Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men

By Jay Edidin & Miles StokesArts Books Visual Arts

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Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men episodes

April 26, 201554 – Who You Gonna Call? (feat. Elle Collins)
Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 5/3/2015 in the shop, or contact David for the original.
In which the X-Men get their third ongoing series; Elle drops in to x-plain the Defenders; the band gets back together; rich people are not like the rest of us; Cyclops is in desperate need of some kind of intervention; and X-Factor is basically Ghostbusters.
X-PLAINED:
Cameron Hodge
The fairly spectacular secret origins of X-Factor
The Champions
The New Defenders
The evolution of Hank McCoy
X-Factor #1
The death throes of Scott and Madelyne’s marriage
Rusty Collins
A really bad first date
The increasingly dubious life choices of Scott Summers
The worst job interview
Sushi-a-Go-Go
How not to have an intervention
X-Factor
The X-Terminators
The Phoenix Force on Earth-811 (and its relationship to Rachel Summers)
NEXT WEEK: The Beyonder ruins everything. Again.
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!
39 min
April 20, 201553 – Sometimes They Come Back
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!
45 min
April 13, 201552 – Previously on Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men…
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!
41 min
April 06, 201551 – The X-Istentialists, Featuring Kris Anka, Marguerite Bennett, Kieron Gillen, and Peter Nguyen
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!
43 min
March 30, 201550 – The People Vs. Erik Lehnsherr
Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 3/29/2015 in the shop, or contact David for the original.
In which Magneto makes an official alignment shift; Claremont does a court drama; Professor Xavier makes poor choices; Rachel Summers comes by her communication skills honest; the Strucker kids are the evil Wonder Twins; and the podcast hits a major milestone!
X-PLAINED:
Xorn
Uncanny X-Men #196, 199, and 200
The X-Men status quo circa 1985
Magneto’s alignment shift
Beyonder-related existential crises
A hypothetical murder mystery
Minor vandalism as a harbinger of dark futures
Psi-scream
Brood classified ads
A thematic parallel
The tipping point in Scott and Madelyne’s relationship
The new, improved Magneto
The Professor Who Cried Wolf
Phoenix II
Earth-811/Earth-616 disambiguation
Freedom Force
The Trial of Magneto
NPR-616
James Jaspers
The best editor’s note
The mystery of Magneto’s age
Andrea & Andreas Strucker
What not to wear to court
A super icky sword
Phoenix morality
Sponsorship & conflict of interest
NEXT WEEK: Emerald City Comicon special with Kris Anka, Marguerite Bennett, Kieron Gillen, and Peter Nguyen!
You can find a visual companion to this episode on our blog!
Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!
Support us on Patreon!
Buy prints of this week’s illustration at our shop, or contact David Wynne for the original!
43 min
March 23, 201549 – Of Mullets and Miracles
Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 3/29/2015 in the shop, or contact David for the original.
In which we meet Miles’s favorite X-Man; Longshot is Secret Wars II done right; we are fairly committed to the idea of Ann Nocenti as a post-apocalyptic daredevil superhero; Longshot is patient zero of the ‘90s; Ricochet Rita is the best; luck is a zero-sum commodity; Mojo is legitimately terrifying; and nuance is Longshot’s secret weakness.
X-PLAINED:
Spiral
The Body Shop
Several ill-advised body swaps
Longshot
Longshot
Rachel Summers Syndrome
The evolution of Art Adams
The metaphysics of luck
The secret origin of pouches
A large number of pop culture allusions
Glam survivalists
Psychometry
Moral complexity
Gog’n’Magog
Ricochet Rita
The social economics of jetpacks
A whole lot of social satire and commentary
Star Slammers
Mojo
The Mojoverse
Luck as a zero-sum commodity
Arize
Quark
Longshot and Dazzler’s star sigils
Finding (or creating) your comics community
NEXT WEEK: The Trial of Magneto!
You can find a visual companion to this episode on our blog!
Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!
Support us on Patreon!
Buy prints of this week’s illustration at our shop, or contact David Wynne for the original!
53 min
March 16, 201548 – Guitar Solos of the Gods
Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 3/22/2015 in the shop, or contact David for the original.
