While walking around on Fifth Avenue in Park Slope last night, I happened upon the place you see above: Brooklyn Superhero Supply. A new storefront, this one seems to have gone up overnight. It's, well, damn cool. And rather unbelievable.

Which is not to say that unusual storefronts are anything new to the slope, but this one's quite a standout. As it was pitch black outside at the time, there was little that could be seen in the place; which I don't think is open yet. Some globes, and a few capes. It's rather hard to believe that someone could pay Park Slope rates for a storefront with a place like that.

A quick google search reveals that the entire thing is a project by 826NYC, a writing lab, tutoring kids 6-18 in writing skills. As they say on their site:

Students who visit the lab at 826NYC will first walk through the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company, which serves as our storefront. As the name says, we will be a supply store for superheroes in need of capes, masks, utility belts, grappling hooks, and whatever else their crime fighting tasks call for. Visitors will also be able to read books, magazines, and student publications on display or explore the mysterious contents of the store, before passing through the secret passage to the more serious activities within the tutoring center.

Seems like a hell of a noble endeavor. I just wish that as much thought, creativity, and money went into everything for kid's education these days. This has got to be the cleverest thing I've seen in ages. Made my night.

Oh, and don't forget to turn out for the The 1st Annual 826NYC Book Fair and Superhero Skills Contest on July 23rd-25th!