Yeah, Alanna becomes a rallying point for Rann, partly because of her experience dealing with weird aliens and such, but mostly because of her personality. She may not seem that cool today because the cliche has become that women characters have to "kick ass" and be martial arts/weaponry experts ready to work for a SWAT team. Alanna is more of a normal human being who rises to the occasion.
Adam isn't invincible himself. By the end of each story, he has figured out a way to win but he doesn't beat up five thugs at a time or wrestle dragons either. He's just shrewder and has more arcane knowledge than the average citizen. ((well, and he had the writer setting up a bad guy weakness for him to find.)