It’s the 40th anniversary of the first Jack Kirby comic to introduce his concepts of the “Fourth World” and so we have a special piece for you this week.

In the DC Universe, long before the Maltusians and the Martians, the first sentient race were the beings of the planet Urgund. These people learned to commune with the Source, the energy that binds all life in the universe (and which pre-dates Star Wars, so no yelling “rip-off”). The people of Urgund became what later cultures would refer to as “the Old Gods” and their age of civilization became known as the Third World.

But… there came a day when the Old Gods died. Civil war broke out and it ended with the planet being destroyed. The energies unleashed wiped out surrounding stars while shifting the rubble of Urgund and its surviving sun into another dimensional plane, out of phase with the rest of the universe. Many centuries passed. The rubble of Urgund began to reform, becoming two worlds now orbiting the same star, one full of life that was called New Genesis, the other a dark wasteland called Apokolips. On Earth, the energy shock wave from the death of the Old Gods created other-dimensional beings who came to be worshipped as gods by the ancient Greeks, the ancient Egyptians and others. And on New Genesis and Apokolips, new beings emerged who, like their ancestors, were linked to cosmic forces. They were the New Gods of the Fourth World.

It would be a mistake to consider the New Gods as powerful aliens. They were celestial beings, more energy than matter, whose spirits would directly return to the Source after death. Izaya, given the title of “Highfather,” acted as mentor to the people of New Genesis, while the tyrant Uxas ruled over Apokolips after assuming the title of “Darkseid the Destroyer.” Darkseid psychically fed off pain, corruption and servitude. Highfather spoke of how free will was the essence of sentient life, making “choice” the “life equation” and in turn, Darkseid sought out the “Anti-Life Equation,” a cosmic formula that would rob anyone of free will and make them his puppet. Realizing that certain human beings held parts of the Equation in their mind, Darkseid turned his attention to Earth, now warring with super-heroes as often as he did with the forces of New Genesis. His greatest enemies were Superman, Wonder Woman and his own son Orion, who had been raised by Highfather.

Eventually, the time came for the Fourth World to end. Darkseid found a way to allow his spirit to survive this, intending that he would reshape the Fifth World in his image and gain influence over the entire universe. The paradox of his spirit’s survival forced time and space to begin collapsing around Earth, causing what came to be known as the Final Crisis, and it took the combined might of Earth’s heroes and several cosmic forces to bring him down at last. The Fourth World ended and we know that somewhere in the multiverse the Fifth World has begun with a reborn New Genesis. What happens next is up to fate (and very likely Grant Morrison).

And now that you’re educated on the basics, let’s take a gander at the fashion choices of some of the most prominent beings of the Fourth World. Keep in mind, this is not a complete list because that would honestly take too long in one sitting. So for now, we’re focusing on the main heroes of Kirby’s cosmic mythology rather than the villains and side players. What’s that? Oh, fine, we’ll include Darkseid too. But just because you asked so nicely.

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The city of St. Canard has long been a focus for crime and super-powered villains. Fortunately, it is also home to a mysterious vigilante who fights crime with the help of advanced technology, martial arts training, natural detective skills, an uncanny talent for stealth, and a trusted gas-gun. He is the terror that flaps in the night, the winged scourge who pecks at your nightmares, the awkward good-bye that lasts way too long. He is… Darkwing Duck!

Much of Darkwing’s past is shrouded in mystery, even from his own friends. Some have said that this masked avenger is one of the last survivors of the planet Zipton. Another account claims he is the descendant of a masked pirate hunter. The truth is that this costumed hero is Drake Mallard, a guy who discovered he had a talent for crime-fighting during an incident at his senior prom. Traveling to the East, Drake underwent intensive combat training. He later learned how to work as a detective and then, after amassing tons of high-tech equipment and setting up a secret lair, Drake returned to his home of St. Canard as his masked alter ego, hunting down criminals while announcing his presence at any given opportunity. Some consider him a hero, some a menace, others simply don’t know why he keeps offering them his autograph. And though he is sometimes distracted by a desire for fame, his primary focus (or so he insists) is justice.

Not only does Darkwing fight criminals and super-villains in his home town, he also travels the world to fight evil, often while working as a freelance agent for the super-secret organization known as S.H.U.S.H. Though he claims to be a loner, the Duck Knight is usually accompanied on his adventures by his sidekick/pilot Launchpad McQuack, his adopted daughter Gosalyn, and her best friend Honker Muddlefoot.

Although his cartoon has been over now for years, DW has never left the hearts and minds of his fans. And now, he has returned to a career of defying dastardly deeds of deviltry and disaster thanks to a new, fantastic comic book series published by BOOM! (and if you’re not reading it, you should be beaten with sticks because it’s just great). But enough back story! Time to examine the wardrobe of this masked mallard of might, this controversial and clandestine caped crusader, a hero who truly means it when he says, “Let’s Get Dangerous!”

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You know, it seems that there’s been some confusion recently about the characters called Ice Maiden and Ice. So just to make sure we’re on the same page, here are the basics.

Originally, there was this girl who showed up with blue skin and ice powers. She was called Ice Maiden and she palled around with the international group known as the Global Guardians, representing Norway.

A while later in Justice League International #12, we met a new Ice Maiden whose name was Tora Olafsdotter. This was intended to be the same character, except that she now had Caucasian skin. She was named Tora because the creators behind Justice League International were under the impression that Ice Maiden’s name had never been revealed. They were mistaken. She was named “Sigrid Nansen” in one of DC’s Who’s Who books. Oops.

