Favorite Batman comic book outfit

Started by Dark Knight Detective, Sun, 10 May 2009, 16:22

Previous topic - Next topic
Print
Go Down Pages 1 2 3
User actions
Wed, 24 Jun 2009, 14:32 #10
As a fellow comic book artist, I will admit, I don't have much fun drawing all black characters because I don't get to show off much of the detailed line work I love putting in my work when showing defined shapes/muscles. BUT BUT... I've since been developing ways to bypass this weakness/flaw of mine and learn how to do things with black tones that could very well keep that dark tradition in Batman's Keaton suit in comic book format.

I will be drawing some BATMAN (Burton) fan art just for the heck of it soon. I haven't drawn a Burton Batman since 1989 believe it or not (i was 11 years old). I'm curious at what I could do today... hmmm  :)
-------------------------------------------------------------
"Do you like eating in here?"   ...Oh yeah. .. ....   ... ... ...You know to tell you the truth, I don't think I've ever been in this room before.   
"hahaeheheh"  You want to get out of here?  "YES."
Wed, 24 Jun 2009, 15:01 #11
Quote from: Batnar on Wed, 24 Jun  2009, 14:32
I will be drawing some BATMAN (Burton) fan art just for the heck of it soon. I haven't drawn a Burton Batman since 1989 believe it or not (i was 11 years old). I'm curious at what I could do today... hmmm  :)

I have no doubt that it would be absolutely amazing!
Mon, 29 Jun 2009, 04:16 #12
Mon, 29 Jun 2009, 05:49 #13


To me, Batman is and should be intimidating.  And I don't really care who I offend, I simply don't find the above outfit intimidating.  At all.

When I first started reading the comics, it became apparent that DC wasn't going to change Batman's costume to match B89 (back in those days, comics companies had the sack to resist the changes wrought in adaptations, you see).  I loved the crap out of B89 but I thought to my 11-year old self "good, why should the comics change?  They were here first!"

As you get older though, you start seeing the complexities in things.  One such truth is that sometimes adaptations come up with a legitimately better idea that had been staring the pro's in the face for years but they never acted upon.

Exhibit A- Batman's dumbass costume.

I can appreciate the difficulties associated with coloring his outfit entirely black (even though I think that would be easily addressed by setting off the details/muscle lines of his costume in bright blue highlights but whatever).  Nobody's asking for that.  All I want is a comic that makes Batman look appropriately scary.

The overwhelming majority of the pre-1996 comics simply don't.

What would I suggest?  Take a gander.



I've made the blue sections about as black as detail will allow.  Sure, I could make it entirely black but the art wasn't designed to support that and I was way too lazy to do anything besides play with satch/desatch levels in Photoshop to work around this.  The point stands.  Don't want to make his outfit black?  Fine.  At least make it dark gray.

The reality here is that Kane and Finger clearly drew a black and gray outfit in those early issues of Detective.  At some point, the blue highlights were taken to mean that Batman's outfit is itself blue.  That's probably helpful for things requiring a certain shorthand (animation, for example) but in general... it just looks effin' STUPID.

Sorry, there's just no nice way to say it.

But ya know what?  I could accept a certain level of blue if it were desaturated along the lines of...



I could live with that.  You could even argue that Batman would do something like that since a deep, desaturated blue typically blends in with darkness and shadows better.  So Batman just might do that.

But that bright blue/gray ensemble?  It's time to put that out to pasture.

It always interests me that the one thing in the comics that's never been brought into live action (at least not in the "dark and serious" years) is the comic book outfit.  Burton set the trend of altering the outfit and subsequent directors continued it.

Anyway...
Mon, 29 Jun 2009, 06:36 #14 Last Edit: Mon, 29 Jun 2009, 06:38 by The Dark Knight
Solid argument and well explained, colors.

I agree. Batman is a mere mortal, and it's all about the image.  He simply must look intimidating. If he does not, he has lost his advantage instantly. I'm not a fan of the light blue look at all. Sure, we can suspend our disbelief and pretend the bad guys are afraid of this look, but let's just not.

He's not Superman, who could turn up wearing a pink fairy dress and still make villains quake in fear due to what he is and what he can do. Which is virtually anything he pleases.

Mon, 29 Jun 2009, 08:25 #15
Quote from: The Dark Knight on Mon, 29 Jun  2009, 06:36Solid argument and well explained, colors.
Thanks, thank you.

QuoteI agree. Batman is a mere mortal, and it's all about the image.  He simply must look intimidating. If he does not, he has lost his advantage instantly. I'm not a fan of the light blue look at all. Sure, we can suspend our disbelief and pretend the bad guys are afraid of this look, but let's just not.
Yep.  It just looks goofy, there's no way around it.  It played in the 50's when Batman smiled a lot, went to Gotham City 4th of July parades and fought sci-fi B-movie alien rejects, but nowadays things are different.
Mon, 29 Jun 2009, 12:01 #16
i agree about the colours colors

I'm my mind, when i read a comic i just tell myself the cowl and cape are black and the blue is the light's reflection.
Tue, 30 Jun 2009, 10:20 #17
I totally agree. I always thought the Blue/Grey outfit is kind of stupid and pointless for someone that wants to blend into the shadows and be intimidating. "Batman"? A character that's supposed to be a "Batman" is supposed to wear black, and they got this right from the beginning in the films. Thankfully many comic artists played around with the black and blue highlights of the cape and Batman looks as if wearing black in many panels of many stories.
Wed, 1 Jul 2009, 07:37 #18
I was cruising around earlier and found this.

http://batmanytb.com/actionfiguresanddolls/actionfigures/movies/batmanandrobin/series1/batmanfufiflim.jpg
(I'd insert the image properly but the site won't let me)

With some minor modifications (dark gray, not actual black; silver belt), I think this could look awesome in the comics.  I dig it.

EDIT- And yes, I realize this is a Batman & Robin figure.  Even so, a good idea is a good idea.
Sun, 9 Aug 2009, 02:53 #19
I prefer the original/TDK/modern look to the "New Look," though it is iconic.

I do agree that The Batman should have a black costume in the comics. Look at Spider-Man's black costume. That was brought back for a while, and it works. Same with Venom, Punisher, Catwoman, Nightwing...the list goes on.

And as for the whole "you couldn't see the bat-symbol on an all black suit," I counter with this: of all the comic book characters in existence, Batman IS his symbol. He really doesn't need it to be that prominent, which is why it didn't bother me that it wasn't all that visible in BB or TDK.

Here's a great image of what a black suit could look like. Note the Batman 89 influence:

Print
Go Up Pages 1 2 3
User actions