Creative Staff:
Story: Ming Doyle, James Tynion IV
Art: Vanessa Del Rey, Chris Visions
Colors: Ivan Plascencia
What They Say:
Some very, very, very bad news sends John Constantine on a magical bender through the darkened streets of London. This one’s gonna hurt in the morning.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Though the method of blending past and present is tried and true in all sorts of media, where we get our present day storyline unfolding while the backstory mixes in between it, it’s one that I keep feeling is very overused overall. We get that mix used in this issue where Constantine’s past plays out for us in regards to Veronica while in the present we see him on a bender after what he learned the last time around. It works to be sure, it’s tried and true for a reason, but I really wish it was done less and that we got a split more formal instead, giving us the backstory in the first half and then showcasing the present after that. I’d rather read the narrative straight rather than the back and forth, even with the minor nods of connections that exist between them.
The backstory side is one that’s certainly interesting enough as we get the young and cocky Constantine doing his best to grab the world by the balls and ride it in the direction he wants through the band. He’s living the high life in the low places, using magic to enhance everything on stage and tearing down the performance magic types. But the further invested he becomes in this world the less connected to the real he becomes, but that’s because he embraces it. This is less so for Veronica as she wants both worlds but fears losing her real world side that she grew up with. The result is that she creates a lot of space between her and Constantine in order to try and fix it but it requires more than just that since she went too far. And not surprisingly, she can’t embrace the world of magic because of what she’d lose. It’s illustrative of the things one must give up to go this route yet what you really take away is what an unsympathetic ass Constantine is at this point. And more so as time goes on, which you can understanding since every time he gets involved in other people’s problems it just gets worse for him and them.
The present day storyline has him dealing with the fallout and it’s certainly amusing to watch. Drunken John on a bender is not unfamiliar those reading Hellblazer years ago and the team here does it right, showing what an ass he continues to be with his self importance and freedom to do whatever he wants, damn society’s rules about drinking everywhere and cursing up a storm. It’s a great little sinking in the depths kind of series of events that pulls him to different places, some that we see in the flashback area, while reinforcing that it’s all turned to shit in a big way for him. Enough so that he’s ready to give up. Though we know it won’t happen, or happen in a permanent way, seeing him going through the layers of all of this is definitely engaging to watch, especially since he’s a pretty damn talkative drunk.
In Summary:
Constantine: The Hellblazer does a solid job of exploring the two sides of the title character and where he was as the rebellious youth that can do anything to the man who now realizes the true weight of his decisions and the fact that everything he touches turns awful. It’s really well illustrated with the two artists and styles for each period so that they’re clear and unique, particularly with the rougher and more wild backstory design that has a sense of youth and recklessness about it. Though I dislike the structure of the book it’s the story itself that keeps me and the team here pulls it off pretty well in giving us a rock bottom Constantine moment (many there have been over the years) while also showing us exactly how he may snap out of it. Whether it’s in time or not remains to be seen.
Grade: B+
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: DC Comics
Release Date: September 16th, 2015
MSRP: $2.99
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