MILLAR, QUITELY NEW 'AUTHORITY' FIGURES

(Note: Adult language in following story)

Pay allegiance, or get your head kicked in again.

Once on DC Comics' short list to take over flagship title "JLA," Mark Millar has been tapped to take over the DC/Wildstorm book that is most often compared to it.

"The time difference and my drinking habits means I never actually got the word by phone, but Scott and Rachelle e-mailed me to say the book is now in the tartan hands of myself and Frank Quitely," Millar told the Comic Wire on Sunday.

Outgoing writer Warren Ellis took the original United Nations superteam "Stormwatch" and turned their book into one of the most highly regarded superhero books of the 1990s, a pragmatic Justice League International that believed that sometimes, some threats shouldn't be allowed to live. Then, he broke them, killing most of the team in the "WildC.A.T.S./Aliens" team-up and taking the surviving members - the covert, off-the-books Stormwatch Black team - and used them to form "The Authority."

Issue #12 will be the last for the current team of Ellis and art team Bryan Hitch and Paul Neary. Ellis will also be writing a "Stormwatch/Planetary" crossover special that will appear at about the same time.

"If I had any sense, I'd be nervous," Millar said. "Warren, Bryan and Paul have, after all, made the 'Authority' Earth's favourite superhero comic in the space of five issues. Grant (Morrison) said to me by issue TWO that it was the best superhero comic he'd ever read and I've heard similar things from Mark Waid and a variety of other pals. However, I'm probably more EXCITED than nervous. It's an adrenal rush to be working on a book like this. It's an assignment I really wanted and I'm VERY happy to have been selected. Cheers to Warren, Rich Johnston and many, many other people for all their support."

With more than half a year before the changeover, Millar isn't giving out any details of the stories he's planning for the book.

"All I'm going to say is that they're good and I'm happy with them. The honest truth is that the current team's departure was accidentally announced several months early at Chicago (when someone at DC said Bryan and Paul were moving over to JLA) and I feel it would be a bit peculiar to start telling you 12 issues worth of my plans when we still have seven issues to go. Besides, if I tell you all what it's about now, you're going to feel like you've read it already by the first issue's debut in April 2000. Don't be sich tight-fisted, miserable bastards anyway. The comic only costs a few quid. Just shell out the cash and see for yourselves!"

And while Millar is no stranger to acclaim, especially on his run on "Superman Adventures," he knows that comparisons will be made between his style and Ellis'.

"I haven't started actually scripting the book yet and it's too early to say how the styles will be different. That's probably something I'd rather discuss in hindsight. All I know is that I'm going to use 'The Authority' as the platform for everything I've ever wanted to do with superheroes elsewhere, but have been unable to do. 'The Authority' will continue to be a superhero comic for grown-ups. Fuck back-to-basics ... I want to write a superhero book for people in their teens and in their twenties like me which pulls no punches. Remember ['Batman: The Dark Knight Returns?'] Remember 'Watchmen?' Pushing the boundaries of what you can do in a superhero book never did THEM any harm, right? The adult superhero comic is back and it needs to be more dangerous than ever."

Having said that, taking over a franchise that, for years, has so closely been identified with one creator might give him cause for concern.

"If Warren hadn't personally asked me to write this book, I'd be more worried. He knows this is the kind of comic I like and the kind of book I've wanted to do for a while. I'm writing it as much for myself as anyone else, to be honest. In a market-place full of continuity-obsessed, old-fashioned, doddering old characters, 'The Authority' stands out like Nelson Mandela at a Ku Klux Klan rally. This is the comic I want people to be able to give to their friends again. We're all grown-ups now. Let's see some grown-up superhero comics again."

Finally, Millar says he's also excited about the prospect of working for Wildstorm.

"As you know, this is the first thing I've written for Wildstorm but, as a reader, I've been getting increasingly interested in the books they're putting out. Any company which supports Alan Moore, Warren Ellis, Travis Charest and pretty much a Who's Who of industry names is a place where I think I'm going to be very happy. Wildstorm and Marvel Knights are the hot places for creators to be at the moment and I'm very pleased to be on centre-stage."

'STARS AND S.T.R.I.P.E.' EXPLORES GOLDEN-AGE MYSTERIES, JOHNS GIVES AWAY FREE ISSUES TO NEW READERS

The new Star-Spangled Kid may be the newest of DC Comics' crime fighters, but she's linked to 50 years of Golden Age adventures. And fans of those stories may well find themselves picking up "Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E." in coming months, when series writer Geoff Johns touches on some long-standing mysteries regarding a classic DC team.

In issues eight and nine of the series, Nebula-Man, the villain who originally tossed World War II-era legends the Seven Soldiers of Victory out of their own time and into limbo, returns.

