diff --git a/src/utils/ansi.py b/src/utils/ansi.py
index 4a896d1ad7..4abdd39332 100644
--- a/src/utils/ansi.py
+++ b/src/utils/ansi.py
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ user.
 """
 import re
 from src.utils import utils
+from src.utils.utils import to_str
 
 # ANSI definitions
 
@@ -355,7 +356,7 @@ class ANSIString(unicode):
         string to be handled as already decoded. It is important not to double
         decode strings, as escapes can only be respected once.
         """
-        string = args[0]
+        string = to_str(args[0], force_string=True)
         if not isinstance(string, basestring):
             string = str(string)
         parser = kwargs.get('parser', ANSI_PARSER)
diff --git a/src/utils/evform.py b/src/utils/evform.py
index 3d99aeb7c9..a17aa3d2b4 100644
--- a/src/utils/evform.py
+++ b/src/utils/evform.py
@@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ This produces the following result:
 |   |**|*  | Herbalism  |14         |990/1400    |
 |   |* |   | Smithing   |9          |205/900     |
 |          |                                     |
- ------------------------------------------------
+ `----------------------------------------------´
 
 The marked forms have been replaced with Cells of text and with
 EvTables. The form can be updated by simply re-applying form.map()
@@ -120,7 +120,6 @@ form will raise an error.
 
 import re
 import copy
-from src.utils.ansi import ANSIString
 from src.utils.evtable import Cell, EvTable
 from src.utils.utils import all_from_module, to_str, to_unicode
 
@@ -371,7 +370,7 @@ class EvForm(object):
         self.tablechar = tablechar[0] if len(tablechar) > 1 else tablechar
 
         # split into a list of list of lines. Form can be indexed with form[iy][ix]
-        self.raw_form = ANSIString(datadict.get("FORM", "")).split("\n")
+        self.raw_form = to_unicode(datadict.get("FORM", "")).split("\n")
         # strip first line
         self.raw_form = self.raw_form[1:] if self.raw_form else self.raw_form
 
diff --git a/src/utils/evform_test.py b/src/utils/evform_test.py
index 084195f249..03d2e49ebb 100644
--- a/src/utils/evform_test.py
+++ b/src/utils/evform_test.py
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ FORMCHAR = "x"
 TABLECHAR = "c"
 
 FORM = """
-.------------------------------------------------.
+{c.------------------------------------------------.
 |                                                |
 |  Name: xxxxx1xxxxx    Player: xxxxxxx2xxxxxxx  |
 |        xxxxxxxxxxx                             |