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I've listened to over 100 episodes of this show, and I don't remember a single one where you've resolved anything. I don't think Wayne is pulling out a win in the box office game.

Yeah her dad your brother watches these no denying 😂

I read (past tense) and still read (present tense) the comments on the bed as Meggan telling Kurt that it's not his bed. Like, "That's Captain Britain's bed, silly! Come on, your room's down here." Which is implied by her already walking down the stairs and telling him to pardon the clutter, which was all removed from the downstairs rooms for Kitty/Kurt/Rachel.

I only just discovered the podcast, and I'm 13 episodes deep. I love Excalibur and I'm having such good time listening to your insights! I know this was a huge project that took a really long time to complete. Would you ever want to do another one? And could it be the New Mutants?

Excalibur was a favorite from the start

"Or you could just dye your John Constantine doll." *chef's kiss*

Glad to see the Pieta moment in video form :)

Awesome! I know it’s not over yet, but already missing you guys.

Such a great episode!

I think with this issue we no longer have any doubts that Kymri is this world's alternate version of Kurt. She is extremely flirty and sexually active (just like him) and that scene where she grabs Brian's ass adds another layer to the love triangle between Kurt, Brian and Megan.

I think Rachel knows Longshot (and this new X-Men formation) because of the X-Men clones that Mojo had in his dimension. Remember that scene from "The Sword is drawn" when she fights these new X-men? I know that you can see that as just a dream, but to me that scene was real and Kitty's dream-psyche was dragged there by Rachel. Also, she spent years in that dimension (which is Longshot's birth dimension) and we have no clue what she saw and learned there.

I know this is an old video but I just noticed something at 49 minutes: They miscoloured Kurt's face in the "Captain, that's disgusting!" panel. Not that it's important, but I just saw it. Keep up the great work. I'm just beginning listening to you guys, so far I love it!

First!!!

Such a fun episode! Thank you

You made sure no one burnt the building down, but that didn’t stop us from gashing a huge hole in the wall HAH

Wisecrack brought me here

Awesome episode as always, all four presentations were incredibly interesting. 5 stars. Now you can say that both the podcast and the RUclips are officially home of the 5 star review.

Absolutely fabulous!!!

Honestly, my dissatisfaction with Way of X began just with the apparent premise, of Kurt saying (paraphrased) "mutantkind needs a mutant religion". Why? Kurt was previously some form of Christian, so when and why did he stop? Is the Council going to make this new religion a part of the culture, and why would they even think Muslim, atheist, etc. mutants would agree to a Councilor-supported religion? What is the "Way of X" even going to worship, or is it just really bland and meaningless and something few real people would take part in instead of real-life cultural traditions? Mostly I'm just peeved they took one of the mutants attached to real faith beliefs and had him decide to make up a new faith.

The reason Brian is so gung ho at the end here is bc he got drunk at the campfire...

Thank you all for continuing to share your insights with all of us listeners. I hope you had a wonderful day today, whether you were celebrating a holiday or not. It is still technically Christmas day as I finish watching, and it was a great way to wind down after a busy (but good) day. Congratulations on the shirt campaign! I think $541 is an amazing amount! I am thrilled that the podcast is making that donation, as I am also deeply invested in current events as well as displeased with recent comic events related to this issue. Thanks again for all that you do.

Does Lightning Force know that Meggan is Romanichal? Does the Earth-597 public? I think that's an interesting way to consider her character beyond "Aryan goddess."

