Joe Kline / The Bulletin Jessica Patrick, at left, takes a picture of her husband, James Patrick, and daughter Lily, 4, posing with Chris Columbus, owner of Geek Geek Nerd Nerd and dressed as Deadpool, during free comic book day at Geek Geek Nerd Nerd in Redmond on Saturday.

REDMOND — Nerd pride was on full display in Redmond’s lone comic book store Saturday in celebration of Free Comic Book Day.

At 10:30 a.m. the shop Geek Geek Nerd Nerd, at 535 SW Sixth St., opened its doors to a modest line of comics enthusiasts looking to get their geek on.

Each year, publishers make specific comic books for the special day and sell them to shop owners at a highly discounted price that makes giving them away for free feasible.

“We ordered close to 1,000,” Chris Columbus, co-owner of Geek Geek Nerd Nerd, said Saturday, standing near the entrance dressed as Deadpool.

Somewhat similar to Record Store Day, a list comes out in advance of the special, free releases so comic book enthusiasts can make a plan. At Geek Geek Nerd Nerd, visitors were allowed to pick up one comic book during the day. Then at 4:30 p.m., people could come back for a “free-for-all” to get as many copies they wanted of whatever was left.

Columbus said Free Comic Book Day encourages “people who might not otherwise try comics” to come in.

Still, the downtown shop was full of die-hard fans Saturday, too.

Several people, especially kids and teens, came dressed in costumes for a contest. Staff at Geek Geek Nerd Nerd took pictures of participants throughout the day to post online; winners will be voted on next week.

“Hi, Deadpool,” a little girl said shyly, approaching Columbus, in his red and black mask.

“Hey,” he said. “High-five?”

She turned to run, then changed her mind, slapping hands with him.

Kerstin Crosson, 44, of Bend, brought her two daughters to the shop to check out the selection.

Zoë Crosson, 14, was dressed as Dr. Who — a costume she put together herself from thrift store finds. Her sister, Quinn Crosson, 12, wore a blue dress with the Dr. Who TARDIS on it. The TARDIS looks like an old-fashioned, blue British police box (or phone booth). It allows Dr. Who to time travel.

Kerstin Crosson said her daughters became “geeks” all on their own, although she’s gotten more into comics too in recent years.

“I used to watch the ‘Batman’ cartoon series as an adult,” she said. When she started tuning into “The Walking Dead,” she began reading the comics.

“The show is different enough from the comic that it stays interesting,” she said of the AMC show.

Her daughters chose “Suicide Squad” and “Dr. Who” comics for their free picks.

Nearby, Sequoia Williams, 14, and her sister Aurora Williams, 13, both of Redmond, checked out a shelf of comic books for sale. For the special day, comic books and graphic novels were 20 percent off.

Sequoia said she’s especially an “anime geek,” and enjoys manga, but she also picked up the Suicide comic for her free book. Aurora decided on “The Stuff of Legend.”

“We’re gonna finish it today,” Sequoia said.

“Probably in the car,” Aurora added.

Sequoia said she has friends who enjoy anime and manga with her; for Aurora it’s something she bonds only with her sister over.

Back behind the counter, Columbus, still in costume, greeted his customers as a steady flow of foot traffic continued past 11 a.m.

His friend Bryan Warner, of Redmond, stopped in to drop off a hand-drawn comic book page. Warner, who works by day at a printing press in Sisters, enjoys doing comic book art in his free time.

The two are collaborating on a comic book they’ll call “15 Minutes,” in which a man wakes up on death row only to find out he has 15 minutes before his execution. The twist: He doesn’t know why he’s being put to death.

Columbus pored over the artwork, done with pencil, ink and gouache, what Warner described as “an opaque watercolor paint.” Still in black and white and without speech bubbles, the scenes showed an inmate lying in his cell, looking contemplative.

“We believe everyone’s a geek, they just don’t know it yet,” Columbus said.

— Reporter: 541-383-0325, kfisicaro@bendbulletin.com