Why are Batman and Superman usually shown as overly muscular?

[Milk.Bad.Choice]

Well ould you rather your superman looked like Brandon Routh in the suit?

Actually, yes or Christopher Reeve. As stated before, Gary Franks Superman is top-notch. It's not like I don't enjoy the usual, yolked-hulk Superman but when it starts becoming the norm, I start to have a problem.

We can gather that, at least to some extent, Superman's muscles are big because of the sun's energy, since there was a story in the 90s where he was absorbing solar radiation at a dangerously uncontrolled rate, and he grew to the size of the Hulk because of it.

I can accept that as a decent explanation, but then you have to keep in continuity by having all other Kryptonians on Earth be portrayed this way as well, which doesn't happen. My thought was always that people from Krypton's bodies were magnified, not necessarily altered, by the sun.

A skinny Superman also means a skinny Clark Kent, which would help some in concealing his identity.

 

[Hush]

Actually, yes or Christopher Reeve. As stated before, Gary Franks Superman is top-notch. It's not like I don't enjoy the usual, yolked-hulk Superman but when it starts becoming the norm, I start to have a problem.

I can agree with you, i just think Routh is too skinny. Reeve and Franks are perfect.

 

[sethcohen]

I think the late Mr. Turner drew a GREAT Flash his covers rank among the best.

meh... all due respect to the late Mr Turner i dont find his art to be all that great. thats not to diminish him as a person so dont make this an attack on a dead guy. its not. he will go down in history as the nicest, most gracious guy to work in comics. i just dont find this good at all.

 

[javi1024]

^actually i think the Flash is one of the few characters where Turner's style works best. i didn't like how lean and ripped he would draw guys like Batman (who is constantly described as at or above olympic physical condition) and Superman (like stated earlier, artist depict as the strongest man on earth by looking like the strongest man on earth). but for Flash its pretty much perfect.

 

[Majic Walrus]

For a man who runs alot his calves are very small when compared to his pretty massive shoulders and pecks.

Does this Flash run on his nipples?

 

[Hush]

Yeah but his Calves don't need to be HUGE, i know D-1 track runners and they are stinking Lean. Just look up Bolt from the olympics. These guys train there whole body to be the end all be all. Plus Flash does have Super-Speed, so he could be big and bulky but its his powers that propel him foward at the speed of light. Get what im saying?

 

[storyteller]

Really artist choice. I think the mindset is a powerful being wouldnt look lean, they would look like these huge guys.

 

[trustyside-kick]

I can understand the argument when you have an artist like McGuinness, but not Lee. Lee, while is known for having very similar (aka few different) faces, when it comes to the bodies of his characters, they do differ and are not all bulging.

Compare Lee's Batman to his Nightwing. Both are muscular, but Dick is a lot more lean; I believe that is for two different reasons. The first, is that obviously Dick is more agile and flexible than Batman. Batman is not the most agile or flexible dude, so he can be big and still be agile enough to get what he needs to get done with Lee's design. The second, is that Dick is younger than Bruce. I think it only makes sense, that Dick would have an easier time keeping his olympic athelete physique than Bruce would the older Bruce gets. Bruce is in his early 40s...Lee's Batman makes a lot of sense to me.

The Flash argument I see often, but the artist could always argue use the Speed Force to justify his design. Some people think Aquaman should have a more "lean swimmer" physique such as Alan Davis' Aquaman (which I LOVE the most), but when we think of "powerful" in any medium in American culture, we picture ripped and huge; so I do not mind a big, muscular, Aquaman. Someone pointed out earlier in this thread how Routh looked in the Superman suit. He doesn't look nearly as impressive as he could've been had he been larger. So SUPERman, should always look big; not Hulk or Solomon Grundy big though of course.

 

[Jay Lifestar]

This is a great thread (I tend to just "sit back and enjoy the ride" when it comes to comic books, body types, etc... but I like seeing discussions like this as, nerd alert here, it's fun to draw what a character is rendered as with how they might really look if they were able to do all of the things they do in real life).

With Superman and Batman I can envision "Batman" having the rips, cuts and lean musculature if, for no other reason, you figure he has a very stringent daily training regimen.

So how he'd find time to build and secretly launch spy satellites is beyond me lol .

With Superman it's harder to "justify" because when you're as strong as he is naturally how do you know what you would have to do daily to keep your muscles looking ripped that way?

Doesn't a person who trains for strength and power (weightlifter-professional) have a different look than someone that might train for a combo of strength and/or show (say someone that enters Mr/Miss/Mrs Universe (the body posing compettion) pagents) based on their daily training approaches? And as someone brought up earlier where wound Superman go to get the daily focus resistance needed to keep his muscles sculpted the way that they are (drawn)?

