Geekmas 2019: Unlimited.

In my posting on the geek-themed Christmas gifts that I received this year, I left out the best gift of all - and it's certainly a gift that will keep on giving, as cliché would have it.  My wonderful wife Karli was generous enough to purchase me a subscription to Marvel Unlimited, an online service from Marvel Comics that essentially opens the doors to the collected history of the company, with an ever-growing catalogue that currently contains over 25,000 comics.

We set up my Unlimited account on Christmas Day - there's an option for either monthly or annual subscriptions - and I instantly fell in love with it.  The quality is astonishing: the pages are in high resolution, and look incredible on my 27 inch 5K iMac display.  That being said, the web browser interface is a bit clumsy - it's much better to read the comics through Marvel's Unlimited iOS app.

Both the browser and the app offer the option of reading comics as the original full pages, or in Smartframe mode, which shows individual frames in full-screen animated transitions, a much better option for readers on smaller iPhone screens.  Subscribers also have the option of downloading comics for off-line reading.

I took a look at some of the older releases, and they're the same high quality as more recent digitally created issues.  Rather than scanning copies of the screened four-colour artwork, Marvel has apparently scanned black and white line art and digitally coloured it, and the results are incredible. 

The Unlimited service, which debuted in November of 2007, is obviously a work in progress. Because the list of available comics is so gigantic, I started out looking for things that I used to own, and there are selections from the back catalogue, such as the 1979 Micronauts series, or Ghost Rider 2099 from 1994, that don't appear on the list - or, perhaps more accurately, don't appear on the list YET.  This isn't a complaint:  it would be an epic undertaking to convert the complete Marvel archives, and the service has come a long way from its initial 2,500 comic book offering.

Unlimited also trails behind the newsstand editions by six months, which makes sense in terms of maintaining print sales.

For myself, I don't consider either one of those factors to be a problem.  Marvel Unlimited offers readers access to the full print runs of Marvel standards like the Avengers, Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk, and all the rest of the Marvel universe.  And because it's all-inclusive, I've found myself reading comics that I would never have purchased as individual issues - simply because I can.

Overall, I would completely recommend Marvel Unlimited.  Merry Christmas, Karli, and thank you for such a wonderful gift - or is it more appropriate to call it marvel-lous?

-  Sid

Geekmas 2019: And A Partridge in a Pear Tree.

 

I have to say that I'm gratified by the degree to which people followed the suggestions from my Geekmas gift posting this year (with the obvious exception of my Secret Santa at work and my friend Chris, and I really can't complain about the results in either case). In fact, Karli has suggested that in the case of her family, the shopping process was based on screen grabs from the posting, which is probably why I didn't receive anything that didn't have an image in the post - because it would have been challenging to read the fine print under those conditions.

In practical terms, this means that I received a glow-in-the-dark Canadian Space Agency t-shirt (which does glow in the dark as advertised); Ruthanna Emrys' H. P. Lovecraft-inspired* novel Winter Tide; The Five Doctors, The Android Invasion, and The Sea Devils episodes of Doctor Who on DVD, and the Batman: White Knight graphic novel, which I've already found time to read - it's an intriguing take on the Batman - Joker relationship that turns things around several times in the process.

 

In addition, Karli broke away from the pack and picked up a copy of the Epic Yarns adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back,** by Jack and Holman Wang - which I've also already finished, but to be fair, at a total of twelve cleverly chosen words it's not a challenging read.

My thanks to all the parties who saw fit to indulge my interests once again this year - merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

-  Sid

* This originally said "Cthulhulian" but my internal copy editor has issues with that particular turn of phrase.

** She actually wanted to get me A New Hope, but they were out of stock.  This resulted in my receiving an enigmatic text asking which movie I liked better, The Empire Strike Back or The Return of the Jedi.  Fortunately I get this sort of text now and then, so it didn't spoil the surprise.

"Scary scary scary scary solstice!"

(To the music of "The Carol of the Bells") 
Look to the sky, way up on high 
There in the night stars are now right. 
Eons have passed: now then at last 
Prison walls break, Old Ones awake! 
They will return: mankind will learn 
New kinds of fear when they are here. 
They will reclaim all in their name; 
Hopes turn to black when they come back. 
Ignorant fools, mankind now rules 
Where they ruled then: it's theirs again 
Stars brightly burning, boiling and churning 
Bode a returning season of doom 
Scary scary scary scary solstice 
Very very very scary solstice. 

The Carol of the Olde Ones, The H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society

My friend Chris got in touch with me about an exchange of seasonal gifts, so we met up this evening at a local pub.  Chris has an astonishing ability to select the unexpected when it comes to gifts, and this year was no exception, as he presented me (no pun intended) with a downloaded copy of An Abhorrent & Ancient Solstice, an album of H.P. Lovecraft-themed seasonal carols. The use of "seasonal" here isn't isn't political correctness -  with titles like Death to the World and Silent Night, Blasphemous Night, these are NOT Christmas songs.

I was a bit curious as to the origins of this unique gift, and after a bit of research, discovered that it had been produced by The H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society.  The HPLHS was started in 1986 by a group of friends in Boulder, Colorado, and now has over 2,000 members worldwide. The group produces a wide variety of H. P. Lovecraft-themed material, including props, fonts, and, of course, music.

 

If this album is an example of their work, they have high standards - the production values are professional, the vocals are excellent, and the lyrics are quite well written.  It's so good that it's a bit subversive - it would be very tempting to replace the standard shopping mall muzak with this album and see if anyone was actually listening to the lyrics.  All in all, a great unique gift, and, in its own way, completely appropriate for the season - thanks, Chris, and I hope you have a very scary Solstice.

-  Sid