I love the character of John Constantine. I read all of the original Vertigo run, which was the longest running at the time clocking in 300 issues, watched the surprisingly okay Keanu Reeves film and the pretty solid but cancelled too early TV series that started Matt Ryan who excelled in the role.
When the series ended in 2012 it was later replaced by Constantine which rebooted the character for the New 52 and later Rebirth. I never read these series as I have a sense of weariness when a company kills off complete histories to start something edgy and new. It often falls flat and the comics company often reboots the old series, asking fans to ignore a whole strand of comics and come back cap in hand. After this happened a lot in the 90's after the Death of Superman sold gangbusters, I am a somewhat jaded comic fan and with time (and money) being a lot more of a luxury nowadays, I thought I'd hold off to see the fan reaction. Although not bad, the new comics received a 'meh' from fans who were upset that the Constantine legacy, which had been much earned over many years, was largely ignored.
The comic is gorgeous.
And so, we finally get to the DC Black Label which, apart from the edge-lordy name, brings us the Sandman Universe with the John Constantine: Hellblazer character with all his legacy and history but also dark snark back. With world events that have occurred over the past 8 years or so we get the Constantine we love, delivering acerbic observations about the divisions caused by Brexit, the hypocrisy of the Windrush scandal and the intentional breaking down of the NHS by the Tories. It's biting stuff but boy is it accurate of the current state of play in Britain. It's a country he knows but doesn't quite recognise or fit in anymore; he is almost a man out of time with his racist and sexist non-sequiters but he is put right by his new cadre of pals.
The story begins with a bang as we see an all-powerful wizard, Tim Hunter destroying the Earth. At the final moments before death our OG Constantine is approached by an older version of himself and is given a Faustian pact, which sees him return to an alternate reality but with an opportunity to learn from his past mistakes and become a better person. We see Chas briefly meet a terrible end but we are introduced to a tough Glaswegian bouncer Nat, who calls Constantine out constantly and is a good foil to his usual ouvre.
We then get an interesting Books of Magic tale, in which Constantine meets an ascendant, younger Tim Hunter undergoing a tricksy test of morality. We get a more meatier 3 part story in which Constantine gets mixed up with gangs from inner-city London who meet their end at the hands of a supernatural being. It's a dark tale about gang on gang violence linked to drugs and turf wars but carries a deeper message about how life is hard in these areas and hope is often not there at all.
The following two issues are lighter in tone as we meet Tommy Willowtree, a modern, earnest, soy drinking, ponytailed magician who looks up to Constantine as a protector of the realm. Although this story seems a diversion from the main story it is definitely linked as we see who is pulling the strings behind poo magicians who are trying to get Constantine. There are moments of mirth as Constantine can't understand the enthusiasm his young acolyte has for the world and for him. It's an endearing buddy comic with Constantine realising that he is getting older and needs to open up a bit more to changes over the past decade, he's not young anymore.
Hellblazer has a lot to say about the state of the world without being too preachy
The final comic in the trade is yet another darker tale as we get further background information on Noah, Constantine's new taxi flunky. Noah is introduced as a self elected mute in the gang story but here we see him working with Constantine to solve the mystery of who is killing patients at the hospital his mother works at.
All in all, this is a solid return to form fro Constantine. It manages to balance a new set of characters and story arc whilst paying respect to what went before in the original Hellblazer run. The overarching theme running over the trade is that change is occurring and can be unsettling but hatred leads us nowhere. We see Constantine realising that he needs to adapt and open himself up just a little to his new friends and acquaintances.
I must mention the art which is varied in style but stunning. We have the darkly drawn panels with sketchy art from Campbell which creates a pervading sense of dread but then we also have Bergara and Bellaire giving the book a more comedic look. The shift in art style and colours is never jarring and is thematic to the stories.
As you can tell I loved the trade and was looking forward to the next, hoping it would continue. However I've heard that the series has been cancelled. This is a real shame as it had so much promise after an amazingly strong start. I'll wait for the next trade but hope Constantine doesn't have to be left on the shelf for too long, he's too good a character for that.
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