"Angel's Friends! Together forever!"
Angel's Friends (2009-2012) is an Italian animated series loosely based on a comic by Simona Ferri. It is about a trio of teen angel girls who are sent to Earth to help some Earth teens, but a trio of devils are sent to interfere. The series lasted for two seasons and a made-for-television movie entitled Angel's Friends: Between Dream and Reality.
Outside of Italy, the series can be seen in syndication in the United States - often on digital subchannels trying to meet E/I requirements.
Provides examples of:
- Action Girl: Raf and her friends, despite rarely getting into fist-to-fist combat, they use the powers from their wings to fight against enemies and/or protect themselves and others from danger.
- Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: In a truly odd example, the romance between Raf and Sulfus is original to the animated series. In the comics, Sulfus does have a crush on Raf, but she loves instead an Earthly One named Raoul who was Adapted Out in the animation.
- Adapted Out: Raoul, Ang-Li, Mephisto, Putzo and other characters from the comics don't appear in the animated series.
- Adult Fear: When Kabiria and Urie get injured by creatures of limbo, Temptel is visibly frightened for them.
- Age Lift: In the cartoon, the main protagonist is 15 stars years old (which is the equivalent of being a teenager). In the comics, they were younger and their ages varied with Raf being 12, Uri (or Urié) being 11, and Miki being 9. The devils were 13 (Sulfus), 11 (Cabiria), and 10 (Kabale and Gas).
- All Love Is Unrequited: In the movie, it reveals that Kabale is this towards Sulfus. Among the humans, Edward is this to Jennifer.
- All Girls Want Bad Boys: Well Raf does anyway, despite the fact that she's an angel, and he's a devil.
- All Just a Dream: Raf and Sulfus both have a dream where they get married.
- Almost Kiss: Sulfus tries to kiss Raf in the Caves of Obscurity but Raf stops him and reminds him of their rivalry.
- Battle in the Center of the Mind: Miki, Urie and Dolce go inside Raf's subconscious at one point and battle a chalk-monster.
- Big Damn Kiss: Raf and Sulfus finally kiss in episode 26 much to the joy of Reina and fangirls. note
- Orbital Kiss: This too, in episode 27.
- Big Eater / Obsessed with Food: One of Gas' defining traits.
- Delicious Distraction: This can backfire on him.
- Butterfly of Transformation: Done literally with Dolce's butterfly familiar, Butterfly which she uses to transform into a human and back.
- Calling Your Attacks: Both and the angels and devils like doing this.
- Canon Foreigner: Sweet, Misha, Reina and many other characters from the animated series are original to it and don't appear in the comic books.
- Catch-Phrase: "Angel's friends! Together forever!"
- During transformation sequences the angels say: "To guard and protect!"
- And the devils: "To curse and confuse!"
- Cerebus Syndrome: Once Reina is freed from limbo things aren't quite so happy-go-lucky anymore.note
- Chekhov's Gun: The tears on Raf's hankerchief and the memory of sacriledge on Sulfus' glove are used to create a spider that when bitten by it can counteract the VETO, making Raf and Sulfus able to touch without hurting themselves.
- Council of Angels: The High Spheres. The devils get the Low Spheres.
- Dark Magical Girl: Cabale and Kabiria. Also Blue, to a certain extant. Sulfus and Gas are rare male examples.
- Deadpan Snarker: Seems to be a requirement for devils.
- A Dog Named "Dog": Dolce/Sweet has a Butterfly familiar named Butterfly. Also, "Reina" means "Queen" in Spanish.
- Dub-Induced Plot Hole: In one episode, Jennifer comes down with a fever. Her temperature is animated on a thermometer in Celsius but is spoken in Fahrenheit due to it being translated from Italian to American English.
- Extranormal Institute: The demons and angels school.
- Facial Markings: Sulfus has his iconic red star over his eye.
- Failure Is the Only Option: While the angels do succeed in getting some of the kids to do the right thing, the show's creators have said that they will never get to finish their task. Maybe next season?
- Female Angel, Male Demon: The two protagonists.
- For the Evulz: The devils, a lot of the time.
- Gratuitous English: Plenty, usually it's a case of Calling Your Attacks. Some examples include "Speed Fly", "Meteo Fly", "Body Fly", and plenty others. Another example is the Angel's Friends catchphrase: "Angel's Friends! Together forever!"
