Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 14 - Final Girl

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

While on a search for more signs of The Rising Darkness, John and Zed run into Judith - another member of The Newcastle Crew and John's former lover. The Newcastle Incident gave Judith a precognitive power that lets her sense a new evil - bad people coming back from the dead to kill again. John offers to help Judith with the latest of these "Meat Cutters" and find the source of their power but Judith is less interested in learning why these creatures exist than stopping them - a point of contention that will lead to the discovery of a horrible secret.


Influences

Alan Moore's Swamp Thing (the character of Judith) Hellblazer #11 (references to The Newcastle incident) and Scooby Doo (John's trap for the second Meat Cutter at the bar seems like a Freddy Jones trap if ever there was one.)

The whole episode plays like a dark parody of 1980s slasher films, with all of the various Meat Cutters acting like Jason and Mike Myers.

This may not be intentional, but the whole episode is also reminiscent of the Hunter: The Vigil role-playing game, which allows for the players to contend with monsters similar to The Meat Cutters called Slashers. (Slashers are what writer Daniel Cerone refers to the creatures in the action notes of the script.) The game suggests that one possible origin for Slashers is that they are Hunters who have been driven mad by repeated encounters with supernatural evil and there's some suggestion this is starting to happen to Judith.


Artistry

The script is very well written and it's a shame it was never filmed.


Pub Trivia

This episode was never filmed.

As a way to build publicity for Matt Ryan's appearance as John Constantine in the Haunted episode of Arrow's fourth season, writer Daniel Cerone offered to release this script if a certain Twitter post got over 2,000 re-tweets. It got over 3,000 and the full script can be read here.

Judith was another member of The Newcastle Crew in the comics. She was a tantric magician and John's lover. They met at the North Beach Ashram where they both studied Tantric Yoga. Like John, Judith was addicted to the thrill of using magic. It was Judith who assisted John in trying to summon a bigger demon than the demon that was plaguing Astra, the little girl they were trying to save.

After The Newcastle Incident, Judith was scared straight for a time and became a member of London's punk community. John recruited her to help him with his plans to stop The Brujeria from bringing about the end of the world in Saga of The Swamp Thing. Sadly, Judith turned traitor and joined with The Brujeria after being cornered. She died after outliving her usefulness to the cult.

The physical description for Judith mirrors her appearance from the comics when she was part of The Newcastle Crew, though slightly older. "Early 30s -- punk rock, bottle blonde, goth lipstick -- dressed in form-fitting leather pants".

Rather than being a tantric magician, the TV show version of Judith had precognitive dreams. She apparently dabbled in necromancy as well.

John sings one of his original songs to Judith after they shag. The lyrics he quotes are from Venus of The Hardsell - an actual song written by Hellblazer author Jamie Delano as the one single of John's old band Mucous Membrane. You can listen to one fan's cover of it here.


Arcana

John uses a mouthful of alcohol from his flask and his lighter to create a fireball to fight the first Slasher.  While this may be a simple fire-breathing trick, it seems to have a magical effect.

Judith had precognitive dreams, seeing the future while she was asleep.  Her power changed after The Newcastle Incident, causing her to have visions of people dying from the perspective of The Meat Cutters.

The Meat Cutters, as Judith calls them, are animated corpses that refuse to die unless beheaded.

Meat Cutters seem to be formed from the bodies of bad people who died violently and, when possible, will target the people they view as being responsible for their death. The first Meat Cutter we encounter was a man named Brad Howard who committed suicide after losing his job and went after his former co-workers. The second one, formed from the body of local bully Reggie, targets the four friends who accidentally killed him and dumped his body down a well.

Judith collects the weapons she takes from The Meat Cutters that she kills, though they don't seem to have any magical properties on their own.

John and Judith both know how to hypnotize people. Judith uses it to calm the surviving victims of The Slashers and help them overcome the trauma. John uses is to put Judith to sleep - first to help her fight her insomnia and then to induce a precognitive dream.

Zed uses the nails from the coffin of St. Padua to find John.

John does a series of tests on the captured Meat Cutter to determine what makes it tick. The final test rules out phase-shifting entities, which - by process of elimination - means that it was spell work. Necromancy, to be specific.

To deal with the guilt of Newcastle, Judith found a spell of atonement that could be used to remove sin from a person's soul. John is familiar with the spell and notes that it requires the sacrifice of a damned human soul. Judith worked the spell outside of a prison on the night of a death-row execution but, due to the influence of The Rising Darkness, the ritual got twisted and that killer's soul is now animating the other bodies of recently deceased evil people. Judith's precognitive gifts have been likewise corrupted due to her connection to the killer's soul thanks to her spell.


Dialogue Triumphs

(John attempts to explain a trust fall to Zed)
John: Close your eyes.
(Zed does so) 
John: Now... fall into my arms.
Zed: Nice try.
John: And that’s why you’ve lasted this long. You’ve got the good sense not to trust me.

(As John is about to get killed by the resurrected Slasher, Judith stomps in.)
Judith: Sorry I'm late.
(The Slasher turns and Judith attacks. She disarms The Slasher before beheading it.)
Judith: Burlap. This season’s trending fashion.
John: Nice blade work.
(Judith turns to recognize John with shock.)
Judith: John Constantine?
John: Judith. Can’t seem to keep away, can we?

(John and Judith cuddle, wrapped in a blanket after a good shagging)
John: (singing) “Love, adventure, death and glory. The short goodbye, the whispered story.” That bit’s brilliant.
Judith: I hate to break this to you, but you were better when you stuck to covers. Your original music...
John: Sadly, there might be a sliver of truth to that. You see this scar? You know how I got it?
(John moves his hair aside and points to his scalp.)
Judith: Wrestling a 500-pound golem?
John: No. From a bottle tossed on stage by a drunken frat boy who didn’t appreciate the poetry behind my lyrics.
Judith: Punk is best left for the wasted and the wounded. Frat boys... you gotta stick with your own, John.
John: That has become abundantly clear.

John: Jude, Jude... you might be hunting random, reanimated killers, like you think. Or you might be playing whack-a-mole with one demon, or one entity, moving from body to body. I got tests in my kit to find out.
Judith: Damn you, John! This is why I didn’t want you coming with. I knew you'd find a way to make it all about you.
John: About me? I'm trying to stop people from dying!
Judith: (realizing) This was your plan from the start, wasn’t it? “I’m not sure I want to see you go right now.” You used me. Same way you use everyone.
John: That’s not true.
Judith: Then why didn’t you tell me this was your plan before we left?
(John is cornered, but he plays it honest.)
John: Would you have taken me with you if I had?

(As Judith is about to strike John down with her katana, Zed enters the bar and throws a knife into Judith's calf. The pain makes her drop her katana and Zed moves forward.)
Zed: I told you, I'm used to my knives.

Judith: You should’ve let him have me
John: Why? The lives he took are on his soul, not yours.
Judith: Another con. It’s just what I’d expect from you, John
(Judith turns and starts walking.)
John: C’mon, Jude. Let’s hash this out over a pint. We’ve free run of a tavern and hours till dawn!
(She stops and looks back.)
Judith: You know, John, at least I tried to make myself better. But you’re still lying to your friends and sacrificing them for the cause. What are you going to do when you’ve killed off everyone you ever cared about?
(Judith turns and keeps walking. John, not having the heart to argue, watches her go.)


Continuity

John refers to Manny destroying his scrying map in C112.

Zed makes reference to Chas being a great chef.

John refers to the events of C104, C108, C109 and C111 in telling Judith what happened to Gary, Ritchie and Ann Marie from The Newcastle Crew.

Zed uses the nails from the coffin of St. Padua from C103 to find John. (Curiously, the script says they were from episode C104 - though this may be because the original second episode was aired as C106.)

Judith and Zed are both skilled knife throwers but Zed is used to throwing with her own knives.


Location 

The script describes the setting as "a nondescript town whose name bears no relevance to this tale." Later clues reveal it to be in Kentucky.


Untelevised Adventures

Technically, this whole episode was an untelevised adventure.

Judith and John both make reference to The Newcastle Incident.


The Fridge Factor

Averted hard. While Judith did screw up in her ritual to atone for her sins, she is good in a fight and proves more than a match for John in the heroics department. She saves John from the first slasher and Zed saves John from Judith in the end.


John Screws Up

John's meddling in Judith's life - while helping stop the continual cycle that was getting people killed - pretty much destroys any chance of romance or friendship he has with Judith.


The Bottom Line

A bit hard to judge since we only have the script to go by. But based on the script alone, this would have been a great episode. With the proper casting Judith could have been a great foil for John had the show continued and the future scripts stuck with the eventual fate of The Newcastle Crew based on what happened in Saga of the Swamp Thing.  There are hints here of Judith starting to go mad from her repeated encounters with The Slashers and it's easy to see her being corrupted by The Brujeria as she was in the comics. Alas, barring a miracle, we'll never know...

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 13 - Waiting For The Man

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

When another detective goes missing while investigating the disappearances of young girls that coincided with the full moon, Jim Corrigan brings John and Zed in to help him investigate. Unfortunately, Zed can't shake her visions of Jim Corrigan's impending death.  Worse still, John just had a bounty put on his head by The Brujeria.  And Papa Midnite aims to collect....


