Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men

As Mentioned in Episode 79 – Bear on a Boat

October 19, 2015 Jay 4 comments

Listen to the episode here.

Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 10/25/2015 at the shop, or contact David to purchase the original.

Look! It’s Captain America! And… Dr. Druid. Okay, then. (X-Men vs. Avengers #1)

We see what you did, there. (X-Men vs. Avengers #1)

That… could have gone better. (X-Men vs. Avengers #1)

Let’s all take a moment to appreciate the fact that Wolverine is wearing a cowboy hat with his swim trunks. (X-Men vs. Avengers #1)

“But they don’t trust me! I know! I’ll sneak away! That’ll help!” (X-Men vs. Avengers #1)

Magneto’s old helmet does not really work with his new disco neckline. (X-Men vs. Avengers #2)

EVERYBODY FIGHT! (X-Men vs. Avengers #2)

*rimshot* (X-Men vs. Avengers #2)

“We could resolve this peacefully, and–actually, nah, you know what? Let’s just punch each other for another two issues.” (X-Men vs. Avengers #2)

So, that happened. (X-Men vs. Avengers #3)

“Howsabout bears? You got a problem with those, too?” (X-Men vs. Avengers #3)

It’s not a miniseries until Rogue’s clothes explode. (X-Men vs. Avengers #3)

MAGNETISM! (X-Men vs. Avengers #3)

You’re a crook, Captain Hook! (X-Men vs. Avengers #3)

It’s kind of like The Lady or the Tiger, only it’s The Naked Dude and the Bear but also They’re the Same Person, so actually it’s not really very much like The Lady or the Tiger at all. (X-Men vs. Avengers #3)

Oh, generic Government Man. Never change. (X-Men vs. Avengers #4)

Well, that’s awkward. (X-Men vs. Avengers #4)

MAGNETISM! (X-Men vs. Avengers #4)

Magneto, the Silver Age called. It wants its schtick back. (X-Men vs. Avengers #4)

But… I mean… That doesn’t even… You know what? Never mind. (X-Men vs. Avengers #4)

In the original draft of this issue, Magneto’s helmet turned blue and was eaten by Pac Man. (X-Men vs. Avengers #4)

Oh, COME ON. (X-Men vs. Avengers #4)

I swear at least one of those picket signs is straight-up lifted from Uncanny X-Men #200. (X-Men vs. Avengers #4)

The Secret Convergence on Infinite Podcasts begins on October 29! Prepare with this handy flow chart!

NEXT WEEK: Warlock vs. the Impossible Man!

ARE YOU READY FOR THE SECRET CONVERGENCE ON INFINITE PODCASTS?

Follow the Convergence on Twitter.
While you’re at it, follow the Convergence on Tumblr, too.

79 – Bear on a Boat

October 19, 2015 Jay 43 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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In no one trusts Magneto; Dr. Druid is the comfiest superhero; She-Hulk wants to punch a meteor; Rachel and Miles are really bad at both nature and maritime law; boat fights are the best fights; everyone makes terrible choices; and James Jaspers should really have been disbarred by now.

X-PLAINED:

Darkstar vs. Dark Star
X-Men vs. Avengers #1-4
Magneto’s narrative milestones
Dr. Anthony Druid
A most peculiar meteor
The Soviet Super Soldiers
Vanguard
Darkstar
The Titanium Man / Gremlin
Ursa Major
Floridian vs. Australian fauna
Crimson Dynamo
Dock parties with the X-Men
Secrets of Asteroid M
Cartoonish pursuit
The drinking rules of costume semi-destruction
The Laws of the Sea
Why you should put your multi-team brawls on a boat
An abrupt creative shift
The Light
Several miracles of magnetism
An ethical dilemma
The (other) trial of Magneto
Magneto heel turns
Picking which tie-ins to read
The Secret Convergence on Infinite Podcasts

NEXT EPISODE: Warlock vs. the Impossible Man!

You can find a visual companion to this episode on our blog!

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men is 100% ad-free and listener supported. If you want to help support the podcast–and unlock more cool stuff–you can do that right here!

Buy prints of this week’s illustration at our shop, or contact David Wynne for the original!

Rachel & Miles Review the X-Men, Episode 58

October 16, 2015 Jay 4 comments

Week of 10/14/2015:

In which What If: Infinity: X-Men #1 is the kind of thing you’ll like if you like that kind of thing.

REVIEWED:

What If: Infinity: X-Men #1

For more on the Secret Convergence on Infinite Podcasts, check out the announcement!

Follow the Secret Convergence on Twitter!

