| “ | Alpha Flight! Glad to see you finally made it, people. Pick a "partner" and let's finish this fight. | „ |
| ~ Guardian to his team. |
| “ | ...Ultimately it was not that we succeeded or failed, it was that we tried! | „ |
| ~ Guardian. |
James "Mac" MacDonald Hudson, also known as Guardian, Weapon Alpha and Vindicator, is a Canadian superhero in the Marvel Comics Universe who was the leader of Alpha Flight.
Originally a petrochemical engineer, Hudson created an exoskeleton suit to locate oil deposits for Am-Can Oil Corporation until he learned their true intentions. After forming Department H with the Canadian government, he formed Alpha Flight to protect his home from threats. In addition, he is related to the mutant and superhero Wolverine, whom he has crossed paths and fought each other on numerous occasions.
He was created by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, and first appeared in The Uncanny X-Men #109.
Overview[]
James is the original leader and founder of Alpha Flight. Department H, the section of Canada's government that works with superhumans, is named after him. Originally thought to have died in Alpha Flight #12, he later returned through some rather complicated circumstances involving aliens and becoming a cyborg. Briefly went by Vindicator, but is best known as Guardian.
Biography[]
Background[]
James MacDonald Hudson was born in London, Ontario, Canada to Fredrick Hudson II and an unnamed mother, being the youngest of his three sons. He's also related to the Howlett family, thus making the Hudson family related to the mutant superhero Wolverine, whom James would cross paths with. At some point in his life, he received a doctorate in petrochemical engineering.
In adulthood, Hudson worked for the Am-Can Oil Corporation and created an exoskeleton suit to help the company find oil depots underneath the Earth. During his research, he discovered that Am-Can were intending to make it a weapon for the military and decided to steal it from them. Afterward, he worked with his future wife Heather McNeill to evade jail time for stealing his suit, and was made a Canadian government employee to create Department H. While on his honeymoon, Hudson encountered an heavily-injured Wolverine, and the two became friends after nursing him back to health.
Forming Alpha Flight[]
Inspired by the Fantastic Four, Hudson created a team known as "Alpha Flight" and attempted to recruit others until he was ordered by the Canadian government to apprehend Wolverine. The cousins battled each other until James realized he couldn't handle him or his X-Men teammates, and left promising a rematch. Following the fight, he changed his alter-ego name to the Vindicator and recruited Northstar, Snowbird, Aurora, Snowbird and Sasquatch on the orders of the government to capture his cousin. The team fought the X-Men but retreated once again, resulting in Alpha Flight being disbanded. Despite this, Hudson rallied his teammates to stop a threat and they all agreed to keep the team together.
Becoming Guardian[]
After Department H was dissolved, Hudson became an employee with Roxxon Oil an moved to New York, but discovered that it was a trap by Jaxon and Omega Flight. During the battle, his suit overloaded and was apparently killed from its explosion. However, he was sent through space and was turned into a cyborg by an alien race known as the Quwrlln. After appearing to have died once again when he sacrificed himself to save Alpha Flight and the Avengers, he was found and fell back to Earth and rekindled his relationships. Now going by the name "Guardian", he reformed his old team and returned to Canada to protect it from threats.
Powers and Abilities[]
James had several tenures as the leader of Alpha Flight and, using his suit or his cybernetic implants, established himself as the force to be reckoned with. As Guardian/Vindicator, James wore a suit powered by electromagnetic energy to give himself powers.
Portrayals[]
Television[]
- In X-Men: The Animated Series, he was voiced by Barry Flatman.
Video Games[]
- In X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, he was voiced by Jim Ward.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Before his debut in the comics, he was originally named "The Canadian Shield", but was rejected by the publisher due to close to the name of S.H.I.E.L.D. Following this, John Byrne suggested the name "Guardian", but was rejected to numerous characters with the name. While "Weapon Alpha" and "Vindicator" were used, Byrne changed the name back to the Guardian due to his dislike of the previous two.