Trolls, Flags, and Parties, Oh My!
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Evan Cagle, Mikel Janin, Fico Ossio, Travel Foreman, Jordie Bellaire, Sebastian Cheng, Dave Stewart, Alex Sinclair, and Steve Wands
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: August 17, 2021
I enjoyed the first issue of Superman and the Authority way more than I expected I would. Unfortunately, the timeline is a bit wonky because it is a 5G book thrown into Infinite Frontier, but Grant Morrison did a good enough job to keep it flowing smoothly. With the limited space he is playing with, I expect to get the rest of the team this issue, and I am pretty pumped for that. So let's find out what's up with Superman and the Authority...
The issue starts with Superman running tests on his diminishing powers while Manchester Black smokes some cigs and runs his mouth. Grant Morrison does a great job with this unlikely duo with some excellent back and forth between the two that gives a little recap and sets up what to expect in this issue - recruitment! As a side note, Mikel Janin's art jumps in to help show Clark's utter disdain for Manchester, and it's something I am here all day to see!
As I said, this is a recruitment issue, and Morrison plays it out almost like an anthology issue with each character getting their own story and artist with Janin continuing the main narration segments. I like how this is done since it allows everyone to get their spotlight while doing their own thing.
First up is Natasha Irons (who I love), and this is by far the most "Morrisony" part of the book, in my opinion. She ends up battling social media AI come to life, and with that, Morrison gives you the tropes, cliches, and bad jokes that you can easily imagine. Stuff like online trolls now being actual trolls and lots of political conspiracy theories. Morrison plays it with his tongue planted firmly in his cheek, but it just made me groan and roll my eyes. I love Natasha (I already said it), so I can deal with anything that gets her in a book, including a joke about Covid 1 through 18.
Next, we get Midnighter and Apollo, and Morrison is a bit more clever here. Apollo believes that Midnighter may be cheating on him because he found some matches in their apartment, and even though he tells Apollo that everyone vapes now, the tension builds. The reader already knows what is going on, and when Midnighter tells his partner that he got them on a team with Superman for their anniversary, it's a nice little moment. Plus, I love Midnighter and Apollo, so this team is already shaping up to kick some ass for me. I did laugh out loud when Manchester Black mentions he picked these two to cover the diversity slots. It fit in nicely after the bit with the awful social media AI monsters!
Finally, we are off to recruit Enchantress, and this is the most stylized part of the book in both writing and art. We hang with June Moon for a bit and see as she gets tricked into bringing back the Enchantress, but Morrison keeps leaving you guessing about what is real or not. It was also a subtle way to give new readers a quick intro to the June Moon/Enchantress character, which I'm sure some needed. Finally, the issue ends with a hell of a cliffhanger that surely will bring the team together...if they survive!
I liked this issue a lot. I cringed a little during the Natasha part but loved the Midnighter/Apollo and June Moon/Enchantress parts. For the most part, the art was good, and the changing artists made each section more distinct. Sure, the overall story hasn't kicked off yet, which generally would be a problem for me, especially in a 4-issue mini, but this book is setting up and heading off into Action Comics, so I get it.
Bits and Pieces:
I continue to like this book as Morrison recruits his team to join Superman in his fight against Mongul and Warworld. I love the characters he has chosen for the Authority and was glad each got a little spotlight in this issue. Even if you're not reading the other Super-books, you should check this out.
8.5/10
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