Queering the Guillotine

Episode 76 - Legendary All Legends Stars of Legendary All Winners Legends

New contestants silver, old contestants gold! We couldn't help but discuss the two(!) episodes Paramount Plus dropped of the newest All Winners season of Roople's Drag Race: All Stars! We go queen by queen and discuss how they did in the first two episodes; from worshipping at the feet of Raja and Jinkx to being surprised at how much we enjoyed SHEdevilBYnight! Spoilers abound!    Content warning: reclaimed use of homophobic slurs

Episode 75 - Three D*cks, Two Boo Bah (feat. Bex)

We deliver on our promise in the previously published BL grab bag by covering our most transgressive manga yet! MADK by Ryo Sumiyoshi has it all; sex with headless bodies, heads blooming into new holes, plant-based demon d*ck, malicious gay f**gotry, tame and vanilla lovemaking, a stabbing, and more! To cover such a transgressive work, we have a very special guest~  Follow Bex and check out their work! Website Instagram (kuragesyndrome) Twitter (KurageSyndrome) Content Warnings: Discuss...

Episode 74 - Sometimes Family Means a Man and His Bird

We're back with another queer manga grab bag this week. The series discussed include earnest comedic love stories, smutty paranormal romance, and even some in-between. We dive into the debut volumes of My Love Mix-Up! by Aruko & Wataru Hinekure, Bad Boys Happy Home by Shoowa & Hiromasa Okujima, Coyote by Ranmaru Zariya, and Toritan: Birds of a Feather by Kotetsuko Yamamoto.   Content warning for the usual BL tropes of dubious consistent and troublesome age gaps as well as use of reclaimed ho...

Episode 73 - Queering the Guillotine The Musical: The Revival

The curtain rises once more on our returning special guest, Holly Woodbury! Holly fills us in on recent happenings and scandals in the Broadway industrial complex since our last chat late last year. We chat about appreciating understudies and swings, discrimination against trans performers, and abolishing the post-show stage door visits!  Content Warning: use of reclaimed homophobic slurs, discussion of discrimination against trans performers. Follow Holly on Twitter @HollyBroWoo! Referen...

Episode 72 - He ****ed Around and Found Out

We're back with a QtG staple: Junji Ito manga analysis. This week we discuss the "Deserter" story collection, featuring a dozen stories from the very beginning of Ito's career. We discuss full spoilers for the various manga in the collection.   Content Warning: we touch on death, gore, suicide, and abuse (including familial abuse and child abuse specifically). 

Episode 71 - Everybody Say Love in Seven Different Countries and Counting!

A year and a half ago we recorded our first episode about RuPaul's Drag Race...and there's been a dozen seasons since. This week we discuss our thoughts on all the seasons and international franchises that have aired since our last recording. Topics include our favorite and least favorite judges, which runways stood out the most, and the embarrassing state of Australian drag.    Content warning: Our favorite words are homophobic words. We discuss spoilers for all the series mentioned includin...

Episode 70 - No One Can Make You Feel Bad For Wanting to Get Railed by a Demon

Maya Barbara returns! The topic? Monster f***ing! We get into Twilight, Phantom of the Opera, Ice Planet Barbarians, Beauty and the Beast, and more!  Maya's Book Recommendations: A Lady of Hooksgrave Manor Black Dagger Brotherhood   Ice Planet Barbarians Morning Glory Milking Factory Girls' Weekend Content Warnings: Discussion of monster f***ing in general, discussion of consent in these stories, use of reclaimed homophobic slurs, descriptions of violence against women.

Episode 69 - A Cowboy Do Carry a Hand Fan at High Noon

We're bareback back back back again, and we're kicking things off with a discussion of all the media we consumed during our hiatus. Digressions include Inuyasha, stanning homophobic comic books, our thoughts on Digimon Adventure 02, and the unapologetic erasure of Mayor Pete's supposed homosexuality.    Content warnings: As always, we say f****t a lot. 

Episode 68 - Watersports

It's our last episode before we go on break! At a Patron's request we're discussing the 2012 anime Tsuritama. It's sort of a sports anime about fishing, sort of an alien invasion show, and definitely charming. As always, full spoiler warning for the series.  Content Warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed homophobic slurs.  Our podcast art is by Jessie Kraemer (@jkraem on insta)

Episode 67 - Noncon Lesbian Witchery

This week we're discussing a beloved hit show that was instrumental to a lot of people's adolescences...but that has a bit of complicated legacy now. We watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer for the first time, and had a lot of feelings about early 2000s TV, practical effects and makeup, and the general charm of live action shows that don't always succeed but at least try. Featuring spoiler-filled discussions of the following episodes: -S2E14 - Innocence -S5E18 - Intervention -S6E7 - Once More...

