If I write only one blog post a year, it’ll be this one.
====BOOKS====
Favourite: THE QUARRY, by Iain Banks
An autistic teenager watches his middle-aged father die of cancer while their house slowly collapses into a quarry. Dad’s old university friends show up for a final Big Chill bash, and try to keep old secrets buried. Banks’ final novel is the most Banksian of them all…except all the adults in the novel are roughly my age.
Disappointment: THE LONG DARK, by Stephen R. Donaldson
What started twenty-odd years ago as nightmare-fuelled solipsistic psychodrama fizzles as Thomas Covenant resolves his anger issues by inviting at least four outsiders back to the Land and settling for fantasy instead of reality. This was a marathon I wish I hadn’t run.
Surprise: DIVINE MISFORTUNE, by A. Lee Martinez
There are good comic fantasy novels written by folks not named Pratchett or Morrow. Given that the main character is a racoon-shaped God of Luck, it helped that I had already seen Guardians of the Galaxy!
Observations: 2014 was the year I finally caught up with my unread pile of books! Sure, I gave some unread books away, but I worked my way through the Howards, Kays, Atwoods and Banks that were glaring at me from my bookshelf.
====COMICS (Print)====
Favourite: MAGNUS: ROBOT FIGHTER / SOLAR: MAN OF THE ATOM
I have always loved the Gold Key characters, from summer vacations with the family through Valiant to the Jim Shooter-led reboots at Dark Horse (but I didn’t like the Acclaim years). This year, Dynamite books took up the charge: Magnus was reimagined as something thoroughly modern, with jokes about the Singularity and the Bechdel Test, and Solar was Erica the architect, haunted by the nuclear ghost of her foolhardy and aloof father, Phil. Alas, they will only last for twelve issues apiece, but it was a wonderful ride.
Disappointment: KILL SHAKESPEARE: MASK OF NIGHT / DOCTOR SPEKTOR: MASTER OF THE OCCULT
Two mini-series, two disappointments. Kill Shakespeare pushes the “all Shakespearean characters in one universe” one joke too far. Perhaps it comes from me systematically reading the plays, but the I could see all the twists and turns a mile off, and the mismatched quotes were annoying rather than clever. Doctor Spektor is a rare failure from Mark Waid: he normally excells as locked-room mysteries and master detective characters, but this mystery was convoluted without being engaging. I wonder if the licensor imposed too much interference.
Surprise: NELVANA OF THE NORTHERN LIGHTS
Thanks to the efforts of Hope Nicholson and Rachel Richey, I discovered the “Canadian Whites” — the WWII-era, all-Canadian produced comics. The artwork is gorgeous. The content…is of its time. Naturally, I’ve jumped on the next restorations: Johnny Canuck and Brok Windsor. Oh, Canada!
Observations: As titles fall of my list, I’m not replacing them. This leaves more room in the budget for comics for the kids!
=====COMICS(Electronic)====
Favourite: FIVE GHOSTS
This feels like a comic book from another era: pulp adventure by Frank J Barbiere and drawn as if by Joe Kubert and inked by Klaus Janson (actually Chris Mooneyham — his art is just that good). The high-concept: a treasure hunter is haunted by five pulp archetypes, represented by Robin Hood, Sherlock Holmes, Dracula, Merlin and Miyomoto Musashi. The abilities kick in (and occasionally take over) as temples are raided. Great stuff from start to finish
Disappointment: FINAL CRISIS
Comixology sales are a great way to catch up on series I missed in print. I wish I had left this Grant Morrison-penned epic crossover alone. It’s a mess of Monitors, Apokalips, transmogrified heroes and villains and a missing Superman. I don’t think Morrison should write crossovers where half the info is left out…he should only write mini-series.
Surprise: WE3
Speaking of which, Morrison’s military take on “The Amazing Journey” is action packed and affecting. I thought it would be just twaddle as the trio of a dog, cat and rabbit demobbed from military service as remote-controlled killing machines. Instead, I got something in my eye.
Observations: I picked up more comics by volume electronically than at the local store. The Comixology sales and Humble Bundles are great incentives. I’ll almost always stick to the physical books for trades, but this will be how I pick up floppies in the future. I don’t mind waiting, and you can’t $1/book is just the right price.
