History Main / Angelicbeauty

* Spectrum Cinema made [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sROESLRudM a short, but interesting animation]] that somehow made the ''AngelicAbomination'' variety majestic, all while keeping the weird traits, like too many eyes, animal heads, the intersecting wheels, etc.

* ''Manga/AhMyGoddess'': Every Goddess (who are themselves {{Hot God}}s) has a very hot and barely-dressed angel to assist them with supernatural stuff.

* ''Manga/BlackButler'': [[spoiler: Ash and Angela]] both count, though [[CastFullOfPrettyBoys being pretty]] [[BishoujoGenre is hardly a rare trait]]. [[spoiler: May become [[FetishRetardant less]] (or [[EverybodyWantsTheHermaphrodite more]]) sexy when you find out [[SexShifter they're the same person]].]]

** Nadeshiko Kinomoto... and that was ''before'' she died and transformed into an angel in {{Heaven}}. (Lampshaded by her husband when they first met.)

* ''Literature/HighSchoolDxD'': With a series filled with [[HotAsHell attractive demons]] you'd expect there'd be at least one. We do get this in the form of [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Saint Brave]] Irina Shidou. ArchangelGabriel is also said to be [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman the Most Beautiful Woman in Heaven]], but we never see her face... until really late in the story.

* In ''Manga/TheSevenDeadlySins'', all supernatural races are beautiful in different ways. The beauty of [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Goddess Clan members]] is lithe and ethereal, tending towards white. That's not a metaphor for Caucasian descent- their hair and eyes are ''true'' white, variations of silver, blue or pale gold depending on the individual. When the Clan's princess is throwing a lot of [[LightEmUp power]] around, it/she burns so brightly that only the colour of her eyes is visible. It's likely the Supreme Goddess deliberately invoked this trope, to make it [[CharmPerson even]] easier for her army to make alliances.

->''But one day, an angel of fortune as beautiful and radiant as a thousand suns appeared above the man. She had come to save him, and lifted him out of the hole with ease. With her beauty by his side, the man started to become admired and respected by everyone.''
-->--''Webcomic/CursedPrincessClub''

As one would expect, this is an exceptionally popular trope in Renaissance and Romantic-era religious {{Art}}. More Old Testament based descriptions of angels and God appearing as [[DidYouJustHaveTeaWithCthulhu benevolent terrors that]] [[BrownNoteBeing kill those who see them]] would go out of style until modern internet culture's obsession with making things DarkerAndEdgier. Even still, if a work is trying to make a New Testament-looking angel, this is trope they go to, whether in {{Film}}, {{Television}}, VideoGames, or any other new medium.

* ''Anime/{{Daimos}}'': Erika is an {{AngelicAlien}}s Princess who's sought out by many men for her beauty. Her brother, Richter, also counts as this and has long, blonde hair, but he's a tyrant and a warmonger.

** Season 2 gives us beautiful angel [[spoiler:Crowley]], who radiates happiness while [[spoiler:creating stars]]. [[spoiler:Aziraphale]] is smitten.

%%* ''ComicBook/{{Empowered}}'': Charity, one half of the superhero Divangelic.

* ''LightNovel/HighSchoolDxD'': With a series filled with [[HotAsHell attractive demons]] you'd expect there'd be at least one. We do get this in the form of [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Saint Brave]] Irina Shidou. ArchangelGabriel is also said to be [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman the Most Beautiful Woman in Heaven]], but we never see her face... until really late in the story.

** When Hitomi sees Van shirtless and with his wings spread for the first time, she's extremely impressed and pretty much tells him [[FreakinessShame "But your wings are beautiful!"]]

* In ''Manga/AhMyGoddess'', every Goddess (who are themselves {{Hot God}}s) has a very hot and barely-dressed angel to assist them with supernatural stuff.
* '' Manga/AngelSanctuary:'' In-universe, Adam Kadamon is considered the most beautiful entity god has ever created.

