Counting Down the 12 Days to a Comic Book Style Christmas

A few are seasonal bits to get me into the spirit of the season, and the rest are for encyclopaedic reference.  

Harvey Kurtzman's Marley's Ghost (comiXology Originals) by [Harvey Kurtzman, Josh O'Neill, Shannon Wheeler, Gideon Kendall]By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Counting down the twelve days to Christmas is easy. Deciding on what to read on each day is tougher. In what I present is a list of what I’m excited about getting under the tree–should Santa be reading. This catalog is varied, as I have a lot of interests and a few are upgrades from the digital copy I have already.

I also have a few seasonal bits to get me into the spirit of the holiday, and the rest are not just for encyclopaedic reference.  

Most are are available to order on Amazon USA for those interested in obtaining for the fussy nerd on their gift giving list. Disclaimer: sales made through the links provided go into maintaining this blog.

Harvey Kurtzman’s Marley’s Ghost
ComiXology

This Eisner Award winner of 2018 is simply described as holiday magic, according to New York Magazine, and I’m inclined to agree. It’s a posthumous completion of legendary creator Harvey Kurtzman’s adaptation of the classic Charles Dickens’ novel. The idea took more than a half century to realise, and the reason is perhaps lost to time. The reason why this work matters is that this creator of MAD Magazine is considered one of the most influential creators of the sequential art format, and no list can be complete without some work referencing this seminal classic for the season. Plus, it appeases the paranormal enthusiast in me!

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The Vintage Tempest’s Open Letter to Santa & Thoughts for the New Year

Ed Sum aka The Vintage Tempest
By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Dear Santa,

Yes I know this letter is late, very very late, and I hope I can still get a surprise come Christmas day.

Before I take a break from this blog for a much needed R&R, I have to write to someone about all thats transpired in the past year. It’s been tough because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some folks have changed their behaviours and others have gone into hiding until authorities say it’s safe to resume a different kind of normal.

I’m surviving and consider this season a time of hope. Yes, you’ve heard all this goodwill ambassador stuff before but I feel the world really needs it as we go into this new decade. 2021 won’t feel too different. With a tentative vaccine not everyone will want, I’m debating it. I miss my comic book conventions. I’m glad to have taken on all of Fan Expo Vancouver before the lockdown, and if any shows take place at the end of the new year, I believe it’ll be one of trepidation. I’ll sound off on this in a different editorial though.

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4K is the Season to Upgrade your Television and What to Choose From

I’m not as interested in buying movies I already own (either in DVD or Blu-ray). Of those classics worth re-investing in, only a handful exists:

4KBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

According to CableTV.com, 2020 is the year to embrace the 4K (UltraHD) for your television viewing needs. A 55″ unit is considered reasonably priced. The infrastructure exists for broadcasters to push the digital content, but the alliance industries are not ready unless people pay the cost of this extra data bandwidth usage instead of them.

Anyone buying a TV during the Black Friday (Cyber or Boxing Day) sales will be in for a treat. I’m enjoying the format so I can view crisp CGI over live-action. Nature documentaries are the best. Some films truly shine whereas others really do not need it.

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The Vintage Tempest’s Open Letter to Santa Claus

Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)
by Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Dear Santa,

There’s not much I need this year. You helped set the wheels in motion to help deliver a few items from the list I made last year. I received Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition some months ago, but the score is seeing Pulp Cthulhu and the out of print Fall of Cthulhu Omnibus arrive before the big day! My dreams have been fulfilled.

Though, with virtual reality (VR) still being the talk of 2016, I still like to see how this technology will grow in the coming year. It leads my list of items I’d love to see under my tree.

Oculus Rift

While the jury is still out in deciding if VR is the future of entertainment, out of all the three contenders (HTC Vive and PlayStation VR being the other two) I’m placing my bets on this device to get my Matrix-style illusion on. The amount of varied software that’s soon to be offered is the main selling point for me. Of course, a fully decked out gaming computer from Alienware to ensure I can play Star Wars: Battlefront VR expansion pack will be great too!

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Cheshire Cat Disappearing Coffee Mug (from Amazon)4K

Thankfully, not every item in my wish list is not expensive. My coffee mug featuring this cat from Alice in Wonderland has the ink literally being worn out from repeated washings from other family members in the home who does not know how to treat a designer cup well — if there’s a version which layers a thick clear finish over it, I’d love to own this cup again.

Every time I drink from the mug, I can not help but grin back at the cat. He always comes back when the cup gets cold.

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One Tech Geek’s Dream for Christmas Day

edphoto

If there’s another nerdy wish list for Santa to look at, I can only hope that maybe one item from this list will be under my tree.

In this case, maybe a few items will finally get a proper release date because they are still stuck in their development cycle. Just maybe, one day, I will find a TARDIS waiting for me to take me on a whirlwind trip around the world. Who doesn’t want to time travel just to witness how the Egyptian pyramids were truly built? And besides, with the first item on my list, I can take home some souvenirs!

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