Something like - ooh, say - Black Canary's costume?
On the left: a fan-created costume by the brilliant cosplayers at Gotham Public Works. On the right, a changed-for-no-good-reason costume for the presumably big budget Smallville.
I mean seriously - if you say 'Black Canary' you think 'long blonde hair' (and if you're me, 'long blonde wig') and 'fishnets'. (Yes, I admit they got that bit right.) But you sure as hell don't think 'Stupid domino mask apparently applied using mascara' or 'Short blonde buzzcut'.
Why Hollywood, why? When you were so damn close? Sheesh.
More fugly pictures are at Comics Continuum, if you want to see - the episode, 'Siren', airs in the US on February 7th, and will be at your favourite 'torrent site shortly after.
Oh, I agree whole-heartedly, but "Smallville" is well known for recreating their heroes and villains, making them less comic bookish.
ReplyDeleteTwo words why they changed the hair: Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana is a hugely popular teen pop-star right now, based on a Disney tv show about a "normal" girl and her secret pop-star life. To keep everyone from knowing it's her, she wears a long blonde wig while on stage. The first time I watched it with my daughter, I thought, "Wow, it's just like Black Canary, except she's a singer instead of a super hero." Lol
If they did that on Smallville, everyone (the comic illiterate at least) would say they copied Hannah Montana. Lol
Here's another picture of that cosplay Black Canary. I ran into her at DragonCon a few years back. Verrrry nice!
http://www.closetmonster.net/dragoncon/canary.jpg
C'mon, I think a Hannah Montana comparison is stretching it a bit.
ReplyDeleteBut hey, I could live with the short hair - just WTF is up with that 'mask'? Hell, I could even live with an actual mask... but what is she trying to do, join an Adam Ant tribute act?
(Showing my age. And my Englishness.)
Did they do Black Canary on that short-lived Birds of Prey show? Can't recall....
Yeah, I don't like the make-up domino mask either. If they want to do a mask to hide her identity, a molded domino or even a scarf with eye-holes would look better. Does the dark make-up even DO anything?
ReplyDeleteI vaguely recall them having Black Canary on "Birds of Prey", or rather, someone that was "supposed" to be her. They didn't really have costumes either, just sexy, tough-looking street clothes.
Why do they take ideas with so much potential and then kill 'em?
Because of hype, controversy, and the attempt to garner titanic surges in the amount of viewers watching their products.
ReplyDeleteMB
Considering the success of "Birds of Prey" and other shows like it, I'd say their attempts fell flat. Lol
ReplyDeleteThankfully, "Smallville" has been the exception. I enjoy watching the series. Not just 'cause I'm an old comic geek, but the writing is pretty good.
You're only as old as the mask you wear, CM. ;)
ReplyDeleteOkay, I have to tell you guys that the Smallville costume is actually a combination of ALL of Canary's previous costumes since her initial appearance.
ReplyDeleteEven the make up mask has a basis in the comic books as Canary's first several appearance featured a domino mask as a part of her costume.
The short hair is a bit of a stretch, but they simply did the reverse of how Dinah appeared in the 1980s and early 90s. Dinah had short black hair and Canary had long blonde hair. They merely switched that, and they switched that in order to make it harder to connect Dinah Lance to Black Canary.
I think you guys are focusing on the wrong changes. The costume isn't that bad, but Smallville made several changes to some of the characters basic stats like the family legacy of Canary I and Canary II or the fact that on the Ville Dinah is a Conservative Talk Show Host and NOT a florist.
If you were looking at those kinds of changes I would be inclined to agree with you. But the costume is not COMPLETELY wrong as it is based on several different versions of Canary's costume through the years.
Personally when I watched the episode I was too caught up in Alaina Huffman's performance to really be too bothered by the changes. You can argue the costume and Smallvilized history all you want, but I don't think Smallville could have casted a more perfect actress to portray Dinah! Alaina is amazing in the role!