constantine the hellblazer vol 1 going down james tynion iv

This is also the second Constantine story since he joined the DC Universe proper to focus on his bisexuality which is always appreciated, and very well handled (probably since Tynion IV is bisexual). It all builds up into a very clever Constantine-esque twist that flips the story right at the end, exactly as Hellblazer used to. And then along came James Tynion IV and Ming Doyle who wrote the most wonderful 13 issue series, the second half of which is collected here.Īs John finds himself at the mercy of the soul-purchasing demon Neron, everything mounts against him as he loses his boyfriend, his city, and his magic. Hopefully the next issue will change my mind.After the previous run of Constantine, his first as part of the New 52, I was prepared to dislike anything else DC tried to do with John since they looked like they wanted to play it safe with the character. Constantine seems like a genuinely intriguing character, although I didn’t find myself caring for the mystery the book is presented by the end. In the end, I will continue to look forward to the next issue of “Constantine: The Hellblazer”. This was a meaty first issue though and I felt like a got a good bang for my buck. I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of exposition, but still felt like the word-filled bubbles bogged down what could have been explained using actions and not words. The book is humorous and dark with flirtation, sex and very little violence, something I didn’t expect since I came in expecting a lot of demon fighting and such. He doesn’t regret any collateral damage, whether the person damaged is innocent or not.

The visuals come courtesy of the script from the unexpected team-up of Ming Doyle (“The Kitchen”) and James Tynion IV (many awesome DC books, “The Woods”).ĭoyle and Tynion’s Constantine is a man that’s learned to be a straight up deceptive a-hole in a world where he has to deal with other deceptive a-holes. Rossmo and Plascenzia’s art doesn’t come off as what’s typically used for a more mature book, but it’s a nice contrast that makes this book stand out from the other dark/adult books. It’d be hard to believe that this book takes place in the main DCU since it starts off with a John Constantine fully naked and covered in blood followed later by an amazing two page ascension through the Nine Circles of Hell from “Inferno”. What I found after reading “Constantine: The Hellblazer #1” was what I expected and then more. I know what he generally looks like and I know he’s a troubled anti-hero that isn’t afraid of being a jerk if he had to. I’ve never read a “Hellblazer” or Constantine comic before. Written by: Ming Doyle and James Tynion IV

Constantine the hellblazer vol 1 going down james tynion iv