Batman-Online.com

I think I'm going to surprise some fans with my pick. It's neither of Keaton's suits, nor Bale's, nor Affleck's, but Val Kilmer's first suit in Batman Forever.

(https://www.batman-online.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fvignette1.wikia.nocookie.net%2Fbatman%2Fimages%2Fc%2Fc5%2FVal-kilmer.jpg%2Frevision%2Flatest%3Fcb%3D20140815110217&hash=e4b1e22053e25f49c260b44ea5f859d95c94ad92)

I like this one best.


How about you ?

I'm afraid I'm going to have to disagree with you Mr. Shreck. My favorite Batman suit on film is Keaton's in Batman Returns. :)

That one was my longtime favorite, Mr. Joker, but I like Val's more.

The 1989 suit deserves credit too obviously,  made Batman look a lot like a "giant bat" as he was rumored to be.

As much as I like the latest live action Batsuit, I have to agree with JMT. The Batman Returns costume is still the best for me.

Quote from: Max Shreck on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 05:48
That one was my longtime favorite, Mr. Joker, but I like Val's more.

The 1989 suit deserves credit too obviously,  made Batman look a lot like a "giant bat" as he was rumored to be.

Just to play the devil's advocate here, do you think there's even much of a difference between the BF and 1989 costumes?

Quote from: The Laughing Fish on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 10:13

Quote from: Max Shreck on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 05:48
That one was my longtime favorite, Mr. Joker, but I like Val's more.

The 1989 suit deserves credit too obviously,  made Batman look a lot like a "giant bat" as he was rumored to be.

Just to play the devil's advocate here, do you think there's even much of a difference between the BF and 1989 costumes?

Yes, I think the 1989 suit is more rough and basic, while the BF suit is still dark but more stylish. And I think the 1992 suit fit the film too.

(https://www.batman-online.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aceshowbiz.com%2Fimages%2Fnews%2F00017008-batman3.jpg&hash=8bbd6b1b68c4fd17dae884a3e4fd8ac787fafa34)

And for the record, I never had a big problem with any of Schumacher's suits, though other fans apparently did. Just not a huge fan of the "silver" ones.



:)

Batman Returns and Batman v Superman have the best suits, in my humble opinion.

I have yet to see Batfleck in action. I am looking forward to that.

If you're implying the Batfleck suit cannot be judged yet because the film isn't out, then I strongly disagree with that opinion.

Quote from: The Dark Knight on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 19:32
If you're implying the Batfleck suit cannot be judged yet because the film isn't out, then I strongly disagree with that opinion.

I can judge the suit, but not the man wearing it right now. But yeah, this thread I made with the suits in mind, that's another topic, the actors in the suit. 

And I stand by my first choice, the dubbed "Panther suit" in Batman Forever. :)

What I dig is how each movie has an outfit with its own identity.

The B89 suit has texture to it. The Golden Age had a lot of superhero outfits with a lot of implied texture and detail to them that couldn't be illustrated. Alex Ross has never understood this but it's true. The B89 outfit has a sort of rough texture to it that could give a scared street thug who only got a glance at Batman that he truly is a monster or demon or something because it looks vaguely humanoid in some ways but the texture, the cowl, the cape and so forth give the impression of being non-human.

The BR suit has that machined aesthetic that suggests that Batman is armoring up since it's more well known that he's just a man now. And it could play into the implied submerging of his humanity that Batman Forever picks up on.

Frankly I see less symbolism in the Batman Forever panther suit. I like that suit, it's sleek and awesome but I just don't see where it "says" something about the character. Mind you, it doesn't have to say something. In a movie like this, it's enough that it looks cool. But Burton went the extra step in telling us something about Batman using his outfit in B89 and BR and it's noticeable (to me if nobody else) that Schumacher went the popcorn route instead. That's not a praise and that's not a criticism; it's just true.

I'll say this for the BF suit though. It was the last one in live action to have the yellow oval, which I really miss these days.

As to B&R, I see less character insight in those costumes. I see marketing insights, obviously, but not so much character insights.

As to the Nolan trilogy, I've never bothered analyzing those suits.

The Snyder Batman outfit looks cool for the stylistic break it seems to represent from previous suits, which all had a sort of "designy" appearance to them (yes, even the Nolan suits). The Snyder Batman costume appears to have the fabric outside the armor and it gives a pretty difference appearance. I rather enjoy it and look forward to seeing more of it.

