True it does suck how overlooked he is as a character it's like after knightfall it just seems like the character completely was forgotten about yeah I know he got a 18 issue story arc in the new 52 series but after that there was no mention of him at all I wish there was some attention put on him more he's a very interesting character
I don't know if I'm in the minority or whatever but I love, love Sword of Azrael. Maybe it's nostalgia or the fact that Joe Quesada's art shocked me in a positive way
It is still my favourite storyline including the Knightfall trilogy. Azrael is my favourite DC character. His 100 issue run was pretty good although the ending was rushed and some subplots never fully resolved.
Put Arsenal in their also. He may not be part of the Batman family, but his attitude and being a former sidekick to Green Arrow, puts some commonality with Red Hood and Azrael to Batman.
If you delve even further into Azrael's origins, you'd find out that Dumas and his followers left the Templar Knights when the Pope denied him sainthood. So basically, Azrael was the enforcer for a former Templar Knight who had a sudden god complex.
I first discovered azrael through the video game Batman Arkham city though that azrael wasn’t Jean Paul Valley. I heard of the knightfall story prior to Arkham city though all I knew about it when I was a small child was bane breaking Batman I had no idea azrael played a major role in that story.
2:29 - Has anyone else noticed how most parents in comics are called Mother and Father by their offspring? I've never heard anyone in my life do that - it's always Mom (or Mum, as I'm British) and Dad. I assume it's something that was more common in comics' origins in the '30s and '40s, but if so, it sure became an anachronism. Heck, even Superman called/calls his Human parents Ma and Pa, which is arguably even more of an anachronism.
Great video! I quite enjoy Sword of Azrael, and like you said I think it does a great job of contrasting not only Batman and Azrael, but also Azrael and Jean-Paul. Also, I never even noticed that Jean-Paul’s name was only revealed at the end! Already knowing who the character was when I first read the story must’ve made me not realize. Genius stuff from Denny!
Knightfall is what got me into comics, and I absolutely loved it, and Azbats, and the fall of Green Lantern, and Parallax, and the 4 alternate Supermen. It was an amazing time to be a comics fan.
I loved the Sword of Azrael series. The red and gold armor is my favorite design for him when he's Azrael. Otherwise the Bat Armor and especially the Saint Batman designs are stellar
Great video as always, thrilling to see after such a long wait with more fond memories from this era. There are so many plot seeds planted here in preparation for Knightfall that I hadn't noticed before. Regarding the the artwork I couldn't get enough of Joe Qs art at the time but with hindsight now think he's massivly overrated and it's Kevin Nowlan that is the real star on this series. Salazar, will you be covering some of the other bat books of this time, i.e. Elseworlds, the one shots etc? Thank you as always for sharing your passion, dedication and intellect with us ever hungry Batfans here on RUclips.
really wish they have Azreal back, he deffitny could have a interesting partner ship with red hood (a sorta we both look eye to eye), kinda feel it right he has a tragic backstory, being a man who was able despite all odds able to build a wonderful life before having that taking away, and then in his fragile state was taking along with others to be train as azreal which soon broke him even further in thinking he is the archangel Azreal. also for a more interesting design point Azreal can wear a red trench coat, combine with some items that mimic batman tools, and has some bird motiffs not only to clash the difference of batman bats, with a level of some own hand crafted motifs maybe his sword is a unique folded like switch blade (thinking like dishonoured for corvo blade) including his mask bieng somewhat hand crafted from metal to give a terrfrying visage of a knight that is white.
I was 12 when I first read "Knightfall," and I was horrified by Azrael - and even more horrified by what he did as Batman. (Of course, Abbatoir, the serial killer he left to die, was horrifying as well, but never mind.) What DC Comics did with Batman in the early '90s was groundbreaking, even more so than what Neal Adams had done in the '70s, or Frank Miller in the '80s. I remember how shocked casual Batman fans were by the Tim Burton movies at the time, but "Knightfall" effectively permitted the regular comics to catch up to Burton's vision; I even remember certain fans praising Jean-Paul Valley as Batman, even comparing him to Michael Keaton's edgier version of the character. It's a little ironic that the darker version of Batman from the '90s went from being almost an aberration in my mind to being my default understanding of the hero.
The sword of azrael definitely was setting up what we would see later on knightfall azrael definitely came at the right time when anti-heroes were huge in the early '90s and he definitely was the representation of that but he also showed why he shouldn't have taking up the mantle as Batman because he showed how unstabled and dangerous he was during his time as Batman during knightfall while a lot of the things he did might have been questionable he did it for the right raises but he also took it too far this comic definitely foreshadow what we would see with him as Batman.
It's very sad Bruce Wayne, since the 2000s, has become more Azrael than Batman, being brutal, dumb, and compassionless. And sadder yet is, too many people now think of Batman as a vengeful bully thanks to certain versions that would be much worse than Joel Schumacher's Batman & Robin.
