Angel comics

In the world of comic book publishing Angel refers to one of two series published by Dark Horse Comics from 2000-2002. Both of these series are based on the television series Angel, and were published while the television series was on air. The first volume was halted after seventeen issues. The second volume was a mini-series, spanning four issues. Various related works have come out coinciding with these volumes.

As of 2005, IDW Publishing has taken up the rights and has begun publishing various Angel related mini-series, such as Old Friends. Most of these mini-series are set after the show's end (it was cancelled in 2004), but are considered non-canon, except for Angel: After the Fall, which is overseen by the show's creator Joss Whedon.

"Surrogates", issue #1-3

 * See Surrogates.

Angel must solve a case involving a demonic fertility clinic, when he finds a rash of murdered mothers, and their husbands turned into zombie-like guards. Assisted by Cordelia Chase and Allen Francis Doyle (referred to as simple Doyle), Angel is able to uncover the mystery, but Angel is thrown into a well for his troubles. Escaping his captivity just in time to survive the harsh light of day, Angel and his gang are able to stop the clinic. Set early in Angel first season, before the episode "Hero". Collected in Angel: Surrogates.


 * Writer(s): Christopher Golden
 * Penciller(s): Christian Zanier
 * Inker(s): Andy Owens, Jason Minor, Curtis P. Arnold
 * Colorist(s): Guy Major

"The Changeling Wife", issue #4
In Los Angeles, things can often not be what they seem. Angel attempts to help a woman who is trapped in an abusive marriage, however Angel is not seeing where the danger really lies. Collected in Strange Bedfellows.

"Earthly Possessions", issue #5-7

 * See Earthly Possessions.

Angel attempts to drive a demon out of a possessed lawyer; Father Noe is an excommunicated priest who gives him a hand. Noe seems to hold expert knowledge on removing demonic forces. He is known to some as "The Exorcist to the Stars." However, there may be a darker reason for his success. Supposed to be set early in Angel's first season, before the episode "Hero". Collected in Angel: Earthly Possessions.


 * Writer(s): Christopher Golden, Thomas E. Sniegoski
 * Penciller(s): Christian Zanier
 * Inker(s): Andy Owens
 * Colorist(s): Guy Major

"Hunting Ground", issue #8-9

 * See Hunting Ground.

A murderer is leaving corpses across L.A. sewers, and the evidence found by Detective Kate Lockley suggests Angel is responsible. Angel does not know which demon or monster is trying to set him up. In the other story Cordelia lands the main role in a Blair Witch type film about three film makers looking for the Helm of Haraxis. However the film is a sham and the Helm's the real thing. Angel tries to rescue Cordelia and the other film makers. Collected in Angel: Hunting Ground.


 * Writer(s): Christopher Golden, Thomas E. Sniegoski
 * Penciller(s): Eric Powell, Paul Lee
 * Inker(s): Eric Powell, Brian Horton
 * Colorist(s): Matt Hollingsworth, Lee Loughridge

"Strange Bedfellows", issue #10-11

 * See Strange Bedfellows.

A Californian congressman is robbed and killed by a woman of the night, a front-page sleaze scandal emerges with a scary twist: Cordy has a vision of the congressman just before his death, it seems the prostitute who murdered him was not human. Angel must find the inhuman assassin. Detective Kate Lockley eventually becomes involved in the case, while Angel and Wesley continue their attempt to discover the vampire-prostitute known on the streets by the name of Candy. They find a vampire bordello controlled by an ancient and seductive vampire has her eyes on Angel. He must face both a large group of vampires, and a battle the much stronger force of lust. Set in the first season of Angel.

"Autumnal", issue #12-14

 * See Autumnal.

Angel looks in an abandoned amusement park to find and rescue a young girl from a gang of kidnappers. The thugs aren't the only things Angel face. Angel, the girl, and the criminals must fight their way past a huge number of demonic rats! It seems Angel has a dislike of the furry rodents. Angel later investigates a series of bizarre deaths which seem to be caused by spontaneous combustion. Angel soon associates the deaths with a teen runaway and a demon magic-user. Collected in Angel: Autumnal.


