Supergirl

[Ragitsu]

Kind of like your vacuous nonsense about the costume color? As if superhero costumes haven't evolved over the years. As if they shouldn't evolve over the years.

 

if you're referring to comics, then brightly colored/contrasted outfits are still popular. Even the newer darker suits (likely inspired by modern superhero cinema/television) are a far cry from the shadowy tones and pebbly textures that are all the rage in superhero cinema and television nowadays.

 

Also, while we've had a deluge of superhero films as of late, the percentage of them compared to the amount of movies overall is fairly small. There simply weren't enough titles to compare against before the "darker and dumber" fad swept in and distinctly recognizable supers like fricking Superman (not exactly a street-level stealthy type!) became hit by the fashion change.

 

If this is "evolution", then stick me back in the primordial pool.

[Old Man]

if you're referring to comics, then brightly colored/contrasted outfits are still popular. Even the newer darker suits (likely inspired by modern superhero cinema/television) are a far cry from the shadowy tones and pebbly textures that are all the rage in superhero cinema and television nowadays.

Four-color hand drawn print vs. live action. Completely different media and surroundings. One way to make bright costumes work would be to increase the brightness of everything else, giving a massively styled background to work against as in Dick Tracy or Gatsby. But if the background is everyday reality, forget it.

 

I should also point out that one big reason for bright superhero costumes in the comics is print technology. They called the original process four-color for a reason.

 

If this is "evolution", then stick me back in the primordial slime.

I've experience primordial slime. You wouldn't like it. You just can't get the smell out.

[Ragitsu]

Four-color hand drawn print vs. live action. Completely different media and surroundings. One way to make bright costumes work would be to increase the brightness of everything else, giving a massively styled background to work against as in Dick Tracy or Gatsby. But if the background is everyday reality, forget it.

 

I think it can work. Problem is, there are very few (if any) filmmakers that are willing to try. Then, when you factor in how incestuous Hollywood connections can be (in the close-knit relationship sense...not the literal sense), it becomes even more difficult to go against the grain.

 

I should also point out that one big reason for bright superhero costumes in the comics is print technology. They called the original process four-color for a reason.

 

Originally, yes, but it has persisted even with the many advancements in printing and digital media technology, and for more than just legacy purposes.

 

It's attention grabbing, not to mention germane in-universe for superheros that wear their costume as a symbol (pretty much most of them).

[Pariah]

I distinctly remember that there were terms as the Salkinds were working on the Superman franchise and did not want any competition. That also affected the story as they couldn't venture into the Superboy/Superman era.

I thought that was the case.

 

Oh, and completely off-topic, I love your avatar.

[Old Man]

I think it can work. Problem is, there are very few (if any) filmmakers that are willing to try.

Certainly. However if hundreds of millions of dollars and my job were at stake, I could see why movie execs would be risk averse.

 

 

Originally, yes, but it has persisted even with the many advancements in printing and digital media technology, and for more than just legacy purposes.

No, I think it's entirely legacy reasons. Superhero costumes since 1980 tend to be far less garish, because they can be.

 

It's attention grabbing, not to mention germane in-universe for superheros that wear their costume as a symbol (pretty much most of them).

But once again, bright costumes make more sense in print than in live action movies. I think Reeve's Superman is the closest we ever got to making that work, but as I pointed out earlier, that was over three decades ago and tastes have changed.

[Zeropoint]

Isn't Supergirl known for changing her costume frequently? They've got a built-in excuse to change it if it's not "working" on-screen.

[wcw43921]

I admit--that did not occur to me.

[Scott Baker]

I thought that was the case.

 

Oh, and completely off-topic, I love your avatar.

Thanks.  Nice Signature. 

[Greywind]

Isn't Supergirl known for changing her costume frequently? They've got a built-in excuse to change it if it's not "working" on-screen.

 

Depends on which Supergirl you're talking about. Most of them have been pretty stable in what they wore.

[Christopher R Taylor]

For a while there, she did change her costume quite a bit.  For example (very large image):

 

[Greywind]

Those aren't all the same Supergirl, either.

[Bazza]

In the beginning, yes. And I think it was a good concept. Having supers (heroes and villains) running around in normal clothes made it easier for non-comics fans to buy into the story. But toward the end? When he was The Blur, and basically acting like Superman without being called Superman? They still refused to have him wear any sort of real costume.

Yep, as I watched all ten seasons of Smallville.

