SWAP THING

Real Name: Swap Thing (presumably)

Identity/Class: Extradimensional/alternate reality (Reality-88131) extraterrestrial (species not identified, possibly mutated Melmacian)

Occupation: Business dealer/thief

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: None

Enemies: Officer Flabigail K. Bell, Curtis Shumway, Gordon Shumway (later ALF), other bartering victims

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Mobile on Melmac in his Flee Market caravan (Reality-88131)

First Appearance: ALF#37/2 (January, 1991)

Powers/Abilities: Swap Thing is an unscrupulous business dealer who uses his hypnotic powers ("mine control") to dupe customers into swapping everything they had with them for useless items he had hoarded in his mobile caravan base.

Height: 5'6" (by approximation)
Weight: Unrevealed
Eyes: Black
Hair: None

History:

ALF#37/2 (fb) - BTS) - The Swap Thing established a reputation as a swap dealer who duped unsuspecting victims out of their belongings and then fled in his caravan, hence it was colloquially called the Flee Market.

(ALF#37/2 (fb)) - When Gordon was still young (aged 74) and babysitting brother Curtis with a stroll through the park, he chanced upon the Swap Thing's Flee Market. Curious, Gordon wandered inside and was shocked to find the monstrous Swap Thing amongst the junk. Gordon protested he barely had anything to exchange, but Swap Thing hypnotized him into swapping trading cards, his shirt and even his baby brother in exchange for useless rusty pull tabs from soda cans. Swap Thing then fled in his caravan. Gordon recovered hours later and called the Barter Patrol; Officer Flabigail K. Bell tracked Swap Thing down where they saw him getting Curtis ready to be sold to an orphanage. Bell dived from a cliff face into Swap Thing's caravan, smashing it apart with her bulk, and arrested Swap Thing, who vainly offered her sales deals for release. Gordon was reunited with Curtis.

   Swap Thing likely perished with destruction of Melmac many years later (unless he escaped and swapped some trash for a spaceship before cancellation!).

Comments: Created by Michael Gallagher, Rusty Haller, Marie Severin.

Swap Thing is, of course, drawn from DC's character Swamp Thing. ALF writer Gallagher makes reference to Swamp Thing's creators Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson in the story, as well as popular Swamp Thing writer Alan Moore--all very collectible! (Just as [early] ALF comics have now gained value and become collectible--time for volume 2 or an Anniversary Special?)

The story has the usual extraordinary deluge of puns, but is marred by the fat-shaming humor for the police character.

Profile by Grendel Prime.

CLARIFICATIONS :
Swap Thing has no known connections to:

• SHE-THING (Sharon Ventura) - strength augmented by Power Broker, further mutated by cosmic-rays into feminine version of Thing --Fantastic Four I#310
  
• THING (Benjamin Jacob Grimm) - Fantastic Four member, body covered with orange, rock-like tissue, immense strength and durability --Fantastic Four I#1
• various iterations of the Thing (Grimm) including clones, androids, imposters, mimics, extradimensional counterparts and exoskeletons
• THING CALLED IT - artificial being created by Heinrich Munch to destroy his rivals but it gained hiss human form after Munch's death to have real life --Strange Tales I#82/1
• THING from BALD MOUNTAIN - statue with intelligence, launched into space --Tales to Astonish I#7
• THING from the HIDDEN SWAMP - extraterrestrial, crashed on Earth, aided by Mary Brown, rewarded her with various powers --Tales to Astonish I#30/3
• THING from PLANET X (Reality-5953) - sentient telepathic plant creature bent on world domination, took control of spaceship but killed by crew @ Tales of Suspense I#3/2
• THING in the BOX - creature(s) from Pandora’s Box --Journey into Mystery I#74
• THING in CELL 13 - extraterrestrial, took human form, imprisoned; his alien race took the entire prison in the process of rescuing him @ Strange Tales I#81/4
• THING in the MUD - native of underwater race, fell in love with human woman --Spellbound I#22/1
  
• or any other "Swap" or "Thing" characters

Flabigail K. Bell

Flabigail Bell was an officer of the Melmacian Barter Patrol, pursuing and catching law-breaking dealers. Like other Barter Control officers, she had been trained to resist hypnosis. She attended Gordon Shumway's case when he had been duped into relinquishing his baby brother to the nefarious Swap Thing, who used his hypnosis to secure deals only favorable to himself. Bell tracked Swap Thing down, then fearlessly dived from a cliff onto the Swap Thing's caravan, her bulk smashing it apart. The scared Swap Thing was arrested by her and taken away.

--ALF#37/2 (fb)

images: (without ads)
ALF#37/2, p2, pan4 (main image)
   p3, pan1 (headshot)
   p4, pan3 (Bell)

Appearances:
ALF#37/2 (January, 1991) - Michael Gallagher (writer), Rusty Haller (pencils), Marie Severin (inks), Fabian Nicieza (editor)

First posted: 11/09/2022
Last updated: 11/09/2022

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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