Note: After weeks of processing and judging the 150+ submissions we received for Spider-Man: Webhead 2.0, we have come to that time: the results. We received numerous contenders for this contest, and although there’s not room to give everyone awards we would like to spotlight 24 entries that stood out from the pack but weren’t in the top three when the judging finished. Look over these stellar entries, and come back the next two days as we announce the finalists and the ultimate winner of Webhead 2.0. – Chris Arrant
Honorable Mentions!
Samir Barrett
Total Score: 54 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 9. Samir’s seems to take Rosy Higgins’ and Corey Lewis’ designs and meet somewhere in the middle, and yet takes it to a superhero aesthetic, rather than the DIY route the others went. I just don’t understand if the Spider Sense is literally represented on his mask like that or not. If it isn’t (and there’s no way to tell), I’d go a full 10.
Josh: 7. At first I didn’t like all the yellow, and then the more I thought about it and looked at it, and I think it’s a bold and appropriate departure. I’m not sure how the hood would stay on though.
Ron: 7. This is a rare case where I can deal with the hood. I actually kind of like it, as well as the departure in color with the yellow highlights. I could definitely see this working.
Conor: 8.5. At first when I saw this design I tilted my head like a dog does when you talk to him. But the more I look at it the more I like it. This design is slick and modern without losing any of the inherent Spider-Man-ness.
Jon: 8
Chris A.: 7.5. Spider-Man, Sorcerer Supreme! The yellow in this adds into the red and black to make me thing of Doctor Strange, but I like what Samir’s thinking.
Rachel: 8 if it’s elseworlds; 7 for Spider-Man 616. This would look awesome at night. Not sure I like the hood, but I love the boots and the yellow and the way the logo extends to the legs.
Otoniel Oliveira
Total Score: 54 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 10. Otoniel is one of those guys that can make an overly complicated design look simple. If you scrapped all of the smaller Easter eggs in this one, you still have a great looking Spidey costume. I can’t find anything I don’t like about this one!
Josh: 8.5. Of the designs that are close to the original, this is probably my favorite. It manages to maintain the webbing, but do it in a completely new way, and I love the way the gloves look on this one, concealing the bulky webshooter. Nice and clean.
Ron: 9. Definitely borrowing inspiration from the original costume design in a totally good way. And a bonus point for the diagrams explaining where stuff is – especially the light signal belt, my favorite of the Spider-Man accessories.
Conor: 8. Overall this is a really strong design that plays well on the original. I think the red part on the chest works better when it is not so dramatically U-shaped. it works better in the background shot.
Jon: 6
Rachel: 7. Overall, strong, but I’m not sure I like the scalloped edges on the red, and I know I don’t like the thigh-high spider-stockings. In general, I think cleaner lines would have benefitted this design a lot.
Chris A.: 5.5. I love the fact Otoniel emphasized the scalloped spider-webs in this design, but it ends up looking like Peter Parker is wearing fishnets.
Vanni LoRiggio
Total Score: 53 (out of a possible score of 70)
Rachel: 8. Damn, but that’s sharp. Point off for the busyness–I’d have stuck with either the web or the intricate stripe-spider–but otherwise, really nice.
Vito: 10. Is it too presumptuous to say that this one is perfect? Because I’d score higher if I could. Everything I love about Rudy’s is totally missing from this one…and that’s what makes it so good. This looks like an Alex Ross design, but not like an Alex Ross rip-off. It’s got the same artistic sensibility. What I love so much about it is how it looks seamless, from a story point of view. This could show up tomorrow in a Marvel Comic, and I wouldn’t think anything of it. Sure, I’d notice it, but of all the designs, this is the one that seems most like a Marvel Comics Spider-Man design. Costume design, the Merry Marvel Way!
Josh: 7. The drawings and anatomy are sublime, but that’s not why we’re here. It’s very busy, and that might have a practical purpose. Perhaps he’s difficult to aim a weapon at? While I love the classic white eyes, the 70’s TV show proved that it’s more likely we’ll see some sort of bulgy lens. But there’s some low grade Slim Goodbody thing going on here that’s not floating my boat entirely. Still I am impressed as hell at how he draws feet.
Conor: 8. I think that the only thing keeping me from loving this design is the webbing on the face which adds to the feeling of the costume being too busy that Josh mentioned. The eyes are indeed wonderful.
