Review by Frank Plowright

When Grant Morrison first considered providing an origin for Santa Claus he surely couldn’t have imagined it would develop into an annual Christmas treat for several years.

The first story is the longest, but also the weakest, stock fantasy bolstered by some research into North European legends regaling how the huntsman Klaus saves the kingdom in byegone centuries and establishes a more equal Christmas tradition. What elevates it enormously is stunning art from Dan Mora, becoming more confident and ambitious by the chapter. Mora’s work earned an Eisner Award nomination, and as great as it is, he improves on subsequent stories.

So does Morrison. Forced to think beyond stock fantasy, he constructs a timeline for Klaus from the past to the present day, and then dips into that timeline for three brief adventures, snapshots of the eras. Passing references during the first story are explored in the remainder, and Morrison switches the tone for each new outing, yet always maintains a sincere Christmas spirit in adventures packed with clever Christmas references. There’s a sly dig at Coca Cola’s appropriation of Santa, and a repurposing of Santa Claus vs. the Martians. While the first two are artificially prolonged, ‘Klaus and the Crying Snowman’ gels more satisfyingly. To all intents and purposes it’s Klaus substituting for Thor, but it’s gripping adventure, and followed by the even more ambitious look at the life of Joe Christmas. This is supplied in reverse via glorious full page illustrations with a Christmas theme spinning back through the years.

For that it’s likely Morrison had greater input into the art than for the remainder, but Mora delivers the full Rockwellesque package encompassing a wide range of emotions from comedy to tragedy. Over the other stories Mora’s designs and page layouts are constantly eye-catching, seemingly effortless in combining decorative qualities with storytelling prowess. Better still, he’s able to switch styles from story to story, allowing for the greatest impact.

In addition to all Klaus material published to date this attractively packaged hardcover collection also includes multiple pages of process material including the entire opening chapter with comments from both creators. It’s a series where the quality curve is ever upward and Mora’s art is great from the off, so this is a format to consider if you don’t already have paperbacks Klaus, Klaus: The New Adventures and Klaus: The Life and Times.