5/16/13

Alpha Flight #1 - John Byrne art & cover

John Byrne

Alpha Flight v1 #1, 1983 - John Byrne begins writing and illustrating the adventures of Marvel's Canadian superhero team.  First introduced in X-men #121, Vindicator, Shaman, Sasquatch, Snowbird, Aurora and Northstar are joined by two new members, Puck and Marinna (both making their first appearance).  Spider-man, the FF and others appear solely on the cover to generate greater interest.  This double-sized issue is capably drawn, allowing space for the re-introduction of each character.  The team confronts the gargantuan creature Tundra, whose mass and scale are smartly portrayed across navigable layouts.  Byrne's pacing is also well managed, tempered by three full page splashes.  This is number 1 of 28 Alpha Flight issues with Byrne art and/or covers. 
- - - - - - - - - -Byrne cover pencils (Terry Austin inks) = ***"Tundra" Byrne story pencils and inks 34 pages = ****