I find it interesting that they are darkening the red and highlighting the blue, which is the opposite of what most comic artists do. It is reducing the visual contrast of the costume quite a bit, don't you think?

Who's the actor?

i think that he still looks a bit goofy, photogenically, but i like the way he fits the costume. i totally agree about hte batman, less padding more muscle. BUT batman is just a man, superman is well, SUPER man. so he doesnt need body armor like batman does...at least that's my thinking. either way. brandon routh and christian bale are still both really hot

that's brandon routh, and i've always liked the idea of batman having advanced stretchable kevlar, something the comics have played with — plus it ups the danger quotient when he fights, and makes him all the better/faster when he wins. Each hit means something.

also, if you look at the bit of cape between his legs, it looks like the light is really effecting it, almost a translucence. I think more often than not the coloring shifts are a direct result of lots of practical stuntwork against ACTUAL blue skies, etc. It'll be interesting to see how it plays off varying surfaces. You can't deny that that body really pops off against that marble backing in the phoot, and the emphasis should be more on the body, less on a cape.

I am a dork.

Eh, I say he's still photographing goofy. I see that cute little stomach and I think "Oh, and somewhat slender Superman" and then I realize that his thighs are each twice the size of his head. Not that he looks bad or anything - quite the opposite - I just think the angle's a bit off.

Not to mention, I'll never look at capes on superheroes the same after Edna Mode ...

Batman's not just A man, Batman's THE man. And this photo of Routh is SOOOOOOOOO much better than his headshot or any of the Clark Kent shots.

Superman was my first sexual fantasty. I was like 11.

Rawwwwwwwwwwwwr. Thanks Superman 3 trading cards ;)

I think superheroes have to wear skin-tight spandex to increase their social acceptability. I mean, if you really saw a big-ass superhero walking down the street in body armor, people would be scared. But if you run into a big-ass superhero in spandex at the market or something, you're not gonna run away if he's wearing spandex. Kind of a double take, like "damn, he's strong", and then a few seconds later, "wow, that costume's gay."

Uhh...Why the hell did I just type that. Can I have my 45 seconds back?

The real reason superheroes wear skin-tight outfits? The majority of comic book artists in the 30's were classicly trained, and therefore had a great love of human anatomy.

When I pretend the cape and logo aren't there and all the blue is the color of flesh, he looks like a gay boy at the beach wearing a boxcut. I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or a bad thing. I'm not feeling the hair or the facial expression, which looks more confused than heroic.

well i'm sure intergalactic space travel in a boxcut is confusing...

He does look a bit odd...

He that spares the bad injures the good... Eleanor