diff --git a/docs/release.rst b/docs/release.rst
index e66484c9..08968c45 100644
--- a/docs/release.rst
+++ b/docs/release.rst
@@ -1,6 +1,13 @@
 Release notes
 =============
 
+.. _release_0.5.2:
+
+0.5.2
+-----
+
+* Add support for encoding None values in VLen... codecs (:issue:`59`).
+
 .. _release_0.5.1:
 
 0.5.1
diff --git a/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_array.py b/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_array.py
index 19b5b069..ce0a0bd3 100644
--- a/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_array.py
+++ b/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_array.py
@@ -11,8 +11,10 @@
     from numcodecs.vlen import VLenArray
 except ImportError:  # pragma: no cover
     raise nose.SkipTest("vlen-array not available")
-from numcodecs.tests.common import (check_config, check_repr, check_encode_decode_array,
-                                    check_backwards_compatibility)
+from numcodecs.tests.common import (check_config, check_repr,
+                                    check_encode_decode_array,
+                                    check_backwards_compatibility,
+                                    assert_array_items_equal)
 
 
 arrays = [
@@ -88,3 +90,14 @@ def test_decode_errors():
         codec.decode(enc, out=123)
     with assert_raises(ValueError):
         codec.decode(enc, out=np.zeros(10, dtype='i4'))
+
+
+def test_encode_none():
+    a = np.array([[1, 3], None, [4, 7]], dtype=object)
+    codec = VLenArray(int)
+    enc = codec.encode(a)
+    dec = codec.decode(enc)
+    expect = np.array([np.array([1, 3]),
+                       np.array([]),
+                       np.array([4, 7])], dtype=object)
+    assert_array_items_equal(expect, dec)
diff --git a/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_bytes.py b/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_bytes.py
index d997acd0..e6f1c521 100644
--- a/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_bytes.py
+++ b/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_bytes.py
@@ -12,7 +12,8 @@
 except ImportError:  # pragma: no cover
     raise nose.SkipTest("vlen-bytes not available")
 from numcodecs.tests.common import (check_config, check_repr, check_encode_decode_array,
-                                    check_backwards_compatibility, greetings)
+                                    check_backwards_compatibility, greetings,
+                                    assert_array_items_equal)
 
 
 greetings_bytes = [g.encode('utf-8') for g in greetings]
@@ -53,7 +54,7 @@ def test_encode_errors():
     with assert_raises(TypeError):
         codec.encode([1234, 5678])
     with assert_raises(TypeError):
-        codec.encode(np.zeros(10, dtype='i4'))
+        codec.encode(np.ones(10, dtype='i4'))
 
 
 def test_decode_errors():
@@ -80,3 +81,12 @@ def test_decode_errors():
         codec.decode(enc, out=123)
     with assert_raises(ValueError):
         codec.decode(enc, out=np.zeros(10, dtype='i4'))
+
+
+def test_encode_none():
+    a = np.array([b'foo', None, b'bar'], dtype=object)
+    codec = VLenBytes()
+    enc = codec.encode(a)
+    dec = codec.decode(enc)
+    expect = np.array([b'foo', b'', b'bar'], dtype=object)
+    assert_array_items_equal(expect, dec)
diff --git a/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_utf8.py b/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_utf8.py
index a9d52a0a..316cd31a 100644
--- a/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_utf8.py
+++ b/numcodecs/tests/test_vlen_utf8.py
@@ -12,7 +12,8 @@
 except ImportError:  # pragma: no cover
     raise nose.SkipTest("vlen-utf8 not available")
 from numcodecs.tests.common import (check_config, check_repr, check_encode_decode_array,
-                                    check_backwards_compatibility, greetings)
+                                    check_backwards_compatibility, greetings,
+                                    assert_array_items_equal)
 
 
 arrays = [
@@ -49,7 +50,7 @@ def test_encode_errors():
     with assert_raises(TypeError):
         codec.encode([1234, 5678])
     with assert_raises(TypeError):
-        codec.encode(np.zeros(10, dtype='i4'))
+        codec.encode(np.ones(10, dtype='i4'))
 
