Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men

Tag: Kitty Pryde

As Mentioned in Episode 28 – What’s New, Shadowcat?

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Listen to the episode here!

Art by David Wynne! You can get prints here through 11/2/2014; or contact David to purchase the original.
Kitty’s Fairy Tale is one of the best and most beloved issues of Uncanny X-Men.
D’awwwwww. (X-Men #153)
The Beast With No Name does his best River City Ransom. (X-Men #153)
The rest of the X-Men are as delighted with Kitty’s fairy tale as we are. (X-Men #153)
No, seriously. This issue is FANTASTIC. (X-Men #153)
In a lot of ways, Kitty’s Fairy Tale is a fantasy riff on the Dark Phoenix Saga with a happy ending, which makes the end of the issue kinda bittersweet. (X-Men #153)
Kitty Pryde and Wolverine: We read it so you don’t have to.
The fact that she still has her skates is really damn charming. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #1)
Don’t call Wolverine, Kitty! He’ll bogart your miniseries! (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #1)
Kitty’s dad: kind of the worst. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #2)
Your homework: Rate the creepiness of this scene on the X-Men scale of one to Belasco. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #2)
Okay. That’s legitimately fairly cool. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #2)
In which Al Milgrom is not Frank Miller, and Chris Claremont writing for Al Milgrom is not Chris Claremont writing for Frank Miller. SIGH. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #3)
“Well, Kitty Pryde called me from Japan and then disappeared… BUT WHO COULD THIS INTANGIBLE MASKED OPPONENT POSSIBLY BE?” (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #3)
Can we talk about how Yukio’s outfit in this scene is THE BEST OUTFIT EVER? (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #3)
And that’s why you always leave a note. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #3)
Samurai eyefucking, illustrated. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #4)
Oh, Kitty, no. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #4)
Remember being fifteen and thinking “Shadowcat” was a really good, really grown-up code name? (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #4)
Headcanon: Yukio moonlights with the Hong Kong Cavaliers. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #5)
This cover is a pretty good metaphor for what went wrong in this series. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #6)
Sorry, Wolverine. Your Samurai eyefucking game is lacking. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #6)
THE BEST PART IS THAT THEY ARE DRESSED LIKE THAT TO GO OUT FOR ICE CREAM. We would SO have hung out with these weirdos in high school. (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #6)
Seriously, Yukio, what the hell are you even wearing? I mean, it’s awesome, but, what? (Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #6)
Excalibur Kitty is the best Kitty. (Excalibur #2)
NO, SERIOUSLY.
That time Kitty realized it was very much the early aughts.
Despite its dubious title and weirdly hypersexy-shiny art, X-Treme X-Men: Mekanix is actually a super solid Kitty Pryde series.
Professor K.
Kitty and Illyana sass is the best sass. (Wolverine and the X-Men #37)
If you like granular, obsessive journeys into media, we recommend the hell out of the podcast Into It, in which our friend Elle interviews people about their pop-culture obsessions.
Next Week: Rachel finally gets to make some Spalding Grey jokes.

Links:

28 – What’s New, Shadowcat? (Featuring Greg Rucka)

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Art by David Wynne.
Art by David Wynne.

In which we welcome back Greg Rucka, Rachel makes a valiant effort to read Secret Wars, Earth-200500 is still the best Earth, Kitty Pryde and Wolverine is kind of dodgy, Ogūn is low-rent Mister Sinister, Miles talks about empathy, Greg has an Edna Mode moment, and we all love Kitty Pryde.

X-Plained:

  • X-Men #153
  • Kitty’s Fairy Tale
  • Earth-5311
  • Earth-200500 (again)
  • Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #1-6
  • Samurai eyefucking
  • Ogūn
  • Special cuddles
  • Some really dodgy stuff
  • The best Kitties Pryde
  • Professor K.
  • Smart kids in fiction
  • Why we love Shadowcat
  • Point-of-entry characters and gender
  • Costume theory
  • Our favorite new podcast

Next Week: Cyclops is the worst at vacations.

You can find a visual companion to the episode – and links to recommended reading – on our blog.

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Support us on Patreon!

Like this weeks’ art? You can get prints here until 11/2, or contact David to inquire after the original!

The All-New, All-Different, All-Unofficial Kitty’s Kostume Korner!

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Last week, we challenged you to help us revive that awesome ’80s celebration of Kitty Pryde’s Spectacular Revolving Wardrobe, Kitty’s Kostume Korner! Much as we love the classic yellow-and-black she’s been sporting for the last decade-plus, we remember when Kitty reinvented her costume twice an issue–and you sent us some great revamps in that tradition. Click through for the full lineup!

