John and Zed engage in a dangerous confrontation to save a woman and her family from sinister forces. John’s efforts force him to confront the darkness in his own life – while also coming face to face with a new powerful adversary in Papa Midnite.

The third episode in, we finally get to see the potential of Constantine. This episode is much darker, and bloodier than the first two. That’s something I’ve criticized the series for, being sanitized. There’s lots of blog, and corpses, and blood, and moments that are actually cringe worthy. Yay! This is what the series needs to happen!

The story itself is about a killer record that packs a hell of a punch. I’d say to story is good, except it’s the plot of a concept album and comic from Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA and Ghostface Killah. Generally, been there, done that. The plot too is a bit convoluted on top of it, and could have used some editing to streamline itself a bit.

What the episode really does is introduce Papa Midnite, giving Constantine his first true adversary for the series. Comic book characters are often defined by their rogues and villains, and the first two episodes didn’t give us any. The second episode actually might as well have been the pilot, and would have been better off mashing itself up with the first through some creative editing.

The series too is ramping up the mystery, especially with Zed who we know little about. It’s a good thing, as it creates a longer narrative than just a monster of the week series. Sprinkle in a good dose of humor and things are looking… better.

Overall, the series is showing improvement from a poor first outing, and second episode shuffling. The question though is if the series will get a chance to find an audience. The ratings aren’t so hot, and many will probably have abandoned the series before this point. I guess you can sum up this episode and the series as a whole with one word, “frustration.” Here’s hoping we continue to see improvement, even small steps will go far.

Overall rating: 7.25