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Review: Hellblazer #7

Nemesis

A while back DC Comics reworked it’s publishing line and assigned John Constantine’s Hellblazer to the Vertigo label.  Used sparingly or making appearances in a variety of titles to include Justice League Dark, Constantine had lost much of the edge which had made him famous, or infamous, as it were.  Now on the Vertigo label, Hellblazer has reinvigorated John Constantine and brought back the edge and biting tone which were the hallmark of the tile in its early years.

Simon Spurrier (Legion, The Spire) has been the writer on Hellblazer since its re-birth as a Vertigo title seven issues ago.  Spurrier has taken the book back to it’s roots and this book, sub-titled Britannia-Rule The Waves Pt. 1, is prima facie evidence of that.  Spurrier weaves together current political topics; namely the dispute over fishing grounds between the European Union and the British fishing industry — one of the factors in the UK’s departure from the EU — into a story of desperation, dark mythology, love and betrayal.  Of course, John Constantine is right in the middle of it.  Spurrier expertly weaves these disparate elements together in the form of a desperate fisherman who wants to save the economic interests of his self and his fellow fisherman.  Holding the fisherman of the EU, specifically France, accountable for their dwindling fortunes; the fisherman is given a magical gift from a mysterious stranger.  Without giving away the plot of the book, this gift allows the fisherman to call on forces that enable him to revitalize his fishing business.  However, these forces also demand love in return and Constantine, ever the cynical figure out to corral or punish those who abuse mystical power, soon finds himself investigating the goings on at the fish market.  This first part of this story arc is engrossing as the tale unfolds and ends on a cliff hanger that left me eager for issue #8.

Artist Aaron Campbell (Green Hornet, Uncanny) draws this book in a hazy, ephemeral style that, never the less, has a gritty style to it consistent with a character like Constantine.  The art style works brilliantly, building suspense while luring you with a sense of the otherworldly in the softer , blurred edges that lurk on the edge of Campbell’s reality.  The two elements together, grittiness and ethereal haze, combine to give this book a dream like horror state that is brilliantly capped by the final reveal in the final panel of the book.  Not to be outdone, the color by Jordie Bellaire (Batman, The Massive) is similarly well done.  Bellaire is a master at shaping his color palette to fit the mood of the story and drawings panel by panel.  In one panel the predominant theme may be rage and Bellaire is able to color the panel with blood red subtexts while panels with a theme of melancholy often reflect cooler colors.  Many colorists attempt to do this but Bellaire is successful because he always manages to maintain a cohesive look and feel to the book while coloring it differently panel by panel.  It is a rare and wonderful talent.

Overall, this book and series are one of my favorites and I can’t recommend it highly enough.  That Hellblazer has gone back to it’s early roots and is being created by such a talented group is a treat for fans of John Constantine, Hellblazer and Vertigo.  I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of Constantine, the supernatural or horror.

Writing – 4.6 of 5 Stars
Art – 4.6 of 5 Stars
Color – 5 of 5 Stars

Overall – 4.8 of 5 Stars

Writer – Simon Spurrier
Art – Aaron Campbell
Color – Jordie Bellaire
Letters – Aditiya Bidikar
Published by Vertigo Comics and DC Black Label

Author Profile

Nemesis
Nemesis is a poet, writer and author of the upcoming novel The Long Game. He is a writer of science fiction and supernatural thrillers. Besides novels and short stories he writes for UK based ASAP Comics developing new stories for Level 8 and OPSEC. Nem is a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point and tries to bring those experiences into his writing.

He lives and works out of his home in Riverside, California with his wife and three children. When not writing he enjoys reviewing comic books and graphic novels for ComicCrusaders.com and living the Southern California life with his family.
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