 
 def test_decode_errors():
@@ -76,3 +77,12 @@ def test_decode_errors():
         codec.decode(enc, out=123)
     with assert_raises(ValueError):
         codec.decode(enc, out=np.zeros(10, dtype='i4'))
+
+
+def test_encode_utf8():
+    a = np.array([u'foo', None, u'bar'], dtype=object)
+    codec = VLenUTF8()
+    enc = codec.encode(a)
+    dec = codec.decode(enc)
+    expect = np.array([u'foo', u'', u'bar'], dtype=object)
+    assert_array_items_equal(expect, dec)
diff --git a/numcodecs/vlen.c b/numcodecs/vlen.c
index 2a6a0936..45487c24 100644
--- a/numcodecs/vlen.c
+++ b/numcodecs/vlen.c
@@ -752,11 +752,11 @@ static const char *__pyx_filename;
 
 static const char *__pyx_f[] = {
   "numcodecs/vlen.pyx",
-  ".tox/py36/lib/python3.6/site-packages/Cython/Includes/cpython/array.pxd",
+  "array.pxd",
   "stringsource",
-  ".tox/py36/lib/python3.6/site-packages/Cython/Includes/cpython/type.pxd",
-  ".tox/py36/lib/python3.6/site-packages/Cython/Includes/cpython/bool.pxd",
-  ".tox/py36/lib/python3.6/site-packages/Cython/Includes/cpython/complex.pxd",
+  "type.pxd",
+  "bool.pxd",
+  "complex.pxd",
   "numcodecs/compat_ext.pxd",
 };
 /* MemviewSliceStruct.proto */
@@ -1204,6 +1204,14 @@ static PyObject *__Pyx_GetItemInt_Generic(PyObject *o, PyObject* j);
 static CYTHON_INLINE PyObject *__Pyx_GetItemInt_Fast(PyObject *o, Py_ssize_t i,
                                                      int is_list, int wraparound, int boundscheck);
 
+/* PyIntBinop.proto */
+#if !CYTHON_COMPILING_IN_PYPY
+static PyObject* __Pyx_PyInt_EqObjC(PyObject *op1, PyObject *op2, long intval, int inplace);
+#else
+#define __Pyx_PyInt_EqObjC(op1, op2, intval, inplace)\
+    PyObject_RichCompare(op1, op2, Py_EQ)
+    #endif
+
 /* MemviewSliceInit.proto */
 #define __Pyx_BUF_MAX_NDIMS %(BUF_MAX_NDIMS)d
 #define __Pyx_MEMVIEW_DIRECT   1
@@ -1974,6 +1982,7 @@ static const char __pyx_k_i[] = "i";
 static const char __pyx_k_l[] = "l";
 static const char __pyx_k_u[] = "u";
 static const char __pyx_k_v[] = "v";
+static const char __pyx_k__6[] = "";
 static const char __pyx_k_id[] = "id";
 static const char __pyx_k_np[] = "np";
 static const char __pyx_k_abc[] = "abc";
@@ -2002,6 +2011,7 @@ static const char __pyx_k_stop[] = "stop";
 static const char __pyx_k_test[] = "__test__";
 static const char __pyx_k_ASCII[] = "ASCII";
 static const char __pyx_k_Codec[] = "Codec";
+static const char __pyx_k_array[] = "array";
 static const char __pyx_k_class[] = "__class__";
 static const char __pyx_k_dtype[] = "dtype";
 static const char __pyx_k_empty[] = "empty";
@@ -2174,8 +2184,11 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_VLenUTF8_decode;
 static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_VLenUTF8_encode;
 static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_ValueError;
 static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_View_MemoryView;
+static PyObject *__pyx_kp_b__6;
+static PyObject *__pyx_kp_u__6;
 static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_abc;
 static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_allocate_buffer;
+static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_array;
 static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_asanyarray;
 static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_ascontiguousarray;
 static PyObject *__pyx_n_s_b;
@@ -2371,13 +2384,12 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__2;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__3;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__4;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__5;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__6;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__7;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__8;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__9;
-static PyObject *__pyx_slice__31;
 static PyObject *__pyx_slice__32;
 static PyObject *__pyx_slice__33;
+static PyObject *__pyx_slice__34;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__10;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__11;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__12;
@@ -2399,43 +2411,44 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__27;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__28;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__29;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__30;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__34;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__31;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__35;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__36;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__37;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__39;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__41;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__43;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__45;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__38;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__40;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__42;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__44;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__46;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__48;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__50;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__52;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__47;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__49;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__51;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__53;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__55;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__57;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__59;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__61;
-static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__63;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__54;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__56;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__58;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__60;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__62;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__64;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__65;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__66;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__67;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__68;
 static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__69;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__38;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__40;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__42;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__44;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__47;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__49;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__51;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__54;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__56;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__58;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__60;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__62;
-static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__70;
+static PyObject *__pyx_tuple__70;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__39;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__41;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__43;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__45;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__48;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__50;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__52;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__55;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__57;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__59;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__61;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__63;
+static PyObject *__pyx_codeobj__71;
 
