Fans have seen Batman in a variety of shapes and forms, performed by a variety of characters throughout the years; nevertheless, when someone takes on the mantle of the Dark Knight himself, the best live up to it.
Today, we will look at the notorious DC character Azrael, who shares his name with a legendary person. Azrael is the name of the angel of death in numerous Abrahamic religions, including Islam and some Jewish traditions.
Azrael is well known for being Batman’s failed replacement who subsequently turns into lethal criminal hunting for and killing escaped Arkham Asylum inmates. Azrael had taken over as Batman’s substitute when Bane fractured his spine in the popular Knightfall storyline. That did not last long, and he was ejected forcibly.
He was intended to give the Batman franchise a more anti-hero edge, but the one-time Dark Knight successor has now crossed the line into outright villainy. We will look at his genesis narrative and connection to the Dark Knight today.
Azrael The Angel Of Death Origin Explored
Azrael is a fairly insignificant figure in the wider Batman mythos. He debuted in the early 1990s, although he never gained the ubiquity of other 1990s Batman characters such as Bane and Harley Quinn. The character was not included in Batman: The Animated Series, nor did he appear in any of the character-based films released in the 1990s or earlier decades of the twentieth century.
Azrael, on the other hand, isn’t completely forgotten. After Knightfall, Azrael would get his own hundred-issue comic book series, which would continue through late-nineties Batman storylines like Cataclysm and No Man’s Land. Denny O’Neil, Azrael’s creator, would write him continuously over the life of the eight-year monthly series. Azrael creeps on the outskirts of the Batman realm. The fact that he is a violent anti-hero explains why he has yet to appear in family-friendly Batman media such as The Brave and the Bold or The Batman.
Azrael has even established himself as a legacy character in his own right. Even though there was some doubt surrounding Jean-Paul Valley’s fate at the end of the monthly series, a new Azrael would arrive soon. This is the story of Azrael.
From the moment he was conceived, he was a test-tube baby. Scientists used Animal DNA to change Jean-genetic Paul’s structure, allowing him to perform things that would be impossible for a normal person. He grew up unaware of his broader role and enrolled at Gotham University to study programming.
When his father, the previous Azrael, crawled bleeding to his apartment in costume one night after being mortally wounded by LeHah, he learned of his family’s legacy. His father provided him the money and the means to travel to Switzerland and meet with the Order of St. Dumas, who would provide him with his training, before requesting that his body be deposited somewhere where the family secrets would not be revealed.
Jean-Paul Valley, a.k.a. Azrael, makes his debut appearance in Batman: Sword of Azrael and the series has four issues. The story begins with Jean-Paul as a fearful child whose life is flipped upside-down and inside-out in a matter of days. We first meet Jean-Paul Valley when he opens his dorm room door to see his father’s bloodied, half-dead body sprawled on the floor. He tries calling for help and contacting the university doctor but his father refuses any help, asking him to leave his father’s body to be found by strangers. While Jean-Paul looks on, the elder man, dressed in a strange garb, gives his son a parting list of instructions before passing away.
Following his father’s orders, Jean-Paul finds himself in a frenzied, blood-soaked race through Europe with Batman, Alfred Pennyworth, and Nomoz, a grumpy dwarf. Their mission: to stop a renegade member of the Order of St. Dumas, of which Jean-father Paul was a member and of whom Nomoz is a member, from going on a murderous rampage.
As one would, he makes his way to the Swiss Alps to fulfill his father’s instructions. In the Alps, a man by the name of Nomoz told Valley about Azrael’s obligations and revealed that, despite his meek demeanor, he was already a capable warrior who only needed a few months of intensive workouts to build up his body, having been unintentionally sufficiently conditioned.
His conditioning is the consequence of a process known as “The System,” the full implications of which have never been fully explained in the human psyche. The first issue of the series follows young Valley’s journey and how he is practically bombarded with information, none of which he knew before and all of which led to him becoming a bringer of death for a centuries-old order his father had dedicated his life top.
