Brian Lynch (1) (1973–)

Summary: Gunn, now unsure of the source of his visions, is trying to get things back to the way they were before everything went to Hell - by killing Angel. And Angel, now that he's seen the outcome of the Shanshu Prophecy and his own role in the Apocalypse, is more than willing to let him. But of course Wolfram & Hart aren't going to let things go down like that, and while the gang thinks they may have figured out a way to get themselves out of hell, things are going to get messy - and more show more than a little deadly - before they do.

Review: I like this one. I liked this one a lot. Well, a lot better than the first three volumes, at least. It does an excellent job of explaining what the heck's going on, of tying together loose ends, of bringing things to a satisfying end, and of leaving enough open questions to fuel the start of a new story arc. There were also a lot of really good - and really touching - character moments, even for characters that I don't normally care that much about. All in all, while I don't think Angel: After the Fall is going to be knocking Buffy Season 8 off its pedestal any time soon, this final volume did make me appreciate the cool directions in which Whedon & Lynch had been taking the story, and brought the whole thing together better than I had expected. 4 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: The best of the series, I think, and it definitely helps to make sense of what's come before. show less

I love Spike. He's my favorite Buffy character next to Willow. However, I was a little disappointed with this spin-off series. And despite the claim in the synopsis, I have not viewed the events in Angel: After the Fall any differently. It just explains how Spike got to the position he was in at the beginning of A:ATF.

While the dialogue was pretty faithful for the characters that we know so well, I found that the story was lacking that thought provoking and sometimes heart-wrenching aspect show more that I have grown accustomed to with anything Buffy/Joss Whedon related. It was a pretty generic storyline with cameos by other key characters that didn't need to happen and felt like a desperate attempt to keep our interest. Also, I actually became a little more confused about the situation with Gunn because of these cameos since he popped up at some point and then kind of disappeared. I felt like some background on him would have cleared up some lingering questions, but his cameo failed to do that and left me disappointed. I also felt that the moments the story was getting deeper emotionally became cliche and slightly overdone. I missed the subtlety that I've come to love from the Buffyverse.

Since it is a graphic novel, I feel that a note should be made on the art. However, other than saying that the art was just fine, there really isn't much to say. The characters looked much like the actors, which is a plus, and the new characters were drawn pretty well. Nothing overtly distracting, but also not anything particularly new or stunning.

Basically, it was all right. If you really want to know Spike's story right after everything goes to hell (literally) than go ahead and give this a read. However, it won't change A:ATF for you very much, and the whole story honestly could have been explained in a couple of panels in A:ATF. It didn't really need a whole series, even though you can never have enough Spike. show less

If you haven't seen the fifth season of Angel, don't read this review. ANGEL: AFTER THE FALL is the first story arc of season six of the television series, and in reviewing it I'm going to assume that you know how the series ended.

That said:

ANGEL: AFTER THE FALL begins about two months after the end of the TV series. Wolfram & Hart has plunged Los Angeles into Hell. Angel has broken away from his gang and is moping away all by his lonesome, until an old friend encourages him to take the show more first step along the path towards becoming what he once was.

I've been very impressed with all Joss Whedon's comic book series continuations thus far, and this one is no exception. It's another strong offering from a talented creative team. Lynch's dialogue is spot-on; he's captured the cadence and rhythm of each character's speech so perfectly that you can hear the actors in your head as you read. Urru's artwork is clear and precise; almost everyone is instantly recognizable. (I had some problems with Gwen and Nina). The paneling is dynamic, and helps the story flow along smooth as you please.

And the story itself? It's classic Angel. It's tense and exciting, funny and heartwrenching. Sometimes it's bloody difficult to read. Lynch and Whedon take the world we think we know and turn it upside down. They surprise us. They shock us. They make us laugh. They reaffirm our belief in these characters and their story. And they take us on one hell of a ride.

I'm reluctant to say much more than that, as so much of my own enjoyment of the book stemmed from all the little surprises that cropped up. Suffice it to say that I highly recommend this to Angel fans. Others, you'd do better to watch the series before jumping on in.

(I've also got a longer, ramblier review up on my blog, Stella Matutina). show less

Not where I had expected the storyline to go... In a post-apocalyptic Los Angeles which has been sucked into hell, the cast of Angel are still fighting the good fight... kind of. Really interesting continuation of the show, though I wish that Whedon et al had decided to go with traditional novels instead of graphic novels. It's great of see everything visually but it's such a character driven storyline that I think it might have been stronger with just words.