Tora was said to be the princess of a tribe of legendary Nordic ice elementals. She and her best friend Green Flame left the Global Guardians and joined the Justice League, changing their names to Fire and Ice. After years of fighting evil alongside the League, Ice died in battle. Later on, the original blue-skinned Ice Maiden appeared again, explaining that she was Sigrid Nansen and had been the first hero to be called Ice Maiden. Sigrid had gained her powers from an experiment meant to imbue a person with the same abilities of the magical Nordic ice elementals. After Princess Tora, a true elemental, was discovered, Sigrid felt like a second fiddle and so she had left the Global Guardians, vanishing from the public eye. Thus, Tora had taken up her costume and codename, before joining the Justice League soon afterward.

Joining the League after Tora’s death, Ice Maiden became a hero in her own right. She later left the team and, sadly, fell into a tragic fate that has left her comatose to this day. Meanwhile, Ice was resurrected and is active again, seeking to regain her footing in the world.

So, Ice Maiden I = blue-skinned Sigrid, a metahuman. Ice (formerly Ice Maiden II) = Tora, a magical ice elemental. Got it? Sweet! Now let’s get on with this fashion overview.

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When government agents Richard and Mary Parker were killed by a foreign spy they were investigating, they left their only son Peter to be raised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben in Queens, New York. Growing up, Peter showed a great aptitude for science, especially in engineering and chemistry. By the time he was an adolescent, Peter had already gained the notice of a few scientists, including Norman Osborn (who would later become the villain known as the Green Goblin). At the age of fifteen, Peter was attending a demonstration on radiation when a glowing spider bit him and then died of radiation poisoning.

Peter felt sick but minutes later he realized he now had superhuman strength, agility and dexterity. He could cling to surfaces through molecular attraction and now possessed an extrasensory danger-sense or “spider-sense” that warned him of hidden and oncoming threats. It’s not known exactly whether his mutation was due to the spider’s radioactive blood or if there was something extraordinary about the spider to begin with and the radiation had simply poisoned it. Either way, Peter now had incredible power and used it to begin a career as a television stuntman, wearing a colorful costume as he performed incredible feats for live audiences. To complete the spider motif, Peter used a special adhesive he’d designed (which always dissolved after an hour) that could be fired from wrist-worn “web-shooters.”

Over the next few months, Peter grew arrogant and self-absorbed. When a thief robbed the studio’s payroll, he ignored the criminal, saying it wasn’t his job to get involved. Weeks later, the same thief robbed Peter’s home and shot his uncle. Peter helped apprehend the burglar, shocked that his actions weeks earlier could have prevented his uncle’s death later on. Realizing that great power brings great responsibility, Spider-Man left his TV career behind and dedicated himself to hunting down criminals and protecting all life, no matter how much it cost him in the process.

Over the years, Spider-Man has become a formidable superhero and has served alongside most of Earth’s champions. Currently, he fights evil not only on his own but also as a member of the Avengers, working with people such as Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and Wolverine. He’s been to other dimensions and planets, has traveled through time, and has faced off against aliens, terrorists, mobsters, super-villains, sorcerers and demons. He’s suffered horrible tragedies and has lost many loved ones, but he’s also seen victory and he knows that giving up would be selfish. There’s always tomorrow and he’s always ready to laugh and hope that things will turn out all right in the end.

Got it? Good. Now let’s take a look at his web-slinging ensemble!

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In the Marvel Universes, since the dawn of humanity, there have been people on Earth born with the X-gene, a genetic bonus that gives them unique or superhuman traits. One such mutant was born over a century ago in Canada and later discovered that he had been born with heightened senses, incredible regenerative abilities and a set of three bone claws housed in each forearm. After the tragic deaths of his parents and the shocking realization of his mutant abilities, this young mutant (who took on the name Logan) left his home and became a miner for a while. With his short stature, unwillingness to quit and his digging prowess, he earned the nickname of “Wolverine” and became a respected member of the town. But when his mutant nature was discovered, he had to flee again.

Over the decades, Logan traveled the world. He lived with a pack of wolves, fought with Americans in World War I, lived in Japan and its neighbor Madripoor, fought in World War II and eventually joined the CIA. For much of this time, he was manipulated by the mysterious Romulus, acting as the man’s assassin and agent for reasons he never fully questioned. Often times, Romulus caused Wolverine to suffer amnesia after major events or missions. Eventually, Logan became the test subject of the Weapon X Program, which intended to create a perfect biological weapon. Logan had most of his memory wiped out and his skeleton became laced with the indestructible metal called Adamantium, making him even harder to kill than before. He was also given layers of mental programming.

After 18 months, Wolverine escaped from the Weapon X project and was eventually found by agents of the Canadian government. He worked as a secret agent and occasionally his mental programming had him still doing missions for Romulus. The Canadian government eventually asked him to become a costumed, national superhero and almost immediately afterward Logan was asked to join the mutant team known as the X-Men. Romulus ordered him to kill the telepath Xavier, mentor of the X-Men. But Xavier saw potential in Wolverine and freed him from his assassin programming, though this also meant causing Logan to lose much of his memory again. In the years afterward, Logan’s true nature emerged and he became a hero as an X-Man, working to protect a world that feared and hated him. Thanks to the team that embraced him as a family and the experiences he had with them, he finally saw himself as a man rather than as an animal.

Eventually, Logan regained his full memories and was shocked by what he’d done in the past and the people he had victimized. Now with a somewhat darker outlook on life, Wolverine continues his fight against threats to himself and the world, not merely on his own but also as a member of the Avengers, the X-Men and his own covert team X-Force. Yes, he’s on that many teams (and possibly more).

Over the years, Wolvie’s worn quite a few outfits. He may be “the best there is at what he does,” but that doesn’t necessarily include fashion. So let’s take a look at the Canucklehead’s apparel, shall we?

