Fans of the Buffy: The Vampire Slayer spinoff Angel will have yet another taste of post apocalyptic London with Angel and Faith. Set after the death of Giles and Angel’s return to sanity, he is joined by Rebel Slayer Faith Lehane. The two combat the forces of evil in a post Twilight world where earth is completely cut off from magic after the events of Buffy Season Eight.

Fans will remember that in season eight, Angel and Buffy were manipulated into giving birth to an apocalyptic dimension called Twilight. During these events Angel adopts the villain name Twilight in order to combat Buffy after she inherits godlike superpower. There’s no confusion with sparkly vampires here, that’s for sure.

In Live Through This issue number 4, Angel is still haunted by the acts of horror he committed during Twilight with the death of Rupert Giles hanging over his head constantly. At this point he is knee deep in his quest to bring Giles back from the dead. Angel is bereft of his usual bevy of ally’s Buffy Summers, Dawn, Xander Harris and Willow Rosenberg.

His one remaining ally has thus far been the surprising but steadfast Faith Lehane. A slayer just like one other, she breaks more rules than she keeps but is loyal to the fight against evil. She is not only his partner on this adventure but also his insurance policy, which Angel openly admits. Should he ever become so obsessed, he knew within reason that Faith would knock some sense into him.

In fact, Angel seems to be counting on it. She notices how Angel’s personality changes, adopting some rather bookish reading habits. Nash and Pearl, the sibling demons who crossed over onto earth, are magic users that battle Angel at every turn. They take pride and joy in making his life difficult while advancing their plot for the next supposed step in evolution.

Their view of Angel as a traitor to their cause is less evident in this issue but they still threaten Angel that they have more power than he’d seen before. Far from being the standard issue enemy the character of Nash is protective of his sister and Pearl definitely has a sensual quality about her.

Whistler, fellow demon to Nash and Pearl, is more diabolical than his campy nature would seem. His long history with Angel further complicates matters since it was he who initially convinced Angel to take the mantle of Twilight in the first place. The character of Whistler himself has evolved over time, his true face of vengeance against Angel showing through.

His work with the demon siblings his brought him a vial of Mohra Blood, the Blood of Eternity for his nefarious purposes. One concern is that this series should remain fresh and original, rather than devolve into a campy mess of vamp vs demon combat. The emotional elements of the 4th issue, little as they are, serve to highlight the storyline and its characters.

The 4th issue in this series is available now, with issue #5 releasing on December 28th, now available for pre-order here through Dark Horse Comics. Fans will want to keep a watch for this series on the rise since issues 6 and 7 are also available for pre-order as well.

Written by Christos Gage with artwork from Rebekah Isaacs, coloring by Dan Jackson and cover art by Steve Morris, this is a great team that has worked on the Angel and Faith series since the very beginning. With mastermind creator Joss Whedon having provided an excellent backdrop with tons of characters that makes for a very easily advancing plot line.

The next few issues seem to be shaping up for a grand showdown of epic proportions with a few hidden surprises being foreshadowed to fans in these recent pages.

Share This

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

About the author

Calvin Li
Calvin is currently a Politics and Entertainment writer, as well as the Assistant Gaming Editor for Toonari Post. He holds a Master's Degree in History and a Bachelor's degree in Marketing. A Native New Yorker, he enjoys speed reading and eating, as well as exploring, snowboarding and bowling.