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ANGEL #1
"Long Night's Journey..."
Recommended (8/10)
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Dark Horse Comics
Writers: Brett Matthews & Joss Whedon
Pencils: Mel Rubi
Inks: Chris Dreier
Colors: Michelle Madsen & Dave Stewart
Letters: Pat Brosseau
Editor: Scot Allie
Price: $2.99 US/$4.50 CAN |
I don't generally think much of licensed comics, but if the people behind the comics versions are also the people behind the television or movie properties that I enjoy, I'm much more likely to give it a try. Hence, Angel, co-written by Joss Whedon, gets a look from me, especially since I've been enjoying what I've seen of Fray and anxiously awaiting the trade paperback on that. This is not the sometimes unrelentingly dark Angel we've seen in the past season, it's more of a wild adventure with dark tones to it, and it does seem that Whedon and Matthews have created a perfect tone for a "comic book" version of Angel without losing what makes the characters so appealing or the ability of the medium to handle more than just silly super-heroics. On balance, I'd say that Fray is a stronger effort, and I'm not sure that this will appeal to those without a familiarity with Angel and its characters, but this
was a fun first issue and a nice effort from all involved.
Notable "celebrity" comic writers like J.
Michael Straczynski and Kevin Smith have often been criticized for being too
wordy, and Whedon could easily have fallen into that pattern as well, as his
dialogue is definitely one of his strong suits in scripting. I was thus
impressed to note how much of the story Whedon and Matthews left up to their
artistic team to tell. The first five pages are a splashy action sequence with
only sound effects and a single caption, and the other big fight scene in the
issue also seems light on dialogue. There's obviously a fairly strong working
relationship between writers and artists on this title, and neither side lets
down their part of the bargain.
Angel has been
all about mood for a lot of its existence, portraying the lead as something of a
brooding avenger. And while Whedon has gotten a lot of mileage out of the
incongruous humanity of Angel (his compulsive neatness or hilarious inability to
dance, for example) he has also given us an effective portrayal of a dark
avenger who moves with the shadows and isn't afraid of anything. Everyone
involved gives that impression here as well. Angel suddenly appears from above
in the opening and leaps into action, and his interrogation is brutal and quick,
even as his success is an inspiring mercy to the father of the victim.
While the emphasis on the TV show has been on the character development and interaction, this is an action-heavy version of Angel. Cordelia, Wesley and even the action-oriented
Gunn get merely a few pages, and a lot of the issue is devoted to Angel fighting
demons who couldn't be easily created on a television special effects budget.
Rubi does a nice job with his depiction of Angel and these demons, perhaps
giving the vamped out Angel a bit too much of a cartoony look but in general
capturing the energetic and strange world that Whedon and Matthews have created
for this mini-series.
Much of what I love about Angel is the humorous interaction between the characters and the dark examination of the psychology of those characters, and that is found here only in the tiniest measure. For the most part, this is an action-adventure featuring the characters, but it's still well-crafted and absolutely true to the show and its characters. Probably not as accessible to non-Buffy and Angel fans as Fray is, but certainly another nice comic-book
treat from Whedon and company.
Email Randy Lander comments about this review. |
