Angel season 6

[TheCorpulent1]

Angel: After the Fall #11
I'm about a hair's breadth away from dropping this book. I don't know what else to say. Ever since First Night began, the quality just ****ing plummeted, and we're sitting pretty in rock bottom right now. That I paid actual money for this issue, with its unintelligible script and horrific artwork even moreso than the unintelligible horrors of the last issue, is a shameful mark on my near-spotless record of not paying money for comics that suck ass.

This needed to be good. The plot with Gunn needed to be more than rock solid, and it wasn't. It was stilted, weird, and underwhelming. Blah blah visions blah blah something else blah evil blah. And we didn't even have any of the quirky humor that saved a lot of the prior issues. All we have is maddeningly decrepit dialogue that makes everyone sound like drugged-out asylum patients and half-finished artwork that makes them look it. And the story at this point is just fanfic. I'm sorry, it just...what the hell.

The next issue had better be Olympic gold, or I'm off. I wish I could say that I would miss the series a lot, and maybe a few months ago I would've...but now, on the grand scale of things, not that big a loss.

(3 out of 10)

I didn't think it was quite as bad as you did, but yeah, the series is really suffering from bad creators all around. Runge is capable of great artwork, but I guess he hasn't had the time to bring his A-game on Angel because it's really, truly horrendous. Not since David Hedgecock started stinking up the pages of SLG's Gargoyles have I seen art so terrible and amateurish on a professional comic. The Gunn reveal was--surprise, surprise--about as awful as those of us who've seen the sidekick-turns-evil plot a million times before knew it would be. This issue was so bad it even made me annoyed with the Angel-as-human subplot, and I loved that when they introduced it.

The whole series seems so scattershot and awkward now, like Lynch is just running down a list of plot points Whedon gave him, but he somehow tore the list up and now has no idea how to sew those points together into a cohesive story. It's sad. I almost want to drop it, but I really, really loved Angel's show and I still want to know what happens next. Another issue or two of this, though, and it won't matter. I'll gladly drop it just to keep myself from tearing each new issue to shreds.

 

[Harlekin]

With the way the series is right now, I'll be glad when it ends at #15.

 

[Jennifer Walters]

It won't end at 15 though. It's still IDW's best seller. No way they won't try to continue it in some form.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Well, they have to go through Whedon to keep publishing After the Fall, at least. They might switch to more out-of-continuity Angel stories like they were publishing before, but as far as official canon goes, whatever Whedon says goes.

 

[BrianWilly]

I didn't think it was quite as bad as you did

horrendous

terrible and amateurish

awful

This issue was so bad

The whole series seems so scattershot and awkward now

It sounds like you thought it was exactly as bad as I did.

 

[El Bastardo]

Only when you cherry-pick!

 

[Harlekin]

It won't end at 15 though. It's still IDW's best seller. No way they won't try to continue it in some form.

If it ends up not doing so, I'll drop it.

 

[Senshi]

So I haven't bought an issue of this since Fred came back right before the First Night arc started. From the sounds of it I did myself a favor. I do want to get caught up though and I feel obligated to continue supporting this because, let's face it, Angel got shafted. Should never have gotten canceled in season five. But I digress. Are any issues after Fred resurfaces worth buying? Should I get the TPB? Or should I avoid this like the pits of Tarkna?

 

[Harlekin]

Thank God for issue #12. It made the last few issues bearable and will keep me buying, even though I still hope they have the good sense to end it at #15.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I haven't read it, but I'm glad it's better than the last few. Christ, those were bad.

 

[Harlekin]

Yep. This issue kinda saved the book for me.

 

[CBG]

Holy crap at the Shanshu Propechy vision.

WTF?

 

[Sawyer]

What happened, y'alls?

 

[TheCorpulent1]

It was actually pretty good. And, much to my astonishment, the art didn't suck.

 

[Manic]

"Marsha Marsha Marsha!"
--Charles Gunn

This issue is definitely a step up from the decline this book has been on since "First Night."

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Yeah, I think part of the reason I enjoyed it is because Wesley basically called Gunn on how petty his stupid problems were.

 

[Manic]

I still have my doubts about Cordy's ghost, by the way. She couldn't manage to do more than move some tree branches before, but now she can appear before Angel just because he's dead?

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I'm still suspicious of pretty much everything, given that they're all still on Wolfram & Hart's home turf.

 

[Jennifer Walters]

I though #12 was much better. And by the way...it's been announced it won't end at 15#. It'll become Angel: Aftermath after that issue.

 

[Harlekin]

Ah, but that's a 6-issue mini.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Link or it didn't happen.

 

[Harlekin]

http://www.whedon.info/Kelley-Armstrong-Angel-Aftermath.html

 

[iamlegend]

Good riddance.

The plot is falling to pieces.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

http://www.whedon.info/Kelley-Armstrong-Angel-Aftermath.html

Here's hoping IDW hires a better artist this time around. Hopefully they can keep Mooney around for either this or Lynch's post-After the Fall story.

I'm glad they're continuing the story at all, though. While After the Fall has oscillated between terrible and interesting, I think Angel's still got a lot of good stories left in him. They just need to not stray so far from the core formula that worked for the TV series: Angel and a group of companions kicking evil's ass while fighting their own moral ambiguity.

 

[SouLeSS]

I dropped the **** out of this 6 issues in. Smart move, or...?