What's the big deal with the Sentry?

[babybro]

As a person who loves powerful characters, I was pointed by a friend to check out this character called the sentry. So I did some research it he seemed like Marvel's answer to superman, except the adolf hitler, blond hair blue eye version heh. But I was excited, seeing as people were saying he was the most powerful hero on earth, and rivalled the silver surfer and pheonix in power. But than, I read World War Hulk (Which I loved) and the sentry get's pwned by the hulk? The sentry was supposedly let loosing his power, new york city going on the fritz, and yet he loses. Now don't get me wrong, I love the hulk, perhaps my most favorite character in marvel. But I was expecting the sentry to be in like another class, the cosmic pheonix,silver surfer class?

So it lead me to believe what was the big deal about it. I might have to claim hyperbole on this one.

[Ghost Shark]

Yep, hyperbole. That's his superpower.

[Deep_Sleeper]

Sentry is a measuring stick. If you need to show how powerful a character is, you face him off against the Sentry and then people are instantly supposed to think "WOW! That character is taking on the Sentry. What a powerful character!"

Sentry has become a fodder.

No one even knows how powerful he really is and has very few examples of power that no one has ever seen.

[G. Wayne]

The Sentry started relatively cool, as one of the original heroes, and the most powerful, with an aspect of his powers that was another entity that was just as powerful as he was, but evil. So to get rid of the evil entity, the Void, they decided to make everyone forget about the Sentry, including the Sentry himself. No Sentry, no Void, problem solved.

As a finite story, that was good. But then they brought him back into the Marvel Universe proper, and twisted up his origin six ways from Sunday. Now instead of Reed and Strange working with the Sentry to get everyone to forget him, it was Mastermind working for someone else?! But he wasn't around from day one anymore either, he's a really powerful psychic and just implanted what he thought he did into everyone's memories... or... something... One cool thing though that I think's been retconned away already is that Robert Reynolds became the Void -first-, and then the Sentry came about later.

As for his power level. From what we've been told and periodically lead to believe, he's on the level of the Surfer, if not greater. Paul Jenkins has said he sees the Sentry on the level of Black Bolt. After they brought him back, at first he's beating Terrax and Attuma without even trying. Then it gets.... goofy.
-He holds back for an even fight with Genis Vel
-“pwns” Absorbing Man.
-Needs help against Micheal the super-mutant-power guy
-Gets smacked around by Mole Man's monsters
-Has an even fight with Ultron Girl
-Has a draw/loss against World War Hulk
-Breaks through Dr. Doom's defenses like it was nothing.
-Gets psyched out in matter of seconds, to the point rocketing off planet, by a Superskrull. (And really, what about the Void thing after that?! That happened what, 7, 8 months ago, and there hasn't been jack for progression on the development since.)
-Gets beaten by the ORIGINAL HUMAN FREAKING TORCH!

I don't know, maybe they will finally power down the Sentry, since that seems to be the biggest problem everyone has with him. Maybe the new Blue Marvel will be uber-Sentry 2.0 without the convoluted origin. I like the initial concept for the Sentry, but the character has become a joke now.

[million_suns]

