Customer Reviews

Angel, Volume 5: Aftermath (Angel (IDW Hardcover))

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

 

 

Armstrong blew it. Big time.

I highly enjoyed volumes 1-4 and volume 6 and would rate all of them either 4 or 5 stars.

This is the first story arc in which Whedon was pretty much entirely hands-off. Given that, it's a shame that they let Armstrong run with the title as it's pretty clear that she doesn't "get" the series. Expecting witty dialogue and the characters acting true to what we've come to expect from them over 5 seasons of television (along with the first 3 seasons of Buffy featuring Angel as a major player) and another 17 comics (21 if you count Spike: After the Fall...and I do)? Sorry, you're bound to be disappointed. The dialogue is flat and the characters (mainly Angel, Gwen, Connor, and Kate...and some new characters that you probably won't care about because they're poorly written hackneyed cliches) are reduced to one-dimensional caricatures of the people that we've grown to love and/or tolerate.

This is truly awful writing for the Angel series. If I didn't know better, I'd think Armstrong walked into the project expecting to treat Angel as a random generic comic book title, having little background as to the history of the characters and having only read a brief plot synopsis of events that had previously transpired.

At the time of this writing, I can vouch for the quality of volume 6, which represents a return to form, but I don't know what, if any, long lasting damage Armstrong has done to the series beyond that.

The absence of Whedon's involvement is obvious. The continuity is there, some of the (less interesting) characters are there, but this Angel has no soul. And not in the fun Angelus way. It completely lacks the spirit of series and is a disappointing follow-up to the excellent Angel: After the Fall mini-series. After the Fall managed to maintain the pacing, the personality, and the wit of the TV series, while Aftermath fails on all counts. There isn't a single line of witty dialog in the entire run (and none of the characters sound like themselves which might explain why the author chose the blandest characters for the "arc"), what passes for a story meanders aimlessly until it reaches...absolutely nowhere of consequence, and none of the characters even look remotely like the actors who played them. Even Angel looks like some generic square-jawed hero. David Boreanaz is a very distinctive looking guy and the best the artist could muster is some Rock Hudson/Cary Grant/random-50s-era-superhero character? Connor's hair is just about the only thing with even a passing resemblance to anything or anyone that appeared in the TV series or After the Fall. If you actually liked the series, do yourself a favor and give this one a pass. I hear the next volume is better.

I like the direction that the new storyline is taking, and I can even support narrowing the focus on fewer characters. However, the writer of these issues has absolutely no ear for how the characters speak. Even the few paltry instances of witty repartee have none of the impact Whedon fans have come to expect. Hopefully, the previous writers will be back for future issues, or at least exert some much needed influence on the dialog.

Let me preface this review by saying that I love Angel and I enjoyed the first four volumes (After the Fall). But this might as well be an entirely different series. The dialogue is not at all intelligent or witty. The "voiceovers" (thought bubbles) do not add any depth to the characters. The characters from the series (other than Angel and Cordelia, who shows up for a brief cameo) are comprised of Connor, Gwen and Kate...where are Gunn, Lorne, Spike, Illyria? The plot decides to go off in an entirely new direction that was never even discussed in the series - Angels (or "potentates") who have some nebulous reason for being on earth, and a shape shifting catwoman that shows up in Angel's life for the flimsiest of reasons. It's a mess. The action is choppy to say the least. We go from dialogue scene to action scene seemingly without any transition or reason.

The artwork is standard comic book without any subtlety or resemblance to the characters. Angel is apparently now Asian and wears sweater vests. Kate is some kind of fighting ninja bombshell who wears tiny midriff tops. Gwen's thong is always showing and Connor, well he looks kind of like Connor. I really hope that the comic doesn't continue down this path, as I've already purchased a number of the future comics.

I really wanted to like this book. I'm just dismayed that this is what passes for Angel now.

I've read Volumes 1-4 and I'm glad I got some 'closure' after the TV series 'ended'. It was good to see things cleared up and I was satisfied at the end of Volume 4.

Take volume 5, and it's just repeating the whole series again, just with different players on the team.


If you were a fan of Angel on TV, stop at Volume 4. If you just loved the comic and the ideas of the story, by all means, continue to volume 5.

I for one won't be continuing on. In my opinion, the team cannot get any better than it was on TV or volumes 1-4.

Thanks for thinking of it guys, and good luck.

I really enjoyed the 4 "After the Fall" volumes, so I was truly shocked when I read this continuation of the Angel story.

The drawings are sub-par, with little likeness to the characters we all know and love. And the writing...NO! I'm moving on to volume 6 and hoping this volume was an aberration that will not continue.

The fifth volume of Angel: After the Fall is scripted by and drawn by different people from the first four volumes. These illustrations look more cartoon-y, and the dialogue is a lot less snappy. I'm also not a huge fan of the plot, which involves, for the first time in canon, actual Angels. There also seems to be an excess of busty female 'warriors' who were bit players in the series, but are now treated like they were featured in the credits, plus some new ones we've never met. At the same time, a lot of beloved characters don't appear at all in this volume. Very disappointing. Also, no extras. None.

Unlike the previous 4 volumes, I believe Angel: Aftermath isn't trying to be an extension of the TV series. For better or worse, this volume felt like a comic book. Still good, but it has at least a slightly different feel in almost every aspect. The first thing I noticed was the art. It's very good and looks right, but the layout and pacing is very "comic booky" which sometimes doesn't fit the feel that has been established so far. By contrast, the Buffy series has taken it's comic book form in stride in every way. This is a minor annoyance at best, though, because the story itself is excellent and absolutely perfect for Angel.

Angel is at his best when he's trying to find his way through the murky grays of good and evil. Everyone in Los Angeles remembers being in hell and, more interestingly, remembers that Angel saved them. Suddenly, Angel is not just a hero, but a bit of a superstar in a city where fame is so important. This complicates things in interesting ways as Angel is just about the last person on earth who really wants fame, but how can he be angry at people for appreciating him? It gets even more complicated as the over-the-top antics of Wolfram & Hart push the Powers That Be into getting more directly involved in ways that make everyone - shall we say - uncomfortable. And let's not forget the unsettlingly large number of crazy people running around for no apparent reason.

Adding to that, all the familiar faces who would have been considered the "core" members of Team Angel are gone (some with no hope of ever returning). Obviously the entire tone of a story can change when you introduce an entirely new cast of central characters, but I can't help but feel like the writer just doesn't quite get some of these characters. The new core group is composed mainly of very familiar supporting characters who are given their chance to really shine here. We know how these characters should act, how they should talk, we can picture them in motion and we know the sound of their voices. When they do or say something that feels "off", it's obvious to the die-hard fan. Still, it's a minor quibble overall. On the flip-side, the original characters are simply excellent. They fit the Whedon-verse while also expanding it in some very cool ways. I actually find it kind of exciting to see how this new team develops. It certainly has potential.

This is a good read, but prepare to look at Angel from a different perspective. I think Joss Whedon is really trying to give Angel a totally different flavor than the Buffy series and I think, overall, it's working and will continue to get better.

This HC takes Angel in a new direction that is sort of an old direction if you get what I mean. He creates a group to fight evil but instead of demons its angels this time. It's not a bad start to a new run but it's also not very compelling at the same time. The art sequence is confusing at times as well. I'm still willing to give this new direction a chance though.

Angel, Volume 5: Aftermath (Angel (IDW Hardcover))
It was Excellent. Enjoyed it very much! Have ordered the next book already!