X-Men Reinvents a Forgotten Hero with a Dark Sentinel Twist No One Saw Coming
Contains Spoilers for Sentinels (2024) #4!The X-Men’s most recent villain team, the new mutant-hunting Sentinels, have a dark secret that even they didn’t know until now, and it includes a connection to a classic hero that no one ever thought would return. Sentinels’ story has turned one of the most wholesome Marvel characters of yesteryear into a twisted horrorshow, but there may still be hope for him yet.
Sentinels #4 – written by Alex Paknadel, with art by Justin Mason – has revealed the secret hero being exploited to create this new team of villains, Justin Seyfert, protagonist of the original 2000s Sentinel comic.
The current series has hinted that the tech powering the titular team of villainous, albeit exploited, cyborgs has another origin besides its supposed inventor, Larry Trask. Issue #4 reveals that the entire program was derived from Justin Seyfert, turned into a cyborg by the base programming of his ‘pet’ Sentinel, which kept him alive after death.
The X-Franchise's New Team Of Sentinels Are Using Tech Developed From The Original Heroic Sentinel
Sentinels #4 – Written By Alex Paknadel; Art By Justin Mason; Color By Federico Blee; Lettering By Travis Lanham
Justin first appears in 2003’s Sentinel, which at the time of its release was one of the most successful titles from Marvel’s ‘Tsunami’ line, a manga-inspired line of books. Justin was a young robotics genius who reprogrammed a mutant-hunting Sentinel into becoming his friend and used it to have superhero adventures. Unfortunately, he didn’t survive far beyond the 2000s, becoming one of the many young casualties of Avengers Arena, the brutal series; now Marvel has brought the character back, but his current reality is bleak.
Readers are likely most familiar with Marvel: Tsunami from its most popular book, the original Runaways.
In a dark twist, Sentinels #4 reveals that death wasn’t the end for Justin. Instead, his Sentinel brought him back to ‘life’, turning him into an undead cyborg, who Larry Trask could exploit to his heart’s content. Sentinels has also been concerned with ‘grafting’, a process in which team members become unstable and are taken over by their cyborg enhancements, seemingly losing any humanity. What this issue reveals is that grafting actually gives them an awareness of Justin Seyfort’s role in their creation, on top of further changing them after an apparent death.
Longtime X-Men Fans Can Only Hope There Is Still Time To Save Fan-Favorite Sentinel Protagonist Justin Seyfert
Sentinel – Written By Sean McKeever; Art By Scott Hepburn, Joe Vriens, & Eric Vedder; Color By Udon; Lettering By Corey Petit
The question posed by Sentinels #4 is whether Justin can return as an actual living character. The new Sentinel characters managed to survive their enhancement, but they were alive when it happened to them. Without any more evidence, it’s hard to say whether Justin’s just a cool pull for fans of 2000s Marvel Comics, or whether he’s actually got a future ahead of him now that he’s back in a modern story. With the titular Sentinels beginning to discover that there’s more to their ‘enhancements’ than appears, it might be time for this oft-forgotten X-Men hero to return properly.
Sentinels #4 is available now from Marvel Comics.
- Movie(s)
- X-Men (2000), X2, X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), X-Men: First Class (2011), The Wolverine (2013), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), Deadpool (2016), X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), Logan (2017), Deadpool 2 (2018), Dark Phoenix (2019), The New Mutants, Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
- First Film
- X-Men (2000)
- TV Show(s)
- X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men, X-Men (1992), X-Men: Evolution (2000), Wolverine and the X-Men (2008), Marvel Anime: Wolverine, Marvel Anime: X-Men, Legion (2017), The Gifted (2017), X-Men '97 (2024)
- Character(s)
- Professor X, Cyclops, Iceman, Beast, Angel, Phoenix, Wolverine, Gambit, Rogue, Storm, Jubilee, Morph, Nightcrawler, Havok, Banshee, Colossus, Magneto, Psylocke, Juggernaut, Cable, X-23
- Video Game(s)
- X-Men: Children of the Atom (1994), Marvel Super Heroes (1995), X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996), Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter (1997), Marvel vs. Capcom (1998), X-Men: Mutant Academy (2000), Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (2000), X-Men: Mutant Academy 2 (2001), X-Men: Next Dimension (2002), Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (2011), Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (2011), X-Men Legends (2005), X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse (2005), X2: Wolverine's Revenge (2003), X-Men (1993), X-Men 2: Clone Wars (1995), X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse (1994)
- Comic Release Date
- 213035,212968
The X-Men franchise, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, centers on mutants with extraordinary abilities. Led by the powerful telepath Professor Charles Xavier, they battle discrimination and villainous mutants threatening humanity. The series explores themes of diversity and acceptance through a blend of action, drama, and complex characters, spanning comics, animated series, and blockbuster films.
- Movie(s)
- X-Men (2000), X2, X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), X-Men: First Class (2011), The Wolverine (2013), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), Deadpool (2016), X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), Logan (2017), Deadpool 2 (2018), Dark Phoenix (2019), The New Mutants, Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
- First Film
- X-Men (2000)
- TV Show(s)
- X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men, X-Men (1992), X-Men: Evolution (2000), Wolverine and the X-Men (2008), Marvel Anime: Wolverine, Marvel Anime: X-Men, Legion (2017), The Gifted (2017), X-Men '97 (2024)
- Character(s)
- Professor X, Cyclops, Iceman, Beast, Angel, Phoenix, Wolverine, Gambit, Rogue, Storm, Jubilee, Morph, Nightcrawler, Havok, Banshee, Colossus, Magneto, Psylocke, Juggernaut, Cable, X-23
- Video Game(s)
- X-Men: Children of the Atom (1994), Marvel Super Heroes (1995), X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996), Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter (1997), Marvel vs. Capcom (1998), X-Men: Mutant Academy (2000), Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (2000), X-Men: Mutant Academy 2 (2001), X-Men: Next Dimension (2002), Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (2011), Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (2011), X-Men Legends (2005), X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse (2005), X2: Wolverine's Revenge (2003), X-Men (1993), X-Men 2: Clone Wars (1995), X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse (1994)
- Comic Release Date
- 213035,212968
The X-Men franchise, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, centers on mutants with extraordinary abilities. Led by the powerful telepath Professor Charles Xavier, they battle discrimination and villainous mutants threatening humanity. The series explores themes of diversity and acceptance through a blend of action, drama, and complex characters, spanning comics, animated series, and blockbuster films.
