Warning: SPOILERS ahead for Avengers: Endgame.
Hasbro and Funko have revealed new toy lines based on characters appearing in Avengers: Endgame, and unfortunately many of them come with a number of spoilers. Directors Anthony and Joe Russo might have declared tomorrow as the limit of the moratorium on spoilers for Endgame, presumably giving themselves and the cast permission to thereafter discuss the film in spoilerific detail, but the toy retailers have beaten them to the punch
Toy tie-in lines are an essential component of the marketing strategy of any film aimed at audiences of all ages, acting as another form of advertising and adding to the overall profits of the property. Hasbro are the biggest manufacturer of toys in the world, with its lines based on existing properties among its most popular, while the vinyl Pop! figures licensed from dozens of different companies are Funko’s biggest-seller and increasingly ubiquitous.
A press release and images from Hasbro reveal a number of Endgame spoilers in its toy line based on the film, while a blog posting from Funko does much the same for their own output. The Hasbro line includes the electronic Infinity Gauntlet built by Stark to harness the power of the Infinity Stones, revealing the plan to re-gather the sources of phenomenal cosmic power as well as its success, and Professor Hulk wearing the Gauntlet, showing how it will be used. Some figures are of characters dusted in the snap, like Black Panther and Star-Lord, showing not only their resurrection but also that they play an active role at some point in the story. Valkyrie's return is also revealed. The figures of Peter Parker and Pepper Potts spoil the characters’ dramatic powered-up reappearances as Iron Spider and Rescue, and the inclusion of an armored Chitauri warrior confirms the time travel aspect of the story that many had speculated, since the warlike alien race only previously appeared once in the saga, as the shock troops the newly-formed Avengers fight during the Battle of New York in 2012’s The Avengers.
The spoilers revealed by the Funko Pops are also from a Professor Hulk similar to that above, showing the character about to snap the fingers of the electronic Infinity Gauntlet, and if that weren’t enough, a rainbow assortment of half a dozen chrome versions of the figure - one for each Infinity Stone - hammers home the point. Pepper Potts is shown as Rescue again, and a pair of Thors spoils two points of the character’s journey. One has him in his initial appearance apparently cosplaying as the Dude from The Big Lebowski, robbing the moment of reveal of its comedic impact, while the other shows the character in a more battle-ready appearance, this time dual-wielding Mjolnir and Stormbreaker, making it clear that he somehow reacquires his hammer.
Sometimes spoilers are unavoidable when talking about a film, especially if twist moments are part of what allows the film to remain memorable. However, people have real lives outside their cinema going, and there are numerous reasons why they might not have got around to seeing a film barely a week after its release. It’s all very well to tell people to stay off the internet until they’ve seen it, but people who need to be online for their work or simple human interaction don’t always have that luxury. For a film of the size and scope of Avengers: Endgame, perhaps companies should be a little more circumspect about spoiling the film before everyone realistically has a chance to actually see it.
Sources: Hasbro, Funko
