Angel

Created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt

His name is ANGEL, short for “Angelus.” He is tall, dark and handsome, with a dry sense of humour and a tendency to brood. He is the owner and operator of the Los Angeles-based “Angel Investigations.” Of course, LA is also known as the “City of Angels.”

Just in case it you didn’t “get it.”

Angel’s got this guilt thing going, you see. He’s dedicated his existence to protecting the poor lost souls that dwell here from its many predators or, as he puts it, “helping the helpless.” He does this in order to find redemption from his own past crimes, and to try to forget his one true love that he can never be with and to control his addiction to a certain beverage: in his case, human blood. Ya see, Angel’s a vampire. With a guilt complex.

For a few centuries, life as a vampire was a constant thrill. Power, danger, cool clothes (never getting old, also a plus). But in the end, it was all about the kill — until he killed the wrong girl.

“Gypsies, in my experience, are heavily into vengeance. They cursed me. Gave me back my soul. I had to live with everything I’d done and I had to live forever. It took another woman to show me that my endless life was worth living.”

So now Angel actually has a soul, and he only wants forgiveness. Each week, Angel strives to help his “clients,” generally ordinary people, face off against menaces both human and inhuman. His primary “opponent” is a powerful law firm called Wolfram & Hart, who apparently represent the more powerful creepy crawlies in the city.

The show is, of course, a spin-off of the wildly-popular WB series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and it maintains the action and humour found in that series while adding a definitely more adult and darker tone. I’m not kidding about darker, by the way. The show seemed to have a simple dress code: “Wear black. Leather, if possible.”

The series starred David Boreanaz as Angel. Other characters include Cordelia Chase- a would-be actress and old acquaintance (also transported from Buffy), who now helps him out; and Doyle, a half-demon with a taste for gambling, drinking and women, who happens to have “visions” that help Angel target potential clients.

Alas, Doyle died halfway through the first season (evidently he didn’t see that one coming!). A new regular, Wesley (played by Alexis Denisof), was subsequently added to the cast.

And, like Buffy, the show became wildly-successful, spawning a small industry of tie-ins, including novels, action figures, lunch boxes, T-shirts and Lord knows what else. And it certainly didn’t take long for Dark Horse to launch an Angel comic. In fact, there always seems to be a new Angel comic book series in the works, or one just wrapping up.

In it’s third year, its regular cast of characters continued to grow and change. Before he died… Doyle transferred his “visions” gift to Cordelia…making her even more invaluable to Angel. And Angel Investigations (paranormal investigators whose motto is “We Help The Helpless”) has grown considerably. It now has five employees: Angel, Cordelia, Wesley (a British expert on the occult), Gunn (a streetwise vampire hunter) and Fred (a slightly mixed-up young lady who’s brilliant in math and has a knack for building boobytraps).

Unfortunately the show’s third, fourth and fifth seasons saw it becoming increasingly irrelevant to this site, as the original P.I. concept, diluted in the second season, was almost completely abandoned. Subsequent “Angel” episodes were much closer to its parent Buffy, concentrating on dark fantasy ultra-violence and the increasingly tangled family and romantic relationships of the regular and recurring characters.

Still, while not denying that the show has moved away from it’s original concept, the fourth season did end with Angel and his group getting control of the demonic Wolfram & Hart law firm and its resources. All the episodes that made this the darkest season of the series’ run. Personally, I’m most depressed that the whole P.I. angle was sort of shuffled off to the side, as the entire world heads towards a Good versus Evil, Winner-Take-All Apocalypse.

Not that such a lucrative franchise as the Buffyverse would ever let something as trivial as Armageddon (or the cancellation of the television series after five seasons) end the milking of a cash cow, but the days of Angel, his black leather coat swirling behind him like Dracula’s cape, hitting the street, heading out into the night to work on a client’s behalf are apparently gone for good.

Angel’s (and Buffy’s) story continued in a seemingly endless string of comic book limited series from various publishers, many written (or at least approved of) by Joss Whedon and therefore considered canonical. But not all of them.

