World Famous Comics: John Constantine, Hellblazer: Damnation's Flame
John Constantine, Hellblazer: Damnation's Flame
By: Garth Ennis Publisher: Vertigo Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Vertigo Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 176 Publication Date: June 01, 1999 Release Date: June 01, 1999
Product Description: (For mature audiences.) Garth Ennis, who is also known for his popular Vertigo series Preacher, always manages to weave together the dark and horrific with the commonplace to epitomize the graphic-novel medium. John Constantine, Hellblazer: Damnation's Flame collects issues 72 to 77 of the DC Comics series in a volume that is really composed of four short stories. In the primary tale of the collection, Constantine, a trench-coated magus, wanders the streets of New York City. Reeling from the loss of his lover, Kit, he literally falls under the spell of a minor magician. Constantine's physical body is abused in a homeless shelter while his soul travels the barren roads of a tiny slice of hell. His companion on the journey is President John F. Kennedy, who has been trapped in this limbo world since moments after his assassination. The site of the ever-suffering Kennedy will be difficult for many readers, but through Constantine's interactions with the President on their journey to hell's White House, Ennis punctures many of the myths that have shaped late-20th-century America. Kennedy is shown to be all too human, and the ruler of this hell, a ghostly Abraham Lincoln, reveals himself as the only bigger myth-figure able to free Kennedy with a heavy dose of reality. "Act of Union," the second story, flashes back to 1980 with a quotidian narrative about Kit and Constantine's first meeting. This is a small, beautiful story that demonstrates Ennis's impressive range as a writer (especially when compared to the bloody opening selection). William Simpson's sketchy artwork perfectly captures the mood of Ennis's word balloons. "Confessions of an Irish Rebel" is another tale with a smaller and less mystical scope than the opening, but, as Constantine becomes mixed up with his old friend Dublin, things take a turn toward gore and violence. Finally, "And the Crowd Goes Wild" is actually a frame narrative, a story told in a bar that again moves back over a decade, to the night Chas Chandler gave John a ride in his cab and ended up being involved in a terrifying case that touched hell itself. --Patrick O'Kelley
Amazon.com Review: (For mature audiences.) Garth Ennis, who is also known for his popular Vertigo series Preacher, always manages to weave together the dark and horrific with the commonplace to epitomize the graphic-novel medium. John Constantine, Hellblazer: Damnation's Flame collects issues 72 to 77 of the DC Comics series in a volume that is really composed of four short stories. In the primary tale of the collection, Constantine, a trench-coated magus, wanders the streets of New York City. Reeling from the loss of his lover, Kit, he literally falls under the spell of a minor magician. Constantine's physical body is abused in a homeless shelter while his soul travels the barren roads of a tiny slice of hell. His companion on the journey is President John F. Kennedy, who has been trapped in this limbo world since moments after his assassination. The site of the ever-suffering Kennedy will be difficult for many readers, but through Constantine's interactions with the President on their journey to hell's White House, Ennis punctures many of the myths that have shaped late-20th-century America. Kennedy is shown to be all too human, and the ruler of this hell, a ghostly Abraham Lincoln, reveals himself as the only bigger myth-figure able to free Kennedy with a heavy dose of reality. "Act of Union," the second story, flashes back to 1980 with a quotidian narrative about Kit and Constantine's first meeting. This is a small, beautiful story that demonstrates Ennis's impressive range as a writer (especially when compared to the bloody opening selection). William Simpson's sketchy artwork perfectly captures the mood of Ennis's word balloons. "Confessions of an Irish Rebel" is another tale with a smaller and less mystical scope than the opening, but, as Constantine becomes mixed up with his old friend Dublin, things take a turn toward gore and violence. Finally, "And the Crowd Goes Wild" is actually a frame narrative, a story told in a bar that again moves back over a decade, to the night Chas Chandler gave John a ride in his cab and ended up being involved in a terrifying case that touched hell itself. --Patrick O'Kelley
Interesting to say the least Great story from a 20 year old character. Id rather not go into detail on the story, but It is a good story. Not as good as some that follow this book but still worth a look.
Ennis is Gold You can pretty much pick up anything that had Garth Ennis's name on it and it will be an enjoyable read.
The least of Hellblazer. Garth Ennis, John Constantine, Hellblazer: Damnation's Flame (DC Comics, 1999)
I love Garth Ennis. Preacher remains one of my favorite comic titles ever. But I really have to wonder what on Earth was going through his mind during most of his Hellblazer run, much of which is disjointed, fragmentary, and unsatisfying. (Not all of it, I rush to add; just most of it.) Damnation's Flame is very much in this mold.
There are four stories to be found here-- the title story, which deals with John's sojourn in America after the break-up, two stories involving the late Brendan, and a fourth involving Chas. If it all sounds rather like Ennis was running around trying to figure out how to get a number of folks into the stories he'd been neglecting, well, that's because it is. There are certainly some amusing moments to be found here (most of them involving John F. Kennedy, who is portrayed as an egotistical, question-dodging jerk-- the accuracy of which I'll leave to the individual reader to decide), but if you're looking for coherence, you're liable to find yourself at a loss. For collectors only. **
Debunking America I have to believe that whoever didn't like this collection either doesn't get it or refuses to accept it. To be fair, the opening story is a little out of the ordinary for the usually London-based Constantine. Whereas Garth's other spectacular book PREACHER embraces the American Myth, "Damnation's Flame" thouroughly reveals it for what it is...a myth. Caught in a sliver of Hell, John encounters slaughtered Indians, soldiers who died for nothing, streets covered in crack, and a positively wanker of a president.
The other stories aren't earth-shattering, but they are enjoyable. John visits his old friend Brendan and meets Kit in a flashback to his days at Ravenscar (the mental hospital he was in and out of for three years). John also meets Brendan, now a hard-drinking ghost, in the present. And back in London, Chas tells his mates about one of the many times Constantine was apparently killed, and how this time there was even a funeral for him. The entire Ennis cast was present (Header, Kit, Brendan, Rick the Vic) as well as the Delano cast (Ray, Chas, Ritchie, Cheryl), and Moore's little-seen Emma.
By the way, if the sight of John F. Kennedy walking around with his hand pressed against the hole in his head to keep his brains from falling out isn't enough incentive to buy this book, check out his best line from the story:
"To be seen in a historical context as the conscience of the United States is not the honor one might think. It is, in fact, a burden, and one that I was...at the time...loath to shoulder. My chief concerns were, to set the record straight, immediate political survival, and regular extramarital sex with as many women as possible.
Disappointingly mediocre Ennis tale... Garth Ennis' work on Hellblazer is some of the best in the medium, but this trade horribly dissapoints. Any no name writer could spin this tale of John Constantine, it's suprising to see the Ennis name on it. Constantine himself loses most of what made him so cool in other Ennis works... He becomes an everyman in this book, a nobody with nothing so cool about him that someone would want to write a book about. But sadly enough, Ennis has done it, and it's a stinker.
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