There was a time when I enjoyed Lobo. Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis's use of the character in the humor era of Justice League was plenty of fun, and Peter David's tongue-in-cheek look at a de-aged version of the "Main Man" in Young Justice had its strong moments as well. Hell, one of the highlights of the Paul Dini/Bruce Timm Superman cartoon was the two-episode story featuring Lobo. But this Lobo -- with the low-brow gags, a level of violence that makes me long for something that's simply gratuitous, and the over-the-top T&A and gross-out factors -- does absolutely nothing for me.
After a brief recap of his not-so secret and rather gruesome origin, we meet up with the galaxy's meanest, crudest and rudest mercenary as he tracks down his latest prey, a rather bulky fellow by the name of Huevos Gigante. His well-earned moniker makes for a nasty fight, but what irks Lobo the most is that Gigante isn't afraid of him. He realizes that his reputation has taken something of a beating as of late, and in order to set things right and make a big score, he takes on some rather unusual -- and disgusting -- clients.
The highlight of this issue was the Dr. Seuss-esque approach taken with Lobo's origin in the opening few pages. Vaughns and Mettler capture Seuss's style quite well without sacrificing the edge and extreme violence for which the title character is known. Giffen's rhyme is awkward at time, but it's fun as well. The inherent innocence of the Seuss approach made for an interesting contrast with the adult (but certainly not "mature") circumstances of Lobo's birth.
Horley's painted artwork is richly detailed, and his work here reminds one of the highly detailed and sophisticated styles that came out of Heavy Metal and its emphasis on European talent. Still, it's rather difficult to appreciate the texture and detail of Horley's artwork when one's attention is directed toward such visuals as testicles the size of bowling balls and impossibly large breasts floating from the chest of a stereotypical bimbo secretary.
The title of this limited series seems to indicate that Giffen is pulling out all the stops when it comes to Lobo's adventures this time around, and clearly, the stops in question are good taste and any degree of clever writing. Giffen's talent for humor is undeniable -- just check out his classic runs on such books as Justice League and Ambush Bug for evidence -- but those skills aren't being brought to bear here.