* In the climax of ''Manga/{{Claymore}}'', this is what [[spoiler: Teresa looks like when she awakens]].
* ''Anime/DevilmanCrybaby'' has [[spoiler: Satan]]. While he's the main villain with an insanely sinister personality and set of ideals, there's no denying just how pretty-looking he is, and his beauty is even noted by other characters.

* Dark and Krad of ''Manga/DNAngel'' are technically not angels but the two halves of a living artwork ([[ItMakesSenseInContext literally, not figuratively]]), but the angel motif in their designs is clear even without the manga's title. Dark in particular is portrayed as a bad boy heart breaker womanizer.
* With a series like ''LightNovel/HighSchoolDxD'' filled with [[HotAsHell attractive demons]] you'd expect there'd be at least one. We do get this in the form of [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Saint Brave]] Irina Shidou. ArchangelGabriel is also said to be [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman the Most Beautiful Woman in Heaven]], but we never see her face... until really late in the story.
* Most of the angels of ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' are of the AngelicAbomination variety, but Tabris, aka [[spoiler:Kaworu Nagisa]], fits this.

* ''Manga/{{Saki}}'': Nodoka's virtual form.
* Half of ''Anime/TsukiPro'''s "Origins" illustration series, depicting the [[CastFullOfPrettyBoys cast]] of {{Bishounen}} [[IdolSinger idols]] as angels and demons.
* Nanael from ''Anime/QueensBlade'' is almost always shown flying around via PantyShot close-ups, as well as just being all-around promiscuous for an angel. Of course, for an {{ecchi}} series so extreme that it borders on {{hentai}} with a plot, this is to be expected.
* The imagery surrounding the WingedHumanoid race from ''Anime/TheVisionOfEscaflowne'' often invokes the trope.

%%* Imed the Angel from the ''ComicBook/DemiTheDemoness'' comics.
%%* Charity, one half of the superhero Divangelic in ''ComicBook/{{Empowered}}''.
* [[https://static.comicvine.com/uploads/scale_small/1/15776/363657-72450-aquiessence.jpg Aquiessence]] in ''ComicBook/LadyDeath'' was an female angel sent by Heaven to bring the titular protagonist to their side by [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer seducing her]] with her [[SmellsSexy intoxicating scent]].
* A pair of angels from ''ComicBook/TheSandman1989'' take the form of immaculate pale-skinned blondes who are as pleasing to the eye as the demons are a torture to look at.
%%* Angela from ''ComicBook/{{Spawn}}''.
* {{Subverted|Trope}} in ''ComicBook/{{Hellblazer}}'', where one demon has such a face... because she ripped it off an actual angel.
* Angel from the ''ComicBook/XMen'' is a mutant whose only superpower is having wings but gets so many compliments on his appearance that it's not unreasonable to think he could get mistaken for the real thing if that wasn't a factor in his codename already.

* In ''Film/DateWithAnAngel'', the eponymous angel, who gets stranded on Earth after breaking her wing in a collision with a satellite, becomes the face of the 'Celestial Beauty' campaign being run by a cosmetics company.
* The final ghost of ''Film/GhostsOfGirlfriendsPast'' appears as an incredibly beautiful angel in a flowing white dress.

* [[WhatCouldHaveBeen A rejected idea]] for ''Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheReturnOfTheKing'' was to have Sauron (who is basically a FallenAngel only appearing as an EvilOverlord) appear in his fair form as Annatar to beguile Aragorn during the final battle at the gates of Mordor. This did result in some deleted footage, but was replaced with the Aragorn vs. Troll fight.