Episode 66: Final Fantasy Armor but on Their D***s

Dudes rock...and they also suck and f**k. This week it's a boys' love grab bag where we dive into four different, largely monster-f**kery volume ones and discuss our (spoiler-heavy) first impressions of the following series:   - Monster and the Beast by Renji - Birds of Shangri-La by Ranmaru Zariya - Dick Fight Island by Reibun Ike - Fangs by Billy Balibally   Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode also contains discu...

Episode 65 - Evangelion 358/2 Final Chapter Prologue: You Can (Not) Be Gay

Disclaimer: this episode contains spoilers for Neon Genesis Evangelion including the original anime, manga, End of Evangelion, and Rebuild series (including 3.0+1.0). Content-wise, Eva discussion brings every warning you could think of. Sexual assault, death, extreme violence and gore, etc.    Evangelion is finally over! ...again. This week we're talking all things Evangelion from the OG to End of to the new ending that just dropped. We discuss the sci-fi set dressing of the Evas and Angels, ...

Episode 64 - This? It‘s Laced With F*****ry

This week's topic is a modern classic and myth in the making: Devilman Crybaby. Every possible content and spoiler warning imaginable applies here as we discuss the characters, monster designs, devil metaphors, sex as camp, and more.  Our podcast art is by Jessie Kraemer (@jkraem on insta)

Episode 64 - This? It's Laced With F*****ry

This week's topic is a modern classic and myth in the making: Devilman Crybaby. Every possible content and spoiler warning imaginable applies here as we discuss the characters, monster designs, devil metaphors, sex as camp, and more. 

Episode 63 - Look Back Back Back Back Back Again

This week's episode is a spoilercast discussion of Chainsaw Man creator Tatsuki Fujimoto's newest one-shot, Look Back. It's a manga about manga (don't worry, it's not cringeworthy), validation, grief, and just generally being alive. TLDR: It's pretty great.    Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode also includes discussions of both real and fictionalized acts of violence and mass murder.  Our podcast art is by Jessi...

Look Back Back Back Back Back Again

This week's episode is a spoilercast discussion of Chainsaw Man creator Tatsuki Fujimoto's newest one-shot, Look Back. It's a manga about manga (don't worry, it's not cringeworthy), validation, grief, and just generally being alive. TLDR: It's pretty great.    Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode also includes discussions of both real and fictionalized acts of violence and mass murder. 

Episode 62: My Kryptonite (is Red Scare in 2021)

After a week off, your favorite gay leftist manga podcast is back...with an episode about Superman. We dive deep into Superman: Red Son and All-Star Superman: two highly regarded stories about the Man of Steel, one of which is worthy of all its acclaim. Plus, we spend twenty minutes just hashing out our differences when it comes to what we think of Supes as a character to begin with. Spoiler: Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely are still the best team in comics.  Content warning: We’re a fairl...

Episode 61 - Daenerys Wishes

This week we return to the world of Earthsea with a discussion of Ursula K. Le Guin's The Tombs of Atuan. We get a new protagonist, tons of lore, more discussion of true names and types of power, plus a really cool maze. Some writers write horror even when they're not writing horror.  You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict. If you're interested in getting an episode crafted around a topic of your choice, check out patreon.com/queeringtheguillotine. Con...

Episode 60 - Queering the Guillotine: The Musical

This week we defy gravity, journey to the Heavyside Layer, and talk s**t about Hamilton. It's our musicals episode, with guest host Holly Woodbury here to provide her expertise on all things Broadway! You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict. If you're interested in getting an episode crafted around a topic of your choice, check out patreon.com/queeringtheguillotine.   Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed hom...

Episode 59 - Wonder Woman Flopped

  It's Patreon request time! Today we finally cover Sailor Moon: manga, anime, homosexuality, superheroes, gender, heterosexuality, and more!   You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict!   Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode features spoilers for Sailor Moon R. Our podcast art is by Jessie Kraemer (@jkraem on insta)  

Episode 58 - Toot It or Boot It: Krakoa Edition

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programing to bring you two f****ts talking about X-Men fashion for an hour and a half. The Hellfire Gala is approaching, and we took the time to toot and boot all the looks from the official preview guide.   You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict!   Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. Our podcast art is by Jessie Kraemer (@jkraem on insta)  

Episode 57 - We ❤ Hole

Sometimes the real friends we made along the way are amnesiac, have lizard heads, and eat nothing but gyoza. It's our Dorohedoro episode!   You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict! Our podcast art is by Jessie Kraemer (@jkraem on insta) Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode features full spoilers as well as discussion of graphic violence, gore, bloodshed, body horror, and genoc...

