Religion: not determined yet
Name: Tinkerer
Alter Ego: Phineas T. Mason
Other Names: The Terrible Tinkerer; Phineas Mason
Classification: villain scientist
First Appearance: The Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 1) #2 (May 1963): "The Uncanny Threat of the Terrible Tinkerer!"
Creators: Stan Lee, Steve Ditko
Super? (Has Super Powers/Special Abilities/Technology): Yes
Number of Appearances: 104
Enemy of: Spider-Man
Ally: Justin Hammer
Occupation: inventor, technician
Race: white
Gender: male
Note: serves the underworld
BELOW: Eddie Brock ("Venom") was moved by Mel Gibson's "Passion of the Christ" to renounce villainy, sell The Symbiote, and donate the money to charity: The Terrible Tinkerer conducts an auction for super-villains in which Eddie Brock is auctioning off the alien symbiote that transforms him into Venom - selling the symbiote to the highest bidder. Note how Mysterio questions whether Eddie Brock's actions are truly "Christ-like." It is not every day you see a super-villain question whether somebody's actions are "Christ-like." But Eddie Brock's spiritual motivations in this case are very sincere, and hearken back to the earliest beginnings of this Catholic character, who first merged with The Symbiote after a sincere prayer in a Catholic church. Note how the Tinkerer refers to Eddie Brock's "crisis of faith." This term is usually used to describe as a period of doubt that causes one to question one's beliefs. In this case, Eddie Brock has come to doubt his life as a villain, and is actually turning back to his religious faith.
Source: Marvel Knights Spider-Man #6 (Nov. 2004): "Venomous: Part Two", pg. 23, panels 2-4. Written by Mark Millar. Art by Rachel Dodson, Terry Dodson. See also: charity; Christ-like; faith; repentance; crisis of faith; Catholic; Venom (Eddie Brock); Jesus Christ (Jesus of Nazareth); Tinkerer (Phineas T. Mason); The Symbiote; Mysterio (Daniel Berkhart); Mel Gibson
Suggested links for further research about this character:
- http://www.comicvine.com/tinkerer/29-3144/
- http://www.comicboards.com/marvelguide/t2.html
- http://www.marvunapp.com/master/titn.htm