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Hellblazer #36
Hellblazer: The Devil's Trench Coat by Peter Milligan
John Constantine, chain-smoking occultist anti-hero, is back in a new volume from popular writer Peter Milligan.When Gemma Masters punishes her uncle by auctioning off his trench coat, she ignites a horrific chain of events. Bleeding apartment walls, unplanned visits to the middle of the Thames, a farting demon, a suspicious angel, a Hellish aquarium, and an old adversary all await Constantine as he races to track down his coat before it sends Constantine to Hell again!
Paperback
First published June 1, 2012
2 people are currently reading
220 people want to read
About the author
Peter Milligan
1,317 books393 followersLibrarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
Peter Milligan is a British writer, best known for his work on X-Force / X-Statix, the X-Men, & the Vertigo series Human Target. He is also a scriptwriter.
He has been writing comics for some time and he has somewhat of a reputation for writing material that is highly outlandish, bizarre and/or absurd.
His highest profile projects to date include a run on X-Men, and his X-Force revamp that relaunched as X-Statix.
Many of Milligan's best works have been from DC Vertigo. These include: The Extremist (4 issues with artist Ted McKeever) The Minx (8 issues with artist Sean Phillips) Face (Prestige one-shot with artist Duncan Fegredo) The Eaters (Prestige one-shot with artist Dean Ormston) Vertigo Pop London (4 issues with artist Philip Bond) Enigma (8 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo) and Girl (3 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo).
Series:
* Human Target
* Greek Street
* X-Force / X-Statix
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
Peter Milligan is a British writer, best known for his work on X-Force / X-Statix, the X-Men, & the Vertigo series Human Target. He is also a scriptwriter.
He has been writing comics for some time and he has somewhat of a reputation for writing material that is highly outlandish, bizarre and/or absurd.
His highest profile projects to date include a run on X-Men, and his X-Force revamp that relaunched as X-Statix.
Many of Milligan's best works have been from DC Vertigo. These include: The Extremist (4 issues with artist Ted McKeever) The Minx (8 issues with artist Sean Phillips) Face (Prestige one-shot with artist Duncan Fegredo) The Eaters (Prestige one-shot with artist Dean Ormston) Vertigo Pop London (4 issues with artist Philip Bond) Enigma (8 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo) and Girl (3 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo).
Series:
* Human Target
* Greek Street
* X-Force / X-Statix
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
November 5, 2016
So this volume contains 2 storylines. First we find out that Constantine's infamous trenchcoat has absorbed so much weirdness over the years (demon blood, magic, spell ingredients, etc.) that it has become enchanted and almost taken on a life of its own. So John has to track the coat down when it goes missing and bodies start dropping.
Next we see John traveling to Hell (again) in order to bring his sister's soul back. He also decides to get revenge on his evil twin, or more to the point, let Gemma get her revenge on him.
Overall a strong penultimate volume. I only have one more to go, and I wish there were more!
Next we see John traveling to Hell (again) in order to bring his sister's soul back. He also decides to get revenge on his evil twin, or more to the point, let Gemma get her revenge on him.
Overall a strong penultimate volume. I only have one more to go, and I wish there were more!
February 21, 2014
Better than the previous Milligan Graphic Novel I read-- Hooked-- but still reads as if Milligan can't be arsed coming up with his own ideas and simply settles for retreading as many Delano ideas as he can cram onto the page. We even get a cameo from Blathloxi and a supporting role for the First of the Fallen in the second of the two arcs that make up the book,'Another Season in Hell', which is at least superior to the titular tale: 'Another Season in Hell' takes Constantine on a journey into the dark heart of his own family, finalising threads begun when Delano was helming the title and delivering the suitably nasty comeuppances that Milligan hands out without much in the way of logic because that's what Hellblazer is all about, right? Never mind that the narrative climax is hastily assembled, too easily accomplished and makes a mockery of what's come before last time Constantine braved the rigours of Hell it was a journey that cost him his body, mind and split his post-mortal soul three ways, this time it's a jaunt and a flippant wager and over within a dozen pages; whereas 'The Devil's Trenchcoat' is a bloodied frippery wherein the coat of the title gets over being separated from our hero by going on a killing spree. It's all rather tired and mundane, and there's nothing here to get the blood pumping. Standard Peter Milligan fare.
December 14, 2015
A f**king talking coat!? If I didn't know this series was 9 issues away from being cancelled, I would HOPE it would get cancelled. Just HORRIBLE!
