John Constantine, Hellblazer is an American contemporary horror comic-book series published by DC Comics since January 1988, and subsequently by its Vertigo imprint since March 1993, when the imprint was introduced. Its central character is the streetwise English sorcerer and con man John Constantine, who was created by Alan Moore and Stephen R. Bissette, and first appeared as a supporting character in Swamp Thing (vol. 2) #37 (June 1985), during that creative team's run on that title. Hellblazer was released as launch title for Vertigo in March 1993, becoming the imprint's longest-running series and the only launch title to continue its run into the new century. In 2013, the series concluded with issue 300, and was replaced by Constantine, which returned the character to the mainstream DC Universe. The original series was revived in November 2019 for twenty-four issues as part of The Sandman Universe line of comics, under the DC Black Label brand. Well known for its extremely pessimistic tone and social/political commentary, the series has spawned a film adaptation, television show, novels, and multiple spin-offs and crossovers.
The series was the longest-running and one of the most successful titles of DC's Vertigo imprint, and was the stepping stone for many British writers. Notable writers who have contributed to the series include Jamie Delano, Garth Ennis, Eddie Campbell, Paul Jenkins, Warren Ellis, Grant Morrison, Neil Gaiman, Brian Azzarello, Mike Carey, Denise Mina, Andy Diggle, and Peter Milligan. Hellblazer was one of the first modern occult detective fiction works and heavily influenced the genre to come.
Production history
After favorable reader reaction to John Constantine's appearances in the comic-book series Swamp Thing, where he had been introduced by writer Alan Moore, the character was given his own comic-book series in 1988. The series was intended to bear the title Hellraiser, but this title was revised before publication due to the contemporaneous release of Clive Barker's unrelated film of the same name. Initial writer Jamie Delano was, in his own words, "fairly ambivalent" about the change of title.
The initial creative team was Delano and artist John Ridgway, with Dave McKean supplying distinctive painted and collage covers. Delano introduced a political aspect to the character, about which he stated: "...generally I was interested in commenting on 1980s Britain. That was where I was living, it was shit, and I wanted to tell everybody."
Creative personnel
Many writers after Delano's foundational run had lengthy runs on the series, such as Garth Ennis and Mike Carey, who respectively had the second- and third-longest runs on the book (only behind Peter Milligan). Other writers who wrote for the series include Paul Jenkins, Warren Ellis, Brian Azzarello, Neil Gaiman, Grant Morrison, Denise Mina, and Andy Diggle.
Numerous artists worked on the series, as well, such as John Ridgway (the original series artist), Simon Bisley, Mark Buckingham, Richard Corben, Steve Dillon, Marcelo Frusin, Jock, David Lloyd, Leonardo Manco, and Sean Phillips. Cover artists included Dave McKean (who designed the first run of the series' covers), Tim Bradstreet (who designed the most), Glenn Fabry, Kent Williams, David Lloyd, and Sean Phillips. Some DC Comics charactersmost notably the fringe supernatural characters such as Zatanna, the Phantom Stranger, Shade, the Changing Man, Dream of the Endless, and the Swamp Thingmade appearances.
John Constantine, the main character of Hellblazer, was portrayed as a kind of confidence man and occult detective who did morally questionable things, arguably for the greater good.
1988–1991
Jamie Delano (#1–24, #28–40, #84, #250)
thumb|left|Jamie Delano would often put his own political views in the comic, as seen here in the cover of Hellblazer #3 by Dave McKean. The artwork depicts John Constantine passing by a vandalized image of [[Margaret Thatcher and a sign that says, "Voting Tory can damage your health", both of which are the cause of London burning in the background.
Five main storylines were in the run. The first, collected as "Original Sins", deals with John travelling to America to exorcise a demon, Mnemoth, and investigate cult Damnation's Army, crossing paths with a demon called Nergal (from whom he gains demon blood), and having to be responsible for killing an old friend, Gary Lester, and betraying another friend, called Zed, in the process. The following four issues, "The Devil You Know" finally explain John's failure to save a young girl, Astra, from a demon in Newcastle, an event that left him near insane and incarcerated in an asylum known as Ravenscar, and still haunted him to the comic's end. He eventually discovers that the demon responsible for this was Nergal, and uses a technological scheme to trap him, and lead him back to hell. It also contains a crossover with Swamp Thing, where Constantine loses his body while the Swamp Thing uses it to procreate.
