Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men

In which we begin at the beginning: everything clicks with #3, Professor Xavier is a jerk, Magneto is a fearless fashionista, Cyclops gets a name, Jean Grey has a chronic case of the Silver Age, and allegorical diversity is not enough.

In which we introduce the villains of the Silver Age: Magneto makes some valid points, Mastermind is a Nice Guy of OkCupid, the Scarlet Witch predicts Cat Breading, the Trasks should really have known better, and the Comics Code Authority is down with pterosaurs. X-Plained: Common characteristics of enduring X-villains Mutant identity politics and moral relativism Context-agnostic Juggernaut flashbacks An unorthodox approach to anthropology Cyclops’s greatest diplomatic achievement Silver-Age haberdashery An innovative modification to vampire mythology Cultural assimilation The propaganda-and-sweater-vest machine Hex bolts Supplemental reading You can find a visual companion to the episode – and links to recommended reading – on our blog. Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Featuring Emergency Backup Co-Host Chris Sims! In which Rachel and Chris X-plain three cartoons and track a disagreement to its source; Gambit is definitely the worst person you know; Broadcasting Standards and Practices is tired of your death ceremonies; Storm doesn’t have an inside voice; and we finally get around to mentioning that one dude with the claws. X-Plained: Weaponized creepiness The evolution (and Evolution) of X-Toons Why you hate Cyclops (and Rachel doesn’t) Adaptation overload Broadcast standards, practices, and laser rifles How to order pizza like a weather goddess A paramilitary after-school club G-Rated Wolverine Comics based on cartoons based on comics Morph The Batman Standard The Wolverine and the X-Men trifecta of perfection Why the Mojoverse works better on TV Dazzler’s secret second job Basic jacketry CORRECTION: In this episode, Rachel mentions that Morph’s first comics appearance is in Exiles. It’s not: he’s in Age of Apocalypse. Mea culpa. You can find a visual companion to the episode – and links to recommended reading – on our blog. Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

In which Rachel finally gets to say “WHAT?!,” we examine three variations on the Silver Age, Twin Peaks is reality TV, we can’t believe you hired Hitler, Angel is not Batman, even the most sympathetic Xavier is still pretty creepy, Cyclops has a good day, Marvel Girl is not going to throw a dinosaur for you, Iceman is the Troy Barnes of the X-Men, and we say a fond farewell to the Silver Age. X-Plained: The X-Axis X-Men: Children of the Atom Hard-sell noir How to party like it’s sometime between 1986 and 1991, as filtered through 1999 The perils of over-referencing Why Marvel is in the Tommy Westphall Universe The worst guidance counselor ever Villain speeches X-Men: First Class (but not that one) Fun, and several places to find it Angst-free X-Men Gender politics of superheroism X-Men: Season One Teenagers The solution to the Silver-Age-Jean Grey problem Why Iceman matters The Silver Age cram book You can find a visual companion to the episode – and links to recommended reading – on our blog. Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

In which the Bronze Age begins; Dave Cockrum is your god now; the band gets together; Sunfire joins the team; cultural sensitivity is not Marvel’s strong suit; Sunfire quits the team; it sucks to be Cyclops; Professor X crosses a moral event horizon; Sunfire joins the team; Ed Brubaker channels Thomas Hardy; you are probably a Summers brother; and Sunfire quits the team. X-Plained: Bamf-Voltron Nightcrawler Giant-Size X-Men #1 The worst hat of the Marvel Universe The Mostly-New, Mostly-Different X-Men A business-casual angry mob The limits of creative good intentions Tractor punching on the Ust-Ordynski Collective The correct spelling of “fine” Canada Sunfire’s utter disdain for everything, including you Krakoa: The Island That Walks Like a Man! Characteristics of good X-fights Yet another miracle of magnetism X-Men: Deadly Genesis Summers Family Continuity (Introductory) More hats The Muir-MacTaggert Research Facility Summers Family Continuity (Intermediate) The Charles Xavier Scale of Supervillainy Relative immunity Wolverine’s ubiquity AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION: What would you do with thirteen X-Men? Help us find all-ages-friendly Marvel Girl stories! You can find a visual companion to the episode – and links to recommended reading – on our blog. Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!