So Soft Gusty
Gusty was reissued in the So Soft Set in 1985, although she was
not continued into the 1986 set - probably because she was an
older existing character. Unlike her previous US release, she had
green eyes and painted symbols underneath her flocking. If
deflocked, she looks identical to the regular release in Europe,
and so deflocking of So Soft Gusty can cause considerable
authenticity confusion. So Soft Gusty is actually quite difficult
to find, especially in good condition, so deflocking her does not
increase her value. She was sold with a pink moon and stars comb
and pink ribbon, as well as a flat scented sticker. She was not
sold in the UK in this form.
Gusty (So Soft) Mint on Card
North America, 1985-6
Image from Dollhands
Gusty's Character
So-Soft Gusty's animated character was often impatient,
forceful and on occasion, prone to bullying. In Crunch the Rock
Dog, Gusty was involved in mocking Wind Whistler because she
didn't obviously display her emotions - hurting Wind Whistler's
feelings. She persists in pushing this narrative throughout the
episode, until she is turned to stone. She learns her mistake by
the end of the episode, but this does not fully excuse her
unpleasantness. Her personality was completely different from
that in the comics, where she was a caring and gentle nurse.
Both iterations of Gusty had the ability to use wind magic in
different ways - So Soft Gusty's animated self used her horn to
create gusts to blow things aside.
