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Fallen Angel (Single Issues) #issues 1-5
Fallen Angel Volume 1: To Serve in Heaven
Gliding through the streets of the fate-filled city of Bete Noire, the Fallen Angel has been a force both for good and evil. But her origins have remained as mystery-cloaked as the Angel herself... until now. See the truth of her background unfold for the first time as the most formidable opponent she's ever faced tracks her down with an offer that she may not be able to refuse... even though, in accepting it, the life she knows may well be over.
120 pages, Paperback
First published August 23, 2006
73 people want to read
About the author
Peter David
3,567 books1,363 followersaka David Peters
Peter Allen David, often abbreviated PAD, was an American writer of comic books, novels, television, films, and video games. His notable comic book work includes an award-winning 12-year run on The Incredible Hulk, as well as runs on Aquaman, Young Justice, SpyBoy, Supergirl, Fallen Angel, Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2099, Captain Marvel, and X-Factor.
His Star Trek work included comic books and novels such as the New Frontier book series. His other novels included film adaptations, media tie-ins, and original works, such as the Apropos of Nothing and Knight Life series. His television work includes series such as Babylon 5, Young Justice, Ben 10: Alien Force and Nickelodeon's Space Cases, which he co-created with Bill Mumy.
David often jokingly described his occupation as "Writer of Stuff", and he was noted for his prolific writing, characterized by its mingling of real-world issues with humor and references to popular culture, as well as elements of metafiction and self-reference.
David earned multiple awards for his work, including a 1992 Eisner Award, a 1993 Wizard Fan Award, a 1996 Haxtur Award, a 2007 Julie Award and a 2011 GLAAD Media Award.
Peter Allen David, often abbreviated PAD, was an American writer of comic books, novels, television, films, and video games. His notable comic book work includes an award-winning 12-year run on The Incredible Hulk, as well as runs on Aquaman, Young Justice, SpyBoy, Supergirl, Fallen Angel, Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2099, Captain Marvel, and X-Factor.
His Star Trek work included comic books and novels such as the New Frontier book series. His other novels included film adaptations, media tie-ins, and original works, such as the Apropos of Nothing and Knight Life series. His television work includes series such as Babylon 5, Young Justice, Ben 10: Alien Force and Nickelodeon's Space Cases, which he co-created with Bill Mumy.
David often jokingly described his occupation as "Writer of Stuff", and he was noted for his prolific writing, characterized by its mingling of real-world issues with humor and references to popular culture, as well as elements of metafiction and self-reference.
David earned multiple awards for his work, including a 1992 Eisner Award, a 1993 Wizard Fan Award, a 1996 Haxtur Award, a 2007 Julie Award and a 2011 GLAAD Media Award.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
June 15, 2011
I am sorely disappointed. This may have killed any lingering interest I had in reading fairly new trades involving any type of superhero. I have become tired of the ideas. Having not read any of the previous Fallen Angel series, my feelings are not based on an under-familiarity with the character. David even explained everything in the introduction yet it wasn't necessary. In the end, I was bored with the predictability, not to mention my feathers being ruffled by the terrible dialogue.
But, and this is a gigantic but, the art was amazing. J.K. Woodward is gifted.
The art and story did not mesh with me. The dialogue was too earthy and cliche, particularly the potty mouth routine, and did not click with the surreal artwork. So flip through, look at the pictures, but skip the story. You might even experience a greater connection than I did.
But, and this is a gigantic but, the art was amazing. J.K. Woodward is gifted.
The art and story did not mesh with me. The dialogue was too earthy and cliche, particularly the potty mouth routine, and did not click with the surreal artwork. So flip through, look at the pictures, but skip the story. You might even experience a greater connection than I did.
May 28, 2025
Fallen Angel, the popular comic series, makes its return with a new chapter at IDW. This isn't a fresh start, but rather a direct continuation set 20 years after the previous series, now focusing on Jude, Lee's son.
This latest installment is packed with developments, offering insights into Lee's past and concluding with the emergence of a new "Leader of the city." Fans will likely appreciate the narrative's forward momentum, which keeps the story's core intact while exploring new ground.
One noticeable change is the artistic approach. The character designs now feature a more realistic, almost painterly style. While some readers may find this appealing, those who preferred the more traditional comic book aesthetic of the earlier series might need time to adjust. Nevertheless, the storytelling remains compelling.
Overall, I'd give this new entry a 3.5 out of 5. It's a solid continuation for the series, offering plenty for long-time fans despite the shift in artistic style.
