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The Authority #3
The Authority, Vol. 3: Earth Inferno and Other Stories
WildStorm's wildest super-team returns in its third trade paperback - an anthology of outrageousness collecting some of the Authority's most unforgettable tales. Included is the much talked-about "Earth Inferno" story from THE AUTHORITY #17-20, where the very planet we live on rebels against its inhabitants. Plus, THE AUTHORITY 2000 ANNUAL, and two tales from the WILDSTORM SUMMER an introspective look at Jack Hawksmoor and a peek into the private life of the nanotech-enhanced Engineer. For more information, see the feature article. MATURE READERS
192 pages, Paperback
First published July 3, 2002
4 people are currently reading
318 people want to read
About the author
Mark Millar
1,514 books2,560 followersMark Millar is the New York Times best-selling writer of Wanted, the Kick-Ass series, The Secret Service, Jupiter’s Legacy, Jupiter’s Circle, Nemesis, Superior, Super Crooks, American Jesus, MPH, Starlight, and Chrononauts. Wanted, Kick-Ass, Kick-Ass 2, and The Secret Service (as Kingsman: The Secret Service) have been adapted into feature films, and Nemesis, Superior, Starlight, War Heroes, Jupiter’s Legacy and Chrononauts are in development at major studios.
His DC Comics work includes the seminal Superman: Red Son, and at Marvel Comics he created The Ultimates – selected by Time magazine as the comic book of the decade, Wolverine: Old Man Logan, and Civil War – the industry’s biggest-selling superhero series in almost two decades.
Mark has been an Executive Producer on all his movie adaptations and is currently creative consultant to Fox Studios on their Marvel slate of movies.
His DC Comics work includes the seminal Superman: Red Son, and at Marvel Comics he created The Ultimates – selected by Time magazine as the comic book of the decade, Wolverine: Old Man Logan, and Civil War – the industry’s biggest-selling superhero series in almost two decades.
Mark has been an Executive Producer on all his movie adaptations and is currently creative consultant to Fox Studios on their Marvel slate of movies.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
September 26, 2015
One of my least-favorite things in comics is when I start reading a comic, fall in love with it, and then, suddenly, they change creative teams.
For me, this is especially true if they swap out the writer. Because I'm word-focused, I sometimes don't even notice them changing an artist on me. But a different writer suddenly takes over the story, it's a huge tonal shift. The focus of the story changes. The characters change. Everything changes.
That's what happened to me the first time I read this series. I read the first one and *loved* it, so I went out and bought all the other trade paperbacks that existed for the comic.
When I hit this one, something didn't feel right to me. The story felt.... off. It wasn't until I was almost all the way through that I realized someone else was writing it. And then I was pissed. Incensed. I felt betrayed.
This time through my reading, (I think this is my third time through the series) it didn't bother me at all. Part of this might be due to the fact that I know Millar as an author now, and enjoy his writing. Same with the people that came after him on the series. Brubaker. Morrison. Ennis.
Even so, part of me still wishes I could see what the series might have been with Ellis at the help from start to finish....
For me, this is especially true if they swap out the writer. Because I'm word-focused, I sometimes don't even notice them changing an artist on me. But a different writer suddenly takes over the story, it's a huge tonal shift. The focus of the story changes. The characters change. Everything changes.
That's what happened to me the first time I read this series. I read the first one and *loved* it, so I went out and bought all the other trade paperbacks that existed for the comic.
When I hit this one, something didn't feel right to me. The story felt.... off. It wasn't until I was almost all the way through that I realized someone else was writing it. And then I was pissed. Incensed. I felt betrayed.
This time through my reading, (I think this is my third time through the series) it didn't bother me at all. Part of this might be due to the fact that I know Millar as an author now, and enjoy his writing. Same with the people that came after him on the series. Brubaker. Morrison. Ennis.
Even so, part of me still wishes I could see what the series might have been with Ellis at the help from start to finish....
October 27, 2008
When people ask me why I hate Mark Millar, this is the series I point to. Warren Ellis basically wrote the Authority as the Justice League. If the JLA smoke, drank, had bad attitudes and yet still had time to have big cosmic adventures and save the world.
