With all the focus on new costumes and uniforms for both the Avengers and X-men, I thought it would be fun to talk about the changes in the various X-universe characters and their radical new costumes.

Havok

My all time favorite X-character, Alex Summers has recently joined the Uncanny Avengers as team leader and in doing so adopted a costume similar to his original nexus costume. I have to admit, I was very happy with the new design on the classic costume. While some people have talked about his cowl, I actually think it works. If you remember the original it looked kind of silly to have a head piece that stuck out so much. Here it's actually a full on mask that covers Alex's head perfectly and then add in his cosmic blasts and you have a winning costume.

Gambit

My favorite X-man has recently lost a bit of his purple and gone to a more stream line black and purple costume. The raging caujin new look works very well, he still has his traditional trench coat and playing cards but minus the head piece and adding a bit of the black to his two piece suit really works the thief angle of Remy LeBeu.

Rogue

Rogue has had a lot of artists try and return the character to her classic green sweatshirt costume and in today's society. Hoodies are all the rage from 14 to 37. However, I really wish artists would drop it already with the green and white suits. Sure it was her classic look and her Utopia which still honored the old costume was nice, but it's time to move on people. I don't want Rogue to go back to that X-treme X-men red costume with oakley sunglasses, that was just weird. However, if you look at her green and yellow costume from the Neo story line, that worked. It was different but worked well off of her old 90s costume.

Cyclops

I've been a fan of Scott Summer's for some time, and I think he really hasn't had any bad costumes over the years, but I really dig his current one. it marries his Astonishing costume with his X-factor costume really well. I also like the fact it isn't a once piece like a lot of his previous costumes. The use of the pouch belt and the big red "X" on is face is a nice touch and reminds me of his Earth-X costume.

Emma Frost

Let's face it, Emma has never had a costume that has been less revealing like... ever. However, going to this black costume look now is much better than her previous two costumes. Emma can be sexy without showing skin all the time and considering she has moved away from the White Queen look even more. This much more darker revolutionary looks works for her.

Magik

Speaking of dark looks, wow Illyanna has really moved past being a snowflake hasn't she? Seems every time we look at her she's getting more and more edgier and a lot more meaner with her soul sword. I'm not against it, in fact I like she is showing that she is the ruler of Limbo and still finds a way to try and be a good guy. Her look works.

Cable

While I'm glad to have Nate back I have to say I'm not feeling his new costume. Trying for a Nick Fury/90s Liefield look is a little over the top, especially with his new arm. If they really wanted to go this route, then they shouldn't have cured him of the techno-virus. It looks like he was caught in a bad 1982 sci-fi movie.

Forge

Unlike Cable, Forge's look really does work. He works well with this "old soldier" look very well. The costume really reflects his years of service to the mutant cause and to the military and really works with the on the run look of this X-force team. I hope Forge keeps it around for a while.

Colossus

I really wish they would figure out a plan with Colossus's look these days. They want to keep him in his classic costume and then change him to a more darker look every time the character goes too far in his missions and then back to the old look not long after. His current X-force look is ok, but really needs work.

Dr. Nemesis

I don't know what the good doctor is wearing these days but it is ugly. His previous Utopia look with the white suit and tie complete with mask was actually a very cool look for the character. Now, he looks like he is heading into a biohazard zone all the time or didn't make the cut for Chicago Fire.

Magneto

Look kids it's Boba Fett... I mean AOA Magneto I mean... you get the idea. For a character who felt he needed to be the face of mutant rights he sure is keeping his face hidden more and more hidden these days and how is he even walking with his cape that large?

Angel

I have to say I am loving Warren's look these days, now that we've moved past Archangel and moved towards this more free spirited character thinking he really is an angel is a lot of fun and I'm loving Warren meeting his younger self, he can keep this look.

Storm

Ok, I loved Storm's mohawk in the 80s when I was really little kid and first came to knew the character, but now... that was the 80s folks and just like with Rogue, it's time to move on. I rather Storm take back on her look during Joe Casey's run on X-men, now that was a design that worked.

