Myrkky #5/1991
Myrkky #5/1991 is an early issue of the Finnish satirical anthology that introduced Finnish readers to several recurring characters — including Rhesus Miinus (the Finnish-language name for the Norwegian Pyton star Rhesus Minus), Plutonium, Lars Vegas, Tommy Tussi, Palle Runqvist, and Myyntimies Mynttinen — who went on to become fixtures of the series throughout its long run. As the Finnish localisation of Norway's cult adult-humour magazine Pyton, Myrkky served as the primary conduit through which Scandinavian underground cartoon culture reached Finnish readers, making its early issues foundational documents in the history of Finnish alternative comics publishing. The magazine ultimately outlasted its Norwegian source, cementing its place as a standalone pillar of Finnish comics culture rather than merely a translation vehicle.
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Myrkky launched in 1989 as Egmont Kustannus's Finnish-language adaptation of the Norwegian satirical anthology Pyton, which had run since 1986 under Gevion and later Bladkompaniet. The Finnish edition drew heavily on reprinted and translated Pyton strips while gradually building its own roster of locally resonant characters and contributors; by 1991 it was already expanding beyond straight translation, introducing or localising recurring characters whose Finnish names — such as Rhesus Miinus for Rhesus Minus and Tommy Tussi for Tommy Tusch — became the versions Finnish readers knew and voted for in the magazine's reader polls. The Pyton source material was itself the work of a tight editorial team including Dag Kolstad, Tommy Sydsæter, Rolf Håndstad, Arild Midthun, and others who defined the strip's irreverent, toilet-and-satire house style.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Myrkky is the Finnish-language edition of the Norwegian satirical comic anthology Pyton (1986–1996), published in Finland by Egmont Kustannus from 1989 onward.
- Characters indexed in this issue — Rhesus Miinus, Tommy Tussi, Plutonium, Lars Vegas, and Palle Runqvist — are Finnish localisations of recurring Pyton characters, with names Finnicised for the local readership.
- Rhesus Miinus (Norwegian: Rhesus Minus) and Tommy Tussi (Norwegian: Tommy Tusch) were among Pyton's most popular recurring features, created by writer Rolf Håndstad and artist Tommy Sydsæter.
- Lars Vegas is a Pyton character with a gambling-debt premise; GCD records from related Nordic Pyton editions confirm the character's presence across 1991 issues of the broader Pyton family of magazines.
- Myyntimies Mynttinen (a Finnish original or localised salesman-character) recurs across many issues of Myrkky throughout the 1990s, as evidenced by his appearance in multiple GCD-indexed issues of the series.
- Palle Runqvist likewise appears consistently across Myrkky issues from the mid-1990s onward, confirming his establishment as a recurring strip by or before this period.
- Myrkky outlived its Norwegian source magazine Pyton, which ceased publication in 1996, running for well over a decade as an independent Finnish humour publication under Egmont Kustannus.
- Finnish readers annually voted on favourite Myrkky characters; Pera Pervo (Finnish name for the Norwegian Pervo-Kris) topped those polls multiple times, illustrating the passionate domestic readership the anthology cultivated from its earliest issues.