Influences

Alan Moore's Swamp Thing (The Brujeria), Hellblazer #4 (the basic plot involving a Satanic serial killer called "The Man"), Hellblazer #181 (Gary Lester escaping Hell to deliver a warning to John), Hellblazer: Damnation's Flame (Papa Midnite going after John), Hellblazer #63 (John taking a piss while talking to a supernatural being) and the works of Garth Ennis in general (John's jokes about lung cancer, and the appearance by The Ace of Winchesters).


Performances

It's a small thing, but it says a lot that even the usually cool-nerved John Constantine has his composure shaken by finding all of The Man's child brides laying together in one bed and Matt Ryan perfectly captures the character's revulsion and righteous anger later once The Man is in custody.


Artistry

The general aesthetic of The Man's home perfectly emulates the comics and may well be the creepiest imagery the show has brought about yet.  Forget demons and spirits - a serial killer who successfully enslaves the souls of the young girls he strangles to death is disturbing on multiple levels.


Pub Trivia

The title, plot and a good deal of the imagery and dialogue are taken directly from Hellblazer #4.

Coincidentally, Hellblazer #4 was the issue where John and Zed originally met.

John makes a crack about how he's fit as a fiddle despite his smoking - a reference to how John was eventually diagnosed with lung cancer in the Garth Ennis story Dangerous Habits.

The address where The Man lives is 4 Delano Street.  This is both a reference to the issue number of Hellblazer that inspired this episode as well as the writer, Jamie Delano.


Arcana

Spontaneous Desiccation is the act of a body becoming quickly dehydrated and mummified.

A Blood Moon is another term for a total lunar eclipse, so called because of the red-tint this gives the moon.

A Lunar Tetrad is four successive total lunar eclipses with no partial lunar eclipses in between.

Biblical Tetrads are Tetrads where the Blood Moons fall on Biblical Feast Days.  These are quite rare, with the next one scheduled in 2015.  There is a prophecy - promoted by a pair of American evangelists - regarding the End Times coming about because of the next Biblical Tetrad.

Holy Water can be used to reveal magical ritual markings.

The Diablo Cauter (a.k.a. The Devil's Branding Irons) were used by The Inquisition in the 13th century to torture witches.  Apparently they are also used by Satan-worshipers to torture people.

Full moons symbolize rebirth.

Sacrifices made during a blood moon are used to usher in the new cycle.

It is possible for a human soul to possess a corpse and use it to speak to people, as Gary Lester does to deliver John a warning.

According to Manny, sensitives like Zed communicate more like spiritual beings than most mortals. When a sensitive such as Zed is in need, angels can sense that need and respond.

Again, Manny claims that angels do not have free will and are bound by the will of Heaven.  He envies the freedom mortals have to act freely on their knowledge.

John has a Tibetan spell that allows him to "pierce the vale".  It requires a DNA sample, the right incantation and an electrical shock capable of temporarily stopping the heart.  This last element is required to induce a state of Bardo - the transitional state between two lives on Earth in Buddhist tradition.  The spell combined with the DNA sample allows John to see through the eyes of the person the DNA belongs to.

Papa Midnite raises a zombie to kill John.  In traditional voodoo, zombies are souls trapped in dead bodies, enslaved to the will of a magician.  They possess enhanced strength and durability but can be killed by head-shots with an ordinary pistol.

The destruction of a zombie can stun the magician who created it.

There is a long tradition of magicians using animals as spies, as Papa Midnite does here.  The tradition dates back to at least the time of Norse myth, where Odin made use of two raven familiars - Thought and Memory - to watch distant events. Perhaps the most famous example of this in modern culture is Saurman using ravens and crows to track The Fellowship in The Lord of the Rings.

Papa Midnite arms himself with The Ace of Winchesters - last seen in C103 - when he goes to confront John directly.

For Papa Midnite, the reward for sacrificing John is to free his sister's soul from Hell. z

John knows how to raise a zombie.  He can also create a strong enough glamour to make the zombie look like him and fool as powerful a magician as Papa Midnite at close range.

John knows a ritual that allows him to free bound souls.  He uses this to save the first three girls killed by The Man.


Dialogue Triumphs

Zed: Are you going to roll the dice on Gary's warning too?  Just wait and see what turns up?
John: Yeah. Sounds reasonable.
Zed: You can't ignore the warnings, John
John: Oh, every time I light up I have the Surgeon General harping on about bloody lung cancer and look at me.  Fit as a fiddle!
Zed: What's your point?
John: My point is we all shape our destiny but none of us get to escape our fate. So when my time's up, that's it.

Zed: What are you doing here? John says you never come when he calls.
Manny: He doesn't ask as nicely as you.

John: There's a girl out there with a depraved killer. I'm her only hope of rescue. Can any bounty be worth that stain on your soul?
Papa Midnite: I gave up on my soul a long time ago.

John: Tell me... what would happen if a man like this, after everything he's done, all the children he's's murdered...what would happen if he were... to try and run away?
Jim: He ain't no demon, ain't no ghost.  He's a man.
John: Is he, Jim?
(Jim looks at The Man, undoes his handcuffs, and draws his gun)
Jim: Run.

John: I stare into the face of evil every bloody day. It usually manifests itself as a demon, a malevolent spirit, a bloody zombie, but now...
Manny: John, you've encountered human evil before.
John: I have, but this is something else entirely. We now know what happens when The Rising Darkness meets the worst of humanity  There's not an evil in any realm more bloody dangerous than that.
(John turns away but Manny grabs his shoulder)
Manny: This thing that we've set out to do, you and I - it's working. We can win this war. Trust me.
John: (chuckles) Of course we can. You know me. I don't play if I can't win. All I'm worried about is how to spend the rest of my days after I've driven every last bastard demon back to where it belongs.

Papa Midnite: So that's it? I'm free now? What's the catch?
Manny: You'll never be free. You gave up any hope of that when you went to work for The Brujeria.
Papa Midnite: What do you want?
Manny: I'm cancelling the contract on John Constantine.  You understand? He's off-limits.
Papa Midnite: You work for The Brujeria?!
Manny:  No. The Brujeria work for me.


Continuity

The "previously on Constantine" teaser shows clips from C103, C105 and C108, regarding Papa Midnite, Jim Corrigan, Zed's visions of Corrigan dying and being surrounded by green fire, The Brujeria and Papa Midnite's prophecy that the Rising Darkness was heralded by someone close to John who will betray him.

Zed says her visions always come true eventually.


Location

New Orleans


The Bottom Line

In a fair and just world, this would have been a stunning mid-season finale.  Sadly, this is not a fair and just world and the best that we can hope for is that some magic will see fit to deliver unto us a second season of Constantine and that more episodes will be like this one.

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 12 - Angels And Minsters Of Grace

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

A tip from Manny leads John, Zed and Chas to a nearby hospital, where an overdosing drug addict shows signs of dark influence. When Zed becomes sidelined by seizures and Manny stays mum once too often, John grounds the angel - literally. Unfortunately, Manny is totally powerless when he is in a mortal body and Heaven's Light may be the only thing that can counter the darkness that they encounter.


Influences

The Garth Ennis run on Hellblazer (the idea of John binding an angel to his will & John's gambling to win various rare magic items) & The John Ostrander run on The Spectre (new mythology for Eclipso and The Black Diamond).


Performances

Angelica Celaya and Harold Perrineau play off one another beautifully as Zed and Manny finally meet in the flesh... so to speak.


Artistry

The fake out regarding the ultimate villain of the episode is very well played.


Pub Trivia

The title comes from a line from Halmet - Act I, Scene 4 - "Angels and ministers of grace defend us!".  The line is spoken by Halmet, as he sees the ghost of his father.

During the Garth Ennis run on Hellblazer, John was able to bind an angel to his will.  With the assistance of a succubus, John was able to remove an angels' heart.  So long as John held the heart, he could command the angel to do what he wanted. This binding was somewhat more permanent than what John does to Manny on the show, however.

The black diamond called The Heart of Darkness is a reference to the DC Comics super-villain Eclipso - specifically the re-imagining of the villain orchestrated by writer John Ostrander as part of his run on The Spectre. It was there that Eclipso was revealed to be the first manifestation of God's Wrath.  Eclipso became more obsessed with Revenge than Vengeance, however, and was imprisoned inside The Heart of Darkness.  The Heart was broken int 1000 pieces by a gem dealer, which weakened its power to hold Eclipso.  After that, any human who held one of the black diamonds would become possessed by Eclipso and turn upon whoever had made them angry.


Arcana

John's shopping list includes tannis root, adder's tongue and catnip.

Tannis Root is a fictional herb first mentioned in the film Rosemary's Baby.  In the movie, Tannis Root is used both as a reagent in dark magic and as way of devil worshipers marking one another by its distinctive smell.

Adder's Tongue is a name applied to a genus of about 25-30 different ferns.  Their leaves are used in the treatment of wounds by alchemists and white witches.

Catnip - in addition to being a recreational substance for felines - has a number of magical and medicinal purposes.  It can be used to sooth colicky babies or as a blood purifier for infants. Magically, it is often used in love potions and charm spells meant.

The Mill House contains a room that holds a sunny, outdoor meditation garden.  Zed's visions do not trouble her while she is in this room, for some reason.

