![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
transemacabreTitle: Enemies: A Love Story
Author: Missi (email: nichol_storm@yahoo.com)
Fandom: Marvel Comics' The Sentry
Pairing: The Sentry/The Void (Robert Reynolds)
Spoilers: All over the place, mostly for the Jenkins and Lee Marvel Knights: Sentry mini, the Jenkins and Romita Jr. Civil War: Sentry mini, and Bendis' New Avengers series.
Warning: This manifesto is very image-heavy and not at all dial-up friendly. Sorry.
"I love you, golden guardian. I promise I do. Please let me live."
The Golden Guardian of Good and the Black Heart of Evil
Let's begin at the beginning. Of course, the Sentry and the Void didn't begin as most characters do; but we'll manage somehow.
Let me introduce you to Robert Reynolds. Young Robbie was a freshman in college, an "above average mind lapsing backwards into a self-induced haze of narcosis to combat [his] schizophrenia". One day Robbie found -- and stole -- a formula from his science professor that turned out to be an early version of the Super-Soldier Serum (a variation of this serum created Steve Rogers, aka Captain America). Ingesting the serum, Robbie gained powers far beyond those of normal men -- "the power of a million exploding suns", flight and super-strength, among other abilities. He became the Sentry, the Golden Guardian of Good, humanity's only hope, one of the earliest and most powerful superheroes of Marvel Earth.
The brighter the light shines, the darker the shadow cast. The same serum that manifested the Sentry from Robbie's heroism and idealism also manifested the Void from Robbie's hatred and alienation. The Void is the balance to the Sentry. For every good deed done at the Sentry's hands, an evil deed is done by the Void. The perfect dark villain for the perfect golden hero. The same man who is humanity's greatest hero is also it's greatest enemy.
The Sentry realized that the only way the world would be safe from the Void was to wipe the Void and the Sentry from the world's (and Robbie's) memories. So he enlisted the help of two of Marvel's premier superheroes, Doctor Strange and Mister Fantastic, to erase everyone's memories. For all intents and purposes, the Sentry and the Void had simply never existed.
Let me introduce you to Robert Reynolds. He's married to a woman named Lindy, living quietly in suburbia. He's thirty pounds overweight, he drinks too much, and he's not dealing too successfully with his agoraphobia or his schizophrenia. Then one night he awakens and remembers something amazing... can you keep a secret?
Robert Reynolds is the Sentry. And the Void. But almost no one remembers this except for him. And there's a very good reason this secret has been kept from him, why Doctor Strange is desperate that no one remember the Sentry or the Void ever existed -- because the clash between them could destroy the world.
Despite all the best attempts of Doctor Strange, Mister Fantastic, and the Sentry himself, the genie is out of the bottle. The Void is loose. But so is the Sentry.
So Retro(activity)
But wait, I hear you say. I've been reading comics for YEARS, maybe DECADES, and I've never heard of either of these characters. If they've been there since the beginning, well, where have they been?
The Sentry is a character that was retroactively placed into the Marvel universe. The Marvelverse -- the home of superheroes such as Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Avengers, and many more -- is a well-established universe dating back to the early days of publisher Timely Comics in the 1940s. The Sentry was created by Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee as a superhero who had simply been "forgotten" and now rediscovered. So you see, the Sentry and the Void did not begin linearly as most characters do. Their introduction is just a "reawakening" of their existence from the very beginning.
Images Speak Louder than (sub)Text
The Sentry and the Void are alter-egos of the same man, Robert Reynolds. They share a genesis from the same troubled mind, and between them they share Robbie's troubled soul. They are counterparts, each mirroring the other. The Sentry resides in the Watchtower, soaring above the vibrant heart of New York City. The Void lurks in the Hidey-Hole, hidden in the deepest recesses of Antartica.
Everything the Sentry loves, the Void hates. He threatens Lindy, Robbie's wife, and attacks and tortures the Hulk, the Sentry's friend. The brighter the Sentry's heroism, the darker the Void's villainy.
The Sentry confronts the Void, but is confronted himself with a harsh truth: that he is the abberation. Robbie Reynolds always preferred being the Void, deep down inside. Worse still, the Sentry's blood is the only known source of the Super Serum that made him what he is. If this serum were to be given to normal people, it could create six billion Sentries and six billion Voids, each one battling the other for all time, a conflict that could destroy the universe. Once more, by simply existing, the Sentry is his own worst enemy.
Finally, after this revelation, the Sentry decides to deal with the Void, once and for all. Seizing the Void, he flies them into space, to banish the black Void into the burning heart of the Sun.
There is some ambiguity in these panels. Did the Void or the Sentry initiate the kiss? Was it a desperate act by the Void to save his life? Is this a "Judas kiss"? I believe that the Sentry initiated this kiss; he was holding the Void by the neck, he was the one in control. Both the Sentry and the Void have their eyes closed, as though lost in the moment. Then the Sentry tears away and flings the Void into the Sun, roaring with fury.
