Superheroes without costumes

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Superheroes without costumes are comic book characters who enter into situations typically associated with superheroes but wearing normal clothes instead of colorful skin-tight costumes, masks, and symbols.

Though rare, comic books have featured plainclothes superheroes since their inception in the 1930's. Sometimes they are Batman-esque private Investigators or mystics, such as Doctor Occult or Zatanna. More superheroes without costumes have appeared in the last 20 years. The trend is especially common among characters in the Vertigo Comics imprint.

A superhero without a costume still usually wears some form of sigil that serves as his or her distinguishing marker while maintaining normal attire. For examples, John Constantine has his trenchcoat, Zatanna her tuxedo, Elijah Snow uses white suits, and Starman's leather jacket features a Zodiac star on the back and a small star badge on the front. The Question wears a sports coat, trench coat and fedora to go along with his mask and paranoia. The Fantastic Four's uniforms were the first signs of non-traditional superhero costumes, but they soon evolved into more traditional superhero clothing.

Superboy (Conner Kent aka Kon-El) although he used to wear a costume similar to Superman's, began wearing jeans and a black t-shirt. Like other plain clothed heroes, he had his S-Shield on the front. In the One Year Later event, Conner's lover, the Wonder Girl known as Cassandra Sandsmark wears jeans and an orange-coloured t-shirt with a golden eagle on it. She adopted the plain clothed look in his memory.