“Elseworlds”: Original Concept Art for The Monitor Revealed

This year’s “Elseworlds” crossover on The CW featured the live-action debut of The Monitor, an otherworldly being involved in DC Comics’ fan-favorite “Crisis on Infinite Earths” story arc. Garrett’s version of the inter-dimensional traveler featured a look that was comic accurate, so much that the character’s co-creator Marv Wolfman made sure to comment on it.

Arrowverse architect Marc Guggenheim shared an image of early Monitor concept art on his Twitter page showing some of the earliest concept art behind the character.

The Monitor’s suit didn’t change all too much between the concept art and its live-action debut. By and large, the suit’s structure is largely the same and the biggest change is the coloring of the suit. In the concept art, the suit is navy and an old gold, akin to the look of the character’s comic book counterpart. On screen, however, the character’s suit added teal as a color in addition to the navy base with gold accents.

Earlier this year, Garrett spoke with ComicBook.com about his role as The Monitor. According to the actor, The Monitor’s role in the crossover was nothing but business as usual.

“I think when you do something day in and day out, like say you have a job, and you’ve been at the same cubicle for the past five, 10 years…you show up, and there’s nothing new that really sparks your attention,” Garrett said. “You know what the day is gonna bring you. You know at 10 o’clock they’re gonna come ask where these reports are. You check in and you check out.”

“With The Monitor, he’s been going to different Earths. He’s been doing this, you know, they showed the teaser with Earth-90, that’s not his first place he’s visited,” the actor continued. “He’s been doing this for countless years. So to him, it’s just another day, just another universe, just another Earth, you know? But along the way of the crossover, things happen that haven’t happened in past events where he’s been on different Earths and things didn’t go right for the people of that Earth. And I think through the course of the crossover, you’ll see a change in his energy, and his interaction with the superheroes.”

“But for the beginning part of it, he’s just like, you know, it’s just another day at the office. I’m pretty sure everything I think that’s gonna happen is gonna happen, until it doesn’t. And that’s where the shift changes.”

“Elseworlds” aired this week, serving as the midseason finales for Supergirl, Arrow, and The Flash. As announced at the end of the crossover, next year’s crossovers will feature a long-awaited adaptation of “Crisis on Infinite Earths.”