Ron: 9. This the one as far as I’m concerned. As soon as I saw this design, I thought, “yes, that’s Spider-Man” and got the warm and fuzzies. Vito is close, in that it almost has a Alex Ross/Earth X sort of feel to it, which I happen to like. The subtle webbing works as a design element with a nod to the past, along with a modern take. This is great.
Chris A.: 5. Ron called it on the Alex Ross / Earth X feel, but I just can’t get past the over-elaborate design.
Jon: 6
Kris Anka
Total Score: 53 (out of a possible score of 70)
Rachel: 7. This is really Cully Hamner Blue Beetle, which I think is almost never a bad cue to follow, except that here, anything that’s supposed to signify an actual spider has been abstract-designed into oblivion–it looks great, but there’s absolutely nothing that identifies it as Spider-Man. I dig the barely-exposed fingers and toes.
Vito: 8. I agree that it’s been abstract-designed to some degrees, but I still like it. I think the mask is a little confusing, but I generally like what I see as a whole. I’d throw the web design on all the red spots though, just to further the idea of Spider-Man. And I concur; this is the best exposed fingers/toes in the bunch.
Josh: 8.5. It’s fantastic. It’s the most realistic and believable of the bunch. It’s simple, functional, and the toes make perfect sense, given the way his powers work. Plus bad guys aren’t going to show their toes, so you know he’s a good guy. I also really like the external webshooters, because I never bought that he could make them that slim so they didn’t show.
Ron: 6. Rachel totally nailed it with the Cully Hamner approach, that’s what I thought of immediately. I could deal with the exposed fingers, but the feed need to get covered (much like the previous exposed feet design). I like the design itself, and I get the mask redesign, but it doesn’t scream Spidey! as I’d hope it would.
Jon: 8
Conor: 7. Again with the exposed toes and fingers! What if Peter is making a smoothie in the Avengers kitchen and Iron Man comes stumbling in still drunk from a one night stand and steps on Peter’s foot? What then? It’s a fun design but when I look at it nothing really screams “Spider-Man”.
Chris A.: 8.5. So so SO close. I like how Kris Anka’s design sense shows through but like everyone’s mentioned, somewhere along the way he lost a Spider logo. The open fingers and toes work for me though.
Jsm!
Total Score: 52.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Rachel: 8. I thought this one was nice but unremarkable, until I looked at the sidebar and saw how the back design played out against a dark background. That is extremely cool.
Vito: 8.5. Exactly what I was thinking, Rachel. This is a deceptively simple design when taken at face value, but applying it to darkness and setting makes it really pop. It’s a really pretty design. And even more…on one computer, I didn’t see the light blue web design! And it STILL works for me!
Josh: 7. The yellow eyes really stand out in this one. They’re the thing I like most about it. It feels a bit like a race car driver. I don’t know if that’s bad or not.
Ron. 6. I think the combination of the yellow eyes and the darker hue to the costume make this come off more villainous than heroic.
Conor: 8. I love this design. I’m a big fan of the way that the blue blends into the background of the shot on the right. When Spider-Man crawls on a wall the red would evoke the body of an actual spider.
Jon: 9
Chris: 6
Adam Cadwell
Total Score: 52.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 8.5. What I appreciate about this is what I hated (and probably will hate) about the movies. No teenager could make that costume. A teenager could very easily make this one. It’s fluid and freemoving (is that a word?) and looks…well, comfortable! I like this one a lot!
Rachel: 6. The web-patterned socks are kind of adorable, and I kind of want a pair. The pants, however, are completely unacceptable.
Jessica: Yeah, jeans don’t work that way, so I have to assume that they’re, like, yoga pants or something, which is almost as hilarious as the socks. I really like the idea of a DIY-looking Spider-Man, but I feel like this needs to push the idea a bit further – right now it looks more like last-minute Spider-Man cosplay. (I do like the design with the hoodie, since it pushes the DIY concept the furthest.)
Rachel: I have to assume they’re low-rise sweatpants with the cuffs cut off, and also I have to assume that it’s 1986 and he’s about to get his ass kicked by a naked Terminator.
Josh: 5. It’s basically the regular costume, but with pants of an indeterminate flexibility, or possibly a sweatshirt. Also, you don’t tie those shoes, and you’re webswinging around, they’re going to fly off.
Conor: 9. There is almost nothing that I do not love about this up to and including the flying shoe laces. LIke Vito said, this feels like a costume that a broke teenager from Queens might actually put together. I am however deducting one point for not using Adidas warm-up pants in the ensemble.
