10 Most Iconic Superhero Symbols

In all its forms, in all its variants, one fact remains the same. The Superman 'S' symbolizes hope and salvation for humanity. Only natural that modern Superman fiction straight up says that the 'S' emblazoned on the suit is a Kryptonian symbol that literally means 'hope'.

And, of course, it's a fantastic part of the design of Superman's suit. The red and yellow helps break up what would otherwise be an all blue costume, going along well with the red shorts. In fact the suit looked worse without the red shorts because now there isn't as much red in the costume.

Superman's costume is a house of cards - you can't change all that much without the whole thing falling apart. Which is also why not a lot has changed about the symbol. And when something is changed (like the black background on the Kingdom Come symbol) it's something immediately noticeable and deserving to be pointed out.

Bottom line, this is the most famous superhero symbol of all time. Accept no substitutes.