It depends what slant you take at his actions so far.
Sentry has humiliated a herald of Galactus.
He can fly at trans-light speeds (His there and back journey to the sun in both Sentry Reborn, and New Avengers: The Collective).
In New Avengers: Sentry, even the combined might of the FF, Herc, the Inhumans and the Avengers cannot stop his Void persona from running riot. Bob had to have psych help from Emma Frost to shut the Void down.
The Ultron fight? Sentry was phsyically knocked away many times by Ultron, both before, and after Ultron killed Lindy. Sentry just kept coming back, completey unhurt, and seeming to gain in strength each time, like he was cycling up through his gears. And it took a nuclear-powered impact to knock Sentry away from Ultron (Physically move, not actually hurt), other wise he would have torn Ultron to bits. (During which he smacked an alleged Thor-level powerhouse in Wonderman away with the BACK of his hand).
De-masked Doom like he was pulling off an old scab.
The Helicarrier thing.... I won't open a can of worms there, but imagine trying to catch a balloon filled with custard, dropped from house height, with a needle. I know it's not cool to consider real physics in a science fiction world, but unless that thing was moulded out of one shell, the Sentry would have had that thing split over his head - there is a panel with all the monitors, and crewmembers going flying when Sentry catches it, to testify to this fact. Not struggling with the weight, but struggling to balance the whole damn thing around his arm span!
I see WWH as a tribute to Sentry's abilities. On panel, more than once, it was stated that this was the most powerful Hulk ever. Ever ever. Stronger than the Hulk that lifted a multi-billion ton mountain range. And Sentry hovered there, grinning, and let this Hulk hit him, without response, several times. He open handed the Hulk, and his mere energy output was melting the Hulk, who survived only due to his healing factor. The Hulk has survived solar trauma with little or no damage before, but Sentry would've evaporated him, but for said healing factor. All this, on top of the fact that Sentry was too scared to leave the house, until he thought that his old friend might become a killer. (That Sentry then went a little nihilistic was just a way to redeem Hulk, I guess).
Blue Marvel survived a nuke point blank? Check for Sentry, only Sentry disabled at least a half dozen more, at super speed BEFORE the last one got detonated in his face.
His fight with The Collective? He was again, physically moved out of the way. Not remotely hurt, or beaten.
He revived his dead wife (Favourite Sentry feat ever), and looked shocked, and even horrified at himself because he had no idea at all how he'd done it.
The Skrulls admit they can't duplicate his powerset, because nobody knows just how far it will go "Limited only by his troubled mind", remember?
Apparently, in AotS, he moved a whole volcano, under Earth-Gravity conditions.

The problem is that Bendis et al seem to think that crazy = useless with the Sentry. All or nothing. I think he's pretty well written with regards to being a more modern Superman-esque character. They are almost there with him, but he has never had enough on panel time to anything other than cite his mental issues, or run away. Nobody has really tried to tap the psyche of this guy, and how it feels to have the world expect so much from you, and yet really, are unable to count on your powers to even work right.
Thor and Hulk have a lot of classical, and mythical references with which writers can easily transform entire arcs out. Sentry has a very limited supporting cast.
Sentry, as with Blue Marvel, has come along with a special, all powerful villain that only they can hope to defeat - which is why I'm worried that after Blue Marvel's "Will he forgive us and save the day?" arc, they'll struggle, as they have with Sentry, to find a place for a character as powerful as , but far more reliable than Sentry.
Sentry's weaknesses are also his greatest strength. Nobody knows his limits. The Hulk's strength is limitless. The Odinforce can be used any way you want during any given story. Yet Sentry is still hobbled by bad writing.
Sentry would appear to do better in the "new villain every week" style that Age of the Sentry adheres to, in the most traditional of ways.
But damnit! They're so close to making Sentry one of the greats in my opinion! A weak, doubt riddled guy gets the power of God, but struggles to even leave the house daily? It could work. It really could work. The heroes are wary of him, the villains are wary of him, and that alone opens up so many possibilities.

Bit of a rant really, apologies, but I wanted to get all of that out, because people take great delight in ridiculing my favourite character, and I get as offended as any Hulk or Thor or X Men fan. That's my ten cents.

[mackie_boy]

dang million suns, i have the exact same thoughts as you do! although i have not been following the happenings of the sentry as you have(did not read mighty avengers), i have been waiting for someone to handle the character properly.

one moment that i thought he was written well on was the final part of the silent war series, where he held back in getting involved in the battle cause it would result in having black bolt make a move. it was a very decisive and calculated move by the sentry, he even defied ironman's orders. he was not the child like coward overcome by fear or the ironman lackey that just followed orders. he made a decision and stood by it thinking that it was the best course of action. do check it out if you have not read it.

[Expletive Deleted]

Agoraphobic Meta-Commentary Superman is a great hook. Really, that's all there is to it.

[Dagger]

Agoraphobic Meta-Commentary Superman is a great hook. Really, that's all there is to it.
It's too bad they can't write the hook well.

[Dagger]

Agoraphobic Meta-Commentary Superman is a great hook. Really, that's all there is to it.
It's too bad they can't write the hook well.

