It took audacity on the part of Wicked Pictures to green-light a sequel to one of its most ambitious movies. But director Brad Armstrong and leading lady Jessica Drake prove they’re more than up to the challenge in Fallen II: Angels & Demons, resurrected a decade to the day after the original debuted in the fall of 2008.

Drake reprises her role as the fallen Angel and Armstrong is Keith, the mortal she falls for. They’re still together, but plagued by ennui. Things change dramatically when they shelter Max (Leigh Raven), a fragile human streetwalker who is sought by both good and evil forces—embodied on one side by the archangels Gabriel and Azrael (Misty Stone and Isiah Maxwell) and on the other by the Devil’s minion, Pharzuph (Tommy Pistol).

But no matter what side of the moral fence they’re on—and whether they’re otherworldly beings or humans—everyone delivers the sexual goods. Drake is featured in four of the seven sex scenes, starting off with an orgy and ending with a final coupling between lovers Keith and Angel. In between she tangles first with the archangels and then with Pharzuph. The latter scene is the dramatic high point, with Drake taking a second role as the Devil incarnate.

The first Fallen (which is included as a bonus disc in the DVD release) garnered four AVN Awards in 2009, including a Best Actress trophy for Drake. In addition to being up for Best Drama, the sequel is nominated in multiple categories, including art direction, cinematography and editing, with nods to Armstrong as director and screenwriter and to Drake in the Best Actress and Best Group Sex Scene categories.

It’s a classic Armstrong extravaganza, elevated even higher by Pistol’s usual excellence and all the skills that the director and his star have honed over a decade of adult moviemaking. Overall, it’s a happy and deeply romantic ending to an otherworldly love story.