Tuesday, December 31, 2013

2013 in TV

What a year for TV ... or marathoning, especially when it came to Castle and The West Wing (which I'm still in the middle of. Genre TV (sci-fi overall) has certainly been making a comeback, as has BBC America programming other than Doctor Who. What's been on your DVR queue this year, and what are you looking forward to next year TV-wise (apart from the obvious, like the final short season of Warehouse 13, the return of Hannibal, and season 4 of Game of Thrones)?
  1. Seasons 3 and 4 of Castle
  2. Series 2 of The Hour
  3. Fringe (season 5)
  4. The Walking Dead (season 3)
  5. The West Wing (season 1)
  6. The West Wing (season 2)
  7. Castle (season 5)
  8. Doctor Who (series 7.2)
  9. Game of Thrones (season 3)
  10. Orphan Black (series 1)
  11. Hannibal (season 1)
  12. The West Wing (season 3)
  13. Warehouse 13 (season 4)
  14. The West Wing (season 4)
  15. Gravity Falls (season 1)
  16. Under The Dome (season 1)
  17. The West Wing (season 5)
  18. Broadchurch (series 1)
  19. Luther (series 3)
  20. Breaking Bad (season 5)
  21. Avatar: The Legend of Korra - Spirits (Book/Season 2)
Still in progress/on hold/on hiatus: Sleepy Hollow, Almost Human, Castle (season 6), Agents of SHIELD, The Michael J. Fox Show, The West Wing (season 6), Downton Abbey (Series 2 + 3), Archer, The Venture Brothers, Wallander (Series 1), The Walking Dead (Season 4)

