Members of the wealthy elite are turning up dead in unusual circumstances: nekkid, impaled, and wearing angel wings. Coincidentally the beat for all these deaths is Liverpool, John Constantine’s hometown, and, with the help of a childhood friend we’ve never seen before (and prolly won’t see again) and Lucifer Morningstar, the Hellblazer is on the case to find out wha happen, like.
I was quite looking forward to this one because the Hellblazer cameo in DCeased was by far the standout part of that otherwise crappy book. It was really funny and it seemed like Tom Taylor had a good handle on the character. Unfortunately, Hellblazer: Rise and Fall isn’t nearly as fun and is another unmemorable outing for Constantine.
The story is no great shakes. We’re told almost immediately who’s behind it all so there’s no mystery or tension there, and the reason behind the nekkid angel deaths is tossed off with an unremarkable meh towards the end. Most of the book then is John and contrived old bestie Aisha going through the usual police procedural motions with the occasional bit of magic thrown in. There’s the creepy kid cliche, and the resolution is too neat (the villain’s a challenge until he doesn’t need to be!) and overly sentimental for Hellblazer.
Which isn’t to say the whole book is a bust: Darick Robertson’s art is great (lots of body horror and explicit gore means this comic isn’t best suited for the littles ones) and, as cliche as the character was, the creepy kid did look proper creepy at times. The Devil is a fun character and I enjoyed most of the scenes he was in, and “cockwomble” is a terrific insult.
Still, I wasn’t taken with this one and found myself unengaged with the dull goings-on for the most part. Despite the talent involved, Hellblazer: Rise and Fall is a slight, unremarkable and almost instantly-forgettable story.
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