Alpha Flight (1983) 105

‘The Bachelor Party!’

Not a name you’d associate with a Christmas issue. It is what you get, courtesy of Scott Lobdell and Tom Morgan for the 1991 season.

It’s Christmas Eve and snowing. It’s also a night for bachelor and bachelorette parties.

Alpha Flight (1983) 105

The boys decide to down their pints at Corky’s Tavern. The girls choose a rowdier atmosphere at Cloisters, a male strip club run by former foil Pink Pearl.

The Christmas spirit comes from the guys who stop a robbery and show mercy on a suffering soul. The girls wind up in jail.

If you were a regular reader, this might be a fun story. Not on par with Incredible Hulk 417, but still a quirky excuse for some peace on Earth.

I am not a regular reader.

So, this issue is confusing and with little charm beyond what is perceived.

Alpha Flight is an early X-Men spin off. The team’s first appearance was in Uncanny X-Men (1963) 120.

Volume one ran from 1983 to 1994. It was relaunched with new characters in 1997. The team and title were revamped once again in 2004 with the All New, All Different Alpha Flight. In 2007 it became Omega Flight and, in 2011, became Alpha Flight again in volume four.