When he first appeared in the pages of The Omega Men #3, Lobo was a hardened baddie that never let a bounty go unclaimed. This is rather like the 1990s version of Lobo. Only, instead of dressed like a Hell's Angel from Hell, the original Lobo wore a skin tight leotard hued in purple and neon orange. The new Lobo had long, greasy hair and wore earrings and chains. Giffen's Lobo had a feathery bouffant and was free of adornments. Actually, you couldn't see his ear from the hairstyle that invokes images of Farrah Fawcett and Vinnie Barbarino. He might have been wearing earrings.
The biggest difference in the two versions of Lobo was in how the character was presented. Giffen's Lobo was like Clint Eastwood's Man with No Name' outlaw Western character. The 1990s Lobo was like the 'Man With No Name' set to 11- make that 12! Keith Giffen claimed in a 2006 interview that his Lobo was 'an indictment against' Marvel's violent antihero, the Punisher." But as Alan Grant took over the reins from Giffen after the 1990-91 miniseries, in 1993 Grant shifted Lobo to become an over-the-top parody of Marvel's Wolverine.
It's ironic that a character meant o criticize the disturbing 80s trend of mega violent characters evolved into a character noted as one of the industry's most Uber violent, no holds barred, irreverent figures of all-time. It's even more ironic that Lobo's lack of sacred cows, except for those space dolphins, would give birth to a number of imitators that continue to push the envelope to unthinkable levels. Topps Comics, Image and even Marvel created their own parody versions of a character that was a satire in of itself. Talk about the snake eating it's own tail.
In this premiere issue, Lobo is on assignment. He's on the hunt for a real nasty. Only instead of being hunted for killing somebody's loved one or for stealing something valuable, the bounty is for missed alimony payments! Things go wrong for Lobo, leaving the bounty hunter with only a single body part to claim his money. Only a nose and two nostrils isn't enough to make a claim which leaves this bastich extremely P-O'ed.
After roughing up his handler, Lobo is given a new bounty, a milquetoast accountant named Quigley. Only it's the handler who's having the last laugh as Lobo is being lured into a trap as his quarry is protected by the most dangerous bunch of henchmen in the galaxy.
The original version of Lobo would return to much controversy with DC's New 52 relaunch. Readers were left to find that the rebooted Lobo was actually an impostor, much like how Jodo Kast impersonated Boba Fett. Only in this case, it's the pretender who comes out on top. Today's Lobo has become more of an offensive buffoon. Now the father of a half human teen prone to bouts of papa's bad attitude, Lobo's intensity and insensitivity are balanced by daughter Crush's ability to think things through before acting.
Interior art and cover by Val Semeiks.
Completing this review completes Task #26 (The first issue of a series or miniseries) of the 2024 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.
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