For example, 2022’s Angel, has our favourite bloodsucker reimagined as a celebrity sleuth with his own reality show, Angel for Hire, although of course it’s just a front for his real job: hunting down the usual assorted monsters for Angel Investigations.

TELEVISION

• ANGEL
  (1999-2002, WB)
  Tuesday, 9:00 pm eastern time
  60 minute episodes
  Writers: Joss Whedon, David Greenwalt, Tim Minear, Jeffrey Bell, David Fury, Steven S. DeKnight, Mere Smith, Elizabeth Craft, Sarah Fain, Shawn Ryan, Ben Edlund, Drew Goddard, Jeannine Renshaw, Howard Gordon, Jim Kouf, Jane Espenson, Doug Petrie, Tracey Stern, David H. Goodman, Scott Murphy, Marti Noxon, Brent Fletcher.
  Starring David Boreanaz as ANGEL
  with Charisma Carpenter as Cordelia Chase
  Glenn Quinn as Doyle
  Alexis Denis as Wesley
  J. August Richards as Gunn
  and Amy Ackerman as Fred
  • SEASON ONE | Buy on DVD
  • “City Of” (October 5, 1999)
  • “Lonely Hearts” (October 12, 1999)
  • “In the Dark” (October 19, 1999)
  • “I Fall to Pieces” (October 26, 1999)
  • “Rm w/a Vu” (November 2, 1999)
  • “Sense & Sensitivity” (November 9, 1999)
  • “Bachelor Party” (November 16, 1999)
  • “I Will Remember You” (November 23, 1999)
  • “Hero” (November 30, 1999)
  • “Parting Gifts” (December 14, 1999)
  • “Somnambulist” (January 18, 2000)
  • “Expecting” (January 25, 2000)
  • “She” (February 8, 2000)
  • “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” (February 15, 2000)
  • “The Prodigal” (February 22, 2000)
  • “The Ring” (February 29, 2000)
  • “Eternity” (April 4, 2000)
  • “Five by Five” (April 25, 2000)
  • “Sanctuary” (May 2, 2000)
  • “War Zone” (May 9, 2000)
  • “Blind Date” (May 16, 2000)
  • “To Shanshu in L.A.” (May 23, 2000)
  • SEASON TWO | Buy on DVD
  • “Judgment” (September 26, 2000)
  • “Are You Now or Have You Ever Been” (October 3, 2000)
  • “First Impressions” (October 10, 2000)
  • “Untouched” (October 17, 2000)
  • “Dear Boy” (October 24, 2000)
  • “Guise Will Be Guise” (November 7, 2000)
  • “Darla” (November 14, 2000)
  • “The Shroud of Rahmon” (November 21, 2000)
  • “The Trial” (November 28, 2000)
  • “Reunion” (December 19, 2000)
  • “Redefinition” (January 16, 2001)
  • “Blood Money” (January 23, 2001)
  • “Happy Anniversary” (February 6, 2001)
  • “The Thin Dead Line” (February 13, 2001)
  • “Reprise” (February 20, 2001)
  • “Epiphany” (February 27, 2001)
  • “Disharmony” (April 17, 2001)
  • “Dead End” (April 24 2001)
  • “Belonging” (May 1, 2001)
  • “Over the Rainbow” (May 8, 2001)
  • “Through the Looking Glass” (May 15, 2001)
