amyg88's review against another edition
4.0
It's so good to re-read the old Hellblazers. None of the warm fuzzy abomination that the many series in "The New 52" have turned him into. Just drunken, ratty, poxy, mean, stunted old John Constantine. Refreshing.
justabookholic's review against another edition
2.0
Actual rating: 2.5 stars
Constantine may have more angst than a YA dystopian heroine and even less sense... What happened at Newcastle is explained and everyone gets screwed over (by or because of Constantine).
Constantine may have more angst than a YA dystopian heroine and even less sense... What happened at Newcastle is explained and everyone gets screwed over (by or because of Constantine).
megankb's review against another edition
3.0
Hellblazer: The Devil You Know is a motley assortment of stories that are all good but never really great. Issue #10 resolves the whole "John has been possessed by Swamp Thing in order for him and Abby to make a baby" which is ....yeah (and the Resurrection Crusade is dealt with) before jumping back into Constantine's battle with the demon who's been making his life hell since Newcastle ... Nergal! Issue 11 finally reveals the horror show that went down in Newcastle and it's both creepy and devastating. It makes perfect sense that John has gone down the path he has in the aftermath. And in issue 12, he gets pulled back into the digital realm he left his former friend trapped in and uses it to defeat Nergal. Richard Piers Rayner's art is very period-typical and albeit a few interesting visuals (the Norfulthing and Constantine's astral wanderings) is just meh. Jamie Delano writes a deeply interesting and complex Constantine but his wordy tirades on the nature of humanity and heaven and hell are more than mind-numbing. Like, we get it, you own a Thesaurus, but you're just repeating the same things again and again. Issue #13 felt like an acid trip and was definitely the most "fun" of the bunch. John spends a day on the beach that turns into a nuclear wasteland thanks to the late 80s fear of nuclear power/safety. Some deeply twisted stuff goes down and I laughed out loud from shock repeatedly, but of course, it's all a dream in the end. The annual was a Camelot metaphor for Constantine's time in the asylum Ravenscar. All the Camelot stuff went on for too long but I liked the parts with John coping with being released from Ravenscar and the Dean Motter-illustrated Mucuous Membrane music video was really well done. The last story is a long two-parter from a separate limited series, "The Horrorist." David Lloyd's art perfectly encapsulates the chilliness that pervades every page of the story as Constantine sets out in search of a young woman who is a horrorist - someone who redistributes pain by showing people the suffering of others - and in the process ends up thawing some of his emotionally-frozen heart. The story hits the core of Constantine as a character - that he really does care but is in so much pain, he is incapable of expressing it - that some modern iterations fail to remember. Overall, this collection is vital to understanding John Constantine and has some really great moments but it doesn't offer up anything truly interesting or ground-breaking in terms of story or art.
arrianne's review against another edition
5.0
Things that I have learned: I share a birthday with John Constantine. Because I'm cool. He's our slightly fed-up defence against the dark forces in the universe, heavy-drinking and heavy-smoking, with a past that makes you understand why he's so cynical. Love the art, stories excellent.
bums's review against another edition
3.0
First 3 issues get 4 stars, good resolution to the plot from the first volume with some good old weirdness and we learn what happened in Newcastle.
The next single issue gets a 3.5. Weird as fuck but eh, that's part a the charm.
The annual gets a 3. The story of one of Constantine's ancestors who's, unsurprisingly, a bit of a shite. Alright but not too engaging.
The Horrorist miniseries gets a 2. Do you like grim and depressing storytelling? Do you like it continually for 120 pages, without a break? Then this is for you! Seriously, it doesn't end it's just gratuitously grim for page after page. Artwork by David Lloyd is stellar though and if it were only that it would easily reach 5 stars.
The next single issue gets a 3.5. Weird as fuck but eh, that's part a the charm.
The annual gets a 3. The story of one of Constantine's ancestors who's, unsurprisingly, a bit of a shite. Alright but not too engaging.
The Horrorist miniseries gets a 2. Do you like grim and depressing storytelling? Do you like it continually for 120 pages, without a break? Then this is for you! Seriously, it doesn't end it's just gratuitously grim for page after page. Artwork by David Lloyd is stellar though and if it were only that it would easily reach 5 stars.
lannnnnnnnnaaaaaaaaa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
lavender_ani's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
shirohige's review against another edition
3.0
Es inevitable leer Hellblazer y no imaginarse estas viñetas dirigidas por David Fincher. No tan buena colección como el primer volumen, pero sigue en la misma linea sucia de 'Original Sins'.
storyorc's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Constantine is definitely a flawed protagonist! This installment seemed to be more about recovering and processing past events (including Newcastle, which lived up to the hype). Can't help feeling much of the secondary cast was hard done by though, and not in the 'see how unfair we treat society's downtrodden' kind of way. The narrative didn't seem to find their fates unfair this time around. Especially concerning in the second half which centers around one of the few significant black characters we've seen so far.
That said, Hellblazer remains one of the most daring and unashamedly political comics I've ever read and I do appreciate them taking time to deal with Constantine's depression(?), even if their solution was, uh, not great. Here's hoping for another good challenge to bring out the questionable best of him again next volume.
That said, Hellblazer remains one of the most daring and unashamedly political comics I've ever read and I do appreciate them taking time to deal with Constantine's depression(?), even if their solution was, uh, not great. Here's hoping for another good challenge to bring out the questionable best of him again next volume.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Sexual violence, Fatphobia, Racism, War, Religious bigotry, and Rape
Minor: Homophobia