Last week Highsnobiety reported on an upcoming Vans x Marvel collaboration. While there isn’t much information available on the collection or which Marvel properties will be featured, fans of both the footwear brand and the comic franchise are already salivating at the thought of what’s to come.
This will not be the first time that Marvel has ventured into the streetwear scene. In fact, the publisher has a very respectable, if relatively unknown, history when it comes to streetwear collaborations.
From releasing co-branded collections with A Bathing Ape to a Vans footwear collection in 2013, here are some of the best Marvel streetwear collaborations to date.
Marvel x Uniqlo UTGP (2018)
We start with a collaboration that has not released yet but makes the list for several reasons. First of all, Uniqlo is low-key the king of collabs, working on collections with a wide variety of A-list names such as KAWS, Peanuts, and, of course, Marvel.
On April 26, Uniqlo and Marvel will release a collection that was part of the UTGP T-shirt competition, in which fans were able to submit T-shirt designs for consideration. A panel of judges picked 17 designs that are now set to release. Because of the interactive nature of this collaboration and the unmatched affordability, it will go down as one of the best Marvel collaborations we’ve seen so far.
Marvel x Vans footwear collection (2013)
The precursor to the upcoming collection that is creating all the hype, this footwear collaboration from 2013 featured several of the Avengers on various Vans Classic silhouettes. That was the same year Avengers hype reached its peak, so it made sense for Vans and Marvel to cash in with a collab.
The Avengers release, which was part of a second drop, included a Sk8-Hi Reissue and Era, and a Slip-On for tykes. The Sk8-Hi reissue highlighted Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk and Thor on each side panel, while the Era and Slip-On featured a collage on the front and back panels.
Marvel x Stüssy (2011)
Back in 2011, Marvel teamed up with Stüssy for an incredibly comprehensive collection that was split into two “series.” The first released on April 27 and included nine T-shirt designs featuring some of Marvel’s most iconic superheroes mixed with Stüssy’s famous graphic language.
The second series was made up of designs from nine guest artists who interpreted their favorite characters from the Marvel Universe. The highlight was most definitely the crazy Wolverine shirt, which you can check out above.
BAPE x Marvel Comics “The Baby Milo Avengers” Capsule
While this wasn’t the first time BAPE and Marvel had teamed up, it’s one of our favorites so far. The collection came out in 2012 and included a series of graphic T-shirts and an all-over print hoodie, which featured appearances by Captain America, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, and Thor.
Each of the superheroes was done up in Baby Milo style, while the Japanese brand’s iconic APE Head also made an appearance on a tee.
Flip through some of the imagery above and let us know where this one sits in your Marvel collaboration ranking.
Clarks x Black Panther (2018)
To celebrate the release of what some critics called one of the greatest superhero films ever made, Clarks Originals and Marvel came together for an all-black, Black Panther-inspired, version of the footwear brand’s futuristic Trigenic Evo shoe.
Dubbed the Tri Evo Panther, the silhouette incorporates the original’s distinctive three-part outsole and asymmetric last design on top of a sturdy Vibram footbed. Matte-black leather and a Black Panther logo on the heel counter and shoelace tag completed a very stealthy collaboration.
The Weeknd x Marvel
While not technically a collaboration of any sorts, the Weeknd stepped out in a Marvel box logo dad cap last year, just as the hype for said caps was at its ultimate peak. We loved it, so did his followers and fans, and we wouldn’t say no to another official Marvel x Weeknd collaboration – whatever that might look like. The singer famously linked up with Marvel on a “Starboy” comic book, which is set to release at some point this year.
In other news, here are the best Air Jordans of 2018 (so far).