So, slowly making my way through these podcasts, while i come up with stuff to respond to but i often forget what I lean to say but here are some things I did feel like responding to. Rachel’s Telepathy: While i haven’t been to far into the x men series since I was a kid from what I know mostly about Rachel is she really has a habbit of snooping through other people’s minds, but from what I can tell she doesn’t have a constant view of people’s thoughts. Based on The Sword is drawn we can tell she can easily get overwhelmed by people’s thoughts passively which tells me most psychics most likely have to train themselves to actively turn off their powers in order to prevent themselves from hearing others. Rachel has a rapport with her friend about its essentially her mental facebook circle, she in which case it seems to be a form of consent in which she can only hear said person’s thoughts like a direct message? Like im definitly sure she doesn’t know about Meggan and Kurt and Brian and while im sure she’s aware of Kitty she is for sure completely unaware of how far she holds it lol. If its confusing to summarize Rachel isn’t listening constantly, she’s just tuning herself to specific awarnessess of people’s thoughts. She for sure wasn’t aware of Nigel’s intention until he grabbed her hand and she realized by reading his thoughts there. That also opens up a tiny problem with Rachel which is she seems to assume that whenever someone thinks a thought that its a literal statement being made, at one point later on Stuart thinks to himself how beautiful Rachel is and Rachel makes fun of him for it. Or that alternate universe Nigel she tars and feathers, sure we can assume Nigel probably said or did something creepy but based on the dialogue it seems Nigel didn’t do anything, Rachel just reads his mind and takes it almost as if it was directed at her. Kinda improaching on a moral grey area on Rachel’s lack of respect for other people’s mental privacy, like CapB was about to kill him over something that wasn’t even spoken, like 616 Nigel broke several boundaries that someone who isnt psychic would be able to recognize, but as far as I can tell this one is mostly he’s an english gentlemen who happens to be perverted. What do you guys think on Rachel’s constant mind peeping lol. Rachel’s Arc in X-men: I remember one of you mentioning Rachel’s arc in X men about wanting parental love was redundant but i think its hard to go, “Hi Dad! I’m your Daughter from an alternate universe! Please love me.” In fact we see the one time she goes on and calls Scott she flat out doesn’t say anything out of fear of rejection. To her this person’t isn’t her Dad. It’s someone like her Dad but it isn’t. Hence why she breaks down when Cable is born, she was an only child and instead it was a boy who was born? This isn’t her reality or family, and going to a separate one and trying to fit in takes alot of bravery to try and do. As for connection to this Kitty I think Kitty was the only person who was aware of Rachel’s heritage. Speaking of which. Kitty and Rachel(and Kurt): I for one can see this happening, I think both of them have a strong bond and connection that helps them understand one another. They also seem to make up for each others mistakes. Kitty was trapped inside a Warwolf and Rachel kept her from fading away, and Kitty helped Rachel out of being possessed. Plus that scene with Kitty being there when she’s having a seizure is a really endearing moment. Plus scenes with Kitty trying to be Rachel and failing with Rachel teasing feels very big sister, and since Rachel is like…19? It makes it alot more accessible than Colossus and Kitty ever were. But why not Kurt and Rachel? Based on what little ive seen of it I thought it wqs decently cute, both being outsiders in their own way, plus since these aren’t the same people she knew in her reality and she’s alive in a time period she wasn’t previously it gives alot more individuality to their relationship. More so than Corvus. I mean if Rachel can be shipped with Kitty I can’t see any reason why she couldn’t be shipped with Kurt. Nature of Mary Sues: This one i didn’t wanna be too long but it probably will be. I think everyone’s definition of one is very subjective but I think my baseline idea of one makes sense. A mary sue is a character that’s a power fantasy for the creator, but it doesn’t try to pass off as it. The character effectively doesn’t have flaws or make mistakes in a way where the character grows and such. Like you said Luke was a Mary Sue…but The Empire strikes back is all about how he fails his lessons, disobeys direct advice, leaves his training to fight an opponent stronger than him only to get his hand cut off and almost dies. Plus he doesn’t even kill the emperor (ignoring rise of skywalker) and he kissess his sister…sooooo Wouldn’t call him one. As for batman its tricky since his parents dying is a defining character motivation and he does have alot of logical explanations as to why he is as skilled as he is. Plus i’d say his constant acknowledgement not killing prolongs the problem. Also for other examples of characters who are all powerful but flawed we have Alucard from Hellsing, Saitama from One Punch Man, and Dr Manhattan. Alucard is too powerful to the point he wants to be killed by someone noble, Saitama is too powerful to such an extent he loses the thrill of fightning or ever As for Dr Manhattan? He becomes so powerful he winds up losing all sense of mortality and humanity and struggles to relate to people along with his former wife and lover. Even unable to be understand human emotion. In those cases power is the arc, what should be strength is the weakness. Same thing with Dark Phoenix, instead of making Jean a Mary Sue is makes her an anti hero that almost destroys Earth and even annihilates a planet. For example you guys at one point called Kitty a Mary sue but then remembered issues one and two where she almost died over a mistake she made. Haven’t seen many other Kitty Pryde comics but I think i can safely say she has plenty of flaws to keep her from being a Mary sue as well. As for Rachel she flat out has near unlimited power but her emotions and trauma are sources of character weakness, I know you mentioned it was problematic but to me it seems realistic. But males of course are capable of being Mary Sues as well and I think Nightcrawler and Captain Britain are good inverses of each other. Cap is physically fit and pretty tough but his personality and overall character keep him from being A Mary sue, meanwhile Kurt is the complete opposite. Kurt has a useful power but it isn’t outwardly strong as Captain Britians as well as him being currently crippled from the Nimrod fight, meaning despite everything he essentially has to rely on skill which he has a tangible explanation for learning (which is big points, he WORKED to gain that skill makes him more endearing) plus his alien appearance gives the reader the sense he doesn’t get life in the way he wants it often. (Btw he definitly has the monster boyfriend affect, would definitely recommend Lindsay Ellis’s video on it) But as a person he pretty much is at his peak, he’s friendly, reliable, and just has your back, its easy to see why he’s considered the team leader. Its someone you can look up to. Their arcs as well, Kitty is growing up to be more independent, Rachel is coping with her past trauma and working to become more independent of her past and become a hero she wants to be. Meggan wants to understand who she is to herself and to Brian, Brian mostly just wants peace and quiet and to be content with himself but his arc is bettering himself and trying to be a better man to meggan waaaay down the road. And Kurt’s arc is to keep it in his pants Lol. Actually not sure what Kurt’s arc is. I mean established early on Kurt has become the straight man for Excalibur’s wackyness so I don’t think its finding acceptance for his appearance he has that in spades at this point. But yeah thats my take, may be wrong may be right. What do you think?