While can't say that's the case for every Batman story since the 2000's The Batman comics went downhill for a while when Grant Morrison entered the picture. Now as for what you described that's the problem with writers who don't get Batman they think they get him but the don't. This is one of the reasons I hate the dark knight returns now because not only do I personally not like it but it gave certain people ( not everyone) the wrong expectations of Batman. Truth be told anything positive that has happened to Batman since 1986 was in no thanks to the dark knight returns. I said it before I'll say it again if you think the Dark knight Returns is what made Batman who is today you have no idea how wrong you are.
It's weird how Tim Drake saved Batman from his "lonely place of dying" only for writers in the 90s onward to make Batman get right back to that place and not acknowledge it.
Azrial doesn't act like the kind of person that will follow a no kill rule he appeared to Batman in Arkham City says he has been watching Batmab for a long time and tells him Gotham City will burn then Azrial does this vanishing act . it was a cool exit by the way. 😃 👍
If someone were to ask me to name all the people who have been - or pretended to be - Batman, I would mention Bruce Wayne, Jean-Paul Valley, Dick Grayson, and James Gordon, as well as Alfred Pennyworth on two occasions on the 1960s TV series and Barbara Gordon in an episode of the 1990s animated series. I was not aware that Jason Todd was ever Batman.
@@SeasideDetective2 yeah in battle for the cowl before dick grayson became Batman. Jason dressed in a bat suit went around killing bad guys and beat up tim drake that was also dressed in a bat suit.
You said azrael represents the angel of death. Oh so azreal was that angel of death phantasm claimed awaited her victims in Batman mask of the phantasm!
It's a little unfortunate that I came here to get some background on a character that was mentioned in Knightfall vol. 1 which I was reading and the video immediately talks about stuff that will happen in that series instead of limiting the information to just what happens in Sword of Azreal. :( :( :(
"worst batman" I don't know man I think Azrael's brutality was needed since gotham was flooded by crime after bane broke batman and put his broken body on display for all of gotham to see. He definitely put the fear of batman back into gotham.
True he also was the one that defeated bane I know some people will look at the character and say he shouldn't have been Batman but I understood why he did a lot of the stuff he did during his time as Batman despite him not handling each situation in the right way he did it for the right reasons Even if they were questionable.
I don't get it. If he's already redeemed by the end of his introduction, by breaking the programming, the whole point seems to have gone out the window. He doesn't _have_ to be a bad Batman. He's a peaceful guy who was under mind control; now that he's already broken out of it, he can be a peaceful guy again
It's shame such iconic characters like Tim Drake and Jean-Paul won't get respectful adaptation in mass media projects
Azrael is the most 90s character in comic book history. I still think his costume design holds up as pretty damn cool
I think Carnage embodies the '90s even better, especially its flaws
I like both azraul and carnage
@@hyperion3145 he's the most steriotypical 90s comic book supervillain
I LOVED the sword of Azrael as a kid. Still breaks my heart how much they've ignored him for decades now.
He got an 18 issue run in the new 52ish era
True it does suck how overlooked he is as a character it's like after knightfall it just seems like the character completely was forgotten about yeah I know he got a 18 issue story arc in the new 52 series but after that there was no mention of him at all I wish there was some attention put on him more he's a very interesting character
I don't know if I'm in the minority or whatever but I love, love Sword of Azrael. Maybe it's nostalgia or the fact that Joe Quesada's art shocked me in a positive way
I’m with you. I enjoyed it, and especially appreciated Alfred being a part of it. Quesada’s art in this series still amazes me.
I like Azrael, call me cliche but secret religious order heroes is something I enjoy when done right.
It is still my favourite storyline including the Knightfall trilogy. Azrael is my favourite DC character. His 100 issue run was pretty good although the ending was rushed and some subplots never fully resolved.
Azreal is AMAZING, SOA is fucking badass
same
A shame we never saw Azrael and Red Hood team up. They have so much in common.
Put Arsenal in their also. He may not be part of the Batman family, but his attitude and being a former sidekick to Green Arrow, puts some commonality with Red Hood and Azrael to Batman.
One of my favorite, most under talked about stories that leads into my ultimate favorite comic story of all time! And the one that got me into comics!
The first ones always have a special place in our hearts.
Even Bruise Wane acknôwledgez dhe fakt dhat he/s doiŋg thiŋgz owt ov kharakter∴
A silent guardian, a watchful protector... a SALAZAR KNIGHT
or... SWORD OF AZRAEL, THE LAST ARKHAM, KNIGHTFALL... A SALAZAR KNIGHT
Woah, that sounds cool
Looks like you’re starting the knightfall storyline. That’s gonna be all of 2021 😊
Yeah! Well, maybe not all of 2021, but a great part for sure. It's gonna be really good!!