Zed uses Ariadne's Thread to stop herself from becoming lost in The Mill House.  In Greek Mythology, Ariadne was the Princess of Crete, daughter of Minos. It was she who told Theseus the secret to navigating the great Labyrinth under Crete - using a great ball of string - and how to slay the Minotaur that lived there. Depending on the legend, Theseus either abandoned her once his quest was complete or was informed by Dionysus that he had already claimed Ariadne as his bride to be.

Manny tells John to go to a hospital named for St. Catherine.  There are a number of Catholic saints named Catherine, but the first was Catherine of Alexander who is the patron of nurses and maidens.

John knows a spell that can reveal the spark of life in living beings and dead bodies - aka Elan Vital. The spell produces a bright light capable of burning human corneas.  The spell also reveals the absence of that spark as well as the dark matter radiated by evil forces.

A vial of the air from Hades can be used to temporarily stun an angel while they are possessing a human body.

John apparently knows a siren and had a wild weekend with her once.  Sirens, in Greek Mythology, were creatures who attempted to lure men into danger with their beautiful voices. The myths differ on whether or not sirens had beauty to match their voices or if they had an appearance similar to that of a harpy, with bird-like body parts.  John's description seems to suggest the former.

Angels can be trapped in a human body if a magician can carve an appropriate sigil into the flesh of the human host before the angel can leave the body.

When possessing a human body, angels lose all connection to The Heavenly Host as well as all of their angelic powers.  To that end, a bound angel is little better than an ordinary human. In fact, given most angels lack of experience in managing emotions, they are likely to be more hindrance than help to the magician who binds them.

When an angel possess a human body, magicians will see the angel as however the angel wills their normal selves to look, albeit it dressed in the clothing of their human host.  Reflections will show the face of the human host and non-magicians will also see the possessed mortal as looking perfectly normal.

The Heart of Darkness is a black diamond made of calcified evil. Reportedly forged from the power of a dark sorcerer whose infernal powers once threatened the earth, the diamond was broken into many pieces by an angel's sword.

Since then, humans who came into possession of a piece of the diamond become possessed by darkness, becoming super strong and homicidal, acting upon whatever impulses enrage them most.  In this case, a doctor began killing people who wasted their second chances at a new life.

The presence of dark matter interferes with illumination, either causing lights to flicker or by extinguishing them outright.

The Mill House contains a piece of The Heart Of Darkness in a puzzle box.  Jasper's note says that the box was retrieved from "a gift of God".  John later realizes this was a literal translation of the place where the diamond was found - "bagh dadu" or Baghdad.

The pieces of the Heart of Darkness are drawn to one another like magnets.

The light of Heaven is the only thing that can destroy dark matter.


Dialogue Triumphs

John: Heroes are usually jerks at heart.

John: Hopefully I've got our psychic out of sensory deprevation.
Chas: She needs to rest.
John:Why don't we all just take a bloody holiday, eh?
Manny: (possessing Chas) Don't even think about it!
John: Oh, I forgot - angels.. they can't read sarcasm.
Manny: I can read it. I just don't have the patience for it.

Zed: The thing about Ariadne... Dionysus rescued her but she ended up dying anyway.

(As Chas gets ready to sneak out of his hospital room)
John: Yeah, that's a good idea.  Stay here and they're likely to experiment on you in the name of science.
Chas: Oh, like you did?
John: That was in the name of magic.

(As Manny throws up after smelling a dead body for the first time)
John: (deadpan) Oh yeah.  Go ahead.  That's great.  Just contaminate the crime scene.

John: (To Manny) Oh, and speaking of infernal power... can you use a computer?

(After Manny experiences the pleasure of the flesh)
Manny: I don't know how you get anything done.
John: Well, a little bit of denial and a lot of gin

Zed: My visions?  Are they a gift from God?  Or do my abilities come from somewhere evil? And the tumor is my punishment?
Manny:.Do you think your powers are evil?
Zed: Sometimes they feel that way. But since I've met John, I... I've been able to use them to save lives. And if this is my gift, I'll put up with the pain.
Manny: Exactly.
Zed: So my visions do come from God?
Manny: Like I said, John grounded me in this body. So I'm cut off from my power. But based on what you told me, Zed, you have all the answers you need.

John: I want to tell you something about me that nobody knows. I wake up every morning and for the first five minutes of the day... I imagine that everyone I care about is dead. I lie there and... I mediate on that. So that when it inevitably happens then uh... it lessens the blow.
Zed: Then what do you do?
John: I spark a ciggy and fry an egg.


Continuity

John once again makes use of his enchanted playing card as a fake ID.  It was last seen in 104.

John makes reference to the events of 110 and Zed pushing herself too hard in New York.  In a callback to the flashbacks from that episode, John refers to what he did to Chas to make him semi-immortal as being done "in the name of magic."

Manny destroys The Scry Map.

Zed is able to see Manny as John does by the episode's end.


Untelevised Adventures

John makes reference to a wild weekend he once spent with a siren.  At some point, he won a jar full of air from Hades from her.


John Screws Up

John's binding Manny very nearly gets him and Zed killed.

John also misidentifies the killer and is slow in figuring out what "gift from God" means.


The Bottom Line

The villain of the week is a bit crap and all too easily disposed of in the end - a waste of the potential for Eclipso from the comics.  But the build up and the fake-out are handled well.  And the business of the core cast - particularly the scenes with Zed and Manny playing off each other - are so good you won't mind too much.

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 11 - A Whole World Out There

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

Manny sends John to Ivy University, to offer his help to a reluctant Ritchie Simpson - another member of the Newcastle crew - whose students have found a way to travel into another dimension, only to wind up at the mercy of a psychotic killer.


Influences

Hellblazer: Original Sins (the character of Ritchie Simpson and the idea of magically-facilitated dimensional travel) , The Dream Cycle novellas and short stories of H.P. Lovecraft (the rules for inter-dimensional travel are similar), The Most Dangerous Game (a bored sportsman hunting people in a place he controls), A Nightmare on Elm Street and the many urban legends involving a killer who attacks through mirrors and dreams.


Performances

Jeremy Davies steals the show in his return performance as Ritchie Davies.  By episode's end, we see a little of the man he once was - the one person John Constantine saw as a peer - even as we see how remarkably well John has held together in the face of Newcastle, relatively speaking.  The interplay between Davies and Matt Ryan is remarkable and the two are very convincing as old-friends grown apart.


Artistry

The direction for this episode is top-notch, with the opening scene before the title splash being truly terrifying and atmospheric.

The lightning design of Shaw's house is incredibly creepy, as are the visual FX for the realm beyond the house - both before and after.


Pub Trivia

In the Hellblazer comics, Ritchie Simpson conducted experiments using computers in conjunction with astral projection in order to explore other dimensions.

The idea of using hypnosis or magic to force a state of out-of-body travel is a staple of speculative fiction.  For example, the pulp hero John Carter used a form of astral projection to leave his body and travel to Mars.

The rules for other-dimensional travel discussed in this episode closely parallel what was said about mortal travelers in The Dreamlands of H.P. Lovecraft's Dream Cycle. Specifically, how it is possible for strong-willed dreamers to alter the landscape around them or how it is possible for a person to die in the Dreamlands and for the shock to kill their physical body in the material realm.


Arcana

Bloody Mary is the subject of many urban legends regarding a ghostly figure who will appear under various circumstances - usually by saying her name three times while facing a mirror in the dark. Some legends say that - properly summoned - Bloody Mary will tell your fortune, Improperly summoned (or summoned at all in the legends where she is not at all benevolent), she will either scratch out your eyes, strangle you, slash you to ribbons or take your soul.

Catoptromancy is the magical art of divining with a mirror.

The Egyptian chant used by the students invokes the name of "Ma-at" - the Egyptian goddess of truth, justice, balance, law, morality and order.

John possesses a magic mirror that lets him see the past.

Samsara is the repeating cycle of birth, life and death in many Eastern religions.  It is possible to achieve liberation from this cycle, but only through good deeds and by fulfilling one's life purpose.

John knows a spell that allows him to detect and analyze residual magic. He uses this to analyze the ritual the students used.

Beeswax candles, hieroglyphics and residual ash are signs of Egyptian magic.

Ritchie makes reference to Shaw's ritual being based on Eygptian dream temple techniques.  Ancient Egyptian dream temples - or sleep temples - were hospitals of a sort that treated a variety of ailments, including mental disorders.  Archaeologists have theorized that the attending priest/physicians used hypnosis as part of their treatments.

A singularity - as Ritchie defines it - is the merging of humanity and technology to bring about immortality for a person's consciousness on a computer network. Or, as John puts it, "a bomb-shelter for your brain."  Typically singularity is applied towards the idea of an artificial intelligence born of technology that perfectly emulates human thought rather a human mind being preserved technologically but Ritchie is dumbing things down a bit for John's benefit.

In Egyptian magical tradition, mirrors are used as doorways to other spiritual planes.

All the mirrors in the Mill House are enchanted to prevent them from being used as doorways.

Typically it is impossible for a being in another dimension to attack people through mirrors.  Ritchie determines that Shaw is able to do this to the students because of the ritual they use to travel to his realm leaving them vulnerable to him.

Astral dimensions can be reshaped by a strong will.

In Buddhism, Nirvana is the state of enlightenment and peace achieved by accepting certain truths. These truths include that suffering is unavoidable, that desire is the root of all suffering and that while one can achieve Nirvana it cannot be done until one rids one's self of desire.


