After an opening side story involving Swamp Thing brokering a deal for help to find Abby who has become a powerful avatar and agreeing to travel to The Rot we find John Constantine relaxing on his ‘throne’ or rather Chas’s throne.
Chas’s wife Renee understandably has left not to return until John has slung his hook. John surprises Chas with a wad of money which Chas thinks is to repay him for putting him up but no it’s for a horse bet that he wants to be put on.
A little put out that his showdown with a demon in the last issue went seemingly unnoticed John goes to meet the head of the underworld Clarice Sackville who was “conceived on a satanic altar under a blood moon, as the unholy union of a syphilitic tory peer and a illiterate scullery maid” well she was NEVER gonna be a florist was she!!
Clarice and John obviously have a lot of history together and while they flirt their way through Johns ‘punishment’ she lets him know that a certain unnamed individual wished to meet him and thank him (yeah right) for defeating Nybbas. John declines and leaves with a veiled warning from Clarice and a couple of tails while Clarice speaks with the previously unnamed Marid and reveals that there is an ulterior plan in play.
Constantine tries to evade his followers via crowds tunnels and even a priest hole with no avail but the issue ends in a way that hints that he may have found a way to get away from them.
Constantine is as cocky as ever in this issue and takes the defeat of a demon in his stride. The dark underworld of magic and monsters is portrayed gorgeously with dark dirty reds and muted blues that really give you an impression of the grimy dangerous world in which Constantine abides!
Newsdesk