Too many costumes for Spider-Man?

[oldschool]

What do you think? I am officially overloaded with the variations on what is to me the perfect superhero costume. Consider that Spidey went a full 22 years before getting his first alternate costume (the still awesome black one in 1984---albeit it as Venom first time around). Since then? Well, I have actually lost count but just in the last decade we have had Iron Spidey, Tron costume, Ends of The Earth Armor, White FF costume, Superior and now the latest tweak for the Fall relaunch. Plus Miles is on his second costume already and Miguel O'Hara gets a new costume this fall as well. Spider-Woman Jess just had a change in duds and Silk didn't make it past her debut before she received a (well-needed) upgrade.

But Spidey? Damn, that classic red and blue suit is just perfection. Only costume that comes close is the black one. I get why publishers like to mix it up with the costumes but it's just hard for me to justify messing with perfection, even if the fall upgrade does so relatively minimally.

Thoughts?

[Metamorphosis]

Seems like the new one is enough like the old one to me that it's not that big of a departure.

Outside of the black costume, and perhaps O'Hara's, they've still never bettered Ditko's design.

[Zeitgeist]

Even if Spider-Man's costume is one of the most recognisable superhero outfits out there, it is good to mix it up a little bit to keep things interesting. The classic red and blue has never been permanently replaced so no harm/no foul in my books.
Plus you need something to unlock in all the associated video games.

[cyberhubbs]

Makes for cool toys.

And after 50+ years, switching it up never hurts. Even if only temporary. You don't gotta beat the original; you just gotta try something different.

[Scott Taylor]

Its part of the illusion of change. New costumes, new team arrangements, new logos. We've all seen them before. Part of the reason things like costumes get changed from time to time is also to encourage people's appreciation for the classic versions. See Superior Spider-Man, which is an ode to Peter as much as it is a chance for Ock to try and be a good guy.

[Osvjietnik]

I love all the variations of Spidey's suit. Nothing beats the old red and blues, but it's fun every now and again to get something different.
I've especially loved the Big Time suit, SpOck's first spidey suit and the Superior Suits. This new one looks really great too, bringing back under arm webbing and (for me at least) the glowing add something great to a classic. Plus it seems to be metallic in nature, so we're back to an armored look.

No matter what he is wearing, he has the best costumes around.

[Frontier]

I liked the specialized suits when I first read their debuts, and thought the Ends of the Earth suit was cool, but now I'm kinda iffy on them because they now look like a byproduct of Peter becoming more like Tony. Slott's last ASM issue before Secret War even showed him with a "Hall of Costumes."

I'm still wondering why they bothered to have Anka, or anyone really, redesign Miguel's costume. Aside from the new colors, I can barely notice any difference, and I think his old suit looked much, much better. I hope the web cape is still in there at least .

Y'know, Silk turning to crime (however much it might be a ruse or fake) probably could've justified a costume change from her Superhero duds if it weren't still pretty new.

[RobinFan4880]

Change is fun plus it is always fun to go back to the classic outfit.

Personally, I really miss the Future Foundation outfit. It was great.

[jimishim12]

Spidey isn't a cartoon character thats why, he needs to change his look just like any other human fictionalized protagonist in a new modern time does. I'm also convinced they will bring him back to his classic duds when they find a new angle on how to make it very modern day like Superman and Batman's.

[Turn the Page]

Meh, Iron Man and Batman have had just as many variations. Some better, some worse. Although I've complained about Sam Wilson's Cap costume, it's fun to switch them up every now and then. The bad ones go away after a while.

[a moment closer]

I love variety in my clothing and I prefer to see that happen in comics. Like another poster mentioned, it's how we continue to appreciate the original and not get bored visually year after year.

[mathew101281]

Meh, Iron Man and Batman have had just as many variations. Some better, some worse. Although I've complained about Sam Wilson's Cap costume, it's fun to switch them up every now and then. The bad ones go away after a while.

Batman and Ironman are concepts that are orientated towards the idea of costume changes. I'm not sure Spider-Man has or needs that orientation.

[boots]

it makes some sense from a story telling point- new situations call for new methods (some of the costumes were designed to boost/protect peter is some way that the ol' red n' blue couldn't) or just being part of a new scene (ff etc). what makes less sense is that the specialist suits aren't utilised continuously. did you only need to be bullet proof that one time?

i'd even go as far as to say that it doesn't make sense to keep the same uniform he designed when he was a kid when technology has moved forward, threats have escalated and your tastes have likely changed. i hope we all dress differently to how we did when we were 17 (to those of you who are 17, i hope you outgrow that look).

a change of costume is also a gimmick, and other than keeping things fresh within the pages of the comic- it also pops out on the comic stand. if readers become too familiar with something, there can be a tendency to gloss over what you've seen a thousand times before as you scan the racks. if there's a change (and a striking visual one) that not only leaps out from the coloured mess but it instantly makes the reader wonder "why". why is he dressed differently? what does that signify? i'll flip through at the very least.

like most things asked around here, i find it's a little from column a and a little from column b.

[cyberhubbs]

it makes some sense from a story telling point- new situations call for new methods (some of the costumes were designed to boost/protect peter is some way that the ol' red n' blue couldn't) or just being part of a new scene (ff etc). what makes less sense is that the specialist suits aren't utilised continuously. did you only need to be bullet proof that one time?

i'd even go as far as to say that it doesn't make sense to keep the same uniform he designed when he was a kid when technology has moved forward, threats have escalated and your tastes have likely changed. i hope we all dress differently to how we did when we were 17 (to those of you who are 17, i hope you outgrow that look).

a change of costume is also a gimmick, and other than keeping things fresh within the pages of the comic- it also pops out on the comic stand. if readers become too familiar with something, there can be a tendency to gloss over what you've seen a thousand times before as you scan the racks. if there's a change (and a striking visual one) that not only leaps out from the coloured mess but it instantly makes the reader wonder "why". why is he dressed differently? what does that signify? i'll flip through at the very least.

like most things asked around here, i find it's a little from column a and a little from column b.

Psh. I'll never outgrow wearing my pants backwards!

To be fair, though, the recent spider-armor from the Massacre storyline was supposed to be a little unwieldly. Think he also didn't have his spider-sense at the time, thus the extra protection.

[boots]

Psh. I'll never outgrow wearing my pants backwards!

well, some things are just timeless.

To be fair, though, the recent spider-armor from the Massacre storyline was supposed to be a little unwieldly. Think he also didn't have his spider-sense at the time, thus the extra protection.

yeah, i'm sure there's a good in-story reason each time for him to ditch the "better" suit and go back to old faithful...but it might get silly if overused. which might be what old school is getting at.