=====GAMES(Mobile)====
Favourite: LETTER QUEST
This is the spelling/combat/rpg that I’ve always wanted, which a nifty array of power-ups, villains, special game conditions and quests. I gladly paid for the premium version…twice (once on iOS, once on Android).
Disappointment: DOCTOR WHO: LEGACY
I’d prfer my Doctor Who games be closer to Puzzle Quest than Puzzles and Dragons. This version was plainly tedious, no matter how steeped in Whovian lore.
Surprise: THREES!
Most folks play the 2048 rip-offs, but this adorable slider puzzle is worth full price AND Apple’s Mobile Game of the Year honours. I’ve almost missed my train stop on several occasions due to this game, but I keep coming back for more.
Observations: All these mobile games have retrained my gaming expectations. I know want to play short sessions in rapid succession, but I have no patience for longer games. I don’t know how I’d handle a console game at this point (though, really, when do I have the time?)
=====GAMES(Tablet)====
Favourite: DEAD MAN’S DRAW
I believe this game started as a physical Kickstarter product and the app was a bonus. I’m glad it was, because it’s a simple and entertaining push-your-luck style card game with a ladder of unlockable power-ups. Now I want the physical deck!
Disappointment: DUNGEON KEEPER
I work in F2P mobile games, and I personally enjoy the builder/raider variety. This game served neither genre particularly well. I must admit that the soft-launch version was more flexible and fun, but it probably didn’t monetize well, because the official launch version had even higher costs and longer wait timers.
Surprise: DWARVEN DEN
This is a fun little randomized dungeon explorer game that could have been a harsh time and money extractor, but it kept me playing because it left all the important gameplay choices to me. If I ran out of energy before reaching the target, I felt that it was because I made a sub-optimal choice. I didn’t blame the dungeon randomizer. I didn’t keep playing, but it was a a fun month while it lasted.
Observations: I “finished” 3 different builder games this year: MY LITTLE PONY, ARCHIE: RESCUE RIVERDALE, and SPONGEBOB MOVES IN. (By “finished” I mean that all the territory had been unlocked and the only tasks left to complete cost real money.) I enjoy reaching the end point of supposedly “infinite” games.
====MOVIES (First-Run)====
Favourite: CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER / BOYHOOD
WINTER SOLDIER is my favourite action film since the BOURNE trilogy — some of those stunts actually made me gasp. Cap is disappointed with the future, Black Widow is both whimsical and world-weary, and Falcon is terrific addition to the team. Only in this film will I acknowledge Bucky’s return from the dead.
BOYHOOD almost felt like an uncomfortable documentary. Some of the moments were too intimate and heartbreaking not to be real. Exceptional work from all the actors from start to finish.
Disappointment: INTERSTELLAR / X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST
Honestly, neither film was bad. They were just too…self-aware, and I found myself watching the spectacle of their existence instead of falling into the story. But I won’t soon forget TARS or Quicksilver.
Surprise: LOCKE / CASSE-TETE CHINOIS
I had no plans to see either of these films when I did, but sellouts and subway led me this way. I’m glad they did.
LOCKE is a the single best thing I’ve seen Tom Hardy perform in…and all he’s doing is talking to 4-5 people on speakerphone during a late-night drive to London. It’s a one-act play more than anything else, but utterly engrossing. I find myself talking in the car in much the same way.
CASSE-TETE CHINOIS is a French rom-com about a 40 year-old divorced man who follows his ex-wife and his university friends to New York City. The whole film had a shaggy, comfortable and playful feel, as all the characters and actors had known each other for years…and it turns out, they did! This is the third movie in a series (AUBERGE ESPAGNOLE and POUPEES RUSSES), and I’d be happy to revisit this gang every 5 or 6 years.
Honourable Mentions: VERONICA MARS / WOLF COP
My cinematic world is a better place because these crazy crowdfunded films!
Observations: I saw many more films than usual this year, seen three movies more than once, and generally been working the Cineplex movie points system hard.
====MOVIES (DVD/Stream)====
Favourite: MOONRISE KINGDOM
Wes Anderson can stop making movies after this excellent coming-of-autumn/coming-of-age tale of misunderstood young love at a sleepaway camp. Nobody really speaks as they do in Anderson films, but the kids here convince me that they do.
