Make It So: The Demon – The Series by Jerry Whitworth
With the upcoming fall television season and the CW’s line-up of DC Television Universe shows, some have wondered if a series set for Friday nights could emerge to accompany Monday’s Supergirl, Tuesday’s The Flash, Wednesday’s Arrow, and Thursday’s Legends of Tomorrow. It was rumored Constantine may return for a second season to replace The Vampire Diaries which will air its final season Fridays this fall. However, according to Greg Berlanti (co-showrunner for the various DCTVU series), there are currently no plans to resurrect the occult detective series. That said, a supernatural series would make sense for that slot as it is replacing Vampire Diaries which was paired with similar series The Originals (the shows going so far as to crossover with each other). In terms of the slate of DC series, Supergirl covers aliens, Flash has superhumans, Arrow faces mostly ground-level crime, and Legends tackles time travel leaving a series with magic as its focus in a unique position. However, Constantine maybe somewhat out of place in the mix. It was no accident the character emerged on Arrow as John Constantine likely would have appeared out of place in any of the other series (as his sorcery tends to be decidedly low key in a universe of over-the-top elements). Beyond the series that started it all in Arrow which plays well in its own sandbox and can crossover elsewhere from time-to-time, a new addition to the line-up will likely have to be as big or bigger than the new kids with a woman that flies, a man who can move so fast he can cross universes, and a group of costumed characters on a time ship. The answer may very well be the Demon.
Created by the legendary Jack Kirby (whose co-creations essentially gave birth to the Marvel Universe), The Demon is the story of Jason Blood, knight in the service of King Arthur who was provided a terrible burden for the sake of his ruler’s vision in Camelot. Besieged by the sorceress Morgaine le Fey, Arthur’s half-sister, Camelot’s last hope remained in the wizard Merlin who summoned a demon to turn the tide of battle. The demon, a prince of Hell and Merlin’s half-brother named Etrigan, was a powerful warrior and the wizard did not wish to part with such a mighty ally following their victory. And so, Knight of the Round Jason Blood was tasked with being the anchor to Etrigan on Earth, able to transform into the demon and have the creature possess him. This bond made Blood essentially immortal, long outlasting Camelot leading to centuries of roaming the Earth becoming an expert demonologist and adept sorcerer as Blood tried time and again to use Etrigan’s power for good. Blood would settle in Gotham City as Morgaine would return to trouble him and the mischievous Klarion the Witch Boy emerged to become a thorn in his side. Aiding Blood was friends like Randu Singh, Glenda Mark, and Harry Matthews as the devilish hero would also cross paths with Batman, becoming largely the Dark Knight’s source for obscure knowledge of the occult and arcane. Blood would become part of the greater superhero community interacting with Wonder Woman, Superman, Swamp Thing, Spectre, and Lobo before eventually joining the Justice League of America for a time.
With the emergence of John Constantine on Arrow, the stories from the series Constantine largely could be tied into the DC Television Universe. This means foes like Felix Faust and Eclipso, heroes like Jim Corrigan (teased repeatedly to become the Spectre), and artifacts like the Helmet of Fate, Medusa Mask, Pandora’s Box, and the Ibistick are all up for grabs in the future. This, of course, also goes along with characters like Vixen, Damien Darhk, and Baron Reiter, possibly even Ragman, on Arrow (as well as possibly Obsidian in Legends of Tomorrow and Uncle Sam in Freedom Fighters: The Ray). These elements could all find a home in a Demon series as the show walks into this world with a quasi-superhero twist in the vein of the Incredible Hulk (perhaps even emulating the television series of decades past where Blood faces the forces against him until such time he has no choice but to summon aid from the very depths of Hell). To bridge the divide, it would probably be wise to sign Matt Ryan as Constantine on to the series as a reoccurring character in essence making everyone happy. Of course, certainly, there’s an appeal for a Demon series as DC Comics already have several current supernatural series in iZombie, Lucifer, and Preacher only they’ve yet to tie any of them to their CW universe (likely with good reason). One could only imagine what a CW DC series about magic could provide.
Already, elements of Constantine and Arrow have been mentioned that could become components of a Demon series. A cast of supporting characters can also be inferred by the given list of allies and enemies in the base comics (as Green Arrow could continue to largely be a stand-in for Batman). But the greater dimension of a Demon series is in what could be possible. Consider Justice League Dark, which has tried repeatedly to get off the ground as a feature film. Members like Zatanna, Madame Xanadu, Deadman, Swamp Thing, Andrew Bennett, Frankenstein, Zauriel, Pandora, Phantom Stranger, and Black Orchid could be guest-stars across multiple episodes (not to mention other magic heroes such as Dr. Fate, Creeper, Sebastian Faust, Nightshade, Baron Winters, Nightmaster, Traci 13, Simon Dark, Mister E, and Prince Ra-Man). Locations like the House of Mystery, House of Secrets, and the Oblivion Bar could be important landmarks for the show (if the budget allows, perhaps even Gemworld and Skartaris). And of course there are foes such as the Demons Three, Enchantress, Wotan, Tala, Gentleman Ghost, Anton Arcane, Asmodel, Blackbriar Thorn, Mary: Queen of Blood, Tannarak, Shade, Azmodus, Kulak, Blaze and Satanus, Oom, Grey Man, Garn Daanuth, Black Alice, Deacon Blackfire, Double Down, Fadeaway Man, Saradin and Qwsp, Headhunter, Goth, Spirit King, Benedict Asp, Trygg, and the Pentacle.
