Thus does Azrael, the Avenging Angel of the secret Order of Saint Dumas, speak as he prepares to assassinate an enemy of the Order. The title of Azrael is hereditary, passed from father to son. Azrael's job was to assassinate rogue members of the Order of Saint Dumas, an ultra-secret order founded by rogue members of the Knights Templar.

This title is all about Azrael, the avenging angel, who is really Jean Paul Valley. Azrael was introduced in a four part Batman special, Sword of Azrael. Azrael also took over as Batman during KnightQuest: The Crusada.

The Azrael title has focused on Jean Paul's search for the secrets of The System. The System is the method of training that future Azraels undergo to prepare themselves for their role in the Order. This title is truly amazing. I hated Jean Paul as Batman, but he has a certain appeal when he is filling the role for which he was designed. Jean Paul found out that Azraels are part-human, part-animal. The current Azrael impregnates a woman. The fetus is removed from the female (who is then disposed of) and implanted in a primate. This explains much of how the System works - animal instinct.

Azrael has two "friends" to help him along with his growing humanity - Sister Lilhy, a member of The Order, and Brian Brian, a former psychiatrist and former alcoholic. Together they teamed up to take down the Order of Saint Dumas - by detroying the Ice Cathedral and killing Brother Rollo, the head of the Order. However, in the last few issues, Lilhy has seemed to be working to rebuild the Order, with her at its head. She has been treating Jean Paul as an errand boy. So, Jean Paul has returned to Batman, seeking assignments that Batman may not have the time to look into.

Azrael has also been developing his own Rogue's Gallery. Recently, Talia and Ra's Al Ghul were contemplating marrying Jean Paul and Talia, so that Jean Paul could take over Ra's crusade to cleanse the planet. Ra's decided against this, however, when he learned of Jean Paul's mixed (human/animal) heritage.

For more info on Azrael comic storylines, check out the Azrael Comic Guide.

This file was last modified on August 29, 1998

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