Angel

Hey Strangers,

I’ve been officially under a "no comment" rule until now, but that’s been lifted so I get to give you the news before it goes out to the world press...

For Immediate Release

IDW Heralds the Returns of Angel to Comics Joss Whedon’s Classic Character Returns in the Five-Issue Miniseries, The Curse

San Diego, CA, February 5, 2005-Last time we saw Angel, things didn’t look too good for him. His TV show was ending, his comics had stopped and he faced seemingly insurmountable odds.

But he wouldn’t be Angel if he didn’t battle his way back to the forefront.

Angel, who originally built his fan base when he appeared on Buffy The Vampire Slayer, before spinning off to his own successful TV show, is a man in conflict. With his own vampiric side, as well as with the seedier elements of the supernatural world. One of the reasons Angel has been able to survive for so long is that he’s been surrounded by a support team of friends and fellow warriors.

Until now, that is.

IDW Publishing returns Angel to comics in Angel: The Curse, the first five-issue Angel miniseries that sees him going it alone. Angel is on the run in a mysterious forest in Romania, searching for the Gypsy clan that cursed him so many years ago. But he discovers that the landscape of Romania has changed considerably since he’s been gone-now, the Gypsies are oppressed, living under the thumb of a local warlord who holds his power by using a vampire army. Angel is forced to take a stand, and the resulting conflict may well doom any hope Angel has of ever reversing the curse.

The Curse, the first of many Angel books planned by IDW, will be written by popular Angel novelist (and former IDW editor-in-chief) Jeff Mariotte. Mariotte has written more Angel novels than any other writer, and co-wrote the first official behind-the-scenes series companion The Angel Casefiles, Vol. 1. Italian artist David Messina provides brilliant visuals, perfectly capturing the familiar characters. All five issues of the miniseries will feature exciting variant covers from renowned artists like Tim Bradstreet, Igor Kordey, Jill Thompson, Criss Cross, Ben Templesmith, each offering up their unique interpretation of the characters.

“To be asked to continue the story of Angel, after five seasons on TV (not to mention dozens of books and comics) is really an honor,” writer Jeff Mariotte said. “Angel fans have been wondering where and how the vampire-with-a-soul’s story would go from the series finale, which left Angel and friends in a pretty tight spot. I’ve been wondering too, but now I get to tell the tale myself, with direct input from Joss himself. What could be cooler?”

Angel: The Curse is a five-issue miniseries debuting in June.

IDW PUBLISHING is a division of Idea + Design Works, LLC, a revolutionary creative service company with a wide range of clients including The Upper Deck Company, Electronic Arts, Ultima Online, WizKids, Cartoon Network, Sony Online Entertainment, Nickelodeon, and many more. IDW Publishing focuses on a small number of high-quality titles. Among them are CBS’s CSI: Crime Scene Investigation; Steve Niles and Ben Templesmith’s 30 Days of Night and its sequels, Dark Days and Return to Barrow; Ashley Wood’s Lore; CVO: Covert Vampiric Operations; Beau Smith’s Wynonna Earp; and Steve Niles’ Wake The Dead. Columbia Pictures has optioned the movie rights to 30 Days of Night, with Sam Raimi attached to produce. Konami is producing a video game based on CVO: Covert Vampiric Operations. Dimension Films has optioned the movie rights to Wake The Dead and Hyde. Paramount Pictures has optioned the movie rights to Aleister Arcane.

I hope you’ll check it out!

This miniseries focuses primarily on Angel, because the rest of the (surviving to the season 5 finale) team members aren’t in Romania with him. But there will be some flashback action. We have free rein to use the whole cast, and will be doing so in minis and one-shots yet to come.