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When the human Captain Leonard MacKenzie fell in love with the Atlantean princess Fen, their union produced a hybrid child with unique abilities. Namor, whose name means “Avenging Son,” was born with incredible strength, bulletproof skin, and the ability to breath both air and water. He could even defy gravity, aided by wings on his ankles that allowed him to control his flight path.

In 1939, Namor began crossing swords with the surface world, often provoked by humans who looked at him with fear and suspicion. Called the “Sub-Mariner” by the media, Namor came to believe humans were a threat to his people and he staged attacks against New York, leading him to battle the android superhero known as the original Human Torch. But when the Nazi menace rose, Namor saw them as a greater threat and joined with Allied forces to combat them. He even teamed with Captain America and the Torch to form a team known as the Invaders.

Some time after the end of WW II, an attack on Atlantis left the Sub-Mariner an amnesiac and he wandered the streets of New York for years. He was eventually discovered by Johnny Storm, a member of the Fantastic Four who called himself the new Human Torch. Johnny helped restore Namor’s memories only to discover that the Sub-Mariner was once again intent on waging war against humanity, believing that surface people had destroyed his home and civilization. Eventually, the Sub-Mariner found that his people had survived, relocating to safer territory, and his need for vengeance cooled. Since then, he has often worked with Earth’s heroes as well as against them, depending on what he believes will benefit his people. Most recently, Emma Frost of the X-Men has recruited Namor to also act as a protector of Earth’s mutant humans, those born with the special X-gene that gives them superhuman abilities. How long the Sub-Mariner will stay with the X-Men is anyone’s guess.

And during all these adventures, he’s had a unique wardrobe (or lack thereof). And since he’s got a new series premiering this week, it seems an appropriate time to look over his aquatic apparel, don’t you think?

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Many parents would consider the discovery that their son is a mental prodigy to be a blessing. But when young Robert Bruce Banner showed he was able to comprehend ideas and concepts years ahead of his age, his father Brian labeled him a freak and a monster. After years of living with the abusive and alcoholic Brian, Bruce’s mother Rebecca decided she and her son needed to escape. But Brian discovered the plan and killed Rebecca in front of their child, who was eight-years-old at the time. Traumatized, Bruce became an emotionally closed-off child, burying most of his anger and desires, believing that indulging in these things could lead him to be like his own father. As he grew older, Bruce showed signs of Dissociative Identity Disorder (what used to be called “multiple personality”), occasionally acting like a different person when people pushed him towards anger or fear, only to lose all memory of the incident moments later.

As an adult, Bruce proved to be one of the most intelligent scientists on Earth and was recruited by the military to design a new nuclear bomb, one which would have a more focused blast radius through the use of gamma radiation. Minutes before detonation, Bruce spotted a teenager named Rick Jones on the testing grounds, having gone there on a dare, unaware of a nearby bomb. Bruce told his assistant to delay the detonation and went off to take the boy to safety. But Banner’s assistant was actually a spy and did not stop the countdown. Just as Bruce ensured young Rick’s safety, the G-bomb exploded and Banner was caught in the radioactive blast.

But instead of dying, Bruce’s cells and brain mutated. Now, unlike other people with DID, he would physically change whenever an alternate persona emerged. The first of these was a brutish, self-serving creature with gray skin, incredible strength, and serious resiliency to injury. The second was a green-skinned, raging child who was even more powerful and desperately wanted the rest of the world to leave him alone. Each of these powerful alternates have answered to the same nickname: Hulk.

The Hulk was not, and is not, a superhero. He has often fought evil people and he is certainly super-powered. But he is not on a quest for vengeance nor is he dedicated to the cause of justice. He doesn’t go on patrol or have a signal-device of some kind that informs him of when people need aid. And half the time he’s wound up fighting heroes and causing destruction, either due to a misunderstanding or because he simply lost control. So naturally, he doesn’t wear a superhero costume. But he has had some distinctive looks over the years. So join me (and a friend) as we look over his many outfits. Due to the different personalities of the Hulk over the years, we won’t be staying strictly with chronological order.

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Matthew Michael Murdock was raised in the Hell’s Kitchen area of Manhattan by Jack “Battlin’ ” Murdock, a boxer and mob enforcer. Matt had a natural talent for athleticism, but his father forbade him from any physical activity or fighting, determined that the boy would become a doctor or lawyer instead. Matt’s unwillingness to fight off bullies in school earned him the reputation of a coward and the ironic nickname of “Daredevil.”

As an adolescent, Matt saw a hazmat truck heading towards a blind man. He pushed the pedestrian out of the way as the truck swerved to avoid a collision, causing its radioactive contents to spill out the back and strike the boy’s eyes. Matt’s retinas were burned away, but the radiation also affected his brain, pushing his other senses to superhuman levels. His fingertips could read ink on paper as if it were brail, his sense of balance was enhanced, he could smell the cologne of someone who’d been in a room hours earlier, and he could hear a person’s heartbeat.

Matt believed himself to be a blind freak but was then approached by a sightless martial artist named Stick. Over the course of several years, Stick taught Matt to develop a “radar sense”, allowing him to perceive the shape of three-dimensional objects by feeling how air moved around them and hearing sounds bounce off their forms. Stick also trained the boy in combat, acrobatics and secret ninja techniques, hoping Matt would join him as a warrior against evil forces such as the mystical clan of assassins known as the Hand. Eventually though, events led teacher and student to part ways and young Murdock went to Columbia Law School, fulfilling his father’s wishes for his academic/professional success and leaving his warrior life behind. But soon before Matt officially became a lawyer, his father Jack was murdered by mobsters because he wouldn’t throw a boxing match. Believing that sometimes the law needed outside help, Murdock used his unique abilities and the skills Stick had taught him to become a vigilante: Daredevil, the man without fear.