Millar sucked all the larger than life, sense of wonder out of the series, added a lot of sex references, unfunny one liners and a group of bad guys that he recycles later into the Ultimates for marvel.
It feels more like a not terribly funny parody of super hero team books than an actual comic book or like Millar is trying to see what he can get away with.
Not an uncommon theme in his writing.
Plus, the artist draws everyone too skinny and with the same constipated facial expression.
Millar sucked all the larger than life, sense of wonder out of the series, added a lot of sex references, unfunny one liners and a group of bad guys that he recycles later into the Ultimates for marvel.
It feels more like a not terribly funny parody of super hero team books than an actual comic book or like Millar is trying to see what he can get away with.
Not an uncommon theme in his writing.
Plus, the artist draws everyone too skinny and with the same constipated facial expression.
December 9, 2023
The side stories are whatever but the main Earth Inferno storyline is actually pretty fun.
Basically a Dr. Manhattan level villain is about to be unleashed for one Hour and the Authority have to somehow hold him off. This leads to some great visual fights, both brutal and epic in scope, with a lot of fun moments. Sadly some moments are ripped down by Millar's shitty ass juvenile humor but overall this was a pretty fun volume.
Basically a Dr. Manhattan level villain is about to be unleashed for one Hour and the Authority have to somehow hold him off. This leads to some great visual fights, both brutal and epic in scope, with a lot of fun moments. Sadly some moments are ripped down by Millar's shitty ass juvenile humor but overall this was a pretty fun volume.
November 3, 2015
This volume didn't quite reach the level of the previous two. For one thing, I'm already seeing an issue that may arise later in the series. We're only on volume 3 and the team has already faced "God" and in this one, they face the planet Earth itself. Seems like the quality of opposition will have to start going down after that. Maybe they should have faced slightly less powerful opposition and then built up to these mega-threats? Then again, this book is pretty inventive, so who knows what they'll be facing next.
For example, in this volume the entire planet Earth is evacuated to numerous other dimensions. I have to admit the book is anything but typical. However, in this issue we had several one shot issues collected as well as the main story, and unfortunately the various creatives teams didn't mesh as well as I'd have liked.
Overall, still a good volume, just quite on the level of the last two.
For example, in this volume the entire planet Earth is evacuated to numerous other dimensions. I have to admit the book is anything but typical. However, in this issue we had several one shot issues collected as well as the main story, and unfortunately the various creatives teams didn't mesh as well as I'd have liked.
Overall, still a good volume, just quite on the level of the last two.
September 6, 2020
Diminishing returns on display here after Ellis moved on. This time we get a story from Mark Millar, before he really began to stretch his legs, which may or may not have inspired Shyamalan's The Happening. It's OK. It's a shame that I missed these when they were first published. I might have been more excited about them as they were coming out each month. Not sure I'll bother reading more of these.
September 19, 2011
"Earth Inferno" follows a series of global catastrophes - Rome broken up by an earthquake, New York drowned by a massive tidal wave, San Francisco burned down by a volcano - ravaging the planet as part of a nefarious plot by a former doctor trying to get his powers back. It's up to The Authority to stop him but they underestimated his abilities and they now have a real fight on their hands!
This is an interesting book to follow up the first two excellent books in the series. Mark Millar does a fine job of writing the mini-series while Frank Quitely does a fantastic job of making a pudgy 50-something wearing a dinner jacket seem menacing.
The other stories here are more character development ones. Angie the Engineer wants to get laid by a stubby Mexican chap while Jack Hawksmoor talks about running across the cities of the world to let off steam.
It's a fun book with some great writing and great art, fans of The Authority will love it. If you're new though you'll want to start where it all began with "Relentless".
This is an interesting book to follow up the first two excellent books in the series. Mark Millar does a fine job of writing the mini-series while Frank Quitely does a fantastic job of making a pudgy 50-something wearing a dinner jacket seem menacing.
The other stories here are more character development ones. Angie the Engineer wants to get laid by a stubby Mexican chap while Jack Hawksmoor talks about running across the cities of the world to let off steam.
It's a fun book with some great writing and great art, fans of The Authority will love it. If you're new though you'll want to start where it all began with "Relentless".