Jubilee

Oh Jubilee, finally you are back to the way you should have been to begin with. Much like with Havok her original look has been updated and it works just fine. No more vampire, no more of that weird one piece suit or those over size earrings.

Beast

Finally, we can move past the cat version of the character and get back to always having a crisis with his mutation Beast and even more we now have both the original and this gorilla look Beast back as one. I don't know where we can go wrong at the moment.

As much as i loved Storm's X-Treme costume, i don't think she should ever don it. Ever. It worked for that era of comics and for that era alone. She'd look like an outdated joke amongst her fellow X-Men with that again. What she's currently sporting is high-class Dries van Noten. Victoria's Secret style. And she sports it well.

Oh and, everyone on Cyclops revolutionary team looks stupid. Absolutely stupid. They'd need to be on the run with those get-ups.

I have never understood Gambit in terms of powers, and costume design
 
He is a thief right??? You would figure they would give him details that would be relative to being stealth......so he wears a bright magenta chestplate, knee high shiny metallic boots....and makes things explode with bright pink energy.??..... I am aware all comic characters wear garish outfits. To attract readers, they need to be colorful, but Gambit was always overkill.
 
Its good that they finally updated him with some darker colors.

Gallery

Given the right artist all these guys and galls can be made

too look pretty BA, except for Uncanny's look. Bachalo needs to stop giving all his girls the same uniform and Magneto and Cyclops are just crazay.

I am still waiting for Storm to bring back this modern and edgy look:

@poisonfleur: That was also quite hot.

@Radread said:

Emma Frost

Let's face it, Emma has never had a costume that has been less revealing like... ever. However, going to this black costume look now is much better than her previous two costumes. Emma can be sexy without showing skin all the time and considering she has moved away from the White Queen look even more. This much more darker revolutionary looks works for her.

I wish this was the outfit Emma was wearing now! -it just seems kinda perfect for what she's up to. Bachelo's take on this look is just way too styley. Besides looking too much like Magik's outfit, it just seems like back-sliding to have her in a front-less(?) corset, and especially to have her back in booty shorts.

@AgeofHurricane said:

As much as i loved Storm's X-Treme costume, i don't think she should ever don it. Ever. It worked for that era of comics and for that era alone. She'd look like an outdated joke amongst her fellow X-Men with that again. What she's currently sporting is high-class Dries van Noten. Victoria's Secret style. And she sports it well.

I kinda hated her look in X-treme X-men, and I think this might be the best costume she's ever had. I've always liked Storm's association with the punk aesthetic, and I like it even more when she incorporates that sensibility into more worldly, or even regal looks such as this one.

Plus, as far as I understand it, she can't fly without a cape, so (baring being in the sewer) I don't know why she wouldn't always have one. And, given her close-quarters style of street fighting, I think it would be really cool to see her incorporate her cape into her fighting style, like a matador or something.

I also would like to see more of this side of Storm in general, since she knows that using her powers smeggs up weather systems, and should really only be used in emergencies, but that's another topic, really..

@poisonfleur said:

I am still waiting for Storm to bring back this modern and edgy look:

I liked this look a lot as well, but, like I said, I really think Storm should always have a cape. Or, at least a long coat. Even when she first sported her punk look in the 80's, she still wore her cape over it until she lost her powers and had no use for it.

Hate new Beast, and what's up with Magik's Soulsword? Looks more Final Fantasy than a sword made out of a soul.

love- new Beast, Psylocke, Havok, Emma Frost, Gambit and Doc Nemesis.

dont love-Rogue, Cyclops, Magneto, Colossus, or Storm. i liked Rogues look during AvX (new costume, brown leather jacket. it was new and old and awesome) Colossus in orange doesnt do it for me. Storm during Xenogenesis was her best look imo.

cant stand- Angel, there is nuthing i like about his costume, im all for shoot outs to past costume but the front skirt, puffy collar thing is weak

@fesak said:

Hate new Beast, and what's up with Magik's Soulsword? Looks more Final Fantasy than a sword made out of a soul.

yeah, I really prefer the Quietly/Cassaday version of the Beast; I just thought it made him look a lot more distinct, while still suiting his personality quite well.