December 8, 2024
There were some aspects of this that I liked. Primarily, how disgusting and vile the demons and hell are depicted like. There is nothing pretty or seductive about them. However, this book was a 2 in 1, and I didn’t feel like either story really concluded. There’s so much happening and yet nothing gets resolved. And instead of resolving, more gets added. The trenchcoat plot seemed silly at first but it hooked me. I just wish there was some sort of conclusion somewhere
February 22, 2026
Not bad. Classic Constantine horror, in which lots people die for getting anywhere near him or his possessions.
Was a little disappointed in the conclusion, but probably because Constantine is an asshole rather than the writing itself.
Was a little disappointed in the conclusion, but probably because Constantine is an asshole rather than the writing itself.
November 11, 2012
In this instalment of the continuing misadventures of John Constantine the now married magus finds himself having to track down his missing trench coat stolen by Gemma Masters, Constantine's niece in retaliation for the transgressions of Constantine's demonic twin who was masquerading as her uncle on his wedding day. Now Constantine's life is falling apart as he realises his trench coat does more than keep the cold out and hide the blood stains and his wife Epiphany is being dragged along in the wake of the chaos. Constantine is determined to make his doppelganger pay and is prepared to do anything to get it done.
Current Hellblazer scribe Peter Milligan who took over the reigns with issue #251 has definitely ruffled a few feathers amongst the fans of the one time Liverpudlian punk, with Constantine getting married after a string of broken relationships to a girl half his age with shady connections to London's criminal underworld. Constantine's wedding was as memorable as you would expect and the fall out of that gathering is what fuels this latest story.
The Constantine love nest is under siege from various awry manifestations and when Pif and Constantine wake up to find themselves sailing down the Thames on their bed Constantine has to wrack his brain to figure out what's going on things are only exasperated when a simple case of putting the frighteners on some enemies of Terry Greaves Pif's connected father goes disastrously wrong.
After decades of being exposed to dark magicks, angels, demons, madness and even Hell itself Constantine's iconic trench coat has developed a consciousness of it's own. Which is an inspired move on Milligan's part and having the coat narrate it's all consuming desire for a worthy wearer to bond with is blackly comical as it gets passed from one wearer to another purely via the coats manipulation. The wearer can't smell the deathly stench of the coat and becomes intoxicated by it's mystical aura becoming just as confidently non-chalant as Constantine is with one wearer boldly going up to a girl clearly out of his league and even introducing himself as “John Constantine” before taking her back home.
The idea that the coat is impervious to flame as seen when one wearer tries to burn it after realising it's corrupting influence is a neat touch too.
Constantine is hot on the trail of his elusive coat though and a considerable trail it is too, one filled with broken bodies and blood.
The missing coat is the least of Constantine's problem's though as Gemma who is clearly falling apart following her traumatic ordeal at hands of Constantine's demonic twin blackmails Constantine,
Constantine: “You're a monster”
Gemma: “ No, I'm a Constantine.....just like you”
It's this exchange which shows how damaged both these characters are and is the first time Constantine has ever been on the receiving end of what he's been dishing out for years without a second thought.
Hell has featured before several times in Hellblazer but it's good to see that going to Hell is still a big deal for Constantine involving a dangerous ritual and bargaining with a demon. Once there Constantine comes face to face with an old adversary with a grudge against him who relishes in showing Constantine the tortured souls of friends he has condemned to the depths of Hell. It doesn't take long until Constantine's penchant for playing with fire literally is coming to the fore and as a result a massacre is happening in London on Greaves' patch with Pif meeting Constantine's past face to face and showing she shares her husbands talent for forging faustian pacts and there's a genuine sense of tension as Constantine's old adversary seems to have got the better of him after all this time.
Nowhere in all of Constantine's misadventures has the magus been as coldly menacing as when he's staring out of the ruins of a dilapidated church on a storm lashed night and says the words
“I can be pretty nasty myself when I want to be”
The static nature of Constantine's recent misadventures hasn't gone down well with some readers with the now married Constantine locked down into one location and events revolving around his wife Pif and her father Terry with old mainstay Chas rendered into a reserve background character. This has it's pros and cons, it lets Constantine's relationship with Pif evolve and feature more prominently than any previously and because of this the stakes are raised even more but it also takes away the more random elements which were a main feature of the previous story arcs.
