ANGEL: THE CURSE #1 REVIEW

[Kerry Birmingham]

Reviewer: Kerry Birmingham, birmy@juno.com

A Hole in the (Buffy) World

Written by: Jeff Mariottte
Art by: David Messina
Lettered by: Tom B. Long
Edited by: Chris Ryall
Variant Covers: Tim Bradstreet, Ben Templesmith, Igor Kordey
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Angel Created by: Joss Whedon and David Greeenwalt

Licensed comics very rarely seem worth it. Straight adaptations tend to be mechanical and dull, last-minute hackjobs tied to the release of a movie or TV show, as if an illustrated summary will somehow endear the medium of comics to its presumably wide-eyed first-time reader brought in by the movin’ picture. First one’s free, kid.

On the other hand, the tie-in comic, offering related but original new stories, is a bit more appetizing to geekdom at large; it’s just as easy to screw up, but at least it’s something NEW being screwed up. Buffy and Angel had previously been published by Dark Horse Comics, with mixed results. A preoccupation with imitating the rhythms of dialogue of the TV shows and nailing down the likenesses of the actors assured that neither of those things were actually accomplished. The Buffy and Angel monthlies were wildly uneven as a result, varying in quality from issue to issue as even typically reliable writers and artists failed to adequately capture the essence of their inspirations. If top-notch comics talent like Andi Watson and writers for the actual show can’t knock it out of the park, you know a book is troubled.

Dark Horse’s Angel series ended even before the TV version, and the property has since been licensed by horror-boutique publishers IDW. The Curse, taking place over an as-yet indeterminate number of issues, finds Angel back in Romania. He’s looking for the gypsy clan that cursed him with a soul centuries ago, the curse which makes him turn evil if he ever achieves a moment of pure happiness. It seems the gypsies might bargain if he takes out Cornlieu Brasov, a warlord who rules over the region.

Angel’s doing it for new girlfriend Nina, which places the timeframe for this story during or after the show’s fifth season (presumably during). A wise move on writer Jeff Mariotte’s part, since the series ended on a fairly dramatic and ambiguous note. While it’s odd that Angel would want to end the curse for the little-seen Nina, and not, say, Buffy or even Cordelia (can you tell I watch the show?), it’s a novel premise, even if actual success is ruled out since that would rob Angel of his major character arc, and anticlimactically at that. That he will return to L.A. with the curse intact is a foregone conclusion; the trick is for Mariotte and Messina to make us give a damn anyway.

This first issue, while by no means a bad read, isn’t a triumphant return, either. Jeff Mariotte, no stranger to writing the character, gives Angel a flip internal monologue I found off-putting considering Angel’s largely inscrutable screen portrayal. By necessity, Mariotte works in an origin recap that should bring those unfamiliar with the Angel’s world up to speed, sandwiched between an extended fight sequence and some exposition on Brasov. The set-up feels more like a video game than a story: defeat the boss and get the Princess... or the curse removed, what have you. Messina’s art is on par with the Dark Horse series. Messina, drawing in a style reminiscent of Sean Phillips, tends to draw his figures a bit blocky and undefined for my taste, but he draws a cracking action sequence and appropriately pools Angel’s “vamp face” in shadows, so he’s dark when he knows he needs to be.

Make no mistake: this, like virtually all comic adaptations of popular other-media characters, is not the return of the Angel you know and love. It’s a serviceable reintroduction, the same in name and form but everything is slightly off-frequency. Nothing feels quite like it should, despite the names and the likenesses being more or less what they should be. This, I think, is the inherent flaw in licensed comics: the disconnect between the characters as they “really” are and how they translate to a comics panel. There’s nothing wrong with this comic, but there’s nothing all that great about it either, which makes the disconnect that much more evident--and that much more obvious. Through no fault of its own, this issue disappoints: not by the weight of its characters, but by how we believe the characters ought to be.

There’s every chance that this title could surprise; that Angel could take a tip from Conan and blaze forward with some stellar new material that does more than ease the withdrawal symptoms of diehards. In the meantime, until the inevitable trade paperback, only those rabid fans looking for a fix, or those with lowered expectations, should bother with this issue (and I would recommend Dark Horse’s Tales of the Vampires instead).

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[fantomgman]

i think personally youre too big of a fan of the buffyverse to write a credible review for this issue as opinions go. It was a good read I started watching the show at the end of its run I was pretty happy with this book. most adaptions that i have read suck but with this it opened up with a problem a small introduction and why hes where hes at what more do you need with a first issue. how do you know where and when this takes place. you say its ok and then dismiss it for not being what you want it to be and say check this out. why not review the trade instead of the single issues. this is just an opinion

[bugalugs1]

Okay, I want this for the Puppet Angel cover alone!!

[James Groves]

Originally Posted by bugalugs1

Okay, I want this for the Puppet Angel cover alone!!

Yeah, i know. The cover's ace. By Igor Kordey, too.

[Brian Geers]

I was under the impression (mostly from the interviews and such that IDW did regarding this book) that the story took place sometime after the end of the fifth season, since the fates/whereabouts of the surviving members of Angel Invesitgations is intentionally vague. Under that assumption, figuring that Cordelia is dead and Buffy is in Europe (and possibly knocking boots with The Immortal), I could see where Nina would present Angel's only viable romantic interest at that point in his life. Figuring that he no longer has the resources of Wolfram & Hart at his disposal and his friends are likely scattered to the four winds after the events of "Not Fade Away", SPOILER! (although one of the covers for issue #4 suggests the possible return of a certain "green and horny" lounge singer) it would seem natural given the circumstances for Angel, if he had no imminent apocalypse to deal with at the moment, to strike out on his own and find a cure to the "Moment of True Happiness" issue once and for all.

This wasn't the mind-blowing experience I was expecting for my $4, but it wasn't bad either. I would have to agree with Kerry's numbers on this one. Still, the beginning of this story is exactly that, a beginning. I'm sure things will pick up as the series continues.

[Al Harahap]

I thought it was pretty good. Nothing groundbreaking, but still entertaining enough. I'm glad they were brave enough not to start off with the whole ensemble in hustle and bustle L.A., because that would've been predictable. Although, with Angel's annoying first-person narrative trying to make witty jokes at himself, maybe they might as well have brought in the whole gang.