Dialogue Triumphs

John: Alright. we need to talk with Adam.
Ritchie: Okay, so that would be talking meaning talking, right? Not harassing?
John: Oh yeah, well, you know me. I'm well versed in the art of pretending to be a gentleman.
Ritchie: I do know you.. that is debatable.

Ritchie: You see what we are, John? To other people, we are what you call cancer.  We're just spreading our disease.
John: You know, when you're done sitting on your bloody pity party, we've got work to do. All right?
Ritchie: Pity party, that - that's good. That's good, John. Man, laugh it up. Tell your jokes. But I'll tell you something. You don't fool me.I know your secret. I know what you pretend not to feel. You know why? Because I'm feeling it right now.

Ritchie: We are flying blind into his domain. He controls it all! The only rule there is Shaw is God.
John: And he wouldn't be the first one I've dealt with.

Ritchie: Some god you turned out to be, Shaw. You forgot the sun.

Ritchie: All this time you spent here. You could have been building worlds! You could have been redefining life and how we live it! The day you gave into your weakness Shaw, that's the day you became obsolete.

Ritchie: I just don't want to be afraid anymore, John.
John: Fine. That's fine. Indulge yourself, Ritchie. Just like Shaw. You're two visionary peas in a bloody pod. But do me a favor. Don't lie to yourself. This isn't about creating something new. This is about you running away.


Continuity

We see Ritchie Simpson for the first time since the first episode.

John refers to Gary Lester's death in 104.


Location

Atlanta, Georgia.


The Bottom Line

After last week's episode, it's a little jarring not to have Zed or Chas. But Jeremy Davis' performance as Ritchie Simpson keeps this episode from feeling empty. What could have been a run-of-the-mill monster-of-the-week story is strengthened by the interplay between Ritchie and John and a strong script that fleshes out the reality.  Shame the killer and the students are little more than cardboard cut-outs, but you'll have too much fun watching Matt Ryan and Jeremy Davis playing off each other.

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 10 - Quid Pro Quo

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

When thousands of people - including Chas's daughter - fall into magically-induced comas, John, Zed and Chas must track down the dark forces responsible. But will Chas pay the ultimate price to save the day?


Influences

Hellblazer: Original Sins (Zed's background and the mention of The Resurrection Crusade), Hellblazer: All His Engines (a plot involving people in magical comas, including a member of Chas's family) and various Justice League comics involving Felix Faust, especially the recent Justice League Dark series where John fought Felix Faust.


Performances

Charles Halford is excellent throughout, as we see Chas pushed past his breaking point worrying about his daughter.  But for my money his best bit of acting in the whole episode is his wordless reaction to his ex-wife saying, "She's all I have left." regarding their daughter. Chas knows full well his marriage is over but actually hearing the words clearly affect him deeply.

Matt Ryan does a similar job of effective wordless acting later on, as he hugs Renee shortly after Chas blows himself up to stop Felix Faust. The expression on his face says it all regarding his feelings for Chas and how much John regrets having ruined his best friend's life by turning him into a weapon against the forces of evil, in spite of all the good they've done since then.

Finally, Angelica Celaya doesn't get quite as much to do as Zed in this episode but she steals what few scenes she has as we see her showcasing her compassion in trying to comfort Renee while defending Chas' decisions and in trying a new trick with her powers.


Pub Trivia

The episode title - Quid Pro Quo - is a Latin phrase meaning "something for something", referring to an exchange of goods or services where one transfer is contingent upon the other. Or in plain English - you scratch my back, I scratch yours.

The main plot of this episode comes from the Hellblazer graphic novel All His Engines by Mike Carey.  The novel also deals with a number of people being put into comas by a magical influence and John's attention being brought to the matter after a member of Chas' family is stricken. The key differences are that the novel is predominantly set in Los Angeles rather than New York City and that the victim is Chas' granddaughter Trish rather than his daughter Geraldine.

Zed finally drops the name of the group that seeks her - The Resurrection Crusade. She also tells John that the group's leader is her father.  All of this is straight from Hellblazer: Original Sins.

The song that trigger's Chas' flashback to how he gained a number of extra lives is Blue Oyster Cult's Don't Fear The Reaper.  Curiously, the album cover for the LP the song came from - Agents of Fortune - features a stage magician holding tarot cards, whom bears an uncanny resemblance to DC Comics' magical hero John Zatara.

According to Executive Producer Daniel Cerone, the nightclub fire in this episode was inspired by the Station Nightclub Fire of 2003 where over 100 people died due to outdoor fireworks being used as part of an indoor pyrotechnics display.

Lillian Axe - the band playing at the club - is a real band. Indeed, they were the first hard rock band to be inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame in 2010.

Thanks to John's protection spell, Chas gains 47 lives from the people who died around him when the nightclub collapsed. Lillian Axe - perhaps not coincidentally - have a song titled 47 Ways To Die.

At one point, John drops the name of Aleister Crowley. Described in the press as "the most wicked man in the world", Crowley claimed to be a powerful magician and certainly threw some fairly wild parties.  In the Hellblazer comics, John actually knows Crowley personally and knows where he has been hiding since faking his death in 1947.

As in the comics, Chas' real first name is Francis.  In the comics, he was given the nickname in honor of Jimi Hendrix's producer Chas Chandler.

As in the comics, Renee hates John Constantine with a passion.  In the comics, this was the case even before Renee left Chas during the Mike Carey run on Hellblazer.

Fennel is also the name of the psychic contact John seeks out in All My Engines.  And like in the show, Fennel in the comic is burned to death.  However, the Fennel in the novel doesn't work in an Army Surplus store.

John has never used a cattle prod before.

In All My Engines, the main villain is a demon named Beroul who blackmails John Constantine into dealing with his rivals in exchange for freeing Trish's soul as opposed to a human mage.

Felix Faust is a reoccurring enemy of The Justice League and various magic-using heroes in the DC Universe, who first appeared in Justice League of America #10 (March 1962). Originally a dark sorcerer in 5000 BC, Faust tried and failed to challenge the most powerful wizard of his age and his soul was summarily banished to another realm. In the 1920s, he was able to take advantage of another sorcerer's mistake, took over his body and adopted the name Felix Faust as he resumed his quest for ultimate cosmic power, repeatedly butting heads with The Justice League in the process.

John describes Faust as a lifetime apprentice and second fiddle to the greatest black magicians of his generation. This does match up with the regard most mages have for Felix Faust in the comics, where Faust makes up for his lack of raw power with a talent for research and a willingness to experiment in ways no sane wizard ever would, to say nothing of trading in souls with high-level demons.

As in the comics, John has a glass jaw and is easily knocked out with one punch by Chas.


Arcana

John weaves a Duplicity Spell around the Mill House.  Rather than making the house invisible, it causes people who are looking for the house to wander onto a path leading away from it.

In the flashback, John casts a spell of protection on Chas. Surprisingly, it works despite John being incredibly drunk.  We find out later the same spell was used by Merlin to protect specific knights at King Arthur's request.  If any knight protected by the spell was killed in the company of lesser knights, the spell would pass their lives on to the protected.  In this case, Chas was given the lives of the 47 other people who died in the club fire.

John owns a brush that belonged to Alister Crowley. He says that he always takes it with him on a case when he doesn't have a clue where to begin and later uses it to detect evidence of the soul leaving the body on an unconscious Geraldine.

John also has a leather cord made from the sinew from Achilles' Heel. According to John it is impervious to magic and has the highest tensile strength of anything in this world or any other. Used as a whip, it can cut off the circulation to someone's hand within seconds. John claims it is Chas' favorite trick.

Chapped lips are celestial burn marks and can signify a soul leaving the body.

According to John, separating a soul from the body is the Holy Grail of Black Magic for black magic practitioners and no mortal has ever managed it... until Felix Faust.

Water from the River Jordan can be used as a magical lubricant to ease communication with lost souls.

According to John, only five books contain the spell used to disrupt a seance and kill the medium that was used to kill Fennel, each scattered across the globe by an Irish High King. Zed uses her powers to locate the closest copy of the book.

John knows a spell that can dispel elementary cloaking spells. It involves an evocation to the five elements and six directions.

According to Felix Faust, Karabasan is a named demon who is stealing the souls he has captured. In Turkish folklore, a karabasan is a type of monster - a boogeyman - who preys upon people while they sleep and scares them to death. Karabasan is also the Turkish word for nightmare and the medical term used to describe Sleep Paralysis.

John Constantine and Felix Faust both take a blood oath to honor their agreement, "in the name of Dedi of Dejed-Sneferu - he who endures".  Dedi of Dejed-Sneferu is an Ancient Egyptian magician, who is a character in one story contained with the Westcar Papyrus.

According to Chas, once a magician dies any spells they have cast that are still on-going will be broken.

John makes use of a rock with a hole in it in order to track and detect Karabasan.  This rock is known as an adder stone, but is also known as a fairy stone, witch stone, hag stone or aggri.  Whatever the name, they are all the same thing - a rock that has had a hole worn through it naturally, usually by water.  Looking through an adder stone allows one to see invisible beings and see through magical illusions and glamours.

John knows a spell that can induce sleep. He uses this to put Zed to sleep so she can act as bait in a trap for Karabasan.

