I wanna read Constantine, from what comic should i start?

>>85472396
Hellblazer

Vertigo Hellblazer to be exact

Moore Swamp Thing if you want his debut

>>85472416
I think i'll start from his debut, thanks

>>85472396
Hellblazer 1-300, and the tie in graphic novels.

>>85472477
I dont know much about him, (only some small points that interested me) but basically he keeps fucking over demons yeah?

>>85472581
kinda

>>85472641
thanks for help, ill get to reading

>>85472581
He has more contingency plans than Batman and basically plays demons and angels off each other to get what he wants.
Unfortunately one of the upshots of all this manipulation is that just about everyone around him dies and because he's seen and caused some terrible shit he's not exactly mentally stable some of the time.

>>85472581
More like the other way around.

>>85472581
>>85472684
It's a little of both. He'll trick Hell into curing his terminal cancer, and then Satan will fucking kill everyone Constantine knows to make him suffer.

>>85472581
And his friends and family.

And himself.

>>85472671
>>85472736
>>85472756
That sounds really awful... i fucking love it

>>85472736
Or he manages to save his sister from hell only for Satan to persuade her to stay at the last moment. Dude's skilled, but fucked up.

>>85472781
He never REALLY wins.

Every victory John has has a Pyrrhic feel to it.

>>85472862
>>85472781
Magic in DC usually comes with a price. Hellblazer is basically a saga of one man's attempt to meet that price with another bargain, another loan, and then having to reel from that. For 300 issues.

And it never gets old.

>>85472905
I like how they established that 'flashy' magic as shite and only faggots use that kind of magic. And that any cunt can do it.

>>85472862
And he loses in the end, getting retconned by Gemma.

Is she even in the Nu52 continuity, btw? Is any part of the Vertigo series?

>>85473164
Nope, nobody except for Chas and his wife.

I just wish Chantinelle will appear one of these days.

>>85473319
Or a surprise appearence by Fuckpig

>>85473164
>retconned by Gemma

Is that what happened?

>>85474372
Well, that's how I interpreted it.

>>85472981
>I like how they established that 'flashy' magic as shite and only faggots use that kind of magic.
When did they say that? I mean, Zatanna exists in the setting, and during Books of Magic they both agreed that she's WAY more powerful than him.

The "any cunt can do it" line, on the other hand, I distinctly remember THAT, though. I like to think it's like any other skill, like drawing. Any fuckwit can get a pencil and draw something, but you need practice and some know-how to actually be any good at it.

>>85473319
She was in his dcyou which was decent (especialy the last issue)

Why is this edgy faggot in DC comics anyway?

Just read the vertigo series first start from the beginning

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>>85474646
Hes always been around two connections away from the cape crowd.

I really hope his new series is good his rebirth is promising but it shit the bed at the end.

Im not so worried about the adressing the reader at the end it was stupid but they only did it because aparently you cant do that in a text box for some stulid reason.

Its the way they resolved the conflict that has me worried and i hope they dont repeat it.

>>85472396
Read Hellblazer from issue 1 and on. The quality is pretty good overall, but it slowly declines.
When you're sick of it, feel free to quit and then ask again to find out which stories are decent enough.

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>>85472396

Hellblazer introduced me to the magic side of DC. It's become my favorite part.

I highly recommend Neil Gaiman's Book of Magic 1990 - 1-4. John Constantine is featured. The art is fantastic. It really gives you a great intro into the major players in the DC magic arena.

I love that there is near universal agrement to start at hellblazer #1

>>85475145
You know nothing, people should start with Moore's Swamp Thing.

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>>85474934
>I highly recommend Neil Gaiman's Book of Magic 1990 - 1-4.
This whole book is so damned good. Great introduction to DC's magical characters. Very atmospheric as well.

There's a bit of Hypercrisis in there as well.

>>85475242
Reading just Constantine's appearances in Moore's Swamp Thing would be a bit of a waste. Better to read it all. Same reason nobody recommends his appearances in Sandman or Shade.

>>85475677
OP asked where to start. He should start with Swamp Thing.

>>85472396
The new series with Six Pack and Dog Welder coming out next week.

>>85474842
I say quit at issue 250.

The last decent one.

>>85475920
If you slogged through Mina's run, you may as well finish Milligan's.

>>85476123
I managed it thanks to sheer willpower.

Piffy is such a major cunt though, made the last 40 issues almost unbearable.

I also kind of like the whole alternate twin story Mina expanded on.

>>85475677
Actually, his appearance in Sandman is practically essential to wrapping up some side stories in his solo title. Delano lets Gaiman impact his story, and it's for the better.

OP, you should start with Swamp Thing #37. It's Constantine's debut and is the start of a basically year long arc that culminates in the Crisis of Infinite Earths; I believe you can stop at issue #50, and just move on to Hellblazer #1, but it's been years since I read it. I do know you can safely read the entirety of Alan Moore's Swamp Thing (considered one of the best comic runs ever), and start Constantine from #1 after, since it came out later. There's a bit of interaction between the two characters, with a crossover occurring later (Hellblazer 9, Swamp Thing 76, Hellblazer 10).

People in this thread arguing for starting at Hellblazer #1 have probably never even read Hellblazer #1; trust me though, I own every issue of both series. Alan Moore picked Delano to take control of the character, and continue the mysteries (Nergal, Newcastle, etc), and you really get a lot more impact out of that slow burn. It's also incredibly political, mired in Thatcher-era British politics that can turn a lot of people off. I would say ignore all that and just focus on the story, it's really only interesting (as an American) as a sort of time capsule - there's a lot of stuff there that would never be gotten away with today.

You can safely start with Garth Ennis run at Hellblazer #41 if you wish though.

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Is the tv show any good? How does it compare to comics?

>>85476537
It's as faithful as you could get for a mainstream show, and fans desperately wanted a season 2.

It feels a bit predictable to me, but they did manage to nail the characterization.

>>85476615
>they nailed the characterization

The bit where Constantine looks over a table at Chaz and says "aid me in my quest against evil" makes me gag. It's a flashback, too, so it's John before Newcastle. Just unforgivable.

>>85476834
>>85476615
Was it better than Keanus version?

>>85476834
I mean, within the limits of an NBC show, they nailed it. I didn't love it personally, but if you're the type to watch capeshit tv shows, that sort of dialogue is pretty par for the course.

I feel like if it came out a year or two from now, after Ennis' Preacher has had some success, we could have gotten the best adaption. Or if del Toro ever did do a Justice League Dark film.

>>85476930
Honestly, I loved Keanu's film. It just wasn't Constantine though.

I'd say the Constantine tv show is closer to the New 52 series by Tynion. You shouldn't go watching tv as a substitute for reading comics though!

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>>85476537
Well, the guy is good in it.