Azrael (1995-1998)

v01Issue No. 1 – February 1995
Fallen Angel …Some Say In Fire… – In this first issue we find out what has become of Jean-Paul Valley after Bruce Wayne has reclaimed the mantle of the Bat and banished from The Batcave and Wayne Manor – he’s homeless, broken, and has virtually no memory. Not only that, thanks to The System, he is also hallucinating situations to be much more than they are. Jean Paul befriends a now homeless former psychiatrist named Brian. Batman and Robin make a short cameo in the issue as Batman decides that Jean-Paul is still his responsibility. At the same time, it seems that The Order of St. Dumas is trying to train someone to become the new Azrael. The issue ends with Jean-Paul sitting upright in a bed at a homeless shelter which is being burned down by thugs he has encountered twice in the issue.

 

 

 

v02Issue No. 2 – March 1995
Fallen Angel: 2 …Some Say In Ice… – Batman saves Jean Paul and gives him a nice care package – 100,000.00, information on how to find The Order of St. Dumas and his Azrael costume as Batman is sure that Jean Paul may need it on his journey. Jean Paul seeks out Brian to accompany him on his journey to the order in Die Eistathedrale (Translated Ice Cathedral). The order is made aware of Jean Paul and Brain’s presence and sets out to murder him by sending their hopeful replacement to finish the job common hired thugs could not.

 

 

 

v03Issue No. 3 – April 1995
Fallen Angel: 3 …The Proposition – Jean Paul makes his way to the Ice Cathedral and meets sister Lilhy and Rollo, the Arch Bishop. St. Dumas himself tells Rollo there are people around him plotting his death. Rollo will not give Jean Paul information regarding The System, Lilhy however offers the information in exchange for slaying Rollo. In turn, Rollo makes a deal with the Azrael in training to slay Jean Paul and protect him in exchange to become the next Azrael.

 

 

 

 

v04Issue No. 4 – May 1995
Fallen Angel: 4 …Escape – Jean Paul fights the new Azrael in training and allows him to plummet to an icy grave. With Sister Lilhy’s help, he and Brian attempt to escape the Ice Cathedral as Brother Rollo and the Acolytes try to capture Azrael and sister Lilhy to be punished for treason.

 

 

 

 

 

v05Issue No. 5 – June 1995
Fallen Angel:5 …The Abduction – Azrael, Brian and Sister Lilhy escape the Ice Cathedral via an underground lake. Using Oracle, they make their way to Mobari, Africa for answers regarding The System. This leads to a meeting with Ras Al Gaul.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

v06Issue No. 6 – July 1995
Fallen Angel:6 …The Temptation – Jean Paul meets Ras Al Gaul and Talia and finds himself tested for Ras’ amusement. Ras offers Talia and a life beyond Jean Paul’s dreams if he will serve him – and is denied. Ras does respect him though and offers to help in the journey in finding out more about his past and controlling The System.

 

 

 

 

 

 

v07Issue No. 7 – August 1995
Fallen Angel: 7 …The Curse – Talia takes Jean Paul, Sister Lilhy and Brain as close to the caverns as she can. Azrael eventually meets the one who is responsible for the programming of each of the Azrael’s and is mortified to find out that he is kind of a test tube baby from pre-birth. The issue ends with Jean Paul enraged, destroying the cavern and its programmer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

v08Issue No. 8 – September 1995
Azrael At Large: The Silence – Now knowing his birth origins, Jean Paul is devastated. Sister Lilhy and Brian gather up books of alchemy that make up the background in which The Order of St. Dumas is based on and leave via hovercraft only to be shot at by possible new enemies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

v09Issue No. 9 – October 1995
Azrael, Brian and Sister Lilhy make their way back to Ras Al Gaul’s to be tended to by Talia. Azrael is still in shock and not speaking. Interestingly enough though, he seems to be controlling himself only injuring and not killing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

v10Issue No. 10 – November 1995
Arena – The Order of St. Dumas version of Azrael has made his way to a Gotham Karate match; and he’s wearing Azrael’s Nightfall Batman costume in hopes of luring Azrael out. His deal is revealed and Batman is lured out into a rooftop battle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

v11Issue No. 11 – December 1995
Azrael Rising Part 1 – Sister Lilhy and Brian meet up with batman in Gotham City where it is revealed Azrael has been sitting quietly in the Batcave for the past 3 days. Azrael leaves Alfred’s watch to visit Sondra Kinsolving where he is greeted by Alfred, Sister Lilhy and Brian, who somewhat analyzed Azrael.

