Most gratuitous superheroine costumes

Respecting comics as legit literature is a relatively new thing, and it's been a battle made especially difficult by the distractions caused by ladies in skin-tight costumes, designed specifically to titillate. Absurd outfits have often overshadowed some pretty great stories being told between comics' illustrated pages, but it's hard to blame publishers for using the tools at their disposal to appeal to their most profitable audience. Still, there are certain superheroine costumes that undeniably go over the top, so here are a few ladies who would have just as many powers even if they covered up a bit.

Power Girl
DC Comics' superheroine is probably the most notable example of a costume that seems unnecessarily revealing, with a huge panel cut out right in the ol' decolletage region, exactly where most male heroes wear their icons of power. DC tried to explain away the gaping costume hole by saying that the outfit is intentionally designed to distract male villains, but Power Girl already has all of the powers of Supergirl, so "distraction" seems like overkill. DC's recent New 52 redesign covers her up a bit more, but also managed to ruin the DC Universe, so no ground really gained there.

Phantom Lady
Gratuitous costumes aren't really just a modern issue, since they date back all the way to the 1940s, with the introduction of Phantom Lady, who uses the power of "black light" to make herself invisible. Phantom Lady is a pretty solid expression of '40s pin-up art, which is revealing without being exposing. Her design is undoubtedly part of a cultural movement that includes great artists like Vargas, but her publishers also attracted the attention of Fredric Wertham, an anti-comics crusader who cited Phantom Lady specifically as dangerous to the soft and squishy minds of children because of her weird, handkerchief-like costume.

White Rabbit

Despite DC Comics making inconsistent efforts at making comics slightly less ridiculous, they also regularly make some pretty unfortunate missteps. One of those stumbles is White Rabbit, who isn't even important enough to have her own Wikipedia page, and who is not to be confused with Marvel Comics' character of the same name. White Rabbit appears out of nowhere to antagonize Batman, can somehow split into two people at once, and looks like she's working at a strip club. There's no reason for any of it, and even Batman doesn't seem all that interested in seeing how it plays out.