I always get a kick out of the Hallmark stores during late summer and early fall. It’s still baseball season, and the famous gift stores have ornaments ready for Christmas.

The usual characters are ready for evergreen branches, even though they won’t begin hang time for another nine weeks or so. Singing snowmen, red-nosed reindeer, solemn angels and Disney princesses and mermaids are all part of the holiday proceedings.

I guess most of these things are geared for collectors. If you picked up the first “Frosty Friends” ornament in 1979, you’ll go for the 29th entry in the series. Looks like an Eskimo on a saucer-shaped sled. Same thing for the “Mary’s Angels” series; the violet-gowned, elf-like “Rosemary” is the 21st member of the gang.

The Christmas-themed ornaments have been sharing store space with pop culture icons for years now. At first, it might have been a novelty to have super heroes from the comic books swinging or flying on the tree. But it seems that every year, there’s a new version of the character available. Who wants 12 versions of Superman crowding out lights, tinsel and popcorn strings?

This year, Iron Man and Space Ghost — characters designed for comics and television during the 1960s — are new. Johnny Depp fans can bring Captain Jack Sparrow from the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies to Christmas. Jack and his battery-operated circuitry offers four phrases. Shiver me timbers, mate!

The slick white Mach 5 from the “Speed Racer” movie is also for sale. The live-action film of the cult cartoon kind of bombed this summer. So I wonder if the ornament will bomb this winter.

Light-up, music-playing jukeboxes and a communicator from the “Star Trek” television series are other diversions for the divine holiday.

I’ve never understood the “Star Wars” scenes transplanted to Christmas. This year, characters fight with light sabers — which are designed to kill people in the fictional space saga. In another, the black-robed “Emperor Palpatine” sits on his throne. The dude looks like a zombie. And I thought Christmas was supposed to be all about peace and love!

Maybe these ornaments are all reflections of our times. If a 7-year-old kid loved “Speed Racer” this year, Mom and Dad will hang the car on a branch, and the car’s December appearance will become a holiday custom — even when Junior is driving cars for real.

And Jack? Well, who doesn’t love a pirate on a Christmas tree?

Maybe antique hunters of 2108 will marvel at pristine conditions of discovered “View-Master” and “Pac-Man” decorations from long ago. They’ll be worth a fortune! By then, “Frosty Friends” will be in its 129th edition.

I’ll stick to bells, balls and candy canes on my Christmas tree. But I’ve got to get through the World Series first!