This latest installment is packed with developments, offering insights into Lee's past and concluding with the emergence of a new "Leader of the city." Fans will likely appreciate the narrative's forward momentum, which keeps the story's core intact while exploring new ground.
One noticeable change is the artistic approach. The character designs now feature a more realistic, almost painterly style. While some readers may find this appealing, those who preferred the more traditional comic book aesthetic of the earlier series might need time to adjust. Nevertheless, the storytelling remains compelling.
Overall, I'd give this new entry a 3.5 out of 5. It's a solid continuation for the series, offering plenty for long-time fans despite the shift in artistic style.
October 20, 2015
Increíble este comic.
Me acerqué a Fallen Angel temiendo no entender nada de lo que iba a leer ya que ni siquiera había ojeado las serie principal de DC pero Peter David hace un trabajo excelente para los nuevos lectores como yo y nos cuenta una historia que puede disfrutar cualquiera sin necesidad de haber sido lector de la serie anterior.
David nos presenta a un personaje femenino fuerte, al mejor estilo Supergirl, y también a sus antagonista principal, ese Magistrado tan odioso. En este tomo se nos cuenta el origen del Fallen Angel y la historia resulta ser una historia autoconclusiva y un genial punto de partida que me dejó con ganas de más.
Acá David puede dar rienda suelta a sus opiniones sobre religión y la verdad que sus planteos son para leer y leer y jamás aburre.
El dibujo: épico. Quedan perfectos para el estilo de la historia y para esa ciudad tan misteriosa que es Bete Noire.
Muy recomendable. Ahora tengo que ver si consigo los siguientes tomos.
Me acerqué a Fallen Angel temiendo no entender nada de lo que iba a leer ya que ni siquiera había ojeado las serie principal de DC pero Peter David hace un trabajo excelente para los nuevos lectores como yo y nos cuenta una historia que puede disfrutar cualquiera sin necesidad de haber sido lector de la serie anterior.
David nos presenta a un personaje femenino fuerte, al mejor estilo Supergirl, y también a sus antagonista principal, ese Magistrado tan odioso. En este tomo se nos cuenta el origen del Fallen Angel y la historia resulta ser una historia autoconclusiva y un genial punto de partida que me dejó con ganas de más.
Acá David puede dar rienda suelta a sus opiniones sobre religión y la verdad que sus planteos son para leer y leer y jamás aburre.
El dibujo: épico. Quedan perfectos para el estilo de la historia y para esa ciudad tan misteriosa que es Bete Noire.
Muy recomendable. Ahora tengo que ver si consigo los siguientes tomos.
January 4, 2022
El tag de "reboot" va con muchas comillas.
February 16, 2022
Decided to keep both this and the second volume while organising my personal library. Originally purchased volume2 while browsing a fave local shop. Confused and intrigued, I got this online. You know I really like something if I chose the analogue edition, but my storage is breaking and so am checking each
October 8, 2019
Fumetto molto singolare, a tratti interessante. I disegni di Woodward sono davvero suggestivi.
July 4, 2008
Peter David, Fallen Angel (DC, 2004)
David kicks off a new, and very intriguing series, with an introduction from Harlan Ellison. Yeah, that Harlan Ellison, the old version of Mikey in the Life commercial-- the guy who hates everything. Curmudgeon though he may be, Ellison has some high praise for Peter David and his new series. I am certainly not more than a pale shadow of Harlan Ellison; I could spend the rest of my life working on my writing and I'd never get anywhere near that good. So all I can say is, well, the man is right.
Fallen Angel is probably the closest thing I've read in the past twenty years (save a few one-offs like Gaiman's Eternals) to a traditional superhero comic, but like Watchmen, this ain't your momma's superhero. Lee, the fallen angel of the title (we do not yet know if the title is literal or not), has come to the small Louisiana town of Bete Noire and set up shop to help the hopeless and downtrodden. There are, of course, a host of bad guys, though as things go in comics these days, once we meet them, we have to wonder if they're all bad, and the henchmen, of course, are varying shades of grey (usually in direct relation to their intelligence). Everyone's playing everyone against everyone else.
