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A review by wicked_turtle
Ex-Heroes by Peter Clines
3.0
Good stuff first:
This book has a fantastic premise: what would a group of superheroes do in the event of a zombie apocalypse? In the world Peter Clines has created, the heroes team up and create a safe haven in Los Angeles at a former movie studio (Paramount, known in the book simply as “The Mount”). But even behind the relative safety of concrete walls, these survivors' lives are not without struggle. I enjoyed learning about each of the heroes, what motivates them to keep fighting, what their hopes and fears are, and how they approach their roles as protectors for the remaining civilian population. The action sequences are blistering and hard-hitting. There are also multiple sources of tension to keep things interesting, with the most fun stuff occurring between the heroes themselves. I think the main characters are wonderful: the enigmatic leader, Stealth (analogous to Bat Woman), the “boy scout” St. George (similar to Superman but with fire breath instead of ice breath), and the tough-talkin’ Gorgon (who has an interesting vampire-like power) were my favorites of the group.
I also liked the structure of the narrative. There’s two ongoing stories, one that takes place “then” and one that takes place “now.” All of the “then” sections features one of the heroes and their experiences during the beginning of the zombie apocalypse, all told from first person POV. I enjoyed these vignettes because they provided more backstory and a better understanding of why the heroes – those who survived, anyway – act the way they do in the present. The main story takes place in the “now” sections, which are in third person omniscient but usually following one or two of the superheroes. This is where the majority of the plot movement takes place, and where we get to see the heroes doing what they do best: killing zombies and getting into trouble.
So, the story is fun, but there were some things that bothered me:
I’ve lived in southern California all my life, with about 15+ of those years spent in Los Angeles. While Clines has a strong grasp of all the streets and landmarks, I don’t think he captured the diversity of the community. The vast majority of survivors and superheroes are all white. With the exception of Zzzap, who is African-American and in a wheel chair, the other heroes don’t reflect real-life LA demographics. Sure, there’s a Korean American hero, but she’s only seen in flashbacks. And speaking of Asian Americans (because I’m a part of that community), I find it problematic that a Korean American hero would willfully choose a Japanese name (“Banzai”) that has a lot of negative connotations thanks to WWII. One of her parents even brings that up, but the character brushes it aside. Maybe it can pass as a teenager being rebellious and getting under her parents’ skin – in the worst way possible – but then she needs their permission to go out at night and fight crime! That doesn’t work, especially when she tells her parents that “Banzai” is just a word. No, it’s a loaded word, and this whole scene should have been approached with more respect towards Korean Americans. The whole “Korean hero using a Japanese name and wearing a ninja-inspired costume” issue also plays to the stereotype that “all Asians are alike and interchangeable.” Furthermore, two Asian women in the book are both described as “bitchy,” which propagates another terrible stereotype.
Continuing with the fact that most of the “good” survivors are white, I also find it cringe-worthy that the only other large community of survivors left in LA is a Latino gang portrayed as bloodthirsty, violent people. It wouldn’t be so bad if there were Latino characters representing the good guys’ side, but there are none to be found… in Los Angeles! LA has a huge Latino population, not to mention that the name of the city itself is in Spanish! It’s kind of ridiculous that the only featured Latino characters are evil gang bangers. Again, terrible stereotyping.
One more thing that irked me – the zombies are all described as having gray, decaying skin. The main narrative appears to take place a year or so since the collapse of government, so that makes sense. Why, then, does Clines find it important to describe the zombies by their ethnicity? It’s fine when he describes them by their clothing, but how can you possibly identify a gray, decaying zombie as “black,” “Mexican,” or “Asian” during a fight scene? Are the white narrators really categorizing all of this information while chopping the zombies’ heads off? There’s one scene where it’s really problematic: a bloated zombie in a bathtub attacks one of the survivors, and the zombie is described as being “Mexican or Indian” because the narrator couldn’t tell with all the decomposition. Ummm… Why does that even matter?! Can’t he just say it was a large, bloated carcass? I appreciate the fact that the zombies are so diverse (sarcasm), but I would have loved it even more if the group of heroes reflected the same diversity. Spider-Man: Homecoming did it for New York. I know it can be done for Los Angeles, too.
“Ex-Heroes” has a fun premise and an interesting plot, but the offensive stereotypes puts a huge dent in the whole experience. I would have given it 4 stars, but I'm knocking it down to 3 because of bad characterization.