Thomas Branch’s Kitty actually comes with an awesome matching Illyana–both inspired by one of the shorts in All-New X-Men #25.
This isn’t the first time you’ve seen a Logan Bonner Kitty Pryde redesign here–he’s the mad genius behind Prydeslaught, as well as this splendid sprite (but not Sprite) set–but we are AWFULLY into the idea of unstable tweed.
Rick Jones (who assures us that, yes, it’s his real name, and he’s heard every possible joke already), designed this modern-minimal costume using Hero Factory.
Jenny Peeters harkens back to one of our favorite one-off Kitty costumes with a roller derby twist–and notes that phasing would make Kitty one hell of a jammer!
Mike Becker goes for a lower-key remix of some traditional X-elements. We dig, especially the short sleeves and the rockin’ yellow kicks.
Michael Kappeler writes, “I figured that with Storm rocking the punk look, Kitty would follow up by going through a goth … phase … (I had to).” SLOW CLAP.
Eric Patton imagines an 80s-era Kitty playing homage to some of her own favorite superheroes with this x-lady mashup costume.

An additional note regarding fan art, costume design, and sourcing: There’s one image we didn’t run, because it was done directly on unsourced art by another artist. We totally get that sometimes that’s the simplest way to do a design, and the person who submitted it was in no way attempting to claim the original art or plagiarize–but if you’re submitting a piece like that, the source needs to be noted and visible in the image–and, ideally, used with the permission of the original artist–for us to run it on this blog, i.e. “Recolored from [artist] design” or “drawn over art by [artist].”

If–like us–you’re someone whose costume design aspirations outpace your drawing skills, we also recommend resources like Hero Factory (again, we recommend citing ’em if you’re using ’em, as Rick did above).

As Mentioned in Episode 25 – The Best at What He Does

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Listen to the episode here!

Art by David Wynne, after Katsushika Hokusai. Prints available until 10/12; or contact David to purchase the original.
Because you demanded it: Probably a Summers Brother t-shirts (light or dark backgrounds) and other gear are now a thing that exist, and which you can purchase using moneydollars!
Welcome to the Wolverine comic that will forever set the bar for Wolverine comics.
Shingen: Totally a dick. (Wolverine #1)
Seriously. This asshole. (Wolverine #1)
Things that never get old: Frank Miller drawing Wolverine beating up on Ninja. (Wolverine #2)
Other things that never get old: Our favorite lady, Yukio! (Wolverine #2)
Okay, look, like 2/3 of this gallery is just going to be us drooling over these amazing Frank Miller fight scenes. Deal with it. (Wolverine #2)
Mariko is less impressed with Miller’s stylish portrayal of gruesome violence. (Wolverine #2)
MORE NINJA! (Wolverine #3)
Yukio, ladies and gentlemen. (Wolverine #3)
Taking a break from drooling over stylish fight scenes to drool over a stylish chase scene. (Wolverine #3)
If you’re not hearing the narration in Steve Blum’s voice, you’re doing Wolverine wrong. (Wolverine #4)
LOOK AT THAT NARRATIVE SYMMETRY. (Wolverine #4)
We were going to choose one or two panels from this fight scene, but, nope, it’s perfect. Deal. (Wolverine #4)
HOLY BALLS FRANK MILLER (Wolverine #4)
The X-Men show up to congratulate Wolverine on the completion of his first solo miniseries. (Uncanny X-Men #172)
Look at that adorable Ninja meet-cute! Also: Pretty sure Smith is taking a cue from Miller with the sudden influx of vertical panels and silhouetted buildings. (Uncanny X-Men #172)
Yeah, look, remember how we said this was gonna all be Miller fight scenes? There will also be a lot of Storm and Yukio, because, Storm and Yukio. (Uncanny X-Men #172)
In which Kitty Pryde realizes that Wolverine has been moonlighting in a significantly less code-sensitive series. (Uncanny X-Men #172)
There is literally nothing that you can tell us that will convince us that these two ladies are not Totally Doin’ It. (Uncanny X-Men #172)
Meanwhile, Rogue and Wolverine bond over casual violence. (Uncanny X-Men #173)
Seriously. (Uncanny X-Men #173)
Totally Doin’ It. (Uncanny X-Men #173)
They should really just hand out little warning pamphlets about Mastermind. What a dick. (Uncanny X-Men #173)
Remember when Madelyne Pryor was AWESOME? Sigh. (Uncanny X-Men #173)
Ooh, burn. (Uncanny X-Men #173)
THAT SINGLE TEAR. (Uncanny X-Men #173)
John Byrne’s original concept for what Wolverine would look like under the mask. He ended up using this design for Sabretooth instead.
Next Week: The New Mutants meet Team America!