Lets see reguarding the costume revemps well I really do not like Cyclops new costume. It just looks bad. Also While I do not think the design is all that terrible I think Magneto should have stuck with his normal colors. I also really do not care for the new Havok redesign but that maybe because I like the Tron like look better. I think Storm and Psylock new costumes looks great. Magik new look is good as well as she is looking more and more like a badass. As for the rest they are mostly variations on a similar theme, though I do think Beasts mutation brings him more in line with what most people expect him to look like.

Cat Beast 4 lyf.

I'm not a big Wolverine fan, but why didn't he get a new look? That A-Hole gets everything else! Iron Man got a new look. Captain America got a new look. Spider-Man got a new look. Thor got a new look. Even the God Damn purple paints wearing Hulk got a new look! Maybe I'm the only one who doesn't like Wolverine's yellow and blue getup....... I don't know?

@judasnixon said:

I'm not a big Wolverine fan, but why didn't he get a new look? That A-Hole gets everything else! Iron Man got a new look. Captain America got a new look. Spider-Man got a new look. Thor got a new look. Even the God Damn purple paints wearing Hulk got a new look! Maybe I'm the only one who doesn't like Wolverine's yellow and blue getup....... I don't no?

I find that, like most X-men costumes with this colour-scheme, it works a lot better when it's treated like yellow and black, without so many shiny highlights.

As for why he's still in this colour-scheme after all this time, I can only imagine that it's because he's symbolically supposed to be the head of Xavier's school of thought, as well as the X-men's representative on the Avengers, and therefore their representative to the world.

And if you can tell me what that quote's from, you get a black star.

I still don't like Havok's costume. The mask just looks silly to me; frankly my favorite Havok look is the one he had when he was with the Starjammers. Same thing with Cyclops' X-Visor - that thing just looks dumb. The entire X-Force's outfits look hideous; and I'm not a fan of the white/black/orange color scheme. Also, Beast's new mutation is just...weird. Like some sort of blue werewolf thing.

I'm ambivalent towards Magik, Emma Frost, Magneto, Jubilee and Gambit. They don't look overtly-different from their original looks, and I can live with that. As for Rogue's getup, it's not particularly special (I prefer her X-Men Legacy look), but I guess the hood and gloves sort of work for her whole 'no-touching' thing. Angel's outfit is fine, it's not bad, but I've never been a fan of any of Warren's looks save for Archangel.

The only redesign that I actually enjoy (and I'm surprised I'm even saying this) is Storm's. It's a nice, sleek blend between the punk look, the Jim Lee caped look, and a newer, more form-fitting uniform.

Havok. I like that Cassaday chose his old iconic costume as his inspiration, much like he did for Cyclops. I do think the red jewel on his forehead is a bit much though.

Why was it there in the first place? Was there a practical reason? anyone knows/remembers?

I love Havok's costume.

I don't mind Havoks old school look coming back, but I'm not in love with it either. I just don't mind it is all, and it is the same for Gambit, Storm, Forge, Colossus, Jubilee, Beast, and Cable. I wish Rogue would wear her Utopia outfit. I really like and dig Angel, Dr. Nemesis, Cyclops, Magik, and Magneto's new looks. Angel is like a Hink of old school, but new; also the metal wings are AWESOME. Dr. Nemesis actually looks cool for once for me. Cyclops X on his face looks BADA$$. Magik totally deserves her new look, and shes rocking it well. I like Magneto in all White... I just like it.

Lastly I really dig Psylocks new look. I like that Marvel is deciding to make their heroines wear less revealing clothes.

(+)

@dangallant984: Great opinions. I dig the way you think. :)

@dangallant984: Mm. But she doesn't need the cape to fly at all. She's had many cape-less costumes throughout the years, it helps her, but that's not a trait that writers tend to look into.

@AgeofHurricane said:

@dangallant984: Mm. But she doesn't need the cape to fly at all. She's had many cape-less costumes throughout the years, it helps her, but that's not a trait that writers tend to look into.

then how does she fly?

