Posted in: Comics, Marvel Comics | Tagged: kevin feige, robert downey jr, ultimate, Ultimate Endgame

Robert Downey Jr Is Now The Willy Wonka Of The Marvel Universe

Today, courtesy of Marvel's Ultimate Endgame, Robert Downey Jr is the Willy Wonka of the Marvel Universe

Today sees the publication of Ultimate Endgame #1, the beginning of the end of Marvel's Ultimate Universe. It is also being made available as a blind bag edition, with hidden variant covers inside, some rarer than others, and also original art sketch covers by a variety of creators, including signed sketches by Kevin Feige and Robert Downey Jr who, it seems, is a dab hand at drawing his MCU characters Iron Man and Doctor Doom. Just four of them.

2025 was a year that saw the blind bag phenomenon come to comic books, first with Invincible Universe: Battle Beast from Skybound/Image Comics, which topped the charts and garnered 400,000 orders. And so everyone else was going to do blind bag variant covers as well. DC Comics with Batman #1, and DC's KO #1 with the foil variants. The Mark Spears' Monsters prequel, Monster And The Wolf, from Keenspot, was only available in a blind bag.  Titan Comics with Heatseeker Exposed with infinite variety, Dynamite with Die! Namite #1 and Vampirella #8, followed by half their publishing line. And Vault got it very wrong with Post Malone's Big Rig, and people will burn them and post it on TikTok. This week, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #13 blind bags were released, causing them to come off on people's hands. Only the Absolute line seemed immune. As Marvel Comics planned their first blind bag comic for December and Ultimate Endgame #1 was first revealed and then confirmed by Bleeding Cool (their second will be, puntastically, for Daredevil #1 in March)

The comic costs a mere $6 rather than the extra cost that some publishers add on, which is just as well, as it seems plenty of people just get the standard A cover of the comic inside the blind bag. What is more annoying is that there appears to have been damage to the blind bagged editions of the comic book, with spine damage evident on nearly every copy I have been able to identify. Still, if you get one of the original sketch covers, you wouldn't really care. However, what it has done is transform Robert Downey Jr. into Willy Wonka, with his sketch covers serving as the Golden Tickets inside the blind bag of Wonka's Chocolate. None have been identified as being found yet; it's possible that if the bagged copy in question is never opened, it never will be.

We'll be keeping an eye on social media… let us know if you get one or know anyone who has! Marvel is promising the following to promote Ultimate Endgame and the blind bag promotion. Which means you'll have to watch out for spoilers as they are sending advance copies of the blind bag comic to "influencers". And they don't mean just comic book ones… here's the PR promise made to retailers.

• Creator interviews and content debuts with comic & entertainment press outlets
• Advance press review copies
• Paid social media advertising and search promotions
• Paid digital advertising support (video and static) across social channels and YouTube
• Cinematic content trailer release across social channels and YouTube
• Teaser & full-length video content showcasing exclusive Sketch Covers on social channels and YouTube
• Ongoing print advertising in Marvel Comics
• Ongoing creative marketing content on social channels
• Marvel.com editorial coverage
• Coordinated creator social media postings
• Continuous social support for all ongoing Ultimate Universe titles
• Advanced mailing of True Believers Blind Bag samples to influencers
• Comprehensive "End of the Ultimate Universe" sustain marketing campaign through April 2026

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