Ron: 7. I was a little put off by the casualness of the costume, but I love his art style and after looking at it for a while, I have to say it grew on me in a natural evolution of the character kind of way.
Jon: 10. Hands down my favorite. I’m generally pre-disposed to any of these designs which seems to be off-the-rack, sneakers-and-hoodie affairs. This is not just because it makes more sense that a high schooler would put something like this together, but because it feels very New York-y to me, in the best possible way.
In regards to this costume specifically, at first I was a little put off only by the fact that these look so much like licensed Spider-Man pajamas – like there had to be a Spider-Man first and then clothes like this would be made – but in the end it accentuates the available quality of the duds. I also think that it helps with Spider-Man’s ‘creepiness’ – in the early stories, people were sometimes repulsed by him the same way you’d be by an actual spider. As far as these clothes go, while every other superhero has armor and uniforms and sleek looking super-duds, here’s a super-strong guy who climbs walls and he’s wearing yoga pants and a ski mask. Unsettling!
Chris A.: 7. Refashioning the Ditko design based on what a teenage kid could actually put together. Nice, but jarring.
Anjin Anhut
Total Score: 51.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 8.5. The colors are bold, the design is practical (padding for a somewhat clumsy character), and like Adam’s, he looks like a parkour practician. What keeps this from going a full monty is that it looks a little busy. As much as I like the spider designed eye holes, it’s kind of distracting. It’s eye-catching too, so I can’t take away too much from it. No idea what’s going on on his head (the ridged area), but it seems tacked on. You could take it away and you wouldn’t really lose anything; so what is gained by it? Backpack is so smart.
Rachel: 7. Sharp, but too busy, and maybe a bit too militaristic. I really like the use of color, though–if the rest of the costume were simpler, I’d have rated this at least an 8.
Jessica: Definitely agree on the busy factor, and the black and blue sort of bleed into each other a little bit too much for me. I love the overall lines of it, though, and the textures. Something about the little gloves and backpack make me think of a really intense bike messenger, which is very New York.
Vito: Yeah, Jess. There a lot of “bike messenger” type designs in the contest, and that’s ok. I feel like there’s a weird kind of connect between bike messenger and newspaper photographer…like they’d find themselves in the same situations or something.
Rachel: The eyes are spider butts. I just want to put that out there for you to think about for a while.
Vito: Aaaand, it’s in my head now.
Rachel: My work here is done.
Josh: 8. Except for the butt eye thing, I think this is fantastic. It’s got a textual feeling to it. It’s not just tights. It’s pads and gloves and fabric and straps, and this is something you might actually see. That messenger bag would have to be ditched though, because that is not the best choice for urban swinging. It would flop all over the place.
Conor: 7. I like bringing black into the color scheme since that was part of the original Spider-Man costume, but the spider butt thing…
Ron: 6. At first I was completely turned off my the over abundance of spiders, but then I realized the spider-butts were the same shape-ish as the classic Spider-Man eyes and it clicked for me. That said, the paintball warrior armor approach doesn’t really do it for me. I do like the messenger bag, but drop the knee pads and the gloves and the odd white stiching/highlights on th head and maybe this works a bit more for me.
Jon: 8
Chris: 7. Finally, someone catering to the luchadore/parkour aesthetic of Spider-Man. Seriously, there are alot of good ideas going on here but they seem to all be competing over the small real estate of Peter’s costume. If I was Marvel, I’d ask Anjin to polish this one up.
Rudy Jordan
Total Score: 49 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 10. I’ll readily admit that the smile is what makes it for me. Having his mouth exposed is a huge step, and it doesn’t seem like one at first, but it is. This is a character who is known for being a talker, known for having fun. It’s the one element you never got in ANY iteration of the costume. That’s a 10 point idea in and of itself! The character is easily more accessible here than he has ever been. The costume is solid, too. The front and back spider logos combine to make two different contrasting designs (which could easily be overdone, but it looks nice here) and the costume is sufficiently simple in execution, without being too simple; any artist could draw this. I absolutely love this one! I would love to see someone do this for a Halloween costume or a convention cosplay.
Josh: 6. It’s not talking to me. It looks like something a designer with no love for the comic would make for a movie produced by someone who kind of missed the point. I just keep picturing that belt scraping on the building he’s trying to scale.
