Angela: Asgard's Assassin Vol. 1: Priceless

Angela Asgard's Assassin #1-6

by Kieron Gillen, Marguerite Bennett, Stephanie Hans (Artist)

Collects Angela: Asgard's Assassin #1-6.

All her life, Angela — finest warrior of the Tenth Realm of Heven — was raised to hate Asgard with every fiber of her being. But Angela has learned the truth about her identity: She is Thor’s sister. She is an Asgardian. Now, cast out of her home, Angela must strike out on her own! But how does she become the guardian of a demonic child? Why do both Asgard and Heven want it so badly? And how does Loki fit in? Pursued by Asgardian warriors, Angela and her charge cross the Realms from Earth to Vanaheim, and even travel to outer space, where her teammates the Guardians of the Galaxy lend a hand. But she soon sees no other option than an invasion of her own homeland — that’s right, Angela must fight her way into Heven!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics, Superheroes, Comic Book

136 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 18, 2015

About the author

Kieron Gillen is a comic book writer and former media journalist.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gillen has created an obtuse, complicated and confusing story. The writing is stilted and just a drag in general. I have to say I'm disappointed after reading his great Loki stories in Journey into Mystery.

[Terence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Angela stole a baby.

She has her reasons, but she stole a baby nonetheless. The baby's father sent his son to recover her.



I'm not sure what Angela did to justify her own title. Yeah she's Aldrif the stolen daughter of Odin and Frigga that no one knew was stolen until Original Sin, but there are a lot of Asgardians and few of them deserve their own title. I'd rather read about Thor's friends the Warriors Three and Lady Sif.

Asgard's Assassin just like every part of Angela revolves around the fact that Angela was an Asgardian raised by the Angel's of Heven. Heven is a capitalistic place to the max. Their motto is nothing for nothing. Everything must be paid for, people don't do things out of generosity. She was also raised to hate Asgardians, they are the Angels boogeyman and after Aldrif was stolen that makes complete sense.

So Angela was invited to the birth of Odin and Frigga's daughter and when she held the babe she took off. Needless to say that didn't go over well. Honestly the storyline was thin and very familiar. Angela isn't all that interesting as the lead character. She did excel as Gamora's gal pal and fellow Guardian of the Galaxy, but outside of that she's just this mad, glowing eye, knife wielding woman in an armored bikini. Tantalizingly terrifying as an enemy and still scary as a friend. Unfortunately her only true personality trait is anger which gets old after a few issues.

Asgard's Assassin was easily a book I could have skipped because the only thing it did was make me dislike Angela a bit more.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was fine.

[Sesana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um. This was actually quite good. I went in expecting basically nothing. In fact, I only read it because I saw that Kieron Gillen was writing, and if you put him on something Asgardian (or Asgardian adjacent), I will definitely read it. That it was actually good was a pleasant surprise.

There is a lot of exposition, all over the place. Maybe too much. But there is a lot to be explained. I don't know if this version of Angela and Heven is much like the previous, pre-Marvel version. I never read Spawn. At any rate, I did at least find this version of Heven interesting, and Gillen works some good world-building in. I ended up liking Angela more in this book than I had in her appearances in Guardians of the Galaxy, maybe because she had the more relatable Sera as a foil here. And I really liked Sera. The story is probably a bit thin to cover six issues, but there's just so much being established that it often gets pushed to the side while things can be explained to us.

Also, Angela gets a much less ridiculous costume rather early in this book. That alone was worth an extra half star from me.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than I thought it would be. Some of it follows on from what Gillen was doing in Thor. But the Bennett and Hans 'sub-stories' seem really forced, and are too prosey and break the book up too much. They look good, I just don't think they fit in too well

[Eli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pros:
- Very good introduction to Angela, Thor and Loki's long-lost sister
- Another awesome female character
- Loaded with information on the other realms in the Marvel Universe
- Good ending that leads to likely interesting sequels
- Guardians of the Galaxy crossover!

