Marvel Digitial Comics pt. 2

Years ago, I believe way back during 2009, in fact, I wrote an entry called Marvel Digital Comics pt. 1. I won't provide a link because... that's what this entry is for and I'll sum it up. After briefly sampling Marvel Digital Unlimited (MDU), neither single issue purchase nor same-day digital were available at the time, I decided that MDU would enable to cut back on all the Marvel titles and trades that I bought at the time. I figured the six month delay back in that day would still be adequate enough for me to remain in the loop while buffering myself against developments that I knew I would disdain. Furthermore, I mentioned that I would provide a follow-up describing my thoughts on my experience.


To quote a meme that occasionally circulates on social media: Never have I been so wrong in all my life.


For starters, that part two only materialized now after 5-6 years. If it posted sooner, I would have complained that the interface was clunky, the website was difficult to manage and changes weren't necessarily improvements, and the accounts were buggy at times. Fortunately those scathing comments never materialized at that time because Blogger was being buggy and difficult to use during that time. Now, I like the interface and how the digital comics are presented. I am quite sure most of the kinks have been worked out although that leads to me to my next complaint...


I rarely used MDU. If my calculations are correct, I may have read maybe twenty comics over that five or six year period. Those are some pretty expensive comics... Which is funny because one of my later reasons was that I wouldn't need trades or back issues because I had an MDU subscription. Yeah, I still bought trades. The back issues weren't Marvel though.


Anyone whose read my All-New, All-Different (ANAD) is aware that my Marvel Universe was way out-dated. So I certainly didn't remain in the loop.


A six month delay didn't faze me because my reading habits were more along the line of waiting for the trade - and that was no guarantee. Turns out a six month delay is enough to dampen my enthusiasm and interest in a product. Probably a reason why many of trades remain on my reading list too...


I decided to revisit my MDU criticism because I finally hit a wall with ANAD. My enthusiasm got the better of me as I was purchasing more titles than I could read nor track which issues I had. That reminded me that I never provided a follow-up review and check out my oft-used MDU account. Not only did I rarely visit the site but I forgot that I opted out of auto-review. Needless to say, it forced me to give a hard look an MDU subscription. To celebrate Daredevil Season Two on Netflix, Marvel is offering MDU subscriptions at a reduced rate (there's an asterisk so there is probably a catch) plus some Daredevil wallpapers for mobile devices that I could care less for. That deal ends on April 3rd. I'm tempted to resume a subscription for all the old reason (the cost and storage to be a Marvel Zombie is incredibly high). Would very much be able to provide a more accurate review of the service. However, all the cons that emerged from experience cited above remain. Hard copies are incredibly important to maintain my interest. The MDU subscription is pointless if I don't read any of those comics. There's already stacks of comics and trades awaiting my perusal. Is there time to read comics only available on the cloud. So who knows? If I resume a subscription, a third installment of my review may come soon. That'll be the only indication.