[Old Man]

Wow, how many hours does that total up to?

[L. Marcus]

Ooo, say twenty eps per season and forty minutes an ep ... Thirteen hours, twenty minutes per season, one hundred thirtythree hours over all.

[Greywind]

Depends on the show and season. Anywhere between 42 and 48 minutes an episode. 22 or 23 episodes per season.

[Andrew_A]

I think we all need to keep perspective. If the writing sucks, the acting sucks, and the VFX suck, then I think the costume will be the last thing anybody will be worrying about. If the reverse is true, I don't think anybody's going to care about the costume. What matters is the quality of the end product, not necessarily how it's packaged. (At least, not always)

 

Then again, I'm biased. I love the new costume.

[Lawnmower Boy]

I think we all need to keep perspective. If the writing sucks, the acting sucks, and the VFX suck, then I think the costume will be the last thing anybody will be worrying about. If the reverse is true, I don't think anybody's going to care about the costume. What matters is the quality of the end product, not necessarily how it's packaged. (At least, not always)

 

Then again, I'm biased. I love the new costume.

 

This comment is dead to me!

 

Obviously the show can only succeed if Comet the Super-Horse turns into Supergirl's boyfriend, and she flies around in a miniskirt showing off her belly button and her cleavage window while being 15 and hiding in an  orphanage while her own cousin exploits her. 

 

I mean, it may sound disturbing and creepy when I put it that way, but canon is canon.

[Greywind]

Was canon. Now it's "Elseworlds" stuff.

[zslane]

The reasons usually given for dark, textured costumes--often with lots of pseudo-armor plating/padding--are unconvincing, IMO. Realism, as in what do soldiers wear in the real world when they go into combat, is usually irrelevent when we're talking about characters that can shrug off artillery rounds and punch holes in battleships.

 

Changing audience tastes don't dictate fashion...it is the other way around...fashion shapes popular tastes. Make characters with brightly-colored costumes cool and audiences will accept them and their costumes quite handily. See below.

 

The fact that comic books aren't movies (i.e., the media are different) isn't justification in and of itself to change costume aesthetics. Look at Kick Ass. The movie costumes for Kick Ass, Hit Girl, and Red Mist were either exactly the same or more "garish" than the comic book versions and they still looked great, and the movie was awesome. In fact, I would argue that the movie version of Hit Girl's costume is far more iconic at this point than the comic book version, and it is much more colorful and "silly" than the plain, dark blue onesy she wore in the comic.

[L. Marcus]

In my eyes, the costumes in Kick-Ass weren't cool -- they were outright dorky, and were probably meant to be.

[Old Man]

The film and the comic book it comes from were semi-satirical takes on the superhero genre, deriving their comedic moments from the collision of costumed "superheroes" with real life.

[Christopher R Taylor]

I think the image of athletes such as speed skaters, skiiers, cyclists, and so on and the outfits they wear - shiny, very bright colors, stark patterns etc - shows that you can do it and be taken seriously, if the setting simply presumes they are and doesn't question it.  Its when you have some guy sneering at it and acting like its dumb that it tends to fall apart, and in today's culture that's all too common.  Everyone has to be the snarky frat boy instead of just taking things as they are.  Then they come up with other explanations why what they mock is so bad, to justify their behavior.

[Pattern Ghost]

Superheroes wear tights because they're easy to draw. They wear bright / primary colors because of the printing technology of the time.

 

I don't think either of those reasons are exactly sacred.

 

That said, I'd like to see less drabness in onscreen heroes. Muting the colors a little bit, or adding some texture is fine, as long as you don't dip into the drab too much. The costume for the Flash, I think, is a good example of compromising between toning things down for the screen and still keeping a good amount of color.

 

The Supergirl costume is a bit dark for my tastes, but I'm hoping it'll show as brighter in direct light.

[Lawnmower Boy]

Uhm, guys? This thing with bright colours being out of fashion? I'm, uhm, I'm trying to think of a way of suggesting that someone around here might not be as fashion forward as he thinks. Aargh! It slipped out anyway! I knew I should have taken diplomacy classes!

 

[zslane]

The film and the comic book it comes from were semi-satirical takes on the superhero genre, deriving their comedic moments from the collision of costumed "superheroes" with real life.

A distinction completely irrelevent to fans of superhero movies, at least insofar as costumes and the notion of acceptible visual aesthetics are concerned.