 More information on this character is available here: Angela. |
- "Oh, poor little Hellspawn. You have been Hunted...Now you'll never be a captain in the Army of the Malebolgia."
- —Angela
Angela is an angel and a hunter of Hellspawn. She is first introduced in Spawn issue #9 and is the first Angel to be introduced in the series. A beautiful woman, fit with long red locks and a perfect figure, she is a recurring character in the Spawn Universe. Albeit cocky, she is very, very good at what she does.
History[]
- See the Image Comics Angela page for a complete biography.
In her first appearance, her story introduces Spawn #9 as she is shown in a time 800 years past where she has disguising herself as a distressed maiden. When the knightly Medieval Hellspawn passes by on his steed he offers help. Angela explains that she has been in an encounter with an ogre and the creature took her sister back to its cave under the waterfall. With eagerness the Hellspawn gallops across the glen to the supposed cave. Angela insists on following him inside as she is ‘familiar with the cavern’. When they are deep in its crevices, she transforms and initiates combat with the knight in a formidable battle. In the end, with the help of her Dimensional Lance, she is able to kill the Hellspawn and collect her trophy.[1]
She later would go on to assist Spawn in fighting Malebolgia where she met her ultimate doom. She was killed by Malebolgia when she turned her back on the devil which triggered Spawn into a rage. Spawn killed Malebolgia as retribution and then returned Angela's bodies to Heaven for her soul to be put to rest.[2]
Legal Issues[]
Neil Gaiman was one of the authors that was contracted to write an issue of Spawn. While doing so, he introduced Angela, Cogliostro, and Medieval Spawn in Spawn #9, with Todd McFarlane co-creating and designing them. According to a report by ICv2, a transfer of rights was supposed to happen on July 31, 1997 where Gaiman's rights in the characters and work he did for the Spawn and Angela comics would be swapped with McFarlane's Miracleman rights, after the payment of money owed to Gaiman. However, in October of 1997, McFarlane filed trademark applications for Miracleman.[3] In 2002, Gaiman would file a lawsuit, with the jury asking whether Gaiman had a copyright interest over the three characters created for Spawn #9, amongst other issues. The jury would hand the victory over to Gaiman.[4][5]
In 2010, Gaiman would allege that McFarlane's Dark Ages Spawn, Domina and Tiffany are derivative of the characters that he owns. The judge would rule in favour of Gaiman,[6] with the judge stating, specifically in the case of Domina and Tiffany:
"Domina and Tiffany are mere variations of the Angela character: members of the phalanx of Heaven’s angels, “kick-ass warrior angels,” conceived by plaintiff and defendant. Like Angela, Domina and Tiffany fight Hellspawns and other demons of Hell. Like her, they wear provocative and scanty costumes and glamorous hairstyles. Their family resemblance is evident. They are not identical to Angela, but substantially similar. Certainly they are similar enough to be infringing if they had been produced and sold by someone other than the copyright owners. The totality of their attributes and traits, that is, their visual appearance, their costumes, their manner of speaking, their activities and their common origin (Heaven’s angelic phalanx), mark them as derivative of Angela. Domina and Tiffany capture the “total concept and feel” of Angela, and are recognizable immediately by Spawn fans as warrior angels destined to fight Hellspawn."[7]
In 2012, the legal issue would finally be settled,[8] and—according to Todd McFarlane—Gaiman would receive the rights of Angela.[9] Gaiman would return to Marvel in 2013, bringing Angela with him. She made her Marvel Comics debut in Marvel's Age of Ultron mini series.[10] Furthermore, it was later confirmed that Marvel had bought the rights of Angela from Gaiman.[11]
Appearances[]
Other Media[]
Trivia[]
- Since the rights of Angela now belong to Marvel, an alternate version of Angela with a different backstory has since appeared in Marvel's own comics, with Marvel's Angela now being an Asgardian named Aldrif Odinsdottir who was taken away from her parents, Odin and Freyja, and was raised in a realm known as "Heven".
Gallery[]
Todd McFarlane's Spawn: The Video Game[]
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References[]
- ↑ Spawn #9
- ↑ Spawn #100
- ↑ "Why Gaiman Sued McFarlane". February 10. 2002. ICv2. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ↑ "Gaiman Sweep!". October 2, 2002. ICv2. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ↑ Gardner, Eric (January 31, 2012). "Decades-Long Legal Feud Over ‘Spawn’ Comic Book Finally Ends". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on June 12, 2021. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ↑ Gaiman, Neil (July 30, 2010). "Cutting stuff, watching parking meters, getting graphic in Sydney". NeilGaiman.com. Archived from the original on August 26, 2010. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ↑ IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN. July 30, 2010. Archived from the original on August 21, 2010. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ↑ Phegley, Kiel (January 30, 2012). "Gaiman & McFarlane Settle Suit on Medieval Spawn, Angela". CBR. Archived from the original on November 18, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ↑ Ching, Albert (March 25, 2013). "TODD MCFARLANE Reacts to the Marvel/ANGELA Situation". Newsarama. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
- ↑ Sunu, Steve (March 21, 2013). "Gaiman Returns to Marvel, Brings Spawn's Angela". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on April 20, 2019. Retrieved April 20, 2019. "Later this year, writer Neil Gaiman makes his return to Marvel Comics...Perhaps even more intriguing is the announcement that Gaiman plans to introduce Angela to the Marvel U."
- ↑ Johnson, Rich (June 19, 2013). "Marvel Owns Angela – But No, Karen Gillan Won't Be Playing Her In Guardians Of The Galaxy". BleedingCool. Archived from the original on March 7, 2019. Retrieved June 19, 2013.