15 Times Superheroes Endorsed Real-Life Products (With Bonkers Results)

An evil supervillain has the city in a chokehold. The city is to give up its sovereignty, its wealth, its dignity in exchange for the lives of its denizens. We need a hero to stand up and rescue the city from this peril. Suddenly, in the horizon a figure emerges among the clouds. It is heading towards us. It is hope for us all.

Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s… a Hostess fruit pie? Yes, even the most honorable and best superheroes aren’t immune to commercialization and capitalism. The Prime Video show The Boys brings this up in nearly every episode. Yet while we shouldn’t be shocked at our favorite superheroes being used to sell products, it can get pretty weird at what types of products they’re being used to sell.

At the end of Marvel’s first Avengers movie, we know the heroes supported a local shawarma place — but you still wouldn’t think that DC’s Justice League would just hang out at a Subway sandwich shop. And yet, they did.

More on that and other weird superhero endorsements below.

15 Wolverine and Gerber Baby Products

Weird Superhero Endorsements Wolverine intensely endorsed Gerber baby products. In a How are you not fired? decision, the 1993 Marvel Annual Financial Report featured comic panels of Wolverine's blood-red gaze upon several Gerber toys and products that he shills to the reader. GERBER® NURSERY DOLLS AND... GERBER™ ELECTRONICS-FEAT- Oerber URING WIRELESS VIDEO CAMERA MONITORS TO HEAR AND WATCH YOUR BABY IN THE LIGHT OR DARKNESS! CRACKED.COM — Source: Universal Dork

14 Aquaman and Subway

IS THAT AQUAMAN? WHAT THE HECK ARE THOSE GUYS UP TO? I DON'T KNOW, BUT IT CAN'T BE ANY GOOD Weird Superhero Endorsements Subway-fueled football players saved Aquaman. NFL players Michael Strahan, Ndamukong Suh, and Justin Tuck stop eating their Subway sandwiches to help an unconscious Aquaman against, while everyone yearns for Subway's D-grade ingredients. ARMAN LET'S GO, GUYS! SUBWAY YEAH, BUT I HAVEN'T FINISHED MY SANDWICH-- COME ON, MICHAEL! IT'S AQUAMAN! CRACKED.COM — Source: Every Day Is Like Wednesday

13 Spider-Man and Twinkies

NOT FOR RIGHT, WEB-HEAD. HOW ABOUT IT? BE A I HAVE THE FEELING THINGS ARE A MILLION YOU'RE GOING ON NICE GUY AND LET ME GOING TO GET WORSE BEFORE OUT OF HERE. BUCKS! A ONE-WAY THEY GET BETTER. RIDE! RIGHTS RESERVED Weird Superhero Endorsements Spider-Man bribes his captors with Twinkies. The Web Slinger gets caught in a net by Larcenous Lil and her nameless goons, but then trades creme-filled sponge cakes for his freedom. Не then webs Larcenous Lil. End of ad. HOW ABOUT FOR LARCENOUS LIL WON'T LIKE SOMETIME LATER AT LARCENOUS LIL'S LAIR. SOME DELICIOUS THIS. BUT — Source: Harry Bauer/YouTube

12 Batman, Superman, and Snickers

Weird Superhero Endorsements Doomsday is deafeated with a Snickers. In Action Comics #959, Batman saves Superman from being deathpunched by Doomsday by handing him a Snickers. Then it turns out it wasn't Doomsday at all, but a hangry Wonder Woman. PRO SNICKERS CRACKED.COM — Source: Superman Homepage

11 Green Lantern and KFC

TANTERN Weird Superhero Endorsements Colonel Sanders becomes a Green Lantern. Hal Jordan gives Sanders some power to fight the Orange Lantern, Larfleeze, who wants to force the Colonel to make chicken sandwiches. Sanders ends the fight by offering Larfleeze his own KFC franchise. CRACKED.COM — Sources: Screen Rant, DC Comics

10 Hulk and Sleepy's Mattresses

Weird Superhero Endorsements HULK LOVE SLEEPY'S MATTRESSES! Sleepy's Mattresses invented the hero Sleepy's Man to magically force the Jade Giant to dreamland via its incredibly comfortable mattress (that they want you to buy). CRACKED.COM — Source: MyComicShop, CBR
More: 6 Hilariously Awful Examples of Product Placements in Comics

