Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men

As Mentioned in Episode 53 – Sometimes They Come Back

13 comments

Listen to the episode here!

Cyclops has mixed feelings about fatherhood. (Uncanny X-Men #201)
Rick Leonardi is so good. (Uncanny X-Men #201)
Let’s pause for a moment to admire Rachel’s super sharp outfit. Those yellow shoes! (Uncanny X-Men #201)
Not actually story-relevant. I just really like this panel. (Uncanny X-Men #201)
You do you, Rogue. (Uncanny X-Men #201)
Madelyne Was Right. (Uncanny X-Men #201)
Look at Magneto on the end, like, “I’m a supervillain, and I think these people are out of their damn minds.” (Uncanny X-Men #201)
Like the outcome was ever in question. Also, how awesome is Leonardi’s Storm? So awesome. (Uncanny X-Men #201)
Cyclops’s father issues are basically their own character in this issue.
Grey house break-in #1 of 2. (Uncanny X-Men #201)
Love, love, love the way Mary Wilshire draws contemporary fashion–and uses it as a subtle storytelling element. (New Mutants #35)
This is what happens when, between the inks and the colors, someone decides you can’t show characters in just their underwear. (New Mutants #35)
Lee Forrester has no time for your ridiculous superhero hijinks. Lady’s got a job to do. (New Mutants #35)
Fun Fact: This poppy-field environment first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #175, where Cyclops used it to take down Rogue. (New Mutants #35)
On one hand: poor Warlock. On the other hand: I LOVE THIS PANEL SO MUCH. (New Mutants #35)
THE MIRACLE OF MAGNETISM! (New Mutants #35)
Horses are fucking terrifying. (New Mutants #35)
Warloooooooooock. (New Mutants #35)
Sienkiewicz eyebrows are the best eyebrows. (New Mutants #35)
Magneto is the cool teacher. (New Mutants #35)
This is what happens when you flout FAA guidelines for the safe transport of Kirby dots. (Avengers #263)
GOOD QUESTION, Captain Marvel! (Avengers #263)
Spoiler: This entire plot line is a pointless red herring. (Avengers #263)
Bonus Namor abs for you. (Avengers #263)
WHAT A SHOCKING TWIST! (Avengers #263)
If no one sends in lyrics to “Like a Phoenix,” we’re going to be kind of disappointed. (Fantastic Four #286)
1) Those credits, man. 2) THAT EPIGRAM. (Fantastic Four #286)
Look at She-Hulk and Hercules being all charming in the background. (Fantastic Four #286)
Hi, Jean. We missed you, too. (Fantastic Four #286)
“Also, there’s no way any actual human being would get that haircut.” (Fantastic Four #286)
Grey house break-in #2. Doesn’t anyone ever think to call ahead? (Fantastic Four #286)
Beast X-plains the Dark Phoenix Saga. (Fantastic Four #286)
“I’m a retcon, Jean. Just run with it.” (Fantastic Four #286)
Aw. (Fantastic Four #286)
Classic X-Men #8 does the whole thing over again, somewhat more graphically.
Next Week: X-Factor begins (for real, this time)!

53 – Sometimes They Come Back

35 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Email | RSS

Rachel screwed up and accidentally gave David material for episode 54 instead of 53, so there's no illustration this week. Instead, we offer both our sincere apologies and this photo of Miles dressed up as Mister Sinister at a costume party.
Rachel screwed up and accidentally gave David material for episode 54 instead of 53, so there’s no illustration this week. Instead, we offer both our sincere apologies and this photo of Miles dressed up as Mister Sinister for a costume party.

In which Wolverine doesn’t care about your baby; Storm takes charge; duels are terrible bases for systems of government; editorial mandate is hell on a marriage; Magneto is a pretty cool teacher; Jean Grey comes back; and we have mixed feelings about the Phoenix retcon.

X-PLAINED:

  • Kenji Uedo
  • Uncanny X-Men #201
  • New Mutants #35
  • Avengers #263
  • Fantastic Four #286
  • Classic X-Men #8
  • The post-Trial of Magneto status quo
  • Nathan Christopher Charles Summers
  • A small cross-section of Cyclops’s myriad issues
  • The wrong means to the right end
  • Magneto’s educational philosophy
  • The politics of creative credits
  • “You Know Who”
  • The Phoenix retcon
  • Several unrelated break-ins
  • The return of Jean Grey
  • Jean and the Phoenix Force
  • Alternate-timeline Madelynes Pryor
  • Jean Grey’s code names

NEXT WEEK: X-Factor begins! (for real, this time – sorry about that SNAFU!)

