John Constantine Hellblazer 30th Anniversary Graph Novel book review

Ahoy me mateys Captain Cats here. John Constantine, one of the most interesting, fowl-mouth, street smart, a trickster of a con man who ever graces the world of comics, and it shows with this year being the 30th anniversary of the legendary Vertigo imprint run. With that being said, Vertigo just released the Hellblazer 30th anniversary graphic novel (GN for short), and it is a great read.

Vertigo took their time with this one because they pick some of the best stories from the series 30-year run. The book starts with a great and witty introduction by none other than Sting himself, the man who was the inspiration for John’s design. Next, come the issues Vertigo pick for the GN and they are great, and they are as follow:

• The Saga of the Swamp Thing #37
• John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 11
• John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 27
• John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 41
• John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 63
• John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 120
• John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 146
• John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 229
• John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 240

The reason I believe Vertigo did this is that unlike other comic book characters, John ages in the comics. From his first appearance in the Saga of the Swamp Thing to John Constantine, The Hellblazer # 240, you see him age, and that is something no other comic character has ever done in real time. Another great thing about this GN is the different writers and artist who worked on this series over the years

Writers

• Alan Moore
• Jamie Delano
• Neil Gaiman
• Garth Ennis
• Paul Jenkins
• Brian Azzarello
• Mike Carey
• Andy Diggle

Artist

• Rick Veitch
• Richard Piers Rayner
• Dave McKean
• Will Simpson
• Steve Dillon
• Sean Phillips
• Richard Corben
• John Paul Leon
• Leonardo Manco

Each writer and artist told a great, bold, hunting, chilling stories and if it weren’t for this series, we wouldn’t have comics and GN with this kind of storytelling and art.

In the end, if you are new to the world of Hellblazer, or just want to see what made this series a classic, this is a must-read. Fans of the series should pick this up because as a bonus, Vertigo also included the complete John Constantine timeline.

Leave a comment below and let us know what your favorite thing about John Constantine, The Hellblazer was!