''Azrael'' was an American
comic book
A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
ongoing series
In comics, an ongoing series is a series that runs indefinitely. This is in contrast to limited series (a series intended to end after a certain number of issues thus limited), a one shot (a comic book which is not a part of an ongoing series), ...
, published by
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
based on the character
Azrael
Azrael (; , 'God has helped'; ) is the angel of death in some Abrahamic religions, namely Islam, Christian popular culture and some traditions of Judaism. He is also referenced in Sikhism.
Relative to similar concepts of such beings, Azrael ...
. The name, inspired by the Judaic
Angel of Death,
is primarily associated with two characters: Jean-Paul Valley and Michael Lane. Valley was primarily featured between 1992 and 2003, while Lane was the star of a comics series which ran from 2009 to 2011.
Publication history
''Batman: Sword of Azrael''
Azrael made his debut in a
limited series Limited series may refer to:
*Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series
*Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered
*Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...
called ''Batman: Sword of Azrael'', in which he was introduced as a mild-mannered college student named Jean-Paul Valley, who becomes an assassin and acts on the will of a religious cult known as the Order of St. Dumas. His father, Ludovic Valley, had carried out the duties of the role until suffering severe gunshot wounds at the hands of a weapons-dealer named Carlton LeHah, at which point he was able to contact Jean-Paul and on his deathbed reveal that he had been brainwashing his son in preparation for the role since birth, unbeknownst to Jean-Paul himself. Jean-Paul is then escorted by a dwarf named Nomoz to a property in Switzerland which belongs to the Order, where Jean-Paul is to be more fully prepared to assume the role his father had failed. Jean-Paul's entire personality disappears as soon as he places Azrael's helmet on his head, and he begins to believe he is an actual avenging angel, as opposed to a man dressed like one. He is sent by Nomoz on an assassination mission, but over the course of the mission Jean-Paul gradually gains more and more control over the Azrael mindset, which Nomoz calls "The System". At one point, he finds Batman in a life-threatening situation, and actually risks his own life to save Batman's. Nomoz is angered and claims "Azrael does not protect", to which Batman replies "Maybe this one does". Although Azrael is an assassin, Batman recognizes his potential as a crimefighter and attempts to dissuade him from taking lives. At the end of the series, Batman offers Jean-Paul the opportunity to join the Bat-Family and return to Gotham to be trained in the Batcave.
''Knightfall, Knightquest, and KnightsEnd''
Prior to ''Knightfall'', Azrael has accepted Batman's offer and has been accompanying
Robin on missions around Gotham City. When the villain
Bane
Bane may refer to:
Fictional characters
* Bane (DC Comics), an adversary of Batman
* Bane (''Harry Potter''), a centaur in the ''Harry Potter'' series
* Bane (''The Matrix''), a character in the ''Matrix'' film trilogy
* Bane the Druid, a Gu ...
frees all the inmates from Arkham Asylum, Azrael assists with the clean-up effort. Batman eventually becomes so exhausted by fighting villains throughout the city that he is finally defeated by Bane in combat, and suffers a broken back in the process. After suffering such a severe injury, Batman realizes that he will not be able to carry on his duties as the protector of Gotham, but that Gotham needs a Batman, especially in the midst of a crime wave. Reasoning that the current Robin (
Tim Drake
Timothy Jackson "Tim" Drake is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Marv Wolfman and Pat Broderick, he first appeared in Batman: Year Three, ''Batman' ...
) is too young to protect Gotham on his own, and that the original Robin (Dick Grayson) is now acting as
Nightwing
Nightwing is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character has appeared in various incarnations; the identity was adopted by Dick Grayson when he left his role as Batman's vigilante partner Robin.
Although ...
in the city of Bludhaven and would be unwilling to return to Gotham to play the role of Batman, he turns to Jean-Paul and asks him to fill in as Batman, under one condition: He must avoid taking on Bane. Azrael agrees, and begins wearing the Batman costume while patrolling the city with Robin.
