The Hellblazer #13

Writer: Tim Seeley
Artist: Jesus Merino
Colorist: Carrie Strachan

After a pretty lacklustre second story-arc, John Constantine is back in issue #13 with the new creative team of Tim Seeley and Jesus Merino. From page one, it is easy to see that the series will already have a different feel: previously, Constantine felt like a bit player in his own series, but now, the story is squarely about him.

We begin this issue with Constantine waking up after a long night of drinking only to discover that the vents in his hotel room are leaking blood.  Fast forward a bit and Constantine is now at the police station, making his statement to a Detective Chief Inspector Margaret, a former flame,  recounting the events of the previous night. We learn that John went on a bender the previous night after Margaret rebuked his offer to have a drink with him and that after said bender, had an altercation with the man whose body's fluids decorated his hotel walls the next morning.

As far a premise goes, this is not the most original openings to a new story-arc, however, Seeley does give us a few twists on this age-old tale. Namely, since Constantine is a master magician, could what he dreamt have led to the man’s death? And I can’t wait to see where he goes with the series knowing his pedigree with horroresque stories.  

On art, Merino is a welcome addition to Hellblazer. He brings a certain level of grit and noir feel to the series that was sorely missing in previous issues. I have been a big proponent of artists being able to convey emotion through character’s facial expressions and Merino does this admirably in this issue. I can honestly say that Constantine, and Margaret, run the gamut of emotions throughout the issue and this just adds to the story.