[million_suns]

This is the thing with metapowers today. In the bygone ages, it was that whole villain a week formula, which kept the megapowered guys bouncing from one adventure to the next.
Comics aren't like that anymore, they are much more of a carefully interwoven, textured and overlapped tapestry of stories.
Which is why the Sentry would HAVE to be this damaged these days. Otherwise comics would be boring - you always know he'd come through in the end.
I like that about Sentry - you'll never know if he can come through.
People like Thor/Hulk have handy charater devices to ensure that at their power level, they don't just single-handedly save the day (After all, let's face it, Thor, at his current power level, should SOLO the Secret Invasion forces, but they can put him in Asgard until the very climax, and nobody blames him for it).
Sentry does not HAVE an Asgard. He has mental problems (Hey, those things are real. Asgard is myth), yet when he flees as a result, people complain about the character? I thought it was a heartbreaking, albeit very logical course of action for someone like the Sentry to take, in case he freaked out completely and wiped the Savage Lands off the map.
It's the reason his character has changed so much from the original Jenkins vision. Sentry would be too perfect otherwise, and his stories would be boring (Instead of just frustrating to the people who hate him, I guess).

[ZeoVGM]

Sentry is a great idea, and Bendis sometimes uses him well, but he needs a solo series with a solid writer to bring out his potential. Give him a nice supporting cast and all that.

He really has the ability to be an interesting Superman, if they do the right stuff with him.

[million_suns]

I'd like to see the Sentry re-located to the moon. The authorities on Earth, in constant fear of the Sentry, manage to convince Bob that he'd be more effective watching over the Earth from the moon. Lindy stays on Earth, and this opens up conflict for Bob, what with Crystal and the Inhumans being nearby (Remember, it was alluded that Bob and Crystal had a thing once).
A good writer could really get into the Sentry's psyche as he dwells on his banishment to the moon. I don't doubt Bob would go, because he IS a do the right thing kind of guy, no matter what, but imagine how bitter he could get, having to watch the world from afar, and still being expected to defend it.

THis character really, really appeals to me - even the irony of his name; The Sentry. A Sentry is a defender, someone who looks out for others. Bob is barely fit to look after himself at times, yet he's trying his best.
And let's not forget. The Sentry is only really a cage to contain Bob's most extreme powers; the Void.

[babybro]

I don't know, as a person who love powerful characters, I was a bit disappointed when he lost to the hulk. People were comparing the sentry to people like superman prime, which is by far one of the most powerful characters I have ever witness, and than he loses to the hulk? The hulk? I don't care how powerful the hulk was, if sentry supposedly possesses the power of a "million suns", no way he should have lost to the hulk. So it's kind of hard to take this character seriously IMO.

[James Conniff]

I hope it turns out his wife WAS killed by Ultron. And Lindy has been a skrull since then. That way 'ol Bob can fly off into space with the rest of the over powered characters and help fight Ultrons army of Sentiet machines. Maybe guest star in Guardians of the galaxy or be a roaming force of good in the universe. But at the same time as he is saving planets the void is bringing distruction to others...maybe even by leading Galactus to planets that can be easily eaten?

If only....sigh.

[Tinder]

Did the Hulk beat Sentry? I thought they fought to a stand still or something of the sort. A nil - nil draw - one all - that kind of thing.

I remember reading about the Sentry on Wikipedia as I was trying to catch up on what has happened in the Marvel Universe in the past 20 or so years, and thought he sounded like a really bad idea. The first book I read with him in was the World War Hulk trade - and I found myself liking him. I loved the whole thing with his Agoraphobia. Brilliant stuff. Since then though, I've found the character has gone up and down in terms of writing, and I can't help wondering with the poster above whether The Sentry would be better working 'off planet' so to speak. Especially as I've just picked up book one of Annihilation and I'm starting to get quite involved with all this cosmic malarky again... :D

[tkitna]

The Sentry is my favorite character and I agree that he's been written poorly more often than not. I'm actually getting tired of Bob running away all the time being worried about his power. The Human Torch episode was the last straw. Lets be honest, Bob could be taking a nap and he shouldnt even notice the Torch if he was even attacking him. Its just stupid and sloppy writing.

[HeckBoy]

I always wanted a "Superman-level/type" hero in the Marvel U, but the Sentry has turned me off to that idea for now. No one seems to know how to write him, and the hubbab surrounding his power levels only serves to intensify the "why doesn't he beat this guy or use this power?"-debate when it comes time for writers to convey some sense of danger/drama presented by a threat.

