X-Cutioner's Song

I have been surfing through the 80's and 90's X-Factor comic books on Marvel Unlimited over the last 9-12 months.  I've been on again, off again, but I have stuck with it.  Back in the day, I did not start reading this title until 1992 when my friend Pete and I would go to the local comic shop at college in Charleston, Illinois.  We each bought titles we wanted, but then would go home and read our own books then pass them across the room and read each other's books.  It was a good arrangement for both of us.  We got to double our exposure to stories at half the cost.  

Anyway, I didn't realize the notable X-Men stories that actually happened in the X-Factor book.  Most of the animated series X-Men 97 comes from the pages of X-Factor.  Now that I have caught up to the books I read in college, I am remembering some of the good times my friend and I had discussing the storylines, enjoying the art and "comic style," and arguing over who was the best hero, (who is obviously Spider-man).  I have recently come across a classic X-Men crossover story that shaped my love for my favorite X-Man of all time, Cable.  The story I have come upon again is the X-Cutioner's Song.  

People may disagree with me (hey, that is what literary discussion is all about), but I feel that this is the best 1990's X-Men crossover, hands down.  All the X-teams get involved, there is a murder and the suspect is pretty clear...or is he?  You have classic villains like Mr. Sinister, Apocalypse, Cable (?), the
MLF, and others going against our heroes.  The difficult issue is that the X-Men don't only have villains to contend with, but they are also at odds with one another.  What else is new, right?  Well, to me it was all new, and it was all amazing.  One might say it is an Uncanny story.  

If you don't have Marvel Unlimited and you love Marvel comics, you must raise the money for a year's subscription.  You won't be disappointed!  However, pro tip here.  If you are my age and went to college in the late 80's or earlier, you might want to find a tablet to read these on.  The phone has gotten a wee bit small for me to be able to read for very long.  Just saying!  You want to enjoy this.  

Check out X-Cutioner's Song or for that matter, do what I did and start at the beginning of the X-Factor title in 1986.  This is a comic book that I can't believe I didn't pick up when I was younger.  

Welcoming Friday Favorites!

I'm starting a new monthly post of Friday Favorites!  This will be a series of Top 5 or Top 10 of some of my favorites in a variety of topics, and they will appear on the second Friday of the month.  

Some of these lists are inspired by the discussions I have with the most excellent Dan Zehr and Cory Clubb on the podcast CWK Pourover.  If you are ever up for some great conversation with an even more wonderful community of listeners and participants, check out this fun group.  We can sometimes be pretty serious, but most of the time craziness ensues for some great laughs.  Some of these Top 5 lists come from conversations with my daughters.  I often pose this question on car rides or at dinner, "What are your Top 5..?"  Most of the time that question is met with eye-rolling, but sometimes clarity and meaning come from those moments.

Anyway, to kick-off the first Friday Favorites, here are my Top 5 Mobile Apps: 

5. Marvel Unlimited - 10,000 Marvel comics at my fingertips?!?!?  Yes, please.  I can download 10 at a time when I don't plan to be connected to wifi for a while.  Take a look at my 2021 Personal Stats posts to see how often I use this app.  I can tell you, my library grows a lot faster than my consumption.  At least they don't stack up next to my reading chair!  

4. Twitter - This is my favorite way to keep in quick contact with everyone and to keep my ear to the ground of what is going on in my favorite communities.  It is my most wide-open social media in that I follow the largest groups of people and organizations.  All my other social media is much tighter and curated in what I follow.  Twitter is my ear to the ground.  

3. Instagram - Instagram and Twitter would have been tied for my consumption time until my family introduced me to Instagram Reels.  Those have caught my fancy.  I laugh, ogle at the cute animals, and am amazed at some of the dancing talent!  Oh, then there is the Instagram feed.  I love the visual aspect of Instagram; it allows me a quick view of the groups and people I enjoy.  It is a much tighter group than Twitter and Facebook. 

2. Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes - I just love games. I somehow found a good group of people to join who are super positive and help each other out.  There is something I have just enjoyed about the challenge of collecting heroes and villains of the Star Wars Galaxy, powering them up, and creating odd teams to do the fighting.  I probably dedicate 30-45 mintues a day building up my characters, ships and profile on this game.  