Over time, Azrael begins to display a violent recklessness and a willingness for independence from Robin's guidance. Under the influence of "The System", Azrael designs vicious new gloves for the Batsuit, which feature sharp metal claws and a mechanism for launching Batarangs at high speed. Robin does not approve of the brutal fighting methods which Azrael is employing, and Azrael responds to the criticism by choking Robin and telling him he is no longer welcome in the Batcave. Now acting on his own, Azrael becomes increasingly violent and seems to be losing his sanity, experiencing hallucinations of his father and of St. Dumas himself. Azrael becomes quite conceited and believes himself superior to the original Batman, even directly disobeying Bruce's only condition by fighting Bane one-on-one, and actually manages to defeat him by utilizing an all-new Batsuit which features heavy armor and a Bat-signal spotlight on the chestplate. His defeat of Bane gives him a false confidence in his abilities, and erodes his conscience as he believes himself above any questions of morality as long as the job is getting done, leading him to actually begin killing villains. Bruce hears news of this from Tim Drake while assisting the
Justice League
The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...
with rescuing Drake's father, who had been abducted. Bruce is shocked and disgusted that the name of the Batman is being used this way, and determines he must return to Gotham and take the title back from Azrael. When he has finally recovered and trained his body back into physical fitness, he returns to Gotham and asks Azrael to give up the Batsuit. Azrael refuses, and they resort to combat. Bruce is finally able to defeat Azrael by forcing him to remove his mask, at which point the Jean-Paul Valley personality regains control and expresses contrition, acknowledging Bruce as the one true Batman. Bruce forgives him, but claims he can no longer trust him, so he cannot stay in the Batcave. Jean-Paul then leaves the Batcave in shame.
''Azrael''
The first ''Azrael''
ongoing series
In comics, an ongoing series is a series that runs indefinitely. This is in contrast to limited series (a series intended to end after a certain number of issues thus limited), a one shot (a comic book which is not a part of an ongoing series), ...
shows Azrael's (Jean-Paul Valley) battles against the Order of St. Dumas, and ran for 100 issues between February 1995 and May 2003.
Following the events of ''
Batman: Sword of Azrael'' and ''
Batman: Knightfall'', neither Jean-Paul nor Azrael is seen again in a comic book for several months until Jean-Paul finally re-appears as a homeless man wandering the streets of Gotham in a psychotic state. In ''Azrael'' #1, he successfully defends a fellow homeless man from an attack from several men who are attempting to take his shoes. When the man expresses gratitude, Jean-Paul reveals a state of confusion. The homeless man introduces himself as Dr. Brian Bryan, an unemployed alcoholic, and the self-proclaimed "worst psychiatrist in the world". Despite this admission, Bryan does what he can to try to help Jean-Paul return to a healthy mind, forming the basis of a friendship that will last for the duration of the series.
Later, Bruce Wayne begins to feel guilt for abandoning Jean-Paul, and tracks him down in order to give him financial funding so that he can take care of himself.
Acting on Bruce's suggestion, Azrael begins to more fully investigate his origins, returning to Europe to meet the Order of St. Dumas. After befriending a beautiful girl called Sister Lilhy who had been raised by the Order of St. Dumas, she helps him learn some of the secret background of the Order. He discovers that the Order of St. Dumas was a faction of
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
knights that had splintered from the
Knights Templar
, colors = White mantle with a red cross
, colors_label = Attire
, march =
, mascot = Two knights riding a single horse
, equipment ...
during the
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...
, and was named for their leader, a violent knight named Dumas, whom "no one else ever accused of being a saint". The Order had developed over the centuries into an extremist cult-like organization and had built a number of fortresses all over the world, where they conducted secretive genetic experiments and trained elite assassins. With the assistance of Lilhy and Bryan, Azrael tracks down one of the Order's main strongholds, and destroys it after reuniting with his former mentor Nomoz and inciting a riot by the Order's dwarves, who had been serving as slaves to the Order. While exploring the Order's fortress, he finds that he is one of a long line of genetically-engineered Azraels, and that the Order has already replaced him with another Azrael since he has gone rogue.
After returning to American soil, Azrael gradually rebuilds his relationship with Batman. Starting with issue #47, the series was retitled ''Azrael: Agent of the Bat'' and played a major role in the
''No Man's Land'' storyline.
