The Pink Riddler

For my birthday this week, I received an action figure of the Riddler that I had been eyeing for some time. I have relatively few collectibles, but this particular figure is notable for depicting the Riddler in the pink costume that he wore during the opening sequence of The New Adventures of Batman, an animated TV series from 1977 that I watched as a kid. Outside of the opening, the villain didn't appear within any episodes of the cartoon.

Since the Riddler traditionally wears green, I don’t know how much demand there is for this obscure rendition of the character. And yet, it was that very novelty that sparked my interest in the figure, which made for a memorable birthday gift.

I alluded to the Riddler in an early blog post about Defenders #124. I have considered devoting more attention to DC characters, at times, even though they might veer outside the scope of a Defenders blog.

Deadpool: The Postmodern Poster Boy

Deadpool was hard to ignore during his appearances in Secret Defenders #15-17. With constant quips and unrelenting references to pop culture, the anti-hero's dialogue had a stream-of-consciousness quality about it.

As a temporary member of the Secret Defenders, Deadpool accompanied Dr. Druid (now leading the covert team), the mysterious Shadowoman (not to be mistaken for Spider-Woman), and Luke Cage (billed simply as Cage instead of Power Man). Fittingly, Deadpool complained that Heroes for Hire like Cage gave mercenaries like himself a bad name.

For all his insufferable banter, however, Deadpool had a semblance of self-awareness. Consider his opening words from #15.

Deadpool: Now up ahead, on our left … we see a stunning example of post-modernist expressionism! And when it comes to expressionism, you ain't never had a friend like me!

Deadpool's identification with postmodernism made sense. This was the Copper Age of superhero comics, after all, when cosmic-level continuity shifts became commonplace and deceased characters routinely resurrected from the dead. Within this storytelling framework, the stakes weren't as permanent or lasting as they seemed been in the past, and Deadpool's facetiousness reflected that.

Secret Defenders #15 included an insert with three detachable Marvel Cards for the villain Venom, another popular character to emerge during Copper Age of comic books.

Secret Defenders. Vol. 1. No. 15. May 1994. "Strange Changes, Part the First: Strangers and Other Lovers." Tim Brevoort & Mike Kanterovich (writers), Jerry DeCaire (penciler), Tony DeZuniga (inker), John Costanza (letterer), John Kalisz (colorist), Craig Anderson (editor), Tom DeFalco (mystic harbinger in chief).

The Miniature Son of Satan

I don't own many collectibles, but today I decided to purchase a miniature of Daimon Hellstrom on sale at Source Comics & Games in Roseville, Minnesota. The tormented hero has long been one of my favorite Defenders.

Son of Satan collectible figurine © 2010 Marvel Entertainment, LLC and its subsidiaries.

Preferred Customer

During a visit last month to a bookstore where I buy new comics and back issues, the owner noticed that my Preferred Customer Discount Card was well worn and asked if I wanted a new one. Given to regular customers, the card provides 10% off most purchases. My card carried an expiration date of 12-31-07 (a few months before I started writing this blog), so it had its share of use. Since the store staff still honored the card, it seemed unnecessary to get a new one. If anything, the frayed card was a fond reminder of the years I've frequented that particular store.

When I stopped in earlier this week, the owner again pointed out that my card was badly worn and suggested giving me a new one. Since replacing my card seemed like a priority to him, I accepted the offer. In comic book lingo, my old card was in Fair condition. The new one is in Near Mint condition right now. The new card has an expiration date of 12-31-13. But as I learned, it really expires when the owner insists I get a new one.