Comics History 101: Constantine
As he heads to NBC, here's everything you need to know about the Hellblazer -- DC Comics' John Constantine!
He's the Hellblazer -- DC Comics' occult detective and magician, John Constantine. He’s been a key player in the supernatural world of DC and Vertigo for almost 30 years, and now he’s finally getting his own show on NBC.
So let’s take a look back at the strange history of Constantine, both within the DC Universe, and without.
Here’s everything you need to know about Constantine!
Spoilers from the comics follow...
John Constantine was created by legendary writer Alan Moore and artists Steve Bissette and John Totleben, making his first appearance in The Saga of the Swamp Thing #37 in June, 1985. According to Moore, Constantine’s design was actually inspired by Sting simply because Bissette and Totleben had always wanted to draw a character who looked like the pop star.
Moore has also said that he wanted to portray his mystical character in a new and different way. Whereas wizards had frequently been depicted as old, proper types, he wanted someone much more blue-collar and streetwise.
In the beginning, Constantine was an important if supporting character in the Swamp Thing tale called "American Gothic," where he served as a consultant for old Swampy. But the character was popular with readers, and so he got his own comic in 1988, titled Hellblazer. Initially written by Jamie Delano, that book was labeled as a Mature Readers title. And in fact, when DC’s Vertigo launched in 1993, Hellblazer switched over to that imprint.
It made sense, as Constantine clearly leant himself to more adult stories. He was never as cut and dry as a typical superhero, or even a typical hero. Though he ultimately did the right thing most of the time, his motivations weren’t always altruistic. In fact, Constantine’s often been portrayed as selfish and kind of a jerk, and has had the unfortunate track record of frequently getting those around him killed. His stories have ranged from the fantastic to the horrific, with the so-called Hellblazer often employing his magic, detective skills, and con man talents -- or a mix of all three -- to get to the bottom of his supernatural cases…
Constantine was born in Liverpool, though his mother died during childbirth. And this was only after he had murdered his own twin in the womb. His father never forgave him for his mother’s death, and from a young age John began to school himself in the occult. One of his first spells was to rid himself of his childhood innocence, hiding it in a box. Eventually he put a curse on his old man, nearly killing him, before backing out at the last minute. But once he did die, Constantine Senior’s ghost would come back to haunt John -- as would many of his dead friends and lovers over the years.
What’s interesting about the character too is the fact that for the run of Hellblazer, from 1988 to 2013, he more or less aged in real time. This of course differentiates him from guys like Superman or Batman, who are eternally like 30 years old. As such, Constantine’s rich history is specifically rooted in the past. For example, when he first saw the Sex Pistols perform in 1977, he was inspired to form his own punk rock band, the apparently awful Mucous Membrane. (But what a great name.)
Aging the character like this also allowed the writers of Hellblazer to confront the real world around Constantine as much as they did the supernatural and horrifying. Of course, sometimes the real world is pretty horrifying even when there’s no supernatural involved.
In what would prove to be a pivotal moment in the young Constantine’s life, one of his earliest confrontations with the underworld came in Newcastle, England. Joined by his band mates and some fellow occultists, Constantine attempted to save a young girl who had summoned a demon. John called forth another demon to defeat the first one, but unfortunately he botched the job and inadvertently consigned the girl to hell. He and his crew were emotionally scarred by this tragic turn, and afterwards Constantine was blamed for the girl’s death and committed to an asylum. The demon he had summoned was called Nergal, a creature that would go on to become one of his greatest foes. And in fact, this storyline is the inspiration for the first episode of the new TV show. (And possibly beyond that, though we’ll have to wait and see on that front.)
Speaking of which, that other live-action version of the character -- the Keanu Reeves movie -- also took its cue, in part, from a classic Hellblazer storyline. The "Dangerous Habits" comic arc by writer Garth Ennis saw John diagnosed with lung cancer and depicted his attempts to trick his way to a cure -- and avoid eternal damnation in hell as well. This story also served as the introduction of The First of The Fallen, a frequent foe of Constantine’s who also goes by a name you might recognize… Satan.
Yeah, for all his earthly foibles, Constantine plays with the heavy hitters. In Hellblazer #128, he even managed to blackmail God Himself, implying that once he gets to hell, he’ll outwit Satan and the rest and take over. And then he’d turn his attention to Heaven…
Another major story came in the tale “The Family Man,” where Constantine has to deal with the notion of actually killing someone… not a demon, but a man. Writer Brian Azzarello’s run on Hellblazer saw John wandering the U.S., where he had to deal with porn dealers and white supremacists, among other despicable matters. And then there was the crazy "day in the life" for Constantine where he traded a day with the demon Rosacarnis -- a day which went on almost forever, and included him becoming the father to three kids who went on to try and murder his friends and family. Nice.
A version of the character would eventually rejoin the mainstream DC universe in 2011 with the Brightest Day crossover event, and then the launch of the New 52 continuity reboot that same year. As a member of the supernatural team Justice League Dark, the New 52 Constantine is distinctly different from his Vertigo counterpart -- decades younger than the sixty-ish Hellblazer. And by 2013, the Hellblazer book was cancelled after a 25-year-run with its 300th issue, replaced by the New 52 character’s eponymous solo title.
While many comics fans bemoaned the loss of Hellblazer, the character does live on in the New 52, and now on TV. And with almost 30 years of history behind him, Constantine is certainly ripe for adaptation on the small screen. We can’t wait to see what comes of it…
Talk to Senior Editor Scott Collura on Twitter at @ScottIGN, on IGN at scottcollura and on Facebook.
