Customer Reviews

Angel: After the Fall, Vol. 1

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a must have for all the Angel fans that want to know what happened after the TV Series ended. Make sure also to pick up Spike: After the Fall. There is a few months gap between this book and the series that Spike's book covers.

Reason for Reading: I love "Angel" to the nth degree!

Comments: I usually start my reviews with a brief summary but I can't with this book which picks up some time after the fight at the end of Season 5 of the television series Angel. The show ended with the end of the world and "the gang" taking on an epic battle against a horde of demons, including a dragon, which the viewer would assume continued until the bitter end. Well things are not exactly as they seem and the first five comics gathered here contain shocker after shocker about pretty much everything, especially about each individual member of the cast. And everybody is present and accounted for, except of course for dear Cordy. But we do have the return of three characters who had limited story lines in the show Groosalugg (from Pylea), Nina (the werewolf girl) and Gwen (the electricity girl).

This is a perfect continuation of Angel. I am completely satisfied with the direction that has been taken. The characters retain their sense of voice from the show. You can hear the actor's voices in your head, the humour and sarcasm, plus the interaction between the various characters is all perfect. The artwork is delicious. It is aptly dark and broody but the use of colour has been wisely placed to make a stunning book to just look at.

My book doesn't have a rating on it but I'd assume the comics were rated Teen. There is the typical violence of the TV show, that is the slaying of demons and beasts, nothing that would deserve a Mature rating. There are a few bits of language that wouldn't have made the show but nothing terribly profane or frequent. The only thing that could be of concern is the plenitude of women in barely there thong bikinis or bikini-like costumes, shown from various scintillating points of view.

The book itself has bonuses. I have the hardcover which comes with a ribbon bookmark (fancy shmancy!). The book starts with a note from Brian Lynch, then once the five volumes are over there is an art gallery which includes the covers of the comic books, artwork by various artists and photos of Angel and Spike. Next comes the original proposals for each of the five volumes, these are textual short stories and not exactly how the finished comics turned out. Then comes a Sketch Gallery by Franco Urro and finally the book ends with an annotated script of chapter one. I actually read through the annotations right after reading chapter one and gained a lot of insight before continuing on with the story.

If you have watched all five seasons then you must continue on with the story by reading this and be prepared to be shocked over and over as each chapter ends with a stunner. I can't wait to read the next one!

Season 6 of Angel, although in form of a graphic novel, has managed to retain the mood of the TV show much better than Buffy in its Season 8. "After the Fall" is dark and gritty, full of (un)expected twists and turns, and contains plenty of that subtle Whedonesque humor. And it's drawn beautifully.

I really couldn't say more without hitting the spoilers ground, so I'll just say that I've enjoyed Vol. 1 very much and I highly recommend it :)

This book is more fun than Karaoke night at Lorne's. It contains the typical witty banter and crazy battles we expect Angel to feature. The art is fantastic and the demon horde is properly creepy.

I do have three main bickers with the story:
1- The writer assumes that the reader will get there has been some time between the last episode of Angel and the start of this book. The TV series ended in the mid 00's! Give us some reference! An extra page flashing back to that last moment of the TV series to remind us where we left the gang would have been wonderful.
2- Tell us more about those "also starring" characters. Some minors from the TV series now have prominent roles. Give us a little identifier on who Nina is, or who the electric girl is. Don't make us go to Wiki.
3- The characters are almost indistinguishable. I have the same issue with the Buffy comics as well. The main characters (Angel, Spike, Fred, Gunn, Wesley) are very distinct and we can identify them right away. The rest of the humans, including the long-haired Connor, look mostly the same. It takes you right out of the story when you are not certain who is talking.

Huge thanks to IDW and Joss for delivering more of what we love. Brian Lynch understands these characters and has hooked me to the series with the five issue introduction.

Good story, a little confusing at first but once you get into it, it is well worth the confusion.

First of all, the story: Brian Lynch has done a better job writing Buffy/Angel-verse comics than just about anyone else, up to and including Joss Whedon himself. And with Joss co-plotting, well, the story is rock solid.

Second, the art: Franco Urru drew maybe a touch less than half this book. He's somewhat unconventional (Some of the other art work, by Nick Runge and Stephen Mooney mostly, is more traditional comic style) but once you get used to his style, it's absolutely stunning.

Then, the actual format: I own all 4 individual hardcover volumes of After The Fall, and love them. But this is so much more. The size of it really makes the artwork pop. The sewn binding is amazing.

I have two complains, both fairly minor: I wish the bonus features from the original releases would have been retained (although adding another 100 or so pages to this might have made it far too unwieldy/expensive) and the lack of a ribbon book mark. Three of the four individual volumes (excepting the shortest, vol.2) had a ribbon book mark. Most comics of this size and basic giant-sized format have them, including the recent Dark Horse released Buffy Tales hardcover, and the DC absolute editions. Ultimately, it's a roughly 450 page, 17 issue collection, so, just practically, a ribbon book mark would be nice, as well as adding a small touch of extra class.

But, like I said, both of those are minor. It's a great story, with great art, and in a breath-taking format.

From the opening page to the ending page, Angel: After the Fall Volume 1 was a wonderful read. Joss Whedon and Brian Lynch tell the continuation of Angel as if they started producing the show after "Fade Not Away". The writing is as if it was written for the actors and not for a comic book, it makes you feel as if you are watching the show and not reading a graphic novel. I cannot wait to own the rest of this series.

great follow up to the end of the 'Angel' tv series. No one wanted the show to end, and now it doesn't have to!

Thank you Joss Whedon and fellow writers!

5 stars!

That's right, even if you don't want to admit it, the finale of Angel Season 5 left you unfulfilled. This is your chance to fill that void.

It's a good beginning/continuation (and at this point, there's no telling where it eventually leads). The art, in my opinion, is inferior to the work being done on the Dark Horse Buffy Season 8 series, but it's still pretty good.

If you enjoyed Buffy and Angel as TV shows, this is a must for you. If you didn't enjoy the television shows, stay away.

The hardcover is well crafted with a nice in-bound ribbon bookmark (not present in all the volumes, but present in volume 1). Additionally, unlike the Dark Horse Buffy Season 8 collections, there is extra material present in the collection, like early storylines/scripts.

being a major Buffy and Angel fan, it was good to finally know what happened after the extreme clifthanger at the end of Beason 5. It had the dry witty humor that David Boreanaz brought to the character of Angel in Angel, and i loved the introduction by Brian Lynch. The book left on a clifthanger, and one that didn't ake sense, but in the next books, i hope, it is explained.

Anyway, really, really, really, really loved it.