Tag Archives: Jean Grey

Issue #43: X-MEN ’97 (Part 2 of 2: Episodes 6-10) – Podcast

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X-MEN ’97 (Part 2 of 2: Episodes 6-10) – Podcast

“Magneto was right…”

On Part 2 of our long-awaited X-Men ’97 coverage, we’re talking about every crazy twist, comic book reference, Morph cameo, and ‘Oh Shit!’ moment from the second half of Season 1 of this insanely good animated legacy series…

Also on this Episode:

(Episode edited by Chris Carroll)

Check out our blog at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ComicZombie.net⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for more! 

Top 100 Villains 20-11

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Everyone knows nothing makes a good hero like a great villain. Sherlock Holmes needed Moriarty, G.I. Joe needed Cobra, the rebels needed Darth Vader, etc. Nothing makes a story better quite like an interesting, intriguing, and yet hated adversary. Readers tend to flock to the villains they love to hate. The best villains bring something out of the hero that nobody else does, or force the hero to push themselves further than before to find a way to win.

We wanted to make a top 10 list, but that’s impossible. There are just too many good choices, and we couldn’t agree on any of it. So we increased the list, and increased it, and increased it (honestly we probably could have kept going, too). So, before it gets too out of hand, here are our choices for the 100 best villains in comics.

(Click here for our Top 100 Heroes List!)

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Podcast – Issue #38: X-MEN: The Dark Phoenix Saga / Days of Future Past

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Issue 38: X-MEN: The Dark Phoenix Saga / Days of Future Past

“Hear me, X-Men! No longer am I the woman you knew! I am Fire and Life incarnate! Now and forever – I am PHOENIX!”

This week, Chris and Erik are talking about the Chris Claremont / John Byrne era of X-Men comics history, delving into two of the most iconic storylines of all time: “The Dark Phoenix Saga” and “Days of Future Past”!

(Episode edited by Chris Carroll)

Check out our blog at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ComicZombie.net⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for more! 

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Essential Reads: X-MEN

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Be sure to check out Episode 38 of the podcast for our thoughts on all-time great X stories “The Dark Phoenix Saga” and “Days of Future Past”.

There are oh-SO many X-Men stories, and a lot of them are really good to great, so it’s very difficult to provide a recommended reading list that isn’t very, very long, but we’ve narrowed it down to some favorites. Keep in mind that these don’t include stories only found in books like New Mutants, Wolverine, X-Factor or X-Force, as they honestly deserve their own lists. 

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Comic Zombie Podcast #30: The “Ultimate Marvel” Comics

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Issue 30: Ultimate Marvel

“Hulk Smash Freddie Prinze Junior!” – The Ultimate Hulk (The Ultimates #4)

Chris and Erik review the “Ultimate Marvel” Comics Line (2000-2015) – including: Ultimate Spider-man, Ultimate X-Men, Ultimate Fantastic Four, Ultimate Marvel Team-Up, The Ultimates, and Ultimatum… 

Also On This Episode: 

  • Erik’s (spoiler free) mini-review of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”
  • Quick thoughts on “Werewolf by Night” and “The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special”
  • Artist Spotlight: Darwyn Cooke
  • Essential Reads: The Incredible Hulk

Check out our blog at ComicZombie.net for more! 

And buy Erik’s new sci-fi / noir novella, “2299” here! 

(Episode edited by Erik Slader)

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The Best X-Men Movie Watch Order?

Posted by ErikSlader on

Now that mutants are officially being introduced into the MCU (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Ms. Marvel, Wakanda Forever, Deadpool and Wolverine, etc), I figured it might be a good time to revisit Fox’s X-Men series, before it’s inevitably rebooted by Disney.

Before the Marvel Cinematic Universe began with 2008’s “Iron Man”, before Sam Raimi’s Spider-man trilogy, and following the success of 1999’s “Blade”, Bryan Singer gave us one of the most serious takes on a comic book franchise to date, with 2000’s “X-Men”!

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Top 100 Heroes: 40-31

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The age old questions of comic fans: Batman or Superman? Spider-Man or Wolverine? The debates about the best heroes are endless. We tried to make a top 10 list, but that was just too hard. So we tried a top 25, but that quickly became a top 50… you get the idea. So we were able to ‘narrow’ it down to an even 100. Odds are you will vehemently disagree with who did or did not make the list, or just the order that we placed them. But, hey, it’s our list.