Though the Burton suits were no doubt amazing, they didn't have that extra something that made the Kilmer first suit be the best for me. Maybe it was just that it looked cooler and wasn't as rough as 1989 and still taking more cues from that one than from the Returns suit, that fit the atmosphere of Returns very well. Good observations, though, colors.

Frankly, I did see all three Nolan flms but I never noticed much of a difference between the suits...

And the B&R suits were not terrible, but I didn't like that were less dark, as I said before.

And yes, the yellow oval in Kilmer's first suit was a very nice touch.

Affleck's really looks a lot like the comics. Some of them, anyway.

Quote from: Max Shreck on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 20:31Frankly, I did see all three Nolan flms but I never noticed much of a difference between the suits...

Well, one had that huge neck on it...

Quote from: Max Shreck on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 20:31And the B&R suits were not terrible, but I didn't like that were less dark, as I said before.

I think Schumacher missed a hell of an opportunity to break from tradition and create an all-blue Batman suit or all-gray or blue *AND* gray or something other than what had been done before. Textually the character metaphorically shook off the darkness back in BF so it might have been useful for the character to literally shake it off in B&R. Would've, should've, could've, I guess. But it was a missed opportunity.

Quote from: Max Shreck on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 20:31Affleck's really looks a lot like the comics. Some of them, anyway.

Yep, there's that. A gray and black suit is arguably what Kane and Finger originally intended anyway so this is long overdue in my opinion.

My overall favourite suit is the jet-black, 'organic-looking' 1989 costume.  Obviously it's not the most practical suit in terms of allowing Batman to turn his head, but visually it's the most iconic IMHO, and the one most likely to serve the purpose of striking his enemies with the fear of god.

@colors Yeah, for Kilmer Suit II and Clooney, they opted for those suits that were neither too blue nor too dark, and kind of bulky, not my favorite approach.

I thought Bale's suits were not very pleasing to look at so I never noticed the differences. Not terrible, just..bland.

And you're right on the original intention for the Bat-suit as far as I know.

@johnny

That's a fine choice, though I'd say that I never noticed that flaw of the suit in the film itself. I know some want Batman to be faster in the suit, but the older suits still did the job for me.

May I have your opinion on the Panther suit ?

Quote from: Max Shreck on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 21:11
@colors Yeah, for Kilmer Suit II and Clooney, they opted for those suits that were neither too blue nor too dark, and kind of bulky, not my favorite approach.

I thought Bale's suits were not very pleasing to look at so I never noticed the differences. Not terrible, just..bland.

And you're right on the original intention for the Bat-suit as far as I know.

@johnny

That's a fine choice, though I'd say that I never noticed that flaw of the suit in the film itself. I know some want Batman to be faster in the suit, but the older suits still did the job for me.

May I have your opinion on the Panther suit ?

What's the 'panther suit'?

The suit in my first post. That's what the fans dubbed the first Batsuit in Batman Forever...  and I kind of like the ring of it.

Quote from: Max Shreck on Wed, 13 Jan  2016, 22:27
The suit in my first post. That's what the fans dubbed the first Batsuit in Batman Forever...  and I kind of like the ring of it.

It's okay.  It's a bit too slick for me.

As far as I'm concerned the more simple, the better, when it comes to Batman's suits.

I see.

Okay, then. :)

1. Affleckman: Dawn of Aesthetically Pleasing Batsuits
2. Keatonman Returns Looking Dapper
3. I've Got 1989 Problems But A Batsuit Ain't One
4. I Didn't Kilmer Tailor, Coz This Suit Rocks
5. Bale Me Out Of This Thing
6. By George, Call The ER
7. I'm Not Feeling Very Christian, Coz TDK Suit Sucks

Quote from: The Dark Knight on Sun, 10 Jul  2016, 02:01
1. Affleckman: Dawn of Aesthetically Pleasing Batsuits
2. Keatonman Returns Looking Dapper
3. I've Got 1989 Problems But A Batsuit Ain't One
4. I Didn't Kilmer Tailor, Coz This Suit Rocks
5. Bale Me Out Of This Thing
6. By George, Call The ER
7. I'm Not Feeling Very Christian, Coz TDK Suit Sucks

(https://www.batman-online.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2F65.media.tumblr.com%2Ftumblr_mbgbgqBKzm1rn1ynj.jpg&hash=99e9764b95e0e6d631a8e52d0f24df439b45bcb7)

It's funny, on balance the only batsuit I don't really get as much is the Begins suit... and even that one isn't TOO bad. It just doesn't photograph well from certain angles. Then again, a primitive suit fits where the character is at that moment anyway. Which is good since it looks pretty damn primitive.