You can find a companion index to the material mentioned in 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!

 

Rachel & Miles Review the X-Men, Episode 33

3 comments

Week of April 15, 2015:

In which Jordie Bellaire is our god now, Black Vortex is way too long, and Miles makes gremlin noises.

REVIEWED:

  • Spider-Man and the X-Men #5 (0:28)
  • Uncanny X-Men #33 (1:55)
  • *Magneto #17 (3:59)
  • Legendary Star-Lord #11 (5:46)
  • Wolverines #14 (8:01)

*Pick of the Week (9:39)

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!

New Milestone Goals!

One comment

Quick update to let you know that we’ve added a new set of milestone goals to the Patreon!

Screen Shot 2015-04-15 at 2.43.12 PM

  • PODCAST WIKI – $2750/month
    Wondering which questions showed up in which episode, or where to find that one cold open about Fantomex? When we hit this goal, we’ll start work on an exhaustive wiki and question index!
  • WEBSITE REVAMP – $3000/month
    We’ll ditch our DIY setup and hire an actual web designer to revamp (and regularly maintain and update) the site!
  • A/V UPGRADE AND NEW PROJECTS – $3300/month
    We’ll upgrade our video production setup, and start producing some new video and audio content–including some larger projects*–in addition to the podcast and video reviews.

When we first launched the podcast a little over a year ago, we had no idea how large it would grow, or how quickly; and since then, it’s been a nonstop race to keep up. As a result, a lot of what we’ve done has felt less like building something to last than improvising a series of on-the-fly fixes–for instance, our very rudimentary (and mobile-unfriendly) website.

So, while previous milestones have been all about offering more content–posts, merch, recaps, video reviews, and more–this series of goals is all about creating a better and more sustainable infrastructure from which to run the current stuff and launch some projects* that we’re really, really excited about. Hiring a professional to build us a website that works. Organizing and indexing the mountain of material we’ve covered in a year+ worth of podcasts. Shifting more of the organizational and administrative hours to AdministratriX Tina, and using some of that time to get new stuff up and running.

Rachel & Miles X-Plain the X-Men is entirely listener supported, and that means that everything we do here is possible because of you. Thank you for helping us get to where we are, and helping us stay ad-free and independent–and thank you in advance for helping us continue to grow!

*Top secret, at least for now; but SO COOL. Seriously. Hardcore pipe-dream stuff; we’re kinda freaking out at the idea that we might actually get to do some of these for real.

Rachel Recaps X-Men: Evolution

S1E4: Mutant Crush

40 comments

Let me get this out of the way fast: “Mutant Crush” is my least favorite episode of X-Men: Evolution. Yes, even more than “The Cauldron,” which I’m pretty sure is objectively the worst episode of the series.1

But while “The Cauldron” is terrible, it’s hilariously terrible. “Mutant Crush” is. Well. It’s a decently written episode, I guess. And it’s got a lot of moments I dig. It’s just also really fucked up and disturbing, and not in hilarious and pedantic ways.

Seriously: Shit gets dark in this episode. If you don’t want to read a humorous write-up of a story that is essentially about stalking and kidnapping, you may want to skip this one. I recognize that this is essentially a humor column, and I tried to find okay ways to be funny about this episode, but I mostly ended up with a lot of tonal whiplash, and a pretty high volume of commentary on the ways women are socialized to appease violent men, and some really inappropriate references to John Fowles’ The Collector.2

And on that note: Here is a link to the National Domestic Violence Hotline’s help page. NDVH is a pretty solid organization, and in addition to the actual hotlines–which include a phone line and web-based chat, both confidential and anonymous–they’ve got a very good list of resources, including LGBTQI and teen-specific stuff. (NDVH is, however, mostly U.S.-specific. If you know of international resources or have other specific recommendations, please stick ‘em in the comments, and maybe we can get something useful out of this clusterfuck of an episode.)

Right. So. LET’S TALK ABOUT SOME X-MEN!

Continue reading

As Mentioned in Episode 52 – Previously on Rachel & Miles X-Plain the X-Men…

8 comments

Listen to the episode here!

Art by David Wynne.
Art by David Wynne.

