Over the years, Batman has come to wear many suits. Typically, each suit serves a different and unique purpose that aids Batman in whatever the task at hand is. Even going beyond how iconic Batman’s classic look is, many of these suits have solidified their place as fan favorites. However, the Dark Knight has also had some fairly ridiculous outfits over the years. While they are typically created for a purpose, some of them actually serve no purpose at all. Furthermore, some of them are so strong that they should have been seen more often, but weren’t. To look back at some of Batman’s biggest wardrobe flops, here is our list of the 10 most useless Batsuits ever.
10 Superman Suit
In actuality, this suit is incredibly useful. After Superman is without his powers for a certain period of time, Batman decides to build a suit that closely mimics the Man of Steel along with his abilities. As a result, many people believed that Superman wasn’t actually absent from Metropolis and that he was still out there making the world a better place. Considering how Bruce made a form fitting suit that resembles Clark’s abilities so well, it makes you wonder why Bruce never used the suit again. Having abilities like this to aid him in Gotham would drastically improve Batman’s own progress. Alas, the suit only made a single appearance. While it certainly had the potential for much more, Batman’s Superman Suit ultimately feels like a waste of resources in the end.
9 George Clooney’s Batsuit
While Clooney’s Batman is most remembered for the prominent nipples on the suit, the thermal suit is actually the one that proved to be more useless. After the team figures out Mr. Freeze’s plan, they upgrade their suits to accommodate the conditions. However, the suits prove to be basically useless, as they are never seen to have any use during the film’s final scene. Audiences are told that the suits serve a purpose, but that purpose isn’t actually seen later in the film. Even though the suit is a cosmetic improvement from the first one Clooney wore, the practicality offers nothing new.
8 Jim Gordon’s Batsuit
Towards the end of the New 52, Jim Gordon actually donned a Batsuit of his own after the Dark Knight vanished along with the Joker. Most readers know Gordon’s suit as the “Bat-Bunny” suit. However, this suit of armor is actually not the main topic in this case. Along with the armor, Gordon received a skin-tight, all black suit with a yellow Bat emblem. However, everyone knew that Jim Gordon was the new Batman, meaning that hiding his identity was pointless. Furthermore, the suit offered very little in terms of actual protection for him. The armor did most of the physical work for Jim, leaving some to wonder why he needed a suit of his own in the first place.
7 Stan Lee’s Batman
Stan Lee’s approach to the Dark Knight is definitely one of the stranger looks at the character. The character design has Batman looking more like Man-Bat if Man-Bat looked a bit more like a Bat. Though Bruce Wayne wasn’t in the suit in this case, this is still one of the worst and most useless batsuits ever. Not only was the suit impractical, but it had little other functions to it. The cape couldn’t make him fly, there was no utility belt for gadgets, and it seemed to offer no extra protection. While Stan Lee is certainly known for his work at Marvel, it is probably best that no one remember his work with the Dark Knight.
6 Two-Face Batman
During the Battle for the Cowl storyline, Batman’s death left a power vacuum in Gotham. While Dick Grayson would eventually come to assume the mantle, several other Gotham residents attempted to seize the cowl. One of those residents, surprisingly, was none other than Harvey Dent. Two-Face had actually pieced together his own version of the Dark Knight’s costume that looked as bad as it was impractical. Though the suit succeeded in capturing the twisted nature of the villain, it, along with many other suits on this list, felt unnecessary and offered very little else to its wearer. Thankfully, Harvey wouldn’t end up in the cowl, thus putting an end to his horrendous suit.
5 Knightfall
After Bane famously broke the Dark Knight’s back, leaving him paralyzed, Jean-Paul Valley assumed the mantle of Batman. With a new suit and far more brutal tactics, Jean-Pan proved to be a far worse Batman than Bruce had hoped for. Valley’s Knightfall suit is famous for its unique, yet dated design. While it isn’t the most visually appealing, it also offered very little else. Theoretically, the suit was supposed to help Jean-Paul in his war against crime. However, he was an incredibly skilled fighter to begin with. For all the tech and gadgetry on the suit, it didn’t really seem as though he needed it to begin with. For as bad a Batman as Jean-Paul was, it wasn’t the suit that made him brutal, but rather his own methods. For as iconic as the suit is, it really didn’t offer a whole lot for Batman.
4 Tactical Armor Batman
The Justice League (2017) movie definitely had a lot of flaws and plot points that didn’t make much sense. One of the more minor ones is in Batman’s change from the suit he wore in Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), to the tactical armor in the moments leading up to the team’s big confrontation. While an explanation is given for the suit change, viewers can’t help but wonder how relevant the Tactical suit actually is. In the final battle of the movie, Batman’s movements don’t appear to be boosted or assisted in any way. Furthermore, the suit strongly resembles the one he was wearing prior, with only a few notable changes. Overall, the suit change and the suit itself simply just come across as useless.
3 Rainbow Batman
Most people recognize Batman’s infamous array of brightly colored Batsuits. Likewise, the colors eventually culminated into the ultimate suit, known as Rainbow Batman. While the suits were never intended to have the most useful properties, they actually did their job effectively. When Robin’s arm was broken in a fight, Batman believed that criminals would be able to connect him to Dick Grayson. So, in order to redirect the attention off of Robin, Batman donned a different colored suit before going out on patrol. While the suits technically did their job, they didn’t really offer anything else aside from the distraction. Technically speaking, the suits were no more effective than Batman’s original outfit, making them one of the more useless designs Batman has ever made.
2 Zebra Batman
Zebra Batman is another ridiculous Batman suit that the Caped Crusader has donned over the years. If the suit actually had anything to do with the powers Batman gained from it, it would actually be very effective. After fighting a villain, Batman finds himself with the ability to control magnetic fields, much like Magneto. However, the thing that granted him this ability, for some reason, also altered his suit into the zebra pattern, though the appearance of the suit had nothing to do with Batman obtaining his powers. While seeing Batman with powers of his own was certainly interesting, seeing the Zebra suit was totally unnecessary in more ways than one.
1 Zur En Arrh
This suit not only looks incredibly stupid, but also serves no real functions for Batman. Originally, the Batman of Zur En Arrh was an interdimensional version of Batman. In more modern times, author Grant Morrison resurrected the character as an alternate, emergency persona for Batman. After being completely broken, Batman found his way back to Gotham and, using an assortment of rags he found lying around, became the Batman of Zur En Arrh. Considering that the suit is made of actual rags, there is no extra protection to him. There are literally no bonuses to this suit, easily making it the most useless of all of Batman’s suits.
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