  • “There’s No Place Like Plrtz Glrb” (May 22, 2001)
  • SEASON THREE | Buy on DVD
  • “Heartthrob” (September 24, 2001)
  • “That Vision Thing” (October 1, 2001)
  • “That Old Gang of Mine” (October 8, 2001)
  • “Carpe Noctem” (October 15, 2001)
  • “Fredless” (October 22, 2001)
  • “Billy” (October 29, 2001)
  • “Offspring” (November 5, 2001)
  • “Quickening” (November 12, 2001)
  • “Lullaby” (November 19, 2001)
  • “Dad” (December 10, 2001)
  • “Birthday” (January 14, 2002)
  • “Provider” (January 21, 2002)
  • “Waiting in the Wings” (February 4, 2002)
  • “Couplet” (February 18, 2002)
  • Loyalty” (February 25, 2002)
  • “Sleep Tight” (March 4, 2002)
  • “Forgiving” (April 15, 2002)
  • “Double or Nothing” (April 22, 2002)
  • “The Price” (April 29, 2002)
  • “A New World” (May 6, 2002)
  • “Benediction” (May 13, 2002)
  • Tomorrow Season” (May 20, 2002)
  • SEASON FOUR | Buy on DVD
  • “Deep Down” (October 6, 2002)
  • “Ground State” (October 13, 2002)
  • “The House Always Wins” (October 20, 2002)
  • “Slouching Toward Bethlehem” (October 27, 2002)
  • “Supersymmetry” (November 3, 2002)
  • “Spin the Bottle” (November 10, 2002)
  • “Apocalypse, Nowish” (November 17, 2002)
  • “Habeas Corpses” (January 15, 2003)
  • “Long Day’s Journey” (January 22, 2003)
  • “Awakening” (January 29, 2003)
  • “Soulless” (February 5, 2003)
  • “Calvary” (February 12, 2003)
  • “Salvage” (March 5, 2003)
  • “Release” (March 12, 2003)
  • “Orpheus” (March 19, 2003)
  • “Players” (March 26, 2003)
  • “Inside Out” (April 2, 2003)
  • “Shiny Happy People” (April 9, 2003)
  • “The Magic Bullet” (April 16, 2003)
  • “Sacrifice” (April 23, 2003)
  • “Peace Out” (April 30, 2003)
  • “Home” (May 7, 2003)
  • SEASON FIVE | Buy on DVD
  • “Conviction” (October 1, 2003)
  • “Just Rewards” (October 8, 2003)
  • “Unleashed” (October 15, 2003).
  • “Hell Bound” (October 22, 2003)
  • “Life of the Party” (October 29, 2003)
  • “The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinco” (November 1, 2003)
  • “Lineage” (November 12, 2003)
  • “Destiny” (November 19, 2003)
  • “Harm’s Way” (January 14, 2004)
  • “Soul Purpose” (January 21, 2004)
  • “Damage” (January 28, 2004)
  • “You’re Welcome” (February 4, 2004)
  • “Why We Fight” (February 11, 2004)
  • “Smile Time” (February 18, 2004)
  • “A Hole in the World” (February 25, 2004)
  • “Shells” (March 3, 2004)
  • “Underneath” (April 14, 2004)
  • “Origin” (April 21, 2004)
  • “Time Bomb” (April 28, 2004)
  • “The Girl in Question” (May 5, 2004)
  • “Power Play” (May 12, 2004)
  • “Not Fade Away” (May 19, 2004)

