Throughout television history, producers have longed for spin-off gold, television series which were spawned from other series and which are as popular as the originals. Producers have to risk many an After M*A*S*H, in order to strike gold on par with Mork & Mindy (from Happy Days) or Xena: Warrior Princess (from Hercules: the Legendary Journeys).

In Angel, television has again found such gold. Originally a character on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel now has a series of his very own. "Angel" was once known as "Angelus" - an especially nasty vampire. To make a long story short, he was cursed by a gypsy, given a soul. Now he is a vampire with a conscience, putting his unique skills and abilities to work as a private detective and protecting who he can. He is aided in his mission by Cordelia Chase, who has unique gifts of her own in the form of visions. Tossed into the mix to make things interesting is Faith, a "rogue" Slayer who thinks herself above the law.

For their initial series of action figures based on Angel, Moore Action Collectibles has produced Angel, Faith, and Cordelia. There will also be several exclusive figures in this series: Vampire Angel, Leather Jacket Vampire Angel, Slave Cordelia, and Leather Jacket Faith.

The regular Angel Series One action figures are available in comic book stores, several online stores, and on the Moore Action Collectibles site. They retail for around $14 to $17 USD.

Moore Action lists creative team credits on the back of the cardbacks, and sculptor credits on the front. Sculpt This sculpted the Angel figure, Dene Mason sculpted Faith, and James Stapp & Peter Hutchins sculpted Cordelia.

Click on a picture to see more pictures of that action figure.

Angel is sculpted in a "hips forward" pose handy for many combat poses, which he is amply prepared for, as he comes with two axes (one single blade, one double blade), a Scottish dirk, sai, and a short katana sword with sheath. He also comes with a street scene display base with removable manhole cover. In addition to plenty of weapons, Angel also has plenty of articulation: neck, shoulders, bicep twists, elbows, wrists, waist, hips, mid-thigh twists, knees, and ankles. The ankles are not twists, but are swivel joints to allow him to flex his feet up and down. As with most Moore figures, Angel has a collector number on his foot.

The Faith action figure also has her number on the bottom of her foot, and has the same ankle articulation as Angel. Her other points of articulation are: shoulders, bicep twists, elbows, wrists, waist, hips, mid-thigh twists, and knees. Her long hair would prevent her from turning her head, so a neck twist would be pointless.

Faith comes armed as a Slayer should, with a stake, a crossbow and a compound bow, all of which she can hold. Her right hand has a trigger finger for the crossbow. Her display base is the corner of an alley, with two partial walls that slide into place to form the corner. The base is decorated with a garbage can which has fallen over and is spilling out its contents: a doll, an apple core, and misc junk. Near the can are a rat and a can of spray paint, just in case the garbage wasn't enough to set the alley atmosphere.

Faith has lots of little details, like the paint wash on her flesh that makes it look as if she has spent time in the sun recently. She has a tattoo on one arm and has painted fingernails. Although Faith's pants are a flat black color, they have small sculpted details: side seam and back pockets.

The Cordelia action figure has feet which are a bit too small to individually number, so her collector number is on her display base. The base is a sidewalk section, with a star on it, befitting the Los Angeles location of Angel. In addition to the base, Cordelia comes with a stake, an axe, a shoulder bag (with painted zipper detail) and a flashlight. She can hold all of her accessories, but her long sculpted hair spills over her shoulders and prevents her from being able to put the bag's strap on either shoulder without effort.

As with the Faith figure, Cordelia's hair would prevent her head from turning, so there is no twist on her neck. However, she does have plenty of articulation aside: shoulders, bicep twists, elbows, wrists, waist, hips, mid-thigh twists, and knees. Cordelia's fingernails are painted, which as on the Faith figure, adds an interesting feminine air to poses in which she is wielding a stake.