 

 

 

 

 

 

v12Issue No. 12 – January 1996
Angel Rising Part 2 – Azrael rescues the kidnapped Sondra Kinsolving from Nug and Kluber, telling the scared woman she is her guardian angel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

v13Issue No. 13 – February 1996
Demon Time (Part 1: Returned) – Lots of surprises in this issue. Nightwing spars a bit with Azrael. Sister Lithy finds herself attracted to Nightwing and kisses him, making Jean Paul feel like a jealous kid. Simon LeHah also returns as Biis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

v14Issue No. 14 – March 1996
Demon Time (Part 2: Revenge) – Azrael faces LeHah as Biis, effortlessly defeating him. Sister Lilhy admits feelings for Jean Paul to Brian.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

v15Issue No. 15 – April 1996
Requiem For An Immortal – As Part 4 of the ‘Contagion’ series, this issue really detracts from the Azrael storyline as Azrael teams up with Catwoman and Tracker to find Fong, a man who seems immune to the virus spreading in Gotham. Unfortunately Fong thinks he is immortal and accidentally stabs himself to death.

 

 

 

 

 

 

v16Issue No. 16 – May 1996
Part 10 of the ‘Contagion’ series, it is revealed that the virus plaguing Gotham originated from The Order of St. Dumas on accident. Thanks to books taken from the trio’s visit to North Africa sent to Brian by Talia, Sister Lithy is able to find the antidote which Azrael brings to Gotham. The issue ends with Tim Drake possibly being claimed by the virus.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v17Issue No. 17 – June 1996
Angel In Flames Part 1: A Distant Savior – Kluber and :: :: make a brief appearance seeking revenge on Azrael, only to be sent back to prison. Jean Paul leaves to meet with an old collegue of Brian’s, Mathias Orchid on a small island in the tropics in hopes of being cured of the system’s deprogramming.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v18Issue No. 18 – July 1996
Azrael encounters one of Dr. Orchid’s other patients and things get large.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v19Issue No. 19 – August 1996
Angel In Flames Part 3: Save The Innocents – Dr. Orchid somehow separates Azrael from Jean Paul. In a fight between Orchid’s brother and Azrael, humanity comes into play and Azrael leaves the fight to save Orchid’s daughter, enabling her to leave the island as it is being evacuating while a volcano goes off.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v20Issue No. 20 – September 1996
Conclusion: Angel In Flames: A Prayer of Fire – The Orchid brothers make peace with each other and Azrael saves them both from the volcano, and the earthquakes that are being caused due to the eruption. The issue ends with Jean Paul coming face to face with Azrael asking it to let him be.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v21Issue No. 21 – October 1996
Angel In Hiding Part 1: Renunciation – Lots of surprises in this issue as Jean Paul returns to Sister Lilhy and Brian free of Azrael. Jean Paul also moves back into his old place, reenrolls in university and finally asks Lilhy out on a date. Through all of this it turns out Nomoz has been keeping an eye on Jean Paul and reporting back to Rollo who is told by St. Dumas spirit to leave Jean Paul and Lilhy be. Unfortunatly Rollo has other plans and wants to exact revenge on them and kill Nomoz, kidnapping Lilhy and Brian while Jean Paul is now defenseless to stop them.

 

 

 

 

 
v22Issue No. 22 – November 1996
Angel In Hiding Part 2 – Nomoz saves Jean Paul and the two make a compromise to save Jean Paul save Lilhy and Brian and bring down Rollo who is corrupting the Order of St. Dumas. Nomoz proves to have a bit of a sense of humor. Jean Paul asks Batman to accompany them but is met with refusal, but does offer aid and requests Jean Paul put back on the suit of Azrael once more if he is to succeed.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v23Issue No. 23 – December 1996
Angel In Hiding Part 3: Prelude To War – Disguised, Bruce Wayne helps out Jean Paul, Sister Lilhy, Brian and Nomoz as they get to North Africa. Rollo sends acolytes dressed as demons and Biis into to further scare Jean Paul as the systems programming is brought back to life by Nomoz.