January 31, 2015
(Note: I'm only talking about the Earth Inferno story-arc)
The good is Frank Quitely (the main reason this book is getting 2 stars, as he only drew 2 issues in this volume). This dude is arguable the best comic artist of the last 15 years. He gives a real weight and power to all of the characters that is just awesome.
The rest is Mark Millar. He is so edgy, you guys. Edgy McEdge. Sure, there is some cool stuff here, but then you hit a page when The Authority is talking about how the Big Bad has a small dick, or how stupid France and its citizens are, or having Swift refer to herself as "the little oriental chick". His tone just has an overall hatefulness to it that pops up like speed bumps in what is an otherwise pretty neat story. You know what it is? It seems like Millar saw what Garth Ennis did with his writing in Preacher, but only took the surface stuff from Ennis' style.
The good is Frank Quitely (the main reason this book is getting 2 stars, as he only drew 2 issues in this volume). This dude is arguable the best comic artist of the last 15 years. He gives a real weight and power to all of the characters that is just awesome.
The rest is Mark Millar. He is so edgy, you guys. Edgy McEdge. Sure, there is some cool stuff here, but then you hit a page when The Authority is talking about how the Big Bad has a small dick, or how stupid France and its citizens are, or having Swift refer to herself as "the little oriental chick". His tone just has an overall hatefulness to it that pops up like speed bumps in what is an otherwise pretty neat story. You know what it is? It seems like Millar saw what Garth Ennis did with his writing in Preacher, but only took the surface stuff from Ennis' style.
December 16, 2015
The two-star rating is for the book taken as a whole. If I were to rate just the Earth Inferno story, I'd give it 3 stars. Frank Quitely only drew chapters 3 & 4 (Chris Weston drew chapters 1 & 2). I'm pretty sure if Quitely had drawn all 4 parts, this story would've earned 4 stars. Weston's art isn't bad per se, it's just... sufficient (and it also has a few scale issues). What brings down the overall score are the "other" stories, which consist of - you guessed it - filler material (and about 40% of the total page count).
This Millar tale, while still violent and "shocking" (at least that's what he's going for) is pretty tame compared to The Nativity and Transfer Of Power, which bookend his run on The Authority.
This Millar tale, while still violent and "shocking" (at least that's what he's going for) is pretty tame compared to The Nativity and Transfer Of Power, which bookend his run on The Authority.
April 28, 2009
I agree with many other reviewers. The first volume of The Authority excited me tremendously. If Ellis had continued writing it, I'm confident it would continue to be amazing. As it stands, The Authority is one of my favourite superhero teams for sure - conceptually - but Millar ruins it.
March 18, 2015
HERE is where too much Millar comes in, oops.
July 24, 2022
Reprints The Authority (1) #17-20, Annual ’00, and Wildstorm Summer Special #1 (September 2000-June 2001). Earth has begun attacking its population. Drowning cities, raising volcanos, and creating tornados, the Authority doesn’t even have the means to protect the people. When the Doctor is publicly exposed as a drug user, the Authority must quickly find the truth or face losing the public support…and an old enemy is lurking in the background ready to pounce.
Written by Mark Millar, Joe Casey, Paul Jenkins, and Warren Ellis, The Authority Volume 3: Earth Inferno and Other Stories is a DC Comics comic book collection under the Wildstorm imprint. Following The Authority Volume 2: Under New Management, the trade paperback features art by Chris Weston, Frank Quitely, Cully Hamner, and George Jeanty. The collection has the four issue “Earth Inferno” story line from The Authority (September 2000-January 2001), the standalone Authority (1) Annual 2000 (October 2000), and the Authority story from Wildstorm Summer Special #1 (June 2001). Issues in this collection were also collected as part of The Authority—Book 2, The Authority Absolute—Volume 2, and The Authority Omnibus.
The Authority is a fun title and the “fun” continues in this volume. The Authority was always about the extreme and this volume is no different. I remember reading this not long after it was released and being shocked by The Authority #17 (September 2000) which features New York City being hit by a tidal wave and the Twin Towers falling…it was before 9-11 when the issue was released, but it had bigger effect after the event which adds both weight (the death is immense) and points to the trivial nature of comics (it does not compare to seeing the Towers fall in real life).