1. Topps card trading apps - I realize that this is kind of cheating (my blog my rules), but of the four Topps apps that I collect, at least one of them would always be number one with my phone apps.  I have told the story many times, but I will never forget my first introduction to Topps Digital cards.  I was at the Indiana Comic Con with my Coffee with Kenobi friends, Dan Zehr and Cory Club, when they introduced me to the Star Wars Card Trader app.  This led me to discover Marvel Collect, Bunt and Disney Collect.  I collect, trade and drool over these cards.  I am in real trouble when all four apps have sets I am chasing at the same time.  It happens...often...

These and other apps can be really consuming, and I just wanted to be clear that I most certainly do use the Digital Wellbeing function that my phone offers.  I limit the time I spend on each app every day, and the Wellbeing feature will just shut the app down once I reach the time allotted.  Please do me and yourself a favor and set those boundaries, because these apps are awesome, but so are the face-to-face people in our lives.  

My Favorite New Marvel Comic Title

I like to support my local comic shop, and ask that everyone buy a few print comics to support our local shops and the industry overall.  I am totally loyal to the print copies of The Amazing Spider-Man, Star Wars, Conan the Barbarian,  as well as IDW's Star Wars Adventures and a few special issues here and there.  After that, I consume comics digitally.  I don't have to worry about folding the cover or an issue tearing while sitting in the car.  Digital comics are always with me.  I've talked about Marvel Unlimited in the past, but I mention all that because I am about 3 months late from the print release in finding my favorite new Marvel title, Shang-Chi by Gene Luen Yan

A few years ago I had the absolute pleasure of meeting Gene Luen Yang thanks to a school librarian friend who brought him to her school to speak and sign autographs.  What I discovered is, not only is he a super talented writer and artist, but he is a really gracious and friendly guy.  We had the opportunity to visit about everything from comics, to favorite television shows, his travel adventures and libraries.  One little tidbit that he dropped that didn't come back to my mind until now was that he told me he had a "little" project that he was discussing with Marvel Comics.  Now at that time, it could have been anything, but I like to think that he was referring to this book, Shang-Chi.  What a cool project he has created, and it is my favorite new Marvel title.  

Coming into the comic, I didn't know much about Shang-Chi other than he is a martial artist superhero.  I didn't know anything about the back story, but issue one breaks it all down.  It's an interesting set-up with ancient societies and a really well-known but obscure villain.  After the first two issues, it isn't certain that the villain introduced in the flashback/history part opening will be a major player right away, but it was cool to see it.  Yang delivers with great dialog and history to set the story up.  The pieces of the story come together quickly to let the story move right away.  The art by Dike Ruan is clear, detailed and realistic whereas the flashback art by Philip Tan is gritty and gives a sense of history to the story with darker tones and a faded, blending of lines.  I've been looking forward to the release of this book, but now I look forward to the release of each issue on Marvel Unlimited.  

If you are looking for a newer book to check out, especially with the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe film, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings to release this July, this is a great story to experience.  Be sure to pick it up from your local comic shop or subscribe to Marvel Unlimited for this story and a massive amount of digital comics from the Marvel Universe.  

Update 2/17/21:  "Marvel Comics is proud to announce that the incredible team will continue their bold work on the character this May in a new ongoing series. SHANG-CHI #1 will kick off a surprising new journey for Marvel’s greatest fighter as he finds himself on the opposite side of Marvel’s heroes."  https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/shang-chi-2021-new-comic-series

Top 5 Comics I look forward to reading each month

This is a list that will change frequently, I am sure.  These are the Top 5 comics, both print and digital on Marvel Unlimited, that I look forward to reading each month.  

5. Star Wars (print) - cruising right along I am just enjoying it

4. Aero (Marvel Unlimited) - hanging on to see where this goes

3. Fallen Angel (Marvel Unlimited) - the X-titles are grabbing my attention

2. X-Force (Marvel Unlimited) - I've always enjoyed this title with Cable or without him

1. Amazing Spider-man - the build-up to issue 850 is captivating if not a little dark and scary

Obviously, these are all Marvel titles.  I have always been a Marvel guy, but not because I have anything against DC or any other company.  Marvel just seems to captivate me and always has.  In fact, an honorable mention would be IDW's Star Wars: Clone Wars title.  

