A review by emily_m_green
Angel Vol. 1, Volume 1: Being Human by Bryan Hill

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Thank you to the Fort Vancouver Regional Library for making Angel: Being Human by Bryan Edward Hill, Gleb Melnikov, Gabriel Cassata, and Roman Titov free and not just available to the public, but providing the service of the bookmobile, which brings books to the rural community where I teach. 

In Angel Volume 1: Being Human Angel is fighting demons who prey on adolescents, one in particular who contacts teenagers through social media and appeals to their desire to be attractive and admired. Angel is visited by Lilith, who comes to warn and help him. She also leads him to Winifred, who I am guessing will be the same Fred from the Angel television show. There is another thread that includes Angel siring Marius, who had formerly hunted vampires. A big part of the volume is concerned with Angel feeling guilty for past sins and trying to atone. 

I have read a lot of Buffyverse comics. I am not sure how many, but quite a few. Some were meh and some pretty good. This volume is closer to pretty good than meh and the drawings are decent. 

I cannot help but make a connection between Angel and all the men who have recently been exposed as wielding their power to get away with everything from harassment to sexual assault to blackballing women. Though I am not so sure how many of the guilty are actually remorseful or have regained their souls, the idea of having to atone for the amount and scope of harm is quite an interesting question. How does one right that level of harm? After destroying the lives of so many women, is there a path toward healing?

For the Angel in this volume, self-flagellation is unending and to the point of making his efforts at fighting less effective than they could be. The book encourages empathy for Angel, and the audience knows Angel’s evil deeds only as flashbacks and is more familiar and connected to his changed self. 

Would I teach this book? While this volume is better than mid, it is difficult to teach a volume of a series. It is easier to teach a first volume because its job is to introduce the conflicts and characters. I can see teaching a course on the first volume of comic book series (that would be a lot of fun) but even so, I do not see this volume as strong enough to teach. On a completely side note, the variant covers in the back of the book are amazingly emo. Like, extraordinarily.