The Love Story: The Twist(ed)
The Sentry and the Void represent two opposing, but equal, forces warring within every human: the desire to do good, and the desire to do evil. They are the eternal conflict of man pitted against himself, the good and bad sides of us all given physical form. Like Janus, they are "two-faced", linked together as inextricably as light and dark, hate and love.
I am fascinated by this pairing because there are so many sides to it. Just as The Sentry is the classic superhero story with a metatextual twist, so Sentry/Void is the classic protagonist/antagonist love-hate relationship taken to another level. Just as most superheroes don't hate their villains enough to kill them, neither do most superheroes love their villains enough to kiss them. The Sentry and the Void are ultimately about the balance between the good and evil sides of human nature: for each action (or emotion) an equal and opposite reaction. If the Sentry hates the Void, then his opposite number the Void loves the Sentry in return. Or it may be that the Sentry and the Void hate themselves, and thus love one another.
The Sentry and the Void defy the normal classifications of a relationship. They are enemies who love and hate one another with equal passion. The fact that they are both men pales into insignificance when one considers they are the SAME man. Not quite (tw)incest, not merely masturbation. I'm not quite sure what you'd classify their relationship as, just that it's probably illegal in at least 48 states. But don't take my word for it. I believe![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
rabican sums it all up quite nicely:
I don't think crack can get that much more efficient in a mainstream comic, you know?
Hero/villain slash: CHECK.
Fourth wall breakage inherent in the character: CHECK.
Stan Lee alliteration: CHECK.
Old school art: CHECK.
Incest and/or masturbation, depending on how you define it: CHECK CHECK CHECK.
Snuff: CHECK.
Can(n)on Fodder
Hooked? Intrigued? Creeped out? Want more? It's all right, I understand. It's good to go to the source -- The Sentry trade paperback, written by Paul Jenkins with art by Jae Lee, is an excellent place to start. The dynamic is furthered in the followup, Civil War: Sentry, an 8-issue miniseries by Paul Jenkins with art by John Romita Jr. The Sentry also appears as a major character in the New Avengers series.
Fandom(ination)
Marvel Comics fandom, aside from the X-Men, is still very nascent on the Internet. There is not much fanfiction or fanart. In the last few years, however, livejournal groups have been popping up for fannish celebration of our favorite heroes and villains. The Sentry and the Void, being latecomers to the scene, have a very small representation. As far as I know, my own ficlets Prompt: Romance and Love Letters are the only Sentry/Void fanfics in existence. But there's always room for growth. Interested parties are invited to hang out at![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
marvel_slash
Author: Missi (email: nichol_storm@yahoo.com)
Fandom: Marvel Comics' The Sentry
Pairing: The Sentry/The Void (Robert Reynolds)
Spoilers: All over the place, mostly for the Jenkins and Lee Marvel Knights: Sentry mini, the Jenkins and Romita Jr. Civil War: Sentry mini, and Bendis' New Avengers series.
Warning: This manifesto is very image-heavy and not at all dial-up friendly. Sorry.
"I love you, golden guardian. I promise I do. Please let me live."
The Golden Guardian of Good and the Black Heart of Evil
Let's begin at the beginning. Of course, the Sentry and the Void didn't begin as most characters do; but we'll manage somehow.
Let me introduce you to Robert Reynolds. Young Robbie was a freshman in college, an "above average mind lapsing backwards into a self-induced haze of narcosis to combat [his] schizophrenia". One day Robbie found -- and stole -- a formula from his science professor that turned out to be an early version of the Super-Soldier Serum (a variation of this serum created Steve Rogers, aka Captain America). Ingesting the serum, Robbie gained powers far beyond those of normal men -- "the power of a million exploding suns", flight and super-strength, among other abilities. He became the Sentry, the Golden Guardian of Good, humanity's only hope, one of the earliest and most powerful superheroes of Marvel Earth.
The brighter the light shines, the darker the shadow cast. The same serum that manifested the Sentry from Robbie's heroism and idealism also manifested the Void from Robbie's hatred and alienation. The Void is the balance to the Sentry. For every good deed done at the Sentry's hands, an evil deed is done by the Void. The perfect dark villain for the perfect golden hero. The same man who is humanity's greatest hero is also it's greatest enemy.
The Sentry realized that the only way the world would be safe from the Void was to wipe the Void and the Sentry from the world's (and Robbie's) memories. So he enlisted the help of two of Marvel's premier superheroes, Doctor Strange and Mister Fantastic, to erase everyone's memories. For all intents and purposes, the Sentry and the Void had simply never existed.
Let me introduce you to Robert Reynolds. He's married to a woman named Lindy, living quietly in suburbia. He's thirty pounds overweight, he drinks too much, and he's not dealing too successfully with his agoraphobia or his schizophrenia. Then one night he awakens and remembers something amazing... can you keep a secret?
Robert Reynolds is the Sentry. And the Void. But almost no one remembers this except for him. And there's a very good reason this secret has been kept from him, why Doctor Strange is desperate that no one remember the Sentry or the Void ever existed -- because the clash between them could destroy the world.
