One last for the road
In the previous letter, I listed my top drawings from 2022 and in this final post of the year, I will share my movie and reading list as well as talk about a game I truly enjoyed.
On the off-chance you didn’t know, there’s a landscape of apps and sites to track your media consumption. In the past I’ve been nothing but down right lazy when logging my movies are concerned, so I’m trying to correct that from here-on out.
Movies are forever
2021 marked ten years since I first started my bachelor degree in animation. While I’ve always had a fondness for media in general, my degree further cemented that love combined with educational knowledge. However I’ve been rather horrible at watching films the older I get. The main culprit is work. Being a workaholic to the bone challenges most of my hobbies and this year I set out to correct that in every way.
For a full list (more or less) of what I’ve watched in 2022, I’ve compiled it all over on letterboxd. Looking back, I could’ve made an effort to watch a little more diverse stuff, but I have a bad habit of falling back on safe and familiar watches. And for disliking Marvel like the plague, I still watched 6 of those wretched movies. Time to prioritize differently.
My favorite of 2022
Rest assured, my account has not been compromised and you are indeed seeing Sonic 2. When I first watched Sonic 1, I was quite surprised to witness the sheer quality put into the movie. Especially after the initial designs of our blue friend.
Jim Carrey positively stole the show, taking his role as Eggman very seriously. I’m delighted to say that Sonic 2 underlines Carrey’s delivery and brings more of the good stuff. This movie is made by a team that 100% understands their audience and it’s a pure delight being treated with respect and presented passionate fun. Not to mention Idris Elba as a stoic, himbo Knuckles is probably the funniest thing I’ve experienced all year. Fun for the kids, even funnier for adults.
The worst of 2022
Unless you’re completely new to my online presence, you’re acutely aware of my disdain towards most things Marvel. Yet for some godforsaken reason, I keep giving the MCU a shot.
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”
I think this quote from Einstein best sums up my relationship with Marvel by now. If I am completely transparent, I went into this movie with one goal: to see Christian Bale look very cool and evil and probably deliver a good part. Which he did. It’s such a shame then, that his screen time feels short of 10 minutes out of the 119 minutes running time. Thor: Love and Thunder has to be some of the most disjointed mess I’ve ever witnessed on the big screen. With a goat joke played into tedium and a Russel Crowe in the role as Zeus sounding as if he’s doing a Super Mario impression, I questioned if I was watching a parody. Safe to say the MCU isn’t made for me, but this felt like turbo trash of the highest order.
I was elected to lead, not to read
My goal for 2022 was to read 12 books - one for each month. I’m both surprised and happy to say I almost met the goal just shy of two books. To see a complete list of books and comics from this year, I compiled it all on my Storygraph account.
I do not wish to spend time on listing what books I didn’t like (since it’s a much smaller team putting hard work into a book than a movie and therefore the criticism lands much harder and more personal, imo). So without further ado, let me talk about my favorite!
My Best Friend’s Exorcism
This book was a chance purchase at the airport during the summer when traveling to Germany. A delay in my flight jerked me into the closest bookstore to kill time and the cover immediately had my attention. Between the weathered edges and the 80’s VHS aesthetic, I had paid before even finishing reading the blurb. As my plane landed at Frankfurt am Main, I had already plowed through 3/4 of the book. Until my luggage finally arrived, my eyes were glued to the pages. It’s an easy read with fun language and immersive storytelling. Hendrix write relatable, young female characters and while he has a tendency to be “too authentic” at times (read: problematic and dated 80’s language), I still found the story very entertaining. It’s not often I wish to re-read a book, but writing this snippet makes me want to pick it right back up.
Do you guys not have phones?
Let’s round this up with the one consistent hobby of my life: Video games. 2022 was such an incredible game year, yet my favorite title came as quite the surprise. It’s a game I didn’t even intend on picking up. Looking back at my favorite book title, perhaps I ought to do random purchases a little more often?
Lords and Rings
Now let’s settle one thing straight out the gate: I am not a Souls player. My only claim to any FromSoft headline is when Bloodborne was free with PS+ and I got my ass royally handed to me within half an hour and thus never looked back. While I was always hyped and happy for the fans whenever new Elden Ring content got teased, I always brushed it off with “I’m never going to play that. It’s not for me.” Launch day came and went and I was headed into a severe burnout after two years of constant work and psychological hardship. So what could possibly make more sense than to randomly go “Do I seek even more challenges in the form of video games? Why yes indeed”? Yet that’s exactly what happened. Roughly 150 hours later I’d laid claim to the title of Elden Lord. But not before dying over 300 times in the Lands Between, simping hard for Blaidd the Wolf and mourning the faith of a god damn bipedal jar. At first I thought this would land at a top 10 spot of my all time favs, but by the end it’s safe to say this is at least a top 5. I finally understood the immense satisfaction of downing a particularly difficult boss, or cheesing one that gave you nothing but grief.
The two art books are headed for an English release next year and you can bet your butt I’ll be first in line to claim these beauties, eager to revisit the splendor that is Elden Ring. In the meantime I might just boot up the game, start over and re-experience the joy that is getting beaten senseless by a giant, detached hand.
What were some titles you enjoyed this year? Did you have any media goals and if so, please share them with me, yeah?
-Jaws
I really need to watch the Sonic movies, they seem like a good time =o
I didn't really have any goals last year but I did try to reconnect with media in general.
For games, Horizon Forbidden West and Bloodborne reign supreme (although FF14 is a constant companion).
I didn't really watch movies, but I've gotten back into One Piece, Tiger & Bunny and Mob Psycho 100% (last two got new seasons last year) and loving them.
And last but definitely not least, I finally started reading again and The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern had me absolutely enchanted.