The Authority #26

Tom Taylor (w), Al Barrionueve (art)

Rating: Worth a read; maybe a second when the arc is complete

The Authority is one of two books that has been on the chopping block for almost a year now. I keep saying, as soon as a bad issue or a boring story comes, I'm going to drop it. I'm not a big fan of the World's End story that Wildstorm is doing, which should make it easier.

Unfortunately - or fortunately - the book doesn't cooperate. The story remains interesting, and while it's not compelling enough to pull off of the chopping block, it is buying itself another month in my collection.

This issue has a cover that does not accurately reflect the plot or the mood. It's a heavy piece, the story: the team is fighting a rearguard action, and losing, while trying to figure out some means of forming some kind of effective resistance to the invaders. The team is taken down, one by one, until all are captured and neutralized, save for Swift and maybe the Engineer. Hawksmoor is confronted angrily by those he swore to protect, and he tried to use the alien city's energy against them, only to be sickened and driven into despair by their genocidal impulses. Next issue: the fight back.

Here's what I liked: I liked the consistent feeling of hopelessness by the heroes. I liked that they didn't know what to do, that everything they tried just didn't work well enough. In some cases, it just made things worse. I liked the somber, tense mood that the story evoked; the red filter that Barrionueve overlaid kept the stakes high and the tension higher. Each time you thought that they would escape or get a breather, bam! That thought was snatched away from you. Excellently done by the creative team.

Also, the visual nods to the "Aliens" universe were appreciated. The bad guys and their city evoked that mood quite well. That also brings a certain sense of foreboding and doom, which I enjoyed. Well, not enjoyed. You know what I mean. We've all seen the movies and read the comics, so a little bit in our unconscious helps to frame the urgency of the situation.

It's only a matter of time, after all, before the guys figure out a way to "punch someone in the brains!" (That's an early Midnighter quote, not from this issue.)


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