 /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":37
  * 
@@ -2821,11 +2834,13 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
   Py_ssize_t __pyx_t_9;
   Py_ssize_t __pyx_t_10;
   int __pyx_t_11;
-  Py_ssize_t __pyx_t_12;
-  PyObject **__pyx_t_13;
+  int __pyx_t_12;
+  int __pyx_t_13;
   Py_ssize_t __pyx_t_14;
-  Py_ssize_t __pyx_t_15;
+  PyObject **__pyx_t_15;
   Py_ssize_t __pyx_t_16;
+  Py_ssize_t __pyx_t_17;
+  Py_ssize_t __pyx_t_18;
   __Pyx_RefNannySetupContext("encode", 0);
 
   /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":90
@@ -2967,7 +2982,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
  *         data_length = 0
  *         for i in range(n_items):             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
  *             u = input_values[i]
- *             if not PyUnicode_Check(u):
+ *             if u is None or u == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize
  */
   __pyx_t_8 = __pyx_v_n_items;
   for (__pyx_t_9 = 0; __pyx_t_9 < __pyx_t_8; __pyx_t_9+=1) {
@@ -2977,8 +2992,8 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
  *         data_length = 0
  *         for i in range(n_items):
  *             u = input_values[i]             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
- *             if not PyUnicode_Check(u):
- *                 raise TypeError('expected unicode string, found %r' % u)
+ *             if u is None or u == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize
+ *                 u = u''
  */
     __pyx_t_10 = __pyx_v_i;
     __pyx_t_6 = (PyObject *) *((PyObject * *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_input_values.data + __pyx_t_10 * __pyx_v_input_values.strides[0]) ));
@@ -2989,56 +3004,99 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
     /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":103
  *         for i in range(n_items):
  *             u = input_values[i]
- *             if not PyUnicode_Check(u):             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
+ *             if u is None or u == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
+ *                 u = u''
+ *             elif not PyUnicode_Check(u):
+ */
+    __pyx_t_12 = (__pyx_v_u == Py_None);
+    __pyx_t_13 = (__pyx_t_12 != 0);
+    if (!__pyx_t_13) {
+    } else {
+      __pyx_t_11 = __pyx_t_13;
+      goto __pyx_L6_bool_binop_done;
+    }
+    __pyx_t_6 = __Pyx_PyInt_EqObjC(__pyx_v_u, __pyx_int_0, 0, 0); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 103, __pyx_L1_error)
+    __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_t_6);
+    __pyx_t_13 = __Pyx_PyObject_IsTrue(__pyx_t_6); if (unlikely(__pyx_t_13 < 0)) __PYX_ERR(0, 103, __pyx_L1_error)
+    __Pyx_DECREF(__pyx_t_6); __pyx_t_6 = 0;
+    __pyx_t_11 = __pyx_t_13;
+    __pyx_L6_bool_binop_done:;
+    if (__pyx_t_11) {
+
+      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":104
+ *             u = input_values[i]
+ *             if u is None or u == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize
+ *                 u = u''             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
+ *             elif not PyUnicode_Check(u):
+ *                 raise TypeError('expected unicode string, found %r' % u)
+ */
+      __Pyx_INCREF(__pyx_kp_u__6);
+      __Pyx_DECREF_SET(__pyx_v_u, __pyx_kp_u__6);
+
+      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":103
+ *         for i in range(n_items):
+ *             u = input_values[i]
+ *             if u is None or u == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
+ *                 u = u''
+ *             elif not PyUnicode_Check(u):
+ */
+      goto __pyx_L5;
+    }
+
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":105
+ *             if u is None or u == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize
+ *                 u = u''
+ *             elif not PyUnicode_Check(u):             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
  *                 raise TypeError('expected unicode string, found %r' % u)
  *             b = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(u)
  */
     __pyx_t_11 = ((!(PyUnicode_Check(__pyx_v_u) != 0)) != 0);
     if (__pyx_t_11) {
 
