X-Men vs. Alpha Flight

If you have read comic books for any amount of time, you must have read a "who's the better" story.

• Who's faster? Superman or the Flash?
• Who's stronger? The Thing or the Hulk?
• Who's would win a fight between Superman and the Fantastic Four?

The problem with these types of stories is the weak setup. Superman and the Flash must race because some mobsters are holding their love one's hostage. Or, a group of heroes fall into a dimensional warp and fight another group because of a misunderstanding. A misunderstanding? Bah!

I like a good slug fest as much as the next fan, but without a solid reason, slugfests are a wastes of time.

X-Men vs. Alpha Flight was one of the first books to bring characters together in realistic manner. And baby, it is sweet....

Cyclops and his wife (yes, she was a clone of some sort, but we will ignore that) are lost during a snowstorm north of Canada. The X-men and Alpha Flight team up for the search. They find Cyclops alive and in complete control of his powers. In fact, all the humans in the group have super powers, too.

On the surface, it seems a gift from God (the gods, smirk). If everyone has superpowers, there is no need to fear or hate mutants? Why be afraid of your next door neighbor who can lift 20 tons, if you can run a 30 second mile. Instant equality.

But there is a price and the price may be too high.