Further Reading:

25 – The Best at What He Does

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Art by David Wynne, after Katsushika Hokusai.
Art by David Wynne, after Katsushika Hokusai.

In which Wolverine gets his first miniseries, Yukio is still (and forever) the best, we categorically reject the classification “manic pixie dreamgirl,” everything is noir as hell, Wolverine gets an Iron Giant moment, Storm is too cool for your dress code, and we finally made “Probably a Summers Brother” t-shirts.

X-Plained:

  • X-23
  • The 1982 Wolverine miniseries
  • Uncanny X-Men #172-173
  • Rachel’s Wolverine feelings
  • An auspicious road trip
  • Early Frank Miller
  • A really epic team-up
  • Plug’n’play storytelling
  • How to tell a good Wolverine story
  • Mariko Yashida
  • Honor
  • Shingen Yashida
  • Yukio
  • The Inverse Law of Ninjas
  • The Forty-Seven Ronin
  • Silver Samurai
  • Viper
  • A Ninja meet-cute
  • The Cyclops / Wolverine double standard
  • The secret origins of Wolverine’s mask and hair

Next Week: The New Mutants meet Team America!

You can find a visual companion to the episode – and links to recommended reading – on our blog.

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Support us on Patreon!

 

Last Day for Kitty’s Kostume Korner!

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Last week, we asked you to send in your ideas for a new costume for Kitty Pryde – any era, any codename. We’ve gotten some very cool ones already, but we’re extending the deadline for the official roundup by one more day to give latecomers a chance to send in their designs.

For inspiration, here’s Kitty doing her best magical-girl transformation twirl in Uncanny X-Men #168:

Art by Paul Smith, from Uncanny X-Men #168.
Art by Paul Smith, from Uncanny X-Men #168.

As Mentioned in Episode 24 – Ororo, Queen of the Galaxy

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Listen to the episode here!

ORORO, QUEEN OF THE GALAXY, by David Wynne. (Prints available here until October 5.)
Lockheed vs. Pete Wisdom. (Excalibur #97)
Ironically, the thing she’s mad about might be the one time he actually isn’t, but the point stands in general. (X-Men #168)
Lockheed lurks. (X-Men #168)
This isn’t really relevant to the episode–we’re just hoping someone will use it as the basis for a Kitty Pryde magical-girl transformation sequence. (X-Men #168)
Scott and Lee: STILL AWESOME. (X-Men #168)
Before that one Hawkeye thing, there was this. (X-Men #168)
AWESOME TEAM-UP OF AWESOME. (X-Men #168)
But I think we all know the REAL point of X-Men #168. (We’re reviving this for this week’s art challenge – send your Kitty Pryde costume redesigns to xplainthexmen(at)gmail(dot)com!)
Very Nude Nightcrawler. (X-Men #169)
Dragon-sitting is basically the X-Men girlfriend test. (X-Men #169)
Remember that time X-Men straight-up did Barbarella? (Also the time Angel got pinned up by his wings in the Morlock tunnels. No, not that time. The other time.) (X-Men #169)
This cover is slashy in every sense of the word. (X-Men #170)
Well, then. (X-Men #170)
Remember that time Storm straight-up stabbed someone through the heart? BECAUSE THAT DEFINITELY HAPPENED. (X-Men #170)
And then Walt Simonson drew Storm, and we had Feelings. (X-Men #171)
Rogue also has feelings, but they’re less about the transcendent perfection of Simonson’s art than about her out-of-control powers. Sorry, Rogue. (X-Men #171)
Well, that escalated quickly. (X-Men #171)
This might be the most Rogue moment ever. (X-Men #171)
Remember that time Professor X was actually pretty fucking awesome? (X-Men #171)
For full effect, you have to imagine Wolverine’s lines in Steven Blum’s voice. I mean, you should really be doing that anyway. (X-Men #172)
YUKIO. Much, much more about her next week, but she’s the best. (X-Men #172)
For real, there is literally nothing you can say that will convince Rachel that these two are not TOTALLY DOING IT. (X-Men #173)
They really can’t kick her off the team after that. (X-Men #173)
BRB HAVING FEELINGS. (X-Men #173)
Oh. THAT asshole. (X-Men #173)
Meanwhile in Alaska, the most awkward meet-cute ever. (X-Men #168)
Here’s the thing about Scott and Madelyne: they’re actually kind of awesome together. Doomed, but awesome. (X-Men #170)
As a character who’s spent most of his life in a Claremont-written world, Scott is unfamiliar with the concept of coincidence. (X-Men #171)
Then, again, having spent years reading stories set in a Claremont-written world, we find it difficult to believe that this was actually just supposed to have been a coincidence. (X-Men #172)
Lilandra agrees. (X-Men #173)
HEPZIBAH, NEVER CHANGE. (X-Men #174)
This is funny because both of these relationships are super doomed. (X-Men #174)
A brief interlude of adorability from these goofy kids. (X-Men #174)
REMEMBER THAT PRIEST? Yeah. Totally Mastermind. God damnit, Mastermind. (X-Men #174)
Look, it’s a reasonable question under the circumstances. (X-Men #174)
Oh. (X-Men #174)
WELL, THAT ESCALATED QUICKLY. (X-Men #175)
Okay. This looks bad. (X-Men #175)
Really bad. (X-Men #175)
Really, really bad. (X-Men #175)
Cyclops-gritting-his-teeth-and-being-brilliant-in-the-face-of-impossible-odds is the best Cyclops. (X-Men #175)
Ughhhhhhhhhhhhh. (X-Men #175)
Not elegant, but efficient. (X-Men #175)
This is a really good speech, as such things go, but it’s also really funny that he went to the graveyard in his tux. (X-Men #175)
And then they lived happily ever… oh. (X-Men #175)
Next week: Wolverine demonstrates the Inverse Ninja Law.