The “Earth Inferno” storyline is pretty good, but it also has that edge that The Authority had that sometimes feels uncomfortable. There are a lot of anti-LGBTQ jokes in the comic that haven’t aged well (though there will always be people that hate and the characters making them generally are villains). The Doctor also is a twisted man who even uses sexual abuse to subdue the Engineer…it leaves you with a bad taste in your mouth.
The back-up stories don’t feel like they have much substance to them. They are there and they are addendums to the world of the Authority, but they don’t have much to add to the bigger story (especially since Millar isn’t writing them). They are decent one-offs, but with each storyline of The Authority generally packing a punch, it doesn’t feel like an issue with little substance does much.
The Authority 3: Earth Inferno and Other Stories continues the trend of The Authority to be a shock-and-awe comic. The series isn’t afraid to offend or push the boundaries of good taste, but it does it smarter than some of the other series that try to surprise their readers with the “OMG” factor. The Authority 3: Earth Inferno and Other Stories is followed by The Authority 4: Transfer of Power.
Written by Mark Millar, Joe Casey, Paul Jenkins, and Warren Ellis, The Authority Volume 3: Earth Inferno and Other Stories is a DC Comics comic book collection under the Wildstorm imprint. Following The Authority Volume 2: Under New Management, the trade paperback features art by Chris Weston, Frank Quitely, Cully Hamner, and George Jeanty. The collection has the four issue “Earth Inferno” story line from The Authority (September 2000-January 2001), the standalone Authority (1) Annual 2000 (October 2000), and the Authority story from Wildstorm Summer Special #1 (June 2001). Issues in this collection were also collected as part of The Authority—Book 2, The Authority Absolute—Volume 2, and The Authority Omnibus.
The Authority is a fun title and the “fun” continues in this volume. The Authority was always about the extreme and this volume is no different. I remember reading this not long after it was released and being shocked by The Authority #17 (September 2000) which features New York City being hit by a tidal wave and the Twin Towers falling…it was before 9-11 when the issue was released, but it had bigger effect after the event which adds both weight (the death is immense) and points to the trivial nature of comics (it does not compare to seeing the Towers fall in real life).
The “Earth Inferno” storyline is pretty good, but it also has that edge that The Authority had that sometimes feels uncomfortable. There are a lot of anti-LGBTQ jokes in the comic that haven’t aged well (though there will always be people that hate and the characters making them generally are villains). The Doctor also is a twisted man who even uses sexual abuse to subdue the Engineer…it leaves you with a bad taste in your mouth.
The back-up stories don’t feel like they have much substance to them. They are there and they are addendums to the world of the Authority, but they don’t have much to add to the bigger story (especially since Millar isn’t writing them). They are decent one-offs, but with each storyline of The Authority generally packing a punch, it doesn’t feel like an issue with little substance does much.
The Authority 3: Earth Inferno and Other Stories continues the trend of The Authority to be a shock-and-awe comic. The series isn’t afraid to offend or push the boundaries of good taste, but it does it smarter than some of the other series that try to surprise their readers with the “OMG” factor. The Authority 3: Earth Inferno and Other Stories is followed by The Authority 4: Transfer of Power.
July 23, 2017
The third in the series of the Authority. Not as good as the first two, it feels like the comic has stagnated with its plot and doesn't know how to develop the characters ot situations any more. whereas the outlandish and grand scale disaster events were novel in the first two books, by this book it has become repetitive and stale. The plots are instantly forgettable, and this book does nothing to add to the universe. I definitely recommend the first two volumes, but maybe give this one a miss.
December 20, 2021
Posiblemente es el primer volumen de The Authority que me gusta, y este si me gustó en serio
La trama es interesante; Jenny Sparks, la líder del equipo, muere, y su alma y poder reencarna en un infante, así que el equipo tendrá que buscarla para cuidar de ella
Otro equipo, una visión maligna y villana de la liga de la justicia, busca a la niña con el mismo propósito, y los vergazos se arman entre los equipos, Brutal!