-      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":104
- *             u = input_values[i]
- *             if not PyUnicode_Check(u):
+      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":106
+ *                 u = u''
+ *             elif not PyUnicode_Check(u):
  *                 raise TypeError('expected unicode string, found %r' % u)             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
  *             b = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(u)
  *             l = PyBytes_GET_SIZE(b)
  */
-      __pyx_t_6 = __Pyx_PyString_Format(__pyx_kp_s_expected_unicode_string_found_r, __pyx_v_u); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 104, __pyx_L1_error)
+      __pyx_t_6 = __Pyx_PyString_Format(__pyx_kp_s_expected_unicode_string_found_r, __pyx_v_u); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 106, __pyx_L1_error)
       __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_t_6);
-      __pyx_t_2 = PyTuple_New(1); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_2)) __PYX_ERR(0, 104, __pyx_L1_error)
+      __pyx_t_2 = PyTuple_New(1); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_2)) __PYX_ERR(0, 106, __pyx_L1_error)
       __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_t_2);
       __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_t_6);
       PyTuple_SET_ITEM(__pyx_t_2, 0, __pyx_t_6);
       __pyx_t_6 = 0;
-      __pyx_t_6 = __Pyx_PyObject_Call(__pyx_builtin_TypeError, __pyx_t_2, NULL); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 104, __pyx_L1_error)
+      __pyx_t_6 = __Pyx_PyObject_Call(__pyx_builtin_TypeError, __pyx_t_2, NULL); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 106, __pyx_L1_error)
       __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_t_6);
       __Pyx_DECREF(__pyx_t_2); __pyx_t_2 = 0;
       __Pyx_Raise(__pyx_t_6, 0, 0, 0);
       __Pyx_DECREF(__pyx_t_6); __pyx_t_6 = 0;
-      __PYX_ERR(0, 104, __pyx_L1_error)
+      __PYX_ERR(0, 106, __pyx_L1_error)
 
-      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":103
- *         for i in range(n_items):
- *             u = input_values[i]
- *             if not PyUnicode_Check(u):             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
+      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":105
+ *             if u is None or u == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize
+ *                 u = u''
+ *             elif not PyUnicode_Check(u):             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
  *                 raise TypeError('expected unicode string, found %r' % u)
  *             b = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(u)
  */
     }
+    __pyx_L5:;
 
-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":105
- *             if not PyUnicode_Check(u):
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":107
+ *             elif not PyUnicode_Check(u):
  *                 raise TypeError('expected unicode string, found %r' % u)
  *             b = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(u)             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
  *             l = PyBytes_GET_SIZE(b)
  *             encoded_values[i] = b
  */
-    __pyx_t_6 = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(__pyx_v_u); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 105, __pyx_L1_error)
+    __pyx_t_6 = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(__pyx_v_u); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 107, __pyx_L1_error)
     __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_t_6);
     __Pyx_XDECREF_SET(__pyx_v_b, ((PyObject*)__pyx_t_6));
     __pyx_t_6 = 0;
 