Follow the Secret Convergence on Tumblr!

Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men is 100% ad-free and listener supported. These video reviews–and everything else here–are made possible by the support of our Patreon subscribers. If you want to help support the podcast–and unlock more cool stuff–you can do that right here!

We’re Going to Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival!

October 12, 2015 Jay Leave a comment

Rachel here! We are super pleased to announce (okay, we’ve been tweeting about it for a few weeks, but STILL) that we’re guests at the 2015 Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival on November 7!

We’ll be doing two panels–including our second live episode! For those of you who caught the Rose City show, this one’s going to be a little different–more continuity, for one–so we really hope you’ll come out and join us! We’ll also be tabling all day, with t-shirts, buttons, the second printing (!) of the zine, and more!

VVCBF seems like a really cool show: free, library-run, with an awesome guest lineup. If you’re in the Vegas area, come out and say hi!!

As Mentioned in Episode 78 – The Eye Killers and Other Cautionary Tales

October 11, 2015 Jay 8 comments

Listen to the episode here!

Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 10/18/2015 at the shop, or contact David to purchase the original.

We missed you, hawk ‘hawk! (Uncanny X-Men #220)

Well, THAT can’t be good. (Uncanny X-Men #220)

It’s somehow creepier that he turns out to be a hologram. (Uncanny X-Men #220)

Mugging at the camera and grinning evilly is a big Naze thing. (Uncanny X-Men #220)

Mister Sinister’s full-page debut! (Uncanny X-Men #221)

Look at this glorious sonofabitch. (Uncanny X-Men #221)

“Spirit and soul” still counts. Take a drink. (Uncanny X-Men #221)

Madelyne Pryor is no one’s damsel in distress. (Uncanny X-Men #221)

Depictions of sound in visual media are really fascinating. This is one of the cooler effects! (Uncanny X-Men #222)

More sound and speech balloons. (Uncanny X-Men #222)

In case you need an additional reason not to masturbate with a cactus: apparently that’s how you get eye-killers. (Uncanny X-Men #222)

“Also, you’re lousy in bed and you’re never going to finish your dissertation.” (Uncanny X-Men #222)

Things more metal than this cover: NONE OF THEM. (Uncanny X-Men #223)

HI, MURDER GRAMPAS! We missed you! (Uncanny X-Men #223)

Well, shit. (Uncanny X-Men #223)

That time Storm caught a fish like a bear. (Uncanny X-Men #223)

One of my favorite weird details of this era is Wolverine wearing that cowboy hat all the damn time, and no one ever commenting on it. (Uncanny X-Men #223)

I’m gonna go ahead and say that Madelyne Pryor gets the rawest deal in X-Men, and this is only the first act. (Uncanny X-Men #223)

Oh, dear. (Uncanny X-Men #223)

SPOILER: This will not end well. (Uncanny X-Men #223)

Instead of a clever caption, I’m just gonna drop this link to Native Appropriations. (Uncanny X-Men #224)

The staging here is spectacularly classic-romance-comic. (Uncanny X-Men #224)

Even the happy moments in this arc are really damn depressing. (Uncanny X-Men #224)

Well, fuck. (Uncanny X-Men #224)

NEXT WEEK: X-Men vs. Avengers!

Links & Further Reading:

For more on Storm, Forge, and “Lifedeath: A Love Story,” listen to Episode 31 – Chekhov’s Raygun!
Navaho Religion: A Study in Symbolism, by Gladys Amanda Reichard

78 – The Eye Killers and Other Cautionary Tales

October 11, 2015 Jay 54 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | RSS

In which we persevere in the face of adversity; Storm goes on a quest; Mr. Sinister makes his first appearance; Dazzler learns about teamwork (again); it still sucks to be Havok (but not as much as it sucks to be Madelyne Pryor); you should probably put down that cactus; the Murder Grampas join Freedom Force; Storm’s life is a metal-album cover; and the X-Men are doomed as hell.

X-Plained:

The Mr. Sinister / Summers family time loop
Uncanny X-Men #220-224
Actual and potential origins of Mr. Sinister’s name
How Longshot’s powers work in combat
Teamwork (again)
Representing sound and silence in a visual medium
A protracted fight
Forge (again)
Naze (kind of)
The Adversary
Eye Killers
One of many reasons not to masturbate with a cactus
The X-Men in San Francisco
Madelyne Pryor vs. fate
Storm vs. Forge
Character names vs. code names
X-Makeovers

NEXT WEEK: X-Men vs. Avengers

You can find a visual companion to this episode on our blog!