 

 

 

 

 

 

v24Issue No. 24 – January 1997
Angel At War Part 1: The Fall of St. Dumas – With Jean Paul now Azrael again, the four venture back to the Ice Cathedral to take care of Rollo who is continuing to directly disobey The Order of St. Dumas. It is also mentioned that there is a Mother of St. Dumas who is even more powerful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v25Issue No. 25 – February 1997
Angel At War Part 2: The Fall of St. Dumas – Possibly the most fast paced issue yet, the Dwarflings are ordered to kill Azrael and Lilhy but are turned against Rolo after Nomoz reminds them how they are going against the orders laws. After careful thought of how powerful the order is, it is decided that Azrael must keep Rolo alive for it could cause economic crisis throughout the world. Rollo in turn tricks Azrael and Lilhy into taking him to where the spirit of The Mother of St. Dumas is contained where he intends to use it to destroy the planet.

 

 

 

 

 
v26Issue No. 26 – March 1997
Angel At War Part 3: Conclusion of The Fall of St. Dumas – As the story concludes Rolo has all of the Dwarflings slain leaving Nomoz the last of his kind. As the Mother of St. Dumas expands it collapses the entire Ice Cathedral, and with it the Order of St. Dumas itself. The story ends with the Cathedral destroyed, and the head of St. Dumas, along with books of it’s ways in the snow as the foursome leave.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v27Issue No. 27 – April 1997
Angel Insane Part 1: Entry – Grey Abbott is locked away in Arkham Asylum for losing it on a shopping mall Santa Clause. After relocating to Mexico City, Lilhy is now trying to keep things together as the order is no longer. It is decided that Azrael should get Grey Abbott out of Arkham in hopes that he might use his knowledge to better help mankind. Upon infiltrating Arkham, Azrael’s fire sets off fire alarms which in turn let all inmates out of their cells causing a battle between Killer Croc and Azrael.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v28Issue No. 28 – May 1997
Angel Insane Part 2: Exit – Being held captive by the inmates in Arkham, the Joker is wearing the Azrael suit and eventually sets his head on fire. Grey Abbott has somehow gained the trust of all of the inmates but halfway through changes sides and helps Azrael to escape. Abbott has other motives and wants to take Killer Croc with him and instead chooses to stay behind then leave without him.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v29Issue No. 29 – June 1997
Angel Errant Part 1: Descent – Lihy’s interest in Jean Paul seems to have faded as she has moved onto a French businessman, and Jean Paul and Brian have a heart to heart about it. Luckily Ras Al Gaul’s daughter Talia has come to seek out Jean Paul romantically before she is captured by one of her her fathers’ enemies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v30Issue No. 30 – July 1997
Angel Errant Part 2: Descent – Ras Al Gaul has courted Azrael to marry Talia, however declines the offer and decides Azrael must die instead when he learns that Azrael’s blood is not pure what holds animal genes as well. After escaping, Azrael returns home broken, only to find that Lihy is leaving with Luc for France, leaving Jean Paul heart broken and alone.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v31Issue No. 31 – August 1997
Angel and the Monster Maker: Vampire – Depressed, Jean Paul goes back to Gotham to see Batman and ask if he needs help with anything explaining what has transpired over the past few months. Batman however has no need of him and sends him off on what he thinks is a wild chase for a supposed vampire in a neighboring city where he finds a vampire feeding on the homeless.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v32Issue No. 32 – September 1997
Angel and the Monster Maker: Werewolf – Still in the rundown city, Azrael finds himself face to face with another odd creature, this time a werewolf. With the help of Oracle, he is starting to figure out just who is behind these movie monsters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v33Issue No. 33 – October 1997
Angel and the Monster Maker: Epiphany – Azrael finally comes face to face with the father and son monster makers, only to be practically crippled by the father turned octopus monster. Amidst the battle Jean Paul gets a serum splashed onto him that temporarily turns him into an angel with wings and all, flying throughout the city. It doesn’t last long however as he comes back down to earth and the battle between good and evil within himself continues.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v34Issue No. 34 – November 1997