NOVELIZATIONS

• Angel: City of (1999, by Nancy Holder; novelization of pilot) | Buy this book

ORIGINAL NOVELS

• Not Forgotten (2000; by Nancy Holder) |  Buy this book
• Redemption (2000; by Mel Odom) | Buy this book
• Shakedown (2000; by Don DeBrandt) | Buy this book

COMIC BOOKS

• ANGEL
  (1999-2001, Dark Horse Comics)
  17 issues
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Written by Christopher Golden
  Art: Christian Zanier, Andy Owens
  • “Surrogate, Chapter 1” (November 1999, #1)
  • “Surrogate, Chapter 2” (December 1999, #2)
  • “Surrogate, Chapter 3” (January 2000, #3)
  • “The Changeling Wife” (February 2000, #4)
  • Earthly Possessions, Chapter 1″ (March 2000; #5)
  • Earthly Possessions, Chapter 2″ (April 2000; #6)
  • Earthly Possessions, Chapter 3″ (May 2000; #7)
  • Beneath the Surface, Chapter 1″ (June 2000; #8)
  • Beneath the Surface, Chapter 2″ (July 2000; #9)
  • Strange Bedfellows, Chapter 1″ (August 2000; #10)
  • Strange Bedfellows, Chapter 2″ (September 2000; #11)
  • Vermin, Chapter 1″ (October 2000; #12)
  • Vermin, Chapter 2″ (November 2000; #13)
  • Little Girl Lost” (December 2000; #14)
  • Past Lives, Part 1″ (January 2001; #14)
  • Past Lives, Part 3″ (February 2001; #16)
  • Cordelia” (March 2001; #17)
• ANGEL
  (2001, Dark Horse Comics)
  (aka “Angel: Long Night’s Journey”_
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Writers: Brett Matthews, Joss Whedon
  Artists: Melvin Rubi, Chris Dreier
  • “Long Night’s Journey…” (September 2001; #1)
  • “Rock and a Hard Place” (October 2001; #2)
  • “Thicker Than Water” (November 2001; #3)
  • “The End of the Beginning” (May 2002; #4)
• ANGEL: AFTER THE FALL
  (2007-09, IDW)
  17 issues
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Writers: Brian Lynch, Joss Whedon, Scott Tipton
  Artists: Frank Urru, Tim Kane, Fabio Mantovani, Mirco Pierfederici, Kevyn Schmidt
  • “After the Fall, Chapter One” (November 2007; #1)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Two” (December 2007; #2)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Three” (January 2008; #3)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Four” (February 2008; #4)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Five” (March 2008; #5)
  • “First Night (Part One)” (April 2008; #6)
  • “First Night (Part Two)” (May 2008; #7)
  • “First Night (Part Three)” (June 2008; #8)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Six” (June 2008; #9)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Seven” (July 2008; #10)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Eight” (August 2008; #11)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Nine” (September 2008; #12)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Ten” (October 2008; #13)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Eleven” (November 2008; #14)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Twelve” (December 2008; #15)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Thirteen” (January 2009; #16)
  • “After the Fall, Chapter Fourteen” (February 2009; #17)
• ANGEL
  (2009-11, IDW)
  27 issues
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Writers: Kelley Armstrong, Bryan Lynch, Mariah Huehner, David Tischman
  Artists: Dave Ross, Stephen Mooney, Lara West, Emanuel Simeoni
  Continues from Angel: After the Fall #17
  • “Aftermath” (February 2009; #18)
  • “Aftermath” (March 2009; #19)
  • “Aftermath” (April 2009; #20)
  • “Aftermath” (May 2009; #21)
  • “Aftermath” (June 2009; #22)
  • “Become What You Are (After the Fall Epilogue)” (July 2009; #23)
  • (August 2009; #24)
  • (September 2009; #25)
  • “Boys And Their Toys, Part One” (October 2009; #26)
  • “Boys And Their Toys, Part Two”(November 2009; #27)
  • (December 2009; #28)
  • (January 2010; #29)
  • (February 2010; #30)
  • March 2010; #31)
  • (April 2010; #32)
  • (May 2010; #33)
  • “Conorland (Part One)” (May 2010; #34)
  • “Conorland (Part Two)”(July 2010; #35)
  • “Conorland (Part Three)”(August 2010; #26)
  • “Conorland (Part Four)”(September 2010; #37)
  • “Conorland (Part Five)”(October 2010; #38)
  • (November 2010; #39)
  • (December 2010; #40)
  • (January 2011; #41)
  • (February 2011; #42)