Starting with issue #50, he changes to a considerably different costume, and experiments with a few other costumes, even briefly returning to a version of his Batman-style costume from ''Knightquest'' and ''KnightsEnd'', before finally settling on his original costume in the final issues of the series. Azrael battles supposed
hallucination
A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the qualities of a real perception. Hallucinations are vivid, substantial, and are perceived to be located in external objective space. Hallucination is a combinatio ...
s that are supposed to represent both his father and the creator of the order that spawned him, St. Dumas. Toward the end of the series, Azrael is plagued by apparently
supernatural
Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...
occurrences in the form of possible
miracle
A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...
s.
Azrael is seemingly killed in the series' final issue, shot with two specially-coated bullets while battling archenemies Nicholas Scratch and Carlton Lehah. However, his body is never recovered.
He makes an appearance during "Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?"; the story is out of continuity, or takes place on multiple different earths. The ''
Blackest Night
"Blackest Night" is a 2009–10 American comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous central miniseries, written by Geoff Johns and penciled by Ivan Reis, along with a number of tie-in issues. ''Blackest Nig ...
'' crossover features a resurrected Jean-Paul Valley, suggesting he did indeed die.
Three annual editions of Azrael (''Azrael Annual'') were also published, depicting other stories, such as the one of his father in ''Azrael Annual'' #1 (Year One).
''Azrael: Death's Dark Knight''
''Azrael: Death's Dark Knight'' was a
miniseries
A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...
(written by Fabian Nicieza, with art by
Frazer Irving
Frazer Irving (born 1970) is a British comic book artist known for the series '' Necronauts'', published by the British magazine '' 2000 AD''. After breaking into the American market he has worked on a number of superhero titles, including a s ...
, May - July 2009), taking place within the ''
Battle for the Cowl
"Batman: Battle for the Cowl" is a 2009 comic book storyline published by DC comics, consisting of an eponymous, three issue miniseries written and penciled by Tony Daniel, as well as a number of tie-in books. The central story details the chaos in ...
'' storyline, in which an African-American ex-cop named Michael Washington Lane is approached by a religious sect called the Order of Purity to claim the mantle of Azrael after the Order's most recent Azrael went mad and killed an undercover police officer. When he takes this opportunity to serve his ideal of justice, he is offered three items by the Order of Purity: The Suit of Sorrows, The Sword of Sin, and The Sword of Salvation. Lane initially is told very little by the members of the Order of Purity, beyond that the Order of Purity is a secret religious order which had splintered from the Order of St. Dumas, which itself had splintered from the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
during
the Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were i ...
.
The Suit of Sorrows had been created by the Order of Purity to be used by their first Azrael, who had been intended as a rival to the Order of St. Dumas' enforcer of the same name. This suit of armor had at some point fallen into the hands of
Ra's al Ghul
Ra's al Ghul, commonly pronounced correctly as ''Re'sh'', hence or ; "The Head of the Demon" or, in a rougher translation, "The Chief Demon". is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary o ...
, and remained in the possession of his
League of Assassins
The League of Assassins (sometimes renamed the League of Shadows or Society of Shadows in adapted works) is a group of supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The group is depicted as a collective of assassins who ...
for several centuries until Batman added it to his collection during the ''
Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul'' storyline. The suit mysteriously vanished from the Batcave during the subsequent ''
Batman: R.I.P.'' storyline, and shortly thereafter was returned to its original owners, the Order of Purity.
The Sword of Sin, Lane's preferred sword, was a sword of yellow flames which had the ability to bring to the minds of its victims memories of their sins and the guilt accompanying these sins.
The Sword of Salvation was a sword of blue ice which had the ability to coerce its victims into telling the truth, although it was unable to harm anyone who was innocent.
When the Order of Purity is attacked by seven assassins led by
Talia al Ghul
Talia al Ghul ( ar, تاليا الغول; ) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Batman. The character was created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Bob Brown, and fir ...
, Azrael dons the suit and takes up the swords in an effort to impede their mission to retake these items for Ra's al Ghul. The background and narrative that is outlined in the ''Azrael: Death's Dark Knight'' is expanded further by Nicieza in a two-part story written that crossed between ''Batman Annual'' #27 and ''Detective Comics Annual'' #11. In this story, the character teams up with Batman and Robin in an attempt to thwart an ancient demonic cult from sacrificing seven children in an effort to resurrect the embodiment of the eighth deadly sin.
