Why do American super heroes like Superman and Batman wear briefs on the outside of their uniforms?

That's the pair that stays clean and has thier real name sewn in by thier mother "just in case"

Because a thong just wouldn't cut it with the image. Soon, maybe, soon! One never knows with that Hollywood crowd! :-)

The outside briefs are extra in case someone they save has messed their pants. They have a pair underneath as well.

They do this so people like you, would ask a question like this.

Publicity.

Probably because in their hurry to save the universe and everything in it, they jump up out of bed, not having time to turn the light on, and therefore not noticing they put their briefs on the outside of the uniform. I think.

It's not at all clear that they actually dress like that. I don't recall many comics which actually showed them slipping out of their slacks and loafers and into their tights in this much detail. Modesty prevails.

Cartoon characters do wear tight-fitting garb to show off their musclular build. The strong contrast between colours is done for visual effect, but does not necessairly indicate that the garment is in two parts (i.e., shorts over tights). It could be a one-piece garment using different coloured fabric for the legs and the briefs.

Or perhaps the artists were thinking of medieval codpieces at the time.

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Re "why draw attention to the nether regions"...
I am reminded of those Charles Atlas and related muscle-building adverts in comics. He would appear in trunks, showing off his muscular build. Nobody thought that he was half-naked. Instead, they thought you could avoid having sand kicked in your face the next time you went to the beach. Or, at least, that's what the muscles in those ads were intended to mean.

Superhero comics were originally targeted to children, not adults. Young children rarely think about "nether regions" unless they are prompted to by adults. They are far more interested in kapows, biffs, and capes that help you fly. Adults, however, do notice such things and subsequently try to read all sorts of meaning into it. Such creates that peculiar rage about a "homosexual agenda" being forced onto children by roaming packs of evil liberals. Poor Tinky-Winky never had a chance as he was condemned to a fairy grave by all those radical-right paragons of virtue. Remember, boys don't wear purses or hold hands like that queer, yellow Sponge-Bob. Their taste runs more to American icons like Superman, who, ironically, was invented and drawn by a Canadian, Joe Shuster, and who wears ... oh no ... those potentially revealing over-underpants!

Today, I suppose these same folk would brand those Charles Atlas adverts as part of the queer campaign.

They are just that confident. My question is why are they in tights at all?

To hide their private parts.
Dangling testicles would ruin the image of a super-hero.

They can get all the babes easier that way.

To keep their pantyhose/tights up.

Is it only American superheroes?

To keep their jewels safe?

Superman was designed in the 40's and "Strongman" shows were still around.
Superman was dsigned after the classic Side Show Strogman.
Batman just followed Superman's design.

Share your answer...

what a question :-O
But of course everyone knows it's because they engaged into a bet with Chuck Norris.
Chuck Norris won, of course.

i would suppose because it helped early comic book artists to control the anatomical symmetry.
remember, the rat of comic books was a much simpler media once upon a time with much less attention to anatomy.
the trunks help to break up the body from one mono color blob into a more distinct human form

see the differance?
now we have much better definition on our super anatomy so monocolor is more acceptable

Superman was designed in the 40's and "Strongman" shows were still around.
Superman was dsigned after the classic Side Show Strogman.
Batman just followed Superman's design.

Superman was designed in the 40's and "Strongman" shows were still around.
Superman was dsigned after the classic Side Show Strogman.
Batman just followed Superman's design.

I think it was an easy way to "break up" the uniform on a two-dimensional drawing. A lot of the early readers of these comic strip superheroes where young kids, and it was not cool for men to wear tights.

Fact from fiction, truth from diction. Because they were pro wrestlers before they figured out it was all fake and decided to use their powers for something real.

What do European superheroes wear....OH WAIT there ARE no European superheroes! LOL

Since the outfits are so skintight, a solid, unbreakable color would actually give the impression of being nude. Also, since muscles are in such detail, artists would need to give that region of the body the same attention if they were to make the loin-piece out of the same material.

At the same time, the groin tends to be the most sensitive part of a man's external anatomy. Wouldn't you want an extra layer protection there as well?