Making my way through my local comic shop’s discount shelf I came across The Authority: Relentless, the first volume of the award-winning series. I hadn’t read this since the individual issues came out and it deserved a second look.
After witnessing the demise of most of her StormWatch teammates, Jenny Sparks wants to create a new super hero team dedicated to protecting Earth against threats of a global scale. Joined by former StormWatch members Jack Hawksmoor and Shen Li-Min, Jenny recruits four new members, the Doctor, the Engineer, Apollo, and the Midnighter forming the ultra-powerful Authority. Collected in this edition are their first two missions, battling a nation of super-powered terrorists and stopping an invasion from a parallel world.
- Written by Warren Ellis
- Art by Bryan Hitch and Paul Neary
- 192 pages
- Color
- Softcover
- $17.95 US
- DC / Wildstorm
- ISBN 1563896613
- Order online: Amazon, AbeBooks
This is 192 pages of action, non-stop. We’re treated to two full storylines while introducing us to a superhero group, unlike others, at least for 1999 when this volume was first published.
![The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-22 The Authority 06 The Authority Relentless V1 1 Page 22](https://ebabble.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-22.jpg)
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This is a globally spanning team with outrageously powerful members working inter-dimensionally. I hate to draw parallels but it’s Wildstorm’s Fantastic Four but with a lot more ass-kicking. The first assignment is to battle a nation of super-powered beings; along the way, we learn about each team member in a slick and easily digestible manner. No wasted talking head pages of flashbacks get in the way of superb storytelling, solid dialogue and an overall riveting tale.
![The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-56 The Authority 06 The Authority Relentless V1 1 Page 56](https://ebabble.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-56.jpg)
![The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-57 The Authority 06 The Authority Relentless V1 1 Page 57](https://ebabble.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-57.jpg)
We’re not complicated by gray areas and emotions: the bad guys are distinctly evil and The Authority does what’s needed to bring them down. Read the two pages above and you know that Gamorra needs to be crushed: a nation “built on terrorism” and “a wolf in a world of sheep”.
Let you felt that wasn’t large enough is scope the second storyline deals with a planetary attack from another dimension by an alien British Empire. More great characters and an engrossing story.
![The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-168 The Authority 06 The Authority Relentless V1 1 Page 168](https://ebabble.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-168.jpg)
![The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-169 The Authority 06 The Authority Relentless V1 1 Page 169](https://ebabble.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/The-Authority-06-The-Authority-Relentless-V1-1-Page-169.jpg)
Another layer is added to the cast as their backgrounds are revealed amongst their latest threat. Massive battles and individual fistfights: The Authority is all about action and delivers it page after page. It’s a standout book that every fan of team comics should read.
Originally published at Comic Book Daily.