In which Asgardian Wars occupies the precise intersection of Miles’s favorite things; Marvel Asgard is your favorite metal album; no one appreciates Cypher; Wolfsbane gets some action; Warlock gets meta; Cannonball is a catch; Rachel Summers gets a new costume; Loki does Shakespeare; and Rachel overthinks Leverage.
X-PLAINED:
Various Mjolnirs and their attendant powers
Asgardian Wars
New Mutants Special Edition #1
X-Men Annual #9
The Surtwar
Art Adams
Amora the Enchantress
Lorelei
Several pop culture cameos
A really dubious beach party
The Viking Sorceress Asgardian Portrait of Dorian Grey
Ed Grimley
Hrimhari
Wolf makeouts
The Marvel version of Norse mythology
The Warriors Three
Rule #1 of dealing with fairies
A hawk ‘hawk
Valkyries
Einherjar
A costume in somewhat questionable taste
Interdimensional lightning-bolt mixology
Our favorite Thor story, ever
How to get your friends and neighbors into comics
Asgardian mutants (or lack thereof)
X-Leverage cross-casting
NEXT WEEK: Longshot!
You can find a visual companion to this episode on our blog!
Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!
Support us on Patreon!
Buy prints of this week’s illustration at our shop, or contact David Wynne for the original!
1 hr
March 09, 201547 – The Price of Power (feat. Elisabeth Allie)
Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 3/15/2015 in the shop, or contact David for the original.
In which Emergency Backup Co-Host Elisabeth Allie saves the day; the Berserkers are not the breakout hit you’ve been waiting for; Paul Smith continues to be awesome; nothing good ever happens in the Danger Room; Charles Xavier dabbles in cosplay; Nightcrawler has serious hat game; Rachel Summers lacks healthy coping skills; your life would be way more epic if Claremont narrated it; Northstar is a surprisingly good prom date; Loki is a total dick; and Longshot is totally Miles’s favorite.
X-PLAINED:
Madelyne Pryor
X-Men/Alpha Flight vols. 1&2
The Berserkers
An unconventional model of family therapy
Aggressive foreshadowing
NPC dialogue
Jazzercise superheroes
Superhero color theory
Sasquatch
Aurora
Those Who Sit Above in Shadow
Norse fashion of the ‘80s
Very specific superpowers
Some sweet boots
The price of power
A deus ex machina squared
Kitty and Piotr’s first date
Snowbird’s powers
Miles’s favorite X-Man
NEXT WEEK: Asgardian Wars!
You can find a visual companion to this episode on our blog!
Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!
Support us on Patreon!
Buy prints of this week’s illustration at our shop, or contact David Wynne for the original!
1 hr 1 min
March 01, 201546 – Shadows Over Cairo
Art by David Wynne. Prints and cards available until 3/8/2015 in the shop, or contact David for the original.
In which we bid a fond farewell to Bill Sienkiewicz; Secret Wars II continues to ruin everything; the New Mutants end up in an improbable number of gladiatorial arenas; Shadowcat’s secondary mutation is queer subtext; Magik gives no fucks about your crossover event; Warlock transcends storytelling conventions; and Karma rejoins the team.
X-PLAINED:
The chronologically inconsistent mobility of Professor Xavier
The Shadow King
New Mutants #29-34
Steve Leialoha
The Arena (more) (again)
Evil group projects
Easter eggs
Rachel Summers: butch fashion icon
Some major failures of positive size diversity in comics
Madripoor
Ashake
The incredible changing Guthries
The wickedest club in Cairo
Default X-teams
Cypher’s powers
NEXT WEEK: Miles and Elisabeth Allie X-Plain X-Men / Alpha Flight
No visual companion this week, because, reasons.
Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!
Support us on Patreon!
Buy prints of this week’s illustration at our shop, or contact David Wynne for the original!
46 min
February 22, 201545 – A Woman Who Could Fly
Art by David Wynne. Prints, cards, and travel mugs available until 3/1/2015 in the shop, or contact David for the original.
In which we discard our regularly scheduled programming to focus on Storm and Lifedeath II; no one draws motion like Barry Windsor-Smith; Storm goes up to eleven; and we really wish we had the frame of reference to place this story in the larger context of diaspora literature.
X-Plained:
Forge
The Adversary
Uncanny X-Men #198 (Lifedeath II)
Storm
The narrative impact of sexualization
Barry Windsor-Smith
Extreme weather in comics
Hallucinatory X-Men
Storm in adaptation
The Storm elevator pitch
Our Storm dream casting
Mjnari
Artist editions
Colonialism
Storm as a liminal figure
NEXT WEEK: The New Mutants Go to the Arena!
You can find a visual companion to this episode on our blog!
Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!
Support us on Patreon!
Buy prints of this week’s illustration at our shop, or contact David Wynne for the original!
42 min