2013 in Novels

NEW RECORD! When I set my Goodreads goal of 115 books, I was a little unsure if I'd meet the goal, what with daily job searching and eventual job/internship-related things, but thanks to keeping up with several (Okay, more than several) comic arcs, I was able to meet my goal. Next year, though, I might cut back a bit to, say, 100? How'd you do this year with your reading goal, if you had one? Did you pick anything worth recommending off the library/brick-and-mortar shelves? (P.S. The stars indicate definite recommendations, if you were wondering.)
  1. The Hangman’s Daughter - Oliver Potzsch *
  2. Warm Bodies - Isaac Marion
  3. The Underwater Welder - Jeff Lemire
  4. Aliens: Inhuman Condition - John Layman
  5. Who Could That Be At This Hour? - Lemony Snicket
  6. The Unwritten: Inside Man (Vol. 2) - Mike Carey
  7. The Casual Vacancy - J.K. Rowling *
  8. The Unwritten: Dead Man’s Knock (Vol. 3) - Mike Carey
  9. The Unwritten: The Leviathan (Vol. 4) - Mike Carey
  10. Get Jiro! - Anthony Bourdain and Joel Rose
  11. iZombie: Dead To The World (Vol. 1) - Chris Roberson
  12. Kick-Ass - Mark Millar
  13. Hawkeye: My Life as a Weapon (Vol. 1) - Matt Fraction *
  14. Lot 13 - Steve Niles
  15. The Superior Spider-Man: My Own Worst Enemy (Vol. 1) - Dan Slott
  16. The Dark Monk - Oliver Potzsch *
  17. Fatale: Death Chases Me (Vol. 1) - Ed Brubaker *
  18. RIPD: City of the Damned - Patrick Thorpe
  19. The Manhattan Projects: Above Beyond (Vol. 2) - Jonathan Hickman *
  20. Tinker Tailor Solider Spy - John Le Carré
  21. Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde - Robert Louis Stevenson
  22. Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time Vol. 1 - Scott Tipton
  23. Deadpool: Dead Presidents (Vol. 1) - Brian Posehn *
  24. Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search, Part 1 - Gene Yung
  25. Morning Glories: Truants (Vol. 4) - Nick Spencer
  26. Cold Days (Dresden Files, Book 14) - Jim Butcher
  27. Full Dark, No Stars - Stephen King
  28. The Madness Underneath (Shades of London, Book 2) - Maureen Johnson
  29. Saga, Vol. 2 - Brian K. Vaughan *
  30. Star Trek: Countdown To Darkness - Mike Johnson
  31. R.I.P.D. - Peter Lenkov
  32. The Sandman: Endless Nights - Neil Gaiman
  33. Witch Doctor: Mal Practice (Vol. 2) - Brandon Seifert
  34. Doctor Who Series 3 Vol. 2 - Andy Diggle
  35. Iron Man: Believe (Marvel Now, Vol. 1) - Kieron Gillen
  36. Colder - Paul Tobin
  37. The Beggar King - Oliver Potzsch *
  38. Snapshot - Andy Diggle
  39. Great Pacific: Trashed (Vol. 1) - Joe Harris
  40. Fatale: The Devil’s Business (Vol. 2) - Ed Brubaker
  41. Fatale: West of Hell (Vol. 3) - Ed Brubaker
  42. NOS4A2 - Joe Hill *
  43. Pride of Baghdad - Brian K. Vaughan
  44. Gotham Central: In The Line of Duty (Vol. 1) - Ed Brubaker
  45. The Spectacular Now - Tim Tharp
  46. The Last Girlfriend on Earth - Simon Rich
  47. Young Avengers: Style & Substance (Vol. 1) - Kieron Gillen *
  48. The Superior Spider-Man: A Troubled Mind (Vol. 2) - Dan Slott
  49. Unnatural Creatures - Neil Gaiman
  50. The Darwin Awards: Countdown to Extinction - Wendy Northcutt
  51. Iron Man: The Secret Origin of Tony Stark (Vol. 2) - Kieron Gillen
  52. Pacific Rim: Tales From Year Zero - Travis Beacham
  53. Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Avengers (Vol. 1) - Brian Michael Bendis
  54. We Can Fix It - Jess Fink
  55. Hawkeye: Little Hits (Vol. 2) - Matt Fraction *
  56. Deadpool: Soul Hunter (Vol. 2) - Brian Posehn
  57. Secret Avengers: Reverie (Marvel Now, Vol. 1) - Nick Spencer *
  58. The New Ghostbusters (Vol. 1) - Erik Burnham *
  59. Nova: Origin (Vol. 1) - Jeph Loeb
  60. Revival: Live Like You Mean It (Vol. 2) - Tim Seeley
  61. Adulting - Kelly Williams Brown *
  62. Stiff - Mary Roach *
  63. Chew: Bad Apples (Vol. 7) - John Layman *
  64. Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search Part Two - Gene Yang
  65. The Shambling Guide to New York City - Mur Lafferty
  66. Wolverine: Hunting Season (Vol. 1) - Paul Cornell
  67. Joyland - Stephen King
  68. Doctor Who Series 3 Volume 3 - Andy Diggle
  69. Guardians of the Galaxy: Legends (Vol. 1) - Dan Abnett + Andy Lanning
  70. Guardians of the Galaxy: War of Kings Book 1 (Vol. 2) - “
  71. Guardians of the Galaxy: War of Kings Book 2 (Vol. 3) - “
  72. The Unwritten: On To Genesis (Vol. 5) - Mike Carey
  73. Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time Volume 2 - Scott and David Tipton
  74. The Walking Dead: The Best Defense (Vol. 5) - Robert Kirkman
  75. The Walking Dead: This Sorrowful Life (Vol. 6) - “
  76. The Walking Dead: The Calm Before (Vol. 7) - “
  77. The Walking Dead: Made To Suffer (Vol. 8) - “
  78. The Walking Dead: Here We Remain (Vol. 9) - “
  79. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman *
  80. The Poisoned Pilgrim - Oliver Potzsch *
  81. Young Avengers: Alternative Cultures (Vol. 2) - Kieron Gillen *
  82. The Middleman: Volume 1 - Javier Grillo-Marxuach
  83. The Middleman: The Second Volume Inevitability - “
  84. The Middleman: The Third Volume Inescapability - “
  85. The Middleman: The Doomsday Armageddon Apocalypse - “
  86. The New Deadwardians - Dan Abnett
  87. Hoax Hunters - Michael Moreci
  88. The Unwritten: Tommy Taylor and the War of Words (Vol. 6) - Mike Carey
  89. The Unwritten: The Wound (Vol. 7) - “
  90. The Walking Dead: What We Become (Vol. 10) - Robert Kirkman
  91. The Walking Dead: Fear The Hunters (Vol. 11) - “
  92. The Walking Dead: Life Among Them (Vol. 12) - “
  93. Mara - Brian Wood *
  94. The Manhattan Projects: Building (Vol. 3) - Jonathan Hickman *
  95. Doctor Sleep - Stephen King
  96. Bonk - Mary Roach *
  97. Iron Man: The Secret Origin of Tony Stark, Book 2 (Vol. 3) - Kieron Gillen
  98. Deadpool Kills Deadpool - Cullen Bunn
  99. Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search Part 3 - Gene Luen Yang
  100. The Walking Dead: Too Far Gone (Vol. 13) - Robert Kirkman
  101. The Walking Dead: No Way Out (Vol. 14) - “
  102. Avengers AI: Human After All (Vol. 1) - Sam Humphries
  103. Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time Vol. 3 - Scott and David Tipton
  104. Secret Avengers: Iliad (Vol. 2) - Nick Spencer *
  105. When Did You See Her Last? (ATWQ #2) - Lemony Snicket *
  106. Thanos Rising - Jason Aaron
  107. Doctor Who: Dead Man’s Hand (Vol. 4) - Tony Lee
  108. Captain Marvel: In Pursuit of Flight (Vol. 1) - Kelly Sue DeConnick *
  109. Captain Marvel: Down (Vol. 2) - “ *
  110. Avengers: The Enemy Within - “ *
  111. Locke & Key: Alpha and Omega (Vol. 6) - Joe Hill *
  112. S. - J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst *
  113. You - Austin Grossman
  114. The Walking Dead: We Find Ourselves (Vol. 15) - Robert Kirkman
  115. Guardians of the Galaxy: Angela (Vol. 2) - Brian Michael Bendis