Amo a Apollo y Midnighter son preciosos juntos, mi top❤️
La trama es interesante; Jenny Sparks, la líder del equipo, muere, y su alma y poder reencarna en un infante, así que el equipo tendrá que buscarla para cuidar de ella
Otro equipo, una visión maligna y villana de la liga de la justicia, busca a la niña con el mismo propósito, y los vergazos se arman entre los equipos, Brutal!
Amo a Apollo y Midnighter son preciosos juntos, mi top❤️
March 28, 2024
NOTE: This review is only for the Earth Inferno issues, I was unable to locate the additional content.
I think I am ready for some smaller stories, and maybe I'm looking in the wrong place. The cataclysmic stories are at least unique. Perhaps there's another WildStorm book to satisfy this desire?
Read via DC Universe Infinite.
I think I am ready for some smaller stories, and maybe I'm looking in the wrong place. The cataclysmic stories are at least unique. Perhaps there's another WildStorm book to satisfy this desire?
Read via DC Universe Infinite.
October 26, 2025
I wake up at night angry sometimes that some of the the very limited Quietly art we get in his lifetime is wasted on this bullshit (all of Millar’s shitty quirks are fully developed here).
Then I go back to sleep and reawaken to realize that’s a thing that’s still happening today.
Well, at least he’s getting paid.
Then I go back to sleep and reawaken to realize that’s a thing that’s still happening today.
Well, at least he’s getting paid.
June 6, 2023
Not quite as good as the earlier story arcs and the included one shots are only okay. Somehow this is the point where the characterization lost me. It feels like the Authority moved from righteous indignation to callous might makes right without any examination or nuance. Still a fun read though.
July 14, 2025
Nota 8,75.
Acho q é o melhor vilão dessa série. O tanto de raiva que tu pega dele tão rapidamente é inacreditável. Os desenhos desse arco não são todos do Quitely, o que é uma pena, mas o Weston tbm é bom. É isso, essa luta final na edição 20 acho q é quase nota 10 mesmo.
Enfim, agora partiu ler o último arco dessa fase.
Acho q é o melhor vilão dessa série. O tanto de raiva que tu pega dele tão rapidamente é inacreditável. Os desenhos desse arco não são todos do Quitely, o que é uma pena, mas o Weston tbm é bom. É isso, essa luta final na edição 20 acho q é quase nota 10 mesmo.
Enfim, agora partiu ler o último arco dessa fase.
April 14, 2021
Twenty years ago, I thought this was a good read. Now… not so much.
July 30, 2021
3.4 stars
February 19, 2022
I love comics that meta-analyze themselves. This is right up my alley.
August 25, 2023
some really cool ass ideas unfortunately kinda half-assed by Millar and company, still entertaining enough! weird that these characters are compelling enough to get me through filler shit
August 21, 2022
To think I complained about Quitely before. The new artist prefers some slightly inhuman poses and his fine details are sometimes off. Then the writer only needed one story arc before he started dismantling the team, though his choice makes sense as it's the flakiest and most unstable of the members. Still, all ends well and the good guys rejoice. In bed. With multiple partners. Maybe that part could have been skipped?
The Authority is no less influential in world conflicts. Even a threat from them can avert war. Unfortunately, the team has less cohesion than ever before - the Doctor is focusing more on his personal life, than on work. Right now a new threat is arising. It's something initially dismissed as a natural disaster, but it's become suspiciously frequent when several world capitals are hit with earthquakes, hurricanes and tidal waves.
The Authority is no less influential in world conflicts. Even a threat from them can avert war. Unfortunately, the team has less cohesion than ever before - the Doctor is focusing more on his personal life, than on work. Right now a new threat is arising. It's something initially dismissed as a natural disaster, but it's become suspiciously frequent when several world capitals are hit with earthquakes, hurricanes and tidal waves.
October 1, 2010
Millar's section, with two different artists? Felt like he was trying too hard at re-defining the characters to really say this is a great addition to the continuity. On the other hand, the final issue almost makes up for the previous ham-fisted writing.
The Casey/Hamner one-off was entertaining but really just filler. Who wants to bet the loose plot thread they left at the end doesn't get sewn up by anyone?
The Jenkins/Jeanty was an interesting character study, but I'm not used to that in this book so it was hard to appreciate.