The covers from Simon Bisley are as a great as ever while the interior art from Guiseppe Camuncoli, Stefano Landini with colours from Trish Mulvihill and Lee Loughridge is suitably dark and expressive. Hellblazer is a hard title to nail with the artist having to deal with human characters, demons. black magic, varied locations and more besides on a regular basis.
Hellblazer isn't kind to new readers it has to be said with it's myriad of characters and interconnected long running plots but the same could be said for all Vertigo titles and it makes things all the better for longtime readers.
Current Hellblazer scribe Peter Milligan who took over the reigns with issue #251 has definitely ruffled a few feathers amongst the fans of the one time Liverpudlian punk, with Constantine getting married after a string of broken relationships to a girl half his age with shady connections to London's criminal underworld. Constantine's wedding was as memorable as you would expect and the fall out of that gathering is what fuels this latest story.
The Constantine love nest is under siege from various awry manifestations and when Pif and Constantine wake up to find themselves sailing down the Thames on their bed Constantine has to wrack his brain to figure out what's going on things are only exasperated when a simple case of putting the frighteners on some enemies of Terry Greaves Pif's connected father goes disastrously wrong.
After decades of being exposed to dark magicks, angels, demons, madness and even Hell itself Constantine's iconic trench coat has developed a consciousness of it's own. Which is an inspired move on Milligan's part and having the coat narrate it's all consuming desire for a worthy wearer to bond with is blackly comical as it gets passed from one wearer to another purely via the coats manipulation. The wearer can't smell the deathly stench of the coat and becomes intoxicated by it's mystical aura becoming just as confidently non-chalant as Constantine is with one wearer boldly going up to a girl clearly out of his league and even introducing himself as “John Constantine” before taking her back home.
The idea that the coat is impervious to flame as seen when one wearer tries to burn it after realising it's corrupting influence is a neat touch too.
Constantine is hot on the trail of his elusive coat though and a considerable trail it is too, one filled with broken bodies and blood.
The missing coat is the least of Constantine's problem's though as Gemma who is clearly falling apart following her traumatic ordeal at hands of Constantine's demonic twin blackmails Constantine,
Constantine: “You're a monster”
Gemma: “ No, I'm a Constantine.....just like you”
It's this exchange which shows how damaged both these characters are and is the first time Constantine has ever been on the receiving end of what he's been dishing out for years without a second thought.
Hell has featured before several times in Hellblazer but it's good to see that going to Hell is still a big deal for Constantine involving a dangerous ritual and bargaining with a demon. Once there Constantine comes face to face with an old adversary with a grudge against him who relishes in showing Constantine the tortured souls of friends he has condemned to the depths of Hell. It doesn't take long until Constantine's penchant for playing with fire literally is coming to the fore and as a result a massacre is happening in London on Greaves' patch with Pif meeting Constantine's past face to face and showing she shares her husbands talent for forging faustian pacts and there's a genuine sense of tension as Constantine's old adversary seems to have got the better of him after all this time.
Nowhere in all of Constantine's misadventures has the magus been as coldly menacing as when he's staring out of the ruins of a dilapidated church on a storm lashed night and says the words
“I can be pretty nasty myself when I want to be”
The static nature of Constantine's recent misadventures hasn't gone down well with some readers with the now married Constantine locked down into one location and events revolving around his wife Pif and her father Terry with old mainstay Chas rendered into a reserve background character. This has it's pros and cons, it lets Constantine's relationship with Pif evolve and feature more prominently than any previously and because of this the stakes are raised even more but it also takes away the more random elements which were a main feature of the previous story arcs.
The covers from Simon Bisley are as a great as ever while the interior art from Guiseppe Camuncoli, Stefano Landini with colours from Trish Mulvihill and Lee Loughridge is suitably dark and expressive. Hellblazer is a hard title to nail with the artist having to deal with human characters, demons. black magic, varied locations and more besides on a regular basis.
Hellblazer isn't kind to new readers it has to be said with it's myriad of characters and interconnected long running plots but the same could be said for all Vertigo titles and it makes things all the better for longtime readers.
October 28, 2018
Remember when the Devil came to Salem in Days of Our Lives? The two Romans? Well, this feels a little like that.
February 14, 2024
An interesting tale about one of Constantine's coats seeped with magic making dangerous moves on it's own.