What are you reading that has you looking forward to a visit to your Local Comic shop each month?  Leave a comment of your Top 5 or a few of your "can't wait to get your hands on" comic titles.  

Marvel Unlimited Plus Package

So I got home from work the other day to see a small package sitting on my front porch.  I wasn't really expecting anything, so I had that "Oh oh, the Wells Fargo Wagon is-a, coming down the street" moment of excitement.  An unexpected package!
To my delight the package wasn't for my kids or my wife, it was for me!  The box was covered with comic panels and the title "Marvel Unlimited."  I have written about how much I enjoy the Marvel Unlimited e-comics subscription before, but this is definitely a perk of renewing my subscription.  I apparently signed up for the Marvel Unlimited Plus subscription.  I didn't even know I did it, so the cost is either very close to the regular subscription or I unconsciously just clicked and went down that road.  Either way, I am now a plus member and got this cool box.

So, you may be wondering, what comes in this cool box? I will quote from the letter that was found inside with my Marvel Unlimited Plus Member card attached.  "To kick off the new year, we're bringing you all new plus member kit featuring a stunning Marvel Unlimited Plus box redesign.  Inside, you'll find your official membership card, an exclusive Hasbro Marvel Legends Rescue figure not available anywhere else, 3 exclusive variant comics of Invincible Iron Man #1, Captain America: White #1 and Agent Carter: S.H.I.E.L.D. 50th Anniversary #1 with connecting covers by Paul Renaud, and a collectible set of 2 exclusive S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter pins."
This is a nice package.  As a plus member there are discounts to digital comic store as well as the Marvel comic store.  Here is a Q/A from the Marvel Unlimited Plus webpage that explains everything.
To me the real benefit comes from the massive digital comic catalog that is open to anyone who subscribes to Marvel Unlimited, plus or regular member.  I have been reading the new arc of the Deathlok, the New Warriors, Moon Knight, the original run of Marvel's Star Wars and much more.  I also use the collection as reference to story lines and character/villain connections.

Do you use Marvel Unlimited as your comic source or another digital comic source like Comixology?  Or do you say, no way, paper copies, please?
Comment below and share your experience.

Marvel Unlimited - You've got to try it!!

I enjoy going back and reading many of the back issues of the Marvel comics I have collected over the years. Currently, I am rereading the Infinity trilogy with the Infinity Gauntlet, the Infinity War, and now the Infinity Crusade.  I will soon be moving on to the New Warriors and Guardians of the Galaxy.  Often, I have a few holes in my collection with missing issues that would be nice to be able to read to fill in a complete story.  

A couple years ago, I gave the Marvel Unlimited digital comic subscription a try and really liked the availability to read some stories and backgrounds of some of my favorite characters.  I read many of the original Dr. Strange stories that show up in the Strange Tales title which give tons of background of that great character.  I also enjoyed the stories of the Human Torch who actually was the feature of those titles.  

Now that I have moved into the Infinity Crusade, I am reminded of how these massive storylines started doing massive crossovers that we see today.  So I have used the Marvel Unlimited to fill in the many holes I have in my old print copy collection.  There are many issues not available in Unlimited, but there are enough to make it enjoyable to finally get many of the side stories.  

Here is my problem with Marvel Unlimited as I write today.  Somehow, I have gotten into the beta version of the comic reader and I am having a difficult time reading the text.  They have a two-page option viewer, a one-page viewer, and a smart panel viewer.  I really like the options because you can get the "double-truck" pictures that often accompany an opening, closing, or huge battle or explosion.  The single-page view is nice to see all other art juxtaposed on a single page, but neither of these options is especially good for reading.  The smart panel option brings the text closer for reading, but the problem I am having is that it cuts the edge of the page on both sides and I miss any text that is close to the edge of the pages.  I thought I would be able to pull the page around to read, but that is not possible.  

So, I wonder if anyone else has had this experience and has a fix.  Or perhaps a Marvel web surfer will come across this and send me a personal fix or a way to switch off the beta viewer.  I do like the viewer except for this one problem.  I also give the Unlimited subscription a high recommendation.  I look forward weekly to seeing what issues they add. 

Update January 2024: My problem with the app in 2014 has been remedied by 2024.  This app continues to be amazing and they continue to add books to the app with over 10K on the app currently.