Spider-Man’s black suit turns 40 this year, but there have also been other iconic changes in superhero costumes over the years. — Marvel Comics
“Spidey has a black magic costume!” Those were the exact words that my classmate said to me 40 years ago when Spider-Man swapped his red-and-blue duds for a symbiotic black outfit.
This took place in Amazing Spider-Man (Vol.1) #252 and Secret Wars #8, in which Spidey damaged his red-blue duds during a battle in Battleworld. He then used a machine that he thought was a fabric replicator which produces a black goo-like sphere that forms the black suit. This new costume not only gave Spidey a more menacing look but it also augmented his powers and abilities.
While this costume-change initially garnered mixed emotions – Marvel eventually went back to the original red-blue duds on the pretext that the black suit was a symbiote trying to take over Peter. Despite failing to do that, the symbiote eventually found a new lease of life in the form of Venom.
Spidey’s costume change is not unique, of course, as many other superheroes who have undergone a wardrobe change (and even malfunction) over the years. In conjunction with the Spidey black suit’s 40th anniversary, let’s revisit 10 other “worthy” costume changes.
Spidey's black costume made its debut 40 years ago in Secret Wars , and turned out to be quite ‘venomous’. — Marvel Comics
Prior to Daredevil (Vol. 01) #7, the Man Without Fear was ... yellow. The logic for this was that Matt Murdock created his suit from the boxing robes his late father wore.
Subsequently, Murdock redesigned his suit to resemble the Devil, using a red colour scheme and complete with horns on the cowl helmet, in order to match the name Daredevil. This costume proved to be a winner, as he stuck with it for over six decades of fearless adventures (though he has recently changed to a white one).
Daredevil's original costume was yellow in colour.
While the current Captain Marvel, Carol Danvers, has had her fair share of costume changes, it’s the original one, Mar-Vell, who has the most famous wardrobe switch.
Mar-Vell made his comic book debut in Marvel Super-Heroes (Vol.1) #12 (1967), in the form of a Kree fleet captain. However, that look had its limitations, and as part of Marvel’s efforts to revive their namesake character, the creative team of Roy Thomas and Gil Kane re-designed Mar-Vell’s costume with a major colourful facelift.
Coincidentally, this also provided the impetus for (then) incoming writer-artist, Jim Starlin, to make Mar-Vell the poster boy for all cosmic entities. Even after Mar-vell was killed off, his costume design lived on to inspire the likes of Ms Marvel (Carol Danvers) and Genis-Vell (Mar-Vell’s son).
The original Captain Marvel was a Kree warrior named Mar-Vell. — Marvel Comics
In his early years, Hulk always wore his stretchy (purple) pants whether his skin was green or grey. However, that changed during Peter David’s 12-year run on the Hulk title, when he revisited the Grey Hulk idea and improvised it by giving him the “Joe Fixit” identity.
As Joe, the Hulk is no longer a savage beast, but a morally ambiguous Las Vegas enforcer and tough guy. Personality aside, what made Joe a standout was his suave striped suit.
While this episode didn’t earn the Hulk a call up into the Kingsman universe, it did lead to more illustrations of him at least wearing more than just purple stretchy pants.
Joe Fixit was the first time Hulk didn't wear his purple pants. — Marvel Comics
If you were to list the heroes with the most number of costume changes over the years, Iron Man would probably be right on top.
Since the 1963 debut of MK1 – the suit he built to sustain his heart while being held captive in a war zone – Tony Stark’s armours have gotten progressively better and bolder, whether in terms of technology or fashion.
With more than 100 versions, or Marks, it can be hard to choose one costume that really stands out. Based on design and functionality, however, my vote goes to Mark 29, aka the “Extremis Armour”, which made its debut in 2005’s Iron Man (Vol. 4) #4.This model not only calls back to the iconic early red and yellow/gold suits, but it is also technologically superior to anything that came before, enabling Tony to remotely control the armour, whilst accessing satellite networks, security systems, and other digital technologies.
Iron Man’s Extremis armour was one of his best. — Marvel Comics
Not a costume change in the most common sense, as this involves two alternate versions of the same character.
The original Earth-616 Gwen Stacy was a non-powered human who died wearing a green trench coat, purple pencil skirt, black turtleneck and black boots.
Earth-65’s Gwen Stacy, however, is that reality’s Spider-Woman, and is poplularly known as “Spider-Gwen”.
While designing Spider-Gwen, “Spider-verse” writer Dan Slott had initially proposed that she wear a costume based on Earth-616 Gwen’s clothes. Fortunately, artist Robbi Rodriguez opted for a completely new design that is both mysterious and inspirational, especially to today’s generation, to the point that she is now one of Marvel’s most widely cosplayed characters!
Spider Gwen's final costume was a far cry from what her creator initially wanted.
Sometimes, it can be hard for a character to break free from its legacy. In the case of Marvel’s Vision, the version we know today was actually based on a character from the Golden Age of comics – Aarkus, who first appeared in Marvel Mystery Comics #13 back in 1940 and also went by the codename “Vision” and wore a rather garish red, green and yellow costume.
The current Vision made his debut in the late 1960s (Avengers, Vol.1, # 57) wearing those colours as well, and unfortunately for him, he has been stuck with those colours even through several other “updates” of his costume.
That changed in 1989, when John Byrne remodelled the Vision into a chalk-white (spectral) figure – stripping him of his memories and reducing him to skin and robotic parts.
While this “transparent” look was quite striking, it didn’t last long, but it did inspire future storylines to focus beyond the Vision’s synthetic roots.
The white Vision didn't stick around long, but made quite an impression.
The first two Robins (Dick Grayson and Jason Todd) had costumes that looked more like traffic lights and stood out like a sore thumb in the middle of the night.
The third Robin, Tim Drake, had better fashion sense ... and more importantly, he had an additional item in his suit that made it more practical for smackdowns with Bat-rogues, in the form of an armoured tunic.
Dick Grayson has had quite a few costumes over the years. — DC Comics
Speaking of Robins, Dick Grayson went on to forge his own path as a superhero as Nightwing. His first two costumes, however, were less than heroic, making him look more like a circus performer.
Sure, he may have been raised in a circus, but that didn’t mean he had to dress like a clown, right?
Thankfully, Dick’s fashion sense improved later on, and his subsequent costumes got a lot better, especially the present “bulletproof” costume.
If you thought Robin’s colour coordination was too flashy, Marvel’s Blade The Vampire Slayer also started off in similar fashion in the 1970s.
This was nowhere near his now-iconic 1990s dark leather look, immortalised by the live-action film version starring Wesley Snipes.
Before his leather-clad days, Blade was always ready to disco. — Marvel Comics
Sometimes you just have to tweak things a little and voila, an iconic costume!
Case in point, Cyclops’ ruby quartz visor, which was originally shaped like a French loaf, but has gradually evolved into something that even Oakley would commercially market.