The Monkey King is a trickster figure from Chinese mythology. He was a monkey born from a stone who acquired supernatural powers through Taoists practices, including super-strength, great leaping powers and the ability to shape-shift into one of 72 forms. He was also a powerful warrior and no mean spell-caster in his own right.

Zed is briefly able to use her powers to act as a medium and communicate with Geraldine's soul.

The amount of time between when Chas dies and when he comes back to life varies depending on how violent the death was and Chas does feel the pain of each death fully.


Dialogue Triumphs

John: You've yet to flinch in the face of The Underworld. Why are you so afraid of a man from this one?
Zed: Because he's my father.

John: I've heard it said that nine-tenths of reality is perception. And in my trade, it's eleven-tenths.

John: All those people wasting away by your hand as life passes them by - that is not the legacy you want, Felix.
Felix Faust: And what would you know of legacy? A boastful, smutty, infantile boy? You create magic by accident and insolence while the truly devoted sweat and toil with no reward. You'll never know my magic, Constantine. You will know my pain!

Chas: I've watched other people suffer the consequences of your actions but this is my family! So I'm going to do things my way! Not yours!
John: Yeah?!  And how would you plan to do that?!
(Chas punches John and knocks him out cold. He takes John and puts him in the back of the cab)
Chas: My family's suffered enough because of you.

(As Chas wakes up after slitting his throat)
Felix Faust: A man of your word, indeed.
Chas: I wish that were true.


Continuity

John refers to The Resurrection Army's attempted abduction of Zed in 108.

By the episode's end, Chas is down to 30 lives.

Renee makes Chas a scrapbook fill of photos and stories about all 47 lives he absorbed.  He shows Geraldine the pictures and talks about the friends who are with him every day.

Zed apparently spoke to John's mother and he told Zed to tell John that he wasn't responsible for her death.


Location

Brooklyn, New York.


Untelevised Adventures

Felix Faust and John Constantine have had dealings in the past.

At one point before Chas and Renee were divorced, he missed Geraldine's birthday dinner due to his saving another family from The Monkey King.


John Screws Up

John gets his medium ally Fennel killed.

We find out that Chas' apparent immortality is due to John casting a protection spell on Chas that worked when he didn't expect it to.

(And now, a moment of silence for contemplation as we ponder how John can screw things up even by casting a difficult spell perfectly.)


The Bottom Line

The strongest episode of Constantine to date.  The script is wonderful, the cast is firing on all eight cylinders and everything comes off perfectly. The only downside is the loss of such a great villain as Felix Faust. Then again, it's not like Faust didn't die and come back more than once in the comics...

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 9 - The Saint of Last Resorts: Part Two

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

Bloodied and betrayed, John invites the demon Pazuzu into his body in order to heal his wounds. Now Chas, a harried Zed and an incredibly reluctant Anne Marie must work together to prevent the demon from escaping into the world and save John's life in the bargain.


Influences

Swamp Thing #37 (introduction of Anne Marie, The Brujeria and The Invunche), Hellblazer: Original Sins (John using a demon to heal himself, The Resurrection Crusade and Zed's background) Hellblazer #11 (references to The Newcastle Incident), Hellblazer: Dangerous Habits (John using demons to heal himself) and Hellblazer: Hard Time (John taking over a prison where he's been locked up). 


Performances

The entire ensemble does a fine job, as we get to see all of our cast together in a single episode for the first time.


Artistry

The direction on Zed's visions continues to be amazing.

The lighting throughout the episode is very atmospheric and moody without obscuring the action.


Pub Trivia

The idea of John seeking demonic intervention to heal his injuries is not without precedent. In Original Sins, John undergoes a blood transfusion using demonic blood in order to heal his injuries. And in Dangerous Habits, John forces three powerful demons to cure his lung cancer.

John's taking over a prison from the inside may be a reference to the Hard Time story line, where John did the same thing in an American prison while serving time for a murder he didn't commit.

John's nickname in prison is El Diablo - The Devil.


Arcana

The First of the Fallen offers temporary power to mortals, eventually turning them into his possessions.

John likens demonic permintion to the flu, noting there is an incubation period between the first infection and full possession. John estimates that he has a few days before Pazuzu can take him over but owing to Pazuzu's strength and/or John's overconfidence, it takes a bit less than that.

Chas notes that Pazuzu was the Assyrian god of famine, locusts and storms.

John has a tape-recording of himself reading exorcism rituals in 50 languages, including Assyrian in his kit.

John also possess a ceremonial Tibetan Phurba. A phurba is a ritual knife which symbolizes the destruction of obstacles.  It can also be used as an offensive weapon against hostile spirits.

Up until a certain point, Holy Water causes a violent reaction when sprinkled on a possessed person.

Nahash is the Hebrew word for 'serpent'. It is one of the names used to refer to the physical manifestation of earthly temptation. Other titles include The Trickster, The Tempter and - most recently - Vincente. He was the serpent in the Garden of Eden and was set free by the Brujeria purely so that he could aid them in destroying the world of Man with no other promises or expectations.

Nahash is a shapeshifter and it can take on the forms of people it has killed by slithering inside of their bodies.

When one of the Nahash's physical forms is destroyed, it breaks into a swarm of snakes.

Until they fully take over a human body, demons are vulnerable to anything that effects the physicality of their host. To that end, strong sedatives (i.e. enough heroin to kill a herd of elephants) can be used to disable a demon and its host.

Anne Marie is capable of crafting complex illusions with her magic. Either that, or she is able to change the appearance of her biolocation form. Either way, she uses some kind of power to create an image of herself in nothing but her underwear to distract the guards and she, Chas and John escape from the prison.

Pazuzu is too powerful to be warded off by a recording of John's voice. It takes true faith and conviction to banish a demon king.

Under normal circumstances The Roman Catholic exorcism ritual requires a fully ordained priest to perform. However, it can also be performed by any devout Catholic who has undergone a divine epiphany or otherwise seen first hand proof that Heaven and Hell exist.


Dialogue Triumphs

Manny: To save yourself from Hell, you acted without considering the consequences. It's not that I can't help you, John. I won't.

Manny: I've got to admit - I never thought you'd do anything THIS stupid.
John: I'm John Constantine. I do stupid in spades!

Zed: John talks to an angel.
Anne Marie: What did you say?
Zed: His name is Manny. He came to John for help. You kneel here, night after night, hoping against hope that Heaven hears your words. Well, guess what?! John has Heaven on speed dial! Someone up there thinks he's worth a damn and now he's dying because of you!

Zed: Should I be scared? For John, I mean.
Anne Marie: He's in a bad way. But John believes he has every situation under control and he makes you believe. That's his magic. And his curse.

(As John describes his plan to use a monster dose of heroin to knock Pazuzu out)
Anne Marie: And if you're wrong?
John: Well, then I'll go out riding the world's greatest high. With my first love at my side.


Continuity

Zed makes reference to 107, where she learned of Manny's existence.

Zed grew up near a prison and knows something about how hookers are snuck inside of them.


Location

Mexico City and Atlanta, Georgia


The Fridge Factor

Averted hard as Zed escapes from her captors on her own and Anne Marie proves essential to saving John Constantine.


John Screws Up

Granting that he was in dire straits, inviting a demon into his body in order to heal a bullet wound is foolhardy even by John Constantine's standards.


The Bottom Line

Not quite as intense as Part One, but the leisurely pace  does allow the entire cast a chance to shine as we get to see John's friends come to the foreground as Constantine is incapacitated for the better part of the episode.  A welcome return to form after the break.

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 8 - The Saint of Last Resorts: Part One

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.





Plot

When something monstrous starts kidnapping newborns in Mexico City, an old lover of John's calls him for help. Reluctantly, as it turns out, as Annie (now Sister Anne Marie) was part of the Newcastle crew and her trust in John is as limited as the local police's ability to deal with the idea of a baby-snatching demon.  And as Chas and John head south, the past Zed has been running from finally catches up to her.


Influences

Swamp Thing #37 (introduction of Anne Marie, The Brujeria and The Invunche), Hellblazer: Original Sins (The Resurrection Crusade and Zed's background) Hellblazer #11 (references to The Newcastle Incident) and the writing of Alan Moore in general.


Goofs

While no reference is made to her exact age on the show, it seems unlikely that Anne Marie is older than John.  At least, she can't be old enough to speak about him having been a 15 year old kid when they met.


Performances

The chemistry between Matt Ryan and Claire van der Boom is quite good and the two really do come off as a pair of estranged ex-lovers.


Artistry

The direction and editing on this episode is top-notch, with some very effective "freak-out" moments.  The scene of John and Annie talking alone in the church is particularly well-framed and John's fight with Lamashtu at the fountain is truly terrifying with its up-close camera-placement simulating the claustrophobia of a drowning victim.  And the effects for The Invunche are film-worthy to say nothing of being really scary!


Pub Trivia

Much of the Arcana from this episode is taken from Swamp Thing #37, which was also the comic that introduced Anne Marie as a character.  This comic also introduced The Brujeria as a menace for John Constantine to fight against and The Invunche as their guard dog.

Not surprisingly, given his penchant for research and reputation as a scholar of magic, Alan Moore stayed very close to the original Chilote folklore regarding Invunche and Brujeria in his story.

