Borders

Zine
Title:	Borders
Publisher:	AMC Press, then Requiem Publications
Editor:
Author(s):	Meercat
Cover Artist(s):	TACS
Illustrator(s):	TACS
Date(s):	August 2001
Medium:	print zine
Size:
Genre:	slash
Fandom:	The Sentinel
Language:	English
External Links:
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front cover by TACS

Borders is a 166-page slash Sentinel novel by Meercat. Color cover and interiors by TACS.

It was originally posted to the internet as a gen story, but was changed to a slash story and had new scenes added for the zine. "NOTE: A gen version (written as dues for the SentinelAngst list) is archived at Cascade Library (www.skeeter63.org/tslibrarv/) and Guide Posts (www.geocities.com/hollywood/Academy/5307/). The slash version is not currently available online. Other gen stories by the author are also available at Cascade Library."

The print version was first printed by AMC Press in 2001. In 2018, it was reissued in print and PDF by Requiem Publications.

Summary

One year after the dissertation debacle, Blair is now a detective and Jim's partner. A Dr. Burke, self-proclaimed foremost authority on Sentinels, knows Jim really is a Sentinel and wants him, as well as the new Sentinel Burke claims to know, under his control. Only by Jim and Blair teaming up with the new sentinel and his close friend can they escape Burke's grasp.

One year after the dissertation debacle, everything seems to have calmed down for Jim and Blair. Blair is now a detective and Jim's partner and everything is running for both...until a Dr. Burke is seen on TV announcing that he, the world's foremost authority on 'Sentinel's', now can prove their reality by introducing an actual Sentinel, with all five senses, on a national network. Jim And Blair are suddenly thrust into the limelight by this nasty with nasty insinuations made by Burke to the 'false information' a year ago by someone who didn't know what they were talking about. But unknown to both detectives, Burke know Jim really is a Sentinel and wants him as well as the new man under his control. His plan to dominate the two Sentinel's causes mental and physical turmoil in Blair and Jim's lives and he will go to any length to get what he wants as he is a true sociopath. Only by Jim and Blair teaming up with the new sentinel and his close friend can they escape Burke's grasp, but can they do it fast enough to save Blair's life as the evil doctor has kidnapped him and placed him in an old abandoned warehouse to die.

Sample Gallery

• 

  some inside art, uncredited

• 

  some inside art, TACS

• 

  some inside art, uncredited

• 

  some inside art, TACS, portrays two original characters: Danny and Michael

Reactions and Reviews: Gen Online Version

I really enjoyed this story. It was very satisfying! This was post-TSbyBS, and the summary says "Jim and Blair must face a painful but universal truth: what was once discovered will eventually be discovered again." The truth may set you free, but not if it kills you, destroys your life, or ruins your friendship with your best friend. Jim and Blair have a lot of things to go through before Good finally triumphs in this story; which is one reason why it was such a good read. Yes, the idea has been done before, but this author did it well. She can also write decent prose:

"As he approached the open-air, awning shaded corner, Simon noted the dozens of various ethnic, cultural and social differences within the shop's clientele. It seemed coffee was one of the few pleasures that crossed all boundaries -- a true uniting force. Maybe he should share that stunning insight with the world. It might be the start of world peace in his lifetime. No, that would only lead to a global shortage of the god's brew, and Simon Banks would not risk that, even for such a worthy cause."

Or the guys' banter:

""Absolutely not. Forget it. I do not like it. I never have. I never will." In a singsong voice, Blair bounced ahead of Jim down the fresh vegetable aisle, bobbing and weaving as he said, "I do not like it, Sam-I-Am, I do not like green eggs and ham." "You try putting green eggs in this basket, Chief, and I'll break the whole dozen over your head.""

But it isn't just humour; we have a fair bit of grist, misunderstanding, bad moves and cross-purposes, when Our Heroes come under the stress of media attention all over again. They talk things over, and then they don't, and then they do. The characterisation is good. The supporting characters too. The rival academic comes across as merely ambitious at first, and though it might be a little too convenient for the plot that he isn't ethical, his actions escalated slowly enough that he didn't come across as a 2D villain. I liked the other Sentinel-Guide pair; they didn't overshadow Jim and Blair, but they came across as 3D characters in their own right. Neither of them were too similar to Jim or Blair, as happens temptingly often when someone attempts to write original Sentinel/Guide characters. (Which is a reasonable trap, because we don't have many examples to base them on, just Jim, Blair, and Alex.)

Mind you, when I said that Good triumphs in the end, I didn't mean that everything was rosy. Which is another thing I liked about this story. They still have consequences and ramifications to deal with. Which means I'd really like to see a sequel.

Addendum 22/05/2002: It appears that this story has vanished from the net, possibly due to a slash version of the story being published in a zine.