Justice League Dark: the film versus the Constantine comics

Constantine, Swamp Thing, Zatanna: figures who made the prestige of an adult label, reinstated in the superheroic catalog. Decryption source by source, without disclosing the outcomes.

As in each article in this series, only verified information (creators, distribution, dates, publishers) is stated; the comparative analysis is ours, without reproducing dialogue or protected images.

A team for what the League doesn't know how to deal with

The Justice League Dark series was launched at DC in 2011, written by Peter Milligan and drawn by Mikel Janín, as part of the general relaunch of the catalog that followedFlashpoint.

The principle is clear: there are threats against which power is of no use. A curse, an entity that rewrites reality, an ancient pact — in the face of this, a man capable of lifting a building is useless. We therefore need another team, made up of occult specialists: a stage magician who actually practices, a ghost capable of possessing the living, a plant creature linked to all life on the planet, a demon linked to a knight, and above all a cynical and manipulative English occultist, John Constantine.

The team is not an association of heroes. Its members do not like each other, manipulate each other regularly, and work together out of necessity rather than conviction. It's the exact counterpoint to the classic League, and that's what makes the concept interesting.

The real subject: twenty years at Vertigo

What makes this series interesting goes beyond its plot, and ties in with what this body of work has established about editorial history.

John Constantine was born in 1985 in the series Swamp Thing, under the pen of Alan Moore, before getting his own series two years later. When DC created Vertigo in 1993, that's where it was housed - and it remained there, through a publication lasting several hundred issues, in an adult register, without costume, without spectacular power, alongside the titles which we have covered elsewhere:Sandman,Preacher, Lucifer. Swamp Thing, refounded by the same Alan Moore, follows a comparable path.

The 2011 relaunch operates in the opposite direction: these characters are reintegrated into the main superheroic universe. Constantine ceases to be a figure in British adult comics to become a DC team member, likely to cross paths with Batman. The movement was variously appreciated — it did a lot for the visibility of these characters, and a lot to smooth out what made them singular.

The 2017 film inherits this configuration without explaining it. His Constantine is that of post-2011: recognizable, cynical, but operating in a superhero universe. This is the character as continuity has redefined him, not as Vertigo had constructed him — and it's a difference that the reader of the old series immediately senses. We encountered the same discrepancy onthe live action version from 2005, although for other reasons.

Adapt a concept, not a story

The technical peculiarity of this film is that it does not adapt any specific arc. Its plot – a threat that pushes innocent people to violence, and an occult investigation to find its origin – was written for the occasion.

This is a configuration that we have not encountered elsewhere in this corpus, where the adaptations always started from an identifiable story: four issues, twelve, a mini-series, a one-shot. Here, the source is a device – a team, a reason for being, a register – and the film builds its story on it.

The consequences are twofold. On the positive side, there's no compression or expansion to manage, no revelation to preserve: the film is free to calibrate its narrative exactly to its length, and it does so effectively. On the unfavorable side, it does not direct the viewer towards any precise reading. A spectator ofYear Oneknows what to open next; a viewer of Justice League Dark discovers characters without knowing where to find them, especially since their bibliography spans three decades and two very different editorial lines.

This is a point that matters for the collector as well as for the bookseller: adaptations which designate a specific work create a oriented demand; those that adapt a concept create a diffuse curiosity, much more difficult to satisfy.

The characters, from paper to screen

• John Constantine— The manipulative occultist, pivot of both versions.
• Zatanna— Stage magician with real powers.
• Deadman— The ghost capable of possessing the living.
• Swamp Thing— Present, with a more limited role than on paper.
• Etrigan— The demon linked to a knight, an old figure in the catalog.

A register that DC has always practiced

It is worth remembering that the occult is not new to this publisher, which is what the concept of Justice League Dark might suggest. DC has published fantasy anthology series for decades, one of which was precisely named House of Mystery — the building that serves as the team's base is a direct nod to this heritage. Several figures on the team come from this vein, predating the adult wave of the 1980s.

This continuity explains why the 2011 movement was possible: the characters were not foreign bodies grafted onto the superheroic universe, they came from it originally, and Vertigo had borrowed them before returning them. Etrigan was created in the 1970s by one of the medium's greatest authors; Deadman dates back to the 1960s; Swamp Thing was born in the early 1970s before Alan Moore recast it a decade later.

For the collector, this historical depth is good news: it means that the characters in the film each have an old and well-identified first appearance, often in fantasy series that are less popular than the major superhero titles - therefore at more affordable price levels than their age would lead one to expect.

Collection side: what numbers to aim for after the film

The journey here is more dispersed than for the other titles in this lot, which is the direct consequence of the adaptation of a concept rather than a story.

The most sought after piece is Saga of the Swamp Thing #37(1985), first appearance of John Constantine, released during Alan Moore's stint on the series. This is a firmly established modern key, the demand for which is supported by both the character and reputation of the run.Hellblazer #1(1988) marks the launch of its own series, and constitutes the second entry point.

For the team itself,Justice League Dark #1(2011) is the launch issue of the concept, with a rating that has remained modest - the print runs of the 2011 relaunch were significant, and the title does not have the critical status of the classics. The first appearances of the other members, spread from the 1960s to the 1980s in fantasy series, on the other hand offer interesting and often undervalued terrain.

Collections, numerous for Constantine as for Swamp Thing, remain the economical way to read. As always, condition and gradation determine value; relying on real recent sales is strongly recommended.

Where to start reading

Two entries, depending on what you're looking for. For the team as the film presents it,Justice League Dark #1(2011). To understand where Constantine comes from - and discover a work of a completely different magnitude -, Alan Moore's passage on Swamp Thing, where the character appears, then the first issues of his own series. The reader who takes this second path will notice a considerable difference with the film.

Timeline to know

• 1960s-1970s— DC publishes fantasy anthologies; Deadman, Etrigan and Swamp Thing are born there.
• 1985— Constantine appears in Swamp Thing, written by Alan Moore.
• 1993— Vertigo is created; these characters are housed there for twenty years.
• 2011— The post-Flashpoint relaunch reintegrates them into the DC Universe.
• 2017— The animated film, with an original plot.

Its place in the saga and for the collector

Justice League Dark will remain as the only case in this corpus where the adaptation concerns a concept and not a story - with the advantages that this provides, since there is neither compression nor revelation to preserve, and the disadvantage that the film does not refer to any precise reading. Its real subject is editorial: the return to the superheroic universe of characters who had spent twenty years at Vertigo, a movement which did a lot for their visibility and a lot to smooth out their singularity. For the collector, it opens a scattered but rich journey, of which Saga of the Swamp Thing #37 is the centerpiece.

The verdict: the concept carried, the legacy faded

• Loyalty: the principle of threats beyond the reach of the League, Constantine and his ambiguity, an unstable team, the House of Mystery and the occult register come from the comics.
• Freedoms: a plot entirely written for the film, the composition of the team adjusted, the classic League present in the opening, a less hermetic tone - and Vertigo roots not very clearly explained.
• Collectible numbers: Saga of the Swamp Thing #37 (1985), Hellblazer #1 (1988), Justice League Dark #1 (2011).

Justice League Dark adapts a device rather than a story, which frees it from the problems encountered elsewhere in this body of work — and deprives it of what other adaptations offer: a work to open later. For the reader, the real gateway remains Alan Moore's Swamp Thing, where it all began.

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