J. Bone’s Sun-Friendly Superman Costume Is Almost All Trunk

Since the launch of DC Comics' New 52 back in 2011, Superman's costume has been basically trunkless, causing consternation among many hardcore fans. Best known for his contributions to DC: The New Frontier, The Spirit and IDW's The Rocketeer comics, cartoonist J. Bone has concocted a costume that is almost exactly the opposite of the characters armor-like New 52 togs: They're pretty much just trunks and a cape.

The idea is that Superman's powers are fueled by sunlight, so why would he want to cover most of his body? Wouldn't he want to soak those rays directly into his skin? With the recent trend of artists making superhero costumes functional and practical, it makes total sense.

Robot 6's Kevin Melrose astutely points out that the costume concept is also a (perhaps unintentional) jab at Starfire's barely-there New 52 costume. She also gets her powers from solar radiation, and has stated outright in recent comics that she needs to expose as much skin to the sun as possible.

What's good for the goose is good for the gander, ain't it?

For more of J. Bone's shirtless dude art, check out his dedicated beefcake sketchblog, Men's Adventure.