 * Writer(s): Christopher Golden, Thomas E. Sniegoski
 * Penciller(s): Eric Powell, Christian Zanier
 * Inker(s): Andy Owens, Andrew Pepoy, Mark Heike, Clayton Brown, Chris Ivy, Derek Fridolfs, Jason Moore
 * Colorist(s): Lee Loughridge

"Past Lives", issue #15-16

 * See Past Lives.

A crossover with Buffy the Vampire Slayer issue #29-30 (collected in Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Past Lives). A huntress is tracking demons in L.A. This would normally seem to be a good thing, except leaving survivors to tell Angel that she sent them. Angel has a huge horde of demons trying to track him for revenge. His human friends, Cordelia and Wesley will soon no longer be safe, unless Angel can do something. At the same time monsters are leaving L.A. and trying to find refuge at Sunnydale. Buffy, Giles, and the others learn about recent chaos, and Buffy believes she should go to help Angel in L.A. Riley is displeased with such developments.


 * Writer(s): Christopher Golden, Thomas E. Sniegoski
 * Penciller(s): Christian Zanier, Cliff Richards
 * Inker(s): Joe Pimentel, Digital Jump
 * Colorist(s): Lee Loughridge

"Cordelia special", issue #17
The Angel Investigations office has been blown up after the events of "To Shanshu in L.A.", but before the events of "Judgement". The dark forces have discovered where Angel and Wesley live and are now forced to stash their demonic items at Cordy's haunted apartment. Dennis makes his presence felt. Collected in Strange Bedfellows/

Angel (2002) #1-4
Promoted as "Angel retooled and reinvented" by Dark Horse Comics, the storyline represents an attempt to make Angel a comic-book hero in a more traditional sense, battling against huge behemoths of monsters, and they were the final Angel comics until IDW began publishing them in 2005. Not to be confused with the Angel episode, "Long Day's Journey", or the Angel novel, "The Longest Night".

"Long Night's Journey", issue #1-4

 * See Long Night's Journey.

Angel's searching for a kidnapped child, only to stumble upon a force of unspeakable evil and unimaginable power, seeking him for some reason. Angel ends up fighting a walking volcano, and must try and survive long enough to discover who or what is behind the recent strange series of events. Finally, the strange evil reveals itself; Perfect Zheng, a vampire who beat Angel up in the 1920s. Angel, Wesley, Cordelia, and Gunn try to put the pieces together in time to make sense of present events, a possible product of Angel's past encounter with Zheng. In fact, as it turns out, the gypsy curse that was used on Angel was meant to be used on Zheng, turning him into the 'vampire champion', but it didn't take, and Zheng is determined to find out why Angel's soul was restored and his wasn't. A battle for survival between the pair ensues, which Angel wins. Supposed to be set early in the second season of Angel. Collected in Angel: Long Night's Journey.


 * Writer(s): Brett Matthews, Joss Whedon
 * Penciller(s): Mel Rubi
 * Inker(s): Chris Dreier
 * Colorist(s): Michelle Madsen, Dave Stewart, Digital Chameleon

IDW Publishing
Rather than publishing another Angel ongoing series, various, loosely connected mini-series and one-shots have been released by IDW:

Angel: The Curse #1-5 (June 2005 - October 2005)

 * See The Curse.

Having survived the battle of "Not Fade Away", we find Angel in Romania. He has traveled there in the hope he can find the Kalderesh clan, the Gypsies who cursed him with a soul. Angel believes that he deserves some happiness with a woman, possibly with Nina having been through so much and lost so many that had been close to him.

Instead Angel finds a gypsy fighting force struggling against the oppressive regime of Corneliu Brasov. Meanwhile the single remaining member of the Kalderesh Clan, Natalya, may be the only one who can remove Angel's curse. Angel's attempts to help Romany allies fight for freedom, erupts into war. Angel tracks down Brasov, and discovers Natalya has been turned into a vampire. He dusts Natalya thus destroying his chance to remove his curse.


