Ángel

Angel (アンヘル, Anheru, pronounced as Ahn-hehl as per the Spanish pronunciation of the word, therefore properly written as Ángel) is a character introduced in The King of Fighters series.

Development
Developers have stated that her design was conceived based purely on her designer's personal "preferences".

Story
In The King of Fighters 2001, Angel is introduced as an agent of the secret organization known as NESTS. She is assigned to keep an eye on the experiment K9999, whose purpose is to hunt down traitorous experiments that had left NESTS. During the final moments of the tournament, it is revealed that both Angel and K9999 are actually on a mission to kill Kula Diamond and her guardians.



While it is implied that Foxy is injured by them, this ending is considered non-canon. According to the 2001 novel, both she and K9999 disappear in the aftermath, with the latter never to be seen again. However, in the games, it is instead implied that Angel stayed behind to try and destroy NESTS' base for good while K9999 left on one of the Ikari Warriors' helicopters.

Her and K9999's whereabouts were currently unknown, and because Angel defected, she's on the run and is hunted by NESTS loyalists. Ramon offers her an invitation to join the tournament, which she accepts, tired of living in the shadows and in the mood to do something.

Personality
Angel is a lighthearted, flirtatious, and playful individual who behaves like a cat, in spite of her working status as an assassin for NESTS prior the organization disbandment. She is also quite violent and sadistic.

Abilities

 * Enhanced Body - Due to her affiliation with NESTS, much of her body was enhanced to be far stronger than that of a normal human.
 * Superhuman Strength - She is able to lift and throw someone as heavy as Maxima.
 * Superhuman Reflexes - She is able to dodge several attacks.
 * Superhuman Stamina - Her body will only develop fatigue toxins after several hours of physical stress.
 * Superhuman Dexterity - Her dexterity is even greater than that of a 10th grade black belt.
 * Superhuman Speed - Angel is so fast that she can translocate herself.


 * Motorcycle Driving - Angel likes to drive motorcycles.
 * Soccer - Angel often plays soccer as a goalkeeper.

Fighting style
Angel's fighting style incorporates elements of both Muay Thai (as seen in her stance and some of her kicks) and professional wrestling. Her "Unchain Circle" combo attacks make her one of the more distinctive characters in The King of Fighters series in terms of multi-input series of attacks. Though in past games, while they had invincibility frames to help beginners get used to learning how to use them properly, they made her somewhat difficult to counter until they were properly toned down in future installments. She is generally considered one of the more difficult characters in the series to play.

Music

 * NESTS - Ruler of the Dark - The King of Fighters 2001
 * Neapolitan Trance - The King of Fighters 2002
 * Sky Blue - The King of Fighters XIV
 * Ice Place -KOF XIV ver.- - The King of Fighters XIV (as Kula's opponent)
 * QT★@ngel - The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match
 * Cowgirl with a Horse Loose - Days of Memories (Boku to Kanojo to Koto no Koi)

Voice actors

 * Miina Tominaga - The King of Fighters 2001
 * Mayumi Shintani - The King of Fighters 2002~Unlimited Match
 * Miki Ogura - The King of Fighters XIV~present

Appearances
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Game appearances

 * The King of Fighters 2001
 * The King of Fighters 2002 - potential mid-boss
 * The King of Fighters Neowave (PS2 only)
 * The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match - potential mid-boss
 * The King of Fighters XIV (also in Diabla DLC costume)

Mobile appearances

 * Days of Memories (seventh title) - non-playable
 * SNK Gals Island Non Pre-mission Akiramenai de!
 * SNK High School Collection
 * The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Online
 * Kimi wa Hero
 * The King of Fighters All Star

Cameo appearances
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 * The King of Fighters '94 Re-Bout - background
 * Nariyuki Quest
 * SNK Heroines Tag Team Frenzy - her outfit appears as a costume for Kula Diamond

Trivia

 * Some of her moves and mannerisms pay homage to entertainer Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. Most notably, her "Winds Fairground", "Blue Monday Parade" and "Survivor's Banquet" mimic his "Laying the Smacketh Down", "Rock Bottom", and "People's Elbow", respectively. Her 2002, Neowave intro, and "Survivor's Banquet" quote roughly translates to "If/Do you taste The Angel's extraordinary skill!?", a play on The Rock's famous "If/Do you smell what The Rock is cookin'!?" catchphrase.
 * This would end up coming full circle, as Angel and The Rock would eventually appear in the same game, The King of Fighters All Star.
 * Angel's move names are all named after songs by the band Soul Flower Union and their predecessor Newest Model. Many of these references were removed for her appearance in KOF XIV, opting for a more conventional series of names.
 * Both Angel and Shermie both have the largest bust measurement of all the KOF females (92 cm).
 * Because of the controversy surrounding K9999, Angel's appearance in KOF XIV only had her betraying NESTS, and never mentions K9999 at all (despite Team NESTS ending in KOF 2001 implying that K9999 left the destroyed NESTS base on a helicopter). Thus, it is unknown if she has any relationship with Nameless.
 * In a 2005 poll made by SNK Playmore USA, she was voted as the third fan favorite character with a total of 2498 votes.