Genesis – As if the monsters weren’t enough, now Azrael has to encounter a Parademon who wants his soul. Eventually he wins, but only due to him showing that he isn’t just a fighter, but has a heart, thanks in part to Azrael helping out a kid whose father no longer wants anything to do with him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v35Issue No. 35 – December 1997
While checking in on the young friend he met in the previous issue, Jean Paul finds that the kid sis very ill and the hospital needs a relative on hand, leading Azrael to hunt him down. In turn he teams up with Hitman who has been contracted out to find the father as well for other reasons.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v36Issue No. 36 – January 1998
Azrael and Bane – A few unexpected guests as Bane returns and is on the run with Batman sending Azrael to go after him. Meanwhile Lilhy returns using her feminine wilds to coerce Jean Paul to come back to Mexico with her. Trick or does she actually want him back?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v37Issue No. 37 – February 1998
Having a change of heart, Jean Paul leaves Lilhy at the airport and instead heads to Florida to go after Bane. Along the way he is joined by Nomoz who, without the order has no other purpose except to help out Azrael. On the way, Bane frees his old right hand man Bird and injects him with a new and improved Venom formula and has him go after Jean Paul, almost defeating him, but not before Bane can have his turn.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v38Issue No. 38 – March 1998
Azrael continues to fight Bane until he and Nomoz are captured and brought aboard Bane’s ship en route to Santa Prisca. While captive Azrael and Bane are injected with the new Venom formula which enables them to escape, but also may addict them as well. With proof of the new Venom’s strength in Azrael, Bane shows him off to his potential buys who see the effects firsthand.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v39Issue No. 39 – April 1998
Angel and the Bane: Finally to Vanquish – Kidnapped by Bane and used as his test subject for the new venom formula, Azrael manages to escape, taking Nomoz with him into the woods where he breaks his addiction over the night. After regaining strength, Azrael goes back to defeat Bane, not just by brute force, but this time through skill and smarts.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v40Issue No. 40 – May 1998
Hour of the Quake – Returning to Gotham to hand Bane over to the authorities, Gotham is rocked with a massive earthquake just as Bane is being turned over to the Gotham police. Bane escapes through the cities destruction only to be beaten by Azrael yet again and literally dragged back to justice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v41Issue No. 41 – June 1998
Taking a ship to Mexico to see Lilhy and Brian, Jean Paul is thrown off of the ship in a brief storm and ends up in of all places a pirate ship! Forced to combat the pirates and their leader, Azrael eventually stabs him and finds himself back in the water brought back onto the ship wondering if the whole pirate debacle was just a hallucination.

 

 

 

 

 

 
v42Issue No. 42 – July 1998
Welcome To Eden – Jean Paul finds yet another detour on his journey to Mexico when the ships motor goes out and him and a few on board are welcomed to stay on an sland paradise. The paradise turns out to be of other intentions as it’s owner has been slowly drugging it’s guests.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v43Issue No. 43 – August 1998
Homecoming – Finally returning to Mexico Jean Paul is ambushed and put to work by Luc and his men. Eventually he is able to make his way out, but not before Luc has beaten Brian and Lilhy a bit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v44Issue No. 44 – September 1998
Angel and the Beast: The Crash – With Luc on the run, Lilhy takes matters into her own hands and hunts him down on horseback with Azrael not far behind. Not knowing her intentions he is unsure whether he will have to take both down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v45Issue No. 45 – October 1998
Angel and the Beast: Deathstroke – Calibax seems to make everyone in his presence tired on his island. Azrael and Deathstroke go head to head before teaming up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
v46Issue No. 46 – November 1998
Guardian Angel – Calibax is now in Gotham while his parents have contracted out Death Stroke to take him out. In Mexico Lilhy asks Jean Paul to help her rebuild The Order of St Dumas – he refuses and takes Brian with him back to Gotham where he takes down Calibax.