24 – Ororo, Queen of the Galaxy

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Stormerella print
Art by David Wynne.

In which Professor X is (canonically!) a jerk, Miles has Sidrian Hunter feelings, Kitty Pryde is Clarissa Darling with a dragon, we introduce a drinking game, the X-Men do Barbarella, Rachel has a ‘shipper moment, Rogue joins the team, Storm gets a haircut, Mastermind is still the worst, and Madelyne Pryor is underrated.

X-Plained:

  • Lockheed
  • Uncanny X-Men #168-175
  • Reset issues
  • A one-sided rivalry
  • The lowest-drama X-romance
  • The Cream of Wheat box as a metaphor for infinity
  • Kitty’s Kostume Korner
  • Rachel’s questionably-canon ships
  • The Morlocks
  • Class privilege and the mutant metaphor
  • Callisto
  • Caliban
  • Sunder
  • Plague
  • Masque
  • A dubbing error
  • Gender dimorphism in superhero media
  • Storm’s first major character arc
  • Our single favorite superhero artist
  • Rogue
  • Rogue’s accent
  • A Charles Xavier we can believe in
  • Yukio
  • Punk Storm
  • Madelyne Pryor
  • Closure
  • Cyclops vs. formalwear

Art Challenge: Send us your Kitty Pryde costume redesigns–any era, any codename–to xplainthexmen(at)gmail(dot)com

Next Week: Claremont and Miller’s Wolverine!

You can find a visual companion to the episode – and links to recommended reading – on our blog.

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Support us on Patreon!