Despite all the best attempts of Doctor Strange, Mister Fantastic, and the Sentry himself, the genie is out of the bottle. The Void is loose. But so is the Sentry.
So Retro(activity)
But wait, I hear you say. I've been reading comics for YEARS, maybe DECADES, and I've never heard of either of these characters. If they've been there since the beginning, well, where have they been?
The Sentry is a character that was retroactively placed into the Marvel universe. The Marvelverse -- the home of superheroes such as Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Avengers, and many more -- is a well-established universe dating back to the early days of publisher Timely Comics in the 1940s. The Sentry was created by Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee as a superhero who had simply been "forgotten" and now rediscovered. So you see, the Sentry and the Void did not begin linearly as most characters do. Their introduction is just a "reawakening" of their existence from the very beginning.
Images Speak Louder than (sub)Text
The Sentry and the Void are alter-egos of the same man, Robert Reynolds. They share a genesis from the same troubled mind, and between them they share Robbie's troubled soul. They are counterparts, each mirroring the other. The Sentry resides in the Watchtower, soaring above the vibrant heart of New York City. The Void lurks in the Hidey-Hole, hidden in the deepest recesses of Antartica.
Everything the Sentry loves, the Void hates. He threatens Lindy, Robbie's wife, and attacks and tortures the Hulk, the Sentry's friend. The brighter the Sentry's heroism, the darker the Void's villainy.
The Sentry confronts the Void, but is confronted himself with a harsh truth: that he is the abberation. Robbie Reynolds always preferred being the Void, deep down inside. Worse still, the Sentry's blood is the only known source of the Super Serum that made him what he is. If this serum were to be given to normal people, it could create six billion Sentries and six billion Voids, each one battling the other for all time, a conflict that could destroy the universe. Once more, by simply existing, the Sentry is his own worst enemy.
Finally, after this revelation, the Sentry decides to deal with the Void, once and for all. Seizing the Void, he flies them into space, to banish the black Void into the burning heart of the Sun.
There is some ambiguity in these panels. Did the Void or the Sentry initiate the kiss? Was it a desperate act by the Void to save his life? Is this a "Judas kiss"? I believe that the Sentry initiated this kiss; he was holding the Void by the neck, he was the one in control. Both the Sentry and the Void have their eyes closed, as though lost in the moment. Then the Sentry tears away and flings the Void into the Sun, roaring with fury.
The Love Story: The Twist(ed)
The Sentry and the Void represent two opposing, but equal, forces warring within every human: the desire to do good, and the desire to do evil. They are the eternal conflict of man pitted against himself, the good and bad sides of us all given physical form. Like Janus, they are "two-faced", linked together as inextricably as light and dark, hate and love.
I am fascinated by this pairing because there are so many sides to it. Just as The Sentry is the classic superhero story with a metatextual twist, so Sentry/Void is the classic protagonist/antagonist love-hate relationship taken to another level. Just as most superheroes don't hate their villains enough to kill them, neither do most superheroes love their villains enough to kiss them. The Sentry and the Void are ultimately about the balance between the good and evil sides of human nature: for each action (or emotion) an equal and opposite reaction. If the Sentry hates the Void, then his opposite number the Void loves the Sentry in return. Or it may be that the Sentry and the Void hate themselves, and thus love one another.
The Sentry and the Void defy the normal classifications of a relationship. They are enemies who love and hate one another with equal passion. The fact that they are both men pales into insignificance when one considers they are the SAME man. Not quite (tw)incest, not merely masturbation. I'm not quite sure what you'd classify their relationship as, just that it's probably illegal in at least 48 states. But don't take my word for it. I believe
rabican sums it all up quite nicely:I don't think crack can get that much more efficient in a mainstream comic, you know?
Hero/villain slash: CHECK.
Fourth wall breakage inherent in the character: CHECK.
Stan Lee alliteration: CHECK.
Old school art: CHECK.
Incest and/or masturbation, depending on how you define it: CHECK CHECK CHECK.
Snuff: CHECK.
Can(n)on Fodder
Hooked? Intrigued? Creeped out? Want more? It's all right, I understand. It's good to go to the source -- The Sentry trade paperback, written by Paul Jenkins with art by Jae Lee, is an excellent place to start. The dynamic is furthered in the followup, Civil War: Sentry, an 8-issue miniseries by Paul Jenkins with art by John Romita Jr. The Sentry also appears as a major character in the New Avengers series.
Fandom(ination)
Marvel Comics fandom, aside from the X-Men, is still very nascent on the Internet. There is not much fanfiction or fanart. In the last few years, however, livejournal groups have been popping up for fannish celebration of our favorite heroes and villains. The Sentry and the Void, being latecomers to the scene, have a very small representation. As far as I know, my own ficlets Prompt: Romance and Love Letters are the only Sentry/Void fanfics in existence. But there's always room for growth. Interested parties are invited to hang out at
marvel_slash