@@SalazarKnight can’t wait 🤙
If you delve even further into Azrael's origins, you'd find out that Dumas and his followers left the Templar Knights when the Pope denied him sainthood. So basically, Azrael was the enforcer for a former Templar Knight who had a sudden god complex.
I first discovered azrael through the video game Batman Arkham city though that azrael wasn’t Jean Paul Valley. I heard of the knightfall story prior to Arkham city though all I knew about it when I was a small child was bane breaking Batman I had no idea azrael played a major role in that story.
Love the use of AC1 music
2:29 - Has anyone else noticed how most parents in comics are called Mother and Father by their offspring? I've never heard anyone in my life do that - it's always Mom (or Mum, as I'm British) and Dad. I assume it's something that was more common in comics' origins in the '30s and '40s, but if so, it sure became an anachronism. Heck, even Superman called/calls his Human parents Ma and Pa, which is arguably even more of an anachronism.
Batman with
Ray-Ban sunglasses and costume is poster-worhty art !!! Joe Quesada is the best !
Great video! I quite enjoy Sword of Azrael, and like you said I think it does a great job of contrasting not only Batman and Azrael, but also Azrael and Jean-Paul.
Also, I never even noticed that Jean-Paul’s name was only revealed at the end! Already knowing who the character was when I first read the story must’ve made me not realize. Genius stuff from Denny!
Knightfall is what got me into comics, and I absolutely loved it, and Azbats, and the fall of Green Lantern, and Parallax, and the 4 alternate Supermen. It was an amazing time to be a comics fan.
Que bueno tener un nuevo video! Gracias!
Gracias a ti por tu apoyo!
He may be the worst but he’s my favorite for some reason, I like flawed struggling characters and JPV is underrated af
I loved the Sword of Azrael series. The red and gold armor is my favorite design for him when he's Azrael. Otherwise the Bat Armor and especially the Saint Batman designs are stellar
Can't wait to hear your thoughts on Bane! One of my favorite Batman villains!
I actually think this story is pretty solid.
Agreed. I love this one
The best Batman, my favorite Batman . Gets the job done
I appreciate how much time you put into these you are awesome ! Great work hope all is well in these times
Your analysis is solid as ever,Salazar!
Buen video y gracias por poner los subtitulos en español
Great video as always, thrilling to see after such a long wait with more fond memories from this era. There are so many plot seeds planted here in preparation for Knightfall that I hadn't noticed before. Regarding the the artwork I couldn't get enough of Joe Qs art at the time but with hindsight now think he's massivly overrated and it's Kevin Nowlan that is the real star on this series. Salazar, will you be covering some of the other bat books of this time, i.e. Elseworlds, the one shots etc? Thank you as always for sharing your passion, dedication and intellect with us ever hungry Batfans here on RUclips.
For sure! I will cover almost every Bat-book availabale at some point so don't you worry about that!
@@SalazarKnight Of course, I'm looking forward to your thoughts on Birth Of The Demon and Dark Joker The Wild in particular.
Great video. How long do you think knightfall will last on this channel? lol
Nice video, also Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
It's been 5,000 years since you came back
A deadly demon lord. Biis. My God.
really wish they have Azreal back, he deffitny could have a interesting partner ship with red hood (a sorta we both look eye to eye), kinda feel it right he has a tragic backstory, being a man who was able despite all odds able to build a wonderful life before having that taking away, and then in his fragile state was taking along with others to be train as azreal which soon broke him even further in thinking he is the archangel Azreal.
also for a more interesting design point Azreal can wear a red trench coat, combine with some items that mimic batman tools, and has some bird motiffs not only to clash the difference of batman bats, with a level of some own hand crafted motifs maybe his sword is a unique folded like switch blade (thinking like dishonoured for corvo blade) including his mask bieng somewhat hand crafted from metal to give a terrfrying visage of a knight that is white.
I was 12 when I first read "Knightfall," and I was horrified by Azrael - and even more horrified by what he did as Batman. (Of course, Abbatoir, the serial killer he left to die, was horrifying as well, but never mind.) What DC Comics did with Batman in the early '90s was groundbreaking, even more so than what Neal Adams had done in the '70s, or Frank Miller in the '80s. I remember how shocked casual Batman fans were by the Tim Burton movies at the time, but "Knightfall" effectively permitted the regular comics to catch up to Burton's vision; I even remember certain fans praising Jean-Paul Valley as Batman, even comparing him to Michael Keaton's edgier version of the character. It's a little ironic that the darker version of Batman from the '90s went from being almost an aberration in my mind to being my default understanding of the hero.
