Holy Spandex Batman, those are new outfits

There are some new looks for old friends on their way to the silver screen. Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, Captain America and more will each have costumes a little different than what they wore on their last outing. Some changes are minor, like the tweaks to the Batman outfit, and others are pretty bold, such as Superman without his red Speedos. At first glimpse it doesn’t appear that the re-booted outfit for the rebooted Spider-Man movie is much different. Once you begin to study it a little closer, you realize that while the radioactive spider was biting Peter Parker, the costume designer was out back smoking dope. The red and blue parts have strange twists and twirls, especially around the gloves and boots. While I applaud the effort to make the costume look less like Spandex tights, the thick, layered look with textured bumps has too much of that CG-stylized feel to it. Sure, it looks cool, but it’s just not the same. The Spider-Man outfit it pretty busy as it is. This re-make is dizzyingly over-the-top. I think the Spider-Man costume used in the Toby Maguire movies has got to be the best of all the superhero costumes made for the silver screen. It was fresh, bold and true to the source material. Why abandon a good thing? The Superman costume changes in the upcoming Man of Steel movie would make Reeve and Reeves spin in their graves. If you look at pictures of Superman beginning with Kirk Alyn and going to Brandon Routh, you will notice the red shorts gradually shrinking in size. Now, Henry Cavill wears the big-S costume without the shorts. In the same vein as Spider-Man, the Superman costume has that whole layered/textured thing going on. Gone also are the red cape and boots. They are now a leathery maroon, much like they were with Routh, only worse. When it comes to the Dark Knight, it seems to be tradition that the outfit change with each outing. My favorite will always be the Adam West costume used on the TV show and movie. I also like the first Michael Keaton costume. I draw the line on George Clooney’s nippled outfit. Christian Bale’s is modern and functional, but too black. It’s too dark and brooding for my taste. It still looks cool, but it just doesn’t say Batman to me, especially with the vanishing bat symbol on the chest. When The Avengers finally comes out this summer, there will be a number of outfit changes for some of the characters. Captain America will be the most noticeable. The World War II version with the gun belt and suspenders will give way to something more familiar. While I have only seen a few clips and pictures, I am very disappointed that the white wings do not stick out on the cowl. He looks dorky (in a bad way) with them painted on. Most of the time, so far, whenever we see Chris Evans in action as Cap in previews, he isn’t even wearing the mask at all. What’s up with that anyway? If I’m not mistaken, Thor and Iron Man also have updated costume tweaks. They won’t be too obvious, just enough to set them apart from previous films but close enough that the average person won’t realize something is different. While I realize at this point it doesn’t sound like I care for many of the new costumes, that’s not quite true. I think most of them have quite an appeal to them, even if they stray from what I grew up with in the comic books. At least the actors are wearing the costumes in the above mentioned movies, unlike the CG disaster of last year’s Green Lantern. What brings me to the topic of superhero costumes is my anticipation of what the new Lone Ranger and Tonto will look like. Filming starts in New Mexico later this month with Armie Hammer as the masked man and Johnny Depp as Tonto. I know they will not look anything like what we know from television with Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels. What I don’t know is how radically different they will be. The last two incarnations of The Lone Ranger did not sit too well with most fans, especially the 2003 version on the WB network. Prior to that was the 1981 flop The Legend of the Lone Ranger. I hope when Hammer dons the mask that his outfit has a more realistic and authentic cowboy feel to it than the tights that Moore wore. Moore looked good in the fitted outfit, but it was way out of place for a Western. As long as the Lone Ranger has his black mask, white hat and red scarf, I’ll be happy. Hi-yo Silver, Awaaayyyy! Signing off for this week, I am the Dork Ranger.