Over the years, many experiences led the joking Daredevil to develop a colder, harsher attitude. He’s also gone through a few wardrobe changes, more so than some of you might know. So let’s take a look at the fashion choices of Marvel’s famous blind superhero.

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It began on the planet Colu, a world of green-skinned humanoids with advanced brains who prized intelligence and logic above all else. In the Coluan scale of measurement, the average human being has a 6th-level intelligence and the average Coluan has anywhere from an 8th-level to 10th-level intelligence. But one Coluan named Vril Dox was born with a 12th-level intelligence and then installed augmentations to his brain to increase it even further. Earning the nickname of “Brainiac” among his people, this villain embarked on a quest to gather all knowledge in the universe.

Exploring the galaxy in his famous (and way creepy) skull-ship, Brainiac would go from one planet to another, absorbing its information and then destroying the world so that the knowledge he’d taken from it would now be more precious. He also made a habit of shrinking down entire cities from each world and imprisoning them in bottle-like force field containers, keeping the millions of still-living inhabitants as test subjects. To help in his exploration, Brainiac launched several probes and avatars that acted with his basic personality. A few of these avatars fought Superman and recently he made an enemy of the true Brainiac himself. A dangerous thing since, despite his claims that he prizes logic and information above all else, Brainiac is still capable of feeling hatred for his enemies.

He’s creepy, he’s powerful, he’s smart and he does not have any capacity for mercy. He also predates the slang term “brainiac” by a couple of decades and some believe that he is the direct origin of the term (a Computer kit also called Brainiac predated the comic book character, but it wasn’t as popular and didn’t last as long). Yet despite this notoriety and his long-standing status as one of Superman’s greatest enemies, the villain from Colu has not always had the best tailor. So why don’t we look back at this villain’s wardrobe?

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When the mutant called Cable first showed up, he was a soldier approaching middle age who sported a bionic eye and a cyborg arm who quickly revealed he was from the future. Not long after this, Scott Summers AKA Cyclops, the first X-Man, suffered the tragedy of watching his son Nathan get infected with the techno-organic virus (called “T-O”), a disease that would painfully alter the child into a biological machine. A member of the Askani Clan, a sisterhood that existed 2000 years in the future, offered to take the child to her time where advanced technology could treat his condition. Cyclops reluctantly agreed and sent his son to the Askani in the far future. It was later explained that this boy had grown up to become the man called Cable, who was not a cyborg but was still suffering from the T-O virus and had to constantly use his incredible mental abilities to keep it from spreading beyond his left arm and eye.

Nathan Christopher Charles Summers AKA Nathan Dayspring Askani’Son AKA Cable was raised in a dark future ruled by the near-immortal mutant terrorist Apocalypse. Told he was the “Chosen One” meant to defeat Apocalypse, Nathan used time travel to prevent this future from happening, hoping to kill the villain in the past when he was younger and weaker. In the present day, Cable formed the original X-Force team before later leaving to pursue his own agenda, occasionally working alongside the X-Men teams.

After he seemingly killed Apocalypse (though the villain would resurface later), Cable’s T-O virus seemed to enter a state of remission and his full power as the world’s most powerful telepath and telekinetic finally surfaced, inspiring him to take a new path in life. After becoming an enemy of several governments and losing his power for a short time, Cable was eventually entrusted by Cyclops to be the guardian of Hope, a mutant child fated to be the key to the race’s future. Recently, while helping time-lost friends get safely back home, Cable was forced to allow the T-O virus to overwhelm his body and then seemingly died in an explosion, leaving only his left arm behind. But those infected by the virus have been able to regenerate themselves from body parts before, so who knows if he’s really gone?

And if that all seems complicated, I deliberately left out and glossed over several details in order to keep your head from spinning.

But for now, while folks are still chatting away about his life and his death, let’s take a look at the many looks Cable has sported over the years. I warn you though, don’t blame me for some of the outfits you’re about to see. Unlike many heroes and anti-heroes in the Marvel universe, Cable doesn’t have a costume so much as a look that he’ll sport for a while. Because of this and because of how frequently he’s altered his looks, these images are in rough but not exact chronological order and this is definitely not a complete list.

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In the universe of DC Comics, the land of Atlantis was the nexus of magical energy on Earth. Eventually, disaster struck and land sank beneath the sea. Some Atlanteans survived this, though. The twin cities of Poseidonis and Tritonis now lay at the bottom of the ocean, protected by transparent domes. The people of Poseidonis used advanced science to obtain gills, enhanced senses and stronger, tougher bodies; while mystic forces transformed the Tritonians into actual mer-people. Members of the royal family born with blonde hair, an unusual trait among Atlanteans, often had a strong talent for magic. A blonde-haired monster named Kordax could even command sea life.

Thousands of years later, Atlanna of Poseidonis ran away from home and obligation. Near a place called Mercy Reef, she met Tom Curry, a reclusive lighthouse keeper, and the two fell in love. They married and had a son named Arthur, a blonde child with a special bond to the sea. After both of his parents were gone, Arthur went out into the world, eventually finding Atlantis and learning that its people saw him as a cursed freak due to his hair.

Thanks to his unique heritage, Arthur Curry had near-bulletproof skin, enhanced senses, superhuman strength, increased vitality, and was able to communicate with all forms of sea life. Seen as a freak by Atlantis and the surface world, he made the ocean itself his home and dedicated himself to protecting its creatures. Occasionally, he would venture onto land and fight super-villains, which helped him gain a reputation as a hero among the public and earned him the name “Aquaman.”

