Marvel Comics had some incredibly ridiculous crossovers during the 90s. Marvel experimented with numerous tie-in properties to cash-in on, including a weird Billy Ray Cyrus-starring book among many others. However, Marvel's weirdest experiment might be a 12-issue miniseries with the NFL.
In 1991, Marvel teamed up with the NFL to create a series called NFL SuperPro written by Fabian Nicieza with art by Jose Delbo. Despite publishing 12 issues (and a special issue) the book had four different writers by the time it wrapped up. The book, which follows a football player turned superhero, is widely considered one of the worst comic books of all time and for good reason.
NFL SuperPro told the story of Phil Grayfield, an aspiring football player who's career is cut short when he saves a child from falling to their death. Grayfield turns to a career as a reporter, where he encounters a scientist/NFL superfan who has designed an indestructible football uniform. During the interview, thieves tie Grayfield up and steal NFL merchandise. While tied up, Grayfield knocks over chemicals that combines with the rare souvenirs to turn him into a superhero. He used the football uniform to become the hero known as SuperPro.
In the series, SuperPro faced off against football-themed villains including a time manipulator named Instant Replay, the Head Hunters, a group of football players who were too nasty for the NFL, and Repulsor, a Brazillian football player who wants to protect the environment with extreme actions. The book also features crossovers with Captain America, Spider-Man, and NFL Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor. The book was never afraid to jam football references down readers' throats even when it didn't make sense. It also featured every comic trope imaginable.
Nicieza, who's had an impressive comics career pre-and-post SuperPro co-creating Deadpool, working on X-Men and a bunch of other great titles, admitted in an interview with Vice the gig came with perks. He received a nice royalty check for the first issue and NFL tickets for taking on the gig. He admitted a lack of passion for the project ultimately killed SuperPro. There was little chance it was ever going to stand the test of time and become a hit for Marvel. It shouldn't shock you to learn SuperPro never appeared in another comic since his series wrapped up.
Comics have always featured sports-themed heroes, but nothing has quite come close to SuperPro when it comes to failing to justify its existence. Back in 2012, Marvel released a BrooklyKnight #1 comic to commemorate the Nets moving from New Jersey to Brooklyn. But, that title was a one-shot to celebrate something so it was much more forgivable. Marvel Comics giving SuperPro an ongoing series will always be one of the weirdest creative decisions the company has ever made.
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