Mad Hettie

Shuffling out of the gritty London streets of Hellblazer in 1988, Mad Hettie is one of those wonderfully unsettling figures that the Copper Age of DC's darker imprint did so well — a ragged, ancient presence whose very existence hints at secrets older than the world cares to admit. Created by Jamie Delano and John Ridgway, she's the kind of character who lingers at the margins of the supernatural, sharing pages with figures as monumental as Death herself and the divine. Her appearances stretch from the rain-soaked urban horror of Hellblazer into the haunting, lyrical world of Death: The High Cost of Living, which speaks volumes about the strange, enduring company she keeps. Four catalog appearances, but every one counts — Mad Hettie is the sort of quietly unforgettable soul that reminds you why Vertigo's corner of DC was unlike anything else in comics.