Marvel super hero-themed college shirts? Does that work for the UAAP?

We could be heroes (not just for one day)

by rick olivares

When I read that Marvel Comics partnered with Russell Athletic to produce super hero themed college apparel, I raised my eyebrows in wonderment. Really now? I mean, Captain America on a UNLV shirt? Iron Man on UCLA? Thor on OSU?

It is for real and it does seems weird. Good for a chuckle isn’t it? Maybe not because over 200 colleges including very prominent ones have signed up for the program. So they know maybe they see something good or dollar signs here. For an American setting it seems fine but is it okay for us?

When I think that maybe Philippine colleges doing the same does that mean we use characters like Captain Barbel, Lastikman, Darna etc? Hilarious. Who else do we have? We have a vibrant local comic book scene and there’s a lot.

For the sake of going along what comic book characters match with schools (using local and foreign properties), who fits what school?

Let’s give it the old college try. No villains!!!

Adamson – The Falcon (Sam Wilson, one time co-crime fighter alongside Captain America). Thunderbird?

Ateneo – Hawkman. Jack Hawksmoor. Archangel. There was an obscure comic book hero called – believe it or not – the Blue Eagle. But no way is this team obscure. So the X-Men’s Apocalypse influenced mutant Archangel is more like it.

La Salle – Green Arrow (Is this obvious?). Hawkeye is way cooler.

NU – Timberwolf of the Legion of the Superheroes. Bigby Wolf of Fables (one of the best ongoing comic book series ever). But where’s the dog here? Hahaha. What’s wrong with Timberwolf or Bigby? Not sucking up to them (although the Bulldogs do have a soft spot in my heart since I have been writing about them all these years even during their dog days). Thought about the Inhumans’ Lockjaw but really that doesn’t work. Henry Sy would be pissed at me if I had Lockjaw – this huge dog that teleports – next to their school logo. So maybe  Hahaha. Is that right? I cannot say that I am jetlagged am I (borrowing a line from The Walking Dead’s Charlie Adlard during the panel at the recent San Diego Comicon).

UE – Cable. The Punisher. Deathstroke the Terminator. Turok. Hahaha. The list is endless and perhaps the most fun. Their women’s team would be Darna. Hahaha.

UST – Zabu? Animal Man. Nah. Wolverine.

UP – Dr. Manhattan. Enuff said.

FEU – You know how dumbass sportswriters would come up with headlines like “Tams gore Tigers” and crap like that? Talk about being unimaginative. So let’s not go with Spider-Man nemesis Rhino who has repeatedly tried to gore our friendly neighborhood Wall Crawler. Maybe some character offbeat but representing the muscularity and industriousness of the Tamaraw – Ben Grimm – The Thing (of the Fantastic Four). It’s Clobberin’ time!!!

I don’t think these comic book super hero-themed UAAP school shirts will happen but it’s just cool thinking, ‘what if…’