* PlayedStraight in most of the {{Literature/The Bible}} except that Biblical angels are ''[[MrFanservice male]]''. For example, in [[Literature/BookOfGenesis Genesis]] two angels [[GodWasMyCopilot in human form]] went to Sodom and visited the righteous man Lot. They were so handsome that everyone in the city wanted to [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil rape them]]. Lot offered the crowd [[WhatTheHellHero his daughters instead]] but the angels saved them by blinding the evil men then [[BoltOfDivineRetribution killing them with fire from the sky]].
** {{Averted|Trope}} with some of the Biblical angels' [[AngelicAbomination true forms]]: for example the Cherubim each have multiple faces (usually three resembling animals and one humanoid), two or three pairs of wings and [[EyesDoNotBelongThere eyes everywhere on their bodies]], not to mention the [[AlienGeometries Ophanim]] which don't even remotely resemble humans being instead living ''wheels''.
*** It's difficult given the bizarre description, but possible to make a interpretation of that which is beautiful. Best example is probably Spectrum Cinema's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sROESLRudM animation]].
* In ''Literature/TheDivineComedy'', Beatrice's beauty is constantly topped whenever she ascends to a higher sphere in Heaven and gets that much closer to taking her throne beside the Queen of Heaven. This strange evolution happens because all of Beatrice's life and joy is a reflection of the living light of the Trinity, which makes her so godly that her smile on UsefulNotes/{{Saturn}} would [[MySkullRunnethOver snap a man's mind]] just as Jupiter's power incinerated Semele on sight. By the time they reach her throne, the poet has totally yielded and admits no words or memory could fully capture her beauty, leaving only the omniscient Creator to ever fully see Beatrice for the goddess He has made her.

* In ''Literature/TheFaerieQueene'', Belphoebe's appearance is described as if she were a god or angel. Her skin is said to be as white as an angel, her rosy cheeks resemble ambrosia, and her eyes are like the stars. And just like biblical angels, her beauty is so overwhelming that it terrifies those that see her (or at least Braggadochio).

* Angels in ''Literature/{{Lamb}}'' take the form of ridiculously attractive blondes. The main angel, Raziel, is sufficiently handsome enough to [[StupidSexyFlanders regularly fluster Biff]] despite Biff's insistent heterosexuality and Raziel's [[BrainlessBeauty infuriating stupidity]].
* In ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'', the elf-queen Galadriel has all the majesty befitting one born in the Undying Lands of the West and sanctified by a pure Ring of Power. Her grace is enough to make Gimli the Dwarf overcome his prejudice against elf and swear to devote his life to her, so long as he can have a strand of her splendid hair. It is one of the great tragedies of the War of the Ring that she must leave Middle-earth without the sight of her and go to her home amongst the Powers of Arda in the True West.

--->''"Beautiful, naked, shameless, young — she was obviously a goddess: but then the face, the face so calm that it escaped insipidity by the very concentration of its mildness, the face that was like the sudden coldness and stillness of a church when we enter it from a hot street — that made her a Madonna."''

* Aylwyn from ''Literature/TheTalesOfPaulTwister'' combines this with AmazonianBeauty. Paul seems to think she's hot because [[StatuesqueStunner she's tall]] and [[AmazonianBeauty strong and beautiful]] and also because of her wings.
* In ''Literature/TillWeHaveFaces'', Psyche's beauty leads the common-folk of Glome to worship her as a goddess. Her cult grows to the point that the local priest comes to believe she is the Blessed of their myths and plans to sacrifice her to their god, the Shadowbrute, so she can be his bride in the darkness. [[spoiler:Once she meets and marries the god, she becomes prettier than ever and soon after has her own temples where she is worshiped]].

* Ambassador Kosh in ''Series/BabylonFive'' is seen as such by various races [[spoiler:due to the Vorlon's AncientConspiracy to manipulate the younger races into being Vorlon pawns for the coming battle with the Shadows.]]
* Several examples in ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': [[MrFanservice Castiel]] is this to many fans; Michael, in the form of Matt Cohen and Jake Abel; Anna from Season 4 and 5; Season 6 briefly introduced another female angel named Rachel. Averted with [[BaldOfEvil Zachariah]]. These may not count as this trope however. They use [[WillingChanneler hosts]], so technically the fanbase is finding the human hosts pretty, not the actual angels. The angels themselves are actually of the AngelicAbomination variety, but the show has [[YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm never shown their true forms.]] The only angel whose ''celestial'' form is explicitly described as "beautiful" by another angel is [[{{Satan}} Lucifer]], at least before his Fall from Heaven--there are hints that millennia of [[EvilMakesYouUgly pure evil has done a number on him]].

