DC characters you think would have less idealized bodies

[liwanag]

[Frontier]

Good ol' Bouncing Boy .

[Jim Kelly]

This is the ideal shape.



Nature loves a sphere.

[Güicho]

Bill Finger - "Batman was a combination of Douglas Fairbanks [who played Zorro] and Sherlock Holmes."

Bill Finger- "My idea was to have Batman be a combination of Douglas Fairbanks [Zorro], Sherlock Holmes, The Shadow, and Doc Savage as well."

Bob Kane -"Zorro’s use of a mask to conceal his identity as Don Diego gave me the idea of giving Batman a secret identity…Bruce Wayne would be a man of means who put on a façade of being effete. Zorro rode a black horse called Tornado and would enter a cave and exit from a grandfather clock in the living room. The bat-cave was inspired by this cave in Zorro. I didn't want Batman to be a Superhero with superpowers…So I made Batman an ordinary human being; he is just an athlete who has the physical prowess of Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., who was my all-time favorite hero in the movies.”

Alter Ego (Roy Thomas) - Bill maintained (well into the 1960’s) a file of Douglas Fairbanks Sr. photo stills. He showed me the file and said that he would attach selected photos to finished scripts for Bob [Kane] and his assistants to use as models. I recognized pose after pose. The stills I saw (and had never seen before that date) were the familiar swinging poses that characterized the Acro-Batman…

[babybats]

There are different ways to be physically fit and different body types, but this isn't really reflected much in comic art, which is a shame. (Why is the Flash sometimes drawn like a body builder instead of a track star? Why doesn't Aquaman have more of a swimmer's build?) I think we can all agree that same-body-and-face-syndrome is not great. And the female bodies are idealized to emphasize beauty over strength, T&A over muscles, which is wrong for obvious reasons.

So, I guess I'm against the whole idea of the ideal body because it's so often just the same body for every character, which is boring visually and narratively. (Imagine if every actor in the MCU had the height and build of Hemsworth, including all the side characters. Ripped Coulson.) As for characters with less fit body types, I think any of the civilians (Lois, Iris, Gordon, etc.), and heroes who are more tech or intelligence based, like Mister Terrific or the Question. Magic characters, too, like Constantine or Zatanna. And even though everybody but me would hate it, I've always thought it would be funny if Superman was actually a skinny guy who was super strong (not Flashpoint emaciated, just kinda...dweeby).

[Mutant God]

Batman. The guy has had his back broken, both arms and legs shattered (most recently, all at the same time in Justice League), rarely gets more than a couple hours of sleep, barely eats (even when reminded), shot, stabbed, punched, kicked, and wacked with all sorts of weapons...

Its amazing he's even walking. One has to wonder if he really isn't a meta-human of some sort at times, with at least some degree of a healing factor.

No he just trains his mind and body everyday, y'all know that ninja training dedication

[DrNewGod]

I'm always of two minds about Superman. He hasn't credibly been able to do resistance training since about 1942. On the other hand, I can buy that Kryptonians might have such complete control over their bodies that he can build muscle by willpower and (perhaps) microflexing the tissues. That was Heinlein's answer to how Michael built a physique in Stranger in a Strange Land.

Looking at the JSA I don't thin that any the classic members apart from Atom and Wildcat have much reason to be extremely muscular.

I have to disagree. If you go back to the early stories, characters like Green Lantern and Starman were just as likely to punch a bad guy out as to zap him with their gizmos. They were routinely depicted as performing above average athletic feats. Sandman, Hawkman, Mr. Terrific, and Dr. Midnite were all extremely athletic as well. I can see two possible exceptions.

Dr. Fate's invulnerability and superstrength were attributed to his ability to channel mystical energy (phrased as control of his body's atomic energy or some such back in the day). He was even able to transfer it to others, granting Inza superstrength for a moment in at least one case. So I could see where he might not be too buff.

In a similar manner, Hourman's prowess was derived from his Miraclo pills. He might, as time went by, started working out to optimize his physical potential in hopes of being even more powerful when charged up, but the writers didn't do anything to suggest that.

The fitness requirements for a fighter pilot of his caliber would be quite high. The physical strain those kind of G-forces put on a body are quite severe.

Yes. Hal should have abs because one of the techniques for handling high G turns is to use your abs and diaphragm to resist the tendency of blood to pool in the lower body (don't know if that actually works, but fighter pilots are taught it).

[Aahz]

I have to disagree. If you go back to the early stories, characters like Green Lantern and Starman were just as likely to punch a bad guy out as to zap him with their gizmos. They were routinely depicted as performing above average athletic feats. Sandman, Hawkman, Mr. Terrific, and Dr. Midnite were all extremely athletic as well.

There is a difference between athletic and "extremely muscular". And Atom and Wildcat (and Terrific but I'm not sure if he really counts as classic member) are afaik the only ones that really did a lot of physical training.

[oasis1313]

No he just trains his mind and body everyday, y'all know that ninja training dedication

Actually, Alfred has secret super-powers like a walking Lazarus Pit, and he resurrects Bruce's dead carcass every couple of nights so he can go back out on the streets and get killed again.

[Güicho]

This is the ideal shape.



Nature loves a sphere.

LOL!

Actually, Alfred has secret super-powers like a walking Lazarus Pit, and he resurrects Bruce's dead carcass every couple of nights so he can go back out on the streets and get killed again.

This makes sense, he's pretty much just reanimated tissue at this point, hence his grim lack of personality.
Further all the exact look alike Robins must be spare clones they keep growing in a vat till one dies or comes of age, they bring out and train a new one, and fabricate some cockamamie new costume and new found orphan story.
It really is a creepy thing they got going in the cave.

[Güicho]

In a world where most generic superheroines tend to be drawn the same, I think Jack Kirby's Big Barda, Stompa, Bernadeth, Mad Harriet, etc. of the Female Furies really work as a group showing off different female body types.
Although supposed more "modern" artist tend to shrink Stompas waist, and enlarge Bernadeth's chest, hips, etc. making them all look generic, just shows how for ahead kirby was.

Kirby's Furies were depicted with different bodies types.