How do you make a superhero adventure without all those messy origin stories, crazy costumes, and whacked-out villains? Simple: You just take a normal G.I. Joe character, let him marinate in the Peruvian jungle for a few years, give him a new job as a big-city cop, and wait for the super powers to show up. In the case of The Sentinel those powers are nothing more the "hyper-intense senses," but they sure do come in handy all the time!

Detective James Ellison (Richard Burgi) is lucky to be alive after spending so many years lost in the jungle, but now he's a grade-A justice-keeper in the busy town of Cascade, Washington ... and something strange is happening to the dick. All of a sudden ... Ellison can hear like a cat, see like a hawk, smell like a fish, and throw punches like a kangaroo.

And then, of course, up pops a local nerdlinger called Blair Sandberg (Garrett Maggart) and voila: Supercop now has a sidekick who's always ready with a handy packet of information or the next volley of backstory exposition.

It sounds like I'm poking fun at The Sentinel (which ran on UPN from 1996 to 1999), but it's actually not that bad a program. Granted, it's not deep or intriguing enough to watch in a six-episode marathon, but as a sort of Super Hero Light action series, it's actually pretty likable. Burgi delivers an affable heroic lug, what with all the "Shh, did you hear that? Oh, of course not..." and the "Wow I just leapt eight stories and didn't get squashed!" goings-on, and Maggart manages to get a little cooler as the first season rolls on.

The low-maintenance approach is what works. By keeping Ellison's super-powers relatively "low-key," series creators Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo avoid the trappings of goofy costumes, convolted backstories, or outlandish stunts. The Sentinel is like MacGyver, only with extra-strong senses and a little less smarts. In small doses, the show's a pretty good time. (Well, I can only comment on the first season...)

The DVD

Video: The episodes are presented, fairly dryly and flatly, in their original fullscreen format.

Audio: Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround, with optional English captions.

Extras: Nope.

Final Thoughts

The Sentinel's first season ran only ten episodes, but it was long enough to earn a small fanbase and propel the show for an additional three seasons. It's certainly not the slickest or most exciting cop show you'll ever see, but it comes with a cool enough gimmick to keep you entertained.