Episode 56 - Clear the Searches and Stan LOONA (feat. Maya Barbara)

It's our first ever music episode! Specifically, returning guest Maya Barbara leads a discussion of the K-pop industry: its history, parasocial relationships as a business model, what artists we do and don't stan, and more. You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict! Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that makes frequent use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode features mention of suicide and the abuse of minors. Our podcast art is by Jes...

Episode 55 - In Which Wolverine and Nightcrawler Are Even Gayer Than Usual on Panel

Time for a giant-sized X-Men episode! We're discussing HOXPOX, aka House of X and Powers of X. These series relaunched the X-Men line back in 2019 and, frankly, gave us the best X-Men content in at least fifteen years. Mutantkind has now found refuge on their own sentient nation state of Krakoa, and their relationship to humankind and the implications of the mutant metaphor have been turned on their heads. We dive into our histories of both love and frustration with the X-Men franchise thus ...

Episode 54 - Clickbaity Comic Book Listicle But Make It Fashion

In the spirit of Episode 15 we've recorded yet another two hour love session to our favorite things. This time around the topic is our favorite western comics. We each picked five which we dissect, discuss, and just generally gush about as we remember why we ever got into comics in the first place.   Alex's picks: New X-Men (Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely, Chris Bachalo, Marc Silvestri, etc.), The Woods (James Tynion IV, Michael Dialynas), We3 (Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely), JLA (Grant Mor...

My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to a Bisexual Harem in a Caste System We Aren't Going to Think Too Deeply About!

Episode 53 - My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to a Bisexual Harem in a Caste System We Aren‘t Going to Think Too Deeply About!

This week we're fulfilling another Patreon request, this time for the 2020 isekai anime My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! We discuss genre tropes, our favorite and least favorite harem members, overall thoughts on the series thus far, and our hopes for season two.  You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict! Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that includes use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode includes major plot sp...

Episode 53 - My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to a Bisexual Harem in a Caste System We Aren't Going to Think Too Deeply About!

This week we're fulfilling another Patreon request, this time for the 2020 isekai anime My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! We discuss genre tropes, our favorite and least favorite harem members, overall thoughts on the series thus far, and our hopes for season two.  You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict! Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that includes use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode includes major plot sp...

Episode 52 - Mishima: A Moral Quandary in Four Chapters

It's Patreon request time! This week we're covering the 1985 film Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters. It's fair to say it's different from anything else we've ever covered, and probably anything else we've ever seen to boot. But did we actually like it? Well, the set design is certainly beautiful.   You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict!   Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that includes use of reclaimed homophobic slurs. This episode includ...

Episode 51 - Art with a Capital F

Soraya the Great is back for another group discussion, this time about art, capitalism, social media, and all their depressing yet infuriating intersections! We share our queerpinions on: – Higher education, aka SCAMS – Instagram as a tool of commerce and as a poorly designed hellhole – The struggle of trying to make money without being an immoral monster You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict! Content warning: We’re a fairly NSFW podcast that include...

Episode 50 - Kiss Kiss Wash Your (Feat. Maya Barbara)

  We've reached our fiftieth episode! We usher in the milestone and the new year with guest Maya Barbara who leads us in a discussion of shojo manga: what series we love, how marketing shapes our perceptions, and where localization has failed or come through for us. We share our queerpinions on:   – Our first exposures to shojo – Stereotyped perceptions of the genre – How incompetent shonen manga is at crafting intentional romantic tension as opposed to accidental homoeroticism – Recommen...

Episode 50 - Kiss Kiss Wash Your Ass (Feat. Maya Barbara)

We've reached our fiftieth episode! We usher in the milestone and the new year with guest Maya Barbara who leads us in a discussion of shojo manga: what series we love, how marketing shapes our perceptions, and where localization has failed or come through for us. We share our queerpinions on: – Our first exposures to shojo – Stereotyped perceptions of the genre – How incompetent shonen manga is at crafting intentional romantic tension as opposed to accidental homoeroticism – Recommended g...

