Why Comic Accurate Superhero Costumes Make More Sense In MCU Phase 4

The MCU has set the basis for vibrant, comic-accurate superhero costumes that embrace their origins, their message, and the heroes’ motivations.

Comic-accurate superhero costumes make more sense during the MCU Phase 4 than ever before. One of the most emblematic elements superheroes are known for is their famous costumes. Spider-Man wouldn’t be the same without his iconic mask, and one of the first images that come to mind when Iron Man is mentioned is his red-and-gold suit of armor. Sometimes, these garments serve a very specific purpose, as is the case with Doctor Strange’s cloak of levitation, and sometimes, a character’s look just comes naturally, like Hulk’s ragged but always indestructible pants.

When comic book characters make the jump to live-action, most of their looks need to be updated. Some elements are dropped, such as Thor‘s helmet or Hawkeye’s mask, which would be impractical during their MCU battles. Live-action costumes also need to tone down certain elements, such as Captain America’s helmet wings and Vision’s colorful design. However, there comes a point where it makes more sense for these characters to wear costumes that best represent their personalities, their motivations, and the environment where they thrive — something that naturally translates in vibrant colors and more extravagant designs.

Related: How Accurate Hawkeye’s Phase 4 Suit Is To His Comics Costume

Phase 4 titles are introducing some of the most comic-accurate superhero costumes to date. Sam Wilson’s Captain America suit in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is almost an exact replica of his comic book counterpart. WandaVision finally gave Wanda Maximoff her official Scarlet Witch costume, complete with a cape and her iconic headpiece; as a plus, WandaVision also found a clever way to pay homage to the comic book costumes of Wanda, Pietro, Vision, Billy, and Tommy. Now, Clint Barton, Kate Bishop, and Echo don their comic book costumes in the Hawkeye Disney+ show, while Shang-Chi wears an intricate scale-plated suit in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Kamala Khan’s costume sports a shiny costume and a domino mask in Ms. Marvel.

Some viewers have described Sam Wilson’s Captain America suit as too toy-like compared to Steve Rogers’ fan-favorite S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform and his dark tattered suit from Avengers: Infinity War. But the point of the new Captain America suit is that Sam is embracing the red white and blue to transform American iconography. There’s also no reason for the new Captain America suit to be worn out, on the account that it’s brand-new and made with state-of-the-art Wakandan materials. Moreover, there’s an in-universe explanation for each Phase 4 character to wear colorful and comic-accurate costumes — even the most flashy ones.

In WandaVision, Wanda Maximoff earned her final costume once she fulfilled the prophecy of the Scarlet Witch. Kate Bishop and Ms. Marvel make their heroic debut in a world where superheroes have been commonplace for several years. In fact, an important part of Kamala Khan’s story is that she is a superhero fangirl. It’s almost necessary for an overeager teenage superhero to want to stand out and become an icon of her own. It would also make sense for every armor-wearing character in Armor Wars to try and outdo the rest with their own design. The MCU has come to a point where there’s no longer any need for new superhero costumes to go to great lengths to look gritty or grounded at all costs. In a universe where witches, alien warlords, and talking trees are par for the course, it’s unlikely that colorful costumes would be the most unrealistic thing.

Of course, the MCU must choose what’s best for each specific movie and TV show, and many future releases like Moon Knight and Blade could use more toned-down costumes. But as Taika Waititi, James Gunn, and even the Russo Bros. have demonstrated with the MCU installments they’ve directed, the craziest aspects of comic books can be translated pretty accurately in live-action. This makes for exciting prospects, such as the particular personality of each X-Men mutant and the highly-anticipated reveal of Wolverine‘s classic costume. With the advent of the MCU Phase 4, long gone are the days where all costumes had to be tactical, all colors had to be muted, and superhero movies had to live under the stylistic rule of late-’90s/early-’00s movies.

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