Disappointment: TO DO LIST
Aubrey Plaza is so breathtakingly dry that I thought she’d be hilarious in a Wet Hot American sex farce. Instead, it’s just gross and annoying. I stopped watching half an hour in.
Surprise: POPULAIRE
A delightful 60s-set French rom-com about…an international speed-typing competition! Sexy and silly from start to finish.
Observations: It seems like every other film I stream is foreign, independent or bilingual…and often all 3 at the same time!
====MUSIC====
Favourite: THE GOLDEN ECHO, by Kimbra / PLECTRUM ELECTRUM by Prince & Third Eye Girl
A pair of funky albums rounded out my soundtrack of the year. Kimbra’s sophomore effort goes full-bore experimental (apropos of nothing: parts of it were recorded near my office!), and Prince’s new band is as glitzy and glam as I remember him being 30 years ago. If you need an up-tempo groove for marching in the street or something slick to seduce that special someone…these albums have you covered.
Disappointment: Turn Blue, by The Black Keys
It’s not them, it’s me: this was not the divorce concept album for me. In fact, last year’s disappointing album was also a divorce album. They should come with a warning.
Surprise: BLANK PROJECT, by Neneh Cherry
OMG! I’ve had her under my skins since we used to hang in a Buffalo Stance. Her new album feels like we reunited after never growing apart. This is better than a nostalgic rediscovery. Plus, there’s a track with Robyn!
Observations: Every album I bought, I was able to stream a preview either on iTunes, NPR, Rolling Stone, Spotify or CBC Music (which means I shouldn’t have been surprised by the disappointment…or bought the album at all, really).
====TV SHOWS (First-Watch)====
Favourite: ORPHAN BLACK S2
Breakneck pacing from start to (almost) the finish for all the clones AND, more interestingly, for all the supporting characters. Mrs. S and Donnie had a particularly eventful time this season. The cliffhanger sets up a terrific obvious-yet-unexpected twist for Season 3 (which can’t come soon enough as far as I’m concerned).
Disappointment: JUSTIFIED S5
Season 4 ended on a false note, literally: Raylan is an accessory to a perfectly justifiable mob hit, and he walks off to the strains of his own bad-ass theme song. All season, I expected him to pay the price, but he didn’t. It was glossed over. Meanwhile, Boyd Crowder takes such a business beating that I felt badly for him, and the cliffhanger setting up the final season does not look promising. I’m hoping not to be disappointed.
Surprise: DOCTOR WHO S8
Well, well, well. Doctor Who as a cranky uncle is a delight! My kids and I watch each episode and identify all the moments when he behaves as a jerk. It’s a relief to be free of the Pond and Song plotlines.
Observations: I’m bummed that AirMiles is making it harder to redeem points for iTunes certificates. Next year’s worth of TV will feel more expensive.
====TV SHOWS (Stream)====
Favourite: DAMAGES
Flash-forwards, waking nightmares and death glares from steeliest eyes in the business: DAMAGES is perfect for a binge watch. But as much fun as I had watching Glenn Close veer between obsessive to guilt-ridden to evil, I enjoyed Rose Byrne’s reluctant transformation into a hard-nosed attorney who raged with the best of them. But the highlight each season was the fixer character who worked for the big bad — especially Martin Short. He was spectacular.
Disappointment: BROTHERHOOD
I wanted to like this show much more than I did: Jason Isaacs is always great in a crime story (Malfoy who?), and the Cain and Abel setup is terrific, but I couldn’t get past the over-the-top petty crime plotting, small-town politicking (man, Rhode Island is teeny!) and ear-chopping. I stopped after 4 episodes.
Surprise: RECTIFY
The most slow-paced, arresting series I’ve watched. Start with Daniel Holden, a man released from a 20-year long stint on death row, and spent a couple of weeks watching him try to find his way into his family, town, home…even his own clothes. His precise degree of guilt is left an open question, but he’s clearly no innocent.
Observations: 50 episodes is pretty much the outer limit for a series I’ll binge-watch on Netflix. I can’t muster the energy to attack long-running shows like FRINGE or THE GOOD WIFE. Better to get in the ground floor.