 * Writer(s): Jeff Mariotte
 * Artist(s): David Messina

Angel: Old Friends #1-5 (November 2005 - March 2006)

 * See Old Friends.

This mini-series features the reunion of the Angel cast members after the events of the series finale, revealing some slim details of their fate; for example, Gunn has lost one eye. The group must ultimately face seemingly flawless clones of their own selves, created by Dr. Sparrow, one of the characters responsible for the death of Fred and rebirth of Illyria. After defeating Sparrow, the team agrees to work together again, and are set to continue fighting crime and the occult in Los Angeles.


 * Writer(s): Jeff Mariotte
 * Artist(s): David Messina

Spike vs. Dracula #1-5 (February 2006 - June 2006)

 * See Spike vs. Dracula.


 * Writer(s): Peter David
 * Artist(s): Joe Corroney

Spike: Asylum #1-5 (September 2006 - January 2007)

 * See Spike: Asylum.

Ruby Monahan has gone missing and her family recruits Spike to track her down. It seems Ruby (a half-demon) has been checked into "Mosaic Wellness Center", a rehab facility designed to cure the demonic. In an unfortunate turn of events, Spike faces both the Mosaic Center, which hopes to cure his vampiric nature, and its clientele who want him dead.


 * Writer(s): Brian Lynch
 * Artist(s): Franco Urro
 * Letterer(s): Michael Heisler, Sulaco Studios, Neil Uyetake, Chris Mowry
 * Colorists: Matteo Gherardi, Elena Virzi, Fabio Mantovan, Donatella Melchionno

Angel: Auld Lang Syne #1-5 (November 2006 - March 2007)

 * See Auld Lang Syne.

Angel has taken up his job in L.A. again, but is quickly faced by mysterious figures from his past, and they seem to be quite real. Similarly, Spike is faced by the ghosts of his pasts, and the two accidentally meet each other, placing the blame for the occurrence with the other. A fight ensues, but they soon discover that they are being manipulated and are forced to work together again. The culprit turns out to be a demon both men have wronged in the past, who hoped they would kill one another. Angel and Spike are able to defeat her however, and both go their own ways again. Features the IDW comics debuts of Skip, Holtz, The Master, Nikki Wood and the Chinese Slayer (Xin Rong).


 * Writer(s): Scott Tipton
 * Artist(s): David Messina

Spike: Shadow Puppets #1-5 (June 2007 - October 2007)

 * See Spike: Shadow Puppets.


 * Writer(s): Brian Lynch
 * Artist(s): Franco Urro

Angel: Smile Time #1-3 (January 2009 - April 2009)

 * See Angel: Smile Time.


 * Writer(s): Scott Tipton
 * Artist(s): David Messina

Angel: Blood & Trenches #1-4 (March 2009 - June 2009)

 * See Angel: Blood & Trenches.

The story of Angel during the first World War.


 * Writer(s): John Byrne
 * Artist(s): John Byrne

Angel: Not Fade Away #1-3 (May 2009 - July 2009)

 * See Angel: Not Fade Away.


 * Writer(s): Scott Tipton
 * Artist(s): Stephen Mooney

Angel: Only Human #1-4 (August 2009 - December 2009)

 * See Angel: Only Human.

A story set during the ongoing series, it focuses on Charles Gunn and Illyria in the aftermath of the Fall of Los Angeles.


 * Writer(s): Scott Lobdell
 * Artist(s): David Messina

One-shots

 * Spike: Old Times #1 (August 2005)


 * Writer(s): Peter David
 * Artist(s): Fernando Goni, Impacto Studios


 * Spike: Old Wounds #1 (January 2006)
 * A retired L.A. detective arrives at Wolfram and Hart and says that Spike had been responsible for a murder that took place decades previously. Spike attempts to solve one of the most |infamous unsolved crimes that has taken place in LA history. Meanwhile there are various monster-slayings for the gang to solve.


