Log in

goodpods headphones icon

To access all our features

Open the Goodpods app
Close icon
headphones
Waiting to X-hale

Waiting to X-hale

Karen Tongson and Wynter Mitchell-Rohrbaugh

A Gen X-themed show with podcast veterans Wynter Mitchell-Rohrbaugh and Karen Tongson (Pop Rocket). W2X revisits the pop culture & social issues that defined Generation X from a (queer) woman-of-color perspective in a way that sheds new light on the pop culture from both then, and now.
Share icon

All episodes

Best episodes

Seasons

Top 10 Waiting to X-hale Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Waiting to X-hale episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Waiting to X-hale for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Waiting to X-hale episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Waiting to X-hale - Ep. 87: The Music of 1992 and 2002
play

04/11/22 • 57 min

Wynter and Karen reflect back on the music of 1992 and 2002, from Pitchfork favorites to the Billboard Hot 100. In addition to selecting their MVP songs and albums from each year, they each get into what they were wearing and gift an NFT idea to Ja Rule in the process.

Wynter continues delving into the saga of millennial overreachers by entering the world of WeCrashed, while Karen sobs to the epic, multigenerational saga that is Apple TV+’s Pachinko, while revisiting the thrills and jiggles of the Lakers’ showtime era of the 80s reimagined in Adam McKay’s Winning Time.

Plus, nuo-lingo and songs of the week from 1992 and 2012 (in an extension of our episode’s timeline).

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Waiting to X-hale - Celebrate 100 episodes with us!
play

10/28/22 • 2 min

Head over to w2xpodcast.com and click the blue button on the right side to leave us a voicemail!

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Waiting to X-hale - Ep. 30: Nochella: Music for the Cruelest Month
play

04/10/20 • 63 min

It’s their third week of quarantine, so Karen is talking to Steak-umm on Twitter, and Wynter thinks Ellen sux. In lieu of music festival season launching this April, the two offer their own virtual W2X music festival for you this week. Sure there’s no Coachella and Stagecoach, but what really strikes at Karen’s heart is the postponement of PopCon 2020, the annual gathering of musicians, music writers, scholars, and fans at Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture, which she’d been organizing for the better part of a year. Nevertheless, she brings us a little taste of scheduled PopCon presenter Glenn McDonald of Spotify’s very international “In the Time of the Virus” playlist, with over 1700 new songs written since the start of the pandemic from all part of the globe. Meanwhile, Wynter lets us in on some of the themed playlists she’s been crafting for our sisters and fairy podmothers at the Jane Club, fit for everything from dining-in, to being “extremely chill.” Listen along with us, and turn the music up!

Join our Patreon for early access, bonus content, and SWAG!

Links to just about everything mentioned:

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Waiting to X-hale - Ep. 38: Just Can’t [The] Help It
play

06/12/20 • 86 min

Wynter returns this week, as we welcome special guests Renee Bever (artist, co-host of Attack of the Queerwolf), and Tavia Nyong’o (author, Professor of American Studies at Yale). The panel catches up about how they’ve been participating in the national uprisings, while reflecting on some of the media moments, both head-scratching, and inspiring over the last week, from the Dems draped in kente cloth, to “You About to Lose This Job,” the unofficial anthem of the movement. Wynter also digs deep into the “Bon Appetit Revolt,” a developing story at the time we recorded. The panel devotes some deep conversation to “good civil rights movies” vs. really shitty ones, as well as films about race relations that are frozen in their historical moment. Nuo-lingo goes meta to explore when certain slang terms are appropriate or appropriation, and there are several songs of the week to get you to the next protest.

