My apologies, and thanks to CMkeller – Zatar was co-eval with Superman. My mistake.
One thing forgot – there was another “superhero” type that debuted about the same time as Superman – The Phantom started appearing in newspaper strips about the same time. He, too, helped establish the gaudily colored hero as staple of the medium. It seems ridiculous if you think logically about it, but it makes sense in the world of pubishing, and the inner world of The Phantom. Running around the jungle in purple spandex seem ridiculous, but at least he didn’t wear a cape.
Yeah, and he even had scenes where the cloak was billowing in two different directions at the same time!
He and Liefeld are hacks anyway. Good for fanboy pinups, but lousy on storytelling techniques. A real artist like Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, or John Romita Sr. could wipe the walls with them.
I think about 3 weeks ago I read on my newspage that the creators of the new Superman are going to have him flying in civvies, thereby doing away with the need to rush into a secluded office, etc. and change. I no longer have the link to the story, however. Sorry.
Can y’all get used to that? I’m a Golden Ager, myself, and capes have always added to the mystique.
Guess ol’ Supes will have to get with the Flash to make some clothes out of that fabric that resists combustion at high speeds, huh?
After doing some research, I think what I saw was a review of the new series “Smallville” which features a young Clark Kent before he acquired the tights and the cape, therefore he will be doing all his super-stuff in jeans, etc.
It used to be that the Flash (when he was Barry Allen and Wally West was Kid Flash) had an “aura” that protected him and the people and things he carried from the effects of moving at super-speed. I don’t remember if, post-Crisis, the aura explanation still operates. I recall being annoyed on several occassions because the aura was used almost as a separate power (“Flash is all right, his aura deflected the blast” and the like).
As has been previously mentioned, Superman has an aura of some sort which not only makes him invulnerable but prevents dirt from settling on him and his clothes, but which doesn’t cover his cape.
Zatara first appeared in Action #1 along with Superman’s first appearance. The only comic-book hero that preceeded Superman was the Crimson Avenger, who appeared slightly earlier in Detective (I think).
I’m not sure that changes anything, as the early Crimson Avenger wore a business suit, hat, (opera cape?) and red domino-mask, putting him (as far as I’m concerned) more in the Zorro-catagory of “masked adventurer/mystery man” than in the “costumed adventurer” or “super-hero” catagory.
It wasn’t 'till Superman put his underpants on over his longjohns that we had real “costumed” heroes (and the C.A. followed the trend, ditching the suit, putting on long-johns and getting a sidekick.)
Just as an aside, only the post-Crisis Superman had the psychic aura/forcefield thing. The pre-Crisis Superman had an outfit made of thread rewoven from his Kryptonian baby-blankets, which, being Kryptonian were invulnerable.
And the John Byrne post-Crisis psychic aura seems to have been thankfully forgotten (hasn’t been mentioned in years) along with most of Byrne’s other improvements like the idea that “all Supe’s powers are psychic”.
As to why super heros wear tights, I think beginning in the 19th century tights began to be associated with physical activity. Before nylon and spandex, they were made of cotton or silk. A lot of circus performers wore tights as their costume- trapeze artists, strongmen, jugglers, etc. Tights were also quite common in the gymnasium/fitness movement, and I think even boxers wore them before the style changed to loose trunks with no top. So gaudily decorated tights became associated with persons of unusual physical ability. Also, for some reason, a science fiction cliche for many years was that in the future people would wear form-fitting clothing. Hence the superhero connection.
And interestingly enough, since body stockings don’t have much in the way of decoration other than their color, capes are a way of accessorizing the outfit.
Sheesh, didn’t anyone else think to ask a caped superhero? I was talking with Solar Girl the other day (surely you’ve heard of her? Her heroic mission is to educate grade-school kids about solar physics.), and she came up with four reasons for a cape:
1: It looks cool and dramatic.
2: There’s the historical connection, Three Musketeers and all.
3: All the other superheroes wear one.
4: They’re very flattering to one’s figure.
When the Tick reads the autobiography of the Golden Age superhero the Sultan, we get a few answers.
Paraphrasing cuz I don’t know where the issue is “A dark cape can help you disappear in to the shadows. A bright lining also accentuates your superhuman physique. While some heros have tried to include protection in their capes, I don’t reccommend it. My friend, The Cape, mounted steel plates on his entire cape. While this affforded him some protection, I think it was also responsible for his later back and hip problems.”
In Batman-Year One, a cop retells an encounter with Batman. The captions are his, but the panels show the fight as it actually happened. The cop remembers that he shot the bat-creature several times, and the bullets just passed through it without effect. The cop, of course, just shot Batman's cape. I used to be in a medieval combat group, a cape or billowing clothing is very useful in confusing the enemy as to where your body actually is. With skill and a little luck, they will attack your cape and snarl their weapon.
Cloak's power did originally come from Cloak himself. While he uses the cape simply to direct and focus his power, there is a question as to whether all these years of such use have affected the cape. It may contain a portal to the "Dark Dimension" that will remain open as long as the cape exists, regardless of what Cloak does or who is wearing the cape.
Dr Strange's cape is a levitation aid. Presumably he could fly without it, but the cape allows him to fly without having to concentrate on flying at all times and without Doc having to use his own magical energy.
