Fox’s Take on Marvel Comics Costumes

By Shrey Sankalp

If you’ve been following our blog, you know how we’re talking about comic book vs. live action film costume accuracy at the moment and grading every superhero studio on it.

So far we’ve discussed the core Marvel comics costumes at Disney and Netflix, but now we move on to their step-siblings over at Fox!

Shall we begin, then?

1. 1. The Fantastic Four

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4. Photo: Fox
5. Marvel’s First Family has been through two largely average and one disastrous iteration, with two different approaches to costumes.
6. The first two films play it safe (and plain) by simply putting the team in blue spandex costumes with a 4 written on them, but that’s fine because that’s how the comic costumes look too (unless you count the Future Foundation costumes, but those came later) with slightly different designs here and there.
7. In the rebooted Fant4stic, of all the things they messed up, the costumes were on that list too. The hazmat suit approach wasn’t a bad concept but it was nothing like the comics (but then neither were the characters, so) and coupled with the overall quality of the film, it was just not it.
8. Even their main nemesis, Doctor Doom, looked like a terribly microwaved glowy mannequin in the reboot, which is a shame because his costume looked mostly like the Marvel comics in the originals.
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11. Photo: Fox
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13. 2. The X-Men

    
    
1. Way too many movies, way too many characters, and way too many costumes to breakdown each one individually.  Here is a some insight on the general category as well as detailed information on the most important ones.
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4. A. Primary Roster

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7. Photo: Fox
8. This is a subject that has long been a thorn in the fans’ sides. For some reason, across every film, the X-Men have refused to wear their classic yellow and blue (or black) spandex costumes as they did in the Marvel comics, and I admit that may be an impractical choice on the big screen, but come on, so were the leather jumpsuits Bryan Singer finally went with! A little fan service never hurt anybody.
9. The only comic accurate characters costumes are Charles Xavier and Mystique, but then how hard it is to recreate a bald man in suits in a wheelchair and a naked blue mutant on screen?
10. Even their primary antagonist, Magneto, ditches his bright red for muted hues (but mostly black) and elaborate suits (or armor in the prequels) but even with the helmet, it’s nothing like the Marvel comics costume.
11. As for Apocalypse, he could be Ivan Ooze for all we know, he’s nothing like the comics, and definitely worse for it.
12. In First Class the X-Men did briefly wear a yellow costume that paid homage to their classic duds, but nobody knows where that went because come Apocalypse, the team was kitted out in military grade armor (plus Quicksilver’s shiny plastic silver clothes) that is way too futuristic even for 2016, let alone the early ‘80s.
13. Maybe in the next one we’ll see more of the original Marvel Comics Costumes? Here’s hoping.

16. B. Wolverine

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18. Photo: Fox
19. Much like the core roster, Wolverine has eschewed his yellow suit and mask for, well, a tank top and jeans. He does wear the odd leather battle-suit (or the tan armor in Days of Future Past) now and then, but nope, never the classic Marvel costume (though it was featured in The Wolverine’s deleted alternate ending.
20. Sure, Hugh Jackman might be the Sexiest Man Alive, but come on, break out the yellow, Fox.
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26. C. Deadpool

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29. Photo: Fox
30. Deadpool has seen two iterations as well, with the first one a laughable disaster and the second one a triumphant success.
31. Why the complete turnaround?
32. Simple – Deadpool finally embraced its comic roots and in addition to its own absurdity and hyper-violence, on the way embracing the red costume and recreating it with absolute perfection on screen.
33. Thank God we never got more of that Origins zombie hybrid “Deadpool” who didn’t even sport a suit.

37. D. Psylocke

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40. Photo: Marvel/Fox
41. Psylocke’s is an interesting story. Most women characters in comics get laughably skimpy costumes on the page that are almost never suitable for screen, so studios wisely adjust them. But Fox did something really radical by going all in with Psylocke’s glorified bikini.
42. Is it practical? Oh hell no, but is it one hundred percent comic accurate? You betcha.
43. Somebody at Fox learned their lesson in comic costume accuracy.

So yes, Fox hasn’t been too big on comic accuracy in the past, but the way things look, they seem to be learning their lesson.

They get an A for effort, but B- for overall comic costumes accuracy.

We’re done with Marvel, next up, DC Comics costume accuracy!