With their home secure, superheroes receive help from a surprising ally during the zombie apocalypse . After the climactic battle with the Seventeens gang and their undead allies, superheroes Saint George, Zzzap, Cerberus, and Stealth return to the work of safeguarding the human population of the Mount, their walled stronghold in Hollywood. Soon, however, the heroes find something unexpected in the skies over California: an unmanned military drone. Zzzap follows the drone and discovers a military base in the Arizona desert that holds a shocking secret: real, live human beings. The military men and women were subjects of a program called Project Krypton, designed to take regular humans and turn them into unbeatable super-soldiers. Their commander, Captain Freedom, and a well-dressed government agent by the unlikely name of John Smith, invite the heroes back to their base where things are not exactly what they seem. The heroes discover that the living human beings are in the minority, because undead soldiers implanted with a control device are guarding the gates, walking the fences, and standing in reserve against emergencies. Like the first book, the soldiers of Project Krypton receive flashback sequences that flesh out their stories, including the imposing Captain John Carter Freedom. The flashbacks and the sequences set in the present day wind together and culminate in a showdown between the heroes and an unlikely foe, one the heroes thought dead after the battle with the Seventeens, and a massive horde of shambling undead under his control.
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Best part of story, including ending:
Unfortunately, Ex-Patriots falls a little flat in its portrayal of the super-soldiers. Even with the flashback sequences, meant to flesh out the characters and instill a sense of empathy, the soldiers come up feeling empty and one-dimensional.
Best scene in story:
The first fight scene between Saint George and Captain Freedom, because every superhero team-up needs a misunderstanding followed by a brawl.
Opinion about the main character:
Saint George is willing to take the soldiers at face value, while Stealth is less trusting - and more often right.
