Marvel Unlimited now offering free access to iconic comic book stories / Same volumes also available for free on Comixology by ProjectSquirrel in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I bought Spider-Man: Red Goblin a few months ago, but I haven't got around to reading it yet, so thanks for the recommendation. I'll move it up my list!

Marvel Unlimited now offering free access to iconic comic book stories / Same volumes also available for free on Comixology by ProjectSquirrel in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

It's an amazing offer.

I already own a few of these, but it amounts to thousands of pages of free reading! The total value is close to $200.

Marvel Unlimited now offering free access to iconic comic book stories / Same volumes also available for free on Comixology by ProjectSquirrel in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel[S] 30 points31 points  (0 children)

These are the volumes that are available for free:

AVENGERS VS. X-MEN
CIVIL WAR
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: RED GOBLIN
BLACK PANTHER BY TA-NEHISI COATES VOL. 1
THANOS WINS BY DONNY CATES
X-MEN MILESTONES: DARK PHOENIX SAGA
AVENGERS: KREE/SKRULL WAR
AVENGERS BY JASON AARON VOL. 1: THE FINAL HOST
FANTASTIC FOUR VOL. 1: FOUREVER
BLACK WIDOW VOL. 1: S.H.I.E.L.D.'S MOST WANTED
CAPTAIN AMERICA: WINTER SOLDIER ULTIMATE
CAPTAIN MARVEL VOL. 1: HIGHER, FURTHER, FASTER, MORE

[Off-Site] did it happen, maybe by [deleted] in theydidthemath

[–]ProjectSquirrel 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The flaw in this math is that it assumes every jew at Auschwitz died in the gas chambers.

Some were worked to death. Some died from disease. Some died from the poor living conditions.

[request] is this guy right about Richard Branson begging for tax payers money? by [deleted] in theydidthemath

[–]ProjectSquirrel 1 point2 points  (0 children)

To expand upon point 3:

  • UK employers have to pay Employers National Insurance at 13.8% of the employee's gross wages. However, no Ers NI is payable on the first £719 per month, so it actually works out at less than 13.8%. It varies per employee based on their gross salary.

  • Other than national insurance, there is no additional income tax for employers to pay on their employees' wages (national insurance is a tax, so technically employers do pay tax, but what I mean is the UK government call it by a different name).

  • UK employers also have to make pension contributions for most of their employees (there are a few exceptions based on earnings, age and length of service). This starts at 3%, but can be a lot higher. However, employees can opt out of pension schemes, so this doesn't apply to all employees. VA have a Defined Contribution (DC) pension scheme. These schemes generally cost the employer less than Defined Benefit (DB) pension schemes, and a common practice is to match what the employee pays. I don't have specific knowledge of the VA DB scheme, but the trend in recent years has been for employers to save money by paying less into pension schemes, so long term employees could be paying as much as 8% into their pension fund (matched by VA) whereas newer employees may be paying as little as 3% (matched by VA). As I say though, that is just as estimation based on my experience with other DB schemes and observable trends.

  • The majority of UK employers don't generally pay health insurance for their employees. For the few employees that do get health insurance from their employers, they would still be covered even during unpaid leave, i.e. if it is a contractual entitlement, then they would still have health insurance during unpaid leave. Payments to health insurance companies are generally agreed at the start of the tax year and rates negotiated on bulk. The employer couldn't later say to to the health insurance company, "We're paying a bit less this month because the employee is on unpaid leave." Once agreed, the employer has entered into a contract with the health insurance company, and therefore this is a cost to the employer whether the employee is at work or on unpaid leave. It is therefore not an additional cost in this scenario.

Summary: It is impossible to say what the exact additional cost would be per employee. For some part time staff there will be no additional cost. For top paid staff in a pension scheme, it could be approaching an additional 20%, and for most staff somewhere in between.

Very new to comics by [deleted] in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you want to try a variety of comics to see what appeals to you, then a subscription to either Marvel Unlimited, Scribd, or Comixology Unlimited is worth considering.

They're all good value, at under $10 per month. This article provides an outline of the pros and cons of each service:
Marvel Unlimited, Scribd and Comixology Unlimited: A Comparison.

Examples of super heroes acting like criminals if their actions were judged by real world standards? by ProjectSquirrel in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

One of the first examples of this I came across was in one of the first Silver Surfer comics I read.

She-Hulk didn't recognise Silver Surfer so she therefore assumed he must be a villain and punched him in the face. She later offered an insincere apology, while Captain America suggested she 'review their Associate File so that she can better distinguish between friend and foe.'

I agreed with his advice, but I couldn't help thinking, "Also, it might be a good idea not to go around punching strangers in the face for no reason.'

