In this episode of STBYM’s The Monstrefact, Robert discusses Puff Adder from the world of Marvel Comics…
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Hi, my name is Robert Lamb and this is the Monster Fact, a short form series from Stuff to Blow Your Mind, focusing in on mythical creatures, ideas and monsters in time. I recently picked up a kind of ragged copy of the official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition from I believe nineteen ninety, though this also might have been a reprint from years later. I'm not entirely certain, but it's filled with various Marvel characters, from the famous to the obscure, each with profile data and standardized character illustrations in this kind of glorious retro style. Amid all the capes and tights, and there are a lot of tights, there are some gloriously weird entries in the book. There's the spiky faced skeleton man terror Ink, with his ability to steal limbs and attach them to his own body. I was also fascinated by Quasu Modo or Quasi Motivational destruct Organism. He is a superpowered cyborg hunchback and presumably he's quite motivational. But in this episode, I want to focus in on the villain Puff Adder real name Gordo Freeley and apparently a native of Atlanta. Physically, he appears to be a very large, muscular man in a snake costume. He is a mutant in the Marvel comics, with the ability to engorge his entire epidermis with blood, thus making himself appear more powerful and menacing. Now he's already a very capable fighter with enhanced strength, but it's curious that his mutant ability doesn't seem to actually boost his fighting power in the way that many other mutant powers do. Instead, it just allows him to better bluff and better intimidate. Oh and he also has another weapon, a noxious gas can in the mouth like cowl of his snake mask. His namesake is, of course, the puff Adder snake, consisting of several species native to Africa in parts of the Saudi Arabian Peninsula. The snake in question is able to puff itself up to look larger as a predator deterrent, and it does this by inflating its body with air and then hissing loudly. And like the Marvel character, the snake can also back up that threat. It packs a powerful venomous bite and the force of its strikes alone is enough to kill small prey. Various natural world creatures make themselves look bigger as a defensive or mating display. Some the imposturing or the manipulation of fur or feathers, while others actually inflate tissues with air, water, or blood. These actions also frequently enhance the colors or patterns of such a display as well. While Gordo's mutant ability may appear at first to buck the general theme we see in comic book Superpowers, it's certainly in keeping with actual, real world involved adaptations. There is a survival advantage in not actually having to fight a predator or competitor, and the same holds true with not having to fight every X Man or Avenger you encounter on the pages of Marvel Comics. Tune in for additional episodes of the Monster Fact, The Artifact, or Animalia Stupendium every week as always. You can email us at contact at Stuff to Blow your Mind dot com.
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