[Shadd]

Stark's 'Deus Ex Machina' satellite absorbed all the power from Hulk/Sentry in that WWH issue. Bruce Banner punched out a Robert Reynolds (who was in fact relieved that someone cut off his power supply since he was losing control and was afraid he would destroy the planet if he went on much longer). It was hardly a indisputable defeat.

Honestly, I think Sentry should have grabbed Hulk and flew him to one of the outlying planets for an all out smackdown. That would have been awesome. But it wasn't going to happen in a crossover starring Hulk.

[The Scarlet Sapien]

I wish I dug him. Its a bummer but I don't. The power of 500.000.000 exploding suns? How stupid. How do they know its the power of 500.0000.000 exploding suns? Why not a billion or 200 million. one hundred class characters can military press about 100 tons right? How could any of them compete with the Sentry? Well there is his mental condition that makes him afraid to do anything... or use any of his power.(so what good is he?) Mastermind made everyone forget about him? Everyone? Since when is he that powerful.?Everyone forgets Sentry ever existed? Kang? Galactus? The Watcher? Everybody? really?

[Shadd]

The exploding suns thing is more of a Silver Age catchphrase since that is when he was supposed to have originated. Its the typical outrageous exaggeration that was used back then. No one really knows the extent of his power, but hes obviously up there with the heaviest hitters.

Its been stated he has vast psychic potential but most of it is passively used to keep his powers in check. Mastermind merely manipulated this part of him which wiped him from everyones memories, it wasn't entirely Masterminds doing.

[psm]

I don't know, as a person who love powerful characters, I was a bit disappointed when he lost to the hulk. People were comparing the sentry to people like superman prime, which is by far one of the most powerful characters I have ever witness, and than he loses to the hulk? The hulk? I don't care how powerful the hulk was, if sentry supposedly possesses the power of a "million suns", no way he should have lost to the hulk. So it's kind of hard to take this character seriously IMO.

In Sentry's defense Hulk was pretty amped up at the time. By the end of the story he was strong enough to destroy the earth. So it's kinda hard to say exactly at what level the Hulk was at. He was certainly way above his normal story levels.

[million_suns]

With respect to WWH, if you read one of Pak's earlier outlines, he had a far briefer, and much more humiliating cameo planned for the Sentry - Hulk one shots, and breaks every bone in Sentry's body.
The Human Torch thing? I interpreted it as the guy simply getting flamed in the face? Well yeah, of course that's going to throw you off your game a little!
The biggest problem with Sentry, is that if he's not carrying a story, he needs to be pushed aside and faded into the background, thus some pretty random things have happened to Bob in his showings this last year or so.
I have to disagree with one of the posts above though. I DO hope he really, genuinely revived his wife, because, without throwing a single punch, or juggling a single solar system, Bob Reynolds will have shown beyond all doubt that he is the owner of a simply God-like amount of power, a power that he has absolutely zero control over.
Which brings me back to the point I meant to make way before my first rant. In MA 1, Tony suggests that Bob only needs a little more physical and mental training to be an all time great. Where the heck did this training go? Not seen a bit of it!

[million_suns]

He did get psyched out a little too easily by the Torch, didn't he? I'd hardly call it an ass kicking though. Torch simply touched on one of Sentry's greatest fears: Too much power. He ran away.

*sigh* Again.

Bendis has vowed that this will come to a head next year, and that they're (Marvel) laying the groundwork for something we've never seen in a character before. Now I hardly think THAT's possible, but this payoff better be pretty damn good. They wouldn't keep having him show up, just to run away, for no reason at all.

[Camron Amaya]

Marve;'s answer to Superman was and always will be THOR.

[million_suns]

I just can't get excited about Thor. I dropped his current ongoing, because I realised I just do not care about Thor, his beardy friends, his human alter-ego, or his transexual sibling.
Thor, to me, rhymes with bore for a reason.
He does however, have a rich supporting cast, both fictional, and regarding his mythical counterpart, which means there are myriad ways to re-invent him, and keep people coming back for more.
This is, I concede, a massive problem with Sentry, and potentially with Blue Marvel. They have both come in bringing their own "unbeatable to anyone but me" villains, and it's hard to create logical conflict off the back of that.
Sentry's powers, according to the Void (And therefore, Sentry himself) fluctuate with his emotions. Make it worth our while! Have Sentry panic, when Torch starts in on him, and then have Torch lay a few decent punches on Bob, THEN have Torch fly on! I can take Sentry losing like that, because it's within the boundaries of the character!
You can't just have Sentry cut and run, whilst being otherwise perfectly unharmed. It really does make him look like a crybaby to the casual viewer.

