Very nice summary and commentary especially with the challenging scope of all the different versions of Ant-Man and Wasp costumes throughout the years.

Personally, I think the best interpretation of the Ant-Man costume is the one Chris Samnee devised in “Thor: The Mighty Avenger.” It’s actually a combination Ant-Man/Giant-Man costume, where Hank Pym removes the “mandible” portions of the helmet and stores them on a brace near his collarbone when they’re not in use. When Pym becomes Ant-Man, the helmet expands slightly, antennas rise from the seams, and he snaps the “mandibles” back into place. In terms of utility and economy of design, it is the best version, yet.

- Jay Potts

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You forgot about Kitty Pryde. She comes in a distant 2nd to Wasp when it comes to heroins who have had the most costume changes.

On the other hand, I dislike all of Wasp’s skirted costumes–including the one for the new cartoon–with the possible exception of that time she went into battle wearing lingerie. The big danger for her is looking too much like Tinkerbelle. Although Disney’s Tink basically wears a one-piece swimsuit, a flared skirt screams “pixie” to me, and is too girlish for a character who has grown into a leader.

I don’t hate Hank’s “Wasp” costume, but I’m not completely sold on it either. The “tail” (singular) is strange, and the stomach segmentation doesn’t really work. Also, the coloration is quite similar to Yellowjacket’s, which only makes me want that costume back. I do like the goggles, though.

You didn’t mention the Heroes Reborn Ant-Man, but I remember liking that update very much.

MIKE: Sadly, folks who have not followed Hank’s career tend to know him by that one story. To clarify, Hank Pym of ULTIMATE MARVEL universe is indeed a guy who drinks a lot and is a wife-beater. But Hank Pym of the Marvel Universe is a different man.

Mainstream Hank is not an alcoholic. During his career as Ant-Man, which is what I focused on in this article, he was a fun, whimsical scientist who fought crime with a smile and a joke and who had great banter with his girlfriend Janet. Years later, he became a bit more serious and somber in the pages of the Avengers, later even suffering a break from reality due to stress and the inhalation of chemicals he was experimenting with, causing him to believe he was a man named Yellowjacket who had actually killed Hank Pym. He later regained his senses but still dealt with identity and confidence issues, partially also due to the fact that his creation Ultron, a robot whose programming was based on his own brain waves, had become a genocidal monster. Later on, Hank attacked an opponent who had already been defeated and so he was up for a court-martial from the Avengers. Hank was so desperate to stay with the team, which he was no convinced was the one good thing left in his life, that he concocted a plan to have a robot attack the team and then he’d save them all by deactivating it. But Jan found out and Hank, in his desperate and paranoid state, hit her when she came towards him and tried to stop him from turning on the robot. Hank’s actions were discovered and so he left the Avengers and spent some time dealing with his misguided actions and re-asserting his sense of reality. Over the years, he made peace with the Avengers and regained his sense of identity and confidence and Jan forgave him for his break with reason and reality when he’d hit her, although he never really forgave himself.

Hank was a character that it seemed like Marvel didn’t know what to do with and I feel that the hitting of Janet Van Dyne was a poorly conceived solution to make him interesting or relevant to the team’s drama again. But whether I think it was a good idea or not, it happened and the characters dealt with it and since then Hank was a stand-up guy. So yes, he hit her the one time while he was freaking out and having a “mental breakdown”, and that’s bad. But he was not a wife-beater who did this continually nor did he ever justify his action as something excusable nor did he ever do anything like that before or again in the near-50 years that he’s been having adventures in comics books. As I said, he was a fun character when he was Ant-Man and since assuming the role of the Wasp, he has returned to being a very fun character.

And Hank was never a drunk. He hit Jan once back in, like, 1981. He spent the next 20 years redeeming himself for it, and had succeeded. Then Chuck Austen dragged it all back to the surface in his seven issue travesty of an Avengers run, and since then no one seems willing to leave it alone.

not really. it’s probably a good thing, lets artists have a lot more freedom.

its pretty stupid that they’re already getting rid of the wasp costume for hank, which is a thousand times better than his ant man/giant man crap

“Fun” was used an awful lot of times in those first few paragraphs to describe a wife beater.

A cape’s hardly the trademark of heroes in the Marvel U – Hank fits right in.

CHRIS ULICHNEY: Thanks for reading! Tell your friends!

‘But the rest of this suit is pretty utilitarian actually, which makes sense for a guy who’s more scientist than superhero.’

I don’t see how his zig-zaggy, red and blue/black skintight outfight is anymore utilitarian than any other superhero costume – he looks exactly like a superhero. To my mind, the minute you put on something like that, you’re at least as much superhero as anything else. Hey ho.

As for Jan, my favourite of her modes is also the glittering Buscema outfit – pretty. Well, that and her original, which is, to say the least, unique. The skullcap look is a hoot, a hymn to Miss America.

I’m amazed by some of the looks you love – I’ve never come across anyone who didn’t regard the one-legged Perez … thing as a joke meant to show Jan is a lousy designer. Alan, it has one leg! There’s assymetrical and then there appalling. You nutty New York style bod, you.

Anyway, look forward to the various Goliaths – my vote goes to Clint Barton circa Avengers #63, the blue number – powerful, well-coloured and sexy.

And it looked like Secret War era Jan got the idea for the green and purple outfit from the Molecule Man. They could be twins.

Too soon?