9 Superman and Quik

CRACKED COM Weird Superhero Endorsements Superman teamed up with the Quik Bunny. For reasons only advertisers know, Superman needed the aid of the Nestlé Quik mascot once. Of course, they fueled up with a powdery liquid that is chocolate milk and also not chocolate milk. — Source: DC Database

8 Black Canary and Pontiac

CRACKED.COM COULD YOU CONCENTRATE ON YOUR DRIVING? Weird Superhero Endorsements Black Canary runs over crime with a Pontiac driver. In a limited series, Black Canary teams with Rush, a superhero created for Pontiac, with the power to... own a Pontiac. There were six issues of this. Six! THERUNCU — Source: DC Comics
More: 6 Hilariously Awful Examples of Product Placements in Comics

7 Captain America, Black Widow, and Harley-Davidson

MOTOR HARLEY-DAVIDSON A CYCLES - HAUT UNITED Weird Superhero Endorsements Captain America and Black Widow team up with Harley Davidson's Road Force. Cap and Natasha recruit Harley Davidson's elite motorcycle team to take down interdimensional monsters. You know, typical biker stuff. CRACKED.COM — Sources: Marvel, Marvel Database

6 S.H.I.E.L.D. and Lexus

CRACKED.COM Weird Superhero Endorsements Lexus sponsored the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Coulson goes on a quest for revenge in the best possible way - driving a luxury S.U.V. from the good people at Lexus! A whole comic was dedicated to this. LAND LEISTEN — Sources: Marvel, CBR

5 The Fantastic Four and Hitachi Data Systems

4 4 Weird Superhero Endorsements The Fantastic Four and Hitachi Data Systems fight monsters and poor data storage. Marvel's First Family battles M.O.D.O.K. and a cluster of corrupted data spheres called Datazilla. They succeed thanks to Hitachi's Virtual Storage Platform (and The Thing clobbering stuff, of course). CRACKED.COM — Source: Comic Vine
More: 6 Hilariously Awful Examples of Product Placements in Comics

4 The Avengers and Northrop Grumman

A Weird Superhero Endorsements The Avengers teamed up with a real life defense contractor. In 2017, Marvel partnered with Northrop Grumman and released a comic featuring the Avengers and Northrop Grumman's own hero team, N.G.E.N. It was quickly dropped because what the hell, Marvel. CRACKED.COM — Source: Asset Pharmacy

3 Daredevil and Hostess Fruit Pies

wow! REAL FRUIT FILLING- I'VE GOT TO STOP HIM. THESE HOSTESS APPLE AND CHERRY. AND A FRUIT PIES MIGHT HELP. HE MUST HAVE WORKED UP AN APPETITE BY NOW! LIGHT, TENDER CRUST. DELICIOUS! Weird Superhero Endorsements Daredevil beats a baby man by feeding him Hostess Fruit Pies. The Man Without can't seem to beat this random swole baby-looking man, so he tosses some dry, sugary fruit pastry bombs at him. HEY, DAREDEVIL, WHAT I DON'T KNOW! 1 JUST MURDOCK? Z THOUGHT YOU DON'T MENTION WERE WE FIGHTING ASKED YOU WHAT YOU SAID I SMELL OF DIRTY IT. I NEEDED ABOUT, — Source: Comic Vine

2 Batman, Robin, and Hostess Cupcakes

SOMETHING TELLS ME MY BAT MAN OLD ENEMY, THE CATMAN IS ON THE PROWL TONIGHT. IN CATMAN ON THE PROWL Weird Superhero Endorsements Robin saves Batman from Catman with cupcakes. Robin tempts Catman with chocolate cupcakes to get him to call off his leopards and panthers off the Dark Knight. It works because the cupcakes appeal to Catman's love of darkness. OK, then. HOSTESS® CUP CAKES! SMART MOVE, I THINK HE'LL ROBIN USING BE GOING TO THE DOGS CATMAN'S LOVE DEEP, DARK OF DARKNESS TO ...I MEAN, CHOCOLATY GET HIS MIND JAIL... FROM CAKE! DEEP, NOW ON. OFF ME. DARK — Source: The Vintage Toy Advertiser

1 The Justice League and Craftsman

Source: CBR
More: 6 Hilariously Awful Examples of Product Placements in Comics

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