WARNING: The following contains spoilers for the story "Human Colors" from Superman: Red and Blue #1, by Dan Watters, DaNi and Dave Sharpe, on sale now.
As one of the world's original and most iconic superheroes, Superman's costume is one recognized worldwide, undergoing slight cosmetic changes over the years to reflect the times. But throughout all the changes made to Superman's costume, one thing has stayed relatively consistent for generations: the ubiquitous red and blue color scheme that makes up the iconic outfit. And while there have been numerous explanations for Clark Kent's choice in colors for his super-suit, the anthology series Superman: Red and Blue provides a poetic rationale behind Superman's choice in costume colors.
As Superman combats a supervillain that is out to steal colors from the DC Universe, Lois Lane recalls what her husband told her about the color scheme of his costume. The red is meant to symbolize love, including a deep love for humanity and the planet Superman protects. It also represents fire and the righteous anger sometimes needed to save the day. Finally, it also represents the blood that links all living things. Blue is meant to symbolize life-giving elements like water and the power of music but also the melancholy that balances that crimson-tinged anger. And just as red symbolizes blood, so does the blue, the color of blood when it flows through the veins and arteries where it truly belongs.
Upon his debut, Superman's red-and-blue color palette was meant to evoke the American flag with the globe on the cusp of entering the Second World War. As Clark Kent's teenage years were explored, along with his original superhero persona as Superboy, the iconic costume was attributed to being crafted from the Kryptonian blankets he was wrapped in when he first landed on Earth, similarly possessing Superboy's nigh-indestructible endurance. This origin was revised after the Crisis on Infinite Earths, with Martha Kent creating a costume from terrestrial materials for her son that reflected both patriotic sensibilities and a nod to the swashbuckling heroes that Clark admired as a child, right down to the red boots.
Different multimedia adaptations would provide varying accounts to the origins of Superman's costume, often receiving the costume from the Fortress of Solitude or Kryptonian vessels as a parting gift from his parents. Other variations would bring a black color scheme to the costume, explained in the comic books as a Kryptonian regeneration suit to help Clark recover after his death at the hands of Doomsday. Black flourishes were added to the costume during the miniseries Kingdom Come, meant to symbolize the Man of Tomorrow in mourning after a cataclysmic battle irradiated much of Kansas resulting in Superman emerging from a self-imposed retirement.
Superman has the most iconic costume in the world, recognized by millions all over the globe. With the Man of Steel starring in a new anthology comic book series with color playing a major stylistic theme, one of the short stories in the inaugural issue focuses precisely on why Superman sports the very color scheme the book is named after. And while this explanation may not be entirely canonical within the main DCEU, it does bring humanistically poetic sensibilities to the classic look as Superman boldly flies into the 21st century, saving the day as ever in his instantly familiar red and blue superhero outfit.