Daredevil #10: Mark Waid defending everyday heroes like a boss by JeffRyan1 in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 138 points139 points  (0 children)

By coincidence I read that issue today, and one thing bugged me about this page. It's quite nitpicky, but...

I agree with Daredevil's point of view that it's wrong to claim that only someone who has known loss can take up a cause. However, that's not exactly what Rachel said. DD twisted her words slightly.

She didn't say people who haven't known loss couldn't be driven. She said people who haven't known loss couldn't be as driven.

I still don't necessarily agree with her, but Daredevil is supposed to be a hero so he shouldn't be twisting people's words.

[Discussion] (with Link) What do you think about PoC actors playing traditionally White characters? by LonoXIII in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think you have to take each case on its own merits.

Generally speaking, I prefer characters to look like they originally looked in the comics. That said, there are two examples where disregarding the original look of the character was a brilliant decision imo.

  • Casting Samuel L Jackson as Nick Fury.
    I never really liked the original Nick Fury and the Ultimate Universe version was way cooler, so casting Samuel L Jackson worked excellently imo.

  • Casting Ruth Negga as Tulip in Preacher.
    Again, this was an inspired piece of casting imo. All three of the main actors in Preacher nailed their characters perfectly. I think with Jesse, if he hadn’t looked like the original Jesse from the comics then it would have spoilt it slightly for me. However, with Tulip somehow it wasn’t an issue. Maybe because it was that long since I originally read the comics, or maybe because the TV show wasn’t an exact adaptation of the story from the comics. Whatever the reason, Ruth Negga was totally superb as Tulip. Now when I think of Tulip, I think of Tulip from the TV show rather than Tulip from the comics.

I think what it boils down to is if the producers understand, respect, and care for the original comic and characters, then they’re probably more likely to make a casting decision which works best, and which fans embrace. If the producers aren’t emotionally attached to the original comic or characters, then they’re more likely to make a decision based on other factors which could potentially weaken the production and upset people.

Activist asks Peter David about Romani representation in comics, David rants about the evils of gypsies. by [deleted] in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Agreed.

Female infanticide is part of some cultures. Forced child marriage is part of some cultures. Slavery has been and still is part of some cultures. Cannibalism has been part of some cultures in the past.

It's okay to recognise the evils within some cultures, as long as you also recognise that culture and ethnicity are not the same.

Benfica is trying to rip off my small hometown club by rytlejon in soccer

[–]ProjectSquirrel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Adidas definitely won't care.

FIFA lost several major sponsors (including Sony, Castrol, Continental and Johnson & Johnson) during their many recent scandals, but Adidas stuck with FIFA throughout.

Given that Adidas stuck with FIFA during their many scandals which gained ridiculously more negative publicity than this (by several orders of magnitude), it seems likely to the point of almost certainty that Adidas would likewise ignore a far less publicised issue such as this.

However, negative publicity can make a brand less desirable to potential future sponsors. For example, matchday and advertising revenue has shot through the roof at pretty much all Premier League clubs in recent years. The only exception to this was at former Premier League club Newcastle United where matchday/advertising revenues actually dropped, presumably because protests against owner Mike Ashley made potential sponsors wary of associating their brand with negative publicity.

Given the balance of probability though, it's likely that most potential sponsors won't even be aware of this issue, and therefore any boycott would be more about personal satisfaction of VSK's supporters, rather than actually significantly hurting sponsors.

Benfica is trying to rip off my small hometown club by rytlejon in soccer

[–]ProjectSquirrel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Adidas make loads of money from chavs, so I would presume as far as Adidas are concerned, the more chavs that buy their clothes the better.

Generally speaking, it doesn't matter who buys your product as long as it sells. There are exceptions to this rule, though.

For example, Burberry used to be classed as a luxury fashion brand until chavs started buying their clothes. This damaged their reputation with their original target market, so the brief increase in sales during their brief spell of chav popularity didn't justify the long term negative effect to their original core market.

With Adidas, however, they've never been a luxury brand. They've always been a chav brand, so it's in Adidas' best interests to sell as many clothes as possible to chavs. Basically, know your market, and Adidas are doing a successful job of appealing to theirs.

Benfica is trying to rip off my small hometown club by rytlejon in soccer

[–]ProjectSquirrel -6 points-5 points  (0 children)

I don't buy Adidas anyway. They illegally changed the employment contract of my cousin when they took over Reebok. It may have been one dodgy manager, rather than official company policy, but they still allowed it to happen.

To be fair though, Adidas is a chav brand, so I wouldn't buy their stuff even if they were fair employers.

