Batsuit: Difference between revisions
re-did the whole thing, organizing the information and adding more data. |
|||
| Line 2: | Line 2: | ||
The '''Batsuit''' or Bat-Suit is the [[costume]] of the [[DC Comics]] [[superhero]] [[Batman]]. |
The '''Batsuit''' or Bat-Suit is the [[costume]] of the [[DC Comics]] [[superhero]] [[Batman]]. |
||
=Orign and Appearance= |
|||
==Background== |
|||
While brooding in his study over how to be a more effective crime fighter, Bruce Wayne saw a bat crash through his window and perch on the bust of his father. Realizing that "criminals are a cowardly and superstitious lot", Bruce adopts the persona of a bat in order to conceal his identity and strike fear into his adversaries. Subsequent origin tales have had Bruce terrified by bats as a child, and observing a bat costume worn by his father at a costume ball, but the primary impetus of his decision to adopt the bat persona has always been the incident of the bat crashing through the window of his study. It is as a result of this incident that the batsuit came into being. |
|||
The batsuit costume may have been inspired by a [[Halloween]] "bat-suit" worn by Batman's father before his death, and was also certainly influenced by both Wayne's conviction that criminals are a "superstitious, cowardly lot" and his own fear of bats. The details of the Batman costume have changed repeatedly through the character's evolution, but the most distinctive elements have remained consistent: a dark scalloped hem cape, with a cowl covering most of Batman's face, with a pair of pointed ears suggesting those of a bat, and a stylized bat emblem on his chest. His gloves also typically feature three scallops that protrude from the sides of each glove, presumably depictive of bat's wings and for offensive and defensive purposes. In Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins, these fins are portrayed as metal blades doubling as weapons, derivative of his training with Ra's Al Ghul's organization. The most noticeable costume variations include a "yellow elliptical" bat-emblem vs. no ellipse, lighter colors (medium blue and light gray) vs. darker (black and dark gray), a bulky utility belt vs. a streamlined belt, and a long-eared cowl vs. short-eared. The development of [[Kevlar]], [[Spectra]] and other types of body [[armor]] has prompted some modern creators to make Batman's costume or parts of the costume bullet-proof. In [[Frank Miller]]'s seminal work [[The Dark Knight Returns]], Miller explains that the yellow ellipse is used to attract gunfire to Batman's chest, where his armor is heaviest. |
|||
The suit consists of a scalloped cape, a bat-like cowl, a tight-fitting body suit emblazoned on the chest with the symbol of a bat, a pair of gloves, boots, and a yellow utility belt. As different artists have taken over the responsibility of drawing the character, the details of the suit have changed considerably. The original incarnation of the cape was a wing-like structure inspired by drawings by [[Leonardo Da Vinci]]. This eventually evolved into a more cape-like design of varying length. The primary colors of the suit itself have changed from black and grey in the 1930's and '40's to blue and grey in the [[Silver Age]] and back to black and grey in the 1980's and beyond. The bat symbol on the chest has alternated from a simple black bat to a bat design on a yellow ellipse. In [[The Dark Knight Returns]] it is revealed that the yellow ellipse design was deliberately meant as a target, attracting a potential gunman's aim to an easily armored part of the costume. Other elements, such as the utility belt and the length of the cowel's ears, have been changed by various artistic teams. |
|||
When faced with difficult or vastly strong opponents (Frank Miller's Superman in The Dark Knight Returns, [[Alex Ross | Alex Ross's]] gulag prisoners in [[Kingdom Come (comic)|Kingdom Come]] and the Predator in Batman vs. Predator), writers do not hesitate to arm Batman with a battle suit of armor. Merchandising variants of his costume have exploited Batman's occasional need to fit him with a suit to match his challenge (ex: Batman's fire-proof suit against Firefly). |
|||
==Evolution== |
|||
| ⚫ | In the earliest Batman stories of Detective Comics, the costume features a few curiosities before it evolved in to its more or less standard style. The first gloves were ordinary looking, and lacked any sort of scalloped fins or other stylings, and only came to the wrists. A few issues later the gloves became longer, and by 1940 the familiar fins were added to the gloves. On a curious sidenote, the second Batman adventure featured the character wearing no gloves at all. Another early curiosity was the cape, which at times seemed to attach to Batman's arms, giving it a more wing-like look. |
||
| ⚫ | In the earliest Batman stories of Detective Comics, the costume features a few curiosities before it evolved in to its more or less standard style. The first gloves were ordinary looking, and lacked any sort of scalloped fins or other stylings, and only came to the wrists. A few issues later the gloves became longer, and by 1940 the familiar fins were added to the gloves. On a curious sidenote, the second Batman adventure featured the character wearing no gloves at all. Another early curiosity was the cape, which at times seemed to attach to Batman's arms, giving it a more wing-like look. |
||
