The Masked Avenger and Chen Chainsaw were the two greatest stars of professional wrestling. Inside the square circle, they were fierce competitors, but outside of the ring they fought side-by-side protecting the world from monsters and other threats, natural and supernatural.
Of the two, the Masked Avenger was an internationally beloved daredevil. He was charitable and brave with fists the size of picnic hams, but as a hero he was nothing but a cipher. He wore his lucha libra-like mask at all times—in the wrestling ring and also poolside at Rio de Janeiro’s Hilton Copacabana. He was a man of action with no private life beyond his celebrity status.
Without question the Masked Avenger was the hero of this adventure (just take a glance at the novel’s title for confirmation: The Masked Avenger Versus the Kaiju Master). It was his sidekick Chen Chainsaw, however, who was the more compelling character. That’s always the case isn’t it? The supporting character was often more interesting than the main character. You could argue that Dick Grayson, for example, had a more engaging story arc than Bruce Wayne. I certainly thought so.
As a teenager, Chen was given his first dose of Solomon-45, a highly addictive performance enhancing drug that quickly turned him into a Bane-like brute. The designer drug helped him gain notoriety in the pro wrestling community but it had deadly side affects. “It bulked up these guns, all right,” he said flexing his arms, “but it also tore at my mind and my soul. I didn’t know who I was any longer.”
At some point, Chen had a fateful encounter with the Masked Avenger and the hero helped him turn his life around. “I’ve been clean for a long time now, and I owe my redemption to the Avenger. He is my friend, my mentor and my role-model.”
Ron Ford’s pulp-y novel begins with the dynamic duo in Tokyo for a much ballyhooed wrestling match. Things go askew quickly when a kaiju named Makosaurus shows up. A week later, in Rio de Janeiro, the Masked Avenger and Chen are attacked by another monster named Wrecking-Ball. It becomes clear that giant monsters are following them from venue to venue.
Before the novel ends, the heroes must outwit a duplicitous U.S. Naval Admiral, overcome a horde of tiny mechanical crabs and defeat more mutant kaiju such as Krakenstein, Medusaurus, Tuskodon, Hammer-Head and Ursaurus Rex. There’s even a little flirty action between the Masked Avenger and an “alluring” redhead in a tight dress. The whole thing is silly and fun and full of unexpected decapitations. The climax arrives when Chen Chainsaw confronts his old nemesis Doctor Wojciech Solomon—the monster maker.
There’s no post-climax resolution for Chen unfortunately. Doctor Solomon easily escapes capture and retreats to his lair in the Swiss Alps. I’m sure we’ll see him again soon. Monster makers like Solomon never give up. They’re always cooking up something new.
[ The Masked Avenger Versus the Kaiju Master / By Ron Ford / First Printing: May 2023 / ISBN: 9798396233256 ]