Thursday, August 25, 2011

Internet Goes Wild at Snyder's Superman's Lack of Trunks!

I've outed myself many times as an unapologetically rabid fan of Zack Snyder's audacious punch-you-in-the-face-until-the-awesome-pours-out style of film-making. So naturally I'm anticipating his take on Superman in next year's Man of Steel. But it appears that not everyone shares my unbridled enthusiasm!

A couple of weeks ago when the purple, wrinkly Fruitless Pursuits first came kicking and screaming into the world, we talked about the first shot of Henry Cavill in costume. His super-crotch was mysteriously shrouded in shadow and suspicions rose that his iconic red underpants would be left hanging on the clothesline for this one. As it is want to do, the Internet grew restless, anxious, and angry.

This unrest was particularly prevalent at the forums of comics legend and alleged curmudgeon John Byrne, where the lack of "trunks" (as they are sworn to call them, lest they face the cyclone wrath of Mr. Byrne) was causing quite a ruckus! I shared a few choice quotes and since then we've been eagerly awaiting confirmation.

Well here it is! An amateur on set photograph shows a blurry Superman and the underpants/trunks have definitely vanished and he is super swinging free!


Can you sense the tremors this is already causing? Join me after the jump and I'll share some of the newest choice quotes from the John Byrne Forum, where a restless crowd has been swept into a no-trunks frenzy!


This is a relatively lengthy response, but the fears expressed are certainly valid. How do you judge a film, Dear Reader? Direction? Writing? Performance? Art direction? Theme? Storytelling? No, no, no. You're doing it all wrong!
Nonononono! This is not Superman. At least not my Superman. Hugely disappointed. Zack, what are you doing????!!!! Why, oh why did they HAVE to go with the new no red trunks DC line look?  Good heavens! This movie just lost a cinema paying customer. The sum of no trunks, a black Perry (in no way a racist comment, I'm not exactly caucasian-looking myself, but I'd like them to stick to Perry in the comics) and a red-haired Lois just makes this too hard to swallow as being Superman to me.
Personally, I'm not too fussed about the trunks, but A RED-HAIRED LOIS!?? ZOMG! Areyoushittinme?! Fact: I refuse to watch Wallstreet because I hate Michael Douglas's tie.

And it looks like the lack of trunks may have a ripple effect. You know, like a butterfly flapping its wings in the jungle and causing New York to explode!:
The balance of the costume is thrown off by lack of trunks.  The boots now look wrong too.  Yuck
"Yuck" indeed! Cover that shit up! Some folks, however, were a lot more direct.
Ouch. The costume really does look awful without the trunks.
Or:
Even without the trunks (or some design element to replace them) that costume looks kind of slimy

And:
Why, oh why did they HAVE to go with the new no red trunks DC line look?
Because:
Cavill doesn't look bad in those shots, but the suit does.  The lack of trunks is jarring.  Does he have a belt like Jim Lee's new version of the super suit?  Why have a belt with no trunks? 
Why are trunks so important? Here's a possible explanation:
I don't understand this modern disdain for trunks on a Super-Hero costume, trunks are a traditional part of circus tights which were the starting point for Superman's look.
Absolutely! So let's throw this baby out with the bathwater!
Another movie I won't ever see. Thanks, Hollywood, for saving me so much money!
I've learned my lesson. I'll skip this one entirely.
Why am I torturing myself to believe something good will come out of this ?
Warner Bros should do a poll ASAP with civilians to see which costumes IS Superman. They would see this is a wreck !
WHY AM I TORTURING MYSELF BY LOOKING AT HIS TRUNKLESS CROTCH!? WHY!? THIS IS TORTUROUS!!

Finally let's hear directly from Mr. Byrne. At least his argument is reasoned and acknowledges the character's creators and history. And trunks:
First, the costume. The most idiotic thing about this is that 99% of the civilian audience -- the audience upon which this movie will depend for its box office revenues -- know not and care not about any of the shenanigans up at DC, or battles with the Seigel and Shuster estates, or any other such nonsense. But they DO know what Superman looks like. Hell, Bedouins know what Superman looks like! I would predict laughter in the audience, the first time he appears on screen in this costume. "Hey! He forgot to put his pants on!"
What do you think of Superman's sassy lack of pants? Let us know!

2 comments:

  1. I cannot WAIT until that trunkless crotch comes 3D flying out of the screen. it's going to be awesome.

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  2. I predict a totally awesome Batman inspired shot where Superman, preparing for the movies final confrontation, pulls on his "trunks" and the audience all gets a face full of his bulging red junk.

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