Much like the mine featured in the second episode of NBC's Constantine, there is a depth to this show. Also like that mine, however, the show has not plumbed those depths. 'The Darkness Beneath' succeeds only because of the fine work turned in by Matt Ryan and some ghoulish special effects. The rest of the episode, about a small town mining operation plagued by the spirits of the damned, is a filler episode. It is far too early in the show to have these.
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In fact, this episode feels out of place in the order of things. I have long lamented the drawing out of mysteries, see SHIELD, Agents Of and its handling of the Coulson 'mystery'. However, I am also not a fan of tossing intrigue out there and then immediately resolving it. Now, I understand the need to introduce Zed (Angelica Celaya), Constantine's long time 'companion', last seen sketching John over and over again at the end of the pilot. But could we have had a little more time for it to feel, I don' t know, mysterious? As it stands, their big meet-up is little more than pre-destination, a writer's way of 'getting on with it'. She just happens to be in the same town that all these mysterious deaths are occurring.
The greater mystery of Zed is touched upon, albeit briefly. There is something else about her, and Celaya plays her with just the right amount of intrigue, but there's little energy in her. Is it too much to ask for Liv again? I want to like her better than I do, but she seems pushed aside, reduced to a mere plot mechanic for Constantine to suss out information. Her sparring with John is good enough, but in the one or two scenes she has by herself, it's hard to not want to look away. Celaya is talented and lovely; it's the writers letting her down, and she is not able to elevate the material the way Matt Ryan can.
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What hooked me to Constantine during the quick, but enjoyable, pilot was Ryan, and the apocalyptic overtones. It was scary, dark and it felt like there were real stakes for all involved. The world was literally beginning to burn around them. The Darkness Beneath has John in full on CSI mode. He consults his magic stigmata map, telling him where there's been an infernal incursion and goes to investigate. Beyond the 'chance' meeting with Zed, there're no other stakes for him. Even at the end, when he confronts the person responsible, we know he'll get out of this unscathed. Constantine can take a page from Sleepy Hollow, and better tie its Monster of the Week elements into the greater narrative. I sometimes lament the fact that Sleepy Hollow connives ways that are almost too convenient to bring weekly capers into their own version of the Apocalypse, but even its unsuccessful episodes feel like their propelling the narrative forward.
I guess what I'm saying is that I miss Harold Perrineau and the war between heaven and hell. A gypsy curse seems so...small. Albeit, the curse is able to function on account of the coming storm.
Ryan continues to do good work. We don't learn anything new about him, and he sheds no other layers, but he's still a lot of fun to watch. He's softened somewhat, he's not as biting as in last episode. But he manages to get a few licks in, both physically and verbally. The show itself does manage two somewhat reprehensible things: a) it once again reduces Romani to curse-casting demon worshipers, and b) Constantine also puts an entire town out of business. Okay, so maybe he hasn't softened all that much.
One thing the show does manage quite well are its creature effects. The Coblani, the spirits of dead miners, are suitably creepy and also shot in such a way as to make so you never quite see them in their entirety. The Jaws effect, if you will. The new opening title sequence is fantastic, as well.
But there is a lack of energy from all involved. Hellblazer is an unconventional story; that's the reason for its success. By thrusting John Constantine into a standard procedural, it kills the main focus of the story: Constantine himself. Procedurals can work very well, but 'well' is not 'great'. We want Constantine to be great, and it has all the makings of it. It just needs to figure itself out, learn what not to do and move ahead with its darker, more character focused elements.
No show is perfect right out of the gate, but this is a Friday night genre show and we live in a world that demands immediate results. SHIELD could get by with a rough first season because Marvel is king of the world these days; I worry that Constantine may be damned too soon. I will keep watching because I like the character and the idea of the show and believe in its promise. But a promise like that, it cuts both ways. I watch, but it will have to deliver more.
Next week looks like we return to the main narrative and also finally get to meet Papa Midnite. See? Things are already looking up.
Background Noise is GameNGuide's television column.