- Healing Hands: Sulfus gets these later in the series.
- Invisible to Normals: Angels and devils can't be seen, heard or touched by humans until they take on human form. Though Raf isn't sure if this applies to dogs too...
- Ironic Echo: In episode 2, Raf and Sulfus see Andrew's friend Jacob getting picked on by three bullies:Raf: What do you mean; three against one?! That's not fair!Sulfus: Let me think about it...you could slap a fine on them!
- Then later when Urie and Dolce show up to help Raf in a challenge:
Sulfus: Three against one? It's not fair!Raf: Slap a fine on me! - Jack of All Trades: Malachia (Maliki). Throughout the series, he operates a steamroller, drives a bus, flies an airplane, serves as a librarian, as a hot-dog seller and as a DJ. Not to mention that he was an alchemist able to make love potions. Really, there is no task this guy cannot perform.
- Locked in a Room: Raf and Sulfus get trapped in the Caves of Obscurity.
- Ten Minutes in the Closet: Reina purposely pulls this to try and get them together.
- Lonely Rich Kid: Both Helen and Julia (Raf's newly assigned Earthly Ones) are upset because people only hang out with them because of their wealth.
- Love Potion: When Reina was an angel she tried to make her human, Malachia fall in love with her using his own love potion on himself. It doesn't work...
- Magical Camera: Urie's got one of these. Turns out to be very handy when Raf's friends need to prove her innocence by going through Raf's memories.
- Once an Episode: A kid is being tempted to do something bad. The angels and demons will have a competition to see who goes first. However, the kids don't always listen to who got to them first, which actually makes more sense in context. Another example is...
- Opening Narration: By Raf; explaining a topic either the angels and devils or the humans will go through in the episode.
- Our Angels (and Devils) Are Different: And in more ways than one, much to their superiors' chagrin; as far as they're concerned, this trope especially applies to Raf (and Sulfus)...
- Perky Goth: Kabale is a bit more upbeat than her fellow devils.
- Pink Means Feminine: Dolce is definitely the girliest out of the group.
- Rainbow Motif:The new costumes of the eight heroes at the end of season one- by adding pink and replacing indigo by turquoise.
- Rose-Haired Sweetie: Dolce, of the cheery and optimistic type.
- Reptiles Are Abhorrent: Sulfus has a snake as a familiar.
- Sensible Heroes, Skimpy Villains: This trope is subverted and inverted with the Devils. Though the Devils are more or less Anti Heroes, they wear more modest clothes than the Angels, whose outfits are rather skimpy. However, this trope is completely inverted with Reina.
- Shipper on Deck: Reina is a villainous version. She wants Raf and Sulfus to kiss in order to commit the Sacrilege that will free her from her chains.
- Shown Their Work: Raf, Urie, and Miki, are references to Rafael, Uriel, and Micheal, biblical angels. There is also a Gabi for the more well-known Gabriel. Dolce just means "Sweet" in Italian, and is called by her translated name in the English version.
- Slap-Slap-Kiss: Raf and Sulfus' relationship. Actually done literally in episode 26 when they both hit eachother and then make up with a kiss.
- Star-Crossed Lovers: Poor Raf and Sulfus, they aren't even allowed to touch each other.
- The angel Tyco and devil Sai from the ancient past. Their first kiss brought about the end of a civilization. Oops.
- Start of Darkness: The animated series' Big Bad Reina was once a guardian angel like any other, until she fell in love with the man she was meant to watch over.
- Supernatural Gold Eyes: Sulfus and Kabale have these and are notorious trickster devils.
- Take That!/Shout-Out:
- Raf's friends, Urie, Dolce, and Miki, control storms, illusions, and ice respectively. Basically, like the Trix from Winx Club. Also, Cabiria was redesigned to look like Stormy respectively.
- Sailor Moon can be seen during the Halloween special, as an angel, not a costume.
- Title Theme Tune: Although both versions are sung to the same tune, the English theme song is an example, but not the original Italian theme.
- Transformation Sequence: The angels and devils use this to turn into normal looking humans.
- Trickster: Sulfus,
just like any "devil"...
- You Gotta Have Blue Hair: Dolce has bright pink hair. Miki has blue hair.
