Ho ho hooooo no.

I giggle every time I think of the premise of this book. It’s silly, irreverent, and simply perfect for the medium.  There’s nothing inside these pages that isn’t downright fun; the hard-drinking and side-splitting antics of the man named Santa are a joy to behold, but not the “to the world” type.  The peace that this Kringle is bringing is the more eternal sort, and the ride getting there is hysterical.  There’s not many stories that I can kick back and simply enjoy nowadays, but this series is certainly one of them.  Outfitted with crazy characters, crazier antics, and the craziest plot twists, this is a book that just wants to grab a beer and beat the living snot out of anything that cramps the Claus style.

We had a good amount of setup in the first issue woven around some punk bustin’ and world building, and now things crank up full throttle.  The plot is endearing and just convoluted enough to be a ringer for one of those “Kiss saves Christmas” Hallmark flicks, while the badassery of Sleigher and his magical helpers smashes it square in the face.  The opening battle lives up to the cliffhanger from the first issue, and things just get more nuts from there.  There’s a little social commentary present, but the primary goal is watching Christmas getting its Silver Bells kicked in.  Santa’s foes are pulled from various non-Christian holiday traditions, and they make a true “War on Christmas” that is as wonderfully ridiculous as that phrase ought to suggest.  Harrington has loaded his Sleigher with snappy wit, great action, and a surprisingly deep mythos.

I didn’t touch on this in the last issue, but Eneas’ artwork was so good because it, too, emulated the standard holiday “fun for all ages” kind of vibe, and the material that comes out of this world is a delightful juxtaposition that tickles incessantly.  The giant snowman fight that begins this book is so incredibly childhood-scarring that I was legitimately laughing out loud.  There are gags you see coming pages away, but the setup serves more like an appetizer than the long, drawn-out march of a dud. By the time the joke lands, it’s more hilarious for the journey.  This is the work of a team having a blast with their story, letting the craziest ideas drive them and move their work forward.

If you need a little Christmas right now, then you should bake some gingerbread men, but if you want to laugh your @$! off, then get this title from your local shop soon. These folks are making some solid, funny work, and you’ll get a gas out of it – I promise.

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