So there it is.

Zack Snyder has revealed the new Batmobile and our first look at Ben Affleck in his new Batsuit for the 2016 release Batman vs. Superman.  Somehow it makes you think this man in a rubber suit is going to beat the pulp out of the Man of Steel, doesn’t it?

It immediately calls to mind an amalgam of both Frank Miller’s Batman from The Dark Knight Returns:

and Jim Lee’s modern take on Batman first lauded in his “Hush” story arc:

Our first peek is a dark and gloomy image, which begs questions like “Is there any color to that wide bat emblem on his chest?”  And maybe, “Why so serious?”

It also has the look we loved with Mauro Cascioli’s gritty Batman in his Trials of Shazam series.

The key change for the modern Batman movies that began with Michael Keaton in 1989 is the move away from the fiercely pointed tall ears on his cowl that has continued up to Christian Bale’s suit from Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy.  It’s the element that calls out the influence of Miller and Lee the most.

Batman vs. Superman, with Henry Cavill returning as Superman and introducing Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, is scheduled for a summer release, May 6, 2016.

C.J. Bunce
Editor
borg.com