Nov. '86 - Alpha Flight # 40

This was a series that I started buying around # 19, enjoyed it and picked up all the back issues to get caught up. I'm Canadian and it took place in Canada so that definitely added to the enjoyment. John Byrne had an interesting approach with this comic. It was a team book but the team only got together about once a year. The rest of the time they were each off on their own adventures. Then early in the series (# 12) he killed off their leader, Guardian. That was certainly different.

Byrne left this comic after # 28 to do Incredible Hulk and the team from Hulk came to this comic. I kept buying it to give the new creative team a chance and because I enjoyed the characters. I wasn't as impressed with the new team as I was with Byrne. The characters 'sounded' different. It seemed they had made changes in their personalities and it didn't click with me.

I've often wondered what would have been different if Byrne had kept doing the book:
-would Heather have assumed the identity of Vindicator and wore the costume like the new creative team had her do or would she have stayed as the leader but not been in the battles?
-what was his take on the origin of Puck? The new team showed him as a normal sized human who was possessed by a demon which caused his short stature and long life. Byrne showed Puck endured a lot of bodily pain but never said why.
-would he have kept given subtle hints about Northstar's sexual orientation? When would Byrne have finally revealed the truth or would he ever have come right out and said that Northstar was gay?

This issue was the conclusion from last issue's crossover with Avengers. The Avengers and Alpha Flight had attacked Atlantis to rescue Marrina, a former Alphan and the love of the Sub-Mariner. They did successfully rescue her but Sub-Mariner had to give up his rule of Atlantis. This issue ended with the marriage of Sub-Mariner and Marrina which I thought would have been a bigger deal but I don't remember too much being done with it.