as Fleetway Publications and Fleetway Editions, was a UK publishing company which mainly produced comic magazines. For a time owned by IPC Media, they are now a division of Egmont Publishing....
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
from 4th Feb 1978
1978 in comics
This is a list of comics-related events in 1978.- Year overall :* DC suffers the DC Implosion, the abrupt cancellation of more than two dozen ongoing and planned titles, with the vast majority of the books leaving uncompleted storylines .* Archie Goodwin resigns as Marvel Comics editor-in-chief,...
until 1984
1984 in comics
-Year overall:* The independent publishing boom continues, as Antarctic Press, Continuity Comics, Deluxe Comics, Matrix Graphic Series, and Renegade Press all enter the arena...
, after merging with Tammy
Tammy (comics)
Tammy was a weekly British comic for girls published by Fleetway in London from 1971 to 1984, at which point it merged with Girl. Other titles which had merged with Tammy before then include June, Jinty, and Misty ....
on 19 January 1980. It consisted of a collection of many small strips, with the stories themselves normally being three or four pages long. As well as the weekly comic, Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
annuals
Annual publication
An annual publication, more often called simply an annual, is a book or a magazine, comic book or comic strip published yearly. For example, a weekly or monthly publication may produce an Annual featuring similar materials to the regular publication....
were also published.
While there were similarities with its Fleetway
Fleetway
Fleetway, also known as Fleetway Publications and Fleetway Editions, was a UK publishing company which mainly produced comic magazines. For a time owned by IPC Media, they are now a division of Egmont Publishing....
stablemates Tammy
Tammy (comics)
Tammy was a weekly British comic for girls published by Fleetway in London from 1971 to 1984, at which point it merged with Girl. Other titles which had merged with Tammy before then include June, Jinty, and Misty ....
and Jinty, each comic had its own focus, with Misty concentrating on supernatural and horror stories. These consisted of complete stories, text stories, and serials. Complete stories focused on come-uppances, monsters and other menaces, tales of sorrow or lightheartedness, and some made their point without supernatural elements, such as Mr Walenski's Secret and Sticks and Stones. Text stories were initially fictional, but later shifted to retellings of true British ghost stories, some of which were submitted by readers.
Misty had no regular characters except for the cartoon witch, Miss T. This cartoon attracted debate among readers as to whether its comic relief weakened or complemented the dark tones of Misty. After the merger, Miss T joined the Edie strip in Tammy, which eventually became The Crayzees when Snoopa joined in the Tammy and Jinty merger on 28 November 1981, and continued until the Tammy and Princess merger on 7 April 1984. "The Cult of the Cat" and "The Black Widow" were the only Misty stories to have sequels, although the sequel for the latter was published in the merger.
Artists
Artists featured in the pages of Misty included John ArmstrongJohn Armstrong (comics)
John Armstrong is a British comics artist, best known for his work in Misty and Tammy, for which he drew the long-running strip Bella. Other strips he has drawn include The Secret Gymnast in Bunty.-Biography:...
, artist on Moonchild (though best-known for drawing Bella in Tammy), Joe Collins, artist on Miss T, Brian Delaney, John Richardson, Badia, Jesus Redondo, Ken Houghton, Peter Wilkes, Eduardo Feito, Bob Harvey, Honiera Romeu, Barrera Gesali, and Mario Capaldi.
Writers
Writers featured included Pat MillsPat Mills
Pat Mills, nicknamed 'the godfather of British comics', is a comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since....
, Malcolm Shaw, and (possibly) Barry Clements. Mills is credited with Moonchild and Hush, Hush, Sweet Rachel, and Shaw with The Sentinels.
List of strips and stories
- Moonchild- Rosemary Black possesses the power of telekinesis, like her grandmother before her, as shown by a crescent moon on her forehead. Her harsh mother is jealous of the power and forbids Rosemary to use it - but temptation is getting stronger against the bully who picks on Rosemary...(From the Misty annual 1983)
- Raggsy Doll- A girl is to inherit a fortune. When her aunt hears of this, she sends her niece a cursed doll... (From the Misty annual 1983)
- Miss T- A comic strip about a witch.
- School of the Lost - a boarding school that demands a special tribute for the ongoing success of parents who send their daughters to it.
- Whistle and I'll Come - a ghost dog companion.
- The Cats of Carey Street - a feline fightback against council development.
- End of the Line - an evil Victorian who holds his workers captive in a subterranean world.
- The Black Widow- Mrs Webb sets out to avenge her husband's death. Spider-Woman in the Tammy & Misty merger was a sequel.
- The Four Faces of Eve - Eve Marshall is trying to unravel her true identity, but she seems to be the bits and pieces of four dead women.
- Hush, Hush, Sweet Rachel - Lisa finds she is the reincarnation of a four year-old called Rachel who died in a fire.
- Journey into Fear - Kevin and Janice Frazer become pawns in an evil car's game to relive its past as a gangster's car.
- Moodring- A moody teenage girl receives a magic mood ringMood ringA mood ring is a ring which contains a thermochromic element, such as liquid crystal. The ring changes color in response to the body temperature of its wearer...
. - Hangman’s Alley- maidservant Melinda Walpole was wrongly executed for stealing a necklace from her mistress. Now Melinda has returned as a bitter, malicious ghost, who wants to take her revenge out on Jacey’s hapless sister Mel for no other reason that Mel looks exactly like Melinda. Jacey offers to clear Melinda Walpole if the ghost will leave her sister alone, but the investigation proves a slow process and the ghost is losing patience.
- The Cult of the Cat- Nicola Scott is destined to become a member of a cult who worship the Egyptian cat goddess BastBastBast may refer to:* Bast a slang term used as reference to the word Bastard* Bast, or Bastet, a goddess in Ancient Egyptian mythology* Bast fibre, a type of plant fiber* Bast, Afghanistan...
. This was the only Misty story to have a sequel, The Nine Lives of Nicola. - The Sentinels- Two empty tower blocks connect our world with a parallel world where Hitler conquered Britain in 1940Axis victory in World War IIAn Axis victory in World War II is a common concept in alternate history. World War II alternate histories are one of the two most popular points of divergence in the English language...
. - The Body Snatchers - the insane Dr Bracken plans to conquer Britain by replacing real people with plant clones (see also Invasion of the Body Snatchers).
- Screaming Point! - the public hangman is also a resurrectionist who believes he can bring the dead back to life.
- Paint it Black- Maggie Laker discovers a very special box of paints that have a tale to tell.
- Winner Loses All - Sandy sells her soul to the Devil to save her alcoholic father.
- Sticks and Stones - how effective is this maxim against a poison pen columnist?
- Mr Walenski's Secret - what is in the box Mr Walenski keeps so preciously?
External links
- BBC archived article BBC Cult article on the fascination of girls' comics, including Misty
- BBC Comics Britannia on girls and boys comics Paul Gravett writing on the second episode of BBC Four's documentary season Comics Britannnia
- Official fansite for Misty, approved by current copyright holders Egmont