In the original comics, John described Anne Marie as "fat, forty and secretly in love with me."  She was a psychic and a groupie for John's band.  The two never slept together.  Her counterpart on Constantine is younger and in better shape.  However, both became nuns as a result of the Newcastle incident.

Reference is made to the demon Pazuzu. While this is the name of a real demon in Babylonian mythology, it is also the name of the demon from The Exorcist.

In the first issue of the comic Warrior (1982) Alan Moore claimed to be possessed by Pazuzu.


Arcana

John says that Anne Marie has the power of bilocation - the ability to be in two places at once.  This ability is usually the province of saints, sufis and other holy men. In practice, what Anne Marie does seems to be closer to astral projection - the ability to send one's mind outside of the body - on account of Anne Marie isn't physically in John's house and the image of her body cannot be touched.

John identifies the strange creature that Zed draws as an Invunche - also know as an Imbunche.  Invunches are a creature from Chilote folklore.  They are similar to golems in that they are crafted magical beings.  However, invunches are inherently evil and created by warlocks as guard dogs for their lairs.

Invunches are created from first-born sons, who had not been baptized within nine days of their birth.  The baby would have its head twisted backwards and one of its feet sewn to the back of its neck.

John says there haven't been any Invunche since before the last great Biblical flood but is proven wrong about this point by episode's end.

John crafts a Purification Bowl for the trip to Mexico, saying he lost his last good one in Puerto Rico. A purification bowl can do the job of a priest and bless any water placed in it, turning it into holy water.

According to John, many wall-dwelling supernatural beings target children. Among these are Faeries, Duendes (a Latin American pixie, similar to a goblin) and nursery demons.

Rune stones can be used in conjunction with the right spell to identify various paranormal entities at a crime scene.  This generally works with most of the baby-snatching entities, as they aren't clever enough to cover their tracks.  However, powerful and clever entities can use magic to block the scrying and set the runes on fire.

John is mistaken for El Cuycuy - the Mexican equivalent of The Boogeyman - by one of the nuns.  The Cuycuy is also a kidnapper and eater of children.

Many cultures believe that burying the placenta of a baby under a tree on the family's property brings good fortune.

John knows a spell that can determine if a baby is still alive or dead using the placenta as a link.

According to John, the kidnapper is one of the demon goddesses of Hell - specifically, one of Eve's sisters who refused to submit to Adam and chose an eternity in Hell over a lifetime on Earth. He names four of the Sisters of Eve - Lilith, Durgia, Naamah and Lamashtu.

In Jewish folklore, Lilith was Adam's first wife, created from the Earth as he was. For this reason, she refused to be subservient to Adam and left the Garden of Eden. She would later copulate with demons and other spirits, giving birth to all manner of monster.

Durgia seems to be another spelling for Durga. Durga is one incarnation of the Hindu goddess Shakti, who is the personification of feminine creative power and motherhood.  Durga is perhaps best known to Western culture by the name of her most fierce aspect - Kali.

In Jewish mysticism, Naamah was a demoness who caused epilepsy in young children. A frequent cohort of Lilith - she, like Lilith, gave birth to a number of monsters and plagues.

In Mesopotamian mythology, Lamashtu was a demonness who menaced mothers and newborn children.  Whenever possible, she would kidnap babies that were still breastfeeding, suck their blood, eat the flesh and eventually gnaw on the bones.  John identifies her as the youngest of Eve's sister and calls her "a glorified vampire".

John's switchblade is capable of harming demons.

John knows The Brujeria as a legendary group of warlocks from Chile, who have existed since prehistoric times. John believes they died out a long time ago but the truth is that they have been in hiding for a long time.  Legend has it they were so wicked that not even Hell would take them in.

In the real world, Brujeria is a term for witchcraft and may refer to any coven of witches or warlocks.  It is not the name of a specific, larger group.

John quickly figures out that Le Brujeria are the rising darkness he has been recruited to fight.

John is able to craft an illusion using a raw chicken and Hugo's blood that makes the chicken appear to be a baby of Hugo's bloodline.

Pazuzu is the Babylonian demon king of the winds and a bringer of drought and destructive storms.  While an evil spirit, he is also frequently invoked by exorcists to banish other evil spirits.  His power is most frequently invoked by amulets carrying his icon and his sworn rival is Lamathsu.

Lamastu is in the employ of La Brujeria because they have figured out a way to break the boundaries between Hell and Earth, allowing the demons to openly walk The Earth without restriction.


Dialogue Triumphs

John: I always figured that one of us would flee to Mexico, but I thought there'd be tequila involved. Or skinny dipping.

Chas: (To Anne Marie) He'd rather risk your feelings than any other part of you. That's how... he deals with the pain. John has one thing that makes his life worth a damn and he can't do it if he lets anyone in too close.  Like he did with you.

(When trying to talk Anne Marie into helping him con a demon)
John: No price is too high to save the innocent.

Anne Marie: (To John) I can see it now. It's not that you don't care. It's that you can't care about anybody and do what you do.

John: No, no, no,  You shoot that, it's gonna attack us for sure.
Anne Marie: No, John. It will attack you.
(John looks at her shocked as she aims the gun at him)
Anne Marie: "No price is too high to save the innocent."
John: Oh, you're a quick study, love...


Continuity

Zed makes reference to still recovering from Kentucky, where she and John traveled in 107.

Touching a fallen angel's heart has inspired Zed to sketch Biblical imagery, including Noah's Ark during The Flood and a picture of an angel.

John reveals that Anne Marie was part of his crew for The Newcastle Incident and that he owes her a favor.

Zed speaks fluent Spanish. John does not.

The hideaway has magical traps that can protect whoever is inside from intruders. It also has a doorway that leads into a dark and stormy abyss.  Zed uses this room to get rid of one of her would-be captors.

John and Anne Marie slept together once.  We later find out that it was the night before The Newcastle Incident and that John left their bed to go bar hopping, looking for other girls to sleep with.

It was Anne Marie who brought John into the occult scene when he was 15 years old.

Anne Marie makes reference to Gary Lester, who we saw in 104 and Ritchie Simpson from 101. She also mentions another member of the Newcastle Crew - Judith.

Zed never took art lessons until recently.

John is good enough at reading people by the tones of their voice that he is able to figure out the gist of a conversation without understanding a word of it.

John makes another reference to the bloodline curse magic practice by gypsies, as he did in 102.

Eddie calls Zed by the name Mary. She reacts violently to it and makes reference to having been locked in a room for most of her life.

Eddie is killed by his fellow Crusaders, shot in the head after Zed threatens to slit his throat.

One again, John is seen smoking on the porch at Hugo's grandmother's house.


Location

Mexico City, Mexico


Untelevised Adventures

John lost his best purification bowl on a trip to Puerto Rico.


The Fridge Factor

Averted, for the most part.  Zed holds her own pretty well until she is snuck upon by a man with a hypodermic full of sedative.


The Bottom Line

As an adaptation of the original comics, it works quite well.  As an hour or horrifying television, it works VERY well. A wonderful episode with a truly shocking cliffhanger that will leave you in desperate need of Part Two..

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 7 - Blessed Are The Damned

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

In the Kentucky town of Briarwood, a modern-day Lazarus has begun performing miracles in the church where he survived a close encounter with death while handling a rattlesnake.  Zed questions whether or not the Preacher Zachary is a willing pawn, but John doesn't care much either way. Because while the source of Zachary's power may be heavenly, the bill must come due eventually and someone will have to pay...


Influences

Hellblazer #5 (the theme of religious faith accidentally tapping into dark forces), Hellblazer #66 (the idea that angels can have their hearts cut out and they still beat until entirely destroyed) and The Sandman: Seasons of Mists (the idea that angel's become mortal if their wings are destroyed)


Goofs

The effects work for the ghouls look goofy as all get out, from the cheap make-up jobs to the lumbering ape-like movement of the actors.

It never is fully explained just why John was unable to take Imogen's feather from Zachary but Zed could. Zachary claims it is because John is evil, but Zachary is just as evil being a murderer, by classical Biblical terms.  Perhaps only evil people can handle a fallen angel's fathers but that wouldn't explain why Zed could handle it... unless she has a much darker secret in her past than we suspected.  It is possible that feathers can only be handled by one who has faith, which would explain why Zed and Zachary could handle it but John could't. This may not be a goof, but it is a confusing point.


Pub Trivia

John says that Chas is away visiting his daughter.  In the comics, Chas is indeed a father and his daughter's name is Geraldine.


Arcana

Snake-handling (or Serpent-handling) is a tradition practiced by some evangelic Christian sects, particularly Pentecostals in the American South and Appalachian regions.  The theory is that those who are truly strong in their faith will be uninjured by the snake's bite.  The practice is discouraged by most denominations in modern times.

Faith-healing is another power claimed by some religious leaders, though few claim to have managed anything so unlikely as regenerating severed limbs.

John possesses a scythe blade that he claims he took from The Grim Reaper himself.  It proves capable of killing ghouls

Enochian is the language spoken by angels.  The first record of Enochian was transcribed by Dr. John Dee (the court magician of Queen Elizabeth I) and Edward Kelley (a spirit medium who worked with Dee), who called the language Celestial Speech or Angelic.  The name Enochian was applied to it by later scholars, based on Dee's assertion that the last human to know the language before him was the Biblical patriarch Enoch, father of Methuselah.

