Meet the Heroes . . . and the Villains, Too!

January 1, 2017
This board book based on Disney's PJ Masks series has only one purpose--to sell the TV show, app, toys, action figures, and even costumes based on the stereotypical characters. Color-coded tabs with a headshot of each character let young fans quickly find their favorite's page. The "heroes" wear bright red, blue, and green, reminiscent of past popular superheroes, while the "villains" all wear darker colors. (Evil Romeo with a stripe of white in his black hair wears a brown lab coat; Luna Girl's outfit is a clingy black tunic and gray leggings; Night Ninja is blue/black all over, and his sidekicks are deep purple.) The heroes' mild exclamations ("Fluttering feathers!") contrast with the villains' threats and name-calling. The heroes' alter egos have talents similar to the animals they mimic. Connor becomes Catboy--quick, with acute hearing; Amaya swoops in as sharp-eyed Owlette; Greg becomes Gekko, who can change colors and has a superstrong grip. The villains' character flaws are spelled out: Romeo wants to rule the world, Luna Girl steals, and Night Ninja suffers from "overconfidence." With the exception of Night Ninja, all characters are light-skinned. As with most battles between good and evil, the bad guys are actually more interesting, which might be why the creators spend so much time trying to convince their young readers that the villains won't win. A pedantic marketing tool. (Board book. 2-4)

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