★★★★★★★★

Eleven and a half years into it's run, the ever-enjoyable X-plain the X-Men podcast has just reached it's demi-millenium as episode 500 dropped.

For those unaware of it, it is, in it's own words a look at "The ins, the outs, and the retcons of comics greatest superhero soap-opera" which started at the dawn of the Silver Age and has only just reached the end of the 90's. So the Morrison run awaits.

Hosts Jay Edidin and Miles Stokes have, IMHO, a great presenting and bantering style and between Mile's enthusiasm, Jay's critical analsyis (though each have aspects of the other) and the queer prism they bring to look at the media through, plus the sheer amount of research they must do, this has been one of my go-to podcasts for pretty much a decade (Plus they share my affection for the OG New Mutants, and a certain omnilinguist and his technorganic soulmate in particular, so how could I not be a fan? :) )

They've also had some excellent guests over the years, including Kurt Busiek, Chris Claremont and Louise Simonson.

The Anniversary episode is great fun. They bring in a professional expert on the industrial applications of magnets to discuss just how much of Magneto's infinitely varied magnetic powers might be based in reality (Answer: More than you might think, but not necessarily in the way you might think), then are themselved interviewed about the podcast itself, which is fascinating.

Anyhoo, well worth a listen if you fancy some affectionately, if sometimes slightly snarky, X-discussion and analysis.

(Look, this podcast managed to make me even vaguely invested in parts of 90's X-Force, and you have NO idea the barriers it was working against there... well, actually you might, but that doesn't make it less impressive)

In the comments to these weekly posts (and only these posts), it's your chance to go as off topic as you like.

Talk about non-comics stuff, thread derail, and just generally chat among yourselves.

The intent of these posts is to chat and have some fun and, sure, vent a little as required. Reasoned debate is fine, as always, but if you have to ask if something is going over the line, think carefully before posting please.

Normal board rules about conduct and behaviour still apply, of course.

It's been suggested that, if discussing spoilers for recent media events, it might be advisable to consider using the rot13 method to prevent other members seeing spoilers in passing.

The world situation is the world situation. If you're following the news, you know it as much as I do, if you're not, then there are better sources than scans_daily. But please, no doomscrolling, for your own sake.

So POTUS 47 capped off a week where he had already proudly admitted that hate beat forgiveness for him (surprising no-one), by standing in front of a microphone and announcing that tylenol/paracetemol should be avoided in pregnancy to prevent autism. To say this flies in the face of every respected medical authority in the world is not an understatement, but, well, here we are.

Apparently the number of MAGA supporters attending the tribute/political rally/ego-fest for the recently killed Right Wing activist, whose name needs no glorification from me, caused the local grindr server in Arizona to crash. You may draw your own conclusions.

Robert Redford, a remarkable actor and by all accounts, a remarkable man, passed away at the age 89.

A trailer for next years "Mandalorian and Grogu" movie dropped along with a beautifully 1940's style poster

Not sure if I shared the trailer for next years Yoroi Shin Den Samurai Troopers anime, for those who might remember "Ronin Warriors" in the 90's. But if I did tough luck, here it is again.