| Popinjay | |
|---|---|
| Wild Cards character | |
| First appearance | Wild Cards (1987) |
| Created by | George R. R. Martin |
Jay "Popinjay" Ackroyd is a character from the Wild Cards series of books.
As an Ace (a Wild Card victim with powers, but relatively few mutations), Jay can teleport people and things anywhere he can clearly visualize (often this means places like the local baseball stadium or police holding tank, though once he teleported the dangerous joker Ti Malice into a place he had only dreamed of). He cannot use this power on himself, and he has to be able to point his index fingers at his target (holding his hand like a pistol).
Jay Ackroyd is a private investigator, running the Ackroyd and Creighton Detective Agency with his junior partner, Mr. Nobody. Known (much to his annoyance) as 'Popinjay' amongst his fellow Wild Carders, his power, especially combined with his quick wits, makes him a deceptively dangerous opponent.
In the early 90s Ackroyd accompanied Dr. Tachyon to his homeworld of Takis. While he was on Takis, he was captured by Blaise Andrieux, who chopped off his fingers to prevent him from using his powers. After Blaise's defeat, they were grown back by Takisian technology. Since then, Ackroyd married a Takisian chef and returned to earth and his increasingly high-profile detective/bodyguard agency, which now employs Aces such as Peter Pann.
Jay's favorite saying: "Might as well, I can't dance"