Hellblazer, not Constantine
Nothing really caught my eye on the stands these couple of weeks so instead of shit-talking Spider-man’s new costume (Jesus Marvel…), I’d like to gush about a title I read six years ago and have recently rediscovered: Azzarello et al’s stint on Hellblazer.
First off, forget the fucking movie. That’s all I’m going to say on the matter.
That out of the way, John Constantine: Hellblazer has for years been one of them most daring, balls to the panel titles on the market. I’m not sure that it has ever sold that well, and for a title called “Hellblazer,†it has featured more emotional hell than fire and brimstone, yet in a trick worthy of Constantine himself it has remained on the stands for years garnering some of the best talent in the industry. Grant Morrison, Alan Moore, Mark Millar, Brian Vaughn, Warren Ellis, Neil Gaiman, Mike Carey, Paul Jenkins; some of these guys made their careers based on their Hellblazer work. And those are just writers.
Anyway, for some reason one of the most outstanding creative runs, Brian Azzarello’s, gets hardly any play. Originally released around 2000, Azzarello took Constantine out of his brutally safe European homeland and drug him, body and soul, through the hateful, stinking majesty of America’s dark places. In doing so, Azzarello manages to reconcile the various portrayals of Constantine that have appeared in throughout Hellblazer’s long, dark run from cancellation.
In the opening story (Hard Time), we find John Constantine incarcerated in an American prison for some unknown reason. This story is brutal. Constantine’s fellow inmates are caricatures of evil that will make you shit your pants while the smug new Brit flashes an innocent grin and turns the place into his own version of Hell with nothing more than cheap tricks and clever maneuvers.
The second trade (Good Intentions) sees Constantine visiting some old frienemies in a town called Doglick. Its about as nice a place as it sounds. Here we have John as the flawed hero. This story, featuring a sadistic pair of brothers, an old flame and a creature of mythic proportions hits a much more familiar Hellblazer theme: what a destructive prick John Constantine really is.
The third book (Freezes Over) features a story that is a bit disconnected from the rest of the books in Azzarello’s run, but may the high point of characterization among them. As John mysteriously wanders into a remote roadhouse during the worst snowstorm in memory we see Constantine as the frightening mystery man, helping to “solve†a murder among the mixed cast of stranded patrons.
The final trade (Highwater) features what is easily the scariest story in the entire run. While the book is really two stories, it is the first that really shines. The titular story sees Constantine face off against an enclave of white supremacists. While the insular racists are menacing enough on their own, it’s their voice-overs that really scare the shit out of you. This is uncomfortable to read at best. Great stuff. Against such a hateful backdrop Constantine finally gets to be a hero. This trade is finished off by the final story, which ties together the entire run and finally unveils the man who has put Constantine through This American Hell. In addition to showcasing the violent end of Constantine and Agent Turro, this story paints a villain that is actually developed enough to be a menacing match for John.
This review was rushed and shitty, and does not do these stories justice. I needed to get this out though. These books are what other comics should wish to be. I know what I’m talking about. Trust me! I’m on the Internet!
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