-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":106
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":108
  *                 raise TypeError('expected unicode string, found %r' % u)
  *             b = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(u)
  *             l = PyBytes_GET_SIZE(b)             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
@@ -3047,21 +3105,21 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
  */
     __pyx_v_l = PyBytes_GET_SIZE(__pyx_v_b);
 
-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":107
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":109
  *             b = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(u)
  *             l = PyBytes_GET_SIZE(b)
  *             encoded_values[i] = b             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
  *             data_length += l + 4  # 4 bytes to store item length
  *             encoded_lengths[i] = l
  */
-    __pyx_t_12 = __pyx_v_i;
-    __pyx_t_13 = ((PyObject * *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_encoded_values.data + __pyx_t_12 * __pyx_v_encoded_values.strides[0]) ));
-    __Pyx_GOTREF(*__pyx_t_13);
-    __Pyx_INCREF(__pyx_v_b); __Pyx_DECREF(*__pyx_t_13);
-    *__pyx_t_13 = __pyx_v_b;
-    __Pyx_GIVEREF(*__pyx_t_13);
+    __pyx_t_14 = __pyx_v_i;
+    __pyx_t_15 = ((PyObject * *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_encoded_values.data + __pyx_t_14 * __pyx_v_encoded_values.strides[0]) ));
+    __Pyx_GOTREF(*__pyx_t_15);
+    __Pyx_INCREF(__pyx_v_b); __Pyx_DECREF(*__pyx_t_15);
+    *__pyx_t_15 = __pyx_v_b;
+    __Pyx_GIVEREF(*__pyx_t_15);
 
-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":108
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":110
  *             l = PyBytes_GET_SIZE(b)
  *             encoded_values[i] = b
  *             data_length += l + 4  # 4 bytes to store item length             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
@@ -3070,18 +3128,18 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
  */
     __pyx_v_data_length = (__pyx_v_data_length + (__pyx_v_l + 4));
 
-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":109
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":111
  *             encoded_values[i] = b
  *             data_length += l + 4  # 4 bytes to store item length
  *             encoded_lengths[i] = l             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
  * 
  *         # setup output
  */
-    __pyx_t_14 = __pyx_v_i;
-    *((int *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_encoded_lengths.data + __pyx_t_14 * __pyx_v_encoded_lengths.strides[0]) )) = __pyx_v_l;
+    __pyx_t_16 = __pyx_v_i;
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":113
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":115
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+  __pyx_t_6 = PyByteArray_FromStringAndSize(NULL, __pyx_v_total_length); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 115, __pyx_L1_error)
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":116
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":118
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":117
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":119
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":120
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":121
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":123
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":122
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":124
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-    __pyx_v_l = (*((int *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_encoded_lengths.data + __pyx_t_15 * __pyx_v_encoded_lengths.strides[0]) )));
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+    __pyx_v_l = (*((int *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_encoded_lengths.data + __pyx_t_17 * __pyx_v_encoded_lengths.strides[0]) )));
 
-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":123
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":125
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":124
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":125
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":127
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+    __pyx_t_18 = __pyx_v_i;
+    __pyx_t_6 = (PyObject *) *((PyObject * *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_encoded_values.data + __pyx_t_18 * __pyx_v_encoded_values.strides[0]) ));
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":126
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":128
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":127
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":129
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":149
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@@ -3429,7 +3487,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":150
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":152
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":156
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":157
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@@ -3484,7 +3542,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
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@@ -3493,14 +3551,14 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
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@@ -3511,7 +3569,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_8VLenUTF8_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyObj
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":227
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":229
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@@ -3959,23 +4019,23 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
  */
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":228
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":230
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  *         data_length = 0
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+ *             if b is None or b == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":229
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":231
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  *             b = values[i]             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
- *             if not PyBytes_Check(b):
- *                 raise TypeError('expected byte string, found %r' % b)
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@@ -3983,48 +4043,91 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":230
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-      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":231
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-      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":230
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- *             b = values[i]
- *             if not PyBytes_Check(b):             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":232
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+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":236
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":233
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  */
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":234
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":238
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-    *((int *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_lengths.data + __pyx_t_12 * __pyx_v_lengths.strides[0]) )) = __pyx_v_l;
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":237
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  */
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":238
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":242
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+  __pyx_t_6 = PyByteArray_FromStringAndSize(NULL, __pyx_v_total_length); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_6)) __PYX_ERR(0, 242, __pyx_L1_error)
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":241
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":245
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@@ -4082,7 +4185,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":242
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":246
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@@ -4091,7 +4194,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":245
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":249
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@@ -4100,7 +4203,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":246
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@@ -4111,17 +4214,17 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":247
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":251
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":248
+    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":252
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":249
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":250
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-    __pyx_t_6 = (PyObject *) *((PyObject * *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_values.data + __pyx_t_14 * __pyx_v_values.strides[0]) ));
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+    __pyx_t_6 = (PyObject *) *((PyObject * *) ( /* dim=0 */ (__pyx_v_values.data + __pyx_t_16 * __pyx_v_values.strides[0]) ));
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":251
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":252
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":254
+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":258
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@@ -4183,7 +4286,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_2encode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":207
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 }
 
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@@ -4462,14 +4565,14 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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@@ -4480,7 +4583,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":289
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@@ -4540,7 +4643,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":290
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@@ -4551,7 +4654,7 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":291
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-      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":292
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-      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":291
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":293
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":294
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-    /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":295
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@@ -4611,20 +4714,20 @@ static PyObject *__pyx_pf_9numcodecs_4vlen_9VLenBytes_4decode(CYTHON_UNUSED PyOb
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-      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":296
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-      /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":295
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":432
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   {&__pyx_n_s_allocate_buffer, __pyx_k_allocate_buffer, sizeof(__pyx_k_allocate_buffer), 0, 0, 1, 1},
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   __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__5);
 
-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":146
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-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__6);
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__7);
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":171
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__8);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__8);
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":218
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__9);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__9);
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":271
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  *             raise ValueError('corrupt buffer, missing or truncated header')             # <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":292
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":296
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  *             data += 4
  *             if data + l > data_end:
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":356
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__13);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__13);
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":370
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+  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":378
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__14);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__14);
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":413
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__15);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__15);
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":434
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__16);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__16);
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-  /* "numcodecs/vlen.pyx":438
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-  __pyx_tuple__17 = PyTuple_Pack(1, __pyx_kp_s_corrupt_buffer_data_seem_truncat); if (unlikely(!__pyx_tuple__17)) __PYX_ERR(0, 438, __pyx_L1_error)
-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__17);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__17);
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   /* "View.MemoryView":131
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@@ -20675,9 +20845,9 @@ static int __Pyx_InitCachedConstants(void) {
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__18);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__18);
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   /* "View.MemoryView":134
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@@ -20686,9 +20856,9 @@ static int __Pyx_InitCachedConstants(void) {
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__19);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__19);
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   /* "View.MemoryView":137
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@@ -20697,9 +20867,9 @@ static int __Pyx_InitCachedConstants(void) {
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__20);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__20);
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@@ -20708,9 +20878,9 @@ static int __Pyx_InitCachedConstants(void) {
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__21);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__21);
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   /* "View.MemoryView":174
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__22);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__22);
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__23);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__23);
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__24);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__24);
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@@ -20760,9 +20930,9 @@ static int __Pyx_InitCachedConstants(void) {
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__26);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__26);
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+  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__27);
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   /* "View.MemoryView":558
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@@ -20771,9 +20941,9 @@ static int __Pyx_InitCachedConstants(void) {
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-  __Pyx_GOTREF(__pyx_tuple__27);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__27);
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   /* "View.MemoryView":565
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-  PyTuple_SET_ITEM(__pyx_tuple__28, 0, __pyx_int_neg_1);
-  __Pyx_GIVEREF(__pyx_tuple__28);
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   /* "(tree fragment)":2
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+  __pyx_t_2 = __Pyx_PyObject_Call(((PyObject *)__pyx_MemviewEnum_type), __pyx_tuple__68, NULL); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_2)) __PYX_ERR(2, 289, __pyx_L1_error)
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   __Pyx_DECREF_SET(contiguous, __pyx_t_2);
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  * 
  * 
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-  __pyx_t_2 = __Pyx_PyObject_Call(((PyObject *)__pyx_MemviewEnum_type), __pyx_tuple__68, NULL); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_2)) __PYX_ERR(2, 290, __pyx_L1_error)
+  __pyx_t_2 = __Pyx_PyObject_Call(((PyObject *)__pyx_MemviewEnum_type), __pyx_tuple__69, NULL); if (unlikely(!__pyx_t_2)) __PYX_ERR(2, 290, __pyx_L1_error)
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   __Pyx_DECREF_SET(indirect_contiguous, __pyx_t_2);
@@ -22313,6 +22483,91 @@ static CYTHON_INLINE PyObject *__Pyx_GetItemInt_Fast(PyObject *o, Py_ssize_t i,
     return __Pyx_GetItemInt_Generic(o, PyInt_FromSsize_t(i));
 }
 
+/* PyIntBinop */
+  #if !CYTHON_COMPILING_IN_PYPY
+static PyObject* __Pyx_PyInt_EqObjC(PyObject *op1, PyObject *op2, CYTHON_UNUSED long intval, CYTHON_UNUSED int inplace) {
+    if (op1 == op2) {
+        Py_RETURN_TRUE;
+    }
+    #if PY_MAJOR_VERSION < 3
+    if (likely(PyInt_CheckExact(op1))) {
+        const long b = intval;
+        long a = PyInt_AS_LONG(op1);
+        if (a == b) {
+            Py_RETURN_TRUE;
+        } else {
+            Py_RETURN_FALSE;
+        }
+    }
+    #endif
+    #if CYTHON_USE_PYLONG_INTERNALS
+    if (likely(PyLong_CheckExact(op1))) {
+        const long b = intval;
+        long a;
+        const digit* digits = ((PyLongObject*)op1)->ob_digit;
+        const Py_ssize_t size = Py_SIZE(op1);
+        if (likely(__Pyx_sst_abs(size) <= 1)) {
+            a = likely(size) ? digits[0] : 0;
+            if (size == -1) a = -a;
+        } else {
+            switch (size) {
+                case -2:
+                    if (8 * sizeof(long) - 1 > 2 * PyLong_SHIFT) {
+                        a = -(long) (((((unsigned long)digits[1]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[0]));
+                        break;
+                    }
+                case 2:
+                    if (8 * sizeof(long) - 1 > 2 * PyLong_SHIFT) {
+                        a = (long) (((((unsigned long)digits[1]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[0]));
+                        break;
+                    }
+                case -3:
+                    if (8 * sizeof(long) - 1 > 3 * PyLong_SHIFT) {
+                        a = -(long) (((((((unsigned long)digits[2]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[1]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[0]));
+                        break;
+                    }
+                case 3:
+                    if (8 * sizeof(long) - 1 > 3 * PyLong_SHIFT) {
+                        a = (long) (((((((unsigned long)digits[2]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[1]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[0]));
+                        break;
+                    }
+                case -4:
+                    if (8 * sizeof(long) - 1 > 4 * PyLong_SHIFT) {
+                        a = -(long) (((((((((unsigned long)digits[3]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[2]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[1]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[0]));
+                        break;
+                    }
+                case 4:
+                    if (8 * sizeof(long) - 1 > 4 * PyLong_SHIFT) {
+                        a = (long) (((((((((unsigned long)digits[3]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[2]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[1]) << PyLong_SHIFT) | (unsigned long)digits[0]));
+                        break;
+                    }
+                #if PyLong_SHIFT < 30 && PyLong_SHIFT != 15
+                default: return PyLong_Type.tp_richcompare(op1, op2, Py_EQ);
+                #else
+                default: Py_RETURN_FALSE;
+                #endif
+            }
+        }
+            if (a == b) {
+                Py_RETURN_TRUE;
+            } else {
+                Py_RETURN_FALSE;
+            }
+    }
+    #endif
+    if (PyFloat_CheckExact(op1)) {
+        const long b = intval;
+        double a = PyFloat_AS_DOUBLE(op1);
+            if ((double)a == (double)b) {
+                Py_RETURN_TRUE;
+            } else {
+                Py_RETURN_FALSE;
+            }
+    }
+    return PyObject_RichCompare(op1, op2, Py_EQ);
+}
+#endif
+
 /* MemviewSliceInit */
   static int
 __Pyx_init_memviewslice(struct __pyx_memoryview_obj *memview,
diff --git a/numcodecs/vlen.html b/numcodecs/vlen.html
index b27a1749..2d7572da 100644
