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Sidekicks

Dan Santat (Goodreads Author)

4.12 · Rating details · 8,547 ratings · 494 reviews

INTRODUCING: METAL MUTT! STATIC CAT! AND... FLUFFY!?!

Captain Amazing, hero of Metro City, is so busy catching criminals that he rarely has time for his pets at home. He doesn't even notice when they develop superpowers of their own.

So when he announces that he needs a sidekick, his dog, hamster, and chameleon each decide to audition. But with each pet determined to win the ...more

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Paperback, 218 pages

Published July 2011 by Arthur A. Levine Books

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Average rating 4.12 ·

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· 8,547 ratings · 494 reviews

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Nov 14, 2018 Calista rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2011, genre-comedy, z-dan-santat, genre-fantasy, bage-middle-grade, comics-graphic-novel, myth-folktale-fable, want-to-own, award-various, i-misc

Superhero Pets!

An aging superhero neglects his pets. They all want to be his super sidekick and they work together as a team to prove their worth.

The art is vibrant and colorful. The characters are great fun. I like Fluffy and Shift. I think my nephew could handle this story. I'll see if I can read it to him. This is a wonderful comic story for a new and young reader or anyone who enjoys comics and superheros. Dan weaves a nice little story out of the genre.

I don't think there are any sequels w ...more

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Apr 20, 2011 Betsy rated it really liked it

When I was a kid I got to read comics that I had no business putting my grubby little hands on. You see my grandmother had carefully left all my dad’s old Superman, Superboy, Metal Men, X-Men, etc. comics intact so that when we went to visit I’d root through them and read ‘em until there was little left but a pile of yellowed pulp. The result of this research during my early childhood is that I’m one of the rare grown women you might meet with a working knowledge of late 50s/early 60s comic book When I was a kid I got to read comics that I had no business putting my grubby little hands on. You see my grandmother had carefully left all my dad’s old Superman, Superboy, Metal Men, X-Men, etc. comics intact so that when we went to visit I’d root through them and read ‘em until there was little left but a pile of yellowed pulp. The result of this research during my early childhood is that I’m one of the rare grown women you might meet with a working knowledge of late 50s/early 60s comic books characters culled directly from the source. So I know my superheroes. Oh yeah. And what’s more, I know my superhero pets. I know my Krypto the Super Dog from my Gleek. You bet. This is lucky since 2011 appears to be the year of the super pet. First off, you have the launch of the DC Super-Pets books, taking this old characters and giving them a visual update not too far off from what you might find on The Powerpuff Girls (Mojo Jo-Jo not included). In tandem with this release comes a new graphic novel from Dan Santat. Sidekicks (not to be confused with the Jack Ferraiolo title of the same name) follows the adventures of some supercharged pets as they set out to prove their worth to their similarly spandexed master. It's one of those books that you just feel good reading from start to finish. Gorgeous stuff.

Captain Amazing is the defender of Metro City. Nuff said. Yet in recent years, he’s been feeling the weight of his age. It’s time for the Captain to look for a new sidekick. He hasn’t had one, really, since his cat Manny ran away from home. As of now, that leaves Roscoe the dog, Fluffy the hamster, and Shifty the chameleon. Both Roscoe and Fluffy are determined to get the job, and Fluffy recruits old Manny to help him train. Yet even if he does manage to make an impression, that may have to take a backseat to an old villain who is back in town with sinister plans. And when Captain Amazing fails to be up to the job of defeating the baddie, it falls to his pets instead to save the day.

I like how tight the plotting of this book is. For example, at one point during the tale Fluffy is handed a peanut so that he’ll remember something important. Later, the plot demands that he use that same peanut to save the day. See that? Santat sets ‘em up and knocks ‘em down. There’s a really enjoyable order to the way this story falls out. One person I spoke to felt that the flashback scene to when Manny the cat was a member of the household should have gone at the beginning of the book, but I disagree. I like how Santat doles out his information piece by piece. The more the characters learn, the more you learn. I also like how one character’s surprising discovery that he has powers is telegraphed throughout the book (though, this being a comic, it's not something kids are necessarily going to spot).

