''Mélusine'' is a Belgian comic strip created by artist

Clarke Clarke is a surname which means "clerk". The surname is of English and Irish origin and comes from the Latin . Variants include Clerk and Clark. Clarke is also uncommonly chosen as a given name. Irish surname origin Clarke is a common surname ...

and writer Gilson that features short, humorous stories that centre on the life of a young

witch Witchcraft is the use of magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meaning. According to ''Enc ...

who lives as an

au pair An au pair (; : au pairs) is a person working for, and living as part of, a homestay, host family. Typically, au pairs take on a share of the family’s responsibility for child care as well as some homemaking, housework, and receive a monetary ...

in a castle and studies at a witches’ school. The strip first appeared in '' Spirou'' magazine in 1992. Since 1995, her adventures have been published in book form by

Dupuis Éditions Dupuis S.A. () is a Belgium, Belgian publisher of comic albums and magazines. Based in Marcinelle near Charleroi, Dupuis is mostly famous for its comic comics album, albums and magazines. Initially a French language publisher, it now ...

—the 27th album came out in 2019. Five

albums An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

have been published in English by

Cinebook Cinebook Ltd is a British publishing company that publishes comic albums and graphic novels. It describes itself as "the 9th art publisher," the 9th art being comics in continental Europe, especially France, Belgium and Italy. They typically tr ...

Characters

Castle inhabitants

*Mélusine Anoukian is a beautiful and kind-hearted young witch with flaming red hair. In the first album, it is revealed that she is actually 119 years old. Although originally under the impression that she was hired to do

magic Magic or magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces ** ''Magick'' (with ''-ck'') can specifically refer to ceremonial magic * Magic (illusion), also known as sta ...

, she lives as a sort of

in a sinister old castle. Outside of doing household chores, she is often performing spells and brewing

potion A potion is a liquid "that contains medicine, poison, or something that is supposed to have magic powers." It derives from the Latin word ''potio'' which refers to a drink or the act of drinking. The term philtre is also used, often specifica ...

s. She also attends a witches' school where she is at the top of her class. However, she is hardly a teacher's pet since her spells work so well that they cause the teacher unexpected aggro, resulting in lessons being suspended: on one occasion, for example, the class had to materialize various objects from out of thin air. These ranged from flies to toads with marks ranging from 0 to 4 out of 10. Mélusine conjured up a huge monster which landed right on top of the teacher: she got a 10 and class was suspended. *

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Gonzaga Hernyvanz and his wife, the

Duchess Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they a ...

Aymee Döperzonn, are the master and mistress of the castle where Mélusine works: a somewhat goofy male

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

and a stern female

ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

. Mélusine always addresses them as "sir" and "madam", and their real names were only revealed in the eleventh album. Their manservant is called Winston and likes eating cats; he resembles both Lurch and

Frankenstein's monster Frankenstein's monster, commonly referred to as Frankenstein, is a fictional character that first appeared in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' as its main antagonist. Shelley's title compares the monster's ...

. *Doctor Kartoffeln was first seen in the eleventh album. A descendant of the original owner of the castle, he claimed to be its rightful owner only to learn that his ancestor had gambled it away. However, Count Gonzaga Hernyvanz allowed him to stay since he could brew some very good tasting blood. Kartoffeln continues his

scientific Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

experiments and has been tampering with

technology Technology is the application of Conceptual model, conceptual knowledge to achieve practical goals, especially in a reproducible way. The word ''technology'' can also mean the products resulting from such efforts, including both tangible too ...

. He is particularly attached to Winston, as his great-grandfather was apparently the one who created him. Mélusine finds his mad scientific experiments disturbing, not to mention adding to her housework. School was therefore appealing since it enabled her to get away from him—until he was hired as a teacher. *The

mummy A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and Organ (biology), organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to Chemical substance, chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the ...

also lives in the castle. Although nothing more than a skeleton wrapped in bandages, he still has feelings, and is often caught peeping through the keyhole into Mélusine's room. He featured in the early strips but has not been used since.

