Avengers: Doomsday saw that it needed to juggle two Avengers teams and the Fantastic Four, and it thought that would raise the stakes. The X-Men are also set to appear in the highly anticipated film. And it won't be the new cast Marvel Studios announced at D23 suiting up; the original Fox cast is back, including heavyweights like Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen. Even Alan Cumming, who only appeared in one X-Men film, is coming back for more. But there's a discrepancy involving his character, Nightcrawler, that's sure to ruffle some blue feathers.
As is par for the course for a Marvel movie ahead of its release, Funko released a wave of Avengers: Doomsday tie-in Pops that let die-hard fans expand their MCU collection. Despite fierce competition from Doctor Doom, Thor, Steve Rogers and more, Nightcrawler made the cut, with a new toy highlighting his new costume and silver hair. The Pop! looks so good that it's easy to miss what's happening right behind it.
Instead of having Nightcrawler stand still for his Pop!, Funko opted to have him use his teleportation ability. Doomsday is sure to afford him the same oppurtunity, so there's no reason to have him hold back on store shelves. However, the smoke around the hero as he jumps from one spot to another doesn't match other merchandise or the character's initial big-screen appearance in 2003.
Iron Studios dropped a line of Doomsday statues, including one of Nightcrawler that, like the Pop!, shows him mid-teleport. The color around him is a dark purple, taking a page out of Marvel Comics' book. Funko clearly didn't get the memo because its take on the X-Man has him surrounded by a clear cloud of smoke with a bit of dark blue at its center.
The blue isn't all that dissimilar from the one X2: X-Men United used when Cumming's mutant teleported. But clear wasn't part of that movie's equation.
Maybe Funko realized that a mostly clear mold would be most cost-effective and let them produce enough Nightcrawler figures to keep the masses happy. The toy manufacturer didn't cut corners anywhere else, though, especially with its Jumbo Sentinel. That means the only way to solve the mystery is to return to the drawing board. And it points to a practice that Marvel Studios has been all too happy to utilize in recent years.
Avengers: Doomsday Is Hiding Important Aspects of Its Characters' Powers
Kevin Feige and Co. have never been above leading the audience astray. Famously, Marvel Studios includes shots in trailers that don't make the final cut and removes characters from scenes they're actually a part of. Doomsday's marketing campaign takes it a step further by seemingly swapping colors.
The first trailer for the upcoming film ended with an epic clash between Thor and Doctor Doom. As he has done so many times before, the God of Thunder charged his blue lightning and struck his enemy with the force of 1,000 suns. This time, Thor failed to hit his target because Doom stopped his attack. It's an impressive feat for what Marvel Studios hopes is a memorable villain. But the powers that be might be hiding just how shocking Doom's victory will be.
A few pieces of Doomsday merchandise, as well as an international poster, feature Thor with yellow lightning rather than blue. While the swap may not seem significant, it could be a signal that Thor has undergone a major power-up, potentially even gaining control of the Odinforce. Marvel Studios wouldn't want to spoil an upgrade of that caliber, so it may have opted to try to keep it under wraps until the movie hits theaters in December.
Obviously, the yellow cat is out of the bag. And the clear one might be as well. Nightcrawler has received his share of upgrades in the comics, ones that take him from useful in a pinch to a major threat. After being exposed to the X-Virus, Nightcrawler no longer had to see where he was going when he teleported and could carry heavy loads. Unfortunately, it wasn't all darkness and brimstone because the virus exacted a heavy toll on the hero, even giving him a new, more demonic form.
Doomsday probably won't have time to pull off an X-Virus storyline because it has enough on its plate as is. That doesn't mean it has to let everyone else get stronger while Nightcrawler twiddles his thumbs and practices with his swords. Doom is coming, and every hero must pull out all the stops if they want any chance of winning.