Of course, it’s the art that’s amazing. It’s not difficult to see why this book took a whopping seven years to write when you note the care and attention Santat has lavished on each and every panel. Kids do love and prefer full-color GN offerings, and in this Santat does not disappoint. “Vibrant” is probably the best way to go about describing his style. Some folks have a basic familiarity with a pen that serves them well, but have a hard time transferring their illustration style to the graphic novel format. Panels alone can confound even the most accomplished artist. Santat’s advantage here may or may not be that he has worked in the world of animation, at least a little. Visual storytelling is a difficult art to master, but storyboarding your own plots can help. What it can’t do is teach someone how to shake up points of view, panel sizes, and more. Mr. Santat handles such visual games with aplomb. He even works in a couple little instances of mild manga-related techniques for spice. As a result, the book on a visual level leaves a lot of its competitors in the dirt.

The book is oddly lacking in one staple of the superhero genre, though: The origin story. Generally speaking, folks like to know why a person or critter has a power. The interesting thing about Sidekicks is that at no point do we hear where any of these powers came from. This causes the reader to wonder how common superpowers are in this world. Does everyone have them? Just a few folks? When Captain Amazing has auditions for a sidekick, does everyone who comes have powers? It’s probably due to the limitations of space in a graphic novel that we don’t have answers to these questions. So it is that we only know by the end of the book how two of the pets discovered their powers. The rest of the world is a mystery.

This title is being released at the same time as a different book with the same name, Sidekicks by Jack Ferraiolo. Of course, Ferraiolo’s story is a middle grade chapter book about a good sidekick and an apparently evil sidekick. It’s interesting, in that light, to wonder why Santat didn’t indulge in an evil sidekick or two of his own. Or at least ONE female character (though Shifty could easily be a . . . nah). That said, Sidekicks does stand apart from the usual superhero genre. Kids get tired of seeing the same old, same old all the time. The fact that super pets have never been turned into a CGI animated feature before is probably more a matter of time than anything else. A suggestion, Hollywood? Why not go with Sidekicks? Fun, a bit of visual splendor, with enough honestly funny moments and angry hamsters to satisfy even the toughest of fans. The sole regret? That when this book hits my library shelves I’ll have to find a way to answer all those kids who immediately demand of me “Where are the other comics by Dan Santat?” Patience, kids. Let’s take one good thing at a time. And this is, above and beyond anything else, a very good thing.

For ages 8-12.
...more

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Jun 05, 2011 Mary Ann rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 4th, boys, animals, 5th, adventure, parents-press-2013, 3rd, graphic-novels, 6th, superheroes

Superheroes, pets, friends loyal to the end, and illustrations with enough POW to knock your socks off - it's a winning combination for the new graphic novel Sidekicks, by Dan Santat. I predict that young kids are going to beg their parents to read this aloud to them, and older ones are going to read it again and again, relishing in the action, the exciting story, and the multi-layered details. If you have a child who loves superheroes or comic books, definitely check this out.

Roscoe the Dog and Superheroes, pets, friends loyal to the end, and illustrations with enough POW to knock your socks off - it's a winning combination for the new graphic novel Sidekicks, by Dan Santat. I predict that young kids are going to beg their parents to read this aloud to them, and older ones are going to read it again and again, relishing in the action, the exciting story, and the multi-layered details. If you have a child who loves superheroes or comic books, definitely check this out.

Roscoe the Dog and Fluffy the Hamster might seem like ordinary pets, but don’t let appearances deceive you! They’re the loyal pets of Captain Amazing, protector of Metro City, hero far and wide. But Captain Amazing is having trouble these days, and needs to bring in a new sidekick. He’s determined not to have his own pets serve as a sidekick because of a painful experience years back, and now he just wants to spend time at home. He’s even bought a new pet, a chameleon he names Shifty. But these pets are just as determined to prove their own worth and become Captain Amazing’s new sidekick. So they set out to fight crime throughout the city and learn how to use their own superpowers.