Cons:
- The artwork wasn't bad, but I didn't really like it that much. Some people probably love it, so I guess that's just me.
- I've never found Thor a compelling character (but it's worth noting that this takes place after he loses Mjolnir). I'm just not that interested in his history or family (but Loki was cool in this).

This series has a lot of potential that I can easily recognize, despite not being a big Thor fan. I'm definitely going to keep an eye on Angela and hope for more development from her.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

So now that Angela and everyone else knows she is not an Angel but an Asgardian, she has been exiled from Heven. Plus after years of being taught to hate the Asgardians, she is a bit shaky being around them. Never the less, she is there for the birth of her sister and newest child of Odin and Freyja. But once they let Angela hold the baby, she teleports away with it. Why did she do that? Where is she taking the baby? Well, that’s the purpose of this book. We follow Angela as she is being chased by Thor and the Asgardians all over the place. In the end, we learn why she did it and it was pretty good that she did. The art was really good throughout. Book could have gotten a higher score but Gillen stopped that. He can be hit or miss for me. Like his AvX: Consequences was dope but his Die, not so much. He can get extra with the writing sometimes making a story hard to follow along with for no reason. Book didn’t flow from story beat to story beat as smoothly as I would’ve liked and seems like Angela didn’t really have her own personality or voice. Overall, decent at best.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

An Angela figurine sits on my bookshelf since the days when I used to collect just about everything Image. I never cared for the Spawn comics that Angela spawned from, but I did read her miniseries and was very excited to learn that she'd become a part of the Marvel universe. I did not read her introduction via the Guardians of the Galaxy, but that group does play a part here and reveals a slightly less steely but no less deadly side to Angela, injecting just the right amount of humour into an otherwise dark and focused story of a woman with a very significant mission that puts her at odds with both of the worlds that have rejected her. Initially, the story starts out a bit confusing, though as her friend Sera weaves the angel's tale, things become a bit clearer and the twists and turns the story takes as Angela forges her path become easier to follow. The panel art is very good, but I was far more interested in the various artist interpretations and painted covers that peppered the pages. Angela is one of the many scantily clad warrior women that permeate the comic industry, but, unlike other such characters, I found that every artist here captured the essence of her undaunted spirit, rather than waste time simply and uncreatively objectifying her.

www.bibliosanctum.com

[Jana · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5*

This was SO GOOD! Angela is such an interesting character and I loved the appearances of Thor, Loki, and the Guardians of the Galaxy!

[The Sapphic Nerd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this book. My first encounter with Angela was reading issue #1 of this series. It was the artwork that drew my attention (that and my weakness for redheads). I didn't know who Angela was, or what this would be about, but put Norse mythology and warrior women together and I definitely wanted to find out.

Angela is stoic and hard to read. Her motives are a bit of a mystery, and she isn't much for talking... about anything, really. But her silence is fascinating. And at least she seems to know who she is and what her goals are. Her and Sera. They have a Xena/Gabrielle sort of relationship; Angela's a hardened warrior with a past she's trying to balance with her present actions, and Sera's a lively companion who tells bardic tales of her best friend/lover. Sera's cheekiness, sarcasm, and fondness for words complement Angela and balance out the book.

The story? Angela kidnaps her newborn sister for reasons and all of Asgard is hunting her down.

The artwork is lovely! There are a couple of different styles in this volume, and both look equally great. One is more traditionally comic-book-ish, while the other looks more like it's been painted. Beautiful colours.

So what should you take away from this review? Read it! It's really good! It's easy to interpret "strong, silent" types the wrong way, but Gillen writes Angela so you always know she's thinking under that calm exterior. She also has a heart, and her relationship with Sera is an amusing way to see it. Even though Sera does most of the talking, she never overshadows Angela. It's a good balance for quite an enjoyable book.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good read with interesting takes on characters I know and characters that were new for me. I plan to read more about Angela, Aldrif Odinsdottir.

[Judah Radd · Rating 4 out of 5]

For my full interview with Kieron Gillen, follow this link: https://youtu.be/np9kcC1ruWU

*update* I’ve also interviewed artist Stephanie Hans! The interview can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/h7hj1n6Er8Y

****second read****

I liked it better the second time and bumped it up to 4.

