Puff Adder (Gordon Fraley) is a fictional character, a mutant

supervillain A supervillain or supercriminal is a variant of the villainous stock character that is commonly found in American comic books, usually possessing superhuman abilities. A supervillain is the antithesis of a superhero. Supervillains are oft ...

appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...

s published by Marvel Comics. He made his debut in ''

Captain America Captain America is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by cartoonists Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the character First appearance, first appeared in ''#Golden Age, Captain America Comics'' #1 (cover ...

'' #337 (January 1988), created by writer Mark Gruenwald and artist Tom Morgan. The character is depicted primarily as a member of the Serpent Society. Fraley makes his debut as Puff Adder as part of the fourth version of the

Serpent Squad The Serpent Squad is a fictional mercenary group composed of snake-themed criminals appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Most often antagonists of Captain America, the roster has changed through various incarnations. P ...

alongside

Copperhead Copperhead may refer to: Snakes * ''Agkistrodon contortrix'', or copperhead, a venomous pit viper species found in parts of North America * ''Austrelaps'', or Australian copperhead, a genus of venomous elapids found in southern Australia and Tas ...

, Fer-de-Lance and Black Racer, when the group robs a casino in Las Vegas as a ploy to gain acceptance into the Serpent Society from Society leader Sidewinder. After becoming a part of the Society, they help

Viper The Viperidae (vipers) are a family of snakes found in most parts of the world, except for Antarctica, Australia, Hawaii, Madagascar, and various other isolated islands. They are venomous and have long (relative to non-vipers), hinged fangs tha ...

take control of the Serpent Society, supporting her in a plot to take control of the President of the United States. The plot is eventually foiled by

and several members of the Serpent Society who remain loyal to Sidewinder. After Viper is defeated the Serpent Society was reformed, with Puff Adder becoming a regular member of the group. He later becomes a member of Serpent Solutions when the Serpent Society is reorganized.

Publication history

Puff Adder first appeared in ''Captain America'' #337 (January 1988), and was created by Mark Gruenwald and Tom Morgan.

Fictional character biography

Gordon "Gordo" Fraley was born in Atlanta, Georgia. Large and strong but not very bright, Puff Adder is a mutant with the ability to inflate, or "puff," his body mass, enhancing his strength greatly, and making him a dangerous adversary for superheroes. As a member of the fourth

, Puff Adder attempts to rob a Las Vegas casino, and battles

, the Falcon, Nomad, and D-Man. With the Serpent Squad, he is freed from jail by Sidewinder. Puff Adder is inducted into the second incarnation of the Serpent Society as a double agent of the

during her invasion of the group. Puff Adder and the Viper's agents then betray Sidewinder, and encounter Captain America again. With Coachwhip and

Rock Python Rock Python (M'Gula) is a fictional character, a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted as a member of the Serpent Society. He first appeared in '' Captain America'' vol. 1 # ...

, Puff Adder is sent to steal the Falcon's uniform in order to regain admission into the Serpent Society, and he battles Battle Star and the Falcon. Alongside Anaconda, Puff Adder serves as bailiff at the Serpent Society's trial of

Diamondback Diamondback may refer to: Animals * ''Crotalus adamanteus'', the eastern diamondback rattlesnake * ''Crotalus atrox'', the western diamondback rattlesnake * Diamondback moth, a European moth that has spread to North America * Diamondback terrapin ...

. With Anaconda and Rock Python, Puff Adder is sent to Diamondback's apartment to apprehend her. He battles Captain America and seemingly overpowered him. Puff Adder crash-lands a Serpent Saucer on Diamondback's apartment. He abducts Diamondback,

Asp Asp may refer to: Places * Asp, part of Densbüren, Aargau, Switzerland * Aspe (''Asp'' in Valencian), Alicante, Spain * Asp Lake, a lake in Minnesota Animals * Asp (fish) * Asp (snake), in antiquity, one of several venomous snakes ** ''Cera ...

, and

Black Mamba The black mamba (''Dendroaspis polylepis'') is a species of highly venomous snake belonging to the family Elapidae. It is native to parts of sub-Saharan Africa. First formally described by Albert Günther in 1864, it is the second-longest ...

. Rock Python and Puff Adder are thrown from the Serpent Saucer by

MODAM Maria Trovaya Pym is a Character (arts), fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, depicted as the first wife of Hank Pym and the mother of Nadia van Dyne. After being initially held captive by the Red Room ...

, and Puff Adder is injured in the fall. He is interrogated by Captain America and Paladin about the abduction of Diamondback and her friends. As a member of the Serpent Society, he develops a romantic relationship with Anaconda. He also serves briefly with Doctor Octopus' Masters of Evil. He participates in the attempted takeover of the

Avengers Mansion Avengers Mansion is a fictional building appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It has traditionally been the base of the Avengers. The enormous, city block-sized building is located at 890 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan, New York ...

while the other heroes are distracted by the events of the

Infinity War ''Avengers: Infinity War'' is a 2018 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics superhero team the Avengers. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the sequel to '' The Avengers'' ( ...