The Ellis/Hamner story was a near-total waste of pages. A bit of a character study too but also reviewed all the early plotlines of this series. sad to see Ellis wasting his enormous talents on a flashbacks episode.
Overall this spotty book makes some advances in the Authority universe, but feels like I got ripped off.
The Casey/Hamner one-off was entertaining but really just filler. Who wants to bet the loose plot thread they left at the end doesn't get sewn up by anyone?
The Jenkins/Jeanty was an interesting character study, but I'm not used to that in this book so it was hard to appreciate.
The Ellis/Hamner story was a near-total waste of pages. A bit of a character study too but also reviewed all the early plotlines of this series. sad to see Ellis wasting his enormous talents on a flashbacks episode.
Overall this spotty book makes some advances in the Authority universe, but feels like I got ripped off.
June 5, 2011
I really enjoyed Earth Inferno, which carries on Millar's goal of creative problem-solving in superheroics. I also found The Meritocracy a really neat concept. As to the other stories in this collection, Isolation was pretty good, but Devil's Night probably really only works if you're more familiar with the Stormwatch history (and if you're privy to the rest of the goings-on in the publisher-wide cross-over, as I wasn't and didn't care to be.) I liked the art of Orbital but the story itself wasn't anything you didn't already know about Jack Hawksmoor. To be honest, reading Millar's work before the rest only made the other stories seem flat in comparison.
July 15, 2025
(lido na edição em 4 volumes da panini)
the boys se as hqs de the boys fossem boas. é uma equipe de heróis similares aos da dc, mas deturpados: salvam o mundo a qualquer custo.
uma coisa legal é que o "superman" deles, o apolo, e o "batman", o meia-noite, são um casal.
a adaptação pro dcu promete: talvez a liga da justiça surja como uma equipe que limpa a sujeira da authority, os golpes que as atuações dele acabam causando, as mortes desnecessárias. vejo a liga tradicional da dc guiando moralmente a authority depois das duas equipes entrarem em conflito.
the boys se as hqs de the boys fossem boas. é uma equipe de heróis similares aos da dc, mas deturpados: salvam o mundo a qualquer custo.
uma coisa legal é que o "superman" deles, o apolo, e o "batman", o meia-noite, são um casal.
a adaptação pro dcu promete: talvez a liga da justiça surja como uma equipe que limpa a sujeira da authority, os golpes que as atuações dele acabam causando, as mortes desnecessárias. vejo a liga tradicional da dc guiando moralmente a authority depois das duas equipes entrarem em conflito.
August 9, 2011
Tremebundo, como evidencié en mi review del segundo Absolute español, tanto que -aunque por separado no sea tan impresionante como en conjunto, me niego a ponerle sólo tres estrellitas a cada uno. Así que al azar voy a ponerle a uno 3 y al otro 4, pero sabiendo que su suma se promedia para arriba y más allá. Cuando lo relea seguro le haga una review personalizada a cada saga.
December 20, 2011
Fun superhero series. Wish I'd noticed it was volume 3 before I bought it. I think I would probably really really dig it (in the same vein as Rising Stars Book 1: Born in Fire) if I'd started from the beginning, but since I started in the middle, I only got to witness the complicated adult culture of this group of superhero misfits.
April 8, 2013
I still love these characters, but this arc feels a little more transparent than the previous ones. Millar has an okay handle on the team, but his writing suffers from an unnecessary need to inject the story with supposedly witty and badass dialogue that often falls flat. The additional stories are only interesting if you have previous knowledge of Stormwatch or are interested in the private lives of characters. Still good, but not in the same caliber as earlier trades.
April 12, 2012
the team and the characters lose their luster - the villain ends up being more interesting; the action is over-the-top, but in a ridiculous, anything-goes way, where the scale ebbs and flows to an unsatisfying climax; warren ellis's first two books on the team are still the standard of how well their stories can be told.
March 9, 2015
Still an interesting series, but it seems to be floundering. Millar and Quitely are doing fine work, but this volume feels a bit patchy compared to the previous two. Even the return of Warren Ellis on one story doesn't help much. Granted, not every volume is going to be as mind-blowing as the first, but is it so wrong of me to expect better than this? Still good, but definitely in decline.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews