Constantine #3 – Review

By: Ray Fawkes & Jeff Lemire (story), Renato Guedes (art), Marcelo Maiolo (colors)

The Story: Constantine has always had an eye for choice magical relics—unlike some people.

The Review: Never having written any serial fiction, I can’t say I have any firsthand insight into the medium, but from the outside looking in, I’ve noticed one thing: once you get locked into certain habits, it’s very hard to course correct afterwards.  I imagine it’s a little embarrassing to do so, too.  Making radical changes early on clearly signals poor initial choices, and who would ever want to admit that?

Fawkes-Lemire better be careful, because they can easily fall into the same trap with these opening-page monologues of theirs.  Besides serving as less than subtle mini-recaps of previous events, they’re also strangely preachy.  This is John Constantine, after all; broodiness doesn’t suit him much: “Every single one of us is stupid enough to think we’re smarter than everyone else.  And how d’you think that works out for us?  On average.”

Constantine #2 – Review

By: Jeff Lemire & Ray Fawkes (story), Renato Guedes (art), Marcelo Maiolo (colors)

The Story: This is just a day for awkward encounters with old enemies, huh?

The Review: A lot of people heaved a little groan when they heard that Constantine would be shifting completely from the Vertigo universe over to the DCU proper, and as we’ve been seeing, that groan was mostly justified (more on that in a bit).  I don’t understand why going mainstream means having to dumb down a character; it’s not as if the mainstream audience has an aversion to smart, well-crafted stories.

But that’s exactly what’s happened to Constantine in the last year or so.  While Lemire-Fawkes’ portrayal of the mage isn’t offensive, it reeks of oversimplification, taking away every subtlety and nuance of his character and reducing him to little more than a tagline: “Tricky chap.  Quite a bastard.  Works magic.”  In essence, they’ve emphasized only his superficial appeal, and gotten rid of everything that actually made him compelling and popular.

The Twelve #3 – Review

By J. Michael Straczynski (writer), Chris Weston (pencils), Garry Leach (inks), Chris Chuckry (colors)

Wow, this book is so damn good. In my opinion, The Twelve is J. Michael Straczynski’s best work. The amount of “character study” he’s put into this cast is just staggering. And the way they’ve been acting to their new found lives in the modern age is completely enthralling. I won’t even get into Chris Weston’s art. Talk about being meticulous, Weston draws his heart out with each issue, rendering a world that is so detail oriented, while not feeling “photo referenced”. Inker Garry Leach provides all the support by bringing those pencils to life.

Issue #3 gives us more of the same, as the Twelve try to discover their place in this new world. Phantom Reporter lands a job at the Daily Bugle after a heart-felt speech by Bugle reporter Samuel Kingston. Fiery Mask and The Witness hit up an old bar that still stands, mingling with the new clientele and culture around them. Mister E returns to his wife and son, only to be completely pushed away. Laughing Mask shows us that he may not be entirely a “good guy”. Blue Blade really wants to be Errol Flynn, while Black Widow displays more signs of creepiness. And yes, all these characters are interesting and completely unique.

The way this story is written, it’s completely realized as something you might see on HBO. It’s taking its time – moving in baby steps, but each step is a joy to behold. I love these characters to death; they feel so real – so humanized. Sure, there’s a few psychos among them, but that just adds to the intrigue. Probably the best mini-series you’ll ready this year. (Grade: A)

– J. Montes