And here's the trailer for NBC's Constantine...
The trailer for NBC's Constantine came out earlier today. Based on the comic "Hellblazer" from DC Comics' Vertigo imprint, Constantine follows chronic asshole, master manipulator and magician John Constantine in his quest to save his own soul.
.....Or something like that. I'll be honest with you and say that I've never read Hellblazer before. I know the basics about the guy as well as some outside stuff--created by Alan Moore, initially a DC Comics character but eventually absorbed into Vertigo, written by most of the major British comic scribes almost like a rite of passage to the big time--but occult books aren't really my thing. Whatever NBC got wrong or right isn't exactly something that would make me hyped or pissed to begin with.
That said, what I do know has left me skeptical of just how well NBC is capable of adapting the character. I don't think anyone is expecting an exact adaptation of the guy's adventures, but being apart of Vertigo Hellblazer was able to do more with violence and sexual content that I'm not quite sure a network show can properly bring to life. Plus in general, John's kind of an unrepentant asshole and this guy seems...well, pretty repentant to me.
His soul's in danger? Yeah...they did that in the comics, too. He got out of it (from what I've been told from other fans) by promising his soul to two different lords of hell, making it completely impossible for him to even go because of the war it would cause. Essentially, it was decided it wasn't worth it to fight it out over one jerk-off with some magic tricks. And it wasn't even over "an innocent girl" (honestly far too noble a cause from what I know about the guy), he just had cancer from being a chain smoker and refused to die from it. That's the kind of nuance (and frankly, amorality) I worry about in an adaptation of something like this. Basically, I don't want it to become Supernatural part 2, much as some people would like that.
Lastly, what's the show's chances of a decent run, here? Doesn't NBC already have a lot of supernatural programming? And if they don't, it's because they recently canceled it, meaning either: they thought they hit a saturation point, or it wasn't doing what they thought it would. I can't help thinking that, in so many ways this series simply would've done better on a network like FX or AMC, which wouldn't demand the same ratings and aren't as prone to cancelling shows because they underperformed early on.
Either way, Constantine airs this fall, Fridays on NBC. If you're a fan of the character, at least give it a shot.
.....Or something like that. I'll be honest with you and say that I've never read Hellblazer before. I know the basics about the guy as well as some outside stuff--created by Alan Moore, initially a DC Comics character but eventually absorbed into Vertigo, written by most of the major British comic scribes almost like a rite of passage to the big time--but occult books aren't really my thing. Whatever NBC got wrong or right isn't exactly something that would make me hyped or pissed to begin with.
That said, what I do know has left me skeptical of just how well NBC is capable of adapting the character. I don't think anyone is expecting an exact adaptation of the guy's adventures, but being apart of Vertigo Hellblazer was able to do more with violence and sexual content that I'm not quite sure a network show can properly bring to life. Plus in general, John's kind of an unrepentant asshole and this guy seems...well, pretty repentant to me.
His soul's in danger? Yeah...they did that in the comics, too. He got out of it (from what I've been told from other fans) by promising his soul to two different lords of hell, making it completely impossible for him to even go because of the war it would cause. Essentially, it was decided it wasn't worth it to fight it out over one jerk-off with some magic tricks. And it wasn't even over "an innocent girl" (honestly far too noble a cause from what I know about the guy), he just had cancer from being a chain smoker and refused to die from it. That's the kind of nuance (and frankly, amorality) I worry about in an adaptation of something like this. Basically, I don't want it to become Supernatural part 2, much as some people would like that.
Lastly, what's the show's chances of a decent run, here? Doesn't NBC already have a lot of supernatural programming? And if they don't, it's because they recently canceled it, meaning either: they thought they hit a saturation point, or it wasn't doing what they thought it would. I can't help thinking that, in so many ways this series simply would've done better on a network like FX or AMC, which wouldn't demand the same ratings and aren't as prone to cancelling shows because they underperformed early on.
Either way, Constantine airs this fall, Fridays on NBC. If you're a fan of the character, at least give it a shot.
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