Van Allen Plexico

Sentinels: When Strikes the Warlord, by Van Allen Plexico, is the first in a series of superheroic novels. Overall, the story is entertaining, and has plenty to catch the imagination of the superhero enthusiast, as well as the more casual reader.

I haven't read the rest of the novels in the Sentinels series, but this one seems to contain just about every piece of superheroic plot you could squeeze into a narrative. There are superheroes and supervillains, of course, some with inborn powers, some with technological enhancements, some with magical abilities, and some who don't know where their powers came from. There are cosmically-powered aliens, and extra-dimensional conquerers, and parallel worlds, and even a research base on the moon. There's a hero with an unknown past (and, oddly enough, an unpronounceable name), and a neophyte full of energy and self-doubt, and a brash, womanizing mercenary, and a genius billionaire with the kinds of political connections that can only really be believable in a story of this type. There's intrigue, and mystery, and behind-the-scenes machinations. And, as is de rigeur for anything that draws on North American comic books for its inspiration, there's a heck of a lot of fighting.

Plexico obviously loves comic books, and obviously loves the stories they sell. In many ways, this novel is a comic book (rather, multiple issues, on the order of about 3 dozen). In fact, aside from the prologue, my initial reaction to the beginning of the book was akin to that of an uninspired mag from the early 90's with so-so, copy-cat art. Quite honestly, I was concerned I was going to have to slog my way through 58 chapters of the stuff, and was not certain I would make it all the way.

Fortunately, Plexico seems only to have suffered from the typical malaise of the first-time novelist, who hasn't had the advantage of a seasoned editor to make him go back and rewrite the weak parts. Over the course of the novel, the writing improves, the characterization and dialogue becomes stronger and more original, and my engagement in the story as a whole increased significantly. There are parts of this book I will enjoy reading again, but the first few chapters are none of those parts.

This doesn't mean it's not worth reading those chapters. As with any good book, the beginning should be as crucial to the plot as any other part of the story, and When Strikes The Warlord stays true to that rule. Just remember that there are better times ahead.

In fact, the rest of the book is worth reading regardless of its weak beginning. As the author matures in his craft, the middle gains value accordingly, leading up to the massive third act, which rivals both The Return of the King and The Deathly Hallows in breadth and depth of action. The climax of the story is excellently reached, and the denouement is mostly satisfying.

Speaking of denouement, I should mentioned that the story left me with a lot of nagging bits of plot that never got resolved -- such as a mysterious box that earns a mention right from the get-go, and ends up as a major bargaining chip near the end, yet the origin and capacities of which are never revealed, even if only within the context of how this artifact ended up in the story in the first place. Presumably, this story was written as part of a longer arc (as shown by the last four chapters, which practically shouted "To be continued..." in giant glowing letters), and so these little points are all set-ups for things that will happen down the line.

(Here's another: all the German-themed bad guys. I really would have liked a better explanation for that one, but in a way the author also gives it to us as an "in" joke, since even the titular Warlord wonders the same thing.)

Overall, the story is entertaining, and not a waste of time. Aside from the beginning, there were a few other elements that didn't quite rub me the right way, such as:

> Ultraa's name (How do you pronounce that, anyway?)

> Francisco at the beginning

> The Warlord speaks English, and reminds me too much of Doctor Doom

> Too much action, not enough writing in between (strictly a personal preference, mind you)

> Esro's cavalier attitude towards killing bad guys ("Meh. He's dead.")

In addition, I want to complain a bit about Ultraa's powers. The descriptions of how they operate, and their limitations, seemed occasionally inconsistent. Ultraa possesses invulnerability, specifically limited to when he is flying. Yet there were numerous times in the story where Ultraa, not flying, was hit, very hard, but still came out of it pretty much intact. Also, I found his whole super-speed ability to be inconsistently applied (or perhaps just underdescribed).

Of course, there are also a number of touches to this story that I really enjoyed or appreciated. Plexico obviously spent a great deal of time and effort on this novel, and the following are examples of where this really shines through:

> Esro's discomfort inside his armor (with the helmet on)

> Cavalier's stupid use of the armor against the flaming bad guy (Kabaraak)

> Francisco at the end

> How The Warlord handles Kabaraak

> Ultraa's introspection (didn't feel too maudlin)

> How Pulsar gets her name

> How Esro deals with Infantry (interesting idea)

The absolute best example of Plexico's writing and plot, unfortunately, is also one that should not be revealed for fear of spoiling it for the reader. Suffice it to say that the single element of When Strikes The Warlord that dropped the scales in favor of a positive experience from this novel, for me, involved the growth and eventual fate of one of the heroes, and the impact on, and response from, one of the other heroes on the team. In fact, I loved this part so much, it's taking a significant amount of restraint to keep from discussing it in great detail - but I don't want to spoil it for anyone else. It's that good.

On the whole, Sentinels: When Strikes the Warlord, by Van Allen Plexico, is a good book, with a fun story to tell. Despite its occasional weak spots, there's more than enough adventure and superheroics to keep even the casual superhero fan interested, and true fanboys (and girls) will likely foam with glee.