John Constantine is the kind of guy who can talk his way out of a literal deal with the devil but couldn't talk his way out of a Friday night death slot on NBC. Looking back from 2026, it’s still wild how it all went down. You’ve got this perfect casting with Matt Ryan—the hair, the snark, the trench coat—and then poof. Gone after thirteen episodes.
The Constantine tv series episodes we did get are like a time capsule of what broadcast TV was trying to do with DC Comics before the "Arrowverse" really swallowed everything whole. It was gritty. It was dark. Honestly, it was a bit too smart for its own good at the time.
The Pilot That Changed Everything (and Nothing)
The first episode, "Non Est Asylum," is a weird beast. If you go back and watch it now, you can tell the show was undergoing an identity crisis before it even finished its first hour. We meet Liv Aberdine, played by Lucy Griffiths. She’s the audience surrogate, the one we’re supposed to follow into the world of magic.
Then she’s just... gone.
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The producers realized the "clueless girl follows wizard" trope didn't fit the vibe they wanted. So, by the second episode, they pivoted to Zed Martin. It was a gutsy move. It made the show feel more like the Hellblazer comics and less like a standard procedural.
Why the 13 Episodes Feel So Incomplete
Most network shows at the time were hunting for a 22-episode order. Constantine never got the "back nine." Because of that, the pacing of the Constantine tv series episodes feels like a sprint toward a wall. You have these massive hints about the "Rising Darkness"—this overarching supernatural threat—but we only ever get glimpses of the Brujeria, the group behind it.
The Standout Moments You Actually Remember
If you ask any fan which episodes they still think about, "A Feast of Friends" is always at the top. It’s the fourth episode, and it’s basically a horror movie. We meet Gary Lester, John’s old friend who’s a walking disaster. He brings a hunger demon to the States, and the way John "solves" the problem is cold. It’s the first time the show really leaned into the fact that John Constantine isn't a hero. He’s a survivor who sacrifices his friends to keep the world spinning.
Then you have "Blessed are the Damned." It explores the gray area between miracles and dark magic. It introduced the idea that angels, like Harold Perrineau’s Manny, aren't exactly the "good guys" in the way we think. They’re more like cosmic bureaucrats with very strict rules.
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- Episode 4 ("A Feast of Friends"): The one with the hunger demon. Peak emotional trauma.
- Episode 8/9 ("The Saint of Last Resorts"): A two-parter that takes John to Mexico. It’s got nuns, ancient demons, and John literally inviting a demon into his own body just to stay alive.
- Episode 13 ("Waiting for the Man"): The accidental series finale. It ends on a massive betrayal by Manny that we never got to see play out.
The "Hellblazer" DNA vs. Network TV
One of the biggest hurdles for the Constantine tv series episodes was the smoking. In the comics, John is a chain-smoker. It's part of his character's tragedy—he has lung cancer. On NBC, they had to be careful. You’d see him putting out a cigarette or flicking a lighter, but rarely actually inhaling. It felt like a metaphor for the whole show: it had the fire, but the network wouldn't let it smoke.
The show did manage to sneak in some deep-cut DC lore, though. We saw Dr. Fate’s helmet in the pilot. We met Jim Corrigan, who was destined to become The Spectre. There were so many seeds planted in those thirteen episodes that never got to bloom.
The Survival of the Character
Even though the show was cancelled in 2015, the episodes lived on through a cult following. Fans were so loud that Matt Ryan eventually showed up on Arrow. Then he became a series regular on Legends of Tomorrow. It’s a rare case where the actor was so perfect for the role that the character survived the death of his own show.
By the time he joined the Legends, the tone shifted to be more comedic, but the DNA of those original NBC episodes remained. They were the foundation.
What We Lost When Season 2 Was Scrapped
The cliffhanger in "Waiting for the Man" is still a sore spot. Seeing Manny—the angel who was supposedly John’s guide—revealed as the one pulling the strings for the Brujeria was a masterstroke. It reframed every previous episode.
Every time John thought he was fighting the darkness, he was actually helping Manny’s agenda. We never got to see John’s reaction to that. We never saw him go to war with Heaven.
Instead, we have thirteen episodes that stand as a "what if." They’re a reminder of a time when superhero TV was willing to be genuinely scary and morally bankrupt.
How to Watch Them Today
If you're looking to revisit the Constantine tv series episodes, they usually cycle through various streaming platforms like Max or CW Seed (now often integrated into other apps).
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Next Steps for Fans:
- Watch "A Feast of Friends" (Episode 4) followed by the Justice League Dark animated movie to see the character's darker side.
- Track down the Constantine: City of Demons animated series, which serves as a more "mature" spiritual successor to the live-action show.
- Check out the Arrow Season 4 episode "Haunted" to see the literal first moment the character was resurrected for the wider TV universe.