DC COMICS/DC Black Label – @DCComics
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
STORY: Simon “Si” Spurrier
ART: Aaron Campbell
COLORS: Jordie Bellaire
LETTERS: Aditya Bidikar
EDITOR: Chris Conroy
CURATOR: Neil Gaiman
COVER: John Paul Leon
VARIANT COVER: Charlie Adlard
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (January 2020)
“Ages 17+”
John Constantine created by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette, and John Totleben and Jamie Delano & John Ridgway
“A Green and Pleasant Land, Part One”
John Constantine is a DC Comics character, an anti-hero, magus, con man, troubleshooter, and occult detective. He was originally created by writer Alan Moore and artists Steve Bissette and John Totleben as a supporting character in the horror comic book series, The Saga of the Swamp Thing (1982), first appearing in issue #37 (cover dated: June 1985). John Constantine starred in his own comic book series, Hellblazer, which ran for a quarter-century, beginning with Hellblazer #1 (cover date: January 1988) and ending with Hellblazer #300 (cover date: April 2013). In Hellblazer (the first of four series), the character was further defined and refined by writer Jamie Delano and artist John Ridgway.
John Constantine: Hellblazer is the fifth and newest John Constantine comic book series. It is written by Simon Spurrier; drawn by Aaron Campbell; colored by Jordie Bellaire; and lettered by Aditya Bidikar. John Constantine: Hellblazer and its one-shot prologue (of sorts), The Sandman Universe Presents Hellblazer, brings John Constantine back to the mature-readers, supernatural setting in which the character existed for the first three decades.
John Constantine: Hellblazer #1 (“A Green and Pleasant Land, Part One”) finds John Constantine back in London, after being abroad for quite some time. Constantine is a bit perturbed to discover that London has changed enough that his jokes offend everyone. The young people speak a language and a slang that the now-old-man Constantine does not. And the young women don't drop their panties as soon as John starts working his charm.
However, there is someone who really wants Constantine. K-Mag, also known as “the Haruspex,” is the kingpin of a local drug gang, “the Ri-Boys.” K-Mag dabbles in magic, but he is apparently not strong enough to stop a supernatural force that tears apart any Ri-Boys trying to sell drugs in a local public park. That's where John is supposed to help...
I thought that The Sandman Universe Presents Hellblazer was, except in a few places, a disappointing and mediocre comic book. Thus, I only bought John Constantine: Hellblazer #1 because I usually buy the first issue of a Constantine comic book, but I did not expect much from it. Surprise, surprise: I am glad that I tried this new first issue.
In John Constantine: Hellblazer #1, Simon Spurrier's story recalls the classic, gritty, noir-ish, dark fantasy vibe of the original Hellblazer comic book. It is as if Spurrier is doing his best Jamie Delano impersonation. This first issue is by no means perfect. I am a little perplexed about the characters and the plot of “A Green and Pleasant Land, Part One,” but I still am intrigued.
Artist Aaron Campbell is also doing his best John Ridgway impersonation in recalling the alluring, occult vibe of Ridgway's early art on the original Hellblazer. Campbell's storytelling is gritty, scratchy, and looks like cinematography in post-World War II, American urban crime films. Jordie Bellaire's coloring brings out the danger and the dangerous atmosphere in this story. Letterer Aditya Bidikar changes the fonts in ways that convey the dark mode and darker moods of this tale.
So I intend to read more John Constantine: Hellblazer. I have hopes – hopes that this new series can pick up where the original Hellblazer left off in 2013.
B+
7 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
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