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Constantine S1E6 ‘Rage of Caliban’ review

                                                        MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD
This weeks episode of Constantine,
‘Rage of Caliban’, comes hot on the heels of the news that they will
cease production after 13 episodes, and rumors abound that the show
may be canceled despite much fan protest. If true then it’s a
terrible shame as this weeks episode showcases much of the strengths
of the series, and some of the flaws too.
                                                                        Sadly the much repeated cliché of
possessed children is revisited here. Constantine is again on his
travels and investigating a series of grisly murders where the
children of the deceased are the only survivors. It’s generic and
we’ve seen it dozens of times before in other shows and films. But
like I have said before I don’t think I watch Constantine for the
story lines but for the characters on show, namely the titular
Warlock. And I am never disappointed.
                                                                          Matt Ryan as Constantine is, as
always, next to perfect in the role as the sardonic working class
wizard. His charisma jumps of the screen as he embodies the cynical,
wit & wisdom of his comic counterpart. And while the stories he
is part of seem to lean heavily on old tropes he keeps the show
interesting with his confident performance. And this is the real
tragedy if the rumors of the cancellation are true, Ryan deserves to
be Constantine for much longer based simply on his performance. He
really gives his all and you can see then when you watch. While the
arc of the show is at best, mildly interesting and the stories are
feeling more and more like filler, these things can be fixed given
time, and I believe a second season could really allow the creative
team behind Constantine to really mine his potential.
There are flaws in the show, and they
are obvious here. The episodes do feel disjointed and X-Files lite
and have a very vague connection to the mysterious ‘Rising Dark’ that
Manny and Constantine keep alluding to, and I can understand why
people are starting to lose interest. You can only hint at something
so much before people get bored and sadly that’s all the show does is
hint. 6 episodes in and we haven’t really seen much in the way of a
real or interesting threats bar the hunger demon and Papa Midnite. If Constantine, and I hope it does,
gets a second season reprieve it really needs to come up with more
compelling stories that tie directly into the arc of the show. I
really don’t want to see this go the way of of many great series.
Here’s hoping. Plus that final image is a real kicker

A fun, if generic, addition to the
series,. 7/10

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