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St. Michael the archangel, sassy devil and crew

Riley and Michael talk about St. Michael the Archangel and sassy devil in Fall of the Rebel Angels, 1715-25. This is from an imaginative tour at the Getty Center: The Supernatural in Art. Created by Getty Museum.

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Video transcript

- [Voiceover] Hi, I'm Riley. The devil once was the most beautiful angel ever in Heaven and started to get all sassy and say that he was as good as God. Eventually, they threw him down to Hell along with the angels that were supporting him. Then as they're falling, they're starting to become devils. (distorted screaming) They're growing horns, they're growing tails, a couple of claws here and there. - [Voiceover] The angel has a shield and a sword. (swords slicing through air) He's the only angel that I know the name of, because my name is Michael, too. I have a statue of Michael where he has the devil at his feet. He's showing him that you can't treat people bad, like the golden rule, "Do unto others as you would have "others do unto you." - [Voiceover] One thing for sure, you should never try to overthrow God. If you do, you're gonna end up in Hell. (drumroll) - [Voiceover] The design is very creative, having the saint just standing on all the demons and showing the stages of them turning into demons. I seriously think the emotion is down pat! It's like they're screaming for mercy. They're like, "Please, no!" But it's too late. (sighs)