Ron: 6. Even though he’s go the Spidey logo belt and I love the top of the costume design, the exposed mouth just stops the momentum. Part of Spider-Man is the complete face mask coverage, and those stolen moments where he pulls it up to eat or to kiss a girl. This kinda takes away some of the magic.
Conor: 6. An uncovered face, even partially, is a nonstarter for Spider-Man.
Jon: 9. Wraparound logo is doubleplusgood.
Chris A.: 6
Rachel: 6. Yeah, the uncovered face is all wrong, and there’s too much colorblocking. I like the wraparound logo, though, and I’d be interested to see how it would look on an otherwise more streamlined costume.
Joe & Rob Sharp
Total Score: 48 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 7.5. I can see Spider-Man in this, but it doesn’t give me enough. I realize the mask logo takes the place of a chest logo, but I feel like it’s missing that one superhero trope. It’s not bad, but I just want more out of it.
Josh: 5. I love the actual sketch, but the costume is SO similar to the original that I’m not finding anything new to grab on to.
Ron: 6. Agree with Josh on both his points. LOVE the sketch and would love to see more from the artists, but the design itself is too little of a departure, and the mask is basically the Tarantula from Daredevil, but with different colors.
Jon: 9. By and large, I think the right direction to go with almost any Spider-Man redesign is simplification. The insignia on the mask isn’t quite working – it gives Spidey a Bert-like nose (of Ernie and Bert, specifically). Considering the spider insignia on the back, the costume could probably do without the admittedly otherwise very neat face insignia. Everything else is golden, though.
Chris A.: 6. This seems less like a new take than just re-arranging the Ditko classic. And the Spider-Man zipper on the front is distracting.
Conor: 7.5. Holy Hannah, I love the shot of him swinging. But then I scrolled down to the other two shots and I started to love the design less. I think there needs to be a logo on the front of his chest. Yes, I realize that the (totally awesome) mask features the logo, but the bare black chest (save for what I assume is the spider web that continues to the back) seems too bare.
Rachel: 7. Nice, but unremarkable. This is a rare costume that I like better in action than as a design. And the logo placement on the front is just not okay.
Daniel Heard
Total Score: 47.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Rachel: 6. The armored portions of this costume confuse and upset me, and the sandals are too fiddly, although I dig the articulated toes. I’d probably give you a much higher score if the red and blue were flush.
Vito: While I’m not looking to upset you further, how does it upset you? I think that they’re less true armor and more padding. Maybe that changes your mind?
Rachel: Nope.
Vito: 9. This one seems to capture the scientist superhero better than any of the others for me. I LOVE how Daniel made Peter a huge Spider logo! The footwear makes sense to access those powers, and the mask, while utilizing the extra eye motif that a lot of the designs used, doesn’t over do it. I appreciate this design in so many ways, I can’t explain it. And I like the body armor/padding. Again, Peter can be a little aloof, and I always see him as the most fragile of characters (ie, he gets shot, he gets really hurt).
Josh: 6. I think it’s a clever, well thought out, and practical design, but at the same time, I am not attracted to it. Might be thinking of that hollow echoey voice someone makes when wearing a plastic hokey mask, and it’s not working for me. but I LOVE how the padding forms the spider emblem. That is inspired.
Ron: 5. There isn’t inherently wrong with this, but ultimately it boils down to would Spider-Man go with an armored approach or not? Unfortunately, I don’t think he does. That said, I’m with everyone in terms of liking the spider logo, but the lack of practicality of where the armor actually is leaves me scratching my head.
Conor: 6.5. Josh is correct, the padding forming the spider emblem is indeed inspired. Other than that, though, it seems too much like something someone would wear to superhero paintbal.
Rachel: Except, the padding doesn’t really armor anything useful. It’s like he only armored areas that don’t really need it. Who designs armor and leaves the crotch and torso exposed?
Chris A.: 7. Great theoretical idea, but then someone punches Spidey in his unprotected gut. Although it would be cool to see these plates break off in battle.
Victor M. Newman
Total Score: 46 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 8.5. I like the colors, but I don’t love them. The spider design is pretty good, and I can assume that it is reflected on the back. My biggest issue is that there seem to be elements that just don’t need to be there; the black on the thighs and bicep/tricep area; the soccer shin guards. The only place it works (maybe) is on the forearms because they could function as web shooters.
Josh: 7.5. This is a strong contender in the armor/sports/padding category, and I like the contrast of the black, white and red. The white doesn’t quite evoke “spider” to me, but the pads are just low profile enough to be both believable and good looking.
Conor: 6. Again, I’m not down with the red, white, and blue color scheme for Spider-Man. Overall, there’s not a strong sense of cohesion to the costume. It looks like he is wearing a pull over tunic on top of the actual costume. It’s not very sleek.
Ron: 7. I’m actually down with the color scheme, this is white integrated in to a point where it makes sense. It’s definitely a strong departure from what we know of Spider-Man, but that’s like what made Spider-Man 2099 work as well. Unfortunately, it’s got the multiple eyes thing which turns me off. If we had a more classic mask here, this would be one of my favorites.
Jon: 7
Chris A.: 5. The Spider-man vest is quite nice, but the mask really throws me off. It goes to show just how sacred that Ditko-designed mask is and how small alterations can change alot.
Rachel: 5. I really, really don’t like the white. I do like the sports pads, though; I just think they need to be against a darker color.
Erica H.
Total Score: 45.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 7. I’ve often thought why Spidey wasn’t barefoot and barehanded if his spider crawling ability came from the scopulae and setules on his fingers and toes. Leaving these areas exposed makes the most sense, with some kind of thin material covering these areas makes the second most sense. Seeing it here, in Erica’s design, is kind of off putting; there might be too much skin exposed. Kris Anka has the same philosophy in his, but by having less of the skin shown, it speaks to me more. I’m not taking off much in the way of a score here for it, but it does drop it a little for me. The mask reads more of a skull to me, but I do love that chest logo.
Josh: 6.5. That is a skull on that face. Other than that, like Vito, the bare feet and hands made immediate sense to me. But then again, it gets damned cold in Manhattan in the winter. I really like the folds and ripples in the fabric as well, invoking the idea that this is a teenager making the costume.
Jon: 7
Conor: 6. The mask invokes the wrong vibe. Too much Red Hood, I think. The bare feet and hands make sense from a certain point of view but as Josh says, it gets mighty cold in New York City in the winter. Also, New York City is dirty. Plus: fingerprints. On the bright side the tunic is sleek and modern and I like the homemade touches.
Ron: 7. Put shoes and gloves on this Spider-Man and I’d add 2 more points to it. I agree with Josh on the mask, but the bodysuit is spot on to what I’d look for in a new Spider-Man look.
Rachel: 6. The logo is super sharp, and the exposed feet and hands were a good thought (in some areas–see Conor’s comment about fingerprints), but points off for the skull face, the exposed stitches are just silly, and there’s something vaguely pajama-y about the whole thing.
Chris A.: 6. I can’t un-see the skull mask now that Josh has pointed it out. Otherwise, this has some strong elements.
Nicholas Malara
Total Score: 45.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 8.5. This could very easily be a 10, but where it falls short (to me) is the addition of too many elements. Take away the spider logo on the head, the extra eyes, and the external webshooters (go traditional and keep this under the glove) and I think you have something here. It’s a great combination of the two iconic costumes (original and symbiote flavors). And the truth of the matter is, I didn’t score too harshly, in my opinion. It’s still a solid design.
Josh: 5. Garish. There’s nothing sleek about this.
Ron. 8. There’s something about this one that I really like. I love the webbing under the arms, I always liked that aspect of the original costume. I really like the white spider logo design. Really my only complaint is the multiple eyes on the mask and the spider on the forehead. Given a mask redesign, this is close to my favorite.
Conor: 5. Red, white and blue works for Captain America but not Spider-Man. The double logo on the head and the chest makes this too busy.
Jon: 7. Needs to be simplified. There’s a really good foundation here, but too much going on – too many colors, the forehead brand can afford to go, and the webbing could probably afford to be the same blue/black as the dark areas. I like this, but I’d like it more if it wasn’t trying to have its cake and eat it too.
Rachel: 6. Jon pretty well nailed what I was going to say, so, I’ll leave it at that.
Chris A.: 6. I love it all except for the mask.
Blair J. Campbell
Total Score: 43.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Josh: 7. I like the lines of this one, and the simplistic reworking of the costume’s traditional webbing. You also can’t go wrong with the black, blue, and white motif. The mask is also strong, in that it looks a lot like something a real smart teenager could whip up. There is something missing that I can’t quite put my finger on though. I want to know what the fabric is, and how it works, and I just don’t.
Vito: 7.5. Take a second and consider the history of Steve Ditko and his two (arguably) most beloved characters, Spider-Man and Blue Beetle. This is what you’d get. I love the concept, but I’m not sure about the execution. I love the inclusion of the pack on the back, and I love that Blair made it into a spider logo.
Conor: 7. I feel like this design does a great job of evoking how creepy the concept of a spider-inspired superhero is. The problem with that is that I don’t know if that’s the best idea for a hero. The backpack is indeed fantastic.
Ron: 5. It’s a bit too dark for my tastes, and the spider-eyes concept on the mask does indeed come off a bit scarier than I’d expect. This doesn’t feel like the friendly neighborhood hero to me.
Jon: 7
Chris A.: 5
Rachel: 5. Cool concept, but I’m really not fond of the actual costume–it seems off-balance to me, and the backpack, while conceptually cool, is both cutesy and kind of alarming in execution.
Toks Solarin
Total Score: 43 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 7. It’s not bad, but it doesn’t seem all that different from the Ben Reilly costume when he ditched the hoodie.
Josh: 6. It’s close to the original, with the same head and everything, and those webshooters look fancy, but they’re exactly the same, yes? Plus, is that an exoskeleton?
Conor: 6. This seems very similar to a past design that I am not remembering right now. The webshooters are too clunky.
Jon: 8. Did he send along an explanation? Because I don’t understand the armor thing. Very much in love with using a non-primary color as the highlight option…
Rachel: 6. The red-on-red looks kind of cool, but it’d be confusing as hell in actual comics. I don’t get the armor, either.
Chris A.: 5
Ron: 5. I really like this one and would score it higher if it wasn’t practically the same design as worn by Ben Reilly in the late 1990s (most notably in the Spider-Man/Backlash miniseries).
Rogan Josh
Total Score: 43 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 7. This is another one with a DIY aesthetic. It looks like symbiote Spidey wearing traditional Spidey Underoos. It’s very simple, but it might be too much so. I like the colors, and my eyes feel entertained by what I see here (is that a weird thing to say?), but it feels more like wrestler Spidey with Crusher than anything else to me.
Josh: 7. There is something very alluring about the realistic simplicity of this one. Needs: cover the face and evoke a spider. Done. I could see someone doing this in real life. The white on the shirt really pops for me as well.
Ron 5. I definitely see the DIY aesthetic, but I think it’s trying to do too much and pull from the past in too many directions. The black and white and blue and red just clashes as not being a complete, together design.
Conor: 7. I love the simple nature of the design but the color scheme is all wrong. Five different colors is three two many.
Rachel: 6. I like the idea, but too many colors, and, honestly, not enough of a costume. There’s a really fine line between kludgey costume and referential streetwear, and I think this falls into the latter camp.
Chris A.: 4
Jon: 7. Related to what Rachel was saying, the problem with having a costume which is basically a t-shirt and jeans and a mask is that Peter Parker’s friends have probably seen him in a t-shirt and jeans fairly often, and it’s not much of a stretch to suggest that they’d recognize the build and shape of the guy even if his mask was on. I like the design a lot, I think it’s pretty impractical from a secret identity perspective …
Corey Lewis
Total Score: 42.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 9.5. I just can’t get over how striking these are, especially the black and white. It’s simplicity is almost not simple at all. All of the elements here just tie together very well.
Rachel: 7. Yeah, the black one really stands out among these. This costume, along with Rosy Higgins’s, is a costume I could totally see a high-school kid putting together. Not sure it’d work for Peter Parker–it’s a little too self-consciously hip–but I dig the overall effect.
Josh: 5. Spider-Man’s older brother wants to kick my ass.
Jon: 7
Chris A.: 7. Corey’s really going for it here with the street-smart wardrobe here but while certain elements (spider logo, shoes) are top-notch, there are bits that need some revisions to hit upon a definitive design.
Conor: 3. Is that a spider web sash? I like this design more in black and white than I do in red and blue.
Ron: 4. This is okay, in red/blue or black, they both work, but they don’t sing Spider-Man to me, rather a hipper attempt at Spider-Man. Not a big fan of hoods.
Stefan Grambart
Total Score: 41 (out of a possible score of 70)
Rachel: 4. That sigil is not a spider. It is an eight-legged ant. The spikes are cool, though. Very carapace-y, if not particularly Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.
Josh: 5. True. Basic spider anatomy must be addressed. He kind of looks like a bad guy.
