20 of the Worst Superhero Costumes

Image via DC Comics

15. T-Shirt Superman

I understand that saving the world day after day is hard. It’s probably difficult to keep your supersuit clean, too, even if it’s made of alien material or fairy dust or whatever. Eventually, some villain is going to get something gross on it, or it’ll get ripped up, or blown away, or something.

So, it’s understandable that superheroes should get a laundry day outfit here and there. You know, Wonder Woman gets to fight crime in sweatpants. Batman occasionally throws on some sensible sneakers while he’s getting his bat-boots resoled.

But it’s something else entirely if you make it a habit. We need a certain level of dignity from our superheroes, even if they are bright green or dressed up like a flying rodent. And, Supes? That T-shirt isn’t going to cut it.

The T-shirt Superman came about thanks to DC’s New 52 initiative, which was meant as a hard reset for all DC properties. New 52 Superman flies around in jeans and a T-shirt, along with a buzzcut and bits of tattered cape that he’s wrapped around his hands. While there are some interesting aspects of his story — Superman is revealed as Clark Kent, his powers get all messed up, and so on — the weekend casual getup kind of ruins the feel.

It’s not as if we’re asking for him to show up in a suit and with a briefcase (after all, he’s spent decades in a leotard with his undies on the outside), but this is a little too far.