It should be noted that recent stories (particularly the maxi-series Justice) Batman's glove fins are depicted as solid, able to block bladed weapons. |
|||
The batsuit has been repeatedly updated in order to reflect advances in technology. Originally the costume contained no protective armor, but with the advent of various forms of bulletproof materials like [[kevlar]], the costume has been re-imagined with varying forms of bulletproof protection. The array of devices in the utility belt have also become more complex over time. The simple coiled rope and batarang scaling equipment became a rocket powerd grapple gun, the cowel was updated with night-vision lenses and communication equipment, and a device to attract the bats from the batcave was installed in the heel of one of the boots. The suit has also carried on different occasions a re-breather device, flash and gas grenades, lockpicks, a signalling device for the batmobile, electronic surveilance equipment, a forensic kit for gathering crime scene evidence, a medical kit, and, in early incarnations, a pistol in a holster. On any occasion where Batman anticipates encountering [[Superman]], he has also carried a kryptonite ring given to him by the Man of Steel as a weapon of last resort. |
|||
The cape, cowl, gloves and boots are usually coloured black or blue, the bat symbol black (sometimes within a yellow oval), the utility belt yellow, and the rest of the costume grey or black. In ''Batman Begins'', the utility belt is brushed copper, rather than yellow. |
|||
==Variants== |
|||
[[Category:batman]] |
|||
Variants of the batsuit have included designs created to defeat specific enemies like [[Mr. Freeze]], as well as versions for use in space, underwater, and in fire rescue situations. [[The Dark Knight Returns]] featured an armored suit designed specifically to defeat Superman, while [[Kingdom Come]] featured a similar suit for combat operations against metahumans. |
|||
==Jean-Paul Valley Batsuit== |
|||
Jean-Paul Valley redesigned the batsuit during his tenure as Batman. Valley created an armored suit that contained more gadgets, including a batarang launcher and other, more lethal weapons. This suit has often been seen as a reaction to occasional fan criticisms that the batsuit was not high-tech enough for the modern age. In the end, the suit became Valley's vulnerable point, as Bruce realized that his replacement had become too reliant upon the suit's gadgetry. In their final confrontation, Wayne, in his traditional bat costume, tricked Valley into discarding the armor. Upon seeing Wayne revealed in his batsuit under blinding daylight, Valley's fragile mind collapsed and he acknowledged Bruce Wayne as the true Batman. |
|||
==Television== |
|||
The [[Batman Television Series]] of the 1960's featured the blue and grey version of the batsuit with a noticably shorter cape and tiny ears. In keeping with the [[campy]] nature of the series, the devices on the utility belt were often used as gags, with one of the most bizarre items being a thermos for storing alphabet soup. In one episode Bruce Wayne carried two capsules that when dropped in a glass of water became full-sized costumes for Batman and Robin, complete with utility belts. In the crossover episode featuring the [[Green Hornet]], [[Brit Reed]] refers to Batman's costume as a "goofy purple cape". |
|||
==Film== |
|||
The [[Tim Burton]] films featured a completely black batsuit with heavy armor placed on the chest, forearms, and boots. This suit was notable for its introduction of the grapple gun that was later adopted by the comics, and for the construction of the cowl, which made it impossible for actor [[Michael Keaton]] to turn his head while wearing it. |
|||
The Batman films of Joel Schumacher are notorious among fandom for their additon of [[nipples]] to the Batman and Robin costumes. In the final film of the Schumacher series, Batman's utility belt is shown to include a credit card with the expiry date "Forever". |
|||
The costume in [[Batman Begins]] is derived from Lucius Fox's Research and Development program. Originally a military design, the costume can stop a knife and any bullet short of a straight shot. As the film progresses Bruce Wayne adds the additional materials of the costume through various untracable purchases, and the scallops on the gloves are shown to be solid pieces designed to block weapons. This last addition is shown to have been derived from Wayne's training in Ras Al' Gul's organization. |
|||
Revision as of 01:41, 31 January 2006
You must add a |reason= parameter to this Cleanup template – replace it with {{Cleanup|January 2006|reason=<Fill reason here>}}, or remove the Cleanup template.
The Batsuit or Bat-Suit is the costume of the DC Comics superhero Batman.
Orign and Appearance
While brooding in his study over how to be a more effective crime fighter, Bruce Wayne saw a bat crash through his window and perch on the bust of his father. Realizing that "criminals are a cowardly and superstitious lot", Bruce adopts the persona of a bat in order to conceal his identity and strike fear into his adversaries. Subsequent origin tales have had Bruce terrified by bats as a child, and observing a bat costume worn by his father at a costume ball, but the primary impetus of his decision to adopt the bat persona has always been the incident of the bat crashing through the window of his study. It is as a result of this incident that the batsuit came into being.
