Batman Vs. Superman: Five Things About New Batman Suit You Might Not Have Noticed

In spite of widespread reservations about Ben Affleck as Batman among some segments of fandom, yesterday's teaser image revealing the look of the new Dark Knight in Man of Steel's as-yet-untitled sequel (colloquially known as Batman vs. Superman) seems to have won most people over -- at least for the moment. Zack Snyder's Batman is arguably the most true to the comics we've ever seen, particularly in that it feels very similar to Jim Lee's New 52 redesign in some ways. The idea that Lee and Batman: Noel artist Lee Bermejo's interpretations of the character (and particularly the mask) were rumored to be the biggest influence on the designers is not surprising given what we've seen. It's also the first time that we've seen a version of the Batsuit that looks more like a traditional (read: cloth) superhero costume than armor -- each previous film iteration (excepting 1966's TV movie with Adam West) has favored a more armored look, and while the sculpted muscles on Affleck's suit may not read like tights, as such, it certainly looks like something you'd see in a comic. So, what were the little details we noticed about the first official image of Ben Affleck as Batman? Read on...

Battle scars In the "realistic" world of Batman vs. Superman, the first image we see of Batman's costume seems to feature not just wrinkles where the fabric is imperfectly distributed over either Batman's sinewy body or the armor that presumably exists, at least under his chest -- but also some imperfections that are best described as "battle scars," scratched and pockmarks on the costume itself that seem likely to be a reminder that Batman doesn't replace his costume EVERY time he comes into contact with a knife or something. You can see some of them -- which are primarily found on the bat emblem, which makes sense as Frank Miller (who is serving in some kind of advisory capacity on the film) has always described the chest logo as a kind of target for villains -- the most heavily-armored part of the costume and the place Batman tries to subconsciously encourage them to attack. Stubble

This one's a bit perplexing. There's stubble on Batman's chin, which I guess is meant to be read as somebody who's a bit grizzled or haggard? I'm not crazy about it, since not only does it reinforce the jokes that he looks a bit too much like Catman, but it also seems like an impracticality unless it's absolutely necessary because it always struck me that anything that tips his hand regarding his secret identity is a huge liability. Bruce Wayne already has one of the most recognizable faces in the world, and while 75 years ago they didn't have to worry about such things, the idea of Batman making an appearance in Metropolis is logistically difficult because it's likely that Wayne would be recognized visiting the city. Too many repeat occurrences of Gotham's two most famous sons popping up in out of town at the same time isn't ideal, and facial hair can give anyone who cares a sense of Batman's hair color, which can in turn give them more to work with when they're trying to construct a face. Is that a minor gripe, and somewhat paranoid? Yep. But this is Batman we're talking about. That said, Frank Miller's involvement on any level here might suggest that the five o'clock shadow Bruce is rocking here is meant to be interpreted as a sign of his single-minded obsession and the fact that this isn't a Batman who surfaces from the cave very much. Or, you know. Maybe Ben Affleck just hadn't shaved yesterday morning and we're reading too much into it. One-piece cape and cowl Batman's cape and cowl appear to be all one piece, suggesting that if he were to remove the mask, it would leave him capeless. This is how Batman is often depicted in the comics; he's not generally wearing the cape when he's doing computer work down in the cave with his mask off (although different artists depict this, as anything else, differently). The Nolan batsuit did the same thing, but the Burton and Schmacher costumes, to varying degrees, seemed to have the cape attached to the suit itself. The cape's style It certainly looks like the cape is made out of the same fabric as the rest of the costume, as opposed to the odd "black velvet" look from Batman Begins.

Holy crap! A working utility belt! During the previous franchises, the utility belt has been used from time to time but it certainly never looked like a particularly functional piece of Batman's arsenal. This time out? It looks like the pouches on his belt could actually...well...HOLD SOMETHING! I wonder what. A little piece of rock, perhaps?