He is shown a sigil and initiated into the order as the angel possesses him, giving him insane power and knowledge of combat. This was the creation of Azrael. The mild-mannered computer science major, Valley became an expert combatant, ready to take on anyone.
The order was evil as we can clearly see in the series. The Order of St. Dumas is a religious organization that originated during the Crusades as a former branch of the Knights Templar. Before the Templars were suppressed, the Order had a falling out with them and left. The Order dedicated itself to Dumas’ teachings, training an Asian man named Stephen Forrest Lee to be their champion, who faced Manhunter under the name Dumas.
The Order fractured as a result of its champion’s loss, allowing one radical sect to train Azrael. They bolstered the organization’s power by assassinating or kidnapping their opponents and disseminating false information. They accumulated riches and resources as well. However, Valley was indoctrinated by them and he fought against his conditioning for a long time.
As a superhero, Azrael is designed to be cold and uncaring, which is exactly what he needed to be during Knightfall. He’s barely competent at what he does, and even when he succeeds, he doesn’t act like a hero. Apart from the trademark, insane zeal that defined all comics in the 1990s, he lacks any trace of personality. He did however act as the agent of vengeance for the Order of St. Dumas.
Azrael encounters Batman in Switzerland, joined by his butler Alfred, who had flown there to investigate the mystery surrounding Azrael’s father’s murder, the nature of which had accidentally sparked a riot. Interestingly, the encounter was when he had been sent as a hitman by the Order of St Dumas to kill a weapons dealer.
Despite their initial animosity, Azrael goes on to save Bruce from Biis (LeHah) at the very end of the fourth issue. Nomos chastises Azrael for sparing Bruce, accusing him of dishonoring the name of the Avenging Angel, to which Jean-Paul responds that he is no angel, implying that he has taken control of the system. Thus, he ultimately rejected the Order’s harsh and heartless methods in favor of the more humanitarian activities Batman promotes.
Knowing Wayne’s true identity, he returned to Gotham and began collaborating with Batman. He admired Batman and aspired to be his successor, constantly associating himself with the Batman Family in Gotham. After Bane shattered Batman’s back, Azrael assumed the mantle of Batman, only to reveal himself to be a crazed murderer who was only interested in punishing those perceived to be sinners. He murdered serial killer Abattoir on one occasion, knowingly allowing other captives to die in the process.
As a result, Batman had to intensify his treatment and rehabilitation with Lady Shiva in order to confront Azrael, eventually overcoming the crazed zealot and forcibly removing him from the Batman role.
A New Azrael Arise – A Man Named Michael Lane
From 2009 to 2010, Azrael: Death’s Dark Knight was a three-issue miniseries. It saw the emergence of a new Azrael, a guy named Michael Lane, dressed in a white tunic with red accents. Azrael’s mask was changed to resemble armour during DC’s Rebirth era, and his appearance in Tales from the Dark Multiverse: Batman Knightfall envisaged a fusion of Azrael and Batman’s most renowned costumes.
Michael Washington Lane was born in Gotham City to Mitchell and Barbara Lane and attended East End High School. He was awarded a football scholarship to Gotham University, where he was a linebacker for the Nighthawks until his scholarship was withdrawn his sophomore year when he assaulted his coach.
He enlisted in the Marine Corps and served in the Iraq War for two deployments before returning home to work as a beat cop in his old neighborhood. Lane married Chanté Coles and they had a son named Henry Mitchell Lane, but Henry was killed in a vehicle accident when he was three years old, and his wife committed herself shortly after. Marion and Gwendolyn Lane, his older siblings, were ritually murdered by a demonic sect, prompting him to finally have a mental breakdown.
Batman takes part in an isolation chamber experimentation in a pre-Crisis Golden Age narrative, which involves him being locked within a chamber for long periods of time. Dr. Simon Hurt, who is mad, carried out the experiment. Commissioner Gordon was substituted by Commissioner Vane at this time.