As a founding member of the Justice League of America, Aquaman’s fought costumed villains, aliens, demons and mad gods. A while back, he actually died only to later be resurrected by strange forces. Forced to reconsider his place in the world, he now travels the world with his former wife Mera, a warrior from another dimension, once again at his side.

So let’s look at what kind of wardrobe is worthy of the king of the seas.

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Next to Superman and the Batman, there is only one character in fiction whose stories have been in continuous publication for about 70 years now. Created by William Moulton Marston, whose research helped the creation of the lie detector, this character is the third part of the “trinity” of DC Comics: Wonder Woman.

Long ago, the goddesses of Olympus resurrected women of Earth who had been unjustly murdered by man’s aggression. These women of various ages, races and backgrounds became known as the Amazons and inspired many myths. After a brief enslavement at the hands of Herakles and his men, the Amazons retreated from “Patriarch’s World” and went to live on Themyscira, a magical “Paradise Island” where they would be hidden and wouldn’t age.

The centuries went on and the Amazons made a peaceful society, developing advanced technology and always practicing their warrior ways. But Queen Hypollyta had been pregnant when she’d first lived and been murdered and she still longed for a child. Making a baby out of mud and clay, she asked the goddesses for this one favor and they gave her a daughter: Diana, blessed with incredible speed, strength, resiliency, heightened senses, a connection to animals, and the ability to fly.

Eventually, when Princess Diana was barely out of her teens, the Amazons realized they couldn’t remain detached from the outside world. They chose Diana as their warrior ambassador, to spread their teachings and fight off anything that threatened Earth and her children. Given blessed armor and a mystical lasso of truth that compelled others to obey her, Diana was called “Wonder Woman.” Over the years, she’s done many amazing things while wearing a wide variety of outfits. And her latest costume has caused a lot of debate, including amongst myself and some special guest commentators in this piece.

But enough backstory. Let’s take a look, shall we?

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There’s this rumor among non-comic book readers that Batman is the only cool superhero who doesn’t have powers or a suit of armor that allows him to take on a tank. The rest of us, of course, know that this isn’t true. There are several completely human characters out there who rely on skill and athletic ability to hold their own against various menaces, both with and without powers. One such guy has been appearing on the TV series Smallville for the past couple of years and recently got his own comic book series again. I’m talking, naturally, about the Green Arrow, a guy inspired by Robin Hood, Batman and a novel-turned-movie serial called The Green Archer.

His story’s been slightly revised here and there over the years, but here’s the basic deal. Oliver Jonas Queen was a rich playboy with no direction in life. Circumstances led to him being thought dead and stranded on a small island. Alone and forced to learn new skills to survive, he became a master archer, using his make-shift arrows to hunt animals for food and then to combat criminals who were using the island as a base. Local natives referred to Ollie as the “Green Arrow” since his self-made arrows used parrot feathers. After returning to civilization, Ollie was inspired by his experiences and the new rise of superheroes to become a costumed vigilante, modeling himself after Robin Hood and using his fortune to fund the creation of high-tech multi-purpose arrows. Boomerang arrows, explosive arrows, hand-cuff arrows, net arrows, boxing-glove arrows, he had them all.

Eventually, Ollie lost his fortune and found his perspective changing. Now he was more concerned with social injustices and corrupt politicians rather than super-villains and alien conquerors and eventually he set the trick arrows aside for tried and true broadheads. Over the years, he’s gained several allies and apprentices. A young boy called Roy Harper became his first sidekick Speedy (now calling himself Arsenal). His Justice League teammate Black Canary became his love and occasional partner and recently became his wife as well. A former prostitute named Mia Dearden currently operates as the new Speedy. And for a time, Ollie’s illegitimate son Connor Hawke operated as the new Green Arrow.

We’ve discussed Marvel’s Hawkeye, who was a circus performer at heart, but the Green Arrow is an archer of a very different style and mindset. Let’s take a look, shall we?

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Before “superhero” was a household word and before Superman or Batman made their debuts to the world, Americans followed the adventures of a unique crime-fighting duo: the Green Hornet and Kato.

In 1933, Fran Striker created the radio show hero called the Lone Ranger, a masked man who brought justice to the American frontier with his partner Tonto. Later on, it was suggested that Striker make a more modern hero. So in 1936, he recycled the idea and created a new radio series starring newspaper publisher Britt Reid AKA the Green Hornet.

Unlike other masked crime-fighters, the Hornet didn’t advertise that he was an enemy of evil. Instead, he pretended to be a criminal himself. Britt’s valet Kato, an expert martial artist and skilled mechanic, aided the Hornet by donning a mask and acting as his nameless bodyguard, enforcer and driver. As the Green Hornet, Reid would work alongside criminals so he could sabotage their operations from the inside, leaving them easy prey for the police while he and Kato made a getaway in the Black Beauty, a special car with a loud, buzzing engine (the sound of which helped give the Hornet his name). His fugitive status, along with the fact that he sometimes took credit for the crimes of others, earned him a reputation as a clever gangster and got him the trust of several criminals he’d later help put away.

Some time later, Stryker revealed that the Hornet and the Ranger were related. The Lone Ranger was a man called Reid (later named John Reid) who had a nephew named Dan. And the Green Hornet had inherited his newspaper, The Daily Sentinel, from his father Dan Reid. So Britt was the Lone Ranger’s grandnephew. Cool, right?

I have a personal connection to this character. Before I read comic books, back when I didn’t know what an X-Man was or how Spider-Man became a hero, my father and I would watch videos of the 1960s Green Hornet show and would listen to copies of the original radio series. So because of this, and because he’s been making a huge comeback in recent months, I figured we should look over the different ways this character has been portrayed over the decades.