Stephanie Hans and Phil Jimenez are amazing artists and their work makes this truly a joy to look at.

The story made a teensy bit more sense this time, especially after having read Thor & Loki Original Sin and the Gillen/Fraction Thor/Journey into Mystery stuff.

Angela is cool af.

Besides those things, yea... it was still a bit messy and convoluted. Still worth looking at, though.

******first read******

This is a mess.

I do so wish I could grant it a 4 or a 5... the art is there. The characters are there... but this story is so convoluted and told in such an annoyingly disjointed manner that I just didn’t really find myself deriving any enjoyment here.

Yes, the art was attractive. Yes, Angela is cool as hell. She just is... her look, her persona, her ribbons of death... it’s all very cool.

But jesus fuck! The pacing. It’s awful.

It’s like this.

1 - A thing happens.

2 - It doesn’t make sense.

3 - Due to some reveal, now it makes sense... but the reality of the situation is so lame/boring/not cool... I’m left wondering why it wasn’t just explained right off the bat.

That’s how this whole thing went.

It was nice seeing the Guardians, NonThor Odinson, this Sera character, Hela and a villainous cameo from *spoiler*

I expected more. Kinda bummed.

[Chelsea 🏳️‍🌈 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, this is the fastest I've read something since I started Invincible Iron Man. I'm finished??? That's it? [Tom Haverford voice] Noooooooooo.

I really loved this! I'm not usually a fan of Asgardian stories. Something about them just doesn't interest me but Angela. I love Angela!

This was so entertaining and I actually liked the scrolls and Asgardian way of telling tales. Angela is such an interesting character and I really felt for her. Admittedly, I'm a sucker for characters that are largely unemotional on the surface. This story does a much better job of making sure that you know she has feelings, they're just buried.

Interesting that Odinson and his family are the antagonists here. The plot was well timed. This is my first time reading about the character and even I knew she was going to save Laussa.

The story between Sera and Angela was so amazing. 10x better than many romances I've read so well done. Also, fantastic portrayal of a trans character. The writing is beautiful.

Loved the Guardians' role here as well.

I'm kind of in love with Angela and I can't wait to read more about her!

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this had more twists and turns in the plot than Angela: Queen of Hel: Journey to the Funderworld did, I enjoyed the latter quite a bit more. Maybe it has to do with Sera actually being Malekith and not ACTUALLY Sera or maybe I just like Marguerite Bennett's work on the character better than Kieron Gillen's. Either way, this was beautifully drawn and very entertaining.



The team-up with the Guardians and the inclusion of Odinson and Loki were also nice touches. I'm excited to see where Marvel takes Angela and Sera in the future because they have a ton of potential.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

This was pretty enjoyable. I still think it's odd the way Angela is now part of the Marvel Universe, but at least the backstory is good and this was an enjoyable read.

Angela and Thor are half siblings, and then a cursed baby is born and Angela kidnaps the baby to end the curse. Asgard and Heven almost go to war, Thor and his crew try to regain the baby, the Guardians of the Galaxy show up and we get an exciting read with above average art.

[Klinta · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading the badass intro, I expected something really cool - a heroine torn between two identities, families and beliefs. But all I got was a family drama - meh. The art was OK, but I wasn't really a fan. So yeah, a bit disappointing.

[Jesse A · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing to see here. Move along.

[Emelie Karlsson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the art. Otherwise.. meh.

[James Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yay more of Angela. I loved her in Guardians and I loved her even more in this awesome comic. I liked that you got to see her with Thor and Loki and Odin.

[Percy · Rating 4 out of 5]

We love morally ambiguous, gay women. The more physically imposing, the better <33

[ArabellaGray271 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty fun book about a character I know little about interacting with Thor and the Guardians of the Galaxy, which I also know little about. It set up who Angela is pretty well and I appreciate the trans rep. I guess I gotta go read Spawn to see if Angela's trans gf is from that series or not.

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5
I was really excited to read this when I saw the original promos because they had a definite Xena: Warrior Princess vibe to them and yay gay couples and yay trans rep in mainstream comics.