November 3, 2012
With this latest collection (#283-291), the regular creative team since #250 - Peter Milligan, Giuseppe Camuncoli and Stefano Landini - are just one issue away from matching the previous longest run on the series. This was the peerless run in the early 1990s by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon.
The book contains two related stories from the long running series - The Devil's Trench Coat and Another Season in Hell. In the first, Constantine's niece has stolen his old trench coat and sold it. But the coat being exposed to years of magic has a will of its own that it exerts on a series of new owners leaving death in its wake. Meanwhile John finds that he is more susceptible to wild magic and not as finessed in the spells he casts. All of which results in a Mafia hit man trying to gun him down while possessed by the coat. In the second story Constantine agrees to go to Hell to speak to his sister so that his niece, Gemma, can find out why she found her mother crying one day and free her soul from Hell. While John thinks he has out-smarted the First of the Fallen, the demon comes to Earth to enlist Epiphany's consent to bind her father's soul to him.
During his run, Milligan has done a good job of taking Constantine back to the basics of the character and gradually introducing a darker tone to the storyline. This book contains some of the darkest material yet with the dark magic radiated from his old trench coat to Constantine's return to Hell and his revenge on his evil twin for raping his niece. Not comfortable viewing or reading at times but a must for long time Constantine fans and horror lovers.
The book contains two related stories from the long running series - The Devil's Trench Coat and Another Season in Hell. In the first, Constantine's niece has stolen his old trench coat and sold it. But the coat being exposed to years of magic has a will of its own that it exerts on a series of new owners leaving death in its wake. Meanwhile John finds that he is more susceptible to wild magic and not as finessed in the spells he casts. All of which results in a Mafia hit man trying to gun him down while possessed by the coat. In the second story Constantine agrees to go to Hell to speak to his sister so that his niece, Gemma, can find out why she found her mother crying one day and free her soul from Hell. While John thinks he has out-smarted the First of the Fallen, the demon comes to Earth to enlist Epiphany's consent to bind her father's soul to him.
During his run, Milligan has done a good job of taking Constantine back to the basics of the character and gradually introducing a darker tone to the storyline. This book contains some of the darkest material yet with the dark magic radiated from his old trench coat to Constantine's return to Hell and his revenge on his evil twin for raping his niece. Not comfortable viewing or reading at times but a must for long time Constantine fans and horror lovers.
May 28, 2015
This is one of the wackier storylines from the saga of Constantine, but readers shouldn't be at all surprised that his eponymous trench coat had a personality of its own. Who really knows which came first (the Constantine or the coat), but they are a perfect pair since John is the only person who the coat doesn't actually correupt or try to kill. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me at all if it was the toxis psychic energy that Constantine seems to have that really gave the coat a life of its own. He does have a flair for spicing up the lives of everyone around him after all - even if it is in the worst way possible and ends in their mortal demise.
After John and his precious outerwear are reunited he gets talked into taking a trip to Hell to set his sister free to go to Heaven. He lucks out (for once) and manages not to get caught too badly (or get anyone else killed in the process), but it's pretty clear that Satan (at least that's who I assume this incarnation is, since it's not Lucifer) has some ulterior motives. He's after the soul of mobster Terry Greaves aka Epiphany's father, and he seems determined to start a mob war with Constantine at the centre. This seems a little petty and overly trite (the mob isn't exactly a magicaly heavy hitter after all), but the storyarc is clearly just getting started.
After John and his precious outerwear are reunited he gets talked into taking a trip to Hell to set his sister free to go to Heaven. He lucks out (for once) and manages not to get caught too badly (or get anyone else killed in the process), but it's pretty clear that Satan (at least that's who I assume this incarnation is, since it's not Lucifer) has some ulterior motives. He's after the soul of mobster Terry Greaves aka Epiphany's father, and he seems determined to start a mob war with Constantine at the centre. This seems a little petty and overly trite (the mob isn't exactly a magicaly heavy hitter after all), but the storyarc is clearly just getting started.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 15, 2012
I can't say, at this point, that I'm entirely clear the Milligan run is really going anywhere -- it's been running for quite awhile, with the two stories in this latest volume working through some dangling plot threads that never made sense in the first place, and retreading some Delano/Ennis ground with a good ol' fashioned trip to Hell.
Camuncoli & Landini's art style is becoming rougher, which noticeably diminishes the magic and, by extension, the stories (which were always larks, but special because they were beautiful larks). When the art runs at about 95% instead of 100%, Milligan's tendency to wander somewhat aimlessly through his own yarns becomes more apparent.
