The suit reveal. The best of times, the worst of times. A time for nerds to unite and cheer praises. A time for trolls to vomit insults and nit-picks. A time for me to waste my time dissecting the new Batman vs. Superman’s suit influences.
1. The Ears
Easily the most distinct change from any past Batman suit, and possibly the most bold characteristic of the new costume. Our new Batman is sporting short, stubby ears—most reminiscent of:
Frank Miller’s Batman
Jim Lee’s “Hush” Batman
the “New 52” Batman design
…and of course.
Mr. West.
This Batman design definitely emphasizes that Snyder’s Batman is intended to be very distinct from all previous movie Batmans while also highlighting some direct nods to Batman design iterations of comics-past—most directly, Frank Miller’s built-like-a-tank Dark Knight.
2. The Eyes
It may very well be the angle here, but Mr. Affleck’s cowl seems to have noticeably smaller eye slits from the cowl’s cinematic predecessors. Maybe Snyder’s universe will be a world without black eye make-up?
Except for that split-second in “Batman Returns”
3. The Neck
This may be the thickest cinematic Batman neck we’ve seen yet! At least, this is definitely a departure from the thin, flexible neck we saw displayed in The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. The neck here is much closer to the Batman Begins cowl.
and Greg Capullo’s Batman cowl
Again, this aspect of the new suit seems to try and emphasize a more brutal, intimidating Batman.
4. The Neck-Piece Cape Connector Thing
Once again, Batman has his cowl conjoined with his cape. Nothing too notable about this particular design bit—just a win for those in the “conjoined cape/cowl club”. We meet on Thursdays.
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5. Scallops
Awww yeah. Nothing theatrical about this part of the suit! Snyder has decided to keep the more functional looking glove scallops that we’ve seen in the Nolan Batman films and, once again, on Frank Miller’s Batman. Again, this seems to hint towards a more tactical, militaristic Batman interpretation.
and…once again, on Frank Miller’s Batman.
kickin’ it…
6. Glove Line
It seems like we’ve got another injection of “New 52” design elements here. This little piece seems to incorporate the sleeker, gadget-savvy side of the character. The material definitely seems to be made of a hard plastic or something meant to look-metallic—just another item to emphasize a more practical suit.
7. Knuckles
This aspect seems like a translation from the The Dark Knight suit. Again, an item on the suit to show that Mr. Wayne has got a lot of face-breaking to do.
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8. The Symbol
Well, this is something we’re going to see in all of the marketing for the new movie. Again, this is a departure from some of the sleeker symbols of Batman suits we’ve seen in the past. Anybody want to take a guess where this emblem first appeared? Anyone? Bueller?
…Frank Miller
Correct. Also, note the stenciling throughout the symbol—another element from the “New 52” Batman symbol. Finally, if you look carefully you can see some less carefully placed scratches on the symbol—easily matching with the older, more battle-weary Batman that Snyder is looking to introduce.
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9. The Belt
First of all, it’s obvious that this belt is not going to be a lighter golden shade like we’ve seen in nearly every previous on-screen Batman. More than likely, this suit will be outfitted with a black utility belt, if not dark navy. What does this say about this character? That he does Karate.
But seriously, this is another element of design for the character that seems to match up with the more diluted visual aesthetic that Snyder is trying to use for this universe. Another element to look at is the cartridge look of the belt compartments which are sort of reminiscent of Nolan Batman belt as well as the New 52 design and even the Arkham Asylum/Arkham City Batman design.
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10. The Cape
The cape looks like it’s made of a thicker, more leather-y material than the lightweight-looking cape we saw in the Nolan movies. The material makes this cape look like it will be used more for shielding and combat than gliding. This seems like a bit of a return to the capes we saw in the Burton movies and Batman Forever. If anything, I’m assuming this material was chosen to give the same sort of dramatic effect that the cape in the fan-film Dead End had.
11. The Suit Fabric
More than anything, this aspect of the suit seems to be another aesthetic choice to meld the suit elements into the Man of Steel suit—meaning a more textured suit.
A thinner fabric was used over some sort of muscle suit here to mimic the fabric suit used in the comics—allowing for the wrinkles and noticeable seams. The texturing here seems to be a mimic of the texture of Kevlar weaves and military apparel.
Obviously, we’ll be getting more pictures of the various characters involved in Batman vs. Superman sometime this summer–most likely at Comic-con. I’m assuming that the Man of Steel Superman suit won’t receive too many alterations going into this movie, but we still have to see Wonder Woman’s get-up as well as Eisenberg’s look as Luthor. Until then, let’s keep dissecting the small scraps we have!
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