*Yes, this review contains some spoilers. Leave now and don't come back until you've watched the episode!*
"What? You mean sister flirtatious? She started it!"
Last week's episode of Constantine was without question the best one yet. Unfortunately, this week's episode takes a wee bit of step back, but that doesn't stop it from still being all kinds of enjoyable. The best part about "The Saint of Last Resorts" is the way it focuses on John Constantine's personality. The show's given us a great insight into the lead, but the introduction of Anne-Marie, a former lover who's grown to hate John, really brings out some compelling conversations. Why does John have this attitude? Can we care about him or is he just too much of a jerk? Constantine's dialogue -- along with Matt Ryan's consistently awesome performance -- continues to have me totally captivated. Not once did I lose interest in seeing how he'll proceed in the case or how he'll interact with others. Yes, he can be a jerk at times, but man, he's quite the charismatic and likable jerk, isn't he? There's a good amount of banter which is sure to make you smirk, but there's some really heartfelt material in here as well as the story jumps deeper and deeper into his character. Aside from Anne-Marie, this case may not bring about interesting characters or especially powerful themes (you know, except for Constantine's inner struggle), but it does one hell of a good job humanizing Constantine and continues to make him the highlight of the series. It's only fair since his name is the title of the show, yeah?
Another cool part of this episode is there's several haunting and immersive shots. There's a look in front of a van and there's a tree lurking behind it. Light is spilling between the branches and fog slowly rolls across the ground. It's a terrific way to establish the scene and really keeps you on your toes. It always leaves you feeling like you're entering a place that isn't safe and anything can happen. No matter how far-fetched or nightmarish the thought may be, the show makes you feel like anything is possible in these settings. Even something brief like Constantine standing in front of the fountain as a full moon looms above him was an effective way to set up the situation. There's a lot of horror tropes when it comes to the demon, but the makeup was solid and they had plenty of creepy shots of the creature's disturbing hands. Speaking of twisted, the human fruit scene was seriously messed up and made quite an impact. It was a nice little dose of horror and gore without going totally over-the-top.
The material between Constantine and Anne-Marie is by far the highlight of the episode and the other situations just aren't quite as interesting. We're slowly beginning to learn more and more of Zed's past (her pictures were excellent in this episode, by the way) and watching her kick some butt instead of being helpless is good fun, but the tension and mystery wasn't that gripping. There's obviously plenty of potential for jaw-dropping developments after this cliffhanger, but for now, it kind of felt like one big teaser about the fact we'll eventually learn about her past.
My initial reaction to the cliffhanger with John was mixed. Right when it happened, my mind began to race and I thought of all of the other things they could have done. Why not just aim the gun at John and make him stay there as she gets away? Maybe shoot him in the foot instead of the gut? Still, given their history, John's blunt lesson (which is basically "you gotta do what you gotta do"), and the urgency of the situation, it's understandably why she made the harsh call and it was a fitting end to the main theme.
As for the case, it once again alludes to the bigger picture (one can never have enough hype for the future), but the situation with the demon and the family it's going after didn't feel up to par with many of the other cases. There was impressive makeup and some decent thrills, but it feels like it's just there to give us a little more of a look into who Constantine truly is. That's great and all, but more substance with the other events would have been really appreciated.
I'm so happy the show no longer tries to dance around the fact Constantine smokes. Hell, they even have a close-up of him lighting a cigarette in this one. They're done shying away from it and I'm glad because watching the way they'd try to cleverly avoid it was distracting (I know this didn't begin in this episode, but it's worth bringing up). Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying "yay for smoking!" but it's part of the character and to censor that while allowing so much bloodshed would be baffling.
Does anyone else find it a little funny that Chas is just kind of along for the ride? I dug the moment when he called out Constantine and did a bit of damage control -- it's a good contrast to John -- but, when you have a dude who can heal and he's wandering around the sewers with a knife, it feels like a bit of a missed opportunity not to put him to use.
"The Saint of Last Resorts" does a phenomenal job shining a spotlight on Constantine. The introduction of a former ally brings about some really engaging conversations and puts John's morals front and center. The episode's camera work, makeup, and locations generate an appropriately creepy atmosphere and we get not one but two solid cliffhangers! Both are sure to keep you wondering what'll go down in the next episode. Shows often have a rough first season, but Constantine continues to show a ton of promise. It would be incredibly disappointing if this doesn't get more time to grow because it certainly deserves it. It may not be all that scary and the action may not be executed all that well (I wasn't a fan of the quick cuts at the fountain), but the performances and the script are consistently strong and you can tell they're having a bunch of fun showing us more and more of this world.
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