Then, an issue later, the series features a "Starman"-style "Times Past" story "featuring the original Seven Soldiers of Victory and their final battle that scattered them across time," Johns told the Comic Wire on Friday. "And only the combined might of the JLA and JSA can save them."

Fans who like the series looking back will be glad to know Johns enjoys "Times Past" sorts of stories, too.

"I hope to do one every once in awhile, like 'Starman.' Though the idea we have for early next year is a TWIST on the Times Past tale."

The series isn't going to be lacking for guest stars or action the rest of the time, Johns revealed:

"#4: The Marvel Family show up to help the new Star Spangled Kid and S.T.R.I.P.E. take on Solomon Grundy.

"#5-6: Young Justice go undercover in Blue Valley High to find out who the new Star Spangled Kid is -- but the new rash wave of Substitute teachers have other ideas for our heroes. Plus, Courtney gets asked out.

"#7: Courtney meets her arch-enemy. And a major turning point between Courtney and Pat.

"#10: The return of one of S.T.R.I.P.E.'s former colleagues."

And for readers who focus on the prickly relationship between the new Star-Spangled Kid and her step-father, Stripesy, the original kid's sidekick, Johns intends to rub some more salt into the open wounds already present.

"Pat's son, Mike Dugan, is moving in soon so Courtney will have to deal with a step-brother now too. A step-brother who has a strong opinion on who the new Star Spangled Kid should be. And someone very important to Courtney will be showing up at the end of the year. Someone she misses very much."

And finally, Johns has a special offer he's extending to online comics fans:

"I know a lot of you are on a budget and selective with your purchases so I'm making an offer. If you send me a legal-sized SASE at the address below I'll gladly send you 'Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.' #1 in return. Give the book a try. And if you like it, tell your friends and pick up the next issue."

Send that legal-sized self-addressed, stamped envelope to:

Geoff Johns
4000 Warner Blvd. Building 102
Burbank, CA 91522

'ATOMIC TOYBOX' OPENS IN NOVEMBER

It's a comic book motif going back at least as far as the day Alan Scott got his magic ring and green lantern: a wondrous object that lets the owned do almost anything they can imagine.

Aaron Lopresti's forthcoming "Atomic Toybox" will be part of that grand tradition, but he's trying to make everything else about the series unique.

"The focus of 'Atomic Toybox' is not so much what this kid (Ken Logan) can do with the alien technology he acquires," Lopresti told the Comic Wire on Saturday, "But how he deals with the consequences and trouble it gets him into.

"Looking at some of the art … you can get a pretty good idea of the various genres that are woven into the story. Although, the story does make sense and is easy to follow, I am not approaching this series in a conventional way. There are elements of horror, sci-fi, adventure, and humor. I think that diversity will be the book's strength.

The idea for the series came in a way appropriate for a book that deals with a son receiving a magical legacy from his father:

"I was skipping rocks with my 5 year old son. I wanted to come up with a concept that on the surface looked commercial but still had a heart and soul to it. Over a three day period from the initial idea the story came together pretty quickly."

So what does the eponymous atomic toybox do?

"Ken can only create 'things,'" Lopresti said. "He could, however, create a jungle environment in New York City, but it wouldn't replace the city. They would coexist. There would be trees and vines growing around the existing buildings with perhaps dinosaurs tearing the place up. Or he could sail a pirate ship down 5th avenue.

"As far as the technology is concerned, Ken is limited to what he can do and how long his creations last. Also, since Ken's father created the box, it is imprinted with his conscious and personality as well as Ken's. So part of the fun is Ken's dad is always around even when he is not physically there. This gives Ken a chance to understand his dad and develop a positive relationship with him that he doesn't have at the beginning of the story.

"In fact, there are two sidekicks that appear from the box that operate out side of Ken's control. One is a reflection of Ken's personality (Grim) and the other has his dad's personality (Furball)."

The Image Comics series will hit stands in November.

"The book is scheduled to be bimonthly. Since this is essentially a self-published comic I am only able to work on it in between my regular work. Hopefully, if the sales are there I will be able to drop my other stuff and work on it full time.

"That being said, the first issue is done except for a three page painted sequence I am working on right now. The second issue is written and I will start drawing it in September and it will come out in January. The third will be out in March. If the sales are there, I will keep going, if not, it will be a three issue mini-series."

'NO MAN'S LAND' BEGINS IN OCTOBER (REALLY)

As Batman fans near third base and prepare to round it in the home stretch of the year-long "No Man's Land" story, DC Comics is preparing to go back to its beginnings, to clear up some mysteries and shed new light on the saga of a Gotham City abandoned by the rest of the world.

Why did the Huntress adopt the identity of Batgirl? Where was Batman all these months? And why did he come back?

Jordan Gorfinkel and Greg Rucka write "Batman: No Man's Land" #0, with art by Greg Land and Drew Geraci, to answer those questions on October 13.