Alpha Flight Questionnaire

[Le Messor]

That's cool; I want to say welcome aboard, but you've been around two years, so…

I agree with most of your choices, too!
But, uh… "Scramble - the way Byrne drew Heather and the other altered bodies still creeps me out"
Byrne never drew them; Scramble came right after he left the book.
… or have I gone insane in the brain again?

[burke]

You are completely correct - 'twas Mike Mignoloa drawing that arc. two unrelated questions 1) how do i format that list so it's LEGIBLE? i keep editing with spaces to make it clearer and it keeps dumping the text horribly 2) how do i go from being listed as a "New Recruit?" I have every AF comic published - 8 international covers of AF#1, and far more long boxes of AF appearances than my wife would like!

[Le Messor]

I'm not sure for either. Carriage return seems to work on my computer, like

this, but I'm not sure how to make it work for you. What sort of device are you using? Computer? Phone?
(I've just managed to edit the comment for you, though, to add in carriage returns between questions. Hope that's okay.)

For the other, I think the answer is just to post a lot. This site can't count your collection, but you only have 11 posts here at the moment.

~ Le Messor

[Tawmis]

I am sure I've answered this (probably a few times, but why not again)....


1. How long have you been collecting Alpha Flight?
Fortunately, I jumped on with Alpha Flight #1 of the original series.


2. What was your first memory of Alpha Flight? If recent, what was your first reaction?
I am blessed. One of my first comics given to me as a kid was Avengers #159 and Uncanny X-Men #121.
The splash page of Alpha Flight facing off with the X-Men captured me so much.


3. Who is your favorite Alpha Flight character?
I don't think this has ever changed. It's always a toss up - but primarily falls on Snowbird first.
Then Shaman, then Sasquatch, then Aurora/Northstar, then Mac (whatever name he decides to use), then Puck, then Marriana. And those two fall that far down, undoubtedly because they weren't a part of the original team from UXM. Nostalgia is a powerful force.


4. Who is your least favorite Alpha Flight character?
Phew. A few got introduced by Mantalo that I didn't care for - but if we exclude them, I'd say Box (Maddison). Because he became this big transformer that was just turning into jets and all this stuff. I liked it better when it was just armor.


5. Who is your favorite Alpha Flight villain?
Master will always be my favorite probably. He felt very Magneto/Apocalypse version to Alpha Flight.


6. Who is your least favorite Alpha Flight villain?
Easy. Llan the Sorcerer. Good gravy. So much dislike.


7. What do you think is the best issue / story-arc from Alpha Flight?
First 12 issues were character defining.


8. What do you consider the Alpha Flight "Dream Team"?
Pretty much Alpha Flight #1.


9. If you were to be stuck on a desert island with one member of Alpha Flight, Who would it be (powers can not get you off the island)
Snowbird. Always Snowbird. I may be in love with her. Don't you judge me!


10. Who was/is/could be the best leader of Alpha Flight?
This turns out to be Heather, because she has the most history doing so.


11. Who is your favorite Alpha Flight writer?
Byrne.


12. Who is your least favorite Alpha Flight writer?
Whoever it was helming the story during the Silver / Auric and the dead town gone crazy.


13. Who is your favorite Alpha Flight artist?
Byrne


14. Who is your least favorite Alpha Flight artist?
I can't remember his name - but worked with Hundall, and drew Llan...


15. If you could undo one thing in Alpha Flight history, what would it be?
They're off panel death.

[Tawmis]

For the love of Brell, I hate that we can't edit posts.

Their off panel death.

Not They're.​

[Le Messor]

I agree with most of what you say; and have had a crush on (Claremont/Byrne) Storm too long to judge you for loving Snowbird.

I think it was Hudnall who wrote the #12. arc you speak of - for me, he's done other things in Alpha that I liked, so I wouldn't put him as worst.

I've found that if I open editing in a new tab, it works (I do that by middle clicking on my mouse, but I'm on a PC, not a phone - I don't know what will work for others). You need to copy your whole message first, since it just opens up an empty editing panel.

[Tawmis]

Ah, yeah. Hundall wrote other good stuff in AF (I mean, by this time, AF was a tragic train wreck with no writers wanting it, no artists wanting it or squabbling between writer and artist) - but that "town gone crazy" story is so absolutely horrid that it even overshadows stuff Mantalo introduced (which, I can't remember who made Walt a woman, also another bad idea) - but the town gone crazy is so seared into my brain. It's literally one of the worse stories I've read in comics. And, I am sure a BIG part of that may have also been the artist doing a HORRENDOUS job (whoever that was) in my opinion. It just felt like - AF, at its worse, with what felt like neither artist or writer even TRYING.

[Le Messor]

I believe the Walt as a woman was Bill Mantlo.

The town-gone-crazy, iirc, was the result of editorial interference. This is one of my vague memories, but I remember hearing something about how Sandman was popular at the time, so editorial told Hudnall to make Alpha Flight more horror-oriented. And that's how we got that story.

John Calimee drew the arc. He's since come onto this site for an interview; his art has improved a lot since then, and he seems like an okay guy. Just for another side of that. (I don't like the art on that run, either, though.)

[Tawmis]

Yeah - we interviewed James Hudnall for my podcast (Comic Relief Podcast) - http://comicreliefpodcast.com/archives/1375 (starts at 37:50) - 41:58 we start talking Alpha Flight. Around the 43 mark he talks about how Bill was essentially flailing or bored in Alpha and was asking the editor for ideas when Hundall was brought on. Although, I remember wanting to correct him when he said Dream Queen was modeled after Mephisto - and telling him it was Nightmare, since it was (is? Supposedly?) his daughter. Around the 45 mark he starts talking artist... and he'd wanted Mark Bagley (who he worked with previously)... around the 45:45 mark he starts talking about the artist he got (Calimee) and mentions he wasn't "there yet" (but like you seems to think he got much better... and really, we all get better at a craft we continue to keep at, so I don't doubt Calimee is much better these days then what we got in those issues of AF... also probably helps if you're passionate about your work, and it didn't feel like post Byrne, many were passionate when assigned to AF, which is also a problem), but he goes on to explain that unfortunately he and Calimee didn't gel properly. He does admit that he was by far a bigger DC fan than a Marvel fan.