With exciting writing and dramatic illustrations, Dan Santat has created a graphic novel that will have kids hooked from beginning to end, reading it again and again. This story will appeal to both girls and boys because it’s got just the right blend of action, adventure, friendship, humor - all with just the right level of fighting to make the story exciting but not too violent. One child told me it’s “an edge of the page sort of book,” with cliff-hangers that hook you in and make you want to keep reading.

This is graphic novel writing at its best, with interesting details in the illustrations, snappy dialog and compelling characters - a story kids will want to read many times, discovering new story elements each time they read the story. It will pull kids in with bold colors and humor, but it will immerse them in a well-developed superhero fantasy, with detailed setting, compelling plot, and characters that you care about. This will make a great read aloud for younger kids, or perfect independent read for middle grade readers. ...more

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May 30, 2015 Angelica Garcia rated it it was amazing

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 13, 2018 Kate rated it it was amazing

A very fun and sweet book about a team of animal sidekicks to Captain Amazing, and how they work together to save the day. It makes me want to read more By this author!

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Jun 18, 2020 human rated it really liked it

Shelves: middle-grade, graphic-novels-or-comics

YESS! I REMEMBER LOVING THIS! IT WAS MY FIRST GRAPHIC NOVEL!

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Jun 21, 2016 Sarah rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2016, childrens, graphic-novels

I really liked this. A fun graphic novel with a good story, action-y, comic book-y, with a nice twist. The aging superhero who lives in a regular house was great fun (reminded me of Megamind?) and of course I enjoyed the animal aspect. Pets with an active home life and aspirations of being sidekicks.

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Sep 15, 2014 J.C. Rice rated it liked it

This slowly sets the table for a series that apparently will never be written. Fun at times, but I'm never a big fan of the slow moving Super Hero backdrop stories.
Hope Santat ends up doing a sequel--the characters have some potential and he's a fine artist. ...more

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Mar 15, 2015 Michele Knott rated it really liked it

Shelves: graphic-novel, read-in-2015, 2016-bluestem-award-nominee

Really glad to see this book added to the 2016 IL Bluestem Choice nominations. It will be an easy book to book talk!

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Apr 01, 2015 Ari rated it really liked it

I thought this comic book was exciting. This book is very imaginative.

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Jun 20, 2012 Stacy Ford rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy-animorphism, comic-graphic, kennedy-2012, sequoyah-2013

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Sidekicks is a good graphic novel, superhero story. Captain Amazing is aging and frankly he needs a sidekick. In the past he has recruited one of his pets for this job, but now he refuses to do so.

However, his dog Roscoe, hamster Fluffy and newly arrived chameleon, Shifty are all vying for the job. Throw in the cat that ran away Manny and you have pet superhero comedic mayhem.

This graphic novel is a great addition to any collection. Reluctant readers will clamor to read it.

Literary Quality:
Plot ...more

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Jun 28, 2011 Barbara rated it liked it

Shelves: ncbla

This is a cool story in graphic novel format about friendship among pets and their human companion, who happens to be a superhero named Captain Amazing. But life has a way of taking a toll on all of us, and Captain Amazing (Harry, to his friends)is getting older, slowing down, and in need of a helpful sidekick to bear some of the superhero responsibilities. His ambitious pets decide to audition for the spot despite his reluctance to endanger their lives. Thus, a dog, a hamster, a chameleon, and ...more

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Feb 25, 2012 Ms. Yingling rated it it was amazing

Captain Amazing is getting on in years, but still fighting crime. When he is felled by exposure to a peanut, he uses his time off to look for a side kick to help him out. His pets think that they can help-- Roscoe has been trained as Metal Mutt, Fluffy the hamster has a cool outfit, and Static Cat, who ran away from home after an altercation with Roscoe, has been out on his own as The Claw. Captain Amazing also brings home a chameleon, Shifty, and the pets all attempt to fight crime and prove th ...more

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Feb 06, 2012 Joella rated it really liked it

