When it comes to Christmas or holiday comics, then can be hit or miss. When in the hunt for said Christmas comics, I managed to stumble upon Grant Morrison‘s Klaus from 2016, where he partnered with artist Dan Mora to craft an epic holiday tale revolving around Santa and making the world happier one gift, and ass-kicking, a time.

Klaus tells the story of how Santa Claus really came to be-the tale of one man and his wolf against a totalitarian state and the ancient evil that sustains it.

Revamped, reinvented, and reimagined classic superhero for the 21st century, drawing on Santa’s roots in Viking lore and Siberian shamanism, and taking in the creepier side of Christmas with characters like the sinister Krampus. Finally answering the burning question: what does Santa Claus do on the other 364 days a year?

When you mix one of my favorite times of year, Christmas, my favorite medium to experience stories, comics, and toss in a renowned writer, Morrison, you get a fantastic story where we get a barbaric-style Santa fighting off evil in addition to crafting great toys. We all know the many different tales of the history of Santa, but Morrison takes it a bit further and blends fantasy-action to this holiday story to give us something fun and unique.

Klaus feels like a big-two action superhero tale mixed with the holiday spirit and gritty storytelling you get from independent comics. There is fighting, blood, gore, and folklore. While I knew I was getting a holiday story, one that I might have thought would be a bit out there with Morrison’s record, I didn’t expect it to be this good, this unique, and this straight forward.

Now, I dove head first into this holiday story because of the theme, subject (Santa), and veteran storyteller Morrison. However, what was most striking from this story was the artwork from Mora. The artwork is simply stunning and really makes this story what it is. Morrison’s script is wonderful, but is really something special when you attach it to the gripping illustrations from Mora. These panels spoke louder throughout the story.

Klaus is not your typical Christmas story. It’s a badass and unique story by Grant Morrison of the history of Santa with excellent freaking artwork from Dan Mora. If you are looking for something a bit different to read this holiday season, check out Klaus (and the few one-shots that follow).

The collected edition of Klaus is available at bookstores everywhere from BOOM! Studios.