Instead of another plea to contribute to us this week, we ask that you contribute to the social justice organizations of your choice, especially those promoting peace, and racial, gender and sexual equality. We, and our guests this week recommend the following:

bookmark
plus icon
share episode

W2X goes back to school w/ Professor Tongson’s class on U.S. Pop Culture LIVE at USC! Wynter is off on assignment, so Tre’vell Anderson from OUT magazine and Sarah Kessler, the TV editor for Public Books (and Karen’s better half) join her for a backwards glance at the early 2000s and the “postfeminism” of Sex & The City vs. The L-Word. Tre’vell gives us the dish about Robyn Crawford’s new memoir and offers us a preview of the L-Word sequel, Generation Q, while Sarah tells us about her bodice-ripping amusements when Karen is out of town. Nuo-Lingo gets into “cool wine aunts,” and the students become the masters as they discuss the meme “Ladies, imagine this.” Plus, SOTW’s from the aughts!

Join our Patreon for bonus content and SWAG: https://www.patreon.com/waitingtoxhale

Links to just about everything mentioned:

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Waiting to X-hale - Ep. 12: Ryan Murphy’s Nostalgia Game - AHS vs. ACS
play

10/04/19 • 61 min

With the recent debut of Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story: 1984, Wynter and Karen take the occasion to explore his deeply nostalgic oeuvre to consider whether or not his dominion is 80s camp or 90s magic realism, i.e. horror stories or true crime stories? The two talk about where they were when Richard Ramirez, the serial killer known as the Nightstalker and resurrected in AHS 1984, was wreaking havoc IRL. Wynter goes Inside Out with Demi Moore’s new autobiography, Karen GAGS over the recently announced thirtysomething reboot, while both take a detour into The Affair’s wild psychosexual turns as it wraps up its series run. Nuo-lingo tells you why this year’s “GAG” is not 1984’s, and we give you a song of the week that Ryan Murphy has yet to harvest from 1984’s Hot 100 for his over-the-top slasher series.

Join our Patreon for bonus content and SWAG:

https://www.patreon.com/waitingtoxhale

Links to just about everything mentioned:

American Horror Story: 1984 Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wcEiFIM3mM

Richard Ramirez (The Night Stalker) Biography

https://www.biography.com/crime-figure/richard-ramirez

Inside Out by Demi Moore

https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062049537/inside-out/

Thirtysomething Was One of the Most Iconic Shows of the 1980s. Now It’s Coming Back for the 2020s.

https://www.vulture.com/2019/09/thirtysomething-the-tv-show-is-being-rebooted.html

The Affair foolishly bases an entire episode on a character we don’t know very well

https://tv.avclub.com/the-affair-foolishly-bases-an-entire-episode-on-a-chara-1838595421

How Ryan Murphy Became King of the Streaming Boom

https://time.com/5667752/ryan-murphy-netflix/

The Politician Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-kdBlzCG7w

Hall & Oates - Method of Modern Love

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3F4c7E9IBU

bookmark
plus icon
share episode

Pop open a Bartles & Jaymes, and pull your rocking chair up to your laptop, Wynter and Karen get into how Generation X uses YouTube, from nostalgic forays into old commercials and landmark pop culture moments, to how-to videos and instructional content. But they don't stop there: Wynter also scours YouTube for fresh content to break us all out of our slacker rut. Speaking of slackers, Karen revisits Always Be My Maybe through the lens of the Asian slacker, while also anticipating crying a lot to Awkwafina's dramatic turn in The Farewell. Meanwhile, Wynter prepares to celebrate her first wedding anniversary like an enlightened Don Draper at Esalen, and has high praise for CNN's docuseries, The Movies. The two stage an ad war between Mentos vs. Diet Pepsi, and ask you to sus out some "nuo lingo." As always, we close things out with a SOTW.

Join our Patreon for bonus content and SWAG

https://www.patreon.com/waitingtoxhale

Links to just about everything mentioned:

Bartles & Jaymes Ad

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYdWHK6AA6E

Michael J Fox DIET PEPSI (1987)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqNXNE-P4uc&app=desktop

MENTOS: The Freshmaker

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfp2Bg6iUdY

YouTube Is a Temple of Nostalgia for 1990s TV Commercials

https://slate.com/technology/2018/03/youtube-is-a-temple-of-nostalgia-for-1990s-tv-commercials.html

