End of the Year Award Ceremony Part 1
The stuff that isn't enough for a top 10
Last year, I did exhaustive work on my top 10, 20 and 100 lists. Lots of media, video games, music, board games, tv shows and movies all made the list.
This year was tougher for a lot of reasons. The biggest, as most of you probably know, was that from March until June I was out of commission. Life happens like that, but it really cut into my ability to consume media, at least enough to give it a critical evaluation.
Some things are still going to happen:
Top 10 Live Shows
Top 10 Movies
Top 20 Albums
Top 10 EPs
Top Songs
Favorite Bands Discovered this Year
I didn’t watch enough TV to give a fair list, but I will hit you with a quick list of my favorites to launch this. Keep in mind I still haven’t seen Shogun, Nobody Wants This, The Penguin, English Teacher, KAOS, Mr. & Mrs. Smith or Supracell. Or Only Murders in the Building, We Are Girl Parts, Silo (S1&2), Shrinking (S1&2). I haven’t finished Caped Crusader, Kite-Man, Vox Machina, Agatha All Along, Hazbin Hotel, or The Bear.
What I have watched and enjoyed:
Wow, what an accomplishment. It felt like how I remembered the X-men series from the 90s but improved upon it in every single facet. The writing and character development was impressive and episode 5 “Remember It” is probably the single best episode of television I’ve seen this year.
Bringing back so much of the original cast, while paying tribute to everyone they could, this is a show that does nostalgia right. Reboots, sequels and retreads are as old as media itself, but the best examples always take the original and build something better. If you enjoy Marvel properties, have fond memories of the original show or just want to see one of the best superhero shows ever made, this is it.
Controversy surrounding show runner Beau DeMayo means that we aren’t likely to see another season of this caliber, which is a crime.
Speaking of nostalgia, Cobra Kai Season 6 released parts 1 and 2. Part 1 lulled us in a sense of security before part 2 delivered one of the most intense moments in the entire series. It’s hard to describe this show in a way that makes it sound good.
It shouldn’t be good. It’s goofy a teen melodrama and a ridiculous martial arts movie based on a trilogy of declining quality feel good martial arts movies from the 80s. It started as a YouTube Red series before being picked up by Netflix.
There’s gratuitous screen chewing by Martin Kove, reprising his role as John Kreese. Ralph Macchio and William Zabka are still in fine form as Daniel-san and Johnny Lawrence. The ensemble of kids, who are now very much adults, has been trimmed back to most of the principle cast and it is for the better.
This season is very much an homage to the tournament movies that made Van Damme. Bloodsport and Kickboxer were already made family friendly by The Karate Kid and now we have a chance to bring that audience into a more adult setting. This isn’t the best the show has ever been, but part 2 is one of the finest runs of episodes they’ve had and I can’t wait for the finale next year.
Fallout succeeds where so many other video game adaptations fail. It tells an original story in the post-nuclear apocalyptic United States, while still staying true to the lore of the video games.
The cast is picture perfect with Walter Goggins playing The Ghoul, Ella Purnell as Vault Dweller Lucy MacLean and Aaron Moten as Maximum, a Squire in the Brotherhood of Steel. The little touches elevate the show, like when we get the visual representation of V.A.T.S. through context clues.
Or how the characters will lean into their S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats without ever telling us what they are or what it means. They don’t hold your hand or try to break it down for the uninitiated, it’s just there if you’re looking for it and otherwise you get an awesome show.
Too often adaptations try to replicate the medium of video games on the big screen and that doesn’t work. What makes video game narratives work is the interactive component. We are a part of the story that is being told. TV shows are, by their very nature, a passive engagement.
I hope this starts a trend in video game adaptations, as it is the gold standard as far as I am concerned (okay, or maybe Castlevania).
What have you seen this year that you loved? What shows do I need to add to my list?