"Goddamn it all to hell. Why is it that, lately, everything I touch--turns into shit in my hands?"
Well now, this more like it. It's not exactly a pleasant story (in fact, it's an awful bloody mess that John once again has to cope from but then again, should I expect anything else from Hellblazer at this point?) but the delivery's overall tone was incredibly sublime with a few touches of coy humor in the middle and some unexpected poignancy near the end.
Honestly speaking, the so-called maternal instinct in my 'biology' as an AFAB has made me very sympathetic to John, only because I had this sudden yet not completely surprising desire to take care of him like he's a stray in need of a new home and a hot meal or something. But I must acknowledge that he's not exactly the victim of his circumstances. We just get the sense that the bell has been tolling for this man's soul.
Everything since the first issue of the series all ties back to the mysterious events in Newcastle (which, as I stated when I began my Hellblazer comics diet, was the issue I read first which was the eleventh one so I think it's unavoidable for me to contextualize what I know about that storyline as I go about reviewing this issue entitled Ghost in the Machine). And what a wonderfully depressing issue it has been for me!
The decision to write the first few pages that features a symbolic nightmare sequence was a strong literary device, personally, especially when we consider the eventual destination that the story was gunning for. That entire sequence is the sum of all parts for Ghost in the Machine. No spoilers, of course, but it's very notable because of its quality of premonition. It was also a glimpse at Constantine's frame of mind at this point of the story where everything is slipping including his mask of detachment and self-contained sorrow. To uncover the intentions of the Resurrection Crusaders, John visits an old acquaintance, Ray Monde, whose expertise has something to do with infiltrating the cyberspace for paranormal purposes. It's...a tricky thing to explain here. You just have to read it for yourself to get the picture. But basically, he helps out John in finding out more about the base operations of said Resurrection Crusaders by immersing himself in a trance via computers. Constantine leaves him to this ritual, considering it's not his specialty so he really has nothing to contribute.
Meanwhile, Zed is staying with Ritchie Simpson, another friend of John who was introduced in the previous issues. He's an elderly gay man who was also John's very first friend when he moved to London. Zed sort of wondered about the nature of their relationship (it's worth mentioning that during the Hellblazer's run, Constantine had been written as bisexual though we see him having relationships with women more). Tragic stuff happens in this scene which almost made me stop reading because I couldn't believe that happened so quickly and with John nowhere to be found to help prevent it. But we need to move the plot forward so I guess it was inevitable.
Back to our hero: John comes back to Ray to see if there was any progress in the search; only to witness Ray completely losing control of the process that he ended up, well, giving way to spontaneous self-combustion right where John stands up helplessly, unable to salvage his friend's charcoaled-up body. Ray is oblivious to the fact that he no longer has a tangible form to return to, and there's no way in hell John is going to tell him. He opted to switch off the machines, entrapping Ray's consciousness within. John admits that it is a cowardly gesture but he just couldn't take any of his friends' demises being blamed on him once again. He had reached that quota as of now. "Why is it that, lately, everything I touch--turns into shit in my hands?" he naturally soliloquizes as he leaves the place and boards the train, supposedly to get back to Zed and Ritchie (and we all know that it's yet another bleeding wound John needs to clean up). On the ride home, he was haunted by Emma, Gary Lester and the rest of his dead friends. Not one to stand up for anything resembling dignity, John literally jumps out of the train to avoid the scolding from the ghosts of his past.
"My heart twitches like a bloody beast, crawled into the rank burrow of my chest to breathe its last. I feel like an old soldier, attending one by one, the funerals of my own war comrades."
Oh, John. You beautifully sordid man with issues caked in blood and grief. I'm not hot on your avoidance tactics right now but I still feel legitimately bad about the circumstances that are closing in on you. At this point, we're all interested to know what really happened in Newcastle that changed John in ways where there is no going back from it. Covered in thistles and weeds and in urgent need to bury his dead, John has to overcome his issues and to do it fast because there is a case at hand that requires his full attention.
No pressure or anything, mate, but there are bigger battles to fight.
RECOMMENDED: 8/10
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