Mélusine's relatives

*Adrazelle is Mélusine's nutty old aunt (542 years old, as is revealed in the third album). She lives in a shack somewhere in the neighborhood, and often visits her niece in the castle. She can also be seen speeding across the skies on her broomstick, wearing racing goggles, and seems to have a fondness for toad soup and sabbaths. *Mélisande was first introduced in the seventh album. She is Mélusine's friendly but silly cousin and is not a witch but a

fairy A fairy (also called fay, fae, fae folk, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, generally described as anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic, found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Cel ...

, and thus considered a disgrace to the family. She wears pink and blue and does nothing but conjure up bunnies, sweets and pastries with her magic wand, mumbling things like Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo (a reference to

Cinderella "Cinderella", or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a Folklore, folk tale with thousands of variants that are told throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsin Press, 1988. The protagonist is a you ...

's fairy godmother in the Disney version of the story). In volume 26, she is revealed to be Mélusine's sister, as their mother is in fact a fairy. *Pirouline is Mélusine's half-sister, though, as Mélusine herself points out, it is more the reverse since Pirouline is twice her weight and age. Her heavy eating appears to be due to being a single mother—and when you consider the child... *Malicella is Pirouline's daughter. She is 112 years old (12 in witches' terms) and is rebellious, unpleasant and troublesome. Mélusine finds herself stuck with her for awhile (see volume 15 ''L'Apprentie sorcière'' ("The Witch's Apprentice")) and goes through the difficulties of keeping her under control and teaching her magic. When she asks Malicella when her mother will take her back, she reveals that the last time she was entrusted to a third-party was over a period of four years! However, Pirouline soon re-appears and leaves with her progeny—much to the relief of Mélusine and her friends.

School

Mélusine attends a school for magic which was originally based in a small house in the woods. The premises got blown up as a result of Crancrelune's mishandling of dangerous mixtures. They thus moved to a castle which included a large library and more staff. To give even the hopeless Crancrelune the incentive to pass the exams, Haaselblatt, the teacher, announced that they would be held in the

torture chamber A torture chamber is a room equipped, and sometimes specially constructed, for the infliction of torture.

. *Cancrelune is Mélusine's incredibly clumsy and rather dim-witted best friend. Also a witch, she is frequently seen crashing into walls or windows on her broomstick, screwing up spells and potions, or panicking about examinations. What magic she can do successfully is the

sleight of hand Sleight of hand (also known as prestidigitation or ''legerdemain'' () comprises fine motor skills used by performing artists in different art forms to entertain or manipulate. It is closely associated with close-up magic, card magic, card fl ...

sort used by

stage magician Stage, stages, or staging may refer to: Arts and media Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly Brit ...

s. The comic strips of the thirteenth album focused, appropriately enough, around her many

superstitious A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly applied to beliefs and p ...

beliefs. ''Cancre-lune'' literally translates as "

dunce ''Dunce'' is a mild insult in English meaning "a person who is slow at learning or stupid". The etymology given by Richard Stanyhurst is that the word is derived from the name of the Scottish scholastic theologian and philosopher John Duns Scot ...

-moon". *Krapella is another student in Mélusine's class and her other best friend. Distinguishable by her somewhat ''risqué'' attire (black

tube top A tube top is a shoulderless, sleeveless garment primarily worn by women that wraps around the upper torso. It is generally tight over the breasts, and usually uses elastic bands at its top and bottom to prevent it from falling. The tube top's pr ...

, miniskirt, thigh-high fishnet stockings and

pumps A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic or pneumatic energy. Mechanical pumps serve in a wide range of applications such ...

), she is the more outgoing, party-hardy of the group. Although quite competent herself, she does fall a little short of her more bookwormish friend. Always up for a bit of fun, she'll often be the first to forgo studies and drag her friends along with her to partake in various hijinks. *Mister Haaselblatt is a teacher at the witches' school who was first introduced in the third album. He's small and chubby, and incredibly mean and demanding. He tends to insult his pupils, addressing them as "losers" or "morons", instead of encouraging them. He is often outsmarted by Mélusine, whose spells work so well that they result in chaos and school being suspended for the day—to the delight of Mélusine and the other students. *Mister Purulóvskovar teaches the class about

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in folklore, mythology, religion, occultism, and literature; these beliefs are reflected in Media (communication), media including f ...

ic forces. Muscular, but with an exceptionally ugly face, he looks particularly menacing even when he doesn't try to be and, when speaking, insects fall from his mouth. When he gets a cold, slimy creatures (slug, octopus) are expelled instead. *Mister Charles Rimbaut teaches

cooking Cooking, also known as cookery or professionally as the culinary arts, is the art, science and craft of using heat to make food more palatable, digestible, nutritious, or Food safety, safe. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely, from ...