This book has a fantastic premise: what would a group of superheroes do in the event of a zombie apocalypse? In the world Peter Clines has created, the heroes team up and create a safe haven in Los Angeles at a former movie studio (Paramount, known in the book simply as “The Mount”). But even behind the relative safety of concrete walls, these survivors' lives are not without struggle. I enjoyed learning about each of the heroes, what motivates them to keep fighting, what their hopes and fears are, and how they approach their roles as protectors for the remaining civilian population. The action sequences are blistering and hard-hitting. There are also multiple sources of tension to keep things interesting, with the most fun stuff occurring between the heroes themselves. I think the main characters are wonderful: the enigmatic leader, Stealth (analogous to Bat Woman), the “boy scout” St. George (similar to Superman but with fire breath instead of ice breath), and the tough-talkin’ Gorgon (who has an interesting vampire-like power) were my favorites of the group.
I also liked the structure of the narrative. There’s two ongoing stories, one that takes place “then” and one that takes place “now.” All of the “then” sections features one of the heroes and their experiences during the beginning of the zombie apocalypse, all told from first person POV. I enjoyed these vignettes because they provided more backstory and a better understanding of why the heroes – those who survived, anyway – act the way they do in the present. The main story takes place in the “now” sections, which are in third person omniscient but usually following one or two of the superheroes. This is where the majority of the plot movement takes place, and where we get to see the heroes doing what they do best: killing zombies and getting into trouble.
So, the story is fun, but there were some things that bothered me:
I’ve lived in southern California all my life, with about 15+ of those years spent in Los Angeles. While Clines has a strong grasp of all the streets and landmarks, I don’t think he captured the diversity of the community. The vast majority of survivors and superheroes are all white. With the exception of Zzzap, who is African-American and in a wheel chair, the other heroes don’t reflect real-life LA demographics. Sure, there’s a Korean American hero, but she’s only seen in flashbacks. And speaking of Asian Americans (because I’m a part of that community), I find it problematic that a Korean American hero would willfully choose a Japanese name (“Banzai”) that has a lot of negative connotations thanks to WWII. One of her parents even brings that up, but the character brushes it aside. Maybe it can pass as a teenager being rebellious and getting under her parents’ skin – in the worst way possible – but then she needs their permission to go out at night and fight crime! That doesn’t work, especially when she tells her parents that “Banzai” is just a word. No, it’s a loaded word, and this whole scene should have been approached with more respect towards Korean Americans. The whole “Korean hero using a Japanese name and wearing a ninja-inspired costume” issue also plays to the stereotype that “all Asians are alike and interchangeable.” Furthermore, two Asian women in the book are both described as “bitchy,” which propagates another terrible stereotype.
Continuing with the fact that most of the “good” survivors are white, I also find it cringe-worthy that the only other large community of survivors left in LA is a Latino gang portrayed as bloodthirsty, violent people. It wouldn’t be so bad if there were Latino characters representing the good guys’ side, but there are none to be found… in Los Angeles! LA has a huge Latino population, not to mention that the name of the city itself is in Spanish! It’s kind of ridiculous that the only featured Latino characters are evil gang bangers. Again, terrible stereotyping.
One more thing that irked me – the zombies are all described as having gray, decaying skin. The main narrative appears to take place a year or so since the collapse of government, so that makes sense. Why, then, does Clines find it important to describe the zombies by their ethnicity? It’s fine when he describes them by their clothing, but how can you possibly identify a gray, decaying zombie as “black,” “Mexican,” or “Asian” during a fight scene? Are the white narrators really categorizing all of this information while chopping the zombies’ heads off? There’s one scene where it’s really problematic: a bloated zombie in a bathtub attacks one of the survivors, and the zombie is described as being “Mexican or Indian” because the narrator couldn’t tell with all the decomposition. Ummm… Why does that even matter?! Can’t he just say it was a large, bloated carcass? I appreciate the fact that the zombies are so diverse (sarcasm), but I would have loved it even more if the group of heroes reflected the same diversity. Spider-Man: Homecoming did it for New York. I know it can be done for Los Angeles, too.
“Ex-Heroes” has a fun premise and an interesting plot, but the offensive stereotypes puts a huge dent in the whole experience. I would have given it 4 stars, but I'm knocking it down to 3 because of bad characterization.