We here at Multiversity get pretty excited about the holidays, and this year we’re sharing that excitement with the rest of you as we celebrate that wonder of wonders: THE HOLIDAY COMIC!
Each day for the next twenty-five days, and in no particular order, we’ll be featuring one yuletide yarn set to the tune of tidings of comfort and joy, and today we’ve got one from one of my all-time favorite series. It’s Hitman #22, also known as “The Santa Contract!”
Check after the cut for more on this holiday classic.
Day #1
Who Did It?: Two Wise Men named Garth Ennis and John McCrea brought this bundle of joy to life
What Is It About?: A Christmas hating janitor for a nuclear reactor plant named Bob Smurd gets accidentally knocked into said reactor and turns into an acid touch supervillain, causing the broke hitmen Tommy and Natt to get hired to off him and save the power company some face. Christmas miracles ensue.
How Holiday Friendly Is It?: Define “friendly.” Sure, it’s about a man that dresses like Santa Claus who kills people by touching them, who gains said powers because a careless fake Santa knocks him into a Nuclear Reactor. Sure, said villain Santa is iced most judiciously at the close of the book. But hey, the rest of it is filled with yuletide joy!
The narration in the script is all done in glorious rhyme, Tommy and Natt have a happy ending, there is Christmas carol singing, and (relative) good triumphs over evil in hopes of saving Christmas (with dollar bills, y’all!). If that isn’t a Christmas miracle my friends, I don’t know what is.
But seriously, it isn’t sentimental at all with it but Ennis secretly tells a pretty damned good Christmas story here, even if a good number of people die in this and the two leads off a man who is begging for his life (and quoting Blade Runner in the process). It’s definitely an Ennis and McCrea Christmas, but that’s my type of Christmas tale anyways!
Merry Christmas, and to all murderous Santas Tommy and Natt say good night!