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Although he wasn’t the first patriotic U.S. superhero, Captain America is considered by many to be the best. And he is most certainly the most recognizable, with a basic design that has lasted 70 years now.

Born in New York, the child of two Irish immigrants, Steve Rogers was on his own by the time he was in his late teens. As World War II began, Steve became a test subject for Operation: Rebirth, a program intended to create a super-soldier through chemical and radioactive means. The experiment was a success and Steve was now operating at the peak strength, endurance and agility a human being can possess. Originally intended to be just the first of many, Nazi sabotage ensured that the full secret of the super-soldier serum was lost and Steve was now one-of-a-kind. He was given a colorful costume and asked to be a rallying symbol, taking on the name Captain America, Sentinel of Liberty. Alongside his young partner Bucky Barnes and other superheroes of the era, Cap fought against Axis agents and other menaces.

Strange circumstances led Steve to being lost in suspended animation for decades, waking up soon after the rise of modern superheroes. He was discovered by the Avengers and joined their ranks. At various times, he served as the team’s leader, proudly shouting the battle cry: Avengers Assemble! After recent events, Steve has turned over the mantle of Captain America to another. Now, he fights for justice in a new way as an international trouble-shooter, a super-soldier who also commands a team of Secret Avengers.

So let’s take a gander at the different looks this patriotic hero, and those who have followed him, have worn. Join with me as the battle cry goes out: “Avengers Ensemble!” (Sorry, couldn’t resist.)

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Some superheroes just seem to be a little more fun when they have a partner. Batman and Robin. Green Arrow and Black Canary. Darkwing Duck and Launchpad McQuack. And recently, we’ve had another such pairing reunited: Barbara “Bobbi” Morse and Clint Barton, AKA Mockingbird and Hawkeye.

Mockingbird was a biologist, then a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, then a superhero, holding her own with nothing but martial arts training and some cool batons that could merge into a staff. After several adventures, she joined with Marvel’s premier superhero team, the Avengers.

Hawkeye was an incredibly talented archer who was mistaken for a villain and then tricked into making enemies with Iron Man. He later proved his true worth and joined the Avengers, aiding the fight against evil with his arsenal of high-tech arrows, acrobatic training and his uncanny ability to argue with Captain America about everything from strategy to what TV show to watch.

They’ve definitely been through the ringer, these two. They had a whirlwind romance leading to a fast marriage that later led to divorce. Then Mockingbird was seemingly killed, though her ghost showed up on occasion. Then she showed up alive and well, as it turned out it was an alien impostor who had died in her place (and who, I guess, still masquerades as her in the afterlife). Meanwhile, Hawkeye died for real and was then resurrected by weird mutant magic, eventually reuniting with Bobbi. And through all of this, they have made a habit of tweaking their looks, more often than you might have realized.

Let’s take a look, shall we?

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Everyone knows Superman at a glance. The blue suit, the red boots and trunks, the big cape, the famous S-shield. Alter any of these elements and even non-comic book readers will quickly notice.

But when it comes to Superman’s birth place, the planet Krypton, this isn’t the case. In comics, TV and film, Kryptonians have been shown in a variety of ways for many different reasons, operating under sometimes drastically different philosophies. Some designs have worked. Some worked for the story but were limited in appeal. And some were simply lazy and uninspired. The world of Krypton is gone as we know it. But that doesn’t mean we can’t critique it!

So let’s jump into things, shall we? Let’s look at the world of Krypton and how its society’s fashion sense has altered over the years and how this has affected Kal-El, the man called Superman.

EARLY JOR-EL

The people of Krypton made their first appearance in 1939, not in the comic books but in the Superman newspaper comic strip. The only Kryptonians we saw were Superman’s parents Jor-El and Lara (originally called “Jor-L” and “Lora”) and there was no color in the strip, but we could still get some idea of their fashion sense.

Superman’s mother is wearing a simple gown which is no different than than what any pretty girl might wear on Earth. Jor is wearing a loose, comfortable-looking outfit. It could be a uniform, but this doesn’t seem too likely with the lack of decoration or symbols on it. The cut of the pants and the boots indicate these are general purpose work clothes. He seems ready to go on a nature hike as soon as he finishes in the lab.

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Some costumes are just iconic. People who have never read a comic will recognize it on first glance. It just has that staying power, so much so that changes to it are usually fairly simple and subtle. Because no one wants to mess with what works.

Bruce Wayne was born in Gotham City, heir to the multi-million dollar companies of Wayne Industries and Wayne Enterprises. Despite their fortune, Bruce’s parents Thomas and Martha believed in actively giving back to their city, Martha through charity work and Thomas through being a physician. Another major influence in Bruce’s life was Alfred Pennyworth. Alfred had once worked as an agent of MI-6 before leaving violence to pursue a career on stage, but circumstances later led him to leave England and adopt his father’s former role as Wayne family Butler. Alfred was Bruce’s teacher in many areas and his best friend.

When he was six-years-old, Bruce accidentally fell into a cave beneath Wayne Manor, a forgotten place that had once been used by his ancestors as a hiding place for escaped slaves. The incident caused Bruce to develop a great fear of bats and he had many nightmares. A few years later, Bruce was given a new reason for nightmares. On one of the rare evenings where both of Bruce’s parents were able to spend time with him, the family attended a theatrical re-release of The Mark of Zorro. Leaving the theatre later, they were confronted by a mugger named Joe Chill who demanded Martha’s pearls. When Thomas instinctively moved to protect his wife, Chill shot Bruce’s parents before his eyes and then ran off. Having asked her mother to wear the pearls so their outing would be a special night, Bruce blamed himself for his parents death.