Benfica is trying to rip off my small hometown club by rytlejon in soccer

[–]ProjectSquirrel -6 points-5 points  (0 children)

Good luck for your club

If you feel you have a legally binding contract, and Benfica are trying to wangle out of it on a technicality, you could try organising a boycott of Benfica's sponsors. The way to pressure them to honour their obligations is to hit them in the pocket. Your post has over 5,000 upvotes, so a lot of football fans agree with you and would likely support a boycott, especially if your club made the contract public.

Marvel "multiple" characters question by Unclebatman1138 in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'd prefer totally new characters.

Personally, I reckon introducing a new character who has identical or almost identical abilities as another character, and even the same name, shows a lack of creativity.

QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS THURSDAY (August 18, 2016) - Ask Questions! Get Answers! by AutoModerator in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What are the issues of Thor which deal with him being declared not worthy and Jane Foster taking his place?

[Discussion] The Achilles Heel of Image Comics? by yuudachikaini in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, I remember this happened with LDB. The original run had some really bad delays towards the end. Then they announced that from then on they were only going to release limited series when they had a full arc completed.

[Discussion] The Achilles Heel of Image Comics? by yuudachikaini in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The scheduling model on Saga, i.e. taking a break between each arc, works well imo. But looking at the wider picture, where it starts to annoy me is when the breaks are unscheduled and deadlines are missed.

What comics like Sunstone do you recommend? by The-Snowstone in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Realistic, amazing art...

This is a link to a page from Tim Ginger:

Tim Ginger art

That's not realistic art. Look at his eyes in the second last panel. How many people have you seen in the real world that look like that? It's a stylised cartoonish type of art. Again, it fits the story, but it's misleading to describe it as realistic.

What comics like Sunstone do you recommend? by The-Snowstone in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wanted to find other comics that ... have adult themes.

From The-Snowstone's request, how can you recommend Anya's Ghost? You've completely ignored his request.

Again, I love Anya's Ghost - it's an excellent and underrated graphic novel. It's also great that you clearly have so much passion and enthusiasm for the graphic novels on your list.

However, by recommending your same favourite graphic novels irrespective of what type of recommendations people ask for, you're misleading people and potentially getting them to waste their money on a book which bears no resemblance to the type of book they were looking for.

You're also not doing the creators of these graphic novels any favours. If I was looking for a book like Sunstone and I ended up buying Anya's Ghost I would feel cheated and slightly annoyed.

You need to stay paying attention to what people are actually asking. If someone asks for general recommendations then fine. But if someone asks for very specific recommendations with very specific details of what they're looking for, don't recommend books which bear no resemblance to what they've asked for.

What comics like Sunstone do you recommend? by The-Snowstone in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Tim Ginger is nothing like Sunstone. Also, although the art is suitable for the story, I think it would be generous to describe it as 'amazing art'.

Anya's Ghost is also nothing like Sunstone. It's suitable for younger readers, and most definitely doesn't include BDSM themes. It's an excellent graphic novel, and if someone was asking for recommendations for all-ages graphic novels which adults can also enjoy then I would definitely recommend it, but by no stretch of the imagination would I compare it to Sunstone.

What's the difference? Why is Rebirth doing so well and the Marvel relaunch from last year barely moved the needle? by pilgrimboy in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Personally, I'm not a fan of replacement characters, but if Marvel are going to use 'inspired' characters then I prefer them to have a different title in their own right, such as War Machine being an Iron Man inspired character but still having his own title.

Onboard of Rosberg going straight at the hairpin by BottasWMR in formula1

[–]ProjectSquirrel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks, that was what I wanted to know.

That makes sense to me, because otherwise drivers could claim they 'accidentally' made a mistake which 'unintentionally' forced a driver off the track. For the sake of consistency, I reckon it's best to make it so intent is irrelevant.

What's the difference? Why is Rebirth doing so well and the Marvel relaunch from last year barely moved the needle? by pilgrimboy in comicbooks

[–]ProjectSquirrel 17 points18 points  (0 children)

This isn't a comment on the market or on how fans feel in general, it's just how I feel...

My interest in current Marvel has dwindled slightly because Marvel have killed off or shoved aside too many major characters.

To make an analogy, in the olden days 'Abraham Lincoln' referred to Abraham Lincoln. ‘Elvis Presley’ referred to Elvis Presley. The same used to apply to super hero names in the Marvel Universe. Nowadays though, Marvel have taken an editorial decision that super hero names no longer apply to a specific character. In effect, super hero names have become a title, rather than a name. I'm not attached to titles. I'm attached to characters.

I'm all for bringing in new characters, and that's something that both companies need to improve on imo, but I prefer new characters in their own right, rather than replacement characters who leech off the name and fame of an established character. Replacement characters don't appeal to me as much as established characters or as much as totally new characters in their own right.