(Honorable mentions to Beta Ray Bill, USAgent, Martian Manhunter, Kid Flash, Hercules, The Frenchman and the Female (the Boys), Abe Sapien, Spider-Man 2099, Static Shock, Nite Owl, Guy Gardner, Booster Gold, Spawn, Atom Eve, Mary Marvel, and a hell of a lot more. So many more we could- and may- do another whole 100 list!)

We will release these in installments of 10 so that you don’t have the longest list ever to read through. Agree with the placement or who made the list? Disagree with the burning power of a thousand suns? Let us know! Enjoy!

(Click here for Part One!)

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The X-MEN movies (Part 3: First Class – Apocalypse)

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Last time in Part 2 we tackled all three Wolverine movies and Deadpool, this time we’re taking a look at the new (and far better) X-Men trilogy – First Class, Days of Future Past and Apocalypse!

X-MEN: FIRST CLASS

X-MEN: FIRST CLASS

Directed by: Matthew Vaughn

Starring: Michael Fassbender (Magneto / Erik Lensherr), James McAvoy (Charles Xavier / Prof X), Jennifer Lawrence (Raven / Mystique), Kevin Bacon (Sebastian Shaw), Moira MacTaggert (Rose Byrne), Nicholas Hoult (Hank McCoy / Beast), January Jones (Emma Frost), Lucas Till (Alex Summers / Havok), Oliver Platt (CIA agent), Zoë Kravitz (Angel Salvadore), Caleb Landry Jones (Banshee), Jason Flemyng (Azazel), Edi Gathegi (‘Darwin’), Rade Serbedzija (Soviet General), Michael Ironside (US Navy Captain), Don Creech (Stryker Sr.), and Hugh Jackman (Wolverine cameo).

Plot: Realizing that they should have hired Matthew Vaughn for X-Men 3 like he wanted, and that there was nowhere to go with the franchise after Brett “that smell on my thumbs is my ass!” Ratner ‘Batman-and-Robin’d-it’, Fox reboots the franchise with re-casted characters. Magneto hunts for Sebastian Shaw, a mutant that was in charge of the concentration camp he grew up in, while Charles Xavier works with agent Moira Mactaggert and the CIA to gather a team of young mutants. They must team up to stop Shaw from starting World War 3 while learning how to use their powers and accept themselves.

Erik Smash: Following the unbelievably terrible X-Men: The Last Stand and even worse X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Fox finally gets it right with director Matthew Vaughn! “X-Men: First Class” is a back-to-basics prequel / reboot that tells the story of how the X-Men were first formed by a young Professor Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr aka Magneto!

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The X-MEN movies (Part 2: Wolverine and Deadpool)

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Oh boy… well we survived the nightmare that was X3, but we’re not quite out of the woods just yet. After the initial X-Men trilogy (see Part One) started strong before crashing and burning, the studio decided to make a solo Wolverine spin-off, which sounded better on paper than in execution. This time, Erik Smash and I are going to rip into the X-Men spin-offs, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel, because against all odds Fox somehow managed to really turn things around with the release of “Deadpool” and “Logan” – proving to Hollywood that some characters work better with an R rating.

But first up…

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Directed by: Gavin Hood

Starring: Hugh Jackman (Logan / The Wolverine / James Howlett), Liev Schreiber (Victor Creed / Sabretooth), Danny Huston (William Stryker), Lynn Collins (Silverfox), Ryan Reynolds (Wade Wilson / “Deadpool”), Kevin Durand (Fred Dukes / The Blob), Will.I.Am (Wraith), Daniel Henney (Agent Zero), Taylor Kitsch (Remy LeBeau / Gambit), Tim Pocock (young Scott Summers / Cyclops), and Sir Patrick Stewart (Prof X cameo).

Plot: We finally get to see Wolverine’s history played out on the big screen, and it’s… it’s just awful. When the stars of the film don’t hide their disdain for it (both Jackman and Reynolds) and it is immediately ignored and forgotten by the rest of the franchise, you know you can sleep well as a director. And by sleep well I mean you should be horribly, horribly ashamed. Sigh…

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Top 25 X-Men

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The X-Men have had a lot of members over the years. A LOT. Especially when you consider all of the spin-off teams, like the New Mutants, X-Factor, X-Force, and Excalibur. There have to be around 100, maybe more. But if you aren’t overly versed in X-Men history, how are you to know your Josephs from your Rogues? Your Skins from your Storms? Well, I’ll help you out a bit and give you the 25 best members of the X-Men and their ancillary teams.

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