Whatever You Want: Hellblazer

Hellblazer: All His Engines

Written by: Mike Carey

Art by: Leonardo Manco

This is by far the best Hellblazer book I have read to date (which isn't saying all too much because there are plenty of Hellblazer books for me to read). It starts with Constantine's sidekick/driver, Chas, coming to our anti-hero for help. Chas's niece, Tricia, is in a coma and no one can tell him what is wrong with her other than it's not a virus, which means that it falls under John's area of expertice.

John snags Chas on a trip to Los Angeles. There is a great scene where Chas is talking about the learning curve of learning how to drive on the right side of the road and John comments that he doesn't want to be around when it flattens out. In Los Angeles, there are a bunch of demons who have emigrated from hell to set up satellite offices. And this is where the story gets twisty.



The demon who has the soul of Tricia has her trapped inside his body, causing John the dillema of killing the little girl if he kills the demon. He strikes up a bargain in true Constantine fashion, never intending to uphold his end to the fullest if he can help it. He goes to another god to play agains the first. Mictlantecuhtli: "You forget yourself. I am no upstart demon, scrabbling in the dirt of the human soul. I am Mictlantecuhtli. I am a God." Constantine: "Great stuff. I'm John - and I'm a bastard." Super classic.

I'm rapidly becoming a Mike Carey fan, with Hellblazer, Lucifer, and the ongoing series Unwritten. He knows his way around a great story. I'm looking forward to reading more of his works.