So im gonna post this on the off chance when the Warwolves popup again. I can’t express how much I love these guys lol. Something about them has always struck me a certain way in terms of their humor and their place in a morally grey area of Comics. Namely how they kinda mercilessly kill people and wear their skins yet they have names and personalities and are doing Mojo’s bidding only to seemingly be abandoned later on. It’s clear these things aren’t evil but they aren’t good either, plus mixing that comedy with the horror creates a unique tone that I just cant get anywhere else. Also cudos to the comic cover, vore jokes aside this is what made me pick up the series and I’m sure that the other comic covers have done the same for alot of other people. But the biggest thing I think people over look is how they relate to Rachel. It seems most the Phoenix’s enemies have the ability to drain life or energy from people, (Selene, Necrom, etc Im just getting back into comics since I was a kid) and the Warwolves so the same, but at the same time to me their an allusion to Rachel’s hound background, after all their purpose is to bring her back to Mojoworld. Do you guys also think the Warwolves absence from the story until later on was a planned thing or that they were supposed to be more of a constant threat. Also spoilers for people who haven’t read 41 When the Warwolves return as the X Men we have all six from Wolverine, to Psylocke, Colossus, Marvel Girl, Rogue, and Storm, yet the Warwolf who impersonated Storm just kinda disappears, literally vanishes from the story, and more so when the Warwolves are sent back to Mojo world he isn’t among them, while the Phoenix Handbook in 2010 says this warwolf still exists do you think this was an intentional writing choice or was it an accident that marvel has just ran with? Also i suppose I’ll ask as well how much involvement in the story do you think they should’ve had in comparison to Technet who becomes quite popular despite how integral the Warwolves are revealed to be in the plot in issue 47 with them being revealed as the real threat instead of Technet?

Another fantastic episode that helped clarify a whole bunch of stuff that teenage me just thought was really weird.

Ok, starting to remember why people say the Cross-Time Caper lasted too long. This isn't a horrible issue by any means but the last few have been a step down from some of the earlier issues. I'll take this over next week's issue any day, though. Separating Kitty from the main group for an extended period of time is a bold choice, and I liked your discussion on how this continues the repeated isolation of her character from teammates. Is Jamie Braddock a good antagonist for this series? Every time he shows up he comes across as oddly dark. Excalibur definitely isn't afraid to be dark, but he just seems to clash with the tone in a way I'm not sure I can put into words. Maybe I'm just not a big fan of him. Great work on the podcast and video supplement, it's great to hear every week!

Loving the show, guys! There's so much depth to Excalibur, and you guys seem to examine each issue so well. I was a kid when I first read these issues, so MUCH of the really interesting commentary flew over my head. I didn't think it was possibly enjoy Excalibur even more than I already do (as it's one of my favorite series ever), but you've proven me wrong. 👍

Great episode as usual!

Just want to say Thank You, again, for the shout out, and also for having the hot pool scene up for 2/3s of the video. I think, right after the panel with the bubbles, there should have been a close up of his face and him simply smiling and purring which would have been a lot more fun to see, IMO. Maybe I'll add a quick redraw of those panels to my lift of 'to do's. LOL!!

I am so excited for next week's episode as well, been waiting for it since the beginning!!! O.O

I'm slowly making my way through the whole X-line through the years, but I somehow missed this issue on my initial read-through of the Claremont era. I realized a month or two ago and went back to read it, and I now think it's one of my favorite issues of the 80s. I loved being able to read an X-related Claremont issue for the first time again, when I had long-thought I had extinguished that possibility. Andrew's reading of his Claremont Run analysis of this issue is fantastic (as is everything from that Twitter account). Specifically, Mojo Mayhem's focus on the grief caused by the X-Men's faked death partially fills a hole that was, in my opinion, not touched on nearly enough by any of the X-books of the time. New Mutants gave an issue to Illyana's grief of losing her brother, but the post-Fall of the Mutants era of that book was more one-offs and coping with Doug's death than anything else. The era's X-Factor is often frustratingly written (in my opinion, of course), and their near-indifference to the X-Men's death is emblematic of this. Scott struggles with Madelyne's death, but rarely do the deaths of the other members of Scott and Jean's previous team come up. Excalibur, in The Sword is Drawn and now Mojo Mayhem, puts the most effort into making character death feel meaningful, a problem that plagues so many Marvel Comics. With that being said, do you think there is a reason that the creators opted to keep these moments mostly hidden in the Excalibur Specials rather than the main series? I'd like to say that could give it more emphasis than a regular issue, but the existence of Air Apparent and The Possession seems to contradict that.