Episode 49 - Existential, Extraterrestrial Holiday Fun

Merry Jingles! It's holiday season, which means of course that we're discussing...more Junji Ito works. Hey, it's always fun. This week we discuss No Longer Human and Remina and share our queerpinions on:   – Ito's adaptation choices in No Longer Human – Narratives about sad abusive men that center their misery over the results of their actions – Themes in Ito's work, and the degree to which they're intentionally developed – The camp aesthetics of a planet with various body parts   You c...

Episode 48 - A Wizard of Flat Earthsea

Another week, another Patreon episode! This time around we dip our toes into children's fantasy with a discussion of Ursula K. Le Guin's A Wizard of Earthsea. It was both of our first times reading the novel, and we share our queerpinions on:   – Subversions of fantasy genre conflicts and racial archetypes – Le Guin's diction and worldbuilding styles – Man versus Self taken to its utmost literal potential – The intimacy of sharing a true name   You can find us and subscribe on Spotify, A...

Episode 47 - Meet Me in Donald's Dreamland feat. Soraya the Great!

This week's episode is a little different from usual. Rather than a deep-dive into one specific topic, we had a two hour discussion with guest Soraya the Great about gaming and gayming as identity (or not). Join us as we bounce around and share our queerpinions on: – Perceptions of gaming culture and fitting into it (or not) – Complexity of character in Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Playing solo versus playing as part of a larger community – What we look for in games – Toontown! Follow...

Episode 46 - Anti-Capitalist Sentiment, Now on Sale at Barnes & Noble

This week we're fulfilling a Patreon request for an episode all about everyone's favorite Sanrio-brand oppressed office worker: Aggretsuko! In this super long episode we share our queerpinions on Sanrio in general, layers and layers of capitalism, Aggretsuko's various characters and their emotional arcs, and where the series succeeds and where it flops. We also cite the following articles: – How Sanrio Makes Anti-Capitalism Adorable, and Profitable by Amanda Hess in The New York Times – "A...

Episode 45 - These Are Not Our Holes

It's our last episode before Halloween, so naturally we're discussing Junji Ito. Specifically, his story collection Shiver. It contains ten short manga in which he goes utterly buck-wild, delivering some of his best and most nauseating work. We share our queerpinions on: – Shiver: Junji Ito Collected Stories – Ito just taking a bizarre or gross image and running with it – Ito's tendency to throw in everything including the kitchen sink – Effective horror pacing and panel transitions You c...

Episode 44 - Heterosexuality is Horror

It's spooky season again, and just like last year we're leading up to Halloween with discussions of Junji Ito manga. This week we discuss the new collection Venus in the Blind Spot, which is at times both unusually grounded for Ito and also high camp. We share our queerpinions on: – Venus in the Blind Spot – The sheer horror potential of a man hiding in a chair – Heterosexuality as theme in Ito's work – Recurring themes throughout and in comparison to Tomie – The Enigma of Amigara Fault as...

Episode 43 - This is Shinobi World Messiness

We're back from our impromptu hiatus and we're going back to our roots with more Naruto talk. This time around we're discussing the Gokage summit and the battles immediately afterward. Plus, Madara declares it, so we've officially reached the Fourth Great Shinobi War! We share our queerpinions on: - Naruto chapters 451-483 - Seeing Gaara again - Naruto's gay pining and anxiety - More underwhelming portrayals of female characters - Deception by ocular jutsu - Kishimoto's entrenchment of the...

Episode 42 - There is No Heterosexual Explanation for Roronoa Zoro

It's the epic of our time, a saga in scope and size unparalleled by any other comic out there right now. And, after years of going "That's too long, no way" we've actually dived into One Piece. We share our queerpinions on: • Oda's art in terms of body horror, action, and depictions of women's bodies • Our thoughts on the series' villains thus far (TLDR: they suck) • Some very poor handling of themes in the Skypiea arc • The series' sense of joy, whimsy, and creativity • Roronoa Zora being...

Episode 41 - Televised Capital One Pride Float Brought to You by Antler, Yes, Antler

We're queer millennials, and for better and for worse that means we've followed and lived through the impact of RuPaul's Drag Race. Join us as we try to make sense of reality TV commodification of queerness, sponsored by the fracking industry. We share our queerpinions on: • What the show meant to our younger selves vs. us now • The show's consistent track record of treating trans people as props at best • How the franchise's international editions manage to outshine the American original ...

Episode 40 -And in the End, It Doesn't Even Maaaaaaatter...

