Flight Plans - Part Four (of Six): Nemesis

Posted: Thursday, February 19, 2004
Posted By: Jason Brice

Welcome Alpha-fans to this week's installment of "Flight Plans," your guide to the newest Alpha Flight series, debuting in March from Marvel Comics. In the past three weeks we've talked to Alpha-veteran Scott Lobdell about Puck, Centennial, and Sasquatch, so why try to fix what ain't broke? For this outing the spotlight falls on the mystery-shrouded Alphan, Nemesis. Who is she? Where does she come from? All this and more... once you finish reading this cheesy introduction!

Jason Brice: Is this a new Nemesis, or this one of the two incarnations of the characters we've seen in the past?

Scott Lobdell: It would be fair to say she is the "original Nemesis"... and leave it at that. Because the entire character is based on the mysterious and the unknown - the only character who resolutely refuses to lose the mask - it would be unfair to give away too many details. Having said that... the only two reasons I can think of that she's wearing the mask is that either she has a horrible disfigurement or she's afraid of being recognized. Hmm.

JB: Just to carry on the suspenseful tone... one of the things about Nemesis and other Marvel characters in the past that fans have enjoyed is a mystery. But at the same time they seem to want to know more. How do you balance those competing needs?

SL: I am mostly a firm believe in letting the clues play out in the story and not in the fan press. Imagine how much of a drag it would have been if the internet or Wizard was around when Jean Grey popped out of the water in the earliest days of UNCANNY X-MEN, and someone asked Chris, "The fans want to know, did Jean Grey actually die in the East River?" And he said "Actually her body has been co-opted by the star spanning Phoeniz entity in an attempt to better understand humanity but over the next year or two she will be seduced by Jason Wyngard (who will be revealed to be Mastermind, shhh!) and then eventually have to sacrifice her life when the Imperial Guardsmen try to kill her and the X-Men try to defend their power mad team-mate"? A great story would have suffered as a result of Too Much Info. The cure? Read the books! Woo hoo!

JB: Is it tougher on the writer or the artist having a character who's whole face is covered in a mask? What challenges does that pose?

SL: Oh, I don't know - I've written SPIDER-MAN, WEAPON OMEGA, GRIFTER and CAPTAIN BRITAIN... and I don't really see any problems with it.

JB: If Nemesis' sword is only one molecule think... how come we can see the blade?

SL: If a football field were one molecule THICK, and one hundred yards WIDE... we would still be able to see it from ABOVE.. we just wouldn't be able to see it if we were lying on the ground looking at it straight on.

Now, if Scott is traveling to L.A. on a bus, and Jason is swimming to London...

JB: The cover for Alpha Flight vol. 3 #1 shows two female characters and four males. From other promotional art we're lead to believe the female Snowbird will be featured in the team, too. How important is it to have a gender balance in a team book? Or do you try not to make an issue of gender difference in heroic characters?

SL: I love women characters - and whenever I have had the fortune to put together a team from scratch, I always try to make them both gender and racially diverse. (Generation X was female heavy. M, PENANCE, HUSK and JUBILEE... and
MONDO, CHAMBER and SKIN! And when I took over WILDCATS, I introduced NOIR as a black gay man because it bothered me the team was so - so white! Voodoo notwithstanding! Woo hoo!) I think readers like to see themselves reflected in the characters - and as there are readers who are women and black and asian and so on, and I think the best teams should reflect that. (I remember getting in a fight about the post-Hero's relaunch of AVENGERS. I was like "They are called EARTH'S MIGHTIEST HEROES, and you can't find one black or asian super hero on Earth that is asked to join?!?!" Yes, Triatholon showed up eventually - but in the original relaunch the closest you get to a person of color was Vision... and he's red!)

JB: Nemesis has been closely linked with Wild Child in the past. Will he be showing up? Will the Alphans be interacting much with the wider Marvel Universe?

SL: Regarding WILD CHILD it is unlikely I will be able to have any access to any of the other Alpha Flight characters that are appearing in any of the current books (WILD CHILD, AURORA, NORTHSTAR). Regarding running into any other MARVEL characters? At this point there are no plans to guest star or cameo anyone from the Marvel Univrse. (Though I'd love to get the X-MEN to show up wearing battle armor! Tee hee.)

And I have an idea for issue one hundred's cover! The cover copy would read "And at last... WOLVERINE!" The art would be a shot of WOLVERINE holding a sixpack, knocking on the door to Alpha Flight's loft... and on the inside, ALPHA FLIGHT is sitting with the lights off, trying to make WOLVERINE think they are not at home!


Next Week: The dude with a dagger!

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