''Azrael'' (Volume 2)
The second ''Azrael'' ongoing series picks up where ''Death's Dark Knight'' left off, with former police officer Michael Lane now as the titular protagonist of the series. This series had a darker and more serious tone than the previous ''Azrael'' series, as it investigated deep philosophical themes such as morality versus justice, and "greater good" versus "absolute good". The first issue of the second ongoing series (Vol. 2) has a cover date of Dec '09 and was released in October 2009.
IGN: Azrael Vol. 2 Pictures
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
, October 20, 2009 During the course of this series, the history of the Order of Purity and the three mystical items which they have bestowed upon Lane is gradually revealed. Lane discovers that the Suit of Sorrows and the accompanying swords absorb part of the soul of every human that uses these items or is killed by them. Since these artifacts have been in use for several centuries, they contain a multitude of personalities, both good and evil, who communicate with Lane and appeal to him to act in different ways. This characteristic of the armor and swords has had the effect of causing every previous Azrael in the Order of Purity's history to have descended to insanity, although in varying lengths of time. Thus, Lane finds it increasingly difficult to resist these voices and maintain his mental health, especially as he was already struggling with symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, due to the violent deaths of most of his family members. Lane gradually loses trust in the Order of Purity as he discovers how much information they have been withholding from him. Lane's trust in his supervisors within the Order of Purity is further eroded after he learns that they deny some of the most fundamental tenets of the Christian religion, such as the divinity of Christ and his death and resurrection. Lane's faith in his traditional Catholic teachings as a child cause him to debate whether he should place his trust in such an organization that claims Jesus
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
was still alive when he was removed from the cross and buried, or if he should betray them. He delays his decision and continues serving them as he attempts to apprehend a serial killer who is systematically murdering members of the Order of Purity in ways inspired by the martyrdom of several Christian saints. He remains loyal to the Order until he finally meets the man responsible for the murders, a devoutly religious metahuman
In DC Comics' DC Universe, a metahuman is a human with superpowers. The term is roughly synonymous with both ''mutant'' and ''mutate'' in the Marvel Universe and '' posthuman'' in the Wildstorm and Ultimate Marvel Universes. In DC Comics, the term ...
called The Crusader, and realizes he has more in common with this man than with the Order. Azrael then joins forces with The Crusader on a mission to "cleanse" Gotham City of all its sinners, a la Sodom and Gomorrah
Sodom and Gomorrah () were two legendary biblical cities destroyed by God for their wickedness. Their story parallels the Genesis flood narrative in its theme of God's anger provoked by man's sin (see Genesis 19:1–28). They are mentioned frequ ...
. The series ended at issue #18 in May 2011, although the character Azrael remained active in other series such as ''Batman'' and ''Red Robin'' until October 2011.
In September 2011, The New 52
The New 52 is the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic books. Following the conclusion of the " Flashpoint" crossover storyline, DC canceled all its existing titles and debuted 52 new serie ...
rebooted DC's continuity. In this new timeline, while the ''Azrael'' series has not returned, the Michael Lane Azrael has been re-introduced since, first appearing in issue #10 of ''Batman Incorporated'' (vol. 2) in June 2013.
Collected editions
* ''Batman: No Man's Land Vol. 1'' (''Azrael: Agent of the Bat'' #51-55)
* ''Batman: No Man's Land Vol. 2'' (''Azrael: Agent of the Bat'' #56-57)
* ''Batman: No Man's Land Vol. 3'' (''Azrael: Agent of the Bat'' #58)
* ''Batman: No Man's Land Vol. 4'' (''Azrael: Agent of the Bat'' #59-61)
* ''Azrael: Death's Dark Knight'' (collects #1-3, ''Detective Comics Annual'' #11 and ''Batman Annual'' #27)
* ''Azrael: Angel in the Dark'' (collects Vol. 2 #1-6)
* ''Azrael: Killer of Saints'' (collects Vol. 2 #7-13) (cancelled)
* ''Batman: Gotham Shall Be Judged'' (collects Vol. 2 #14-18)
Notes
References
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External links
World of Black Heroes: Azrael Michael Washington Lane Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Azrael (Comic Book)
1995 comics debuts