Earlier this July at the 2012 San Diego Comic Con, Jim Lee the co-publisher of DC Comics announced that there would be a flurry of Zero issues to commemorate the 1-year anniversary of the New 52 relaunch, which featured new runs on 52 different superhero titles from DC Comics. And the #Zero issues slated for launch in August / September are supposed to reveal something new about the featured character, perhaps an extended back-story or a hidden fact about their life prior to the events of the book #1s that were presented last year.
[The Wallpapers of Superman and the New 52 Justice League above are by Jim Lee, JPRART and the DSNG Artist]
Personally, I didn't follow a lot of the relaunched titles in the lineup of the New 52. Yet there were actually some breakout comic books that sold better than expected [like Animal Man]... and there were others that were cancelled even before the reached the benchmark of 7 issues [like Static Shock] for a graphic novel. Yet most of those cancelled comic titles were actually poor concepts. And by that tag I mean a low-grade idea is destined to be a low-grade product. But a high-concept will commonly lead to above average or exceptional results.
For example, consider the video game franchise Halo or Gears of War. Both of them are sci fi high-concepts. And both have transitioned between media platforms, moving from game consoles to comic books and toys. But if you think of a game like Lollipop Chainsaw... in which a blonde high-school cheerleader runs around and slices off the heads of infected zombie kids.... well, that's destined to be a mediocre game, due to the low-grade idea.
Anyway, roughly a year ago, Superman did get a makeover that had fanboys and fangirls applauding with approval: The Man of Steel finally got rid of his classic red speedos! And it was about damn time that the adjustment was made. Thanks to superstar artist Jim Lee for having the guts to do that redesign, along with the redesigns of all the major iconic DC Comics characters. I've done some new fan art of Superman's new costume shown above, close to the top of the page. And this drafted costume was actually linked to the costume worn by Henry Cavill, the main actor in the forthcoming Man of Steel movie slated for 2013. The poster shown on the left showcases a comparison I made last year, which includes Henry Cavill wearing the Man of Steel Costume. As you can see, it has a slight resemblance to the costume design by Jim Lee shown above.
In the relaunched Earth-Two [Earth-2] Universe of DC comics, the superheros there are practically cut off from the rest of the main DC Universe, thus giving more creative freedom to the writers, so that they do not have to worry about conflicting themes and main storylines. And in that Earth-2 Universe within the umbrella of the New 52, Superman has yet Another costume, shown on the right side [Jim Lee designed that costume as well]. And the comic cover image from Eerth 2 issue #1 is shown on the left side.For the sake of comparisons I've added the pic of Superboys new costume below, which was drawn by Brazilian artist R.B. Silva [his blog is over HERE]. Being an author and a fan of sci fi concepts, I do like the Superboy costume design by Silva; and if you study the linear nature of the costume, you should be able to see traces of TRON LEGACY within it. In the New 52 storyline, Superboy is a clone created by an evil clandestine organization known as NOWHERE [Yes, that is the fantastic name that the editors sanctioned] and he was designed to be a weapon of destruction. But as expected, Superboy defects from NOWHERE, joins other young heroes and becomes a weapon of justice. Durign the cross-over storylines, Superboy often works with members of the Teen Titans and the Legion, helping them combat a variety of foes.
Returning to Superman, his new costume also has sci fi elements intertwined into the design. Just look at the sleek lines on his blue latex and even the stylish belt he sports. It is a good design, and that appeal should be credited to Jim Lee, who kept in mind that he was redesigning an American Icon.
Perhaps sometime in December 2012 we'll see more behind-the-scenes photos from the Man of Steel movie set. But for now, under the direction of Producer Christopher Nolan [the guy behind the latest Batman Trilogy], the Director Zack Snyder [the guy behind 300 and the infamous Sucker Punch] isn't showing a whole lot of movie pictures to the fans or the media. And this secrecy will only make the fans eager to see more of the new Superman movie costume...
Check out the blog article showcasing classic posters of Batman and Superman by DSNG Artist and Jim Lee: HERE!