This week we're bringing you part ten of our Naruto reread, and we're covering a lot of chapters. The time has come to understand each other's pain, as well as our thoughts on Pain. We share our queerpinions on: Naruto chapters 404-450 The state of the series' women in this arc Deaths and their dramatic implications Sage Mode and frog mountain scenery Hoo boy, that ending You can also find the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podcast Addict! To catch up on our Naruto coverage th...

Episode 39 - What If, What If?

The time has come for us to spotlight the work of one our favorite mangaka: Akiko Higashimura! In the first part of our read through her works, we discuss her painfully relatable memoirs and also some ridiculously sassy bar snack foods. We share our queerpinions on: Tokyo Tarareba Girls Vol. 1-9 Humanizing portrayals of doomed relationships Attitudes toward marriage, friendships, and balancing the two Blank Canvas: My So-Called Artist's Journey Vol. 1-5 Artistic endeavors, work ethics, ...

Episode 38 - Furry High School Musical as Written by Agatha Christie

Yiff me, yiff you, this week everyone's furry and yiffing. Or clopping. Or suggestively shaking a tail feather. The topic is Beastars, one of our favorite ongoing manga as well as one of the messiest. We share our queerpinions on: Paru Itagaki's Beastars Vol. 1 The trio of protagonists Messy metaphors and their implications Itagaki's art style and its containment of multitudes Mapping ourselves onto furry fictional theatre gays You can find all our episodes on Spotify, Podcast Addict, ...

New Chapter Chatter - July 2020

One might expect a month with fewer new Weekly Sexist Jump chapters than usual to result in a decreased amount of disgusting misogyny. One would be wrong. We share our queerpinions on: Act-Age chapters 119-121 Chainsaw Man chapters 76-78 Moriking chapters 11-13 My Hero Academia chapters 277-278 Spy x Family chapters 29.1 & 30 Time Paradox Ghostwriter chapters 8-10 Ghost Reaper Girl and Me & Roboco You can find all our episodes on Spotify, Podcast Addict, and Apple Podcasts! Spoiler ...

Episode 37 - This Bizarre Form of Pleasure

A grave injustice has finally been righted. Over two years into the series's run, American readers can finally mosey on over to their local bookstores and find physical copies of Act-Age! Oft-cited by Trevor as the best ongoing comic in the world, it's not one to be looked over. We share our queerpinions on: Tatsuya Matsuki and Shiro Usazaki's Act-Age Vol. 1 Kei Yonagi as a protagonist Her relationship with Sumiji Kuroyama Acting as a superpower and motif Extreme secondhand embarassment...

Episode 36 - Queer Comic Grab Bag 3: Sad Gay Teen Edition

It's time for another grab bag of gay comics! This week we mostly cover series depicting queer adolescents coming to terms with themselves and their identities and relationships to other people. Plus, Sarazanmai got a spin-off comic so we naturally had to cover that too. We share our queerpinions on: Roadqueen: Eternal Roadtrip to Love A Tropical Fish Years for Snow Vol. 1 Sarazanmai: Reo and Mabu Heartstopper Vol. 1 Blue Flag Vol. 1-2 Queer authenticity and art specifically for queer ...

Episode 35 - Volleyball!!

It's our second Patreon episode! The topic at hand is Haruichi Furudate's Haikyu!!, the best ongoing comic in the world (at least according to Alex). We share our queerpinions on: Haikyu!! chapters 1-69 Chapter one: the GOAT or kind of slow? The Karasuno team members and their early character arcs Furudate's talents for comedy, horror, and just plain awesome sports action Rival teams and characters as foils to Hinata and Kageyama You can find the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and...

New Chapter Chatter - June 2020

We go a bit long again this week, but hey, there's a ton to talk about. Moriking and Chainsaw Man continue to be high quality while Time Paradox Ghostwriter...does not. Also of note are our parting thoughts on The Promised Neverland, why we could never do sponcon, and how the latest new batch of Jump series is shaping up. We share our queerpinions on: Act-Age chapters 114-118 Chainsaw Man chapters 71-75 Moriking chapters 6-10 My Hero Academia chapters 273-276 The Promised Neverland chap...

Episode 34 - Like a Wall You Need to Climb Over

Welcome back, one and all, to the Naruto discourse. The time has come to dissect Sasuke's battle with Itachi, as well as its resulting lore dumps about the brothers' bond and Senju/Uchiha tensions across Konohagakure's history. We share our queerpinions on: Naruto chapters 384-403 Artistic renderings of various types of jutsu during the battle Itachi as a tragic hero figure (and whether that's an accurate descriptor) Some major irony Developing characters' motivations after the fact Yo...