[Shadd]

And Thor would have assuredly been bitch slapped just as hard as all the other heroes in WWH had he decided to join in. Pak had to nurture his baby.
WWH is really a poor measuring tool in determining power level feats. But Sentry still had about the best showing of any of the heroes who went up against Hulk in the crossover, without a definite conclusion. I was pretty disappointed with the whole satellite thing, that was such an easy out.

[million_suns]

The satellite didn't drain Sentry though. That went off after Sentry and Hulk powered down, then "Hulk beat Sentry" when Banner chinned Reynolds.

[Shadd]

The satellite didn't drain Sentry though. That went off after Sentry and Hulk powered down, then "Hulk beat Sentry" when Banner chinned Reynolds.

Seriously? From what I remember the satellites 'overloaded' both of them or something and it powered them down and the last punches were thrown directly after. I figured it had drained Sentry, as I can't recall him ever appearing as a normal person fully powered down before. I'll have to go back and reread that.

[million_suns]

Promise you Shadd. They mutually power down after a massive explosion of energy that does no damage to anything, and the Banner lays one on Reynolds, who goes down.

[Shadd]

Yup, your correct. Thats what I get for only reading it once. It was even lamer then I originally remembered *sigh*.

[babybro]

With respect to WWH, if you read one of Pak's earlier outlines, he had a far briefer, and much more humiliating cameo planned for the Sentry - Hulk one shots, and breaks every bone in Sentry's body.
The Human Torch thing? I interpreted it as the guy simply getting flamed in the face? Well yeah, of course that's going to throw you off your game a little!
The biggest problem with Sentry, is that if he's not carrying a story, he needs to be pushed aside and faded into the background, thus some pretty random things have happened to Bob in his showings this last year or so.
I have to disagree with one of the posts above though. I DO hope he really, genuinely revived his wife, because, without throwing a single punch, or juggling a single solar system, Bob Reynolds will have shown beyond all doubt that he is the owner of a simply God-like amount of power, a power that he has absolutely zero control over.
Which brings me back to the point I meant to make way before my first rant. In MA 1, Tony suggests that Bob only needs a little more physical and mental training to be an all time great. Where the heck did this training go? Not seen a bit of it!

LMFAO!! Omg, one punch?! One punch?! LOL!! Oh god that's hilarious. My stomach hurts from reading that.

But on a serious note, I could understand if Sentry was just fighting him regularly.
Trying to gauge his power to make sure he used enough to defeat the hulk, and perhaps underestimated the hulks strength and that's how it came to a stand still . But the sentry was letting loose, he wasn't holding back at all. For someone with "the power of a million suns." Letting lose like he was saying should had wiped out everything. But the hulk still was standing toe to toe. So it can't be the excuse that the sentry was holding back. It's just that the hulk seemed just as strong as the sentry. Than what about his other characteristics? No super speed? If he flies at light speed, no way should the hulk catch him. Mental powers? Energy? All of that did nothing to the hulk. It just doesn't make any sense and that's why dictate that with Sentry supposed power level, he just seems more like hyperbole.

Especially when people were making comparisons of him to superman prime, I was expecting so much, and left heavily disappointed. I'd set superman over the sentry, let alone superman earth 2, and no where near prime.

[K Von Doom]

But Sentry still had about the best showing of any of the heroes who went up against Hulk in the crossover

Full Power Juggernaut IMHO

[Shadd]

Full Power Juggernaut IMHO

Juggs did have a decent showing, but he still got tossed aside, doing barely any damage whatsoever. Also keep in mind that was not written by Pak. Hulk/Sentry somehow 'blew' each others fuse. Bob technically surrendered, afraid he would lose total control over himself. "Ah Bruce, you have to tell me something. Does it always feel this good when you finally let go?.Funny. All these years I tried to calm you down And now, at the end of it all, its me, who can't seem to stop." And after the depowered Banner fist completes its swing into Bob's chin: "Bruce. Thanks." He willingly gave up. Hulk only powered back up when Miek admitted he was the real culprit, thus pissing Banner off even more then before.

