WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for DCeased: A Good Day to Die #1 by Tom Taylor, Laura Braga, Darick Robertson, Richard Friend, Trevor Scott, Rain Beredo and Saida Temofonte, in stores now.
It's the end of the world, at least it is in the alternate universe where DCeased is taking place. The limited series by Tom Taylor and Trevor Hairsine has unleashed a zombie virus of Apokolipsian origin on the entire DC Universe. As it transmits through the Internet and online services, anyone who stumbles onto the virus is transformed into a raging monster. This virus has already claimed the lives of heroes and villains alike, from Batman to the Joker. Only a handful of heroes are still alive, and they are fighting a desperate battle to save what's left of the world.
However, Superman and the remaining members of the Justice League aren't the only ones trying to save the planet. In DCeased: A Good Day to Die #1, we splinter off from the main series to catch up with another group of heroes stuck in the DC Universe's version of a zombie apocalypse. And while most of them end up dead by the end of the one-shot, one character who remains standing by the end of the issue, and he may just end up saving everyone: John Constantine.
In DCeased: A Good Day to Die, Mister Terrific goes about recruiting his own team to try and stave off the Apokolipsian virus. He first recruits Mister Miracle and Big Barda, as well as Blue Beetle and Booster Gold. All of them are more than willing to answer Terrific's call to action. However, there is one potential recruit who turns him down: the Hellblazer. Terrific and his new allies find Constantine in Liverpool in the hopes of recruiting him to their cause. However, John being his typical self, is quick to dismiss them. He believes the world is beyond saving at this point, and that there is nothing else to do but drink until the end comes.
And that's exactly what he does. After he sends Mister Terrific and his team packing, Constantine finds himself in the Oblivion Bar, where he sets his sights on a bottle. However, something truly inexplicable happens: against his better judgment, he leaves, and says it's time for him "to be a #$%^&#! hero."
However, this realization doesn't exactly come in time. Unfortunately, in the meantime, Mister Miracle and Big Barda fall to endless hordes of zombies. And even after Constantine returns to help, Blue Beetle, Booster Gold and even Mister Terrific all fall. The Hellblazer is the last one standing, facing a menacing crowd of zombies, when he is saved by Doctor Fate and Zatanna in the nick of time. Fate begins to tell him that the end has come, and that they must prepare for what comes next.
However, Constantine cuts him off. "The world isn't over until I say it is," he says decisively, just before the one-shot comes to a close.
Now, we don't yet know what the Hellblazer plans to do, but it's clear that now that most of the heroes are down, he's stepping up to become a heroic and hopeful figure. Batman and Captain Atom are dead; Superman, Wonder Woman and the rest of the league are overwhelmed. Perhaps what they all need is a bit of magical assistance.
We'll have to wait and see if Constantine returns in the main DCeased series, but for now, it appears as if he has just positioned himself as an unlikely hero in this world-shattering story. The Englishman who usually wants nothing to do with superheroes has just come out of the woodwork, and he's declared that as long as he's standing, the world stands a chance.