Magic has laws similar to the laws of thermodynamics, in that energy cannot come from nothing or, as John might put it, everything has a price.  In this case, the energy Zachary is using to heal people is being taken out of the immediate environment, resulting in all the fish in a pond close to his church dying and the people Zachary heals turning into ghouls.

Angels can be summoned using a magic circle in the same way as demons.

Dried myrtle can be used to attract angels when attempting a summoning.  Saying please also helps, according to Manny.

Guardian Angels, such as Manny, are assigned to watch over several mortals at once.  Manny notes that he does have things to do besides watch over John.

Angels use echo-location when flying.

Angels are rendered physical when their wings are damaged.  This is the only way an angel can manifest physically on Earth.

Pulling the feather from an angel's wing is apparently enough for it to be "damaged".

According to Manny, angels are heavy compartmentalized and they do not typically coordinate.  This is why he does not recognize Imogen despite sensing her power once he meets her and why - despite John's assertion to the contrary - Manny could not have sensed the injured angel any more easily than John could have.

Manny also notes that angels can die but that unlike humans their souls are extinguished completely and they cease to exist.

John knows a magic spell that creates a circle of protection from evil.  It requires the use of running water, which is a frequent bane for evil magical creatures in mythology, such as the rule that vampires cannot cross running water.  It is also effective in creating a circle that evil creatures cannot escape from.

A mortal who takes possession of an angel's feather can use the touch of the divine within it to perform miracles, though these miracles do drain energy from the local environment and the healed will eventually become ghouls.

Ghouls, according to John, are zombie-like beings created when magic goes wrong.

Baptism is a ritual of purification and rebirth practiced by several Christian denominations.

Angels do not feel pain.

Fallen angels have black wings instead of white, though they are capable of disguising themselves. They are subject to the same rules as angels regarding physical manifestation on Earth.

Angels can possess mortals the same way demons do.  Manny does this with Zed to fight Imogen.


Dialogue Triumphs

(As John is packing his travel bag)
John: (as he places some kind of talisman in his bag) Must have protection.
(John pulls out a chain of condoms)
John: Of various kinds.
Zed: We're going to go visit a preacher in a church.
John: Hmmm.  That's a good point.
(John takes one condom off the chain and stuffs the rest in his bag)

Zed: Blind faith can he a dangerous thing.
John: Spoken from experience?

Zed: I have so many questions I want to ask them.
John: Good luck with that, love. They're real cagey types. What do you need them to tell you?
Zed: Where my powers come from, for starters.  Do they come from God or somewhere else?
John: Doesn't matter where they came from.  What matters is what you do with them.  And what they cost you.


Continuity

Chas is away visiting his daughter during the events of this episode.

We see John smoking before he puts the cigarette out just before entering Preacher Zachary's church.

Zed mentions that she saw a lot of false prophets claiming holy powers as a kid.

John cannot speak Enochian, but he can identify it by sound.

John once again notes that he was born in Liverpool.

While no specific religious denomination is mentioned, Zed is confirmed to believe in some Christian doctrine while John has little use for organized religion in general.

Zed is able to pitch a tent but she denies having been a Girl Scout.

We see Zed pickpocket Zachary to take the feather while she is being baptized.

John stores Imogen's heart in a jar.

Eddie - the model who asked Zed out - is working with the people who have been trying to track her down.


Location

Briarwood, Kentucky


The Bottom Line

As a character piece for Zed and Manny, it works very well.  As a monster-of-the-week episode, it's incredibly weak.  Of note purely for how it defines the rules for angels and fallen angels.  Beyond that, there's really nothing of note.  At least, nothing positive worth noting, with the goofiest monsters yet.  Still, the core cast manage to sell their scenes together.  It is only when the ghouls come out or John has to deal with Preacher Zachary that we see the wires holding everything up.

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 6 - Rage of Caliban

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

John and Chas hit the road to investigate a mysterious murder that killed two parents but left their young daughter unharmed.  When the evidence points to a demon as the culprit and a tracking spell leads them to the next likely victims, John will have to face his own inner demons and conquer his fear of failure, lest he condemn another innocent child to Hell!


Influences

Hellblazer #11 (Astra's death & damnation is referred to) and many other stories from the Jamie Delano run on Hellblazer (details of John's past and Chas' past).


Goofs

The bed clothes of Henry's parents change between his first nightmare and when he is possessed.

John says he spent six months in the loony bin, yet in C101 he had only been committed to Ravenscar for three months and it was specifically said that The Newcastle Incident happened three months earlier.


Performances

This episode is a strong one for Matt Ryan, who gets to play John Constantine in all of his conflicted glory.  We see John the Rake in the first scene, as he flees an apartment just seconds ahead of a jealous boyfriend and we also see John at his most vulnerable, confronting a chance to repeat his biggest mistake... and rising to meet the challenge.  Ryan plays all of these moments to perfection.

The interplay between Ryan and Harold Perrineau as Manny also deserves mention and the best bits of the episode feature the two bantering.


Artistry

The sequence with John chasing the possessed Henry into a high-school haunted house is an amusing one while still being somewhat tense.


Pub Trivia

This episode was meant to be the second episode aired. It was delayed in order to hasten Zed's premiere on the show.

The climax of the episode takes place during Halloween night and was originally planned to have aired on Halloween Night in the United States.

The episode's title - Rage of Caliban - is taken from a quote from Oscar Wilde's preface for The Picture Of Dorian Gray. This is itself a reference to Caliban - a monstrous creature from Shakespeare's play The Tempest. The original quote involved the inability of the people of Wilde's time to cope with Realistic and Romantic literature, as they did not wish to see the world for how it was nor how it might be better than it was.

As this episode opens, John is seen being kicked out of a young lady's apartment before her boyfriend enters.  Such one-night stands are common for John in the original comics.

John has a contact who is a paralegal, who is able to get him information on the children whose parents died from Child Protective Services.  John won her trust by helping her dead husband to move on after he started haunting their house.

John's ley line map was penned by a man named Ken Ondaate. This was the true name of Map - a wizard colleague of John's in the comics.

The ley line map also has a note about Alex Holland.  This is likely a misspelling of Alec Holland - the human whose memories formed the being known as The Swamp Thing - a magical creature John Constantine has a long history with in the comics.

One of the magical items in the hideaway is The Sword of Night.  Wielded by the hero known as The Nightmaster, the sword allows the wielder to sense approaching danger, compel others to speak the truth and prevents the wielder from aging.

While holding The Sword of Night, Chas makes mention of someone named Renee he was unable to stop from leaving him.  This is a reference to Renee Chandler - Chas' wife in the comics.

John jokingly tells Manny to get him a gin and tonic while he is in jail. A gin and tonic is John's mixed drink of choice in the comics.

Manny makes mention of John's abusive father and that he had an older sister who tried to protect John from his father.  This is a spot-on reference to John's background in the comics and his sister, Cheryl Constantine.

The Halloween carnival the possessed Henry flees to is held at Veitch High School - named in honor of Hellblazer artist Rich Veitch.

One part of John's journey through the haunted house - his standing before a wall of skulls - resembles a famous painting of John by Hellblazer artist Sean Phillips.

At the end of the episode, John is seen lighting a cigarette while reclining on a car hood. This is the first time we see John actively preparing to smoke.


Arcana

John attempts to glean information from a magical crime-scene by sniffing around it like a blood-hound and licking the walls.

When humanity gained the power of Free Will, angels lost the power to directly influence events on Earth.  This means that Manny is limited in how he can help John beyond offering basic guidance.

John has access to a spell that allows him to see past events within a limited space.  The spell requires that John burn a pre-prepared scroll while chanting an incantation in Mayan.  The smoke created by the burning reshapes to form an image of the past event. (Thanks to @jade_kadir for the correction that the chant was Mayan - not Latin).

Malevolent human spirits are capable of possessing a body in the same way that demons do. They are capable of telekinesis (moving objects through force of will) and leave behind a smell of burning with no evidence of a fire.

The presence of malevolent spirits makes animals uncomfortable yet they have some ability to control animals as well, with Henry staring down a dog that barks angrily at him and commanding a raven to crash into a glass door in front of his mother.

According to John, most people who are possessed become quite chatty about the ordeal afterward and will know the name of the being that possessed them.  John also notes that any spirit can become malevolent upon death, provided they died in a horrible and/or violent fashion.  John also believes the spirits of children are the worst in this regard, "acting out like all brats".

Ley Lines are mystical pathways flowing with electromagnetic energy. Spirits can travel along them like a psychic railroad. John determines that all of the killings took place on the same ley line.

The Sword of Night compels whoever holds it to tell the truth.

John makes use of a magical incense burner to track the murderous child spirit.  The smoke made by frankincense flees away from malevolent energies.

Mandrake Root is a plant with a long history of mystical importance. According to John (and as backed up by Henry's reaction to it) malevolent spirits can't stand the sight of a mandrake root.

Forceful exorcisms of children are the most difficult to perform, according to John.

Three people are needed to hold a seance.

Without the name of a soul, an exorcist cannot free it so it can pass on to the next world nor bind it so it cannot harm others.

John knows a spell that lets him use a mirror to reflect a spirits attack's back upon itself.


Dialogue Triumphs

(After Manny startles him by manifesting behind his back)
John: You know, I've never punched an angel but you are begging for it, mate!
Manny: I could announce my arrival with trumpets. Used to have an entire horns section, back in the day.