This was followed by a lengthy nine-issue story arc, "The Fear Machine", revolving around a masonic plot to collect people's fears, to raise a dormant god known as Juntakillokian, and his efforts to prevent this with the help of environmentalists, including Mercury, a young psychic girl, and Marj, her mother, with whom he becomes romantically involved. The penultimate major run of Delano's tenure was "The Family Man", which differed from the main body of the series thus far in that Constantine's nemesis is not supernatural (beyond an opening metafictional encounter with a fictional fence), but a former policeman turned serial killer. John's ethical quandary as to whether murder is ever acceptable, and his coping with the murder of his father, Thomas, frames this story. During this run on the title, Grant Morrison (issues #25 & 26) and Neil Gaiman (issue #27) both filled in during a three-month break, with Morrison's story dealing with nuclear fear, and Neil Gaiman's being a ghost story about homelessness.
Delano's run ended with "The Golden Child", where John is reunited with Marj and Mercury, who help him discover that he murdered his more perfect twin in the womb, culminating in an extended story, in which what would have occurred had the other twin survived in his place is revealed. During his run, there was also a stand-alone issue, Hellblazer Annual #1, exploring Constantine's ancestry, and featuring the video to John's punk band, Mucous Membrane's song "Venus of the Hardsell".
Jamie Delano returned to the title on several occasions. Between the Garth Ennis and Paul Jenkins runs on Hellblazer, he finally told the story of why John's best friend Chas 'owes' him (issue #84), and he returned again for one of the five Christmas stories in issue #250. He also wrote the miniseries The Horrorist in 1995, and Bad Blood in 2000, both featuring John Constantine. A more substantial return was made in 2010 for a hardcover graphic novel Hellblazer: Pandemonium with artist Jock to commemorate the 25th anniversary of John Constantine's first appearance in Swamp Thing.
1991–1995
Garth Ennis (#41–50, #52–83, #129–133)
thumb|right|The First of the Fallen, a principal antagonist in Garth Ennis' run on Hellblazer, as drawn by William Simpson
Irish writer Garth Ennis then took over the title in 1991, again from 2000 AD, where he had been working on Judge Dredd. He proceeded to write the second-longest run for any writer on the title. which was the basis for the 2005 film Constantine, and dealt with John Constantine contracting lung cancer, and the desperate deal he makes with the First of the Fallen, and various other lords of Hell, to save himself. In the course of trying to save himself, he visits Ireland, and later becomes reacquainted with Kit Ryan, an old friend of Irish origin. The following few issues follow the early stages of his relationship with Kit, a plot to install a demon on the British throne in the plotline "Royal Blood", and in the extended issue #50, his first meeting with the King of the Vampires. One minor story in this arc (issue #51) was written by guest writer John Smith.
The next major arc, "Fear and Loathing" (issues 62–67), covers a high point of John's personal life, with his relationship with Kit going well, and a 40th birthday party where his friends Ellie, Zatanna, and the Swamp Thing attend, and use their various abilities to create a large quantity of Bushmills whiskey and marijuana. The story then takes him to his lowest point, through his dealings with the National Front, their threats towards Kit, and her leaving him to return to Ireland. Following this, John is defeated, and lives homeless on the streets, drinking to forget his life. This remains the case until the King of the Vampires hunts him out, and is poisoned by his demon blood, leaving him out in the sun at dawn, killing him. Following his recovery, the storyline "Damnation's Flame" (Issues #72–77) follows a trip to the US, where Constantine is put into an alternative America by his old adversary Papa Midnite, a Vodun shaman. He is accompanied by the spirit of John F. Kennedy,. He eventually learns how to escape, shortly before running into the First of the Fallen, in the guise of Abraham Lincoln. There then follows a small break where he meets the spirit of a dead friend in Dublin, offering some closure to his recent problems. Ennis' run ends with "Rake at the Gates of Hell", a story which finally brings together the racism storyline, with riots in Mile End; the revenge attempt of the First of the Fallen, started in "Dangerous Habits"; and the end of John's relationship with Kit Ryan. John's eventual Pyrrhic victory leaves this run with closure, and a relatively clean slate for a new writer to take over.
Ennis briefly returned to the title in 1998 with "Son of Man", filling the gaps between Paul Jenkins's and Warren Ellis's runs on the title. This more irreverent story is about the consequences of Constantine resurrecting the dead son of an East London gangster, using the spirit of a demon. He also had two specials published during his run on the title, the Hellblazer Special and Heartland, which follows Kit Ryan's return to Ireland.
1995-1999
Paul Jenkins (#89–128)
Following issue #84 by Jamie Delano and a brief interlude by From Hell artist Eddie Campbell (issues #85-88), the series' direction was taken over by Paul Jenkins in 1995. He had been the former editor of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and other Mirage Studios lines. He had pitched to several comic houses, having tired of editing, and eventually managed to gain stewardship of Hellblazer, the first largely untested writer to achieve this. Jenkins' run is more traditionally English in its themes, with Albion, Arthurian legend, and old English battles all featuring, and even an appearance by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and a speculative explanation of the writing of Kubla Khan, and what the interruption of the 'man from Porlock' may have been. He also returns to Jamie Delano's coverage of anarchist lifestyles, and the effects of the Criminal Justice Act of 1994, a controversial law which restricted the ability of the public to throw raves and large demonstrations.
Major storylines in this run include "Critical Mass", where Constantine is forced to use magic to purge his darker side into another human body, to avoid being damned to Hell as part of a trade to save the possessed son of a friend, thus creating the antagonistic character, Demon Constantine, with the assistance of Aleister Crowley. The landmark hundredth issue gave more detail on John Constantine's father, and the abusive relationship that they had shared. However, it is unclear as to whether this is happening in reality, or in his mind as John convalesces in a coma. "Last Man Standing" reveals that his friend Rich is the current descendant of King Arthur, and Merlin's attempt to discover God's secret, an act which would destroy England, using John's few remaining friends as bait.
The 10th-anniversary issue breaks from the usual format, in breaking the fourth wall, and addressing readers as if they are in a pub with Constantine for a monthly get-together to hear his stories. Over the course of the issue, most of the characters from Constantine's history appear, along with Death of the Endless from Sandman. Also, appearances are made by writers and artists, including series creator Alan Moore, Garth Ennis, and Jenkins himself. Jenkins' run then draws to a close with two storylines, "Up the Down Staircase" and "How to Play With Fire", which relate the First of the Fallen's new plan, to essentially let mankind ruin itself through television and consumerism, and Ellie's plot to leave Constantine friendless and alone. John eventually saves himself, through a literal deus ex machina, in a campfire conversation with God. However, at that time Rich and his family finally sever their friendship with John, and the latter ends the run alone.
1999–2000
Warren Ellis (#134–143)
Warren Ellis took over the title in 1999, after his work on Transmetropolitan which had moved to the Vertigo imprint, following the closure of Helix Comics. He was meant to become a full-time writer for several years, as Delano, Ennis and Jenkins before him, but left the title early after DC refused to publish the story "Shoot", about high school shootings, following the Columbine High School massacre, despite the fact it had been written and submitted prior to the event. The story was finally published in 2010.
His brief run began with "Haunted", a London-based story in which John investigates the brutal murder of a former girlfriend, Isabel by an Aleister Crowley style magician, Josh Wright. The story introduces, or reintroduces many characters who became an important part of the Hellblazer universe, including Inspector Watford (originally from Jamie Delano's run on the title), aging magician Clarice, and Map, a powerful magician who works on tube renovations in his part as custodian of London. The remainder of Ellis' brief tenure was taken up with single issue stories, collected as "Setting Sun".
2000-2002
Brian Azzarello (#146–174)
Following a brief interlude by Croatian writer Darko Macan, the series was then taken over by Brian Azzarello, once again hired on the strength of his own series for Vertigo, 100 Bullets. Azzarello's run is one large meta-story, that follows John Constantine on a trip across America, starting with his incarceration in prison, then variously uncovering a pornography ring, catching a serial killer, taking on a Neo Nazi group before finally dealing with the architect of his incarceration, Stanley W. Manor, a thinly veiled pastiche of Batman. Brian Azzarello did return for one of the five stories in issue #250. This arc attracted minor controversy for its depiction of Constantine in a same-sex relationship.
2002–2006
Mike Carey (#175–215, #229)
Following Azzarello's run, writer Mike Carey took over the title, following his Eisner award-winning title Lucifer, set in the Sandman universe. Carey's run attempted to return John Constantine to his roots, with the title largely set back in London, and featuring many characters from former runs on the title. Mike Carey also has the honour of being the first Liverpudlian to write the Liverpudlian character. His was the second longest run by any single author on the title up to that time, second only to Garth Ennis, Following several forewarnings, Constantine then travels the world to set up a plan for a forthcoming tragedy, which will occur when "Three doors are opened", involving Swamp Thing and the Garden of Eden amongst others.
John's preparations have no effect, however, as he is tricked into killing the guardian that had been preventing the tragedy, freeing a beast which can control the collective unconsciousness of mankind. John Constantine cuts his own wrists, in order to free himself from consciousness, and plays a confidence trick on the beast, allowing his friends time to use the collective consciousness to rebuild the guardian that had kept the beast trapped. However, in this process, Swamp Thing has his human soul removed, setting up the fourth run of the comic, relaunched shortly afterward. In the process John loses his memory, setting up the events leading up to the 200th issue. Leading up to the landmark issue, John has little control over events, and is led along by a psychic serial killer, who threatens to kill Chas and his family, and a demon, Rosacarnis, who offers his memories back, at the cost of 24 hours in her service. John eventually gives into this offer, and the 200th issue shows how Rosacarnis manipulates his reality, making him raise three children with her, in the guise of Kit Ryan, from Garth Ennis's time on the title, Zed, from Jamie Delano's, and Angie, from the current run, with three different artists, Steve Dillon, Marcelo Frusin and Leonardo Manco each drawing one story, as the past, present and future of the title.
Carey's final run followed the attempts of John's three new children attempting to kill all of his family and friends, culminating in the death of his sister, Cheryl, at the hands of her possessed husband. John then travels into Hell to try to rescue her soul, with the assistance of Rosacarnis's father, Nergal. The plan ultimately fails, and John returns broken, and intending to renounce magic.
Mike Carey returned to the title for a single issue between Denise Mina and Andy Diggle's runs on the title, and also wrote the well-received Hellblazer graphic novel All His Engines about a strange illness sweeping the globe.
2006–2007
Denise Mina (#216–228)
Denise Mina had not written for comics when she took over the title in 2006, but had three acclaimed crime novels to her name, the Garnethill trilogy, the first of which won the CWA award for best debut crime novel. Her run on the title took John to Scotland, to attempt to stop a plot to make everybody empathise with each other. However, John fails to stop this, and, overwhelmed by the grief and horror they're forced to empathically share, suicides abound through the people of Glasgow. With help from Gemma Constantine, Angie Spatchcock and Chas Chandler, a plan to reverse the problem is made, as tension builds among the soldiers now surrounding the city. The soldiers keenly listen to a World Cup match between England and Portugal on the radio. When England loses the match, it seems all is lost, but the expected psychic riot fails to materialize. The soldiers are Scottish, so England's loss is celebrated, saving the day, and proving there's no source of joy like Schadenfreude.
2007–2009
Andy Diggle (#230–244, #247–249)
Andy Diggle, having previously written the Hellblazer special, Lady Constantine, and Vertigo titles The Losers and Swamp Thing, took over the title in 2007, another former writer for 2000 AD to have done this. He left the title in 2009 after accepting an exclusive contract with Marvel.
