The Authority: The Lost Year #9

“Punch Drunk”
I am truly shocked but I actually thought this issue was okay. Last issue really frustrated me to no end and I dreaded picking this one up. But there were several factors that were different about this issue that I think slightly improved it from the last one.
First off, we get J.J. Kirby as the artist this time. I didn’t think David Williams and Kelsey Shannon’s art from last issue was horrible at all. In fact I stated in my review for that issue that I thought it was perfect especially with some of the facial expression they did. But I think Kirby’s art suited the story just that much more. I remember first seeing J.J. Kirby’s work in the Backlash series.

The Authority: The Lost Year #8

“No Laughing Matter” (No Spoilers)
I have to admit, I’ve struggled a lot with The Authority: The Lost Year. It has really been hit and miss for me. I believe there have been some great ideas presented in this series but I’m not really enjoying the way they’re being presented. However, with J.M. DeMatteis helping with the story this time we do get some humor which is very unusual for an Authority comic.
In visiting parallel worlds, the team has encountered several doppelgangers of themselves, both here and in past Authority stories. But this time, we get a more comedic take on the parallel Authority team encountered here.

The Authority: The Lost Year #7

“Wildcats” (No Spoilers)
I’m starting to think that this series is not giving itself enough time to develop. I was so pumped about the way last issue began because it was a new arc and Giffen had a chance to start fresh. We had a great set-up and a very cool alternate world introduced. But now we get it all resolved here in this issue! It definitely was not enough time to tell a story with this kind of set-up.
Let’s back-track a little. Issue 5 acted as sort of a prologue to this arc but not entirely. In reality it was more of a bridge between the first arc and this one. What happened in issue 5 was incredibly important to setting up what has happened in number 6 and 7.

The Authority: The Lost Year #6

“Absolute Authority” (No Spoilers)
I think this is the strongest issue of The Authority: The Lost Year yet. Last issue was more of a bridge between this arc and the previous. It gave closure to the first arc but set up how The Authority got to where they are now. For a first-time reader, there isn’t much missing info, so I think a person picking up this issue wouldn’t be lost.
I usually wait until the end of my reviews to talk about the art but this time, I really liked it from page one. I don’t have a way to confirm this, but judging by the way the two men are credited it looks like Brian Stelfreeze (Wednesday Comics, Shadow of the Bat) did the layouts and Joel Gomez (Lost Boys: Reign of Frogs, Iron and the Maiden) did the finishes.