I think my favorite is the Batfleck suit. It's functional, looks identifiably like Batman and breaks away from the design trends which batsuits had followed since 1989.

The panther suit from BF is probably my sentimental favorite since it was a clear technical improvement over the original. But in terms of Stuff That Just Looks Freaking Cool, the Batfleck suit is the kid to beat.

I'll always love the two Keaton outfits for nostalgic reasons, but West and Affleck's costumes are the best representations of the classic comic suit. That is if you don't count the costume from Batman: Dead End.

Affleck's body helps a lot too. I like Keaton, and he's still the sentimental favourite, but his body mass simply doesn't compete with Affleck. He's the complete package.

The Batman Returns cowl hasn't been beaten IMO, I'd love to see a modern update on this type of suit (I know it won't happen, just saying).

Quote from: Azrael on Wed,  3 Aug  2016, 18:53The Batman Returns cowl hasn't been beaten IMO, I'd love to see a modern update on this type of suit (I know it won't happen, just saying).

I always thought the Batman Returns cowl only works from certain angles. In profile or face-forward, it's fine. But from any other angle, it looks a bit strange somehow. It's a problem no other Batman movie cowl has that I've ever seen.

This is the first time I read something negative for this cowl. I've seen all sorts of criticisms for all suits, but there's usually only praise for the cowl in Returns (and its evolution, the cowl of the "panther" suit from Batman Forever).

I'm with Edd Grayson, i love the panther suit from BF.
Very sleek suit and my favorite cowl, and second the B89 suit.
I never did like the Nolan suits, i always thought the mouth piece of the cowl was to small.

'89 suit
Affleck suit
Returns/Panther suits
Sonar suit (from Batman Forever)
Batman Begins suit
Clooney suit/ice suit
TDK/TDKR suits

I didn't comment on Adam West's costume, and I should have.

It's so simple but so perfect in how it strongly emulates the comics.

(https://www.batman-online.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sdonecall.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F06%2Fbatman.jpg&hash=50c915131c05a5527ff01cbe6e4dda3199059093)

I've been reflecting on Adam West in general. He was a champion.

I posted this last year.

Quote from: The Dark Knight on Thu, 22 Jun  2017, 08:39
What I love about Batman is how Adam West could easily be my favorite Batman, just as Michael Keaton or Ben Affleck could be. They're all great. It just depends on my mood at the time.

And right now West is my favorite Bruce Wayne/Batman. Tell me, which live action Batman beats him when it comes to being an escape artist, a detective and a chemist? Who beats him in the charm department as Bruce Wayne?

RIP,  Adam.

Agreed on all points, TDK. I'll always prefer the classic spandex costume over any sculpted rubber suit. My ideal movie costume would look like this:


Of course in order for a suit like that to work, the person wearing it needs to have the right physical build. Which the majority of Batman actors haven't had.

Quote from: The Dark Knight on Thu,  8 Feb  2018, 11:28
And right now West is my favorite Bruce Wayne/Batman. Tell me, which live action Batman beats him when it comes to being an escape artist, a detective and a chemist? Who beats him in the charm department as Bruce Wayne?

RIP,  Adam.

Quote from: Silver Nemesis on Sun, 11 Feb  2018, 15:29
Agreed on all points, TDK. I'll always prefer the classic spandex costume over any sculpted rubber suit. My ideal movie costume would look like this:

(https://www.batman-online.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thereservepool.com%2Fattachment.php%3Fs%3Dd8f37063c0a5552b129a75b4269660a0%26amp%3Battachmentid%3D4739%26amp%3Bd%3D1456938188%26amp%3Bstc%3D1&hash=78218ed38a421eaab66946d53286a453c3951cd5)

That's a good suit. I'm a fan of the classic look - with either the Adam West or TDK Returns palette.

West is the only actor to date to match Batman's 6'2 height in the comics. I think his physique was fine as well.

The entertainment value is obvious, but I think it's remarkable how much the 1966 show got right. The reason why an old program endures for so long via re-runs is largely due to the strength of the performances. Even though it was to give public service announcements, Adam West's Batman regularly gave Robin and viewers sage advice. He never lost hope or his belief in justice. This family friendly tone allowed the viewer to really connect with Bruce on a personal level. That warmth is why I love Adam's Batman so much. He nails the vibe of a decent, incorruptible man.