 * Writer(s): Scott Tipton
 * Artist(s): Fernando Goni


 * Spike: Lost and Found #1 (April 2006)
 * A vampire is preying on citizens of Los Angeles in broad daylight making it particularly difficult for Angel and Spike to deal with. Meanwhile Spike finds himself thinking about some of his evil actions in some new found guilt. The story features a second Ring of Amarra, the ring that grants vampires virtual indestructibility, the subject of the Buffy/Angel television crossover "The Harsh Light of Day"/"In the Dark".


 * Writer(s): Scott Tipton
 * Artist(s): Fernando Goni


 * Angel: Masks #1 (October 2006)
 * This issue is a one-shot Halloween-themed annual featuring four special stories. The stories featured are "Mystery Date", concerning Angel, "Unacceptable Losses", with Illyria, "Foreshadowing", about Cordelia and finally "Pencils and Paperclips", detailing a story about Lindsey.


 * "Mystery Date"
 * Writer: Jeff Mariotte
 * Artist: Stephen Mooney


 * "Unacceptable Losses"
 * Writer: Scott Tipton
 * Artist: David Messina


 * "Foreshadowing"
 * Writer: Christopher Golden
 * Artist: Steph Stamb


 * "Pencils and Paperclips"
 * Writer: James Patrick
 * Artist: Sean Murphy


 * Angel vs Frankenstein (October 2009)
 * This story tells the tale of the meeting between Angelus and Frankenstein.


 * Writer(s): John Byrne
 * Artist(s): John Byrne

Angel: Spotlight

 * See Angel: Spotlight.

A series of spotlight issues focusing on one character's motivations (although they are sometimes assisted by an additional character). Each one-shot featured a number of variant covers, illustrated by Russell Walks, Lee Kohse, Steph Stamb, or was a retailer incentive photo.


 * Illyria (April 2006)
 * Illyria, an Old One who has only recently been reintroduced to its life, tries to further understand humanity by studying the vessel whom it now occupies, Fred. Illyria considers whether she is capable of guilt.


 * Writer(s): Peter David
 * Artist(s): Nicola Scott


 * Peter David's wife Kathleen revealed her contribution to the story on David's official web site: "My idea has to do with locking up a criminal with pictures of his victims and the only thing on his/her TV are videos of the lives of the people they killed/destroyed so they have to face what they did every day of their lives for the rest of their lives. I think this is most of a just punishment than killing the individual."


 * Gunn (May 2006)
 * Gunn's naive cousin ends up in L.A. having run away from his home in Ohio. Gunn must try to find him before the city chews him up and spits him out. This is the first comic to feature Gunn as a main character.
 * Writer(s): Dan Jolley
 * Artist(s): Mark Pennington


 * Wesley (June 2006)
 * An extreme legal measure in the form of a lethal venom strikes down Knox, the current object of Winifred Burkle's affections. Forced to make a choice between letting Knox die or saving his life, Wesley deals with his own affections for Fred and their ramifications. The title of Wesley's story is "No Sacrifice".
 * Writer(s): Scott Tipton
 * Artist(s): Mike Norton


 * Doyle (July 2006)
 * Set just before the very first episode of Angel, this story focuses on Doyle as he wanders the streets of L.A., depressed and isolated. After receiving a vision about a young woman he knows named Misty, showing that she is in grave danger, he rushes to try and save her from a grisly fate.
 * Writer(s): Jeff Mariotte
 * Artist(s): David Messina


 * Connor (August 2006)
 * As Connor tries to work on a genealogy project as part of one of his college courses, his town is experiencing a widespread surge in vigilantism, in which suspected criminals are being killed. Connor suspects that he might be to blame, fearing that he may be killing these criminals in his sleep. The title of Connor's story is "Inheritance".
 * Writer(s): Jay Faerber
 * Artist(s): Bob Gill

Angel: After the Fall

 * See Angel: After the Fall.

Canonical issues
Angel comics are not usually considered by fans as canonical. Some fans consider them stories from the imaginations of authors and artists, while other fans consider them as taking place in an alternative fictional reality. However unlike fan fiction, overviews summarizing their story, written early in the writing process, were 'approved' by both Fox and Joss Whedon (or his office), and the books were therefore later published as official Angel merchandise.