The Future Of Alpha Flight?

Phil

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Published on 10-07-2015 06:27 AM Number of Views: 38269

131 Comments

*This article contains spoilers for today's Avengers #0 - Please don't read ahead unless you mind having Alpha Flight's involvement discussed*

Last month it was revealed that Alpha Flight would be appearing in the pages of Captain Marvel, as part of the All-New, All-Different Marvel line-up.

Captain Marvel, being Marvel's premier female superhero at the moment is quite rightly appearing in various books, as part of the team of A-Force and The Ultimates.

The All-New, All-Different Marvel era begins today, and with it comes Avengers (2015) #0 - a 49 page $5.99 oneshot that gives 6 prelude stories to the forthcoming Avengers titles - Squadron Supreme, New Avengers, All-New, All-Different Avengers, A-Force, Uncanny Avengers, and The Ultimates.

The A-Force story, by writer G. Willow Wilson and artist Victor Ibanez focuses on Captain Marvel and gives a glimpse into the setting for Danvers' solo book.

In fact, the title is listed as 'Captain Marvel & Alpha Flight'

The story opens at the 'Alpha Flight low orbit space station' and we get shown various background staff who are clearly shown as wearing AF patched jackets

And that's pretty much it as far as AF are concerned; we don't get to see any existing characters or even get names for the background staff.

However, the story is quite clearly a Captain Marvel one, leading to events in A-Force rather than her own solo title, and it's a brief prelude as part of an anthology book so it's not cause for distress.

The story itself is definitely a well written, nice taster and sets the scene for Alpha Flight's adventures in space but fans expecting to see their favourite characters may be hesitant to spent $5.99 on it, especially with 4 covers.

It's definitely a positive that Marvel are pushing the title into this part of it's universe, especially with a Captain Marvel film on the horizon.

Captain Marvel #1 is currently scheduled for January 2016, with new details possibly revealed this weekend at NYCC.

Categories:
Alpha Flight

131 Comments

Phil - 11-05-2015
- Reply
Well, CBR have an exclusive preview of next week's Ultimates #1 that doesn't answer the question either way... but the use of quotation marks puts me back in the worry category...

Attachment 4960

Le Messor - 11-05-2015
- Reply
Originally Posted by Canucklehead

Well the ears do align... Does this change anyone's opinion?

You did a great bit of fan art there - but unless you're actually working on the comic (and you might be, I don't know!) - it can't change my mind. It's just telling me what that drawing might look like if it was Aurora, not showing me the actual rest of the drawing.

The ears aligning actually works against it, since the way I'm reading the perspective, the character behind CM shouldn't line up that way.

Originally Posted by T'Challa

One wing housing the ground crew for the "Alpha Flight" program-- one wing acting as the new Wakandan Embassy in New York -- one wing to wule them all, one wing to bind them--

It's not the quotation marks that worry me (on the next previewed page, they put Captain Marvel in quotation marks, and you see some really strange uses of the things, even in a professional context). It's the phrasing 'ground crew for the... program'. None of that sounds to me like it's a random Canadian superteam - that all sounds like a bunch of random pilots.

And that means, if I wrote it, there'd be a bunch of stuff about 'This is ground crew to Captain Marvel - take your proton pills and put your helmet on.'

~ Le Messor
"Coast and you will go downhill."
~ Dave Roberson, former New Trier swim coach

Phil - 11-05-2015
- Reply
It's been referred to as the Flight Program before, back in the early stages and again when there was a Beta, Gamma, etc... so that doesn't worry too much yet.
And we've seen a lot of Dept. H workers in the past; AF need a support staff - especially if they're now going to be flying spaceships all the time.

*crossing all my digits and trying to convince myself*

Canucklehead - 11-05-2015
- Reply
Originally Posted by Le Messor

The ears aligning actually works against it, since the way I'm reading the perspective, the character behind CM shouldn't line up that way.

If you look at the original, it does line up because the character behind CM is either taller or standing on something. I didn't resize any thing, just finished the top of the head/hair.

