It’s a commonly repeated aphorism that William Shakespeare created a ridiculous number of words, many of which are still in use today.  From eyeball to compromise to obscene, the Bard shaped our language, and his naming conventions even shaped the superheroes that were to come…  Welcome to Ten Things!

There have been literally hundreds of comic-book companies in the near-century that they’ve existed, but if you say “The Big Two,” everyone knows what you mean.  Still, in all those decades, Marvel and DC are bound to have hit on the same naming convention once or twice…  But how about TEN TIMES?  Welcome to Ten Things!

Marvel’s highest-profile female hero (sorry, She-Hulk) takes to the skies once more in her own solo book…  Your Major Spoilers review of Captain Marvel #1 awaits!

Editor’s Note: The title of this week’s edition of Ten Things is chosen for its iconic value and recognition factor, and also because “Ten Men And/Or Women Of Steel Or Other Commensurate Metallic Substance!” would be FAR too long for our title bar…  Welcome to Ten Things!

In many ways, they hold the same relative position in their universes: Fan and creator-beloved super-team, filled with unusual and unlikely heroes, never quite first-tier material but always heroic just the same, with multiple relaunches since their salad days.  Born of the 1960s, the heroes of the Doom Patrol prefigured the X-Men’s “freaks trapped in a world they never made” gimmick, and introduced many key figures in the DC Universe: Beast Boy of the Teen Titans, Robotman, and the wonderfully absurd Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Man.  Alpha Flight’s heyday came two decades later in the 1980s, thanks to superstar artist John Byrne, giving

The great philosopher Barnabus Stinson was once heard to remark: “Nothing suits me like a suit.”  He would be proud to know how many supers appreciate this sage wisdom…  Welcome to Ten Things!

At the time of this issue, Canadia’s premiere super-team, Alpha Flight, has only been together for a short time, and hasn’t really gelled as a unit. When the Great Beast Kolomaq attacks, Snowbird doesn’t even think to call her new teammates for backup, and the battle…  It kinda has to be seen to be believed…  Your Major Spoilers (retro) review of Alpha Flight #6 awaits!

Marvel released a sneak peek of Revolutionary War: Alpha by Andy Lanning, Alan Cowsill, Richard Elson.

If you are at the New York Comic-Con next weekend, make it a point to stop by the Action Figure Xpress booth to pick up two new sets of Minimates featuring the villains of the Thundercats universe, and a new wave of Alpha-Flight characters.

Press Release Next week’s Comic-Con International in San Diego just got two more awesome Minimates exclusives! Only available at the Action Figure Xpress booth (#3345), two all-new four-packs will make their debut at the show, one from the long-running Marvel Minimates series, and one from the brand-new Thundercats line!

Or – “His Original Costume Is The Only One That Isn’t Awful…” With the recent announcement that Jean-Paul “Northstar” Beaubier would marry his long-time (you should excuse the expression) beau, Kyle, I started thinking about the long and illustrious career of Canada’s fastest man alive.  From his earliest days with Alpha Flight to his current stay on Utopia, Jean-Paul has a long and storied career of heroism, haughty attitude and terrible costumes, but I imagine many of us only know him as Marvel’s first openly-gay superhero.  Seems to me that it’s time to right that particular wrong…

Marvel sent another teaser for the upcoming ongoing Alpha Flight series.

Alpha Flight gets an ongoing in 2012, but there is still time to read the current series written by Fred Van Lente and Greg Pak.

As mentioned at Fan Expo Toronto, Alpha Flight is now an ongoing series, and Marvel sent out a new teaser for the series.