The end result, though, is a confusing mess of flashbacks and art was all over the place. In some issues characters' faces looked elderly or overweight. Even after the Gillen fleshes Angela out with a unique moral code and makes Sera instantly endearing(Maximim Clops!) some amazingly shitty last-issue twists [Spoiler]The Bury Your Gays trope is alive and well[/spoiler] close the volume out on a very sour note.

[Trevor Boyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Angela: Asgard's Assassin debuted in 2014, it was the third Asgard-centric series Marvel was publishing. The main Thor title was the place for traditional fantasy superheroics. Loki: Agent of Asgard covered the "rascally rogue" angle. So when a third book about their long-lost sister was published, the obvious question was: what could a third book have to offer? As with his previous Asgardian work, Kieron Gillen's fascinating answer to that question comes down to perspective.

When Gillen wrote Thor, the story's perspective was straightforward. Thor is a hero. Villains must be fought. Good prevails. But when he wrote Loki's story in Journey into Mystery, that perspective was flipped around. Loki is the victim of others' perspective. They see him as the villain to be fought, and good prevailing means his defeat. With Angela, then, Gillen introduces a third perspective. What if one had not been raised within a good/evil framework at all? What if one had been raised with a worldview that assigns ultimate moral value to some other dimension of life - say, the concepts of debt and repayment?

That third perspective provides a reason for Angela stories to be told alongside Thor and Loki ones. Though this worldview was previously established in Thor & Loki: The Tenth Realm, Gillen wisely leans into it. The book that he and his collaborators, Phil Jimenez, Marguerite Bennett, and Stephanie Hans create is entirely built to showcase this otherworldly perspective: the perspective of the Angels.

To the Angels, all that matters is settling debts. "Nothing for nothing," as Angela likes to mutter dramatically. The story repeatedly demonstrates that Angels care nothing for concepts like "right" and "wrong." To them, "right" is when everything is square between two parties, and "wrong" is a debt unpaid. This is in stark contrast to the Asgardians: Asgardians often do things not for payment, but for honor (in the words of the Angels, "doing something for nothing"). Because Asgardians hold this as a virtue, the Angels of Heven see them as devils - the worst kind of monsters.

Given this, in constructing a story around Angela's worldview, Gillen makes the bold choice of casting Thor as the primary antagonist. He works hard to justify it: Angela has kidnapped their baby sister, and his pursuit of Angela (and his rage) stem from that. Add to this that Thor, during this period, considered himself unworthy of wielding his own hammer, and you've got a unique set of circumstances that make "Thor as raging villain" actually work. It's a big swing, and it connects.

Another thing that connects is the art. Angela: Asgard's Assassin is an absolutely gorgeous book. Art duties are split between Jimenez and Hans, with Jimenez tackling the main story and Hans illustrating five-page mini-stories (which are co-written by Bennett). Of the two, Jimenez' style is more traditional, but his detailed renderings and creative use of page layouts elevate the work beyond your average superhero book. Hans, however, is the standout. Her painted illustrations are luxurious, luminescent, haunting- they make everything look like a dream, where emotion is the light by which you see. The brief glimpses of her work only make you want more - which, thankfully, readers of future volumes of this series and readers of Gillen's indie work would later get.

However, this brings us to the things about the book that don't work as well. For one: the flashback stories that Hans illustrates, while beautiful, are awkwardly inserted into the middle of the action. In order to justify this, every issue has Angela's companion Sera say something like "This reminds me of a time when..." and then tell a mostly-unrelated story. It stretches credulity to think that Sera is genuinely recalling these stories, as opposed to saying them because the writers need to impart a piece of backstory that will be relevant later. And, more importantly, it interrupts the pacing. These stories would work just fine as backup stories at the end of each issue, but as executed, they hinder rather than help.

