I’ll Always Be Grateful For The Way Batman 1989 Changed The DC Hero’s Costume Forever

1989’s Batman changed the collective perception of Batman, his costume, his gadgets, and even the Batcave in ways that I and many other viewers appreciate. 1989’s Batman is still considered a classic to this day, even in the arguably saturated superhero film landscape, but it is difficult to overstate how influential the movie is. It may be easy to see 1989’s Batman as a quaint film by today’s standards, but the movie’s reimagining of the Batman mythos, gargantuan marketing campaign, and overwhelming success paved the way for the modern superhero blockbuster and changed the way tentpole movies are promoted.

For better or worse, 1989’s Batman sought to change the image of the Batman mythos. When discussing Batman, general audiences typically thought of the campy 1960s Batman TV series instead of the violent crime dramas of the Golden and Bronze Age comics. I always enjoyed the Adam West series and appreciate it as an accurate representation of the more lighthearted Silver Age comics, but I understand why many hoped for a more serious live-action Batman movie. 1989’s Batman was a departure from the source material in many ways, yet many of its changes became inseparable parts of the Batman mythos.

How Batman 1989 Changed Batman’s Gear

1989’s Batman overhauled Batman’s iconic costume. Batman’s famous gray bodysuit and blue cape and cowl were replaced by a bulky armored suit whose color scheme was – aside from its yellow utility belt and chest emblem – completely black. While Batman was known to sometimes wear bulletproof plating under his suit, Batman’s new suit was strong enough to withstand point-blank gunshots. Most iterations of Batman’s utility belt use pouches, but the film replaced them with vertical tubes for the smaller gadgets and powerful magnets for the larger devices, with the latter able to rotate to the front of the belt.

Batman also typically used Batarangs with high-tensile cables attached to them to climb buildings and ensnare criminals, but the 1989 movie gave him a completely new gadget: a handheld grapple launcher. This pistol-like device allowed Batman to more believably scale buildings and attack armed enemies, though Batman did use the classic rope Batarang in the movie’s opening scene. 1989’s Batman even changed the Batcave itself. Batman’s iconic headquarters was originally a well-lit base filled with advanced equipment and souvenirs of past conflicts with his rogue’s gallery, but the 1989 film made it far darker and minimally-equipped.

Batman Comics Began To Mimic Burton’s Movies

1989’s Batman not only made Batman one of DC’s most lucrative and beloved properties overnight, it also had a massive influence on the comics themselves. This influence was seen most notably in Batman: Troika, one of the story arcs that followed the famous Batman: Knightfall storyline, which saw the introduction of the iconic supervillain Bane. After recovering from his grievous injuries and returning to crime-fighting, Batman notably dons a new, armored, Batsuit that closely resembles his costume in the 1989 film, complete with a nearly identical utility belt. The Batcave would also be depicted similarly to the 1989 movie.

Not all of these changes were permanent, however. The 1989-style Batsuit and utility belt would eventually be replaced with the more familiar gray costume and pouch-laden belt, yet Batman’s standard costumes would continue to be varying levels of bulletproof. The Batcave would continue to use the darker visual style of the 1989 film, but elements of the classic Batcave, such as villain paraphernalia, would find their way back into the comics. Batman’s grapple launcher would become a permanent part of his arsenal, however, with the device rivaling the Batarang as his signature gadget.

Batman 1989 Helped Start A Superhero Movie Trend That Still Exists Today

Superhero movies influencing the comic source material is nothing new nowadays, but it was a rare occurrence in the 1990s. Before 1989’s Batman, the 1978 Superman film set Smallville in Kansas, where it has remained in nearly every Superman comic and screen iteration since. Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman costume was quickly adopted by the comic iteration of Diana Prince in more recent years. While these were all welcome changes, altering the source material to match an adaptation should usually be avoided, in my opinion.

Interestingly, the DC Extended Universe’s version of Batman used a mix of the pre-1989 Batman mythos and some of Burton’s additions. Ben Affleck’s comic-accurate Batman wears a gray suit with a pouch-laden utility belt, yet the suit is armored. The main version of Batman found in the DCEU timeline uses a grapple launcher like he does in the 1989 film and the Modern Age comics, but the Batcave is much closer to the pre-1989 Batman versions, with the base being well-lit and colorful compared to more recent iterations.

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