The Authority: Transfer of Power

Mark Millar's twelve-issue run on "The Authority" comes to a conclusion in this trade, though it is unfortunately a rather muted one compared to his previous stories (though 'muted' should not be taken to mean that Millar has eased up on his gloriously profane, gory style, but rather that it lacks a certain je ne sais quoi in comparison to "Earth Inferno"). The story had a rather troubled production history, thanks to several changes of artist, necessitating a fill-in arc by writer Tom Peyer and artist Dustin Nguyen (who would later return to the book with writer Ed Brubaker); Peyer's writing is okay, but it does not overcome the spectre of its own nature as a fill-in, an easy trap that fill-ins often fall into. The story is the climax of Millar's overarching story, the fallout of the Authority's adoption of a more proactive role in what are traditionally not fields that superheroes act in: the political realm, which happens to be perhaps Millar's favourite of all the places to visit in comics. Jack Hawksmoor, the Authority's leader, made a point of rebuking President Clinton in the first arc for attempting to rein them in. In this arc, the New World Order's retaliation arives: in the first issue, a monstrous superhuman named Seth (a grotesque parody of a Southern redneck) is sent to take down the Authority, and this is what he does, systematically eliminating everyone in short order, to make room for a new seven-member team, one from each of the members of the G7. Much as Wolverine alone escaped the X-Men's first battle with the Hellfire Club, Midnighter, along with baby Jenny Quantum, makes his getaway. This first issue, drawn by Frank Quitely, abruptly cuts into Peyer's fill-in arc, focussing on the takeover team. This is a decent arc, but, as previously related, it's filler. Collecting Vol. 1 Issues 22-29