Vane became concerned that Batman may not be here for a long time after he left the project, so he devised a plan to replace him. He worked with Dr. Hurt to create replacement Batmen in the event that the original Batman died. According to Dr. Hurt, Batman’s most probable motivation for battling crime stemmed from a personal tragedy.
As a result, they chose policeman recruits and psychologically traumatized them to turn them into Batmen. The Three Ghosts of Batman were formed as a result of this experiment, with Lane taking on the role of the malevolent Bat-Devil.
For a short time, he haunted Batman, tormenting him for the unintended destruction of the three. During the Black Glove’s grand plan to destroy Batman, Lane later served as an agent of Doctor Hurt. He was operating the helicopter during Hurt’s escape attempt from Arkham Asylum, but the chopper exploded and plummeted into the lake after he lost control of it. He was supposed to be dead, but he reappeared as Azrael, the Angel of Death.
After previous agent Abraham Arlington was driven insane by the supernatural Suit of Sorrows, the Order of Purity which was another splinter order under the Order of St Dumas chose Lane to be their next Azrael. After Lane acknowledged to helping kill Batman in a confessional, his priest Father Day confronted Lane with Adrian Paratino, Felicidad Gomez, and Leland McCauley.
Lane consented to take the mantle, and when they were assaulted by the Seven Men of Death, he was obliged to use the suit right away. The armor was made from the melted swords and breastplates of a number of Order soldiers who had died in battle. The Suit was created to be worn by Azrael, the Order of Purity’s hero, but only in exchange for a high personal cost.
Much of the first issue of this comic is devoted to fleshing out the details of this new Order of Purity and also the backstory of the Michael Lane character, and both have a degree of moral complexity to them that makes for fascinating theatre. When Merlyn and the League of Assassins arrive to reclaim the powerful Suit of Sorrows, the issue shifts into high gear.
Lane has flashbacks of significant events in his life in the second issue. The coach he thrashed after losing his temper is seen, his time as a soldier, returning to Gotham as a detective, the loss of his son, his wife’s suicide, the murder of his family, tormenting batman as one of Dr. Hurt’s “batmen,” being batman and being Azrael This is also the issue in which Lane learns of the suit’s risks.
Partially confessing, the members of the Order of Purity show him his predecessor, who went insane after 6 weeks. His tormented mind has numerous layers, and the sect is plainly not telling the truth, which allows him to revolt against his controllers. Salvation is a mental blade that influences the mind, while the other cauterizes wounds as it cuts, highlighting the skills of his blades.
The duel between Nightwing and this new Azrael takes place in the third issue of this series. We also learn more about the “politics” and “origins” of the Order sect that is driving this new Azrael. The duel ends in a draw, and Nightwing takes care of the suit of grief and both swords, letting him operate in the city as Azrael.
He’d have to answer to Nightwing if something went wrong and he ever gave in to his violent urges. Later, members of the Order are debating the future of their organization when they are disturbed by Lane, who intends to destroy them.
In exchange for devotion and allegiance to the Order, Lane is taken to Leland McCauley’s Brownstone and offered the place to be his residence and base of operations. Lane accepts and takes their place, reasoning that he can always assassinate them afterward. As Azrael, Lane begins hunting out evildoers, punishing them for their misdeeds, and bringing genuine justice to them.
However, fans of Azrael were disappointed as was pointed out by many because they had largely expected the return of good old Valley. Keeping that aside, using Lane was an intelligent way to weave Azrael further into the Batman mythos.
What Makes Azrael So Deadly
Azrael possesses a wide range of abilities. Jean-physiology Paul’s has been boosted by being grown in a test tube and subjected to numerous DNA experiments while still in his fetal form. This has given him increased strength, speed, and reflexes, as well as increased durability.
Accelerated Healing, Enhanced Senses, Enhanced Durability, Enhanced Stamina, Enhanced Strength, Enhanced Speed, and Enhanced Reflexes are all abilities he possesses. Azrael has developed into a far superior hand-to-hand fighter thanks to The System’s mental conditioning.
While he does not have Batman’s degree of competence, he has proven to be more than capable of dealing with most physical dangers. This was primarily owing to his Mental Illness, which was easily exploited, limiting his full combat capabilities. Azrael may become a greater fighter than Batman if it weren’t for this reason, according to Batman.
“The System” has given him a wide range of abilities, including acrobatic and martial arts capabilities that even the most seasoned athlete would find difficult to match. As a result, he’s a formidable opponent.
In addition to these abilities, his skills were polished through training with Bruce Wayne, making him potentially as skilled as Batman, despite his inadequate experience and finesse. However, due to his physical talents combined with his skill, he was able to defeat Batman, Bane, and Nightwing, and was even given the position of League of Assassins head by Ra’s al Ghul.
His understanding and proficiency with computers, as a computer science post-graduate student, surpasses Tim Drake’s and is comparable to Oracle, the former Batgirl. He is frequently referred to as an intuitive genius, despite the fact that he is neither as clever nor as swift as Bruce Wayne. Furthermore, he has a relatively restricted knowledge base with which to employ what would or could be a significant amount of intellect.
Last but not least, his deep-seated conditioning as had been done by the System was one of the main reasons behind him being a ruthless and cold killer whose anger knew no bounds. He was psychologically experimented on as he grew up, and he continued to have many genetic changes that would make him stronger. His head was flooded with cult conspiracies that sculpted him into the perfect, insane weapon, ready to wreak havoc on Gotham City.
Insane Versions Of Azrael In Various Forms Of Media
The character of Azrael has an inherent insane quality to it because of all the conditioning and trauma that the people who take on the mantle of the Angel of Death have gone through. However, Azrael, played by James Frain, makes his live-action entrance in season 2 of Gotham and this is by far the craziest we have seen Azrael.
Theo Galavan, a millionaire entrepreneur who is secretly the heir apparent of the Order of St. Dumas and uncle of Silver St. Cloud, is this incarnation’s alter ego. Galavan is the brains behind “The Maniax,” a gang of psychotic criminals that terrorize Gotham, but he betrays them by assassinating their leader, Jerome Valeska, and making him a national hero.
He is elected Mayor of Gotham with the grudging assistance of Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin, whom he blackmails into assassinating the other mayoral candidates by keeping his mother, Gertrude, hostage. When Tabitha, Galavan’s assassin sister, kills Gertrude nevertheless, Cobblepot swears vengeance and forms a fragile partnership with Detective Jim Gordon to haul Galavan to justice.
Galavan’s corruption is finally exposed, and the two of them stop the Order of St. Dumas from killing Bruce Wayne, destroying his criminal empire, and killing him. Hugo Strange revives Galavan under the codename “Patient 44” in “Wrath of the Villains: Pinewood.” Strange’s experiments, on the other hand, have altered Galavan’s psyche; he has no recollection of his previous life and thinks himself to be Azrael, an old immortal warrior who defeated the Order’s foes.
Strange takes full advantage of Galavan’s hallucinations by commanding “Azrael” to assassinate Gordon and providing him with a sword, mask, and medieval armor. Galavan attacks the Gotham City Police Department, murdering numerous policemen and injuring Nathaniel Barnes, the department’s captain.
Galavan is about to kill Gordon, Alfred, and Bruce Wayne at Wayne Manor when Cobblepot and his sidekick Butch Gilzean blow him to pieces with a rocket-propelled grenade launcher in “Wrath of the Villains: Unleashed.”
His other notable appearances include, in the Batwoman episode “A Secret Kept From All The Rest,” Azrael’s name is referenced in Lucius Fox’s journal, while Jean-Paul Valley’s Azrael outfit is briefly seen on display in Doctor Trap’s museum in the Harley Quinn animated series episode “Trapped.”