As Mentioned in Episode 20 – The Brood They Carried

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WELL, THEN. (X-Men #161)
SPACE FASHION! (X-Men #161)
Stun bombs are to comics as knockout spray is to cartoons. (X-Men #161)
We really only included this to point out the smoke coming from Wolverine’s underwear. (X-Men #162)
And that’s how you do a cold open. (X-Men #162)
Remember this space whale. It’ll be important later. (X-Men #162)
So, that’s a little creepy, and… (X-Men #162)
…AUGH WAIT WHAT THE HELL?! (X-Men #162)
Fang just cannot catch a break. (X-Men #162)
This is one of very, very few times when Wolverine’s healing factor has been written as at all under his control. (X-Men #162)
How cool would it have been if he’d kept this look? Hint: So cool. (X-Men #162)
Fair warning: This visual companion is basically an excuse to post a lot of really awesome Carol Danvers moments. (X-Men #163)
Cyclops successfully completes TWO whole hugs during the Brood Saga! Also: space fashion. (X-Men #163)
So, THAT’S CREEPY. (X-Men #163)
Remember that thing about how this visual companion is mostly an excuse to post pictures of Carol Danvers being awesome? That. (X-Men #164)
ROCKET SHARKS. (X-Men #164)
Including this just for the dozen people who have written us to ask if Storm’s powers work in space (also covered in the Phoenix Saga, incidentally). (X-Men #164)
In which Claremont and/or Cockrum seem to forget that Kitty’s powers fry electrical systems. (X-Men #164)
BINARY, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. (X-Men #164)
Imagine how much of Inferno could have been avoided if the Professor had decided to press this point. (X-Men #164)
AUGH GOD BINARY IS SO AWESOME. (X-Men #164)
Not that Cockrum’s not great, but can we have a moment of silence for how amazingly Neal Adams would’ve drawn this specific panel? (X-Men #164)
If you like the Brood Saga, you should be reading the current Captain Marvel series (and vice versa). This is very much the Carol Danvers of both. (X-Men #164)
That moment when the Brood Saga could’ve become a really heavy-handed reproductive-rights allegory, and we’re all really grateful that it didn’t. (X-Men #164)
Well, fuck. (X-Men #164)
Binary: Too awesome for your stupid airlock. (X-Men #164)
That time Moira MacTaggert manipulated Charles Xavier into starting a second ongoing X-book. (X-Men #165)
Welcome to X-Men, Paul Smith! Hope you survive the experience! (X-Men #165)
Faced with certain and inevitable death, the X-Men decide to go kill some Brood. (X-Men #165)
Rad bromance. (X-Men #165)
CORRECT CHOICE, COLOSSUS. (X-Men #165)
Remember that time Storm became a space whale and quoted Phoenix? (X-Men #165)
Seriously, though: Binary. (X-Men #166)
WELL, THEN. (X-Men #166)
Mostly in here to point out that Kitty’s impending death has not cooled her affection for the Shi’ar fashion machines. (X-Men #166)
Storm X-plains the Acanti, part one. (X-Men #166)
Storm X-plains the Acanti, part two. (X-Men #166)
Our episode outline addresses this panel as follows:
  • KITTY YOU ARE THE BEST NERD
  • DOES CYCLOPS WATCH STAR TREK? DISCUSS. SHOW YOUR WORK.
(X-Men #166)
(X-Men: Evolution Cyclops definitely watches Star Trek, for the record.)
In addition to the shocking reveal, this moment leads to one of stupidest and most avoidable minor continuity errors of the issue. (X-Men #166)
Best Brood moment? Best Brood moment. (X-Men #166)
LOCKHEED! (X-Men #166)
And they all lived happily ever after. (X-Men #166)
OH, WAIT. (X-Men #166)
Just in case you haven’t caught on to the fact that this is an extended thematic and structural riff on the Dark Phoenix Saga. (X-Men #167)
Can we talk about the New Mutants’ adorable collective crush on Magnum, P.I.? (X-Men #167)
THAT SUBTITLE. (X-Men #167)
Kitty’s got a new outfit. Take a drink. (X-Men #167)
Okay. This looks bad. (X-Men #167)
Speaking of the Dark Phoenix Saga… (X-Men #167)
Cyclops has a good day (and completes an unprecedented SECOND successful hug in the same story!), but this plot thread is going to lead straight to Madelyne Pryor, so, that’s probably a net loss. (X-Men #167)
That time Empress Lilandra projected into Reed and Sue Storm’s bedroom to scold them in the middle of the night. (X-Men #167)
Professor Xavier returns to life, and Kitty gets yet ANOTHER new outfit. Two drinks. (X-Men #167)
In which Kitty learns what the reader has known all along. (X-Men #167)
Next Week: Back to the Silver Age (and a very important retcon) with Kurt Busiek!

Further reading:

The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien.

20 – The Brood They Carried

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In which Claremont levels up; the Brood are legitimately scary; Colossus is an ethical dude; Nightcrawler and Wolverine share beers in the face of certain death; Storm turns into a space whale; we are Carol Corps for life; New Mutants are really into Magnum, P.I.; Kitty meets a dragon; and Xavier dies (again).

X-Plained:

  • Broo
  • The Brood Saga (X-Men #161-167)
  • Paul Smith
  • Space fashion
  • A really terrible awards ceremony
  • Tim O’Brien’s X-Men
  • The Brood
  • How to tell a good Wolverine story
  • Rocket sharks
  • The single most badass magical-girl transformation sequence of all time
  • Binary
  • The X-Men’s Kobayashi Maru
  • Friendship (more) (again)
  • The Acanti
  • Whether Cyclops watches Star Trek
  • The New Mutants
  • Cloning
  • Our secret cold-open formula
  • Cosmic crossovers

Next Week: Kurt Busiek! We would have words with thee!

You can find a visual companion to the episode – and links to recommended reading – on our blog.

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Support us on Patreon!