Constantine Hellblazer: All His Engines by Mike Carey and Leonardo Manco
01/04/2005 . Source: Paul Skevington 

pub: Titan Books. 128 page hardback graphic novel. Price: £19.99 (UK). ISBN: 1-84023-966-2.

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After the release of its Hollywood movie adaptation, the comic title 'Hellblazer' is bound to garner a lot more attention from the general public. If that added focus results in someone picking up a copy of 'All His Engines', then no matter what you might think about the movie, this is definitely a very good thing.

For those new to the series, the protagonist of 'Hellblazer' is a chain-smoking Liverpudlian named John Constantine, a man gifted with a wealth of mystical knowledge and power. He's also a man with more personal problems than a Jerry Springer regular.

I've come across Constantine a few times personally. When he appeared in Neil Gaiman's 'Sandman' and in 'Midnight Days', a collection of Gaiman's work that includes the early Hellblazer story 'Hold Me'. Even from these brief glimpses, I became fascinated with the character, a man so seemingly non-descript and unremarkable who trafficked with demons and angels without batting an eyelid. I'm glad that when I was given the opportunity to immerse myself more deeply in Constantine's world, I did so in the immensely capable hands of Mike Carey.

In 'All His Engines', a long-time companion of Constantine named Chas is forced to contact John after his grand-daughter inexplicably enters a coma. With no signs of physical or psychological trauma, the doctors are helplessly baffled and out of desperation Chas requests Constantine's aid to solve the problem. Constantine agrees to help and sets off on a journey filled with magic, blood, bones, gods and demons.

Underneath the trappings of fantasy horror lays a book that has crawled through the darker recesses of humanity and emerged out the other side, loudly trilling about the dirty and cobwebbed things it found there and about the jewels it saw buried beneath them. Carey uses the plot to deconstruct Constantine as a character, allowing us to glimpse into his innocent past and contrasting it with his later, more jaded and less moral incarnations. We are aware of the tarnishing effect time has had on his soul, as the god in the book says of him, 'What is there left of you, either to buy or sell? You must offer me something...a little less soiled.'

Carey takes this further by examining Constantine's interaction with both the human and mystical worlds. He manages to manipulate the disgusting corpse demon Beroul with just as much ease and surety as he deals with his human allies Chas and Melosa, arguably with the same hard-hearted practicality.

Many of those who have written 'Hellblazer' previously have described Constantine as a magic addict. The constant smoking does seem to be indicative of this addictive personality. Carey illustrates this with the apparent abandon with which Constantine approaches the challenges set before him, accidentally sacrificing lives along the way and playing incredibly dangerous games with highly unpredictable outcomes. When someone confronts him about his tendency to recklessly play with chance in this way, he seems hurt. Whilst not sacrificing any of the character's credibility he makes it clear that John is also a very emotionally-based character and when it comes down to it, a 'good' character. Indeed, Carey often draws on the image of the heart within the work, just one example of the skilful way in which he infuses the text with multiple levels of connotative significance.

From a technical viewpoint, Carey's writing is spot on, with great panel usage that manages to be experimental whilst never becoming confusing. I loved the way in which panels appeared in rolls of film within one of the flashbacks. An extremely measured and thoughtful use of double-spreads also adds to the joy of reading the work.

It is important not to underplay the role of Manco as artist on 'Engines'. I can't think of an artist whose work I have enjoyed more this year. His characters are perfectly drawn, capturing the gritty realism so important to the success of the book. Each face is imbued with emotion, nuances of expression and demeanour captured perfectly. Uncommonly, this talent for depicting the ordinary is mixed with an astoundingly powerful visual imagination, capable of conjuring fantastical devils and horrific visions of Hell that are often genuinely disturbing. His imagery has a visceral impact, drawing the reader in and viciously kicking them in the stomach at unexpected moments. Manco's contribution virtually ensures 'Engines' entry into the list of must-have graphic novels.

Lee Loughridge does a great job as colourist, maintaining the dark feel of the book with gloomy and dirty panels interspersed with shocks of brightness that serve to keep the readers attention firmly grasped.

This book is an absolute classic and a prime example of what Carey did with the title. It's a great way to start reading 'Hellblazer'. Carey will be leaving the title to be replaced by Denise Mina. She's got a lot to live up to!

Paul Skevington