When costumes become culture: comic-books as fashion staples

Comic books have proven to be a cultural phenomenon in recent decades. Once looked down upon as unsophisticated junk that only the ‘geeks’ read, this stereotype has been well and truly quashed as movies based on superheroes and other comic-book characters have become box-office powerhouses — look no further than Marvel, who have been consistently making highly-successful films out of their own character since Spider-Man and the X-Men in the early 2000s.

What’s just as iconic as these characters is their dress sense. Costumes have become just as synonymous with superheroes as the person they are behind the mask, and it’s very common to walk into a comic-con and see at least one person dressed as Batman, Spiderman or Wolverine — providing they let you in with blades on your hands. 

So it’s become cool to see movies based on these characters — when did it become cool to dress like them?

Well, you could argue that dressing up in masks and other regalia can be traced back to masquerade balls, which have been a thing for centuries. Science-fiction author Jules Verne encouraged his guests to come to a costume ball dressed up as characters from his novels. However, the roots of cosplay as we know it can be seen in the early 20th century — there’s evidence from 1908 of a married couple in Ohio dressing up as Mr Skygak from Mars, a popular sci-fi comic strip character of the time. In 1939, the 1st World Science Fiction Convention was held and Forrest J. Ackerman and Myrtle R. Douglas attended dressed in what are dubbed “futuristicostumes.” 

It was around this time that superhero comics became part of the public consciousness. 1938 saw the introduction of Superman, the next year Batman, and Captain America, Captain Marvel, Aquaman and Wonderwoman all followed in the decade after. While these characters have been portrayed by several different people over the years, their costumes themselves have not changed too much.

Back then, the costumes stood out on the page due to their primary colours and symbols, making these characters national icons. Wonderwoman had a star-spangled skirt, and the S on Superman’s iconic costume is the Kryptonian symbol for hope. Over time, comic-book characters became more layered and this was reflected in their outfits. When Spiderman was introduced, his costume displayed a high level of detail for the time. His spider-like abilities were reflected in the webbed design of his suit, and the suit was also used as a key aspect of his character: to conceal his identity as Peter Parker while having a reputation of being the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. 

As the costumes have come to define superheroes and be an integral part of their character, it has become just as popular for fans to relate to them and dress as them at comic-cons. Characters such as Spider-Man and Superman are seen as role models and, with superheroes’ increased exposure in the wider world of pop culture, there are many more chances for lesser-known superheroes to become memorable looks in the cosplay scene.