2013 in Film


Not a bad year this year in terms of films, but then again, I wasn't trying the 365 Film Challenge this year. Just under half were theatrical releases and just over half were on DVD/TV. Reviews are linked where indicated. What'd you catch this year? How many grades/reviews do we agree upon? Let me know, and happy viewing into the new year!
  1. The Thin Man (dir. W.S.  Van Dyke, 1934)
  2. Silver Linings Playbook (dir. David O. Russell, 2012) - A
  3. The Innkeepers (dir. Ti West, 2011) - B
  4. The Raid: Redemption (dir. Gareth Evans, 2012) - A-
  5. Live Free or Die Hard (dir. Len Wiseman, 2007) - C+
  6. Surrogates (dir. Jonathan Mostow, 2009) - C+
  7. Frankenweenie (dir. Tim Burton, 2012) - B
  8. Total Recall (dir. Len Wiseman, 2012) - B
  9. The A-Team (dir. Joe Carnahan, 2010) - B
  10. Dredd (dir. Pete Taylor, 2012) - B
  11. Kick-Ass (dir. Matthew Vaughan, 2010) - B+ (rewatch)
  12. Bronson (dir. Nicholas Winding Refn, 2008) - B
  13. Jiro Dreams of Sushi (dir. David Gelb, 2011) - A
  14. Evil Dead (dir. Fede Alvarez, 2013) - B+
  15. The Place Beyond The Pines (dir. Derek Cianfrance, 2013) - A-
  16. Trance (dir. Danny Boyle, 2013) - B+
  17. Murder By Decree (dir. Bob Clark, 1979) - B-
  18. Iron Man 3 (dir. Shane Black, 2013) - B/B+ (Review on Monday Morning Matinee)
  19. The Great Gatsby (dir. Baz Luhrmann, 2013) - D+/C- (Review on Monday Morning Matinee)
  20. Star Trek Into Darkness (dir. J.J. Abrams, 2013) - B/B+ (Review on Monday Morning Matinee)
  21. Sicko (dir. Michael Moore, 2006) - A-
  22. Man of Steel (dir. Zack Snyder, 2013) - B (Review on Monday Morning Matinee)
  23. Much Ado About Nothing (dir. Joss Whedon, 2013) - B+/A- (Review on Monday Morning Matinee)
  24. Pacific Rim (dir. Guillermo del Toro, 2013) (Review on Monday Morning Matinee)
  25. Despicable Me 2 (dir. Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin, 2013) - B
  26. The Wolverine (dir. James Mangold, 2013) - B+
  27. Pitch Perfect (dir. Jason Moore, 2012) - B+
  28. The Man With The Iron Fists (dir. RZA, 2012) - C
  29. Shaun of the Dead (dir. Edgar Wright, 2004) - A (rewatch)
  30. Hot Fuzz (dir. Edgar Wright, 2007) - A (rewatch)
  31. The World’s End (dir. Edgar Wright, 2013) - A-
  32. Sin City (dir. Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez, 2005) - C
  33. Hunger (dir. Steve McQueen, 2009) - A
  34. Doctor Who: The Movie (dir. Geoffrey Sax, 1996) - B-
  35. The Butler (dir. Lee Daniels, 2013) - B+/A-
  36. Fruitvale Station (dir. Ryan Coogler, 2013) - A-
  37. In A World (dir. Lake Bell, 2013) - A-
  38. Prisoners (dir. Denis Villeneuve, 2013) - B+/A- (Review on Monday Morning Matinee)
  39. Don Jon (dir. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 2013) - A-
  40. Gravity (dir. Alfonso Cuaron, 2013) - A+
  41. Smashed (dir. James Ponsoldt, 2012) - A-
  42. Burton and Taylor (dir. Richard Laxton, 2013) - B
  43. Fargo (dir. Joel Coen, 1996) (rewatch) - A-
  44. Justice League: Doom (dir. Lauren Montgomery, 2012) - A-
  45. Thor: The Dark World (dir. Alan Taylor, 2013) - B+
  46. Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor (dir. Nick Hurran, 2013) - A
  47. An Adventure in Time and Space (dir. Terry McDonough, 2013) - A-
  48. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (dir. Francis Lawrence, 2013) - A-
  49. Dallas Buyers Club (dir. Jean Marc-Vallée, 2013) - A
  50. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (dir. Peter Jackson, 2013) - B+ (Review on Monday Morning Matinee)
  51. American Hustle (dir. David O. Russell, 2013) - A
  52. Inside Llewyn Davis (dir. Joel and Ethan Coen, 2013) - B+/A-
  53. Her (dir. Spike Jonze, 2013) - A-