I'm not quite sure where we're headed from here, and the ending of this volume makes room for the creative team to veer off any which way they choose with the next installment. But despite its lack of focus, I'll keep with it -- it's still impressively modern in its aesthetic and political concerns, and that's worth going along a little further to see how it all works out.
Camuncoli & Landini's art style is becoming rougher, which noticeably diminishes the magic and, by extension, the stories (which were always larks, but special because they were beautiful larks). When the art runs at about 95% instead of 100%, Milligan's tendency to wander somewhat aimlessly through his own yarns becomes more apparent.
I'm not quite sure where we're headed from here, and the ending of this volume makes room for the creative team to veer off any which way they choose with the next installment. But despite its lack of focus, I'll keep with it -- it's still impressively modern in its aesthetic and political concerns, and that's worth going along a little further to see how it all works out.
November 10, 2012
This GN collects two story arcs, The Devil's Trenchcoat and Another Season in Hell.
The former is good, but a little goofy at certain times, with Constantine's trenchcoat going rogue and possessing people. There is a dark sense of humour overall, but still this is not one of the strongest of Hellblazer stories and at times it fails to make total sense.
Another season on the other hand is one of those great Constantine stories that gets all those arcs hanging around from the rest of Milligan's arcs and ties them to a compelling story of passions and plots, as Constantine journeys to Hell to save his sister's soul. Great character driven story, with all the actors persuing their agentas and with plenty of conflict. Almost Ennis-good.
The former is good, but a little goofy at certain times, with Constantine's trenchcoat going rogue and possessing people. There is a dark sense of humour overall, but still this is not one of the strongest of Hellblazer stories and at times it fails to make total sense.
Another season on the other hand is one of those great Constantine stories that gets all those arcs hanging around from the rest of Milligan's arcs and ties them to a compelling story of passions and plots, as Constantine journeys to Hell to save his sister's soul. Great character driven story, with all the actors persuing their agentas and with plenty of conflict. Almost Ennis-good.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 12, 2012
I'm already tired of Milligan's run on Hellblazer. All of his stories so far are plot driven and completely lack in any new developments for Constantine other than making him an old cynical magician who now explains his techniques like a superhero of the 90s who wants us to believe his techniques and gear could really exist in our world today.
This trade collects Milligan's latest run and is much of the same plot driven, devoid of character development, action based stories,
October 12, 2015
“The Devil’s Trench Coat” is an excellent, multi-leveled story. I actually found the Trench Coat plot proper a little too Shade-esque, but the subplot with Gemma is superb, while the continuing interactions with Epiphany’s family are quite fun [8/10]. “Another Season in Hell” reaches its height pretty quickly when Constantine goes to Hell, but it still remains a good story throughout, thanks to its continuity and to its familial connections. [7.5/10]
August 1, 2020
So Milligan ought never had been led near hellblazer... though I suppose that in some odd way he perfectly lays out the below mediocre middle life of jc in all its pity full lameness and no annoying hot wife daughter of a middle management gangster can make it even remotely less pity full. *sigh*
Imho This series should have finished after Diggle’s run and have forever stood untouchable
Imho This series should have finished after Diggle’s run and have forever stood untouchable
March 24, 2014
Not one of Constantine's stronger adventures. First his possessed trenchcoat starts taking over other wearers, then he tries to rescue his sister from hell. The latter was the weaker part, as Constantine comes off like a complete idiot at times.
February 14, 2013
Oh my god comics
February 12, 2013
Still enjoyable, but the stories collected here feel like retreads of previous stories.
April 23, 2016
Anytime you walk out of a Constantine story going, "Well, that was @#$%^&" in an admiring tone, it was a good Constantine story. I did, it was.
July 23, 2014
This is not the John Constantine I like.
March 26, 2016
Hiigelpika saaga eelviimane osa. Constantine külastab taaskord Põrgut ja jälle on platsis ka Esimene Langenuist, kes võtab Constantine'i omamoodi kahvlisse. Hea.
June 16, 2015
First time reading Hellblazer. Constantine is a cool guy.
I heard he was a Bi-sexual character but nothing in this book indicated that. No big deal though
Fun read. I'll try an other Hellblazer book.
I heard he was a Bi-sexual character but nothing in this book indicated that. No big deal though
Fun read. I'll try an other Hellblazer book.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews