best alpha story outside regular series?

[varo]

i was leafing thorugh some old books this past weekend and came to a realization.

series 2 was very well written and makes series 3 look.......well....i'm not even going to go there.


there was a incredible 2 part book "x-men/alpha flight" written by rabb/cassady that was awesome as far as the story/art/charecterization of alpha flight. by far the best alpha story i have read outside their regular series.

[DelBubs]

The last time this came up i mentioned that I was quite taken with the two part MTIO story #83/84 (ish). The Thing goes to Canada to enlist Walts help inregards to Bill Foster. AF written well and treated with some respect. They had an innocence about them. A good old fashioned super-hero team. Kinda why Crystar #11 came to mind as I was writing this, old fashioned super heroing and another unwriten chapter in Pucks life.

[Michael May]

I like the Puck/Wolverine/Ernest Hemingway story from Marvel Comics Presents and for some weird reason I'm really attracted to the Steve Ditko Machine Man story.

http://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/2457/400/2457_4_18.jpg

Not that these are the BEST stories, just my favorites.

[Barnacle13]

For me it's ROM. Forget the issue numbers, but they're listed somewhere. May be the only time Shaman was ever treated with respect as a character. It was a really good 2 issue story.

[PWalk]

Contest of Champions. Sassy plays a big role for one of the teams in it. One of the great parts is where Beast and Cap'n America go upto Sas. Beast says "So what do they call you big fella?"
Sas responds "They usually call me Sir."
And in the the next panel Cap'n A has a thought bubble where in he states "Beast has nothing on this guy."

I really enjoyed seeing Sassy get featured like that.

http://www.paperbackreader.com/columns/rest-story/contestofchampions.JPG

[rplass]

One of my favorites is the Marvel Team-Up Annual #7. I once wrote up a little note about it that says, "This issue's got it all: Northstar's an arrogant jerk, Sasquatch goes into a berserker rage, Aurora drops into her 2nd personality, Marrina wonders, 'What's a Plodex?', plus more eh's than ever from Puck."

Also, the art is amazing and you get the follow-up to the story in Power Pack #9 and #10.

Love,
rplass

[kozzi24]

One of my favorites is the Marvel Team-Up Annual #7. I once wrote up a little note about it that says, "This issue's got it all: Northstar's an arrogant jerk, Sasquatch goes into a berserker rage, Aurora drops into her 2nd personality, Marrina wonders, 'What's a Plodex?', plus more eh's than ever from Puck."

Also, the art is amazing and you get the follow-up to the story in Power Pack #9 and #10.

Love,
rplass
this one's got my vote too

[birdygirl]

I'd have to vote for Rom #56-58, also. And, as I've said already, Black Panther #43; Wolverine #143, 172-173, 179; and X-Men Unlimited #45. :D

[PWalk]

One of my favorites is the Marvel Team-Up Annual #7.

Anyone have an extra copy of this issue laying around? I'll pay or work a trade. PM me, it sounds like a great story.

[Ottawa Renegade]

there was a incredible 2 part book "x-men/alpha flight" written by rabb/cassady that was awesome as far as the story/art/charecterization of alpha flight. by far the best alpha story i have read outside their regular series.

Fabulous. If they didn't want to bring back the originals now, but wanted to do "untold stories of Alpha Flight" instead, I'd be ecstatic.

[birdygirl]

I agree the 2-part Rabb/Cassidy X-Men/Alpha series was wonderful. Good story and beautiful art. I adored it ! :D

And let's not forget the first X-Men/Alpha 2-parter (with Loki), "The Gift". (I wonder if I dare to say that "The Gift" ranks near "Days of Future Past" as an absolute classic? :shock:)

[Ben]

I agree the 2-part Rabb/Cassidy X-Men/Alpha series was wonderful. Good story and beautiful art. I adored it ! :D


I agree that this was a great mini. There were certainly continuity errors, such as Snowbird being in the U.S. and not going all death-ish, Northstar's accent being way too strong. Nothing earth-shattering really. I loved the art on both Puck and Sasquatch, and the pannel a couple pages from the end with Locan and Puck having a beer is awsome.

Ben

[kozzi24]

That series actually did not fit into both X-Men and Alpha continuities by publication date, according to membership of each team. Good story tho.

[birdygirl]

Philosophical question here: Why is that so many Alpha Flight appearances OUTSIDE their book are outstanding, while the stories WITHIN their own series are often disappointing? :?:

Maybe we shouldn't hope for Volume 4, after all? :?

[SephirothsKiller]

I actually would love to see the alpha flight members moonlight at other places, and would really love to see either pucks doing something. And even though I know that it was a joke, I would seriously love to see marvel teamup: The New Avengers with The League of Super Pets!!!! OMG!!!

[Michael May]

Philosophical question here: Why is that so many Alpha Flight appearances OUTSIDE their book are outstanding, while the stories WITHIN their own series are often disappointing? :?:

Maybe we shouldn't hope for Volume 4, after all? :?

I disagree. I have a lot of fondness for some of these outside appearances, but they're either goofy or way too short and don't compare to the best stories in the regular books.

[SephirothsKiller]

I think that some of them should take a hiatus and join the new avengers until their series pops back up again.

[HappyCanuck]

I think that some of them should take a hiatus and join the new avengers until their series pops back up again.

Actually, I'm surprised there is no Canadian representation in the Avengers (Marrina doesn't count since she was only an honourary member, plus, she wasn't there to represent Canada. Wolverine may see himself as Canadian, but he's more Americanised than anything). The Avengers - an international organisation - has had representitives from almost everywhere (even a Captain Britian/UK), but, to my knowledge, no one represents the nations of Canada, Russia, or China as national institutes.

[Scarlettspiderg]

Black Widow represented Russia for a while and Captain Britain's time with the team was extremely short (2 arcs?).

[kozzi24]

That Captain Britain was horrible anyway, tho I might have been less critical if the character was not usurping the name of an established character.
Chine doesn't have that many heroes anyway. No complaints that Sunfire has never represented Japan on the team?

[HappyCanuck]

That Captain Britain was horrible anyway, tho I might have been less critical if the character was not usurping the name of an established character.
Chine doesn't have that many heroes anyway. No complaints that Sunfire has never represented Japan on the team?

Truth to tell, I AM surprised that Shiro (or anyone else at least from BH6) hasn't at least been OFFERED a place with them (it's a safe bet that Shiro and GoGo would tell them quite graphically where to shove the invitation). As per China, I think it's time to ressurrect Jade Dragon, get him in the Avengers, esp now that the US and China are playing nice(r)

[Scarlettspiderg]

That Captain Britain was horrible anyway, tho I might have been less critical if the character was not usurping the name of an established character.

I liked the idea of Kelsey and thought bringing a new CB into the Marvel Universe was nice, but I would have preferred her take the name Lionheart, Britannia or Britanic - mainly because CB's powers are tied to the land and the original CB had problems when operating outside of Britain (see Excalibur's Inferno issues).

Some more international Avengers -
Dr Druid (English)
Living Lightning (Mexican)
Scarlet Witch (Austrian?)
Quicksilver (As above)

[HappyCanuck]

Close, Scarlett - Wanda and Pietro are Transian, a fictional state of Southern Romania, born at the base of Mount Wundergore.

Other international Avengers also include:
Black Panther - King of Wakanda (fictional countryin Africa)
Namor - Crown Prince of Atlantis (fictional country in the Atlantic Ocean)
Crystal - Duchess of Attilan (fictional country in the Himalayas)


Then if you wanna get REALLY picky:
Thor - Crown Prince of Asgard (Extradimentional)
Sersi - Eternal of Titan (Displaced Terrestrial - the Eternals moved to Titan many millennia ago, but are originally from Earth)

However I still stand by the fact that there is no Canadian, Chinese or Russian representation in the Avengers (Black Widow doesn't count, as she was a Russian defector, and thus doesn't exactly reflect her native country's best interests).

[kozzi24]

I liked the idea of Kelsey and thought bringing a new CB into the Marvel Universe was nice, but I would have preferred her take the name Lionheart, Britannia or Britanic - mainly because CB's powers are tied to the land and the original CB had problems when operating outside of Britain (see Excalibur's Inferno issues).

There were holes in the story, and the angst of her children just seemed such a plot contrivance...she can't tell her children who she is, poor her. So let someone else tell them...what an obvious loophole in theat mystical ring.

Starfox and Hercules are also non-American Avengers. I remember Firebird as Hispanic, but can't remember if she was American. Deathcry was Sha'ir (sic).

[birdygirl]

Firebird was American, as I recall; from Texas. She was a social worker in her private life. She also had a really cool, streamlined costume at first, before it was changed into some kind of bulky "angel" get-up. I lost track of her after that. :(

[kozzi24]

Back to the firebird design. The "Espirita" thing didn't last too long, thankfully. There was a great origin story in Averngers Spotlight, I think #24,

[PWalk]

One of my favorites is the Marvel Team-Up Annual #7. I once wrote up a little note about it that says, "This issue's got it all: Northstar's an arrogant jerk, Sasquatch goes into a berserker rage, Aurora drops into her 2nd personality, Marrina wonders, 'What's a Plodex?', plus more eh's than ever from Puck."

Also, the art is amazing and you get the follow-up to the story in Power Pack #9 and #10.

Love,
rplass

Just read this book last night and I gotta say it's my new favorite. It's mostly an AF tale with Spidey thrown in for good effect. I love the play of NS and Sassy against each other. Very good read.