In September of 1963, the first issue of X-Men hit the stands, a quirky little comic about a handful of superpowered teenagers and their mentor, the telepathic Professor X, fighting to protect a world that hated and feared them.
Our names are Rachel and Miles, and we love the X-Men: all fifty years, multiple cancellations, thousands of issues, dozens of spinoffs, six feature films, three animated series, and two cancelled pilots (not to mention the brand-dubious Mutant X live-action series).
As long-time X-readers, we also recognize that the series can be–well, “daunting” is the nice word. Time travel paradoxes? The X-Men created a new splinter universe in the seconds it took you to read this sentence. Clones? Get ’em by the dozen. Retcons? Honey, let me tell you about something called the Phoenix Force.
This is the series that straight-up broke the Marvel Universe. Twice.
And so, with a new movie less than a month away, we’ve decided it’s time to step up.
We’ve been explaining the X-Men informally for years–to our friends and family, to the Internet, and, occasionally, to patient strangers on the street. Now, we’re making it official, with Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men: a weekly-or-so podcast dedicated to unpacking the weird, wonderful world of our favorite superhero soap opera for newcomers and die-hard fans alike.
Daunted by complex continuity? Can’t tell a mutate from a warpie? We are here for you. We have trained for this responsibility for decades. We have the backissues, the calluses, and a really detailed map of the Summers family tree.
This weekend, we’ll be delving into the longboxes with our first episode, “The Strangest Podcast of Them All.” We hope you’ll join us!