@dangallant984 said:

@AgeofHurricane said:

@dangallant984: Mm. But she doesn't need the cape to fly at all. She's had many cape-less costumes throughout the years, it helps her, but that's not a trait that writers tend to look into.

then how does she fly?

She uses the winds and sometimes whirlwinds/mini tornadoes like she did in The Last Stand.

How did everyone feel about Rogue in X-men Evolution at the time? It was pretty modern and different.

@poisonfleur said:

@dangallant984 said:

then how does she fly?

She uses the winds and sometimes whirlwinds/mini tornadoes like she did in The Last Stand.

yeah, I've seen her do that, my point in just that that doesn't really make sense. Even if she can control the slightest breezes and wind currents around her, it should still take a lot of wind to lift a full grown person off the ground, and her body still doesn't have any natural way of catching that wind.

I realize that Storm is supposed to be crazy powerful, but it seems like it would at least take a lot more effort to control both the wind around her and her own body enough to fly unaided with any grace, whereas she's spent years training to do so with a cape, so why wouldn't she just always wear one if she thought she even might have to fly?

I usually just assume that if she's flying without a cape, it's a mistake by the artist. I know that sometimes she's just not in costume, but still has to fly because of the situation she's in, so I can justify it in my head as she's having to push herself more to do what needs to be done when she wasn't prepared, but if she's in costume, it should be a given that she's prepared to fly, and would therefore have a cape on.

don't you think?

@poisonfleur said:

How did everyone feel about Rogue in X-men Evolution at the time? It was pretty modern and different.

I like this style of outfit for Rogue as casual wear, or (like Evolution) when she's younger -it certainly calls to mind her punk inspired outfits from when she was younger, but I feel like the current Rogue would have enough experience to want to wear something a little sturdier into action situations. At least pants.

@dangallant984: There's not really a philosophical or intricate reason behind how she does so. All she does is summon the wind, then glide. It's about the weather patterns at her disposal and just what exactly she can do with them. Sometimes there's a profuse and variant scope of which she can do whatever she likes, and sometimes there's only so much where she can't even summon the slightest gust. Fact of the matter is, all she does is glide. It's not even an artist's mistake when flying without the cape, because she's taken the cape off mid-issue and flown several times. Yeah the cape helps her to an extent with the currents/friction/air resistance and what not, but it's not a mandated accessory. As you can see, she's been doing so since her first appearance.

Havok has probably the worst costume I have ever seen in a comicbook ever

@AgeofHurricane said:

@dangallant984: There's not really a philosophical or intricate reason behind how she does so. All she does is summon the wind, then glide. It's about the weather patterns at her disposal and just what exactly she can do with them. Sometimes there's a profuse and variant scope of which she can do whatever she likes, and sometimes there's only so much where she can't even summon the slightest gust. Fact of the matter is, all she does is glide. It's not even an artist's mistake when flying without the cape, because she's taken the cape off mid-issue and flown several times. Yeah the cape helps her to an extent with the currents/friction/air resistance and what not, but it's not a mandated accessory. As you can see, she's been doing so since her first appearance.

I know all of that, but regardless of whether it's the artist or the writer who makes that call, it still doesn't really make sense, especially if she's within speaking distance of characters on the ground. Wind doesn't work that way, and neither does a human body.

As I've already said, I'll grant you that she must be powerful enough to summon sufficient wind to throw herself into the clouds, but if she's doing this without some means of gliding on the winds, why doesn't everything/everyone around her get tossed up there as well?

Again, I'm not saying she absolutely needs the cape to become air-born (although landing should still be a concern), I'm just saying that if the cape helps her fly at all (even if it's not a necessity, and even though it should be), I can't imagine why she would ever dress for a mission without one.

@dangallant984:Because it's impossible to completely mesh real life Science with comic-book Science. This is a prime example of that. These are the scientific details that are overlooked whence creating a character and placing them in regular scenarios.

And as for why she doesn't throw everything else into the air when she does summon these magnificent amounts of wind, it's because of her control. Wind is the one element that she's been using since creation, she's honed it down to the most accurate degree. If she can precisely control anything out of her armory, it's that. Things/People don't go flying into the air with her because it's not her intention for that to happen.

