The Authority

Just found it last Saturday at Jurong East Regional Library. I really like it.

At first look, I thought it had the good look suitable to my taste. Nice lines, good colours.

Then I thought the characters were rip-offs from older superheroes. The Midnighter looks like Batman, from his mask to the 3 small "hooks" along his lower arm (even his name suggests Batman feel). Apollo is like a toned-down Superman with rays shooting out his eyes, vulnerability, and flight. Even Swift looks like Hawkgirl from Justice League.

But then I saw Jenny Spark.

Of course I didn't know her name yet, but I like her attitude. And she looked to be in charge. So I thought, "Oh well, why not?"

And it did not disappoint. Though externally it looks like another clone of Justice League or The Avengers, its universe has a very different feeling. Justice League is just too full of powerful creatures (sometimes I wonder what Batman or Flash can even hope to do); while the few copies of The Avengers that I got to read were boring--not much going on in those books, yet somehow they are *collections* of chapters.

The Authority, on the other hand, is rather fast-paced (enemies defeated in 2 or 3 chapters!) and a lot is going on. The characters are likable and have just enough power to get the action going.
The universe has a nice blend of fantasy and sci-fi-ish feel. Fantasy (and symbolism) is aplenty. Jenny Spark is the Spirit of the Twentieth Century. She is 100 years old in 1998. She embodies the scientific/technology progress in the 20th century, electricity. I read from Wikipedia later that her successor, Jenny Quantum, will be called the Spirit of the Twenty First Century. I know this sounds like mambo-jambo, but it has a nice feel of consistency to it.
Another symbolism example is my favourite character in the team: Jack Hawksmoor. On my first read, I like him only because of his attitude and his moves. (I guess he embodies a lot of qualities I like in a superhero. He is fast, agile, and somewhat cunning.) He is "God of the Cities". I did not understand the significance of his name until I read from Wikipedia later that he can only survive inside urban regions; and he can become one with a city, as if the city is a living being; and he can be affected physically by the condition of a city he is in if he "connects" to it (he had a nosebleed when he connected to a destroyed Moscow). Of course this kind of power is full of BS if we thnk about it; but somehow it reinforces the consistency feeling I got from the characters' names.

Sci-fi-ish feel is a rather generous allowance I made because I like the comic. Guess I'd refrain from making this point because I can shoot it down even as I'm thinking the case :
Another difference is that The Authority does not hesitate to take necessary actions to get to its goal, including *gasp* killing. Traditional DC and Marvel superheroes always, always refrain from killing; arguing that that is the line which seperates them from the villains. Even the celebrated Kingdom Come revolves around this issue of killing.
And, by being utilitarian in terms of killing, the comic has so much potential in asking the questions "why superheroes do good", "who watches the watchmen", and other questions which starts from the fact that absolute power corrupts absolutely.

There are minus points that I miss, I'm sure. For one, they are completely separated from the rest of the world. Who cares if big cities like Moscow, London, and LA keep getting destroyed? As long as we get to the bad guys. Who cares about an empty building being destroyed? Who cares about the common men when the story is so exciting around the super people? All in all, the comic gets to a point in which we have the idea that human is too stupid and powerless to develop itself and make progress. We need The Authority to save us (heck, there isn't even a concept of progress there).

And, of course, superpowers in general are not so clearly defined in this universe, unlike Marvel universe in which we know just how strong Spidey is, and we know that even though Hulk is huge, he cannot be as huge as Godzilla or Ultraman. In The Authority, though, Jenny Spark sometimes just fight hand-to-hand with her powers. Then, when the aliens invaded LA, she conveniently has the power to zap every single alien ship while taking a gigantic form (or at least somekind of projection of her body). And also, in the alien's world, she can be powerful enough to destroy whole major part of a city. What Midnighter can do is also not too clear. He seems to be a super soldier; sometimes he can beat a bunch of enemies easily, at others one guard takes him a whole page to defeat. And about the same can be said about everyone else.
I guess the only point which does not make this unclear definiton to destroy the comic's appeal is some limited consistency of how the characters use their powers. Jenny can never fly; whereas Swift, the Winged Huntress, always takes aerial position during combat. And the battles are not just a series of bam, bam, ka-pows; somehow Jenny can always yell at someone to do something and that something is a necessary step to winning.

Try reading it yourself.
My favourite character is Jack Hawksmoor. Who is yours?

One final teaser for potential readers in Singapore: Jenny Quantum, the Spirit of the Twenty First Century, is born in Singapore.