This Wednesday, The Hellblazer #14, written by Tim Seeley with Jesus Merino on art, hits newsstands, part two of “The Inspiration Game,” with a sober(!) John Constantine attempting to clear himself of a murder that he dreamed. Or was it just a dream? Did he actually do the deed? Regardless of who committed the act, things get plenty gruesome in these preview pages that DC Comics was kind enough to share!
THE HELLBLAZER #14 cover by Tim Seeley
THE HELLBLAZER #14 variant cover by Yasmine Putri
THE HELLBLAZER #14 page 1
THE HELLBLAZER #14 page 2
THE HELLBLAZER #14 page 3
THE HELLBLAZER #14 page 4
Can we just marvel at Jesus Merino’s linework for a minute? While John Constantine’s stories aren’t part of DC’s Vertigo imprint anymore, the gritty, visceral detail Merino brings to the book is a delight. And I’m not even talking about the bloody murder scene we see early on. Look at the fourth page where John swirls the bacon fat. It’s a necessary scene, but Merino brings both a creepiness and profaneness to the panels, but also a holiness to the ritual. It’s alternately uncomfortable but also drenched in its own gorgeousness. As far as the mystery itself, who better than Tim Seeley to guide John through such a caper? Seeley has long ago proven his chops at spinning a good detective yarn in books like Effigy and Grayson, so it’s exciting to see what he will do here. The Hellblazer feels more and more like the original Hellblazer title of old, and we’re all the better for it.
The Hellblazer #14, written by Tim Seeley with Jesus Merino on art, is on sale Wednesday from DC Comics.