Alpha Flight

Alpha Flight is a fictional Canadian superhero team featured in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team was created by writer Chris Claremont and John Byrne and were originally introduced as a foil to the X-Men in the pages of Uncanny X-Men #120 in April, 1979. Four years later, after a few single-character appearances, the group expanded their ranks and headlined their first ongoing Alpha Flight comic book series. The title ran for 130 issues from 1983 to 1984 and boasted two specials, two annuals and a two-issue crossover miniseries with the X-Men. Through the title's run, the group changed and expanded its roster several times, even to the point of killing off its original leader with issue #12. A second Alpha Flight series began publication in 1997 and ran for twenty issues before being cancelled in 1999. Only half of the team's roster consisted of characters who were part of the original lineup. After the series was discontinued, the team languished in limbo for several years until 2005 when a third volume of Alpha Flight hits the shelves. This series ran for only twelve issues and the only team member from previous incarnations to fill the ranks was Sasquatch. The title ended with the apparent deaths of the entire team. In 2011, a fourth Alpha Flight series was produced, which brought back the original lineup. This series ran for eight regular issues and a special 0.1 prequel issue. The first four issues of the title crossed over with the "Fear Itself" storyline.