Hellblazer #85

Hellblazer (Single Issues)

by Eddie Campbell (Writers)

"Warped Notions" part 1! Constantine is drawn into a web of time travel and terror when the ghost of Sir Francis Dashwood, founder of the Hellfire Club, requests the ill-mannered magician's help to avert a disaster that could threaten the very fabric of reality.

Genres: Comics, Horror, Comic Book, Graphic Novels

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Eddie Campbell is a British comics artist and cartoonist whose work has shaped the evolution of modern graphic storytelling. He is widely known as the illustrator and publisher of From Hell, his long collaboration with Alan Moore that reimagines the Jack the Ripper case through an ambitious and meticulously researched narrative. Campbell is also the creator of the long-running semi-autobiographical Alec series, later collected in Alec: The Years Have Pants, and the satirical adventure cycle Bacchus, which follows a handful of Greek gods who have wandered into the contemporary world. His scratchy pen-and-ink technique draws on impressionist influences and early masters of expressive line art, while his writing blends humor, candor, and literary ambition in a manner that critics have compared to Jack Kerouac and Henry Miller.
Campbell began developing autobiographical comics in the late 1970s before expanding the Alec stories throughout the following decades, publishing early instalments through small press networks in London and later with major independent publishers. After moving to Australia in the mid-1980s, he continued to produce both Alec and Bacchus stories while contributing to a range of international anthologies. His partnership with Moore on From Hell, initially serialised in the anthology Taboo, became one of the most acclaimed graphic novels of its era and further cemented his reputation for grounded, character-driven illustration.
Across a varied career Campbell has worked as a creator, editor, publisher, and occasional court illustrator. His contributions to comics have earned him numerous industry awards, including the Eisner Award, the Harvey Award, the Ignatz Award, the Eagle Award, and the UK Comic Art Award. He continues to produce new work while maintaining a strong presence in both literary and comics circles.

Reviews

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eddie Campbell's Hellblazer is not as fast paced as its predecessors, but is every bit as surreal, mind bending and scary in a fundamentally existential way. A lot of this was about class and reality and urban legends coming true, John was a bit of a passenger to the circumstances that happened around him, he wasn't his usual self, being a manipulative bastard, that is, but still it was an interesting read.

[Ｆｒａｎｋｈ · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's officially the nineties for Hellblazer, y'all! And we have a brand new writer on the black named Eddie Campbell who is now about to give us a riveting story arc that we're supposed to sink our teeth in. From what I understand, Campbell is only going to be present for this arc alone, and a more constant writer by the name of Paul Jenkins will take over, making that guy the official successor of the entire line-up. So let's tackle the story arc entitled Warped Notions.

The premise issue #85 features a cover that at first I thought was a callback to the previous Delano issue about Chas' grandchild whom John refused to hold. I thought this was a sort of wish fulfillment scenario or something--but I was mistaken IN THE MOST HORRIBLE WAY POSSIBLE. But before we touch upon that, let us talk about what happened in the premise. John was consulted by a friend of his whose uncle was being possessed by apocalyptic visions of the future. He tried to exorcise him but failed spectacularly because the uncle, Arthur Shinbone, died in his bed. John wasn't too eager to tell the family how he fucked that up, so it was fortunate that a bunch of dead people greeted him in the living room instead.

These unwelcome guests are spirits, and the spokesperson of the triad is the historical Sir Francis Dashwood, one of the founders of the original Hellfire Club. The other two companions who are less willing to see John are Bona Dea (a handicapped woman missing her arms, legs and eyes, resembling the Venus de Milo statue) and Murnarr, a giant cat. Sir Francis Dashwood sought for John Constantine's help about some case which I instantly forgot once I started typing this review.

Now that sounds neglectful, I know, but I'm sure I'll make up for it in my next review when things start making more sense later on because for now I don't think either Sir Francis or John have a clue as to what they are about to face. However, they are going to Philadelphia to track down more supernatural activity that has something to do with their case at hand. It's something to do with mobs. Yeah. Mobs are a product of 'the delicate power of terror' as Sir Francis creatively put it. People will riot about anything for any reason. Ah, the poor, gullible masses indeed.

All I can gather for now aside from that socio-political stuff is that urban legends are coming true. One of them is a half-dead rodent climbing up a man's anus to eat his internals. Another is a baby sewed up to become a drug mule.

The issue ended with that happy note where a dog apprehended a mother and her babe in the airport because the baby is apparently full of drugs inside. So that's where the cover idea came from! How quaint. This is a very short review and I promise that tomorrow I will come up with something that actually expounds the plot and the characters included. For now, the premise issue was baffling in a lot of places yet I'm still interested to see what Campbell intends to do with the story as it develops.

RECOMMENDED: 7/10

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[Grayson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought Eddie Campbell's story arc was a refreshing change after Ennis. run on the book. Constantine is contacted by the ghost of Sir Francis Dashwood, a real figure from history who is legendary for founding the original Hellfire Club. Dashwood leads Constantine on a merry adventure around the world, so it's a change of scenery for old John, too. Sean Phillips is artist on this arc, and he does a brilliant job. Overall it's a solid story arc. Good stuff.

[47Time · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story is spending too much time preparing the intrigue and too little with actually doing anything. The everything virus brings about an apocalypse. Sir Francis returns as a ghost to send John around the world to fix it by magically binding the loose threads back together. In reality, Sir Francis is the very cause of this event, so John imprisons him magixally. It's a good occasion to rant about the things that don't work in our world, from religion to social issues. Sadly, it's quite chaotic, but seeing John's attitude is worth it.

[ComicBookCult Luke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting first issue of a new arc, full of mystery and some grotesque points. Excited to see where this goes.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Garth Ennis' work in the Hellblazer series. So I am a little let down by this story arc, which has a new person taking over. However, I also remember not liking it when Ennis took over, and then I got to liking that. So it seems that I resist change.

That being said, I found this story arc to be one of the less focused ones so far, and there have been some quite odd ones.