I'll be honest... comics with the word "Lobo" in the title rarely interest me, but I figured I'd give this one a shot since it featured the extreme and political super-heroes of the Wildstorm Universe, the Authority. I was surprised to find a couple of interesting ideas; Giffen's plot makes excellent use of one of the lesser used Authority cast members, for example. Ultimately, though, this is a gratuitous ejaculation of violence that serves no real purpose save to mock the more grounded character traits of the Wildstorm mainstays. This comic is much more of a Lobo story than an Authority one, but that should come as no surprise, given the writers are associated with former, not the latter.
Christmas is drawing near, and Jenny Quantum -- the powerful metahuman whom Apollo and the Midnighter care for as their adopted daughter -- can't wait for Santa to arrive... until she discovers a comic book: Lobo's Paramilitary Christmas. Believing the intergalactic bounty hunter has killed ol' Saint Nick, Jenny insists her parents and teir Authority teammates hunt him down, and when they actually find a decimated North Pole, they figure they ought to comply. Meanwhile, tapeworm aliens hire Lobo to kill the Authority for the heroes' perceived murder of their god. Hilarity ensues (well, not really).
Bisley's style here is more than a little reminiscent of the work of Frank Miller. I double-checked the credits, in fact, for some sort of thank you to Miller for an assist or something, but none was to be found. Some of Bisley's work here also reminded me of Barry Windsor-Smith's style. Biz's style is far more suited to Lobo than the Authority, but then, this story seems focused on poking fun at the Authority. Bisley brings the extreme and ugly nature of Lobo's world to life, but unfortunately, I don't care for it or its master all that much. Not a criticism of the artist, per se, but a declaration of taste.
The central figure in this story is Jenny Quantum... or a fascimile thereof. An exaggerated version of the Authority is to be found here. Jenny is a bitchy but powerful child here, and she's not at all likable. The same can be said of her caregivers. Every member of the team is depicted as little more than a sex-obsessed super-hero. The one-dimensional take on the characters is in keeping with the satirical nature of the story, but it's still off-putting nonetheless.
To Giffen's credit, though, he makes excellent use of Jenny's powers, and I love the notion that a comic book -- one DC has actually published -- serves as the catalyst for the story. Furthermore, the writers don't require readers to be familiar with that past holiday-themed story to follow what's going on here. On the other hand, they don't provide much in the way of background on the Authority characters for those Lobo fans who might not follow the flagship Wildstorm title.
The biggest problem with the book, though, is its completely over-the-top efforts to fill each page with low-brow humor. Mind you, that's what Lobo is all about these days, and the cover is clear on what to expect from the storytelling within.