Shelves: juvenile, graphic-novel

There is a hero who works to save the day. No, he is not Superman. He is Captain Amazing. However, he works so hard saving the day that he isn't at home with his pets all that often. Also take into account his peanut allergy and the incident with a nut cart and he is home-bound for a little while. The incident with the peanuts causes Captain Amazing to wonder if he should hold tryouts for a new sidekick. All of his pets decide they would like to give the hero business a try. Of course there is a ...more

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Sep 17, 2011 Mari rated it it was amazing

Shelves: juvenile, cats, dogs, adventure, pets, second-grade, graphic-novel, superheroes, third-grade, fourth-grade

Captain Amazing (aka Harry) is taking some time off to recover from a peanut allergy induced illness. He's getting older, and realizes it is time to look for a new sidekick - and 3 of his pets want to audition for the job! But first, they need some training. Little do they know that their beloved master is in danger. The action focuses on the pets (dog, hamster, chameleon, and cat), but I loved Harry. Even though he has super powers, he's just a regular guy who gets wrapped up with work and miss ...more

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May 14, 2015 Valeria Ambriz rated it it was amazing

I liked the book and how the cat,hamster,dog,and the camileon rescued Captain Amazing at the end of the book and how the cat wanted to be a super hero so that Captain Under pants could take him to the auditions of the Side kicks and the Cat reached his goal and he then was proud of him self the hamster riscing his life to fight the other Man who was faking to be a Captain and he wasn't he just wanted to get revenge on Captain Amazing. ...more

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Sep 27, 2018 Matthew K. rated it it was amazing

I think the book was awesome because it had pictures and really good scenes of action.

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Jun 23, 2011 Donalyn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ncbla-committee-2012-books, graphic-novels, 2011-nerdy-book-club-award-nominees

Reminiscent of classic superhero comics, this graphic novel, by the creator of The Replacements, tells the story of Amazing Man's pets who decide to audition to be his sidekick. This will be a big hit with kids and adults alike. ...more

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Dec 22, 2011 Carol rated it really liked it

Shelves: graphic-novels-comics, fiction-children-s

This was really cute! It's about a superhero who is so busy fighting crime that he doesn't have time for his pets. They all go in disguise and apply to be his sidekick so they can spend more time with him. Love it!!! I hope there's going to be a sequel. ...more

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Sep 15, 2015 Diego Herrera rated it it was amazing

this book was about a little mouse and he wanted to become a super hero like his owner and the mouse asks the cat if he can teach him and the cat used to be the side kick of a super hero but he ran away and a dog he used to train took his place i reccomend this book to alejandro

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Sep 12, 2017 Lena rated it it was amazing

Shelves: books-i-read-w-son, graphic-novels

This book was so cute I can't even... :,(

It was sweet and fun and a bit sad. A great book about overcoming differences and working together...a superhero story for animal lovers of all ages.

I loved it. ...more

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Aug 09, 2011 Colby Sharp rated it it was amazing

Shelves: graphic-novel, fantasy, mr-schu-and-mr-jonker-s-11-top-20

First read 8/2011 Superhero sidekick pets=Awesome

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Oct 18, 2014 Steph rated it really liked it

Kids will eat this graphic novel up! Such vivid colors and characters. :-)

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Mar 25, 2015 Galilea Estrada rated it it was amazing

I really like this book because its about superheros that want to saved persons life, and the city there living on there are animals superheros that was funny. And its a really good comic book.

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May 14, 2015 Mariacervantes rated it it was amazing

This book IS funny and adventures like it says they are sidekicks. They some times fight but it is funny. I recommend this book to people that like funny books.

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Jun 11, 2015 Isabella Cuevas rated it it was amazing

I loved it because i love animals.

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Jul 22, 2015 Ryan M. Hanna rated it liked it

I am glad I finally read this classroom favorite! Really enjoyable.

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Jan 15, 2016 M Grant rated it liked it

Shelves: ya-fiction, thanks-erin, fantasy, sci-fi, graphic-novel, kids-books, crime, brain-candy, friend-recommendation

An endearing story about superheroes... Villains... Family... Pets... And more.
I enjoyed the art and the story.
Am going to be reading this one to the girls at bedtime this week,

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