Bon Appetit - Gourmet Makes With Claire Saffitz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeM8OReKzfQ&list=PLKtIunYVkv_RezN3GB12YA8orYOScQUdA&index=11

Seth Rogen Breaks Down His Most Iconic Movies

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Db_8Oyy09w

Surgical Resident Breaks Down 36 More Medical Scenes From Film & TV

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2MUNDiXazM

Former CIA Chief of Disguise Breaks Down 30 Spy Scenes From Film & TV

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUqeBMP8nEg

Close Up - The Hollywood Reporter - W/ Tiffany Haddish, Phoebe Waller Bridge, Natasha Lyonne, Jane Fonda, Maya Rudolph, Alex Borenstein, Regina Hall

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTuOAV0lK1M&t=6s

bookmark
plus icon
share episode

Karen is joined this week by Scott Poulson-Bryant (a co-founding editor of Vibe magazine, author and professor at the University of Michigan), and Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, the author of The Dark Fantastic: Race and the Imagination from Harry Potter to The Hunger Games. Ebony is a Detroit native who is also a professor at the University of Michigan. The trio get together for some wide-ranging cawffee tawk about pop culture habits across the spectrum of GenX (Scott was born in ‘66, KT in ‘73, and Ebony in ‘77). We start with love for the dearly departed Tina Turner, and focus on the year 1984, with detours into the 1970s, as well as our opinions on who wins the zaddystakes between Pacino and DeNiro. Plus, we get into our childhood love of libraries long before the internet, and fantasy realms like The Neverending Story and Dark Crystal. Karen forces everyone to talk about The Ultimatum: Queer Love, while revealing more about her internet induction into gaylorism. Songs of the week range from Tina, to pianos in the dark, to reimaginings of Alicia Keys through the lens of Bridgerton.

To get early access to releases and bonus content subscribe to our patreon at: patreon.com/waitingtoxhale

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Waiting to X-hale - Pride Bonus Episode on Ultimatum: Queer Love
play

06/07/23 • 62 min

Karen assembles an expert panel of queers to dish about this summer's reality phenom, Ultimatum: Queer Love (Netflix). Authors, curators, and queers about town, Greta La Fleur (@GretaLaFleur), Juana María Rodriguez (@RadioRodriguez), Poulomi Saha (@poulomiqsaha) and Jeanne Vaccaro (@whateverjeanne on instagram only) join KT with a rundown of all the things they find delightful and cringey about TV's latest bid for sapphic representation. Who ends up on top in our cast-member power rankings? Who are the most "therapized" and most chaotic of the Queer Love crew? Do we think Xander and Yoly will end up together? And what about the racial and sexual politics that surface in these couplings? Plus, a spirited (and honest) round of "Marry, F*ck, Kill" in this bonus ep--W2X's pride gift to you!

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Waiting to X-hale - Karen interviews Emily Saliers of the Indigo Girls
play

07/17/20 • 59 min

In this summer bonus episode, Karen shares her spring interview with Emily Saliers of the Indigo Girls in preparation for her NPR article on the duo. Special thanks to NPR Music (especially Ann Powers and Marissa Lorusso), as well as the Indigo Girls and their team (especially Carla Parisi and Russell Carter) for making this all happen!
bookmark
plus icon
share episode

Show more best episodes

Toggle view more icon

FAQ

How many episodes does Waiting to X-hale have?

Waiting to X-hale currently has 123 episodes available.

What topics does Waiting to X-hale cover?

The podcast is about 90S, Popculture, Comedy, Podcasts and Tv & Film.

What is the most popular episode on Waiting to X-hale?

The episode title 'Ep. 39: Together Again to Talk Gen Z with Guy Branum & Margaret Wappler' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Waiting to X-hale?

The average episode length on Waiting to X-hale is 65 minutes.

How often are episodes of Waiting to X-hale released?

Episodes of Waiting to X-hale are typically released every 9 days, 10 hours.

When was the first episode of Waiting to X-hale?

The first episode of Waiting to X-hale was released on Jul 10, 2019.

Show more FAQ

Toggle view more icon

Comments