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| The Entertainment Review |
| By: Chelsea Cain & Marc Mohan Publisher: Chronicle Books |
A long time ago someone decided that a man in tights would be the best person to stop the evil villains of the world.
It wasn’t long before people all around the world began to idolize the idea of the superhero. They loved the idea of
saviors that were flying, leaping and webbing their way into the people’s homes and hearts through fantastic stories
and eventually films. In the new book, “Does This Cape Make Me Look Fat?” authors Cain and Mohan do a great
job of reminding readers why superheroes are appealing to begin with. However, readers need to be warned that
this book doesn’t offer an in-depth discussion on the psychological appeal of superheroes in the general; instead
The book is done in a comic book style which will appeal to anyone who has ever thrown on a cape, even if it was
only their mother’s red tablecloth, and gone “flying” through the back yard with their friends defeating the evil of the
world. From the first page the authors make it very clear that this is a book for superheroes about superheroes.
They say, “If you are reading this book then you have already confronted the biggest hurdle on the path to self-
actualization: admitting to yourself that you need help. Perhaps your teammates held an intervention. Perhaps an
errant duplication ray created an exact copy of you, with the opposite personality, and you were stunned to discover
that your friends liked the copy more than they liked you.”
Chapter One starts of right in the heart of being a superhero by analyzing the importance of a superhero’s name. In
order to make the right impression on the general public, heroes must have the right name. Where would some of
the world’s best superheroes be if they didn’t have their famous names like Superman, Spider-Man and The
Flash? However, heroes need to ensure that they steer clear of the names that sound evil. In order to keep from
becoming too intimidating, heroes must stay as far away from scary words in their name, like Massacre, Fang, or
Napalm. Once heroes have figured out the perfect name that will strike fear into the hearts of evil-doers, it is time to
find a sidekick.
Chapter Two, Getting Along With Your Sidekick, provides helpful tips for keeping the relationship between heroes
and sidekicks strong. However, what happens when the one reading the book is actually the sidekick? Chapter
Three offers up advice for sidekicks and remind them that the sidekick role can lead to great opportunities.
Other chapters offer advice on working in teams, the result of sexism, understanding a nemesis, costumes, body
image and more. With a variety of humorous illustrations and a vast amount of self help guidance for struggling
superheroes, this is a very original book. This is a great read for any comic book fan, or anyone who has ever
dream of being a superhero.
It wasn’t long before people all around the world began to idolize the idea of the superhero. They loved the idea of
saviors that were flying, leaping and webbing their way into the people’s homes and hearts through fantastic stories
and eventually films. In the new book, “Does This Cape Make Me Look Fat?” authors Cain and Mohan do a great
job of reminding readers why superheroes are appealing to begin with. However, readers need to be warned that
this book doesn’t offer an in-depth discussion on the psychological appeal of superheroes in the general; instead
The book is done in a comic book style which will appeal to anyone who has ever thrown on a cape, even if it was
only their mother’s red tablecloth, and gone “flying” through the back yard with their friends defeating the evil of the
world. From the first page the authors make it very clear that this is a book for superheroes about superheroes.
They say, “If you are reading this book then you have already confronted the biggest hurdle on the path to self-
actualization: admitting to yourself that you need help. Perhaps your teammates held an intervention. Perhaps an
errant duplication ray created an exact copy of you, with the opposite personality, and you were stunned to discover
that your friends liked the copy more than they liked you.”
Chapter One starts of right in the heart of being a superhero by analyzing the importance of a superhero’s name. In
order to make the right impression on the general public, heroes must have the right name. Where would some of
the world’s best superheroes be if they didn’t have their famous names like Superman, Spider-Man and The
Flash? However, heroes need to ensure that they steer clear of the names that sound evil. In order to keep from
becoming too intimidating, heroes must stay as far away from scary words in their name, like Massacre, Fang, or
Napalm. Once heroes have figured out the perfect name that will strike fear into the hearts of evil-doers, it is time to
find a sidekick.
Chapter Two, Getting Along With Your Sidekick, provides helpful tips for keeping the relationship between heroes
and sidekicks strong. However, what happens when the one reading the book is actually the sidekick? Chapter
Three offers up advice for sidekicks and remind them that the sidekick role can lead to great opportunities.
Other chapters offer advice on working in teams, the result of sexism, understanding a nemesis, costumes, body
image and more. With a variety of humorous illustrations and a vast amount of self help guidance for struggling
superheroes, this is a very original book. This is a great read for any comic book fan, or anyone who has ever
dream of being a superhero.
