It’s an amazing sight to see when a great prose novel gets a graphic novel adaptation. Scott Peterson expertly adapts Kiersten White‘s Mister Magic with artists Veronica Fish & Andy Fish in Mister Magic: The Graphic Novel. The end result is a visually stunning, yet still unsettling, version of an impressive story for a whole new set of readers.
Thirty years after a tragic accident shut down production of the classic children’s program Mister Magic, the five surviving cast members have done their best to move on. But just as generations of cultishly devoted fans still cling to the lessons they learned from the show, the cast have spent their lives searching for the happiness they felt while they were on it. The friendship. The feeling of belonging. And the protection of Mister Magic.
But with no surviving videos or scripts, no evidence of who directed or produced the show, and no records of who—or what—the beloved host actually was, memories are all the former circle of friends has. In Val’s case, kidnapped by her father and in hiding ever since, she doesn’t even have those.
A surprise encounter with Val’s old castmates brings them all together for a reunion. Back to the remote desert filming compound that feels like it’s been waiting for them all this time. Back among friends they haven’t seen for years, but who somehow understand one another better than anyone has since.
After all, they’re the only ones who hold the secret of that circle, the mystery of the magic man in his infinitely black cape, and, maybe, the answers to what really happened on that deadly last day. But as Val reclaims parts of her past, she wonders: Are they there by choice, or have they been lured into a trap?
Because magic never forgets the taste of friendship…
In the prose novel, White crafts a visually stunning book without imagery, but with her words on the page. Did the original story need a graphic novel adaptation, no, are we all the better for it existing, yes. While Kiersten’s writing allowed for an immersive reading experience, the creative team behind the graphic novel gives us the actual visuals.
The premise of a children’s television program everyone knows about, can sing the song from, or at least have some sort of memory about, but no one can prove existed. What a fantastic hook to this story, which goes in directions I hadn’t expected.
The characters are slowly built throughout the story led by our narrator, who comes in nearly blind to the situation having forgotten what happened in her life as a child. After the death of her father things from the outside world start to penetrate her mind and opens her up to these horrors of her childhood.
I loved how this story progressed, but funny enough laying the foundation of whether or not a specific children’s program ever really existed could be a fantastic beginning to a lot of horror stories. This is a fictional horror story that is built on truths of the life White lived as a child as part of the Mormon Church. Yes, this is of course a work of fiction, but White builds this story using her experiences with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, both as a member and her choice to leave.
The great thing about graphic novels and even more so with adaptations in this form is the team working together to bring this story to life visually on the page. The artwork by Veronica and Andy is just what I had hoped for when seeing this story in my mind. Each page is visually stunning with the unsettling vibes of the story popping from the page. The art behind this story does the original material justice, adding to the tale without taking away anything that came before it.
Like the prose novel, Mister Magic: The Graphic Novel is an emotional and unsettling horror tale that hits hard. Kiersten White crafts a premise that is deeply personal about childhood, belonging, and belief that Scott Peterson takes to the world of comics. The artwork by Veronica Fish & Andy Fish bring this story to eerie life to complete the mind-bending horror story that turns nostalgic children’s programing into a pure nightmare.
Mister Magic: The Graphic Novel hits local comic shops and bookstores everywhere on June 9, 2026 from Ten Speed Graphic.
Mister Magic: The Graphic Novel Preview
