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Comics - reviews
DC First: Superman/Lobo
(May, 15 of 2002)

With “DC First: Superman/Lobo” comic book release, let’s open a new section in the “Lobo International” site: REVIEW! From now on, whenever a new Lobo magazine is released, we will feature with a detailed analysis of it (as soon as we read it, of course).

Story:
The magazines of “DC First” series brought the first meetings among DC Universe's characters. The first issue has brought Lobo and Superman. The story that is used as an excuse to justify the first meeting of both of them is basically the following: A group of extra-terrestrials known as Hegemony intends to attach the Earth to their group of planets, because they are interested in export our water (that was mixed with some products by them to turn it into a “drug") to other worlds. They offer Big Blue a division of profits for him to accept the proposal, but he refuses, of course. The Ets, then, hire Lobo to kill Superman. Main Man comes to the Earth and starts the fight between them. In the end (attention, spoiler from this moment on!), they are teletransported to the planet where the Hegemony’s headquarter is and attacked by mistake. Lobo considers this a breach of contract and allows Big Blue to leave while he plans to give a “small lesson” to the ex-contractors.

Production credits:
Script: Keith Giffen
Art: Cliff Rathburn
Ink: Rob Leigh

Positive points:
Keith Giffen writes a script with Lobo again and resumes his original personality: A violent bounty hunter, but without greater excesses. For instance, when he arrives in the Earth, he is stopped by two policemen: Instead of simply cutting them in the middle, he eats his eyes and picks his teeth with the dorsal spines, he takes a puff on one to faint and finds out with the other one where to find Superman. Perhaps some fans of the violence of Lobo can think it’s weird to be as a positive point, but it's enough to analyze that Lobo is a much more interesting character having this natural violence, but having his job (in this case, to hunt Superman) as the only purpose of his visit to the Earth. His natural violence hasn't been reduced at all, it's only more compatible with his characteristic of being the "best bounty hunter of the galaxy". After all, in this story he doesn’t have any personal reason against Superman, he only accomplishing an agreement. The script has a beginning, a development and an end, without any “spaces”. The “jokes” about the chronology Giffen puts throughout the comic book, are also interesting.

Negative points:
Although the script is correct, the excuse of the Hegemony interest on the Earth is a little silly. It’s OK the terrestrial water mixed with some things they put in it turns the ETs "addicted", what shows they are going to have a great profit with that. Anyway, we have the sensation that they has got an ordinary theme only to be used as a background for the meeting between Lobo and Superman (well... that was all). Another negative point is there is little humor. During the disclosure of the “DC First” series release, Keith Giffen has reinforced several times the story of the first meeting between Main Man and Big Blue would be funny. The comic book is interesting to be read, but it isn’t a masterpiece. Another thing is about that positive point previously mentioned (a Lobo more coherent to his personality). Although the idea is good, it isn’t so exploited and the violence is much lower than it could be. Maybe because of the necessity of having a seal approved by “Comics Code Authority”.

Final analysis (grades from 0 to 5):
Script
Humor
Violence

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