Also, she's Storm.

@AgeofHurricane said:

And as for why she doesn't throw everything else into the air when she does summon these magnificent amounts of wind, it's because of her control. Wind is the one element that she's been using since creation, she's honed it down to the most accurate degree. If she can precisely control anything out of her armory, it's that. Things/People don't go flying into the air with her because it's not her intention for that to happen.

Also, she's Storm.

I dunno, if she can just perfectly control things by controlling the air around them, she essentially has telekinesis on top of all her other powers, and if she can't (which seems more reasonable to me), it doesn't seem she should be able to do the things you say..

@dangallant984: Atmokinesis, not telekinesis, which thus leads to the controlling of the weather/patterns, it's not something on-top so to speak, but more so a prerequisite for the effects that she produces. You're getting there, though. But then i guess it comes down as to whether which is more accurate/precise: wind or telekinesis ? Which is a completely different argument.

What about Kitty Pryde how's her new costume, if she has one compared to the previous ones. Last time I saw her I was watching X-Men Evolution and I remember liking her. I think I liked her better than Jubilee and she was pretty cool. I know some but not a whole lot about the X-Men. I only started reading comics late 2011 and hadn't read anything X-Men until 2013. I guess I did read House of M, that would be the one exclusion that wasn't 2013.

If you guys want to talk more about Havok or the various X-titles costume choice you can join my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TheUncannyComicBookReader?ref=hl&bookmark_t=page

@AgeofHurricane said:

@dangallant984: Atmokinesis, not telekinesis, which thus leads to the controlling of the weather/patterns, it's not something on-top so to speak, but more so a prerequisite for the effects that she produces. You're getting there, though. But then i guess it comes down as to whether which is more accurate/precise: wind or telekinesis ? Which is a completely different argument.

haha! okay, okay.. so her control over the environment is absolute, fine. But the cape must give her some added control, or why would she ever have used it? it's not like she gets cold (or shy).. My point was just that if it helps her at all, why wouldn't she wear it? it's like Cyclops; he can just lower his glasses and open and shut his eyes, but his visor gives him greater control, so of course his uniform should have a visor. Storm may not need her cape, but if it gives her even a little more control over her powers, it seems like she would want it.

@Technicolorville: Kitty's been wearing basically stylized versions of the standard school uniform for almost twenty years now, she actually switched to that before she even returned to the X-men from Excaliber, in the mid 90's.

If you're interested in reading some good Kitty stories, I feel I should recommend Whedon and Cassaday's Astonishing X-men from 2004; she's pretty much the main character of that series, and it's quite good :)

@dangallant984: Emphasis on the "some", "greater" and "a little" in comparison to Cyclops and Storm, who operate in extremely different ways. Yes it helps her, but not to a substantial degree. Sofia Mantega was under the tutelage of Storm, and you didn't see her sporting a cape, because it was not necessary. And they fly the exact same way. Sometimes for Storm it's also her making a bold fashion statement, letting the people know that her cape is timeless. It's in an era of its own and will never look "old". Notice there are quite a lot of panel shots/splashes of Storm that wouldn't have looked as Stormy if she did not have the cape. It's a nice item that the artists like to play around with, as opposed to the character needing it to play red bull .

@AgeofHurricane said:

@dangallant984: Emphasis on the "some", "greater" and "a little" in comparison to Cyclops and Storm, who operate in extremely different ways. Yes it helps her, but not to a substantial degree. Sofia Mantega was under the tutelage of Storm, and you didn't see her sporting a cape, because it was not necessary. And they fly the exact same way. Sometimes for Storm it's also her making a bold fashion statement, letting the people know that her cape is timeless. It's in an era of its own and will never look "old". Notice there are quite a lot of panel shots/splashes of Storm that wouldn't have looked as Stormy if she did not have the cape. It's a nice item that the artists like to play around with, as opposed to the character needing it to play red bull .