Refusing to be overcome by hate and grief, young Bruce made a promise on the graves of his parents, to protect people from suffering as he had and to make the city his parents had called home a place where such crimes would be unthinkable. He spent the next several years training, learning from Alfred and many others, including detectives, bounty hunters, criminals, assassins, martial arts masters, escape artists, magicians, boxers. Eventually, he returned to Gotham City and a series of events led him to create the identity of the Batman.

During the day, Bruce Wayne masquerades as a mentally lazy playboy with little interest in his own company. But at night, he becomes a fearsome Dark Knight whose enemies sometimes wondered if he was a man in body armor or a demonic force. Over the years, Batman has worked alongside the Justice League of America, the Outsiders, and has trained several apprentices to aid in his war on crime and evil. He knows he will never win the war, but he believes every single life is precious and worth saving.

Got it? Great. So let’s take a look at how Batman’s uniform has evolved over the decades.

1939 MODEL

With the success of Superman’s adventures, National Publications (which would later evolve into DC Comics) asked its writers to come up with new superheroes and masked mystery-men. It’s been said that Batman creator Bob Kane originally intended his dark detective to wear a red bodysuit with black shorts, black boots and no gloves. He’d be disguised by a simple domino mask and would wear stiff, bat-like wings attached to his back. These wings were inspired by DaVinci’s drawings of how a man might be able to achieve limited flight. The idea of the Batman was also inspired by the character Zorro (who also used a cave as his lair) and by a mystery-suspense 1930 film titled The Bat Whispers, which involved people being hunted by a killer who wore a dark, bat-winged cloak that helped him hide in the shadows.

Kane liked this idea of a hero who would lurk in the shadows, seeming like a dangerous creature on first glance. Despite the fact that Batman’s creation was spurred on by the success of Superman, Kane decided that his hero would not possess any supernatural abilities but that he would only appear supernatural at times to his enemies.

When Kane’s collaborator Bill Finger (who would create Bruce Wayne’s origin story and many of the things we love about him) saw this design, he suggested a few changes. A winged cape rather than two stiff, completely separate wings. A horned cowl rather than a domino mask. Gray instead of red. Gloves so he wouldn’t leave fingerprints. And blank eyes to give him a more menacing appearance. This last trait was inspired by the Phantom, who had been a very popular hero in newspaper strips for some time now.

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Some people believe that when it comes to clothes and fashion, you get what you paid for. Well this week’s column spotlights a guy who wears a special red and gold suit that, according to him, costs roughly four billion dollars to make and maintain.

Ever since becoming the hero called Iron Man, Tony Stark (inventor, futurist AND wealthy businessman) has been known as the “cool exec with a heart of steel.” Some superheroes may change their threads on occasion, but our Armored Avenger here is a technologist of the highest order and tends to upgrade and modify his armor more often than Apple comes out with new computers.

So let’s take a look at Ol’ Shellhead’s wardrobe. Now, Tony has often utilized specialty armors for specific times when he had to do something such as fight the Hulk or battle with Thor or travel to other planets. He’s also occasionally used robot Iron Men who were under his control via telepresence. And there have been experimental models that only lasted for a single story or a few issues. In order to keep this column trimmed down, we’re omitting those cases and focusing on the main, all-purpose suits of armor that Tony considered to be the new status quo.

We will not discuss the “Crossing” storyline with Evil Tony and Teen Tony because it was a bad idea and should not be discussed. If you think that’s an unfair bias, keep in mind this is a column and not a documentary.

THE BASICS

Tony Stark was a young, brilliant scientist who inherited his father’s company and made high-tech military weapons. Months after designing an exo-skeleton called the “Iron Man,” Tony took a trip into a war zone and wound up injured by one of his own weapons. A piece of shrapnel was now in his body, pressing against his heart. He was then captured by agents of the warlord known as the Mandarin, who demanded that Stark create an invincible weapon for him. To help him, the Mandarin’s forces had also captured Ho Yinsen, a brilliant physicist and “medical futurist.”

Pretending to agree to the Mandarin’s demands, Tony and Yinsen first created a magnetic-field generator (later called a “repulsor generator”) that attached to Tony’s chest and held the shrapnel in place. To escape his captors, Tony then had Yinsen help him build a new, improved version of the Iron Man exo-skeleton that would be powered by the same mag-field generator. Tony was able to use this armor to escape, but was forced to wear the repulsor generator on his chest for years until an operation at last fixed his heart.

Almost immediately after escaping, Tony found himself drawn to using the Iron Man identity to live the double life of a superhero. Sometimes working alone, sometimes working alongside the team known as the Avengers, of which he is a founding member, Iron Man has acted as a hero for years and is constantly changing and updating his armor. For years, the world believed that the armored Avenger was a man employed by Tony Stark, a sort of high-tech security agent and bodyguard, but in recent times the truth was revealed. Nowadays, Tony has become one with his armor, able to summon it at will. Obsessed with preparing for the future, Iron Man is ready to take on any threat to humanity.

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Editor’s Note: With capes and cowls and iron suits, comic book fashion doesn’t just make the man — it makes the brand. But when you want to see the intersection of evolution, practicality and design for your mystery men, you don’t call the Fashion Police — you call in an Agent of S.T.Y.L.E. And now, we’ll let Alan take the reins, as he focuses on one Avenger whose apparel runs electric: The Mighty Thor.

Welcome to the new AGENT OF S.T.Y.L.E. By Alan Kistler

Fashion and comics have always gone hand in hand. No, seriously. After all, superheroes and super-villains, like runway models, need their appearance to have an immediate effect. Their look needs to say who they are and how they operate, while leaving a memorable impression in the mind. It also needs to be stylish enough that we will recognize the character no matter how drastically different another artist may draw him or her.