There's a grittiness to the language that reminds me of 100 Bullets without the dialect, though David grabs ahold of his story arc from the get-go (unlike Azzarello, who took four or five volumes to unload everything on us), and it does make for some fine reading. The action is fast, David has thought well ahead into his seemingly minor characters, and the artwork fits the story like a glove. This is quite a beginning. Can't wait to see where he goes from here. ****
David kicks off a new, and very intriguing series, with an introduction from Harlan Ellison. Yeah, that Harlan Ellison, the old version of Mikey in the Life commercial-- the guy who hates everything. Curmudgeon though he may be, Ellison has some high praise for Peter David and his new series. I am certainly not more than a pale shadow of Harlan Ellison; I could spend the rest of my life working on my writing and I'd never get anywhere near that good. So all I can say is, well, the man is right.
Fallen Angel is probably the closest thing I've read in the past twenty years (save a few one-offs like Gaiman's Eternals) to a traditional superhero comic, but like Watchmen, this ain't your momma's superhero. Lee, the fallen angel of the title (we do not yet know if the title is literal or not), has come to the small Louisiana town of Bete Noire and set up shop to help the hopeless and downtrodden. There are, of course, a host of bad guys, though as things go in comics these days, once we meet them, we have to wonder if they're all bad, and the henchmen, of course, are varying shades of grey (usually in direct relation to their intelligence). Everyone's playing everyone against everyone else.
There's a grittiness to the language that reminds me of 100 Bullets without the dialect, though David grabs ahold of his story arc from the get-go (unlike Azzarello, who took four or five volumes to unload everything on us), and it does make for some fine reading. The action is fast, David has thought well ahead into his seemingly minor characters, and the artwork fits the story like a glove. This is quite a beginning. Can't wait to see where he goes from here. ****
January 19, 2013
Fallen Angel Omnibus collected the entire DC series, which wasn't as good as I remembered it, brought down by bawdy stereotypes played for laughs, and average comic book adventures leaving the intriguing mysteries of the series only to be mentioned in passing.
After its cancellation, IDW picked up the creator owned series, which Peter David chose to set twenty years after the events of the old series. To serve in Heaven really gets down to brass tax as a new magistrate comes to Bette Noir in tale that finally dredges up the truth about Lee's history. Although, the characters from the old series retain their stupid names, and "Asia Minor" is still his obnoxious self (he's thankfully used sparingly from here on out.) This version of Fallen Angel takes itself far more seriously, and does a better job of incorporating the enigmatic nature of its world into this volume and the ones to come. The tone set by JK Woodward's painted art can't be given enough credit for achieving this effect. These visuals tell you as much about Bette Noir and its lost souls as David's writing.
After its cancellation, IDW picked up the creator owned series, which Peter David chose to set twenty years after the events of the old series. To serve in Heaven really gets down to brass tax as a new magistrate comes to Bette Noir in tale that finally dredges up the truth about Lee's history. Although, the characters from the old series retain their stupid names, and "Asia Minor" is still his obnoxious self (he's thankfully used sparingly from here on out.) This version of Fallen Angel takes itself far more seriously, and does a better job of incorporating the enigmatic nature of its world into this volume and the ones to come. The tone set by JK Woodward's painted art can't be given enough credit for achieving this effect. These visuals tell you as much about Bette Noir and its lost souls as David's writing.
December 27, 2010
Para mí, la espera entre un tomo y otro fue de un día. Para los personajes, veinte añitos de nada. Lo primero que pensé cuando vi las primeras páginas fue: ¿por qué la dibujan tan vieja y con arrugas de golpe? Me dejaron boquiabierto, y la verdad que me encanta. Los personajes nuevos, la muerte de uno viejo muy importante, la vuelta de tuerca con el "secret origen" de repuesto que tenía guardado David, la interpretación de Dios más realista y creíble que haya visto en ficción alguna, un dibujo no perfecto pero sí ideal para retratar la decadencia de la ciudad. Todo esto y otras cosas que ahora seguro se me están pasando por alto hacen de este tomo el mejor en lo que va de la serie, que ya venía con una calidad altísima. Ahora ya estoy a mitad del #6 y, aunque no llega a la espectacularidad de este tomo, la cosa no afloja en cuanto a revelaciones sorprendentes y batallas épicas. Hoy en día soy más fan de David que nunca.
November 2, 2011
Many comic books are drawn in such a way that you don't get any true artistic expression in them, but with this particular comic book you will get that the artist is fully able to express himself along with the great Peter David's words.
If you were a fan of the DC comic book series you will feel that this is throwing out some of the things from that series, but that is what had to be done in order for David to keep the series alive. You will be able to enjoy what is being told here even if you were a fan of that particular series though. You will discover that this is basically the same world, but a few minor changes to help establish that it isn't set in the DCU.
