Hellblazer

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Hellblazer

Hellblazer.jpg
Series information
Title: Hellblazer
Medium: comic book
Genre: horror, mythology

Hellblazer is a comic book series published by DC Comics, under the Vertigo imprint and later The Sandman Universe line. The story centers on occultist and con man John Constantine, a cynical and troubled man haunted by the ghosts - both figurative and literal - of his past. Inevitably finding himself involved with all manners of supernatural threats that endanger him and everyone around him, he is forced to face them armed with nothing but his wits and knowledge.

Hellblazer stands out in a medium saturated by superheroes by featuring a protagonist who generally lacks flashy powers and instead relies on smarts and deceit to defeat his enemies. Despite being a magic practitioner, Constantine's "magical powers" are subtle and more akin to occultism than sorcery: hypnosis, divination, protective sigils and summoning rituals are the extent of the magic that he can use. But he is still able to best opponents much more powerful than himself by bluffing, lying and laying traps for them.

Series

The original run of Hellblazer, under the Vertigo imprint, spun off from the Swamp Thing series, where John Constantine was first introduced. It consists of 300 issues and several special editions, all by different writers and artists:

  • Hellblazer, #1-300 (1988-2013)
  • Hellblazer Special: Bad Blood, #1-4 (2000)
  • John Constantine, Hellblazer: All His Engines (2005)
  • Hellblazer Presents: Chas - The Knowledge, #1-5 (2008)
  • Hellblazer: Pandemonium (2010)
  • (and others)

In 2019, the series was revived, along with several other Vertigo series, as part of DC's The Sandman Universe line. The revived series, written by Simon Spurrier, consists of the following parts:

  • The Sandman Universe Presents: Hellblazer (2019)
  • John Constantine, Hellblazer, #1-12 (2019-2020)
  • John Constantine, Hellblazer: Dead in America, #1- (2024-present)

Characters

See also: List of Hellblazer characters

  • John Constantine (Lead Mastermind): A British magician from a working-class background. What he lacks in raw magical power he makes up for in guile and knowledge of the occult.
  • Chas Chandler (Commoner): A cab driver and Constantine's oldest surviving friend. Although they are good friends, Constantine's propensity to exploit their friendship often drives a wedge between them.
  • Swamp Thing (Specialist): An elemental and protector of plant life on Earth, who Constantine has helped (and manipulated) in the past. While wary of his schemes, he occasionally can be persuaded to lend Constantine his help.

Tricks and Matches

Jamie Delano's run (Issues #1-40)

Related titles

  • Lucifer is another Vertigo series that takes place in the same continuity as Hellblazer, with similar elements such as demons, gods and other supernatural beings. It is written by Mike Carey, who was the writer for Hellblazer #175-215, #229 and the All His Engines standalone graphic novel. Constantine has a cameo in Lucifer #5, and Lucifer is mentioned in Hellblazer #59 and appears briefly in #192.
  • Journey into Mystery, while published by DC's competitor Marvel Comics, has many similarities to Hellblazer, including a focus on mythology and having as protagonist a trickster character with little magical power who relies on his wits to defeat much more powerful supernatural beings.