New ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Team Cards Organize the Film’s Massive Roster

Tena Milakovic
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With a film featuring such a vast array of heroes, organization becomes essential. ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ unites over two dozen returning stars from various universes, and Marvel’s marketing has been diligently categorizing this ensemble into teams. The latest initiative includes a collection of collectible cards designed for this purpose.

The film’s tagline, “Worlds Collide,” sets the stage for a convergence of three distinct universes: the Avengers of Earth-616, the Fantastic Four of Earth-828, and the X-Men of Earth-10005. Coupled with the New Avengers, the promotional campaign has a lot of factions to manage, making a team-based promotion particularly effective.

The newly revealed promotional cards feature unique designs for each faction. One card highlights the Avengers, another focuses on the New Avengers, a third showcases the X-Men, and the fourth is dedicated to the Fantastic Four. Additionally, there’s a limited-edition bonus card, labeled in Italian, that rotates among four subjects, hinting at a retail promotion linked to the film’s release.

The X-Men card depicts Professor X in his wheelchair alongside Beast, Cyclops, Magneto, and Gambit. The Fantastic Four card showcases the team in their iconic blue-and-white uniforms, with Reed Richards stretching into action, while the Avengers card features Thor, Captain America, Shang-Chi, and Ant-Man. The New Avengers card represents the former Thunderbolts, including Yelena Belova and Bucky Barnes.

These four factions align perfectly with the film’s central conflict. The New Avengers, previously known as the Thunderbolts, are guided by Yelena Belova and include Bucky Barnes and Red Guardian. Meanwhile, Sam Wilson’s Captain America is forming a separate Avengers team, and ‘Thunderbolts*’ has even teased a rivalry over the name.

Legacy mutants are also making a comeback, with Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, James Marsden, Kelsey Grammer, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn, and Channing Tatum reprising their roles from the Fox films. The Fantastic Four, portrayed by Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach, complete the lineup, alongside the Wakandans led by Shuri and M’Baku.

Interestingly, the cards focus solely on the heroes, with Doctor Doom notably absent from the lineup. This follows a trend in other promotional materials that have also excluded Robert Downey Jr.’s villain. A recent poster featured seven heroes, including Reed Richards, Gambit, Sam Wilson, Yelena, Thor, Shuri, and the Thing, without including Doom.

These cards are part of a broader wave of promotional imagery. At least 25 posters have emerged online, showcasing various combinations of heroes, with some designs placing Doom at the forefront. Artists have experimented with styles ranging from comic-book cover aesthetics to digital line art and cel-shading.

Merchandise is also rapidly expanding. M&M’S has launched seven collectible mashup packs featuring Yelena and Red Guardian, along with a limited-edition comic of 10,000 copies. Additionally, Magic: The Gathering is offering a theater-only Doctor Doom card giveaway, and Funko, Hot Toys, and Cosbi bobble-heads are part of the mix.

The structure of these teams suggests a narrative centered around alliances and rivalries rather than a single cohesive unit. Presenting the factions separately gives fans a glimpse into the film’s scale and hints at how the story may unfold, with groups meeting, clashing, and ultimately joining forces against a common enemy: Doom and the incursions he is reportedly connected to.

The excitement is palpable, with domestic pre-sales reportedly exceeding $50 million, and the first trailer achieving the second-biggest launch on record. ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ is set to hit theaters on December 18, followed by ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’ on December 17, 2027.

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