Given the nature of this week’s episode, we decided against putting together a visual companion (we instead recommend clicking through the preceding visual companions as fast as you can). However, we did assemble a handy index of every single previous episode, which you can find below the cut!

Continue reading

52 – Previously on Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men…

15 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Email | RSS

Art by David Wynne.
Art by David Wynne.

In which we recap a year’s worth of podcasts–and 23 years’ worth of X-Men–in under an hour.

X-PLAINED:

  • Rachel & Miles X-Plain the X-Men, Episodes 1-51
  • Uncanny X-Men #1-200 & assorted annuals
  • Giant-Size X-Men #1
  • The New Mutants
  • New Mutants #1-35 & assorted annuals and specials
  • The Uncanny X-Men and the New Teen Titans
  • God Loves, Man Kills
  • Wolverine vol. 1
  • X-Men/Micronauts
  • Storm and Illyana: Magik
  • Kitty Pryde and Wolverine
  • Dazzler: The Movie
  • Beauty and the Beast
  • Firestar
  • Secret Wars vol. 1
  • Secret Wars vol. 2
  • Longshot
  • Several other assorted X and X-relevant stories
  • Our pipe-dream pitches
  • Multiversal designations

NEXT WEEK: The return of Jean Grey!

Special thanks to R. Pawson for the WHAT?! supercut!

You can find a companion index to the material mentioned in this episode on our blog!

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Help us keep making cool stuff on Patreon!

We’re not selling prints of this week’s illustration, but you can still contact David Wynne to inquire after the original!

 

Rachel and Miles Review the X-Men, Episode 32

13 comments

Week of April 8, 2015 (and one from last week)

In which we are weirdly on-theme fashion-wise; Cyclops ends on a high note; we are pretty done with the Black Vortex; and you probably shouldn’t invoke Generation Hope without at least a footnote.

NOTE: Cyclops and Captain Marvel reviews contain spoilers.

REVIEWED:

  • *Cyclops #12 (0:41)
  • Captain Marvel #14 (5:30)
  • Storm #10 (9:07)

*Pick of the week (12:29)

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!

Abs Mentioned in Episode 51 – The X-Istentialists, Featuring Kris Anka, Marguerite Bennett, Kieron Gillen, and Peter Nguyen

7 comments

Listen to the episode here!

For the record: I am not even a little bit sorry. -Rachel
Art by David Wynne. We’re not selling prints of this one, but you can still hit David up for the original!
Many thanks to Kris Anka, Marguerite Bennett, Kieron Gillen, and Peter Nguyen! (I have no idea why this photo keeps displaying upside down, but at this point, I’m just gonna keep running with it.)
NEXT WEEK: Rachel and Miles Recap 51 episodes in under an hour.

LINKS:

Special thanks to Elle Collins for the last-minute abs-sist.

 

51 – The X-Istentialists, Featuring Kris Anka, Marguerite Bennett, Kieron Gillen, and Peter Nguyen

14 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Email | RSS

Art by David Wynne. We're not selling prints of this one, but you can still hit David up for the original!
Art by David Wynne. We’re not selling prints of this one, but you can still hit David up for the original!

In which Rachel and Miles go to Emerald City Comicon; six people try to share one microphone with varying success; you will never love anything as much as Kris loves Broo; Marguerite may or may not be a time-traveling supervillain; Peter is Laser Guy; Kieron joins an X-team; Hell is other X-Men; everyone lies egregiously; and it all comes back to Namor’s abs.

Special thanks to Jean, who let us borrow her mic and pop filter at the very last second when we realized we’d left ours in Portland! <3

X-PLAINED:

  • Namor’s last name
  • Several Secret Wars titles
  • Wiz Kid
  • Favorite characters
  • Lady Deathstrike’s new look
  • Seanan McGuire’s cats
  • Machetes of Future Past
  • Emily Aster
  • Asteroid P
  • Secret origins
  • Points of entry
  • Headcanon
  • The Wolverine and the X-Men Season 2 that might have been
  • The pros and cons of an isolated X-universe
  • The X-Istentialists
  • Hela’s Angels
  • Namor’s abs
  • What defines the X-Men
  • Mr. Sinister
  • Our X-movie wish lists
  • Wes Anderson’s X-Men (both of them)

NEXT WEEK: Previously on Rachel & Miles X-Plain the X-Men…

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

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Help us keep making cool stuff on Patreon!

We’re not selling prints of this week’s illustration, but you can still contact David Wynne to inquire after the original!