Crackity Jones' Discovery Of Alpha Flight

[Le Messor]

But not 3? Surprising

It's bad, but enjoyably so.

Hate to be 'that guy' but Tawmis was spot on, #94 was his first issue; straight after GSXM #1

Why not? I was 'that guy' first. And, I've just checked my Marvel Masterworks edition... You and Tawmis are right, #94 was his first. I've thought otherwise for a long time; I wonder why?

~ Le Messor
"More people have died in Teddy Kennedy's car than in nuclear power plants."

[Flightpath07]

Phil, don't we have a James Hudnall interview somewhere on the site, where he talks about Llan? Or was that one of the editors who talked about Llan? I definitely recall reading that the storyline was meant to be much longer than it was.

[Phil]

You're correct on several fronts:
http://alphaflight.net/content.php?124-James-D-Hudnall-Interview

Crackity - don't read that yet!!!

[Flightpath07]

You're correct on several fronts[/URL]Crackity - don't read that yet!!!

Dang it, I need a screen-capture of this! lol. My two ex-wives would NEVER believe it to be true!

[Flightpath07]

Re-reading that interview, I'd hire him to do another Alpha series; it seems like he really cared about the characters a lot!

[Crackity Jones]

Seems to me this is a case of forming Mantlobashing of her own, rather than getting 'sucked in'. :P

You're d@mn right. I am bashing Mantlo's run so far. I love these characters, and his run, so far, has been the trainwreck I cannot stop watching (reading). Making Purple Girl mind rape/control/WHATEVER Northstar and then having Heather make a joke about it is completely unacceptable, imo.
Changing Puck's origins is completely unacceptable, imo. Making everyone on the team, basically, insult Northstar and make jokes about his sexuality, is completely unacceptable, imo. I have NO IDEA what Byrne would have done with these characters had he continued on with the series, but most of what I have read that Mantlo has done is just...Well, for all this BS, I'd better get Mac back SOON. SOON.
NO MORE CHILDREN INSIDE TREE PEOPLE. And, please, no more solo Heather issues.
I am hanging on and will continue to read because I love these characters that much.

[Crackity Jones]

You're correct on several fronts:
http://alphaflight.net/content.php?124-James-D-Hudnall-Interview

Crackity - don't read that yet!!!

Thank you, Phil.
I won't read it yet.

[Flightpath07]

Thank you, Phil.
I won't read it yet.

Once you are done with Hudnall's issues, you might want to give it a once-over, it does explain a lot about what the poop went on. There are actually a lot of cool interviews buried (?) on this site.

[Phil]

Re-reading that interview, I'd hire him to do another Alpha series; it seems like he really cared about the characters a lot!

It's always hard to judge.
Everyone uses the 'big fans of the team and Byrne' line in interviews but they never do it justice.
Mantlo is the biggest example of this, to bring it all full circle.

[Le Messor]

It's always hard to judge.
Everyone uses the 'big fans of the team and Byrne' line in interviews but they never do it justice.
Mantlo is the biggest example of this, to bring it all full circle.

I want to see those scripts he spoke of; I think they'd be cool. We could judge for ourselves the difference between his vision and the published version.

[Phil]

Making Purple Girl mind rape/control/WHATEVER Northstar

It was definitely creepy.
I can see what Mantlo was going for in a parallel to a student crush on a teacher and what they'd do if they suddenly had mind-control powers... it was just poorly executed.

Changing Puck's origins is completely unacceptable, imo.

I like Eugene the adventurer and I like the idea of Razaar but am in agreement that Puck should have remained what he was and should never have been a regular human before the curse.
Had Mantlo introduced Razaar into a dwarf Puck it would have been the best non-Byrne idea, IMO.
The height issue makes no sense at all and serves no purpose.

Making everyone on the team, basically, insult Northstar and make jokes about his sexuality, is completely unacceptable, imo.

I think a lot of this issue is hard to judge in hindsight now.
Let's remember that at the time these comics were published they wouldn't have been able to show Northstar's sexuality, or even use the word 'gay' or 'homosexual'
Mantlo was possibly trying to be subtle, based on what Byrne had told him, and was hindered by the comics code and editorial at the time.

I'd better get Mac back SOON. SOON.
And, please, no more solo Heather issues.

It's a strange one, as I preferred Heather as the supportive wife and person that kept it all together behind the scenes in Byrne's run, however over the course of the 130 issue run I definitely think Heather is a better leader than Mac. Although that's probably based upon the dubious retcons of Mac's decisions that you have yet to reach...

[Phil]

There are actually a lot of cool interviews buried (?) on this site.

From the homepage just click on either of the Interviews tabs:

[Flightpath07]

From the homepage just click on either of the Interviews tabs:

D'oh!

Wait, there's a Homepage? lol

[Crackity Jones]

It was definitely creepy.
I can see what Mantlo was going for in a parallel to a student crush on a teacher and what they'd do if they suddenly had mind-control powers... it was just poorly executed.

Maybe that's my problem then: I have no idea what Mantlo was going for. I just know what I am reading is messed up. haha. But what you say makes sense.

I like Eugene the adventurer and I like the idea of Razaar but am in agreement that Puck should have remained what he was and should never have been a regular human before the curse.
Had Mantlo introduced Razaar into a dwarf Puck it would have been the best non-Byrne idea, IMO.
The height issue makes no sense at all and serves no purpose.

Exactly. These things would have been okay had they existed, maybe, separately. Or done separately, in some way.

I think a lot of this issue is hard to judge in hindsight now.
Let's remember that at the time these comics were published they wouldn't have been able to show Northstar's sexuality, or even use the word 'gay' or 'homosexual'
Mantlo was possibly trying to be subtle, based on what Byrne had told him, and was hindered by the comics code and editorial at the time.

Yes, I agree and am well aware that my reaction to most of Mantlo's run so far has been that I'm reading it currently, so that will cause my reaction to possibly be different than had I read it in the 80's. Because, yeah, times have changed. Things are accepted now that were not accepted then.

It's a strange one, as I preferred Heather as the supportive wife and person that kept it all together behind the scenes in Byrne's run, however over the course of the 130 issue run I definitely think Heather is a better leader than Mac. Although that's probably based upon the dubious retcons of Mac's decisions that you have yet to reach...

I've heard this as well. But Heather is really, really been the most difficult for me. I LOVED her under Byrne. She was my fave (besides Mac). And she is completely different under Mantlo. Her character was changed the most. And I think it was done extremely awkwardly.

[Phil]

It's easy for me to sit here and judge now as I know what comes after Mantlo.
I pretty much went through the exact stages of emotions and views you went through; which is a sign that there's something universally wrong with Mantlo's run.