John: And what makes me so special?
Manny: Nothing that I'm aware of.  Saint Peter. Ignatius of Antioch, Joan of Arc.... John, they were special.  You're more of a... desperation move.
John: Story of my life, mate!

Chas: So - now what?  We knock on the door?
John: Nah, that never works.
Chas: Why not?
John: "Oh, hello.  We tracked an evil spirit to your house. It might be inside your kid.  Do you mind if we take a look?"
Chas: Yeah, that won't work.
John: No.

John: Piss off. You made it perfectly clear you're not allowed to help me.
Manny: I said the exact opposite.  What, did the shock therapy destroy your hearing?
John: Alright then.  Go and warn Mommy and Daddy about their little demon seed, send it back to Hell.... oh, and make us a gin and tonic, eh?
Manny: Guidance, John, I can offer you guidance!
John: Aw, thank you very much. I made it through my life without any help from you.
Manny: Are you sure about that? How do you know I wasn't by your side when your father burned you with his cigarette? Or stayed you from suicide when your sister left you alone with him?

John: If humanity is what can save us, then overcoming the damage and weakness in my nature - that may be the part of this battle that I dread most.


Continuity

Zed does not appear in this episode. Chas says at the beginning of the episode that she had an art class.

Chas and John drive around in a beat-up pick-up truck, despite Chas getting his cab fixed in C105. (This is due to this episode being meant to be the second episode aired.)

John chuckles upon being informed he can find Marcello Panneti in a local mental hospital, noting he'll feel right at home - a reference to his voluntary commitment as seen in C101.

Chas has a wife named Renee, who apparently left him.

Manny implies that he was John's guardian angel as a child and refers to John's older sister and abusive father.

The killer is the spirit of Marcello Panneti, whose soul jumped out of his body shortly after he killed his abusive parents.


Location

Birmingham, Alabama


John Screws Up

John tries (and fails) to pose as Henry's school counselor.


The Bottom Line

A good episode that's best bits are the character moments that expand the relationships between the core cast and build upon the rules of how angels and demons operate in the world of the show.  This is not to say the main plot involving a murderous child spirit isn't interesting.  Indeed, the final revelation is an honest surprise!  But the interplay between John and Chas and John and Manny define the theme of the episode - and John's character - far better than this week's crisis.

Constantine Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 5 - Danse Vaudou

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

The Rising Darkness has come to New Orleans. The restless dead now walk the streets of The Big Easy and are killing random citizens. And John Constantine has put himself on the wrong side of Detective Jim Corrigan - a cop who witnessed one of the strange killings and has little use for supernatural explanations or British con-artists.

Fortunately, Corrigan is quickly made to see the error of his ways. Unfortunately, the trail of accidental resurrections leads to the last magician in the world John Constantine wants to see - Papa Midnite!  But like it or not, the two mages will have to work together in order to fight the shadow that has corrupted Midnite's magic...


Influences

Hellblazer: Original Sins (Papa Midnite and John Constantine unite reluctantly to deal with a larger threat), Hellblazer: Damnation's Flame (Expanded background for Papa Midnite, including his sister being given the name Cedella) and various American urban legends.


Performances

Matt Ryan and Michael James Shaw play off of each other wonderfully as Constantine and Midnite.

Angelica Celaya adds a flirtatious streak to Zed that gives the character a new sense of life. And she does a fine job playing up Zed's competence as she spends most of the episode without John backing her up or instructing her.
  


Pub Trivia

The episode title is French for 'Voodoo Dance'.

Detective Jim Corrigan first appeared in More Fun Comics #52 and was created by Superman co-creator Jerry Seigel and artist Bernard Baily. Corrigan was murdered by gangsters but this was only the beginning of his story. Because of this nature of his death, his anger over how it occurred and his religious upbringing, Jim was offered a chance by the archangel Michael to become an agent of justice against those who had defied the laws of God and escaped punishment. Jim agreed and became the human host of the Angel of Vengeance - The Spectre.

Jim Corrigan wears a green suit throughout the episode.  In the comics, Jim Corrigan is frequently depicted as wearing a green suit when he is not in the form of The Spectre, whose robes are also green.

Papa Midnite speaks to a skull who he addresses as Cedella, whom John refers to as "the hotline to Hell".  In the comics, Papa Midnite sold his own sister's soul to a demon, turning her into "a whore in Hell". His sister slept with various demon lords and, through her skull, told her brother about the events and goings on in Hell.  Apparently this is also the case in the Constantine TV Show universe.

Zed has a vision of Jim Corrigan soaked in blood and surrounded by green mist.  This is probably foreshadowing Corrigan's eventual transformation into The Spectre.


Arcana

John makes use of a zoetrope to put Zed into a hypnotic state.  He claims the one he repaired was used by Queen Victoria's personal medium to put people into trances at seances.

John and Chas both make use of a magical bracelet that can detect spiritual activity.  It glows blue if a spirit was nearby recently and green if one is in the immediate area.  John doesn't say precisely what happens when it glows red, save that "we wouldn't still be standing here".

John has some kind of ability to wipe people's minds after he's talked to them.

We see Chas' "survival skills" in action as he is stabbed to death by the masked ghost woman and is briefly left without a pulse. Later, his wounds seal up. Apparently Chas is truly being resurrected but we get no explanation for how it is happening.

Papa Midnite's ritual to speak with the spirits of the dead makes mention of Papa Legba.  In Vodou, Papa Legba is the spirit (or loa) who oversees crossroads, boundaries and acts as the intermediary between the spirit world and the world of man.  All Vodou ceremonies begin and end with an invocation to Papa Legba, whose permission is needed to speak to the souls of the dead or other loa.

Somehow, The Rising Darkness - using the guilt of living people regarding dead people they felt responsible for killing - manipulated Papa Midnite's spells to allow people to speak to the dead and used them to raise the spirits of the dead


Dialogue Triumphs

(As John & Zed are checking in at a hotel and the clerk says she'll return with the keys to their rooms)
Zed: Two rooms?
John: Oh, I'm flattered, love, but we really out to keep this professional, yeah?
Zed: Does that mean that you respect me?
John: (chuckles) I respect everyone I sleep with. But I usually like to get to know something about them first if you know what I mean?
Zed: You want to know something about me? Just ask.
John: Where do you come from? Why are you running? And how bad is it that risking your life every day with me seems like a pleasant alternative?
Clerk (returning): Can I offer you complementary champagne in your rooms?
Zed: No, thank you. I don't like champagne.  (To John) Now you know something about me.

Jim: How do you live with it? The knowledge that all this can be real? How?
John: It marks you. For life. But it doesn't change who you are.

John: Voodoo's nothing but a magical excuse for a party.

(Papa Midnite takes a seat in the back of his car)
Midnite: Pop the trunk. I need to question him.
John: (spinning around to face him from the driver's seat) Have at it, mate! Ask me anything you like!

Midnite: We have to stop this! We have to put these spirits back down!
John: Right.  So it's, ah... WE now, is it?  I could help you, for sure. But ah... I'm going to need something from you.
Midnite: ... your debt is erased.
John: Ta for that. And ah... I have a question. For your sister.
Midnite: ... only if we are successful.
John: Good enough.

John: You know that old song about the hammer that thinks that everything is a nail?
Midnite: No.
John: You may be Grand Poobah of voodoo, mate, but that's one very specific, very narrow modality.
Midnite: And what do you know? Jackass of all trades?  Master of none?

Midnite: Hear us, gods! This spell is of our own creation! We bow to you united!
John: Well, if it's come to that, mate, these are dark days indeed.

Midnite: You are a magpie of magic! A thief of tradition! You steal from other people's cultures and beliefs to suit your own purposes.
John: Oh yeah? Well.. whatever works, eh?
Midnite: It worked wonders on that little girl you sent to Hell.
John: Well, at least it wasn't my own bloody sister -


Continuity

Zed has a vision of Jim Corrigan as a boy, being taught to shoot a gun by his mother.

Chas prefers staying in chain hotels when he travels, apparently so he can build up reward points. John, by contrast, seems to prefer independently owned hotels and the more expensive they are, the better!

We see that Chas has finally fixed his cab, as he drives it for the first time since The Pilot.

John has impersonated INTERPOL agents in the past.

John is a talented escape artist and is capable of picking the lock on a pair of handcuffs and slipping out of police shackles.

Papa Midnite refers to the events of C103 and how John cost him the record with The Devil's voice.

Jim Corrigan recognizes Zed from a missing person's report, but notes the name Zed is not the one he saw on the report. He says the only other time Zed was spotted was on security camera footage when she stole an apple and a stale cheese sandwich from a gas station.

After consulting with his sister, Papa Midnite declares that John will not be able to stop The Rising Darkness.  More, it will be heralded by someone close to John who will betray him.


Location

New Orleans


John Screws Up

John doesn't consider that the guilt of the living might be responsible for the dead being unable to rest.


The Bottom Line

Probably the strongest episode of the series so far.  Most of the show's on-going mysteries get some exploration (Zed's past, Chas' immortality) and Midnite gets some development revealing that he is not quite as evil as he seemed in his first appearance.  Zed gets to stand on her own apart from John for much of the episode and John and Midnite snarking off each other works wonderfully on both the dramatic and comedic levels.  A must see.