I found this fascinating because it examines religion in a way that most people wouldn't consider. The ending of this particular volume was very powerful and something that everyone should see.
If you were a fan of the DC comic book series you will feel that this is throwing out some of the things from that series, but that is what had to be done in order for David to keep the series alive. You will be able to enjoy what is being told here even if you were a fan of that particular series though. You will discover that this is basically the same world, but a few minor changes to help establish that it isn't set in the DCU.
I found this fascinating because it examines religion in a way that most people wouldn't consider. The ending of this particular volume was very powerful and something that everyone should see.
March 23, 2018
Solid, three and a half stars.
Nice theological elements, good action, snappy dialogue. In short, a strong Peter David comic. Woodward's art is very atmospheric, and I like it, but not quite as much as some of the praise for it. I thought that the storytelling could've been clearer in several places, but overall, nothing worth really complaining about.
The characters still don't completely sing for me, but I'm intrigued. We'll see how intrigued when I've got to commit money to the next volume.
Nice theological elements, good action, snappy dialogue. In short, a strong Peter David comic. Woodward's art is very atmospheric, and I like it, but not quite as much as some of the praise for it. I thought that the storytelling could've been clearer in several places, but overall, nothing worth really complaining about.
The characters still don't completely sing for me, but I'm intrigued. We'll see how intrigued when I've got to commit money to the next volume.
August 13, 2012
I was sooo looking forward to this after reading the first omnibus but I was sorely disappointed and I'll tell you why. This is a rush job. The original Vertigo series was cancelled and this is the IDW pick-up which they didn't know how long it would run for. Therefore everything that was carefully and skillfully placed in the last book is ripped out and shown the light of day in a clumsy and expedient manner. It's like the last episode of a show that's about to be cancelled - all the plot twists up front, exposition for every lingering secret and altogether ungainly and bad.
April 6, 2010
I liked this quite a bit. Not only has the plot vastly improved with the jump to IDK and the death of the lingering possibility that the main character might turn out to be Supergirl, the art received a super upgrade, as well. Usually, I am not a person who cares much about the art in a comic, but this is fucking beautiful. J.K. Woodward is a guy I had never heard of until today-- in fact, it looks like Fallen Angel is the only thing he's done-- but his is a name I will remember.
December 5, 2013
An unusual find from the local library the story was good and was cleverly enough contrived that it did not suffer from being the first fallen angel I had read.
The artwork definitely made it, with the people being portayed with complex tones and different colour schemes (such as monochrome or sepia) being used to define time and place.
The artwork definitely made it, with the people being portayed with complex tones and different colour schemes (such as monochrome or sepia) being used to define time and place.
July 27, 2012
This is a great followup from where the series had left off from its run on DC Comics. Lee's past is revealed when a stranger who is connected to her past reappears and the arrival of her son Jude who was last seen in the previous series.
The series doesn't disappoint and looking forward to the next volume.
The series doesn't disappoint and looking forward to the next volume.
August 27, 2015
It can be difficult to resurrect a series after a cancellation, but I think the return of Fallen Angel is handled very well. The story is taken in a new direction while also including the return of old characters and relationships. Well done.
June 27, 2015
This series is full of ass kicking female characters. Granted, they are all of dubious morality, but so are the men. It's just the nature of Bete Noire.
I love this series. I kind of want Fallen Angel ("Lee") and Spider Jerusalem from Transmetropolitan to have anti-hero babies together.
I love this series. I kind of want Fallen Angel ("Lee") and Spider Jerusalem from Transmetropolitan to have anti-hero babies together.
March 13, 2007
this was good.
a 3 good, but good. 5 is a big number. Ask me again once I've read the 2nd book.
then we'll talk.
lovely, lovely art though.
a 3 good, but good. 5 is a big number. Ask me again once I've read the 2nd book.
then we'll talk.
lovely, lovely art though.
August 17, 2014
I'm not sure how I felt about this one. I felt there were a lot of unanswered questions, and maybe it is vague. I'll read the next one to see if it is going somewhere.
May 13, 2024
Nuevo tomo 1 que retomaba la serie veinte años después. Creo que es el único de la serie que tengo.
January 6, 2019
3.5 stars
The artwork takes a little getting used to. But I enjoyed the story overall.
The artwork takes a little getting used to. But I enjoyed the story overall.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews