7. Superman Returns
Worn by: Brandon Routh, Tom Welling (Smallville finale)
Superman Returns is the often-forgotten always-underappreciated legacy sequel to Christopher Reeves' films. The movie that was good and successful but apparently not enough of either to warrant a sequel. And that was a darn shame, because Brandon Routh was absolutely brilliant - and, again underappreciated - in that role.
It's no easy feat carrying on the legacy of those earlier Superman movies, but Routh did a great job of it. He also looked amazing in the suit that was designed for the movie. And speaking of the suit, this one was, in many ways, the first modern Superman suit (to actually make it onto screen), as it ditched all previous designs and did something completely different.
It was thicker than its predecessors, with a rubber texture that complemented Routh's muscles (while also featuring little creases and nuances to add to them). It was also a lighter blue with a longer, more maroon cape (that flowed rather lusciously, let's be honest). There was a House of El emblem on the belt, which looked far sleeker than all previous versions, and the symbol on the chest wasn't sewn in; it was a separate piece, fixed to the suit perfectly. The only issue was that it was a little small, which occasionally saw it getting overlooked in the midst of all that blue. Resizing it ever so slightly would have made it look much better.
Nevertheless. Routh looked amazing in the suit, and so did Tom Welling when he briefly wore the top in the Smallville finale.
6. Superman and Lois (season 2)
Worn by: Tyler Hoechlin
The second season of Superman and Lois wasted little time in introducing us to some changes on the show; specifically the new suit that the Man of Steel would wear throughout it.
For the most part, it was the same as its predecessor, but there were some subtle changes. The biggest one was that there was significantly less padding this time around, with the suit finally finding a healthy balance between Hoechlin's season 1 and Supergirl looks. The shoulders were less bulging as a result and this allowed the action scenes to look far more natural. It did leave the body of the suit looking a bit wrinkled at times, but for the most part it was an improvement.
The other change was the House of El symbol, which was now sharper, less rounded, and boasting more of a dull yellow backdrop instead of the orange yellow one on its predecessor. I was mixed on the look of this one, because even though it was slightly more accurate, it looks more faded - and even dirtier - than the previous one.
The more comic-accurate bright red boots took a bit of getting used to, but boy do they look good.
Another well-earned high placement for this generation's definitive Superman but the best was yet to come.