Sometimes, a new haircut is all someone needs to feel like a million bucks. In the 1990s, DC Comics took it a step further and decided on radical superhero redesigns since it was a time for extreme change. The comic book publisher wasn’t alone, as Marvel also updated many of its characters.
The question is, do superheroes like Superman and Batman need drastic redesigns? After all, they have legendary and recognizable appearances, so it makes no sense to change a winning formula. Regardless, DC Comics pushed ahead with new attires for its heroes, so let’s take a gander at the questionable looks.
9. Artemis Took Over The Wonder Woman Mantle With So Much Hair And A, Um, Leggy Outfit
After Diana Prince loses the Wonder Woman title to Artemis in “The Contest,” Artemis doesn’t only take the mantle but the outfit, too. Hopefully, she washed it before she wore it, though. Also, it became a bit more revealing in the back of the costume… if you catch our drift. It was quite cheeky.
In typical 1990s comic book fashion, Artemis boasts hair so long that Rapunzel filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against DC. Also, her legs are really long – like to the point where she looks like an Imperial Walker from Star Wars. Gotta love the anatomy of comic book characters in the 1990s!
8. Batman Became Unrecognizable When Azrael Took Over And Gave Him A Full Metal Suit With Claws
In 1993’s Knightfall, Bane announces his arrival in the DC Universe in a big way by breaking Batman’s back. With the Dark Knight out of commission, someone needs to step up and slap around Gotham’s wrongdoers. Batman’s latest apprentice – Jean-Paul Valley, AKA Azrael – takes up the mantle, becoming what many fans refer to now as “Azbat.”
Choosing to stand out, though, Azbat wears a new metal armor complete with razor discs, blades, and suspicious claws to slash at crooks’ throats. Also, Azrael isn’t quite as benevolent as Batman in his beatings of the bad guys, as he decides to be a merciless vigilante. Eventually, the real Batman returns before Azbat becomes a total PR nightmare.
7. Wonder Woman Started Fighting Crime In Biker Shorts, A Bomber Jacket, And Bra
Superhero logic is incredible. In “The Contest” arc, Diana Prince loses the Wonder Woman title to Artemis in a battle. However, Hippolyta actually cast a spell over Diana and forced her to lose since she’s worried over a prophecy that *Wonder Woman* will perish. As the saying goes, YOLO. Let Wonder Woman be Artemis then, Diana.
So, Diana loses her famous moniker and chooses to no longer dress like the Amazonian princess in red and blue. Instead, she decides to throw on biker shorts, a bra, and bomber jacket in 1995’s Wonder Woman #93. Yet, she still has the Wonder Woman logo on her belt, so… what was the point of this makeover?
6. Superman Turned Into Two People, One Entirely Red And One Entirely Blue
Much like soap operas, comic books are the medium that encourages ridiculousness, such as 1998’s Superman Red/Superman Blue story. As part of a dastardly scheme orchestrated by Cyborg Superman and Toyman, Superman is split into two: Superman Blue and Superman Red. Each of these beings represents a unique part of his personality, but they are in conflict trying to determine who is the real Superman here.
Of course, their outfits are on the nose as expected, with them being mirror images of each other with a different color scheme – like the ninjas in the early Mortal Kombat games. Unfortunately, the look isn’t exactly as classic or timeless as the original blue and red that Superman is known for – red underpants and all.
5. Booster Gold Went From ‘Slim, Futuristic Superhero’ To ‘Robot Football Player’
Booster Gold’s superhero redesign came out of necessity, at least storywise. In a fight against Devastator, Booster is completely wiped out. He loses an arm and almost his life as the villain doesn’t hold back. As a result, it’s up to Blue Beetle to help his pal and come up with a solution so that Booster can continue to be a hero.
The futuristic-looking Booster Gold receives a bulky robot outfit that resembles Iron Man’s Hulkbuster armor. Ironically, he has all that protection around his body, but his head remains largely exposed. Enemies would only need a peashooter to put him down or spit in his mouth.
4. Green Arrow Dropped The Archery For Guns And An Eyepatch
While stopping a gunned man on an airline flight, Oliver Queen gets decked in the eye with a bottle in 1994’s Green Arrow #84. His eye swells up like a balloon, and he needs to put an eyepatch over it.
Unfortunately, his depth perception is totally off now, and he struggles to achieve accuracy with his bow and arrow. A normal person would lay low until their eye heals, but not Ollie. Instead, he decides to switch to guns because that’s a “safer” bet in comic book logic. Without a shadow of a doubt, this short-lived version of Green Arrow looked like a pirate-inspired Rambo.
3. Guy Gardner Basically Became An Entirely Different Character
Guy Gardner is a popular Green Lantern, thanks in large part to his stint as a JL member in the fan-favorite Justice League International. However, there are a lot of Green Lanterns floating around in the DC Universe. Due to the presence of characters like Hal Jordan, Kyle Rayner, and John Stewart, Guy experienced a makeover in 1994 in an effort to make the character stand out from the pack.
In Guy Gardner: Warrior, his power ring fails, and he receives an exosuit from Blue Beetle, renaming himself Warrior. Then, that exosuit gets destroyed, and Guy creates a new one from his power ring. Ultimately, it was just a reason for Guy to go shirtless for the comic book run. While it’s a weird storyline, it did carry on for over 40 issues.
2. Doctor Fate Became Less ‘All-Powerful Wizard’ And More ‘Rave Pirate Who Loves Knives’
Several people have utilized the Doctor Fate name over the years, and Jared Stevens was one of them. However, he’s like the John Corabi version of Mötley Crüe… everyone would rather forget it ever happened. A glitch in the matrix, so to speak.
In 1994, Doctor Fate seemingly lost his doctorate, becoming only the mononymic “Fate” – like Snoopy or Garfield. This new version of the character also didn’t have the fabled helmet either, as he melted down the Helm of Fate to a dagger and throwing stars. Somehow, he also develops a tattoo over his eye, because comics. To this day, Stevens’ Fate is still widely detested by fans, and most would rather welcome a plague of locusts before they ever see this character return.