With all the movies that are coming out now, the look of a hero’s costume has become a greater concern because now we’re finally seeing many of these characters translated into a live-action world. Last week, we got a look at what Thor will look like in his upcoming film. Fans are still chatting about it. So why not put it all out on the table? Agent of S.T.Y.L.E. will be a weekly look at the evolution behind the artistic costumes of heroes, villains and others.

BASIC BACKGROUND

Now for those of you not familiar with Thor of Marvel Comics, this is the basic story. It begins with Dr. Donald Blake, a physician living in New York. Though excellent at his job, Don felt somewhat insecure due to one of his legs being practically useless, forcing him to walk with a crutch or a cane at all times. Soon after the modern age of heroes began, with folks like the Fantastic Four, Ant-Man and Iron Man making their debut, Don felt a strange urge to vacation to Norway. While exploring the mountains, he stumbled upon a plot by others to conquer the world and was spotted. Running into a nearby cave for safety, he lost his cane. Exploring the cavern, he found a strange, gnarled walking stick that seemed to be waiting for him. When he struck the walking stick against the ground, there was a lightning strike and Don Blake was transformed into Thor, the Norse god of thunder. The stick in his hand was turned into Mjolnir, the mystical uru hammer. On its side were the words: “Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.”

Don initially believed that he had somehow inherited the power and form of the real Thor. He embarked on a double life as a superhero, becoming Thor whenever a super-villain or some otherworldly menace threatened innocent life. Later, he was brought to Asgard, home of the Norse gods, and eventually learned the truth. He had been born Thor, son of Odin the All-Father, step-brother to Loki, god of mischief. But after many centuries of battles, he had grown arrogant and Odin eventually had enough. To teach his son humility, Odin sent the thunderer to Earth, transforming him into the human named Donald Blake with no memory of his true identity, crippling one of his legs so he would have to learn how to overcome a handicap. After seeing that Don did indeed learn humility and that he dedicated his life to healing others, Odin had been satisfied and had mentally guided the doctor to Norway, leading him to the very cave where he had been born centuries ago. Mjolnir could only be lifted by someone who it deemed worthy and the fact that Thor could now wield it was proof of how he had grown.

Considering himself as much a part of Earth as he was of Asgard, Thor continued his life as a hero, both on his own and as a founding member of the famous super-team the Avengers. He has fought aliens, cosmic forces, super-villains and, most often, his step-brother Loki. He’s a pretty epic hero and it’s no wonder we’re getting a movie of him at last. So, you’ve got the basics. Let’s look at the evolution of his design!

KIRBY’S CLASSIC LOOK

Ah, Jack Kirby, you wonderful artist, you wonderful man. I’ll admit, sometimes your costume designs are too wild and weird for me (COUGH – Mr. Miracle – COUGH), but sometimes you strike gold.

This is the first cover appearance of Marvel’s Thor. What Kirby did here is nothing short of inspired. This outfit says both “superhero” AND “viking.” You have a standard superhero cape, but clasped onto shoulder pads rather than tucked into a shirt collar or simply tied around the neck. The circle designs on the shirt give an impression of the metal discs that some old warriors would wear to help deflect arrows and blades, causing them to slide away from the body rather than get enough force to pierce the armor plate.

The boots have leather straps around them, giving a sense that this person is from a time centuries ago. The helmet, of course, furthers this impression and the wings on it give a sense of ancient gladiators. The fact that the helmet is polished and highly decorative also gives a sense of royalty, fitting for the son of wise Odin, All-Father of the Norse Gods.

We should note that when Thor was introduced in the early ’60s, it was still pretty unheard of for men to sport such length. So to a 1960s reader, the hair is another marker that Thor comes from a more savage time, or perhaps more mythic, time.

But this outfit doesn’t just speak of the past. A sleeveless black tunic extends over the sleek blue pants, which is a very superhero style of dress. Notice also that this outfit is all primary colors, another classic comic book hero trait. In fact, Thor’s blonde hair acts in tandem with his golden belt and boot bandages, giving balance to the color.

Most of the characters Kirby worked on with Stan Lee did not wear capes. The X-Men, the Fantastic Four, Iron Man, these figures were all very powerful but noticeably cape-less and the same went for most villains. In the 1960s Marvel Universe, capes were often reserved for those who needed to give off a sense of power and majesty. Dr. Doom, a man who mastered both science and sorcery, wore a cape. Magneto, a terrorist who intended to make his race the masters of Earth (with him at the top, of course), wore a cape.

And so, Thor, god of thunder, wears a cape. This makes him seem a bit grander when standing next to other Marvel heroes and it gives a great sense of wind and motion when he’s summoning a storm or hurling his mighty uru hammer Mjolnir. It also reminds you that he’s a prince when you see him alongside his fellow Asgardians, most of whom don’t wear capes but who do have similarly cool armor designs.

In fashion, people always talk about how important the silhouette is. It sometimes applies for superheroes too. Look at Batman. And it works for Thor as well. Look at him in silhouette here. Is there any doubt who that is? Just a great look.

Many years later, in 1991, the Thor suit was slightly updated for use by the man Eric Masterson when he sort of filled in for Thor. As you can see, this is Thor’s costume but with metal boots and actual metal plates now on the tunic. Eric also wears a mask, unlike the real Thor.

Years later, starting with artist George Perez, some folks who drew Thor would now draw actual metal plates on his tunic as well. Sometimes they’d draw only the top four circles as metal plates and would leave the lower two circles as mere designs on cloth. I think this works just fine.

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