But I ventured waaayyyyy off question.

I think artists draw Batman and Superman overly muscular because licensed properties that look like lean body builders probably sell more toys than those that look like Circus Strongmen from the 1920's or "Jim Brown type" line backer circa the 60's (which is the body type I think someone like Batman would work best with) ... as I'm sure the suits at DC would remind every editor that would dare stray from that model sheet.

Thanks for reading a pointless rant, People. Hope everyone's having a great weekend.

 

[fifthfiend]

Doesn't a person who trains for strength and power (weightlifter-professional) have a different look than someone that might train for a combo of strength and/or show (say someone that enters Mr/Miss/Mrs Universe (the body posing compettion) pagents) based on their daily training approaches? And as someone brought up earlier where wound Superman go to get the daily focus resistance needed to keep his muscles sculpted the way that they are (drawn)?

Yeah, a lot of people don't understand that even like, a totally strong dude won't have diamond-cut super-bulging muscles without serious training. And inasmuch as the argument from there just degenerates to "well he's an alien, so who knows?" that just seems to me like conceding the argument while trying to pretend otherwise.

I mean and Superman is a character who is at least on some level supposed to pass for being human; giving him giantassed Ed McGuinness steroid muscles is just straining suspension of disbelief to no real particular purpose.

 

[Fantasyartist]

I agree with this criticism. Special Forces operatives( Delta Force, Navy SEALs, Recon Marines in the US, SAS and SBS soldiers in the UK( Special Air Service and Special Boat Service from the Army and Royal Marines respectively) tend to be wiry rather bulked up Schwarzenegger types- endurance rather than muscle boundness is the reason!

Terry

 

[Aristotle]

What a colossally unnecessary conversation to have. Aren't we all tired of trying to "gotcha" the comic book industry? Yes, OK, we get it, superheroes aren't realistic, they don't look like they would in real life, they're too goody-goody, they need to be depraved sex fiends and criminals and wife-beaters and alcoholics and "vulnerable, relatable people," yes, OK, everyone gets your point, now can we be done with this? They're superheroes. They're guys with magic powers that run around in tights. If you wanted something else, you'd go read something else. Or better yet, you'd quit being an apathetic, do-nothing, consumeristic slacker and actually create something yourself to fill the niche that you don't think is being filled.

But you're not reading something else instead. You're not creating anything yourself. So read the comic books, or quit your *****ing.

 

[Hush]

Nice to have you back, where you been stotle?

 

[Aristotle]

Nice to have you back, where you been stotle?

Working on my senior seminar. Been taking up a lot of my time.

 

[fifthfiend]

What a colossally unnecessary conversation to have. Aren't we all tired of trying to "gotcha" the comic book industry? Yes, OK, we get it, superheroes aren't realistic, they don't look like they would in real life, they're too goody-goody, they need to be depraved sex fiends and criminals and wife-beaters and alcoholics and "vulnerable, relatable people," yes, OK, everyone gets your point, now can we be done with this? They're superheroes. They're guys with magic powers that run around in tights. If you wanted something else, you'd go read something else. Or better yet, you'd quit being an apathetic, do-nothing, consumeristic slacker and actually create something yourself to fill the niche that you don't think is being filled.

But you're not reading something else instead. You're not creating anything yourself. So read the comic books, or quit your *****ing.

Sorry that my preference for Superman being drawn like George Reeves so enrages you?

Maybe you should stop by again after school's wrapped up and your brain's uncramped itself.

 

[batnkevlar]

Oh, and to explain the reason Batman has all these things going on at once, one word:

micro-naps.

 

[p4poetic]

What bothered me with STAS was that Clark Kent was so obviously too big to be...Clark Kent.

When Bizarro shows up and Clark is standing next to him, it was like a mirror image.

As far as live action, I think Christopher Reeve and Dean Cain had the best physique. Muscular and tall, but believable as a mid mannered reporter in their work clothing. Even though Brandon Routh is a couple of inches shorter than Chris, he seemed extremely...long. Maybe it was the wardrobe.

 

[fifthfiend]

he seemed extremely...long.

Well I guess we know which part of his costume you were looking at!

 

[Aristotle]

Sorry that my preference for Superman being drawn like George Reeves so enrages you?

You didn't start the conversation.

 

[Spike_x1]

What bothered me with STAS was that Clark Kent was so obviously too big to be...Clark Kent.

When Bizarro shows up and Clark is standing next to him, it was like a mirror image.

Clark Kent and Superman shouldn't be the same size? Gu-wha?