Fan-designed Marvel shirts hit Uniqlo stores today

The theme of Uniqlo’s annual T-shirt design competition, the Uniqlo T-Shirt Grand Prix (UTGP), is usually related to whatever’s going on in the pop culture zeitgeist. Last year it was Nintendo, capitalizing on Switch mania. This year, it’s all about Marvel’s Avengers.

Uniqlo received over 8,500 submissions that a team of judges from Uniqlo and Marvel whittled down to the 17 designs now available on Uniqlo’s website and in stores. The prize for the winner included a $10,000 reward and a special tour of Marvel HQ.

The winning design is a drawing of the Avengers’ uniforms (minus Black Widow’s; what else is new?) on hangers. They’re presumably enjoying some much-deserved time off. The Taiwan-based designer, Zee, wrote, “I was thinking about the common ground of the humor of Marvel movie’s [sic] and the Uniqlo brand while I was at my creation — work.”

The runner-up design went for a humorous effect as well, with the Hulk spelling out his own name, YMCA-style.

My personal favorite is this very ’80s-looking, very neon Guardians of the Galaxy shirt, featuring Baby Groot on the back trying to unplug the whole thing.

Check out all of the winning designs in the gallery below, or head over to Uniqlo’s site. Adult shirts are priced at $14.90 and kids shirts are $9.90.