Sentry didn't use any superspeed, because, well, then Hulk would be fucked, and that couldn't happen in his crossover

[W.Y.B.A.]

My view was always that Sentry was going full power but the vast majority of it was just busting out aimlessly and only a fraction of it was actually being used on Hulk. Bit like throwing your hardest punch but not bothering to aim it.

[amazoniansrule]

http://i35.tinypic.com/i3gq5y.jpg

[babybro]

Full Power Juggernaut IMHO

Actually I will have to agree with this. Even though it wasn't written by pak. For one, juggernault didn't have any damage whatsoever thoughout the fight when he fully powered, and bragged that he won last time they fault. In that issue, the hulk actually appeared to be struggling once fully powered. That is why he went to smarts, and side stepped the juggernaut unstoppable run as we all know that he can't stop himself even if he tried, when he had a full head of steam. But he definitely wasn't tossed.

They literally looked like they could've battled forever, with the hulk and sentry, not so much. I think the first punch by the hulk drew blood on the sentry. After that, blood was leaking everywhere.

[Shadd]

Actually I will have to agree with this. Even though it wasn't written by pak. For one, juggernault didn't have any damage whatsoever thoughout the fight when he fully powered, and bragged that he won last time they fault. In that issue, the hulk actually appeared to be struggling once fully powered. That is why he went to smarts, and side stepped the juggernaut unstoppable run as we all know that he can't stop himself even if he tried, when he had a full head of steam. But he definitely wasn't tossed.

They literally looked like they could've battled forever, with the hulk and sentry, not so much. I think the first punch by the hulk drew blood on the sentry. After that, blood was leaking everywhere.

Blood was leaking out of both of them from the get-go, not to mention Sentry let Hulk punch him in the face two or three times without even attempting to defend himself, and told him to do it again. Had Pak allowed Sentry to utilize his speed, Hulk would have never laid a finger on him. Sentry also punched Hulk across the city twice, Juggs didn't even budge Hulk. I don't see how thats any less of a struggle then the Juggs/Hulk fight. Sentry also lasted 8 or so more panels then Juggs. Juggs got the equivalent of getting his head dunked in the toilet, except the toilet was the ocean. Hulk and Sentry beat each other into submission, and Bob collapsed, relieved someone prevented his inner void from completely wiping out the planet.

Awesome drawing btw amazonian!

[million_suns]

I don't want to turn this into another Hulk vs Sentry thread, especially a year after the fact.
However: Sentry was getting blood from the Hulk with open palmed shots, and his sheer, undirected energy emission. Without even resorting to super-speed, he did some extreme damage to the Hulk. Hulk was evaporating, and only survived because of his anger, and his healing factor.
This isn't to say that the Sentry should be putting out that kind of power week in week out. Au contraire. People would just hate him even more, for being too powerful (There are, somewhere, whole websites dedicated to the feats of Thor, Juggs, Hulk et al - visit those, and THEN have the temerity to whine about the power level of the Sentry).

Bottom line: Sentry's retcon? Yeah, that's bound to piss off hardcore, longtime readers of Marvel - this new guy coming in with fictional past accolades. Honestly though? The fans of the already established elite are afraid of their own guys being pushed down the pecking order, to cater to the Sentry.

My response to that? Look carefully at merchandise, films, and TV. It's all about Hulk, Cap, Iron Man, Thor, Spidey, Wolvey and the X Men.

Sentry is a niche character, and I suspect they don't have a REALLY long term plan for him, outside of a decade or so. Bendis claims they've been laying some groundwork with the character (AKA having him show up, just to bottle it, and flee), to give a very unique payoff.

How many stories has he ruined, really? Really really? WWH was a decent, if erratic showing (Pak couldn't job his boy in his own backyard now could he?) His MA showings have been beautifully inconsistent, very in keeping with his alleged power set and range. Likewise his showings in Avengers/Invaders, and Silent War. The guy is diseased. Just because there are no physical symptoms, or rashes, or mutations, does not alter the fact. He is sick. Probably until the day he dies (If he indeed can), he is sick.
Now, you can be as invincible, and as powerful as you like, but it won't change your mind on the fact that you think that if you leave the house, then something terrible might happen.
Hell, having that level of power would only exacerbate your fears.

All reasons why I love the niche character that is the Sentry.