. He is an ordinary-looking and quite friendly man, though, Mélusine finds him and his lessons dull and tedious since they have little to do with magic. They were the focus of the fourteenth album, ''La Cuisine du diable'' (French for "Hell's Kitchen").

Others

*The

Werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (from Ancient Greek ), is an individual who can shapeshifting, shapeshift into a wolf, or especially in modern film, a Shapeshifting, therianthropic Hybrid beasts in folklore, hybrid wol ...

is a very sophisticated character, who is very taken with Mélusine. He is probably the nearest she has to a boyfriend and she appreciates him, though, most of the time, she fantasizes being seduced by a handsome prince. The fact that he can only appear during a full moon makes him rather limited—especially since, in human form, he is a weak and pathetic little man and would rather she did not see him as such. *Although many of the villagers occasionally turn to Mélusine for help—asking for love potions, hair-growing remedies and the like—there is also a group of people that are out to burn her at the stake. This group is led by the town's fanatical pastor, who's obsessed with putting a stop to witchcraft, but never succeeds.

Albums

#''Sortilèges'' (''Spells'', 1995) #''Le bal des vampires'' (''The Vampires' Ball'', 1996) #''Inferno'' (1996) #''Histoire à lire au coin du feu'' (''Story to be Read by the Fire'', 1997) #''Philtres d'amour'' (''Love Potions'', 1998) #''Farfadets et korrigans'' (''Imps and Elves'', 1999) #''Hocus pocus'' (2000) #''Halloween'' (2001) #''Hypnosis'' (2001) #''Contes de la pleine lune'' (''Tales of the Full Moon'', 2002) #''Mélusine à l'école des maléfices'' (''Mélusine and the School of Witchcraft'', 2003) #''La belle et la bête'' (''Beauty and the Beast'', 2004) #''Superstitions'' (2005) #''La cuisine du diable'' (''The Devil's Kitchen'', 2006) #''L'Apprentie Sorcière'' (''The Witch's Apprentice'', 2007) #''Ballet enchantée'' (''Enchanted Ballet'', 2008) #''Sang pour Sang'' (''Blood for Blood'', 2009) (a pun on the French term for 100%) #''Malédiction!'' (''Curse!'', 2010) #''L'élixir de jouvence'' (''The Elixir of Youth'', 2011) #''Envoûtement'' (''Bewitchment'', 2012) #''Le Tournoi de magie'' (''The Magic Tournament'', 2013) #''Cancrelune'' (2014) #''Fées contre sorciers'' (''Fairies Against Witches'', 2015) #''La ville fantome'' (''The Ghost Town'', 2016) #''L'année du dragon'' (''The Year of the Dragon'', 2017) #''En rose et noir'' (''In Pink and Black'', 2018) #''La guerre sans magie'' (''The War Without Magic'', 2019)

English translations

The series has been translated into English by

Cinebook Ltd Cinebook Ltd is a British publishing company that publishes comic albums and graphic novels. It describes itself as "the 9th art publisher," the 9th art being comics in continental Europe, especially France, Belgium and Italy. They typically tr ...

, a British publisher specializing in Franco-Belgian comics. So far, five books have been translated. # Hocus Pocus, Feb 2007, # Halloween, Oct 2007, # The Vampires' Ball, Oct 2008, # Love Potions, Oct 2009, # Tales of the Full Moon, Sept 2014,

References

External links

English publisher of Melusine - Cinebook Ltd
{{DEFAULTSORT:Melusine (Comics) Bandes dessinées Dupuis titles Belgian comics characters Comics characters who use magic Belgian comic strips Fantasy comics Humor comics Comics set in schools 1992 comics debuts Comics characters introduced in 1992 Vampires in comics Comics about witches and witchcraft Comics about women Comics about children Female characters in comics Fictional characters who use magic Ghost comics