Riding on the tales of Marvel's summer event
FEAR ITSELF is an interesting and exciting little sidebar that flew right under my radar: the apparent return of Canada's premiere super-team: Alpha Flight!
I used to LOVE this team back in the 80's when
John Byrne was at the creative helm. I could have cared less about Canadian politics or even where Canada
was; all I know was Alpha Flight was a pretty good read. What I enjoyed about the team is that they seemed to be able to get the job done, but their personal lives were always in shambles...and this book is leaning in that direction. Throw in an X-Men or Wolverine appearance here and there, and you had me at hello.
According to the first couple issues (which I bought back-to-back) it appears Alpha Flight returned in Marvel's "
CHAOS WAR" limited series, a testament to the fundamental lack of attention I gave the series for a snoozer of a story. Since their return, Alpha has been figuring out their place in the world and there's no lack of drama here. Guardian's wife
VINDICATOR seems to have gone bad...(
or at least terribly misinformed) causing a rift in the newly-reborn team but also giving them a sense of new purpose...which was nice, because I've never really liked James' wife as a hero.
I thought Alpha had too many "
combo meals" on their team. Heck, even TOY BIZ made the ALPHA FLIGHT figures in 2-packs. Aurora and Northstar. Shaman and Talisman. Sasquatch and Snowbird. Guardian and Vindicator. Puck and....well, noone really affiliated themselves with Puck. Which is a crying shame, because Puck in this series is absolultely awesome, apparantly showing some signs of Cocoa Puffs during his recent stint in Hell.
Plus I could do with less Northstar in this series. Not because he's gay. But because he's lame.
This series is slated for 8-issues, but people I've spoken with at comic shops seem to be enjoying this book and since it's a #2, (which always seem to be in shorter supply than #1) that's a recipe for a terrific pick.
So instead of a GT run, why dontcha get off your Chesterfield and hit up
ComicCollectorLive.com to drop a couple Loonies or Twonies on Alpha Flight #2 while you can, eh? It's quite wicked. All the Yanks are reading it, and so should you!