Rachel: Total bad guy. I’d look at this more as a character redesign than a costume redesign.
Conor: 3. One thing that Spider-Man’s costume should never feature is spikes. Never ever.
Ron: 7. You know what? Take away the multiple eyes on the mask and the spikes and I’m totally digging this look. It has an edge, but not too much to put Spider-Man over to the villainous side, rather a sleek, modern style. But gotta lose the spikes and fix the mask first.
Vito: 8. I’m going to keep it short, because it seems like everyone has hit on everything I would have said. Perfectly acceptable as a 2099 design, but current 616? It’s too aggresive.
Chris A.: 7. The spikes throw off a great design. Also, the piping is nice but some varied line-widths could have tuned this up even more.
Jon: 7
Mat Major
Total Score: 39.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Rachel: 5. Tick-Man. The colors are an interesting choice, and the lines and pattern balance well; the logo and eyes, less so.
Vito: 8.5. I really like this one! The colors take some getting used to, but it reads right to me. The only problem I have is with the hands. For a guy who uses them so much (swing, shoot, punch, climb), they look a little overly complicated. I can’t tell if that’s a pattern or armor (armor just wouldn’t make sense).
Josh: 6. I like the weight of the fabric and the helmet, but the bug eyes and all that beige don’t seem much like a Spider-Man I want to dress up as on Halloween.
Ron: 4. Way too alien in design. When I think of Spider-Man and a kid from Queens, I don’t think of a costume that looks like it came out of a spaceship that just landed. Although, I do like the body portion of the costume, and perhaps with a different color than the cream color accent, and a different mask, it could work.
Rachel: Yeah. This Spider-Man is neither friendly nor neighborhood, and that is a problem.
Chris A.: 5. Call me a color snob, but the beige here sours me on this design. The helmet and the ninja-styled two-toed shoes work for me, but the beige keeps me from really grabbing onto this.
Jon: 6
Conor: 5. I feel like you need to stay in the red/black/blue color scheme for Spider-Man. Anything else seems off, especially when it is earth tone-y. The double eye thing is bugging me. (I‘m sorry.) Change the brown color to a blue or a black and you might really have something here.
Claire Hummel
Total Score: 39 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 7. That’s a lot of red. It’s not a terrible amount of red, but it’s a lot. I like the contrasting blue areas more, and I love the way the spider logos on the front and the back both connect via the mask. I just can’t get past all that red.
Rachel: 6. I like the logo design and placement on the back. I do not like the logo design and placement on the front. The lines are weird, and I question how well they’d read in any scene where he wasn’t standing stock still, facing or full-back to the POV.
Josh: 5. One of the great thing about the original design is the innate and yet impossible to pin down sense of whimsy. In this one, I see an eastern European dancer with no sense of irony. Way too much red.
Jon: 7
Chris A.: 4
Conor: 4. The back is fun and interesting. The front looks like he forgot to zip up. Also, with that collar he probably belongs in the new Justice League. (hey-oh!)
Ron: 6. I like the color scheme, but I think the costume ends up looking too alien-y for me, and it does look like he’s disrobing one costume to reveal another, especially with that come hither pose. That said, I like the feet, I like the arms, just the chest and mask don’t get it done.
Alex Mitchell
Total Score: 37.5 (out of a possible score of 70)
Rachel: 7. I really like this, in large part because it’s such an extreme departure from the established look. This is a completely different Spider-Man than the one we’re used to seeing–really tech-inflected. And how much do I love the way that spider emblem evokes circuitry? I will tell you: very much.
Vito: 7. I like a lot of what’s here, except for the color choices. For such a bold character, the colors seem a little muted. But, I’d give Alex 10 points for those web shooters with anchors alone! Why anchors? I don’t know, but I love the idea!
Jessica: I like the logo and the mask, but I agree with Vito – I’d like to see a bolder color scheme. The belt also seems like an afterthought.
Rachel: I love the palette–and, assuming a we’re talking about a new version of the character, and an equivalent revamp of the book’s art style, I really do think it could work.
Josh: 6.5. If they ever did a Spider-Man Beyond TV series, this is what he could look like. Alex really took the ball and ran with it in terms of re-imagining the design. But in the end, I just don’t think Spider-Man is an autumn. The brown and orange certainly makes me think of a real spider, but I’m not sure I want that.
Conor: 5. There are some great ideas here (like the circuitry emblem) but in the end this might be too radical a departure for my tastes. The brown and orange color scheme is throwing the design out of whack.
