Alpha Flight #7
Alpha Flight #7 is the first appearance of two characters whose shadows fall across the entire original series run: Deadly Ernest (Ernest St. Ives), a WWI-era Canadian soldier who rejected Death itself and gained a lethal touch, and Delphine Courtney, a sophisticated Brand Corporation android whose deceptions would drive the book's most consequential storyline. The issue also delivers the origin of Snowbird (Narya) in its back-up feature, revealing the cosmic compact between the Inuit goddess Nelvanna and the mortal Richard Easton, making this a crucial world-building chapter for the team's mythological underpinnings. Together, the two stories — a Montreal crime thriller and an Arctic-circle origin myth — showcase John Byrne's signature approach of spotlighting individual members in focused solo or duo tales rather than assembling the full team, an editorial philosophy that made Alpha Flight one of the most structurally unusual superhero books of the Copper Age.
In "The Importance of Being Deadly," Northstar brings Aurora to a psychologist to confront her dual identity, then seeks help from his friend Raymonde Belmonde—only to find the restaurant under threat from the ruthless crime lord Deadly Ernest. When Ernest kills Belmonde and takes Aurora, Northstar must suppress his powers in front of Belmonde’s daughter Danielle while vowing revenge. Meanwhile, Delphine Courtney extends an invitation to Alec Thorne for a mysterious new endeavor. Written and illustrated by John Byrne, with inks by Byrne and colors by Andy Yanchus, the cover by Byrne captures the tension of a world where danger wears a smile.
In "The Importance of Being Deadly," Northstar brings Aurora to a psychologist to confront her fractured identity, then seeks help from his friend Raymonde Belmonde—only to find the restaurant under siege by the ruthless crime lord Deadly Ernest. When Ernest kills Belmonde and takes Aurora, Northstar vows revenge without revealing his powers to Belmonde’s daughter Danielle. Meanwhile, Delphine Courtney extends an invitation to Alec Thorne, hinting at a new mission on the horizon.
In the frozen silence of the Arctic Circle, a forgotten headband awakens ancient forces, calling one man to a sacrifice that reshapes time. Years later, Shaman answers a deeper call to the same site, where the goddess Nelvanna reveals a sacred burden—her unborn child—and entrusts the infant to his care.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
Alpha Flight #7 was published cover-dated February 1984 (direct edition on-sale October 25, 1983; newsstand on-sale November 15, 1983), squarely within John Byrne's celebrated and self-contained run on the title, during which he served simultaneously as writer, penciller, and inker. The editorial team under editor Denny O'Neil and assistant editor Linda Grant, with Jim Shooter as editor-in-chief, gave Byrne wide latitude to tell character-driven, often standalone stories. The issue's main story title, 'The Importance of Being Deadly!', is a deliberate pun on Oscar Wilde's 1895 play; a GCD annotation notes that Byrne accidentally feminized the French name 'Raymond' into 'Raymonde' while attempting to honor Quebecois French phonetics — a small production quirk that made it into print.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Deadly Ernest (Ernest St. Ives), a Canadian WWI soldier who survived mustard gas by rejecting Death itself, gaining an instant-kill touch and apparent immortality — the main antagonist of the two-part 'The Importance of Being Deadly!' arc spanning issues #7–8.
- First appearance of Delphine Courtney, later revealed to be robot MX39147, an advanced android built by the Brand Corporation (a Roxxon Oil subsidiary), who serves as a covert recruiter for the villainous Omega Flight.
- First full appearance of Smart Alec (Alec Thorne), who is seen in this issue being approached by Delphine Courtney to join her employer's new project.
- Back-up story 'Let a Child Be Born!' presents the in-continuity origin of Snowbird (Narya), including the first appearance of Nelvanna, the Inuit goddess of the Northern Lights, and the first named appearance of Richard Easton, Snowbird's mortal father.
- Shaman (Michael Twoyoungmen) is shown in the back-up serving as midwife to the goddess Nelvanna, binding the newborn Narya to the earthly realm — a plot point that later explains Snowbird's tether to Canadian soil.
- The main story title is an explicit pun on Oscar Wilde's 1895 play The Importance of Being Earnest, with 'Earnest' replaced by 'Deadly' to name the villain Ernest St. Ives.
- The issue was written, pencilled, and inked entirely by John Byrne, with colors by Andy Yanchus and letters by Michael Higgins; editing credits go to Denny O'Neil (editor), Linda Grant (assistant editor), and Jim Shooter (editor-in-chief).
- The issue has been collected in Alpha Flight Classic Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2007), the Alpha Flight by John Byrne Omnibus (Marvel, 2017), and was previously reprinted in international editions including Secret Wars (Marvel UK, 1985), Superaventuras Marvel (Brazil, 1986), and Alpha Flight (Federal, 1984 series) #2.
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Reprinted in Superaventuras Marvel #31 (1985), Strange #186 (1985), Secret Wars #16 (1985), Secret Wars #17 (1985), Superaventuras Marvel #53 (1986), Der unglaubliche Hulk #26 (1989), Alpha Flight Classic #1 (2007), Marvel Héroes #56 (2014), Alpha Flight by John Byrne Omnibus #[nn] (2017), Alpha Flight #2
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