Originally Posted by Phil

It's been referred to as the Flight Program before

Remember in the Omega Flight book, where Guardian was referred to as "The Guardian"? Good times.

Le Messor - 11-06-2015
- Reply
Originally Posted by Phil

It's been referred to as the Flight Program before, back in the early stages and again when there was a Beta, Gamma, etc... so that doesn't worry too much yet.
And we've seen a lot of Dept. H workers in the past; AF need a support staff - especially if they're now going to be flying spaceships all the time.

All true.

Phil - 11-09-2015
- Reply
http://www.newsarama.com/26688-the-u...w-ongoing.html

while Carol's currently running Alpha Flight, which is Earth's premier space agency.

Hope...fading...

Le Messor - 11-09-2015
- Reply
Originally Posted by Phil

Hope...fading...

With you.

cmdrkoenig67 - 11-09-2015
- Reply
Arrrrrgh!

Mokole - 11-09-2015
- Reply
Sounds more and more like they lied, but we still don't know for sure.

Le Messor - 11-10-2015
- Reply
Yes, let us hang onto that uncertainty!

Phil - 11-10-2015
- Reply
To be fair, they've never lied, just dodged answers.

Le Messor - 11-10-2015
- Reply
Kind of depends on if you interpret implying to an Alpha Flight fan 'we've got good news' when you have the rights to Alpha Flight, then labelling a completely unrelated team Alpha Flight, then announcing a new comic with Alpha Flight in it, then publishing said comic with said team in it while telling the world the new comic has Alpha Flight without saying to anyone 'This is not the Alpha Flight you're looking for' as lying.

(If, yet again, that's what they're doing. We're still not 100% sure it isn't our Alpha Flight. Just sayin' this in case it turns out that it is our Alpha Flight after all.)

~ Le Messor
"A half-truth is a whole lie."
~ Yiddish proverb

Canucklehead - 11-10-2015
- Reply
When Hope Nicholson asked on Twitter about particular, Canadian Aboriginal/Inuit characters, artist Krista Feranka answered "We haven't revealed who we're using yet, but we are very aware on how we should use them"... Does that not sound like they will be using at least ONE familiar character?

Le Messor - 11-11-2015
- Reply
Originally Posted by Canucklehead

Does that not sound like they will be using at least ONE familiar character?

It does.

Canucklehead - 11-11-2015
- Reply
Originally Posted by Le Messor

It does.

Although the cynic in me assumes it'll just be Puck answering the phones at ground control, ending every transmission with "Over, eh?"

Phil - 11-12-2015
- Reply
I honestly believe there will be some Alphans.

I think that the original (non-Marvel moderated) panel where the news came out wasn't expected by Marvel and that they did't want the information to be known until the solicit.
When I tweeted to Kris straight after the panel he gave an enthusiastic yes, and then his next Tumblr post was about redesigns and hopefully being able to show them soon.

This was all over the weekend, so my guess is that when Marvel found out they asked for information to be held back, hence the vague answers from Brevoort and Alonso, and relative silence from Anka since then.

All of this creates buzz and fan theory and discussion which is ultimately free advertising, which is what Marvel wants.

Again, all my own speculation. I've got no inside sources on this one.

Le Messor - 11-12-2015
- Reply
Originally Posted by Phil

When I tweeted to Kris straight after the panel he gave an enthusiastic yes, and then his next Tumblr post was about redesigns and hopefully being able to show them soon.

You told us that at the beginning, didn't you?
It's something I'd forgotten, but it does sound hopeful.

Originally Posted by Phil

relative silence from Anka since then.

Paul Anka? I mean, he has some good songs 'n' all, but really, what's he got to do with this?

Originally Posted by Phil

All of this creates buzz and fan theory and discussion which is ultimately free advertising, which is what Marvel wants.

If Alpha are in the book, yes. If it does turn out they aren't, that could backfire on them. Creating an air of disgruntlement.

~ Le Messor
"Be calm in arguing; for fierceness makes error a fault, and truth discourtesy."
~ George Herbert