Ron: 3. Unfortunately this look really didn’t do it for me. Not a fan of the tech/aspect angle and the costume comes off a bit to techno-sci-fi, which doesn’t really ring true for the character, and the color scheme doesn’t help.
Jon: 5
Chris A.: 4. I want to like this, but it seems like an alternate-reality Spidey where something has changed than something for the classic Peter we know and love.
Paul Milligan
Total Score: 36 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 7. Another one with the exposed fingers and toes, but again, when compared to Anka’s, it shows too much. The other thing that throws me is the use of the two different shades of blue. I know Paul was going for contrasting elements, but I think the red serves that purpose very well. The spider logo is distracting, but I like the 2099-like mask.
Josh: 4: I can’t roll with the tilt.
Ron: 5. Reminds me of a variation of Spider-Man 2099. Definitely need to cover up those feet and hands, but the slight shift in blue color change around the hands and feet threw me off. I dig the diagonal logo.
Conor: 5. I agree with Josh, the tilted logo is a bit much. I also think that simpler is always better with Spider-Man, especially with the color scheme. Two different kinds of blues is one blue too many.
Jon: 5
Chris A.: 5. For some reason, when I saw this I thought “This could be a great Spider-Woman design.” It’s too out-of-field for Peter, but there are some good ideas here for someone.
Rachel: 5. I actually think the diagonal logo could work, but not in this style, nor in that fluorescent red.
Tony Aros
Total Score: 33 (out of a possible score of 70)
Vito: 7. If you look past the cape, it’s a decent design, but that cape seems awkward and…wrong. It works on the third shot, but otherwise, it’s unnecessary. I’m not even sure a cape can do what it’s doing in the second pose. Past that, I really like the second tiny spider logo hanging from the first one, but it’s getting real close to spider-crotch status.
Josh: 4. If you have nothing nice to say….
Rachel: 4. Too much, too busy, wrong colors, and the stuff going on on the boots reminds me of exposed muscle. I like the spider zipper pull and the logo placement, though–actually, there are a lot of individual elements of this that are cool, but together, they’re just way, way too much.
Conor: 4. In addition to spikes, if there is one thing that Spider-Man’s costume should never feature it’s a cape.
Chris A.: 4
Ron: 3. I get where he’s coming from, with the webbing, but yeah, Spider-Man doesn’t do a cape and I don’t think we can get over that.
Jon: 7. If we were judging entirely on “The type of costume Steve Ditko might have designed”, then this one takes it hands down. Love the cape and the spider-on-a-strand zipper pull.
Rich Yanizeski
Total Score: 24 (out of a possible score of 70)
Rachel: 3. The scalloped edges were a brave choice. Not a good choice, necessarily, but brave.
Vito: 6. I don’t want to judge too harshly, but I can’t see this as a design that Steve Ditko could have come up with. I’m not making that the basis of my judging, although it’s in my head. It looks like something beyond what a teenager could create. That’s not saying that it’s bad; I really like the web shooter utilization. But I’m not sure if what I’m looking at is Spider-Man or a spider-themed character (which admittedly makes me look like an idiot for saying, but that’s how it came out).
Josh: 4. It’s both mighty and morphin. But yes, certainly bold. Also neon glowy tubes on your wrist is a bad call for the fighting of crime.
Ron: 3. I like that this is a bold direction and different take on the costume, and if it was a different character, it might work, but it’s just not Spider-Man. There’s too much going on, between the helmet, the belt, the center circle thingy and the wrists. But I do appreciate the risk taking.
Jon: 2. This is audacious as hell and bold and dynamic, but it very much looks like one of those off-concept Spider-Man action figures, like Scuba Suit Spider-Man or Astronaut Spider-Man. It’d be very neat for an alternate universe Spidey, or a future Spidey, or even a single story with a specific application, but as a redesign I don’t see it fitting in.
Conor: 2. When I think of Spider-Man I think of sleek and aerodynamic. He swings through the city, knifing through the air with the greatest of ease. This costume evokes none of that feeling. It’s a good design, just not for Spider-Man.
Rachel: That nails the problem, I think–it’s not just that it’s busy, it’s that it’s clunky. And Spider-Man should not be clunky, ever.
Chris A.: 4. I appreciate the planning gone into this, but the individual design elements are clashing with each other worse than Spidey and the Sinister Six.