The run starts by introducing two main antagonists, an aging politician, who is using a strange portal to enter other people's minds and commit crimes, and Mako, a cannibalistic mage who devours other magicians in order to obtain their power. Constantine's attempt to play them off one another only succeeds in making them join forces in a further plot. Constantine then traps them both with considerable ease, and questions how this has been so easy. It then becomes apparent that he has been manipulated by the 'Golden Child', his twin who did not survive childbirth, and has been manipulating events for the whole of the series, including his battle with cancer and many other events. He declines his twin's offer to merge souls, suspicious that his twin has been weakening his will in past years to make him accept this offer, choosing instead to take control of his own destiny.
2009–2013
Peter Milligan (#250–300)
Peter Milligan, a veteran of the Vertigo line, having written both Shade, The Changing Man and Animal Man at the publisher's inception (and another former 2000 AD writer), then took over, starting with a short story in the landmark 250th issue, and taking over full-time following this. His run implemented several major changes, including John Constantine's wedding and the loss of his thumb.
In a rare change, Milligan's run on the title starts with John living in domestic bliss with a nurse, Phoebe. Over the course of the first storyline, several new characters are introduced, including Epiphany Greaves, the alchemist daughter of a notorious London gangster, and Julian, a Babylonian demon. Over the course of the run, John dealt with a demon taking revenge on people involved in the Liverpool dockers' strike gone insane and sought help from Shade, The Changing Man, after chopping off his own thumb, seen Phoebe die at the hands of Julian, and traveled to India to try to find a way of saving her. Following this, he realised that he was in love with Epiphany, and married her in the 275th issue. However, the events of this wedding turned Constantine's niece Gemma against him, due to the Demon Constantine sexually assaulting her in the restroom. The strain of this traumatic incident turned her against John, and she enlisted the help of a coven of witches to kill him, which later came to a head when John was forced to fight off a brutal Demon summoned by them using John's iconic trenchcoat to target him.
Afterwards, John's coat (which Gemma sold on eBay) began to manipulate its various new owners into murder, suicide, or other horrific acts until coming into the hands of a man from the U.S., who tried to kill John and Epiphany. During the time the coat was missing, John's magical abilities had begun to go out of control. John eventually resolves this, and he was re-united with his coat. Since this, Gemma and John have a very shaky relationship with one another, and she began a sexual relationship with Epiphany's crime-boss father Terry to "punish" John. When he confronted her about this relationship though, she told him that she would not stop unless he was able to retrieve her mother's soul from Hell. John agreed. In order to get his sister to leave Hell, John agreed to track down her son, his adopted nephew, in Ireland.
On October 8, 2012, the series was announced as ending with issue 300, following which a new title, Constantine, started at the main imprint of DC comics.
Other writers
Guest writers were Grant Morrison (#25–26), Neil Gaiman (#27), John Smith (#51), Eddie Campbell (#85–88), Darko Macan (#144–145), and Jason Aaron (#245–246).
Justice League Dark, Constantine and DC Rebirth
In 2011, it was announced that a younger John Constantine would feature in Justice League Dark, one of the new titles launched as part of September 2011's DC Universe reboot. He was to be part of a team including Shade, The Changing Man, Deadman and Madame Xanadu, known as Justice League Dark. As part of the DC universe reboot in September 2011, Peter Milligan started the title which featured an alternate version of John Constantine as a prominent part of the team. starring the younger New 52 John Constantine, rather than the version from Hellblazer, depicted as being in his late 50s. Writer Ming Doyle expressed excitement in her chance to write Constantine, stating that the reason of putting the term Hellblazer back to the character's title was to "take Constantine back to what he was at the start."
Relaunch (2019)
thumb|Textless cover of the first issue. Art by [[John Paul Leon]]
In July 2019, DC announced that Hellblazer would be relaunched as part of The Sandman Universe line of comics. The relaunched series, written by Simon Spurrier and illustrated by Aaron Campbell, begins after the events of the 1990 miniseries The Books of Magic. Hellblazer began with a one-shot on Halloween 2019, before becoming a regular series in November. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the series ended after 12 issues. However, during New York Comic Con 2023, it was revealed that the series would be getting a revival miniseries called John Constantine, Hellblazer: Dead in America, with Spurrier and Campbell returning and publication beginning in January 2024. The series came to an end in December 2024.