Cloak and Dagger #4

Name: Cloak and Dagger #4
Brand: Marvel
Price: 10.5 USD
Availability: InStock

Jan 1984 · Marvel · 0.60 USD; 0.25 GBP; 0.75 CAD

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“True Confessions!”

★ 1st appearance — Phillip Carlisle

About this Issue

Cloak and Dagger #4 (cover-dated January 1984) is the climactic conclusion of the characters' debut limited series and serves as the definitive origin issue for Tyrone Johnson and Tandy Bowen — the first time their full backstories were told in sequential art form. Titled 'True Confessions,' the issue delivers a structured dual-origin narrative in which both heroes recount how two runaways from opposite ends of the American class spectrum were kidnapped, injected with an experimental synthetic drug, and transformed into the light-and-darkness-wielding pair the Marvel universe would come to know. The limited series as a whole was one of the earlier Marvel miniseries to center an interracial duo in the starring roles and to lean into street-level social themes — drug exploitation of runaways, vigilantism, and institutional distrust — rather than costumed-villain spectacle, setting a template the characters carried through every subsequent series. The success of this four-issue run was directly responsible for Marvel greenlighting an ongoing bi-monthly Cloak and Dagger title in 1985.

writer Bill Mantlo · artist Rick Leonardi · inker Terry Austin · colorist Glynis Wein · letterer Joe Rosen · cover Rick Leonardi, Terry Austin

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (VF) $6

CGC 9.8 · 43 in census $51

CGC 9.6 · 22 in census $23*

CGC 9.4 · 10 in census $20*

CGC 9.2 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 9.0 · 6 in census $20*

CGC 8.5 · 3 in census $20*

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CGC 8.0 · 4 in census $20*

CGC 7.5 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 7.0 none in existence

CGC 6.5 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 6.0 · 2 in census $20*

* estimate — limited direct-sales data at this grade

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

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History

The four-issue limited series was written by Bill Mantlo, penciled by Rick Leonardi, inked by Terry Austin, colored by Glynis Oliver, and lettered by Joe Rosen, with Jim Shooter serving as editor-in-chief. Cloak and Dagger had been created by Mantlo and artist Ed Hannigan in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #64 (March 1982), and after several Spider-Man-adjacent guest appearances, Marvel gave them this limited series — still a relatively novel format for the publisher at the time — as a proof-of-concept for a dedicated ongoing title. Leonardi, at that point still an emerging talent, brought a gritty illustrative sensibility that complemented the series' socially charged tone. The entire limited series was later collected in the 'Child of Darkness, Child of Light' hardcover (2009) and is also included in the larger 'Cloak and Dagger: Shadows and Light' trade paperback (2017) and the Cloak and Dagger Omnibus Vol. 1.

Trivia · 8 facts

Issue title: 'True Confessions' — the concluding chapter of the four-issue limited series (October 1983–January 1984).
Writer: Bill Mantlo; Penciler: Rick Leonardi; Inker: Terry Austin; Colorist: Glynis Oliver; Letterer: Joe Rosen; Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter.
First full, in-continuity origin story for both Tyrone Johnson (Cloak) and Tandy Bowen (Dagger), narrated by the characters themselves to Detective Brigid O'Reilly and Father Francis Xavier Delgado inside the Holy Ghost Church.
First appearances of Mr. Johnson, Mrs. Johnson, and Phillip Carlisle (Tandy's stepfather), all introduced in flashback as part of the dual origin sequence.
Dagger's civilian identity — Tandy Bowen — and Cloak's — Tyrone Johnson — are formally revealed to supporting cast members O'Reilly and Delgado for the first time within the series.
The origin establishes that their powers stem from an experimental synthetic drug administered by Simon Marshall, explaining Tandy's light-dagger projection and Tyrone's darkness/teleportation abilities.
The limited series' commercial success led directly to Marvel launching an ongoing bi-monthly Cloak and Dagger series in 1985, with the same core creative team.
The issue and its series have been reprinted in multiple collected editions: the 'Child of Darkness, Child of Light' hardcover (2009), the 'Cloak and Dagger: Shadows and Light' trade paperback (2017), and the Cloak and Dagger Omnibus Vol. 1.