  • (March 2011; #27)
  • (April 2011; #44)
• ANGEL ANNUAL
  (2009, IDW)
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  • “Last Angel in Hell” (December 2009; #1)
• ANGEL & FAITH
  (2011-13, Dark Horse Comics)
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Writers: Christos N. Gage
  Artists: Rebekah Ann Isaacs
  Considered to be “Season Nine” of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
  • “Live Through This (Part One)” (August 2011; #1)
  • “Live Through This (Part Two)” (September 2011; #2)
  • “Live Through This (Part Three)” (October 2011, #3)
  • “Live Through This (Part Four)” (November 2011; #4)
  • “In Perfect Harmony” (December 2011; #5)
  • “Daddy Issues (Part One)” (January 2012; #6)
  • “Daddy Issues (Part Two)” (February 2012; #7)
  • “Daddy Issues (Part Three) “March 2012; #8)
  • “Daddy Issues (Part Four)” (April 2012; #9)
  • “Women of a Certain Age” (May 2012; #10)
  • “Family Reunion (Part One)” (June 2012; #11)
  • “Family Reunion (Part Two) (July 2012; #12)
  • “Family Reunion (Part Three)” (August 2012; #13)
  • “Family Reunion (Part Four)” (September 2012; #14)
  • “The Hero of His Own Story” (October 2012; #15)
  • “Death And Consequences (Part One)” (November 2012; #16)
  • “Death And Consequences (Part Two)” (December 2012; #17)
  • “Death And Consequences (Part Three)” (January 2013; #18)
  • “Death And Consequences (Part Four)” (February 2013; #19)
  • “Spike And Faith” (March 2013; #20)
  • “What You Want, Not What You Need (Part One)” (April 2013; #21)
  • “What You Want, Not What You Need (Part Two)” (May 2013; #22)
  • “What You Want, Not What You Need (Part Three)” (June 2013; #23)
  • “What You Want, Not What You Need (Part Four)” (July 2013; #24)
  • “What You Want, Not What You Need (Part Five)” (August 2013; #25)
• ANGEL & FAITH: SEASON 10
  (2014-16, Dark Horse Comics)
  25 issues
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Writers: Victor Gischler
  Artists: Will Conrad, Cliff Richards
  • “Where the River Meets the Sea (Part One)” (April 2014; #1)
  • “Where the River Meets the Sea (Part Two)” (May 2014; #2)
  • “Where the River Meets the Sea (Part Three)” (June 2014; #3)
  • “Where the River Meets the Sea (Part Four)” (July 2014; #5)
  • “Old Habits” (August 2014; #4)
  • “Lost and Found (Part One)” (September 2014; #6)
  • “Lost and Found (Part Two)” (October 2014; #7)
  • “Lost and Found (Part Three)” (November 2014; #8)
  • “Lost and Found (Part Four)” (December 2014; #9)
  • “Lost and Found (Part Five)” (January 2015; #10)
  • “United (Part One)” (February 2015; #11)
  • “United (Part Two)” (March 2015; #12)
  • “United (Part Three)” (April 2015; #13)
  • “United (Part Four)” (May 2015; #14)
  • Fight or Flight” (June 2015; #15)
  • “Those Who Can’t Teach, Teach Gym (Part One)” (July 2015; #16)
  • “Those Who Can’t Teach, Teach Gym (Part Two)” (August 2015; #17)
  • “Those Who Can’t Teach, Teach Gym (Part Three)” (September 2015; #18)
  • “A Little More Than Kin (Part One)” (October 2015; #19)
  • “A Little More Than Kin (Part Two)” (November 2015; #20)
  • “A Tale of Two Families (Part One)” (December 2015; #21)
  • “A Tale of Two Families (Part Two)” (January 2016; #22)
  • “A Tale of Two Families (Part Three)” (February 2016; #23)
  • “A Tale of Two Families (Part Four)” (March 2016; #24)
  • “A Tale of Two Families (Part Five)” (April 2016; #25)
• ANGEL
  (2019, Boom! Studios)
  8 issues
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Writers: Bryan Edward Hill
  Artists: Gleb Melnikov
• ANGEL & SPIKE
  (2020, Boom! Studios)
  8 issues
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Writers: Bryan Edward Hill, Adam Smith, Zac Thompson
  Artists: Gleb Melnikov, Piotr Kowalski, Hayden Sherman
• ANGEL
  (2022, Boom! Studios)
  8 issues
  Based on the television show created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
  Writers: Christopher Cantwell
  Artists: Daniel Bayliss

RELATED LINKS

• I Ain’t Afraid of No Ghosts
  Things That Go Bump in the Night, and the Eyes Who Go After Them

Respectfully submitted by Mark Geldmeyer. Additional info supplied by Phil Eagle and Kevin Burton Smith.

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