Constantine: Rage of Caliban

In retrospect, the decor should have been a giveaway...

Things get a little personal for John Constantine this week, with a malevolent spirit possessing children and bringing back memories of the ill-fated Newcastle exorcism. This spirit has been hopping from child to child down the years, killing their parents before moving on, and unless John can name it, another family will literally be torn apart.

Constantine delivers another solid episode with 'Rage of Caliban', playing off the obvious horror of a possessed and murderous child and John's genuine desire not to be responsible for another child's death. There's a twist which is not predictable but is flagged for the observant and good performances from the threatened family, eschewing the obvious options of an abusive father or cloying mother in favour of conflicting styles of genuine care.

With Constantine currently on the ropes a little (a second half-season was not ordered, although the show has not been cancelled yet) the following weeks are going to be telling. So far, we've had four good offerings, the slightly rushed 'Danse Vaudou' and the superb 'Feast of Friends'. I can only hope that the ratings support renewal.