I suppose I agree with that assessment ..

although it did always bother me when Sofia flew without a cape, as she was not supposed to have a mastery of her powers yet. But I was never completely sure how her powers worked, reasoning that since she controlled wind and air, maybe she could make herself lighter, or more like air, the way, say Iceman does with ice.

@dangallant984: Well, remember, it looked as if out of all the other celebrity New X-Men, Sofia had gained her mutant powers earlier than most. She was doing a lot of things with the element before she even met Storm. Although Storm's more powerful in the usage of the wind than she is, Storm's go-to weapon out of her vast arsenal is lightning, so unlike Sofia, she wasn't able to hone and train the element, had Sofia stayed, she could have been more powerful than Storm in that particular respect. Within a couple issues of her creation, she was already giving Julian a run for his money, creating mini pressure bubbles, rendering the air around her an inert medium for mere speech, slicing people with her winds, etc, etc. She was tough. But to the point: she probably could have done what you said.

I really wish before he died they gave Professor X some kind of costume he would wear while in combat. Like still keeping it a suit and looking very Professor X looking but more of a bad ass.

@poisonfleur said:

How did everyone feel about Rogue in X-men Evolution at the time? It was pretty modern and different.

It definitely worked for the role she played in that show. So I really have no problem with it.

Did jubilee get her powers back?

I dont really like Havok's new costume, I liked these ones better.

@AgeofHurricane: maybe it was because she seemed a bit derivative of Storm's powers that made me want to assume that, in that one regard, she would be more powerful, like some sort of air elemental.

@poisonfleur said:

How did everyone feel about Rogue in X-men Evolution at the time? It was pretty modern and different.

I like this style of outfit for Rogue as casual wear, or (like Evolution) when she's younger -it certainly calls to mind her punk inspired outfits from when she was younger, but I feel like the current Rogue would have enough experience to want to wear something a little sturdier into action situations. At least pants.

I still don't get Rogue's regression to her former outfit, but with a frumpy feel to it. Its like they are trying to regress her character (back to the rebel she was when she first joined) and using her old visual style to represent that. I still think you could get that feel with a more modern and stylish take on her Silvestri Era uniforms.

@judasnixon: Its simple and clean, and definitely fits more with the current theme of modernizing the uniforms. I'm baffled as to why they still refuse to use or update it.

@EnSabahNurX: sure..

@Lifeguard85 said:

I still don't get Rogue's regression to her former outfit, but with a frumpy feel to it. Its like they are trying to regress her character (back to the rebel she was when she first joined) and using her old visual style to represent that. I still think you could get that feel with a more modern and stylish take on her Silvestri Era uniforms.

I agree with this assessment, but I hate to see Silvestri get the credit for John Romita Jr.'s design, especially after he turned it into a cheap Scarlet Witch knock-off. I thought Alan Davis drew it best though; him or Leonardi.

@unicornpuncher: I don't know why but I actually like Havok's new outfit! (as you can tell with my profile pic >.<). I do like the ones you posted as well though. I like simple looks usually.

@dangallant984 said:

@judasnixon said:

I'm not a big Wolverine fan, but why didn't he get a new look? That A-Hole gets everything else! Iron Man got a new look. Captain America got a new look. Spider-Man got a new look. Thor got a new look. Even the God Damn purple paints wearing Hulk got a new look! Maybe I'm the only one who doesn't like Wolverine's yellow and blue getup....... I don't no?

I find that, like most X-men costumes with this colour-scheme, it works a lot better when it's treated like yellow and black, without so many shiny highlights.

As for why he's still in this colour-scheme after all this time, I can only imagine that it's because he's symbolically supposed to be the head of Xavier's school of thought, as well as the X-men's representative on the Avengers, and therefore their representative to the world.

And if you can tell me what that quote's from, you get a black star.

It was from the song "Roadrunner", by the Modern Lovers, you magnificent man!

Where are the new costumes for the O5 we were promised?

hope needs a new outfit one that not yellow and green like jean's

@john_valentine: Apparently arriving during the 50th Anniversary event, instead.

Hope really needs a new costume and I agree where are the O5's new costumes.