Part of the reason for the flashback stories is because the main story begins in medias res. The reader is clueless as why Angela is doing the things she's doing (baby-napping, for example). While this creates a degree of mystery, it also leaves the reader at an unfortunate remove from Angela as a character. Her worldview is interesting and compelling, but we see little emotion from her, and even less personality. She often just comes across as little more than Murder Lady (see also Gamora, a fact which is cutely highlighted in their interactions). One might point to Gillen's Darth Vader series as an example of a removed protagonist working, but Angela isn't Vader. Readers of Darth Vader have, one assumes, already seen the movies and understand what makes him tick. Angela, on the other hand, is being established here for the first time. We need to be made to care about her, and for that to happen, we have to see what she's like.

One Vader-esque trick that does work, however, is giving Angela a Doctor Aphra. Sera not only counterbalances Angela with some much-needed levity - she also provides another view of what the Angelic worldview can look like when applied to a different personality type. Not all Angels are stoic warriors; some are wisecracking flirts who give flaming horses names like "Maximus Clop." Just because you've been raised to see the world through a transactional framework doesn't mean you can't be your own kind of person.

Which brings me to the ending. After six issues gradually learning more and more about Angela's motivations for doing what she's doing, we finally understand. Angela had two debts. Since she was stolen from her Asgardian family as a baby to be raised among Angels, the Asgardians were owed a lost child. However, the Angels, who were facing death at the hands of a malfunctioning power source, were owed for raising Angela. In order to repay these, she stole the Asgardians' newborn child, who had a fiery curse inside of her, and threw her into the Angels' power source. The child's curse burned out and rekindled the power source, ensuring that the Angels would survive. For giving Angela a life, they get to continue living. One debt repaid. And then Angela jumps into the fire, risking her life to rescue her newly curse-free, newly vulnerable baby sister. She returns the child to her parents: as Angela was taken from them, now they have a new child to raise, free of the curse. Two debts repaid.

From one perspective, she was repaying debts; doing what was seen as "right" within her worldview paradigm. From another, she was risking her life to save the people who raised her and to rescue her baby sister. In this beautiful sequence, her moral framework and ours line up, and we can see Angela for who she really is. She is someone who risks everything for what she understands to be right. In other words, though her Angelic morality is alien to us, this moment allows us to see through that to her soul: the soul of a hero.

So, finally, after six issues, we understand what makes Angela tick. Will this allow us to connect with her as a character more in the future? Hopefully a little trip to Hel will allow us the time for introspection we didn't quite get in this outing.

But first, a detour. See you in 1602!

[Alex Sarll]

The first Kieron Gillen comic I didn't buy. Because yes, I follow writers rather than characters, but the none-more-nineties, boobs-and-swords Angela had already proven capable of being uninteresting even when scripted by Neil Gaiman or Al Ewing, and thus created a possible exception to that rule. Alongside co-writer Marguerite Bennett, with whose work I am otherwise unfamiliar, Gillen has at least fixed on an interesting angle for the warrior angel - 'Nothing for nothing. Everything has a price.' And this world of blood-debt and obligation does at times meld with the science fiction Viking angle of Marvel's Asgard cosmology to create something amazing - poetry catching the rhythms of the old sagas as gods clash in crumbling space-cities, lists of grand and impossible deeds, the ominous deployment of the Disir. Plus, the art team design Angela a *slightly* less ridiculous new outfit. But it's just not quite enough. A character with such a simple, primordial engine is more suited to a support role than the lead, so Angela gets edged out by Sera, a fellow-angel who has none of the same ancient simplicity, and instead lapses into a bit of a pastiche of the sassy female leads Gillen normally writes so well*. It always pains me to admit I'm wrong, but after this third strike by another of my favourite comics writers, I have to admit it - at least when it comes to a solo protagonist role, there really are some characters so inherently flat nobody can altogether salvage them.

*I know there are revelations that Sera is not like other angels, but for me none of that explains the lack of surprise other characters show at her distinctly modern manner of speech. "Now give me your cabin or I'll spoil the end of Twin Peaks for you, space boy"?

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I already submerse myself in Asgardian comics, so I figured one more wouldn’t hurt…and I’m always looking for female comic book characters worth their salt. Angela is definitely one of those badass women.

