Innova Archangel: Good or Bad? You decide.

For the first time in the history of Flying Dutchman Disc reviews, I am going to do a review on a disc that I am not too fond of, the Innova Archangel. First off, let me say that this is not a bad disc. This disc was very instrumental for me in learning my backhand and in winning my first tournament and I owe a lot of gratitude to it. This disc gave me the excitement to keep playing and grow in my skill and love for the backhand. It saved me from my disappointment of not being able to throw very far at all (RHBH) and just sticking to throwing forehand. This is a great beginner disc. In fact, I just gave one to my brother and another to a friend that just played with me for the first time. The main reason why I do not like this disc right now, is that it is not a consistent flyer.

Innova gives the Archangel a rating of 8 6 -4 1 and I am honestly not sure what to say about that. Maybe it’s the certain disc that I used or I am just not consistent at all in my throwing, but I never reached anything close to those ratings. From what I have heard and from what these ratings suggest, this should be a good turnover disc that can be used for rollers. It is a good understable disc, but I have never been close to getting it to roll. Most of the time this disc would go dead straight for me. However, often times when I wanted the disc to go straight, it would start to turnover and not land anywhere near the intended target. Because of this I had a newfound joy for this disc in using it for turnover shots. The thing is, that when I wanted it for a turnover shot, it would go dead straight. I would then use it for a straight disc again and it would turnover on me. For some reason I can never get a good read on this disc. It is the only disc for me that I can’t figure out. Maybe its my fault and I just suck, maybe the disc is inconsistent. I’m not sure. One thing's for certain, I do not like this disc. Now this is not to say that it may not make its way back into my bag although it probably won’t, permitting that my Latitude 64 Rivers and my Dynamic Discs Escape stay in my bag. On top of that, I would probably be more likely to put my Innova Monarch back in over the Archangel. I have a more consistent throw with the Monarch. You could say that the Archangel and I have some trust issues.

As for the feel of this disc, it is amazing to hold. The rim is not too thick like the higher speed drivers, or too thin like some midranges and putters, although, I may be biased because I really like the feel of fairway drivers. The top of this disc also has a nice in between feel. I don’t really like anything that has too much of a pop top. I have a Innova Wraith that is grossly over popped and I will never throw it because of the feel. I believe that flat tops are much better than pop tops, but the flat top still feels a bit strange to me. I enjoy throwing a Discraft Flick but it has a little bit of an awkward feel. The Archangel is a perfect inbetween of the Wraith and Flick. It allows for my thumb to have some downward pressure that is difficult for my Flick and impossible with my Wraith.

Overall this is a good beginner disc but not much after that. If I’m perfectly honest it’s probably my consistency that is lacking, but I find that there is not much consistency in this disc’s flight pattern and that is why I believe that it is not good for people that are no longer in their beginning stage. Another downside is the plastic. I believe in a premium plastic bag for a few reasons. I mean, first of all, premium plastics look cooler, but this is a horrible reason. Second, I want my discs to hold their patterns and not break in easily. I want them to last. The Archangel only comes in DX plastic which is Innova's worst line. Some may like the DX, but for me, this is a huge downsize to the disc. I would like to see this disc come out in Champion plastic. The added overstability of the plastic may be what this disc needs to hold a constant straight line. This disc does get an A+ for the feel, but unfortunately for the Archangel, feel alone does not merit a discs position in my bag.

Keep Throwing!
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