--- a/numcodecs/vlen.html
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+.cython .sd { color: #BA2121; font-style: italic } /* Literal.String.Doc */
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+.cython .se { color: #BB6622; font-weight: bold } /* Literal.String.Escape */
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+<div class="cython"><pre class="cython line score-8" onclick='toggleDiv(this)'>+<span class="">001</span>: <span class="c"># -*- coding: utf-8 -*-</span></pre>
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+<pre class="cython line score-8" onclick='toggleDiv(this)'>+<span class="">011</span>: <span class="k">import</span> <span class="nn">numpy</span> <span class="k">as</span> <span class="nn">np</span></pre>
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+</pre><pre class="cython line score-10" onclick='toggleDiv(this)'>+<span class="">039</span>:         <span class="k">raise</span> <span class="ne">TypeError</span><span class="p">(</span><span class="s">&#39;out must be 1-dimensional array&#39;</span><span class="p">)</span></pre>
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-<pre class="cython line score-0">&#xA0;<span class="">052</span>:     --------</pre>
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+<pre class="cython line score-0">&#xA0;<span class="">053</span>: <span class="sd">    &gt;&gt;&gt; import numcodecs</span></pre>
+<pre class="cython line score-0">&#xA0;<span class="">054</span>: <span class="sd">    &gt;&gt;&gt; import numpy as np</span></pre>
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-<pre class="cython line score-0">&#xA0;<span class="">062</span>:     numcodecs.pickles.Pickle, numcodecs.json.JSON, numcodecs.msgpacks.MsgPack</pre>
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+<pre class="cython line score-0">&#xA0;<span class="">312</span>: <span class="sd">    &gt;&gt;&gt; import numcodecs</span></pre>
+<pre class="cython line score-0">&#xA0;<span class="">313</span>: <span class="sd">    &gt;&gt;&gt; import numpy as np</span></pre>
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diff --git a/numcodecs/vlen.pyx b/numcodecs/vlen.pyx
index 3362e7c9..7f248e34 100644
--- a/numcodecs/vlen.pyx
+++ b/numcodecs/vlen.pyx
@@ -100,7 +100,9 @@ class VLenUTF8(Codec):
         data_length = 0
         for i in range(n_items):
             u = input_values[i]
-            if not PyUnicode_Check(u):
+            if u is None or u == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize
+                u = u''
+            elif not PyUnicode_Check(u):
                 raise TypeError('expected unicode string, found %r' % u)
             b = PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(u)
             l = PyBytes_GET_SIZE(b)
@@ -227,7 +229,9 @@ class VLenBytes(Codec):
         data_length = 0
         for i in range(n_items):
             b = values[i]
-            if not PyBytes_Check(b):
+            if b is None or b == 0:  # treat these as missing value, normalize
+                b = b''
+            elif not PyBytes_Check(b):
                 raise TypeError('expected byte string, found %r' % b)
             l = PyBytes_GET_SIZE(b)
             data_length += l + 4  # 4 bytes to store item length
@@ -365,7 +369,11 @@ class VLenArray(Codec):
         # first iteration to convert to bytes
         data_length = 0
         for i in range(n_items):
-            v = np.ascontiguousarray(values[i], self.dtype)
+            v = values[i]
+            if v is None:
+                v = np.array([], dtype=self.dtype)
+            else:
+                v = np.ascontiguousarray(v, self.dtype)
             if v.ndim != 1:
                 raise ValueError('only 1-dimensional arrays are supported')
             l = v.nbytes