Up to date with the trends, if you don’t mind!
As opposed to some people, I’m not of the opinion that Dick Grayson is a fashion disaster. I don’t imagine I will convince anyone who loves to portray him as the eternal looser… But the thing with fashion is that a lot of it quickly gets dated. Since artists have drawn Dick in contemporary style for decades, it’s bound to happen that some outfits get past their best before date.
If we’re to put the blame where it belongs, it has to be Greg Land, who drew Dick in a multicoloured polka dot shirt in Nightwing vol 1 # 2. That’s the outfit most people reference when they claim that Dick dresses outlandishly. However, in the 90s, polka dot shirts (and long hair on men) were trendy – which is something that we tend to forget some decades later, when another era of fashion surrounds us.
The original Nightwing suit from 1984 also gets a fair amount of flak. Certain artists, like Jim Aparo, drew the collar ridiculously high, unlike how it looked with George Pérez’ art. But on the whole, it’s not in a completely different style from other superhero suits that were introduced in the 70s and 80s. High collars and deep v-necks were popular.
Tales of the Teen Titans # 44, Batman vol 1 # 441.
Tyroc (1976); Black Lightning (1977); Dazzler (1980); Jericho (1984).
Gladiator (1977), Black Cat (1979), Atari Force (1982), Mockingbird (1980), Booster Gold (1986).
Fashion at the time was about crossovers and breaking rules, and using fabrics such as rubber and vinyl. And disco… Here are some pictures from the 70s and 80s, to remind ourselves what it looked like at the time.
I guess some people might point the finger at the original Robin suit, too? But, seriously, it’s a 1940s child superhero costume, designed at a time when the printing process favoured bright primary colours. (Besides, in a fair number of versions, Bruce is the one who designed the Robin suit. Now, if we want to talk ridiculous – take a look at Bob Kane’s original sketch of the Bat-Man.)
Without further ado. Let’s have a look at some of Dick’s outfits over the years, and see what was considered stylish at the time, shall we.
Dick in civilan garbs in the 1940s and 1950s. The boy’s fashion at the time included knitted pullovers and sweaters which were also worn over shirt and tie. Bright solid or patterned sportcoats were worn with dress-shirt and necktie or bowtie. (Knickers, that is short trousers, were, by the way, children’s fashion in the 1940s.)
Pictures are fashion illustrations from the 40s and 50s and from Batman # 13 (1942). Star Spangled Comics # 65 (1947), # 75 (1947), # 98 (1949), # 111 (1950).
College teenager Dick in the 1970s dressed in sweaters, vests, long collared shirts. His hair was side-parted.
And, you guessed it – vests, long collared shirts and turtleneck sweaters were essential fashion items of the 1970s.
Dick-pics from: Batman # 248 (1973). Batman Family # 8 (1976). Detective Comics # 483 (1979). Detective Comics # 495 (1980).
Dick in a green three piece suit in New Teen Titans Vol 1 # 26 (1982). Picture in Sears Fashion Catalogue 1981. 1980s vintage tweed suit.
Leather jacket, t-shirts and sweaters and jeans were trendy in the 1980s. In Tales of the teen titans 43 (1984), Dick wears jeans and an expensive leather jacket.
“That” outfit in Nightwing vol 1 # 2 (1995). “Seinfeld” from 1991.
Overalls were huge in the 1990s, even when you weren’t custom building your own car. Nightwing vol 2 # 16 (1998), and fashion photos from the 1990s.
In the early 2000s, casual clothing was a big trend. Rugby shirts was a common look, and the leather jacket was still popular.
Batman: Gotham Knights # 21 (2001), # 45 (2003), Nightwing vol 2 # 49 (2000), #77 (2003), # 80 (2003).
In the mid-2000s, some trendy things were: Casual, fitted shirt. Casual blazer. Cardigan. V-neck t-shirt. Trucker hat. Tank top.
Nightwing vol 2 # 133 (2007), # 141 and # 144 (2008). Fashion photos from 2008, design Diesel, Tony Melillo.
In The New 52 and Rebirth, Dick has mostly dressed casually (unless it’s for a funeral, of course). Jeans, t-shirts, shirt without tie, sweaters, hoodie, parka, blazer or leather jacket. Often layer on layer - sweater over shirt, shirt on top of t-shirt…
The 2010s wasn’t long ago, and it’s not easy to sort through fashion shows and micro-trends and see a bigger picture just yet… But a few of the things that were trendy at least at some time during the 2010s were: the colour grey; one-button suits and blazers; striped sweater; checkered shirt; fitted leather jackets; parka; pastel colours; angular v-neck.
Nightwing vol 3 # 5 (2012), # 6 (2012), # 10 (2012), # 17 (2013), # 27 (2014). Nightwing vol 4 # 10 (2017), # 15 (2017). Assorted fashion photos from 2012–2017.
Today it’s 2020, and when it comes to men’s hairstyles, crew cut is popular.
Nightwing vol 4 # 63, and photo from TheTrendSpotter’s post 40 Best Short Hairstyles for Men in 2020.
And hey, superhero apparel were on the catwalk in the 2010s, too. How more fashion forward can Dick Grayson become…? Misel Saban, June 27, 2014 (Batman) and Sarah Dos Santos, December 16, 2013 (Superman);
Kyle Towers, February 2, 2013 (Spiderman).
However, I don’t see Dick (written) as interested in keeping up with the fashion. But he did live his first years in a small trailer. And since then, he’s been accustomed to a life where you never know when your home is going to be obliterated, or your foster father will kick you out. Or when you have to rush away to follow a lead in another city or save the world somewhere. Or the next time you’ll be shot and forget that you have a flat to live in… He’s bound to have learned not to have an excessive amount of clothes.
When he does need to buy something, because his last outfit went up in smoke or something, he’ll simply pick from what’s in the front inside the shops. Hence, he’ll often be dressed up-to-date.
New Titans # 76, New Titans # 86, Nightwing vol 2 # 89, Nightwing vol 2 # 20, Nigtwing vol 3 # 19, Nightwing vol 4 # 50 , Robin Year One # 3.
Top pictures from: Batman # 237 (1971), New Teen Titans # 16 (1982), Nightwing vol 2 # 129 (2007), Nightwing vol 4 # 10 (2016).
