Constantine’s tenth episode, “Quid Pro Quo,†had great character developments. We got flashbacks showing Chas’s life that was previously unknown to us. This episode also showed that Constantine may not always be right or have the best solutions. Maybe sometimes he should listen to his trusty sidekicks.
The flashbacks were very well done and rarely confusing as to if we were in the past or present. They were easily the best part of the episode. We started the flashback scenes two years prior in a bar. Chas and John were enjoying many drinks. Let’s be honest; they were both drunk. Constantine leaves Chas with the bill and asks if he’s well enough to drive. Even though Chas assures John that he is, John does some weird spell to protect him. With Constantine being drunk, neither of them thought anything about it.
Chas was on his way out the door, heading back to his wife, Renee, and his daughter, Geraldine. He noticed the band coming out to play at the bar. Just as he is about to leave, a fire started in the bar behind the band. Since we know that Chas is a good guy, he makes sure to help people out the bar before even thinking about himself. He wakes up in a hospital bed with his wife and daughter by his side. They were told that he had died in the fire. Thus begins the origins of where Chas gets his strange protection against death.
During another flashback scene, Chas tells Constantine how he should have died and continues to wonder why and how he survived. Constantine can’t believe that his protection spell worked. Chas doesn’t believe that he actually knew what he was doing when he was drunk at the bar. Constantine used a protection spell that he presumed was just a myth. The protection spell allowed Chas to survive the fire while also absorbing the lives of all that died in the fire, meaning from that point on Chas could die 47 times before dying for good. I’m so glad that they gave us this incredible origin story of Chas’s strange immortality.
Now, it’s onto the demon of the week. This week, Constantine and company end up in New York City where Renee and Geraldine live. Unfortunately, Geraldine has been put into a coma by someone or something. It’s up to Chas, John, and Zed to figure out how to make her better. They first find out that not only is Geraldine’s body in a coma, but her soul has been detached from her body and is no longer with her. Someone has been taking the souls out of multiple bodies.
Using Zed’s visions, Constantine, Chas, and Zed end up at an abandoned railroad yard. They run into an old nemesis of Constantine’s, as if that should surprise anyone. Felix Faust is an old man who has become a black magician with more power than Constantine expected. They find out that Faust is using people’s souls to gain more power including the soul of Geraldine. Faust persuades Constantine to send a demon back to hell. This demon is preying on Faust’s victims, and he wants the demon sent back to hell. Constantine agrees to get rid of the demon in return for Geraldine’s soul.
Even though this is the only logical solution at this point, Chas is not impressed with the way that Constantine is handling his daughter’s soul. Chas wants to go after Faust even though he is too powerful for Constantine. Constantine sends Chas back to the hospital to be with Renee and Geraldine, while he and Zed take care of the demon. Constantine destroys the demon, which if you were paying attention was not exactly what Faust wanted. Faust wanted the demon sent back to hell, so he decides to change the deal. Constantine agrees to keep playing Faust’s game, while Chas grows increasingly more impatient.
Chas decides to take matters into his own hands and knocks out Constantine. He explains to Faust that he could have all of Chas’s 32 remaining lives including his own soul in return for his daughter’s. Faust doesn’t believe that Chas holds 32 lives inside of him, so he risks one of his lives by slitting his own throat to prove it to Faust. Now that he’s intrigued, Faust agrees to take the deal. Just as he is about to shake Faust’s hand, Constantine wakes up and makes sure that Chas knows what he’s doing. Apparently feeling like she needed to get involved, Renee shows up just as Chas is about to make the deal. Constantine holds her back as Chas shakes Faust’s hand and slaps a wired handcuff around his wrist. Now, Chas’s plan is coming together. The wire prevents Faust from doing any magic, and Chas holds a grenade to destroy both of them. Luckily, only one of them will come back from the explosion.
Finally, everything is wrapped up with the souls that Faust was using. While Zed was in the hospital with Renee and Geraldine, she attempted to be a medium so that Renee could speak with Geraldine. Zed was successful and was able to communicate with Geraldine for a few moments before collapsing on the floor holding her head. Later, she wakes up in a hospital bed with Constantine by her side. He lets her know that she essentially blew a fuse and to not try that again before she’s ready. Before Zed falls asleep, she makes sure to tell Constantine that his mother says that her death was not his fault. Zed fell asleep before John could get any more information, but I sure can’t wait to hear more about Constantine’s family.