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men is 100% ad-free and listener supported. If you want to help support the podcast–and unlock more cool stuff–you can do that right here!

Buy prints of this week’s illustration at our shop, or contact David Wynne for the original!

Rachel Reviews the X-Men, Episode 57

October 9, 2015 Jay 6 comments

Week of October 7, 2015:

In which Miles calls in sick, and/or Rachel steals the video reviews to spread the gospel of Secret Convergence on Infinite Podcasts and Siege #4.

REVIEWED:

Old Man Logan #5 (01:37)
Secret Wars #6 (02:58)

Pick of the Week: Siege #4 (04:11)

For more on the Secret Convergence on Infinite Podcasts, check out the announcement!

Follow the Secret Convergence on Twitter!

Follow the Secret Convergence on Tumblr!

Announcing: SECRET CONVERGENCE ON INFINITE PODCASTS!

October 8, 2015 Jay 9 comments

Once upon a time (this past April), a few comics podcasters were joking around on Twitter.

“What if we took a cue from comics and did some kind of ridiculous crossover event?” someone asked.

“I’d do that,” someone else responded.

And then Al Kennedy started an e-mail thread.

Six months later, we are SUPER pleased to announce the first-ever SECRET CONVERGENCE ON INFINITE PODCASTS! SCOIP is a nine-show crossover event, spanning Fan Bros Show; Into It; SILENCE!; Less than Live; Journey into Misery; Wait, What?; House to Astonish, War Rocket Ajax, and Rachel & Miles X-Plain the X-Men. We’re producing nine stand-alone episodes, each hosted by a different show and featuring a mash-up cast from among more than fifteen hosts, and all airing between October 29 and November 29.

This is big, y’all. This is really big. We’re talking plot. The Beyonder. Original art by Brandon Graham (above) and James Stokoe (to be revealed). A guest star (also to be revealed).

To follow along with Secret Convergence on Infinite Podcasts, follow the Convergence on Twitter at @scoipodcasts; on Tumblr at secretconvergence.tumblr.com, and in the hashtag #SCOIP on both–and look for regular updates from all of the participating podcasts.

Will we die? Emerge with new costumes? LEARN TO POOP?

There’s only one way to find out.

Rachel & Miles Review the X-Men, Episode 56

October 7, 2015 Jay 8 comments

Week of September 30, 2015 –

In which we desperately wish there were more Inferno; Rachel is either too sober or not sober enough for E is for Extinction; and we PROMISE to to get these up on time next week.

REVIEWED:

*Inferno #5 (00:25)
E is for Extinction #4 (2:58)

*Pick of the Week (05:10)

As Mentioned in Episode 77 – Die Hard with a Lobster

October 7, 2015 Jay 4 comments

Listen to the episode here!

Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 10/11/2015 at the shop, or contact David to purchase the original.

Hope you like this narration, because you will be reading a LOT of variations on it. (Fallen Angels #1)

Expounding on the Meaning of Friendship and Then Turning into a Propellor Plane with a Face: The Warlock Story. (Fallen Angels #1)

Oh, Ariel. You’re so… Ariel. (Fallen Angels #2)

HI, GOMI. HI, DON AND BILL. (Fallen Angels #2)

It’s a Madrox Madrox Madrox Madrox world. (Fallen Angels #2)

Don’t mess with Bill and Don. They will fight you, and they will win. (Fallen Angels #2)

Oh. THAT guy. (Fallen Angels #2)

Don’t tell me you don’t want to hang out there. (Fallen Angels #3)

It’s hard to be a super-smart cyborg lobster. (Fallen Angels #3)

The nature of Madrox’s duplicates is going to change pretty radically between this and the present. (Fallen Angels #3)

EVEN AMONG CRUSTACEANS (Fallen Angels #3)

Do you know how hard much restraint we exercised in not making this entire post nothing but pictures of Bill and Don? HINT: A lot. (Fallen Angels #3)

Moon Boy and Devil Dinosaur are good kids. (Fallen Angels #4)

Gomi is a conscientious lobster dad. (Fallen Angels #4)

Ariel is kind of creepy. (Fallen Angels #5)

DON NO (Fallen Angels #5)

DONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Fallen Angels #5)

Aw, Madrox. Madroxes. Whatever. (Fallen Angels #6)

“Also, you know that dream about the–” “DUDE, ENOUGH.” (Fallen Angels #6)

Welcome to Coconut Grove! Hope you survive the… y’know. (Fallen Angels #6)

Somewhere there’s an alternate universe that’s just like 616 except that Bobby and Warlock wore these costumes for the rest of New Mutants. (Fallen Angels #7)