It's always impressive how detailed the editing is for these videos; it's clear a lot of effort goes into it. The visuals help a ton with placing specific scenes since I haven't read these in a while, so I always wait for the video version. Excalibur is really starting to hit its stride around this issue, and the arc from here through #17 is one of my favorites of the whole series. Regarding your discussion of Claremont and Byrne being depicted being served by scantily-clad Marvel women, I found it interesting that Claremont is chained to his keyboard as this happens. Do you think this goes against the reading of the women being "writerly motivation," since they appear to visually be forced to work regardless?

I'm reading through the post-Davis era for the first time right now (I'm at issue #77), and listening to this really highlights how much nuance was lost in the transition to Muir Isle. The Cross-Time Caper is really fun imo until near the end when they "lose" one of the main characters (to refrain from spoilers). I'm excited to hear your thoughts on the space opera parody(?) issue that's coming up soon.

In that group shot on the last page, I'm struck by how much Meggan's fairy form makes her look like Jackdaw, Captain Britain's once-sidekick (who died during an alternate reality Jasper's Warp). Odd thing, that.

Random thought: WHAT is Brian wearing????

Small World is combat only. Comparing it to Civ, which is a 4X game, is very off base. This is especially true when there are 4X board games (including Civilization: The Board Game).

Excited for next week, cause I think #12 is that hot scene with Kurt and the princess in the pool. O.O

They should have taken those extra four pages of Nigel and used them to show evil Nightcrawler stalking Alysande, giving good Nightcrawler a reason to suspect he's going to do something stupid; then show him sneaking out of his room, Meggan catches him, and in order to catch him red-handed (for Reasons) swaps places with Alysande. Maybe they need to catch him in order to "prove" to the jerk nazi versions that he was really going to do it? Maybe because now that they have the evil versions kind of in/under control in a way, they don't want to start a fight with an accusation based on speculation? Things that should have been in those 4 pages instead of Nigel. I agree. Totally didn't need those pages. Thanks again, another excellent podcast.

I've got to say that I don't read Rachel in any of the ways that you have all posited. I think unlike Jean who becomes more in tune with everyone due her telepathic abilities, I think that Rachel, conversely is dispassionate and removed. I agree that she knows what's going on inside people's heads, but her overtly complex origins and background make for her to be conflicted about i) wanting to be closer to people and have a "family" and; ii) keep enough distance to not become emotionally embroiled in emotions that I think she may deem superfluous to her functioning. Kind of like a female Spock who likes to dabble in her emotions, and asexuality from time-to-time. I think she chooses when, how and with whom she wishes to engage with...

Nice video ❤️❤️

As always, great podcast and video. I noticed you moved the voice thing to the other side--good call. :-) I know all the technical terms. Don't mistake me for being unappreciative. The videos are wonderful. Now they are just even *more* wonderful.

Someone tell Travis that it is possible to enthusiastic about things that you don't like too! 😅 I actually wasn't sure how I felt about this period in their histories, but in the UK having Nazis as your go-to punch bags have been de riguer since time immemorial, just ask Monty Python. I can't abide this country's fascination with them as either a comedic foil or a a pre-packaged 'bad guy'. I wished the writing teased the more intellectual dilemas your discussion proposed 🤔

Another great episode!

Another great episode! Brian is 100% the ditsy blonde.

I look forward to this every week! You're quickly becoming my favorite podcast. I'm interested to see how the discussion shifts when you start to reach some of the less-than-good issues (two weeks in a row of Brian and Meggan helping the avengers in Wakanda comes to mind).

How do you know you guys have got me jonesing for each episode? Because I start dancing to the theme tune 🕺🏾 🎶 👂🏾 👈🏾

*laughs and points at Kurt getting a creampie to the face* No, that doesn't happen on a regular basis. LOL!!

Love this podcast! Having the visuals on the youtube version is really helpful to remember the specific parts you're talking about.

Cannot say enough good stuff about this podcast -- really can't wait to listen to you all deep-dive into the really crazy stuff ahead.

Every Saturday morning now I say to myself, "YES, IT'S PODCAST DAY!" Thanks all for another great episode!