There's not much that comic book movie fans agree on, but it seems everyone hates Captain America's costume from 2012's The Avengers. Something was lost in translation between World War II and the present day, but attempts were made to right the ship.
In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Steve Rogers wore his "Stealth Suit" from the comics before donning his old WWII gear. 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron then gave him a look that would carry through to the rest of his MCU appearances.
However, Ryan Meinerding, Character Designer, Creative Director, and Marvel Studios Head of Visual Development, tried to make things right the year before. In the newly released Marvel Studios: The Art of Ryan Meinerding, the artist confirmed the overhauled suit - which combines his 2012 and 2015 costumes - was cut from The Winter Soldier.
Here's an excerpt from the must-read book which is now on sale:
"When Captain America: The Winter Soldier's producer Nate Moore told Ryan Meinerding they wanted to give Steve Rogers the super soldier 'Stealth Suit' from the Marvel comics (designed by Marko Djurdjevic), the artist was excited-but also worried. 'It's a cool costume, but it doesn't have a cowl or helmet, and I knew we could improve on the helmet from Marvel's The Avengers,' says Meinerding."
"Kevin Feige agreed that it needed a redesign. 'That was the biggest challenge for me. I was supremely motivated to get the helmet right.' In the first presentation meeting, Meinerding's suit design-from the neck down-was approved. But there was originally an additional Cap costume for the film. Meinerding shares, 'The back view [opposite, bottom right] was for an alternate suit that was cut from that movie. When Cap came back from the Lemurian Star mission and was in the Triskelion, he was gonna have this updated Avengers suit. So originally, he was not in the stealth suit at all times.'"
As you can see below, this is a significant improvement over what Chris Evans' Star Spangled Avenger wore in The Avengers. However, there's arguably still something a little too simplistic with that midsection which doesn't work as well as what we'd ultimately see on screen.
"It’s my personal favorite Marvel movie that I was a part of. It’s not just for the movie itself but the experience," Evans said of Captain America: The Winter Soldier earlier this year. "The first film, I was so nervous. You know what you’re stepping into and as a result you’re playing defense and you’re playing not to lose."
"When ‘Winter Solider’ came around, we were playing to win. And it’s the first movie with the Russo Brothers," he continued. "We were taking more risks, and the character felt more fleshed out. It was one of the more satisfying experiences I’ve had in my Marvel run."
Check out this unused design from Captain America: The Winter Soldier below.