9:17 Sajgn ov.. misspênt yōūth∴
Шhile odher guyz шere.. čhasiŋg girlz ænd listeniŋg tu rocк ænd яoll.. I шas learniŋg majnd-kontrol.. fяom fʌnny-lookiŋg owld mεn in faraшay plasez∴
Шidh strandge-soundiŋg namez∴
Faя aшay oveя dhe sea∴
Happy New Year Salazar Knight. I do not care for Azrael but the art in this story looks cool.
After the 3 weeks break, I hoped the next video will be 40 minutes but... Who cares, lets see what the king of the batman comics did say😁
What a way to bring me down and cheer me up in just one comment! Thanks, man!
The sword of azrael definitely was setting up what we would see later on knightfall azrael definitely came at the right time when anti-heroes were huge in the early '90s and he definitely was the representation of that but he also showed why he shouldn't have taking up the mantle as Batman because he showed how unstabled and dangerous he was during his time as Batman during knightfall while a lot of the things he did might have been questionable he did it for the right raises but he also took it too far this comic definitely foreshadow what we would see with him as Batman.
It's very sad Bruce Wayne, since the 2000s, has become more Azrael than Batman, being brutal, dumb, and compassionless. And sadder yet is, too many people now think of Batman as a vengeful bully thanks to certain versions that would be much worse than Joel Schumacher's Batman & Robin.
Yeah. Knightfall literally couldn't happen these days because modern creators don't really understand the difference between Bruce and Jean-Paul.
While can't say that's the case for every Batman story since the 2000's The Batman comics went downhill for a while when Grant Morrison entered the picture. Now as for what you described that's the problem with writers who don't get Batman they think they get him but the don't. This is one of the reasons I hate the dark knight returns now because not only do I personally not like it but it gave certain people ( not everyone) the wrong expectations of Batman. Truth be told anything positive that has happened to Batman since 1986 was in no thanks to the dark knight returns. I said it before I'll say it again if you think the Dark knight Returns is what made Batman who is today you have no idea how wrong you are.
@@SalazarKnight that's a damn shame
@@SalazarKnight R.I.P Batman 1939-2000s
It's weird how Tim Drake saved Batman from his "lonely place of dying" only for writers in the 90s onward to make Batman get right back to that place and not acknowledge it.
Azrael would be better (post knightfall) if divorced from batman
Darksiders music in the background 👌👌👌👌👌
Hell yeah!
This is a great video In the next video can you please take about Batman vengeance of bane.
Are you a mind reader by chance? 😏
maybe I am. 😁
8:02
How can you call some a good artist when they think that pile of shapes looks like a weapon
Azrial doesn't act like the kind of person that will follow a no kill rule he appeared to Batman in Arkham City says he has been watching Batmab for a long time and tells him Gotham City will burn then Azrial does this vanishing act .
it was a cool exit by the way.
😃 👍
Azrael is the way better version of Red Hood. He is what Red Hood should've been.
Hard agree
I have a copy of these book, how much is the value ?
Azrael is the batman I grew up reading. And Jason todd was the worst batman.
If someone were to ask me to name all the people who have been - or pretended to be - Batman, I would mention Bruce Wayne, Jean-Paul Valley, Dick Grayson, and James Gordon, as well as Alfred Pennyworth on two occasions on the 1960s TV series and Barbara Gordon in an episode of the 1990s animated series. I was not aware that Jason Todd was ever Batman.
@@SeasideDetective2 yeah in battle for the cowl before dick grayson became Batman. Jason dressed in a bat suit went around killing bad guys and beat up tim drake that was also dressed in a bat suit.
@@TheSilvertrigger Oh, and I can't believe I forgot Terry McGinnis!
You said azrael represents the angel of death. Oh so azreal was that angel of death phantasm claimed awaited her victims in Batman mask of the phantasm!
It's a little unfortunate that I came here to get some background on a character that was mentioned in Knightfall vol. 1 which I was reading and the video immediately talks about stuff that will happen in that series instead of limiting the information to just what happens in Sword of Azreal. :( :( :(
I enjoyed azrael actually
"worst batman" I don't know man I think Azrael's brutality was needed since gotham was flooded by crime after bane broke batman and put his broken body on display for all of gotham to see. He definitely put the fear of batman back into gotham.
True he also was the one that defeated bane I know some people will look at the character and say he shouldn't have been Batman but I understood why he did a lot of the stuff he did during his time as Batman despite him not handling each situation in the right way he did it for the right reasons Even if they were questionable.
I don't get it. If he's already redeemed by the end of his introduction, by breaking the programming, the whole point seems to have gone out the window. He doesn't _have_ to be a bad Batman. He's a peaceful guy who was under mind control; now that he's already broken out of it, he can be a peaceful guy again
Sort of Azrael
So is this how Bruce got sick?
It's the start...
@@SalazarKnight after seeing your videos, I wish dc would make batman more human by removing the plot armor
I come from Arkham Komics 🌚
Bienvenido!
Azrael is what wese need against real crime in America