Angela is Thor’s sister, considered to be dead and the reason that no one has heard from the kingdom of Heven in years. Given all the other mythology incorporated into the Marvel universe, it’s kind of cool to see the Angels make a debut…in a really different way. I’m always a fan of angels being portrayed a soldiers, it just makes more sense…but in this they are ruthless mercenaries and believe everything they do comes with a price. To see an Asgardian practicing these same ideals as she leaves Heven, is kind of cool.

Angela is a fairly rigid character, not int hat she doesn’t have depth but in the fact that she’s unyielding in her own ways. I really like her, and her backstory with Sera is definitely one I want to see more on.

I went back and forth on the art for this one though. Sometimes the style was gorgeous and really got the danger across in it’s bold and rough style…and other times you see a panel and wonder when Angela had time for plastic surgery.

Overall it’s a pretty good series, and I look forward to seeing what else becomes of this character.

[Ronald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ugh! This had such potential. A couple of strong women against the gods.
But their motivation was weirdly creepily evil and every chapter (single comic) repeated Angela's absurd sense of honor. She was determined to "balance" scales in a never get or give anything for free. You might think the Ferengi of Star Trek fame were bad about talking and talking about their rules. It got old fast especially when Angela bullies a Human child on Earth over a wayward soccer ball. The monologue took four pages and so long in story time that Thor and the others hunter Angela caught up. In the end she was actually doing something for nothing even though she spent the entire book talking about the value of "balance". The balance was something only in her head as her honor. I don't know it got old and felt like the writers were giving less than lip service to the character and her belief. In the end this was just another comic with a female lead in an impractical chain mail bikini. OK so it might be plate mail but it was still not a full suit you would put on a man until much later in the story.

[sassafrass · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS WAS SO MUCH FUN!!!

I had only a vague knowledge of who Angela was and picked this comic up on a random spur of the moment impulse at the library but gosh was it so worth it. Angela is a stone cold badass, the banter between the Odin family was hysterical, and Angela's relationship with Sera (a trans woman who is clearly in lesbians with Angela) IS SO FANTASTIC. Teen!Loki is my guilty pleasure and he was on top form in this comic, being a useless pain in the ass that serves only to make me giggle.

The only thing I can honestly complain about is Angela's costume. She's supposed to come from a space version of the valkryies but is wearing some kind of chainmail bra and a belt for underwear. She gets a more badass costume (FULL ARMOUR WITH WINGS!!! WINGS!!!) later on but I was still grimacing at the first outfit.

Either way I had fun and want to read more about Angela going into Hel to rescue her gf.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's joyful to see Gillen writing Asgardian comics again, and though this is no Journey Into Mystery, it's still pretty great. Gilles offers strong characterization for Angela, better than any of her previous Marvel appearances; he also helps us to believe the relationship between Asgard and Heven. Meanwhile, we get nice bits from Gillen's past Asgardian writing, like the Disir.

But there's so much more to love in this. There's the return of the Guardians, as Gillen pays homage to all of Angela's (Marvel) origins. There's the secret of Sera's return. There's piles of humor. And finally there's an awesome conclusion that makes me want to jump straight to Angela, Queen of Hel.

But Asgard's Assassin!? What's up with that??

[Silas · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've tried to give Angela's integration into the Marvel universe the benefit of the doubt, but it just isn't working for me. Heven as a tenth realm just doesn't make sense, particularly since it so resembles something that people in the actual universe believe in (despite an enchantment making it so nobody can remember it). The story has issues, as well, with some very different interpretations of characters who have appeared many times before, not the least of which is the Odinson, himself. This just isn't very good, and it's kind of a bummer.

[Wolverina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is excellent.

The concept is pretty solid grounds: fierce red haired sword & sorcery style warrior woman BUT she's an angel in space. That trolls Thor for most of the book.

Gillians sort of chaotic narrative style is a lot more controlled than his other Asgard-ish books too. Cowriter suits him? Or I'm getting better at reading that style? Less of Loki angsting about what he actually is? It's a winner anyway.

Fucking perfect book is perfect.