* A number of angel pictures on ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' cards fit this, with the first Serra Angel picture (up to 4th edition) just being a mild one.
* Half-celestial races in ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'', currently known as devas, are known to have an otherworldly beauty.
** For related reasons, Aasimars (those with a celestial being in their ancestry) are also frequently quite beautiful.
* While most demons in ''TabletopGame/DemonTheFallen'' drive mortals who witness their true forms insane with horror, the few who still have low [[SanityMeter Torment]] do so with the angelic beauty they retained since the Days of Creation.
* Sanguinius, Primarch of the Blood Angels legion in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' qualifies, as does his counterpart Fulgrim of the Emperor's Children. Both are [[LongHairedPrettyBoy Long Haired Pretty Boys]] and described as the most beautiful of the Primarchs; Fulgrim seemingly being the most physically attractive and Sanguinius radiating a sort of ethereal, not-all-there beauty. This trait also to a lesser degree applies to their chapters, who share a genetic heritage with them.

* [[https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/jp-samurai-gamers-images/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/09165434/Lauriel.jpg Lauriel]] from ''VideoGame/ArenaOfValor'', as the Archangel, takes on the classical 'beautiful blonde female with wings' trope and runs with it with a {{Stripperiffic}} outfit. [[https://i.redd.it/qmmbpuwfr9v11.png Her Divine Grace skin]] also does this.
* ''VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}'': Zigzags this trope all over the place. Angels take on a wide variety of non-sexualized forms ([[WingedHumanoid Winged Humanoids]], [[OurDragonsAreDifferent Dragons]], [[BizarreAlienBiology Wheels]], and ''[[ETGaveUsWiFi hot rods]]'' for starters). However, hit them hard enough [[GlamourFailure and that all falls off]]. What's underneath is [[BodyHorror NOT pretty]]. Played more or less straight however with the Joys, who appear as hot, jiggly women-like humanoids.
** The trope is also played straight with [[GreaterScopeVillain Jubileus]].
* Zig-zagged in ''VideoGame/BendyAndTheInkMachine:'' the game occurs within Joey Drew Studios, which had a cartoon angel named Alice [[SpeciesSurname Angel]] among its stars. Alice, the cartoon character, has a cute face and an hourglass figure. But then, there are the attempts to bring the cartoon characters into reality by [[spoiler: using the souls of Joey Drew's employees]] - two of which are versions of Alice, known as [[spoiler: Susie]] and [[spoiler: Allison]]. The first of these that [[PlayerCharacter Henry]] encounters is incredibly deformed and also happens to be [[BeautyEqualsGoodness criminally insane]]. The second is much more attractive and much kinder - enough that a halo can be seen over her head with the seeing tool.
* Uriel ([[GenderBlenderName yes, that]] [[ArchangelUriel Uriel]]) from ''VideoGame/{{Darksiders}}'' is, as a notable departure from traditional biblical depictions, a dark-skinned blonde ActionGirl.
* Most angels of the ''Franchise/{{Disgaea}}'' universe, most prominently [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Flonne_9276.png Archangel]] [[Characters/DisgaeaHourOfDarkness Flonne]] and [[Characters/Disgaea4APromiseUnforgotten Vulcanus(?)]].
* While not exactly an angel (more like a member of the Heron, a WingedHumanoid race), Leanne from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn'' fits in nicely. Her older brothers Reyson and Rafiel are both examples as well.
%% * In ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'', where both dorky Pit and [[DarkIsNotEvil Dark Pit]] are angels who look like cute boys. Played straight with [[GodOfGood Palutena]].
* Any time a being of angelic origins shows up in the ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights'' modding community, she will be in possession of AngelicBeauty. Evanine in Tales of Arterra, Anera in Shadowlords, Melissa in Trials of the Academy, and others.
* Angels in ''VideoGame/NexusClash'' have this when they're the angelic classes that don't turn into ClockPunk [[WasOnceAMan constructs]]. The [[CouncilOfAngels Holy Word]] really ''prefer'' the latter, but someone has to keep up public relations and recruitment.
* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'': The Gardevoir species has a beautiful, feminine appearance (though [[DudeLooksLikeALady it's just as likely to be male as female]]). According to WordOfGod, it is supposed to resemble an angel, and its Pokédex entries emphasize its [[GuardianAngel protective nature]].
* Kyra, the Angel of Light, from the mythology of ''VideoGame/SepterraCore''.
* The ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' series largely averts this. The root-standard "Angel" is a young winged woman... covered in bondage straps, including one over her ''eyes''; it's actually pretty creepy. After that, angels come in two categories: harsh, masculine warrior, or HumanoidAbomination (in other words, close to the Biblical depiction). The only angels that could be described as pretty are Gabriel and Lucifer's angelic form (the one ''Persona 3 FES'' dubbed "Helel").
* An episode of ''VideoGame/StarTrekJudgmentRites'' has Kirk dealing with holograms representing two separate cultures of single-celled creatures, who claim to be at war with each other. The hologram representing the Omegan culture is a beautiful angelic figure, though [[SubvertedTrope his words are anything but angelic]]. His appearance is enough to convince Ensign Jons, a geneticist brought along for the mission, that the Omegans should be assisted in destroying their enemies.
* Angel in the ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}'' series.
* Played with Zafkiel in ''VideoGame/OmenOfSorrow'', who is very-good looking but doesn't necessarily appears divine like most examples of this trope, since she is an FallenAngel that lost contact with her fellow celestials during her quest to hunt evil. She still possess [[HairOfGoldHeartOfGold blonde hair]] and occasionally displays wings to mark her true nature.
* While the majority of [[LightIsNotGood sin eaters]] in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' are [[AngelicAbomination monsterous in form]] the strongest among them, Innocence, has a beautiful human form similar to most depictions of ArchangelMichael.

* In ''VisualNovel/TrueLoveJunaiMonogatari'', [[spoiler: the CatGirl[=/=]MagicalGirlfriend Anze's true form is this through and through. You [[DeusSexMachina must have sex with her]] to unlock it, though.]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* Big Sis, Silver, and Archangel Raphael from the webcomic ''Webcomic/TheAngelWithBlackWings'' possess angelic beauty.

* The Mortis arc of ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'' features the Daughter, embodiment of the Light Side of the Force, who usually takes the form of a beautiful, young woman, who visibly [[PhosphorEssence glows]].
* When Sabrina and Salem go back in time to King Arthur's days in ''WesternAnimation/SabrinaTheAnimatedSeries''...
-->'''Arthur:''' Be this heaven? For thou must be an angel.\\
'''Sabrina:''' (''giggling'') Thanketh thee a lot.\\
'''Salem:''' I thinketh I'm gonna be sicketh.

* Gian Lorenzo Bernini's marble {{sculptures}} display godly beauty (muscled bodies, soft features, and unblemished skin) that would become a standard during UsefulNotes/TheRenaissance.

* The ''Art/ApolloBelvedere'' shows the god casually walking about in a human form, which is of course devoid of all imperfections and fit to every Greco-Roman criteria of beauty. The sheer ease of Apollo's walk lets the audience know this isn't one of the forms the gods shapeshift into for the sake of deceit: rather, they are effortlessly beautiful when they are just being them. This standard of godly beauty shown off here would become the standard for divine sculptures in the Renaissance, especially regarding the works of [[Art/TheRapeOfProserpinaBernini Bernini]].
* Creator/AlexandreCabanel's ''Art/TheFallenAngel'':
** The subject of the painting is portrayed as an athletic, handsome young man who has retained his feathery angel wings after his betrayal, although they are black now.
** {{Subverted}} with the good angels who, upon closer inspection, have poorly-detailed features that aren't ugly but you can't call them beautiful either.
* Creator/RossoFiorentino's ''The Dead Christ With Angels'' shows the scourged, crucified, and lanced corpse of [[UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} the Son of God]] as a muscular nude flooding with light. There isn't a bruise or a drop of blood on him, to the point that if you didn't know [[PassionPlay the subject]], you'd think he was a sleeping god rather than the corpse of the God.

* [[Creator/RaphaelSanzio Raphael]]:

* The ''Art/ApolloBelvedere'' shows the god casually walking about in a human form, which is of course devoid of all imperfections and fit to every Greco-Roman criteria of beauty. The sheer ease of Apollo's walk lets the audience know this isn't one of the forms the gods shapeshift into for the sake of deceit: rather, they are effortlessly beautiful when they are just being them. This standard of godly beauty shown off here would become the standard for divine sculptures in the Renaissance, especially regarding the works of [[Creator/GianLorenzoBernini Bernini]].

* Creator/{{Michelangelo}}:

** In all the ceiling frescoes, God is not a shown as a disembodied hand or a [[EnergyBeings collection of light]], but as a man with all his natural powers, stretching His massive arms as they create souls and flipping his long locks behind Him to see Day and Night be separated from each other. Michelangelo manages to to give God the height of human beauty despite depicting as an old man; he achieves this by giving God a massive grey beard without any wrinkled skin or emaciated limbs.
** Christ in ''The Last Judgement'' foregoes the traditional beard and wounds given to Him in traditional art so render him a youthful and pristine Apollo-like figure. His muscles are highlighted by a HolyBacklight just as the light contrasts with his wavy brown hair, all their to show the divine perfection of Christ.

* Tzuyu of Music/{{Twice}} is [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman so beautiful]] [[https://youtu.be/YdeeXDO--cs?t=93 that she's been]] [[https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/989412696251555841/tMEQjtY9.jpg paired with literal angel imagery multiple times]].

* Any time a being of angelic origins shows up in the ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights'' modding community, she will be in possession of AngelicBeauty. Evanine in Tales of Arterra, Anera in Shadowlords, Melissa in Trials of the Academy, any others I haven't mentioned yet...

* PlayedStraight in most of the {{Literature/The Bible}} except that Biblical angels are ''[[MrFanservice male]]''. For example, in Genesis two angels [[GodWasMyCopilot in human form]] went to Sodom and visited the righteous man Lot. They were so handsome that everyone in the city wanted to [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil rape them]]. Lot offered the crowd [[WhatTheHellHero his daughters instead]] but the angels saved them by blinding the evil men then [[BoltOfDivineRetribution killing them with fire from the sky]].

** His sculpture of an ''Angel'' in the Basilica of San Domenico is a child whose hair and wings are so well-ordered that not a feather or hair pop out of place. The whole body of the angel is ordered, making it pleasant to look at, just as the angel's whole being has been ordered to perfection by God.

* Uriel ([[GenderBlenderName yes, that]] [[ArchangelUriel Uriel]]) from ''VideoGame/{{Darksiders}}'' is, as a notable departure from traditional biblical depictions, a DarkSkinnedBlonde ActionGirl.

* ''VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}'': Zigzags this trope all over the place. Angels take on a wide variety of non-sexualized forms ([[WingedHumanoid Winged Humanoids]], [[OurDragonsAreDifferent Dragons]], [[BizarreAlienBiology Wheels]], and ''[[ETGaveUsWiFi hot rods]]'' for starters). However, hit them hard enough [[GlamourFailure and that all falls off]]. What's underneath is [[BodyHorror NOT pretty]]. Played more or less straight however with the Joys, who appear as hot, jiggly women-like humanoids. Gets mixed in with HotAsHell considering their behaviour however, given their tendency for TheImmodestOrgasm.

* The Victoria's Secret Angels