The suit consists of a scalloped cape, a bat-like cowl, a tight-fitting body suit emblazoned on the chest with the symbol of a bat, a pair of gloves, boots, and a yellow utility belt. As different artists have taken over the responsibility of drawing the character, the details of the suit have changed considerably. The original incarnation of the cape was a wing-like structure inspired by drawings by Leonardo Da Vinci. This eventually evolved into a more cape-like design of varying length. The primary colors of the suit itself have changed from black and grey in the 1930's and '40's to blue and grey in the Silver Age and back to black and grey in the 1980's and beyond. The bat symbol on the chest has alternated from a simple black bat to a bat design on a yellow ellipse. In The Dark Knight Returns it is revealed that the yellow ellipse design was deliberately meant as a target, attracting a potential gunman's aim to an easily armored part of the costume. Other elements, such as the utility belt and the length of the cowel's ears, have been changed by various artistic teams.
Evolution
In the earliest Batman stories of Detective Comics, the costume features a few curiosities before it evolved in to its more or less standard style. The first gloves were ordinary looking, and lacked any sort of scalloped fins or other stylings, and only came to the wrists. A few issues later the gloves became longer, and by 1940 the familiar fins were added to the gloves. On a curious sidenote, the second Batman adventure featured the character wearing no gloves at all. Another early curiosity was the cape, which at times seemed to attach to Batman's arms, giving it a more wing-like look.
The batsuit has been repeatedly updated in order to reflect advances in technology. Originally the costume contained no protective armor, but with the advent of various forms of bulletproof materials like kevlar, the costume has been re-imagined with varying forms of bulletproof protection. The array of devices in the utility belt have also become more complex over time. The simple coiled rope and batarang scaling equipment became a rocket powerd grapple gun, the cowel was updated with night-vision lenses and communication equipment, and a device to attract the bats from the batcave was installed in the heel of one of the boots. The suit has also carried on different occasions a re-breather device, flash and gas grenades, lockpicks, a signalling device for the batmobile, electronic surveilance equipment, a forensic kit for gathering crime scene evidence, a medical kit, and, in early incarnations, a pistol in a holster. On any occasion where Batman anticipates encountering Superman, he has also carried a kryptonite ring given to him by the Man of Steel as a weapon of last resort.
Variants
Variants of the batsuit have included designs created to defeat specific enemies like Mr. Freeze, as well as versions for use in space, underwater, and in fire rescue situations. The Dark Knight Returns featured an armored suit designed specifically to defeat Superman, while Kingdom Come featured a similar suit for combat operations against metahumans.
Jean-Paul Valley Batsuit
Jean-Paul Valley redesigned the batsuit during his tenure as Batman. Valley created an armored suit that contained more gadgets, including a batarang launcher and other, more lethal weapons. This suit has often been seen as a reaction to occasional fan criticisms that the batsuit was not high-tech enough for the modern age. In the end, the suit became Valley's vulnerable point, as Bruce realized that his replacement had become too reliant upon the suit's gadgetry. In their final confrontation, Wayne, in his traditional bat costume, tricked Valley into discarding the armor. Upon seeing Wayne revealed in his batsuit under blinding daylight, Valley's fragile mind collapsed and he acknowledged Bruce Wayne as the true Batman.
Television
The Batman Television Series of the 1960's featured the blue and grey version of the batsuit with a noticably shorter cape and tiny ears. In keeping with the campy nature of the series, the devices on the utility belt were often used as gags, with one of the most bizarre items being a thermos for storing alphabet soup. In one episode Bruce Wayne carried two capsules that when dropped in a glass of water became full-sized costumes for Batman and Robin, complete with utility belts. In the crossover episode featuring the Green Hornet, Brit Reed refers to Batman's costume as a "goofy purple cape".
Film
The Tim Burton films featured a completely black batsuit with heavy armor placed on the chest, forearms, and boots. This suit was notable for its introduction of the grapple gun that was later adopted by the comics, and for the construction of the cowl, which made it impossible for actor Michael Keaton to turn his head while wearing it.
The Batman films of Joel Schumacher are notorious among fandom for their additon of nipples to the Batman and Robin costumes. In the final film of the Schumacher series, Batman's utility belt is shown to include a credit card with the expiry date "Forever".
The costume in Batman Begins is derived from Lucius Fox's Research and Development program. Originally a military design, the costume can stop a knife and any bullet short of a straight shot. As the film progresses Bruce Wayne adds the additional materials of the costume through various untracable purchases, and the scallops on the gloves are shown to be solid pieces designed to block weapons. This last addition is shown to have been derived from Wayne's training in Ras Al' Gul's organization.