X-amining Generation X #23

"For All This...We Give Thanks"

January 1997

In a Nutshell

Generation X celebrates Thanksgiving.

Writer: Scott Lobdell
Penciler: Mitch Byrd 
Inker: Jason Martin and Karl Story 
Letterer: Richard Starkings & Comicraft
Colorist: Steve Buccellato

Enhancements: GCW
Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

Plot

Banshee ruminates on his strained relationship with his daughter as he prepares to take Monet to a doctor to discuss her autism, but Monet insists she is not going. Meanwhile, Paige and Chamber are in Kentucky celebrating Thanksgiving with Paige's family. At the school, Monet admits that when her mutant powers first manifested, her father took her to see lots of doctors, and she doesn't want to experience that again. In Kentucky, Paige and Chamber arrive at her home to find her family away for the afternoon, which Chamber takes as an insult, but Paige reminds him there are plenty of "freaks" in her family already, so Chamber doesn't bother them. Elsewhere, Bastion and Daria continue to look into Emma Frost. In the Biosphere, Howard the Duck and his friend Beverly meet Artie, Leech and Franklin, and discover the boys are trying to help a sick Tana Nile. At the Guthrie Farm, Paige and Chamber discuss their feelings for each other, with Paige skewering some of Chamber's perceptions of her expectations about their relationship, angry at his ignorance of her own feelings. Later, Emma and Banshee discuss Monet and the possible threat she represents to the school, while being unknowingly watched by a hidden figure with wooden appendages. Back in Kentucky, Chamber tells Paige he's leaving, and Paige quietly calls him a jerk as he departs. 

Ten Pop Culture Things For Which I am Thankful

Marvel Comics the Untold Story by Sean Howe

No less than a narrative history of Marvel Comics, culled in part from new interviews between the author and a smorgasbord of Marvel creators, editors and business people, I picked this up on the strength of a review at Longbox Graveyard (well, picked it up immediately; I was going to get it eventually) and have since fallen asleep most nights reading it (because I'm forcing myself to stay awake to keep reading, not because it's boring). I'm currently coming up on the inception of the New Universe, and it's remained a compelling, fascinating and fun read. Highly recommended to any fan of Marvel Comics (though not to any fans who don't want their image of a happy Marvel Bullpen working in tandem to churn out comics with no conflict whatsoever tarnished).

Ten Pop Culture-y Things For Which Teebore is Thankful

The Uncanny X-Cast
I'm not much of podcast listener (aside from the Fantasy Focus baseball podcast and the lie-filled Lost podcasts with the producers back in the day) but I stumbled across Rob and Brian's X-Men podcast this last year and have been slowly catching up on their old episodes while following along with the new ones. It features great discussions of X-Men issues old and new as well as hilarious comic and non-comic related bullshit. Download it on iTunes or check out their website.

Star Wars on Blu-ray

I've geeked out about the deleted scenes already, but two months out and I'm still having fun with this set. The movies look and sound great (Mrs. Teebore and I recently watched Jedi) and I just learned the animated sequence from the infamous holiday special which introduced Boba Fett is on one of the discs as an Easter egg. 

11 Things For Which Teebore Is Thankful

The bacob club chalupa, Frankenberry cereal, and Cranberry Splash Sierra Mist. 
In a perfect world, I'd be able to get all three year round.

The new Avengers cartoon, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes

Ten Pop Culture-y Things For Which Teebore Is Thankful

Dairy Queen's Chicken Strip basket

10 Pop Culture-y Things For Which Teebore is Thankful

Dynamo 5 and Noble Causes: the two best super hero comics that nobody reads.

DVR: all the convenience of recording shows without the thinks-for-itself self-programming (and the inherent fear of death by robot uprising therein) of Tivo.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: Speaking of robot uprisings, I'm behind a few episodes, but so far, this show has really stepped it up a notch in the second season, with some interesting new plot developments and clever writing and directing. (John's still too much of a whiner, though...)

Pizza Hut's breadsticks


The episode of Saved by the Bell in which the gang decides it's better to have Zack drive drunk than to let Screech drive. Hilarity ensues.

The 25th Anniversary GI Joe figures: now into its 26th anniversary year, Hasbro just keeps pumping these gems out. And now they're making exact replicas of all the vehicles I never had as a kid, like the Cobra Rattler and the GI Joe SHARC.

Old Godzilla movies


Fantastipotamuses

Christopher Walken in Batman Returns


That time Gentlemen of Leisure VP Hulk pretended to be a robot in a clown suit whilst juggling circus animals

Happy Thanksgiving!

May your Thanksgiving be Super-Villain free!

Teebore's Thankful For

Ah, Thanksgiving, that time of year wedged between Halloween and Christmas when families gather, football is watched, food is devoured, and bloggers make lists of things they’re thankful for. Ever the trendsetters, we Gentlemen of Leisure are. Here is my list.

Heroes: Yeah, it started slow this season, but the last three episodes have been pretty awesome. Too bad we’ve only got two more episodes before it goes into Writer’s Strike Limbo. Now there’s one thing I’m not thankful for…

Marvel’s Essentials and DC’s Showcase Presents volumes: We live in a golden age of accessibility, when a plethora of comics from all ages are available in thick black and white tomes, crammed with countless comics goodness, all for under twenty books. There are more released in a month than I can possibly afford to buy, and that’s a good thing. It’s better than having all the money in the world and nothing to spend it on. And that’s not even mentioning things like the Complete Peanuts collections and DVDs of favorite old TV shows.


Tacos

My Nintendo Wii: The missus and I are having a blast playing Star Wars Legos. And I can’t wait to download and revisit a bunch of classic games: Castlevania II, Super Mario World, Donkey Kong Country, Ocarina of Time, the list goes on…


Fables: Consistently excellent, month in, month out. Probably my favorite of all the books I read. If you’re not reading it, you should be.

The Comics Blog-o-verse: It is often more negative and snarky than I care for, but it can also be a daily celebration of everything that is awesome about comics, and about being a geek.

That episode of GI Joe where Cobra Commander uses a giant laser to carve an image of his face into the moon.

The first ten minutes of last week’s Simpson’s episode: For ten minutes, I was watching the best Simpsons episode in ages (the last twenty minutes: meh). It was pandering to my bias and I’m sure it wasn’t nearly as funny for non-comic book geeks, but for those of us who are, man, it was hilarious.

Rogue Unicorns: Sure, they’re fearful in and of themselves, but they help control the rogue dragon population by eating their eggs, so I’m thankful for that.

Finally, I am thankful for the lovely Mrs. Teebore, of course, and all my family and friends who are, for the most part, hale and healthy and reasonably happy, and a job that keeps a roof over my head, puts food on the table and comics on the floor by my nightstand.