. There, the team encounters the Guardians of the Galaxy. Puff Adder is given permission to "play with" Yellowjacket and Nikki but is stopped by Major Victory before he can touch them. After a brief fight, both teams are overwhelmed with alien doubles of absolutely everyone involved. Out of necessity, the two teams work together to destroy wave after wave of doubles. After the last wave, Doctor Octopus wants his team to continue fighting but Puff Adder, along with the rest, turn on him. They do not want to hurt the others who just helped save their lives. The team chases Doctor Octopus out of the mansion. He is seen as member of the Serpent Society under Cobra's leadership. After the group captures and chains

and

(really an L.M.D.) in this underground New York headquarters, the pair escapes.

S.H.I.E.L.D. S.H.I.E.L.D. is a fictional espionage, special law enforcement, and counter-terrorism agency appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in ''Strange Tales'' #135 (August 1965), it often deals ...

subsequently takes Rattler and the rest of the Society into custody. He appears in "

Brand New Day Brand New Day or A Brand New Day may refer to: Music *''Brand New Day'', the American title for the 1990 Australian musical ''Bran Nue Dae'' Albums * ''Brand New Day'' (Swollen Members album), 2014 * ''Brand New Day'' (Ricki-Lee Coulter album), o ...

" as one of the villains in the "Bar With No Name". He is one of many to get in on the super-hero related gambling action headed by the man known only as 'The Bookie'. He is once again a member of the Serpent Society, who are engaged in a bank robbery. He is instantly defeated by Hope Summers after she copies his powers and knocks him out with a single bolas. As part of the All-New, All-Different Marvel branding, Puff Adder appears as a member of

's Serpent Society under its new name of Serpent Solutions. Puff Adder appears in the 2017 " Secret Empire" storyline, being with Serpent Solutions when they are recruited by Helmut Zemo to join his Army of Evil. In a prelude to the " Hunted" storyline, several members of the Serpent Society are captured by Kraven the Hunter, Taskmaster, and Black Ant and forced to participate in a murderous hunt set up by Arcade. Black Mamba, Cottonmouth, Bushmaster, Black Racer, Puff Adder, Rock Python, and Fer-de-Lance are placed in electric cages to wait for the hunt to commence. During the " Devil's Reign" storyline, Puff Adder and Coachwhip appear as members of Mayor Wilson Fisk's incarnation of the

Thunderbolts A thunderbolt or lightning bolt is a symbolic representation of lightning when accompanied by a loud thunderclap. In Indo-European mythology, the thunderbolt was identified with the 'Sky Father'; this association is also found in later Hell ...

at the time when Mayor Fisk has outlawed superhero activity. They, alongside the Thunderbolts unit, attack Spider-Woman, only to be fought off by Spider-Woman as she gets Lindsay McRabe to safety.''Spider-Woman'' Vol. 7 #18. Marvel Comics.

Powers and abilities

Puff Adder has the mutant ability to cause the epidermis of his entire body to engorge with blood and thus swell his body to a more intimidating size, upwards of approximately . In '' Guardians of the Galaxy'' #29

Charlie-27 Captain Charlie-27 is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character usually appears in the Earth-691 timeline of the Marvel Universe as a member of the original 31st century incarnation of the tea ...

states that Puff Adder can increase his mass to over five tons, the limit of what Charlie-27 can lift on Earth. Puff Adder can only remain fully inflated for approximately fifteen minutes at a time. Puff Adder also possesses a slight degree of superhuman strength and stamina. Fraley is a competent hand-to-hand fighter, with extensive experience in street-fighting techniques. He is experienced in the piloting of certain aircraft. The cowl of Puff Adder's costume contains a pressurized container of noxious gas which can be released from his mouth area. It is activated by a specific motion made with his jaw muscles.

Race variation

His race varies from artist to artist. In his first appearance, he was depicted as

Caucasian Caucasian may refer to: Anthropology *Anything from the Caucasus region ** ** ** ''Caucasian Exarchate'' (1917–1920), an ecclesiastical exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Caucasus region * * * Languages * Northwest Caucasian l ...

. A few issues later, he is depicted as African American.

References

External links

Puff Adder
at Marvel.com * * {{Captain America Characters created by Mark Gruenwald Comics characters introduced in 1988 Fictional African-American people Fictional characters from Georgia (U.S. state) Fictional characters who can stretch themselves Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics martial artists Marvel Comics mutants Marvel Comics supervillains