Constantine: “Non Est Asylum”
(Episode 1.01)

With superhero comic adaptations proliferating all over the small screen, it was only a matter of time before someone noted the potential of DC’s Hellblazer as a television series. Its central character, John Constantine, is simply a spectacular protagonist; a complex, atypical, gritty and multifaceted antihero, and master of the mystical arts. Following in the successful wake of other horror series such as The Walking Dead and American Horror Story, a Hellblazer/Constantine show practically writes itself. Still … NBC? Not exactly where most comics fans would have expected to see John Constantine come to life on television. But we probably shouldn’t be surprised that network TV wants a piece of the lucrative horror genre pie, especially if they can create a show that turns into another Walking Dead.
This brings us to the Constantine pilot, “Non Est Asylum,” which aired Oct. 24. It’s a surprisingly promising hour of television for comics fans hoping to see a fairly faithful adaptation of the Constantine character, handled ably by veteran horror director Neil Marshall, who crafted several of the better indie horror flicks of the 2000’s, Dog Soldiers and The Descent. At the very least, it’s a far more sure-handed depiction of the character and his universe than the 2005 movie starring Keanu Reeves, which was hopelessly misguided from the beginning.
We are introduced to Constantine in an insane asylum, receiving shock treatments in a desperate bid to forget certain aspects of his past. After a conveniently localized demonic possession, however, the viewer quickly gets introduced both to the basics of the British exorcist’s personality (bitter, snarky, rude and guilt-ridden), and abilities (magic and expertise in the occult). Driving out a demon convinces him of what he already knows—he can’t afford to sit around in the asylum when there’s evil encroaching on the world. Constantine is coming back to the streets.
Leaving his voluntary commitment, he reconnects with his ally/cab driver Chas Chandler (Charles Halford), who apparently possesses an odd power to survive otherwise deadly injuries—I’d explain further, but I honestly have no idea how, and the episode doesn’t even begin to explain it. Mid-episode, he gets impaled with a live power cable, and Constantine barely bats an eye, apparently aware that this is only a temporary setback. Later, Chas simply reappears with no explanation as to how he survived, beyond the fact that it’s one of his talents. It’s perplexing, but at least it explains Constantine’s lack of a palpable reaction.