2008 Wrap-Up

Like last year, I've got a list summing up my favorite things. I'm grateful for all the wonderful things I got to experience this year, including the chance to explore not only Paris but Tokyo. What a year.

Favorite Music:
The Monkey: Journey to the West soundtrack, by Damon Albarn. Gorillaz is my favorite band, so listening to what sounds like the Gorillaz in a Chinese opera is awesome.
Anything by Hatsune Miku. Cute songs I have pull up on YouTube once in a while.
The Thing a Week albums by Jonathan Coulton. I first heard about him after hearing "Still Alive" in Portal, and now I'm hooked.
Flight of the Conchords's self-titled album. Those crazy New Zealanders!
Viva La Vida by Coldplay. I was a little worried after their last album, but this new one's really something. "Strawberry Swing" in particular.

Favorite Films:



Persepolis was fantastic. There's not too many black-and-white modern films out there; even fewer are animated. You forget how rich black-and-white can look.
The Dark Knight, for all the conventional reasons. I won't bore you with them.
Sweeney Todd, which I only just saw this year. I know. Shut up.
Iron Man, for Downey Junior. I love that man.
Wall-E. What more is there to say?

Favorite Games:
Portal is amazing. Even if I hopped on the train a bit late, I'm grateful that I got to play it.
Beautiful Katamari, if only for the level where you roll around the King of the Cosmos and listen to him go "Yay! Yay!" when you pick stuff up. He sounded like that guy on the Simpsons who goes "Yee-essssss!"

Favorite Books/Comics:

Last year was a bit of a cop-out, so I'm doing a bit of a better job this year.



Pluto by Naoki Urasawa. The official English translation has yet to come out, but reading it online has completely sucked me in. It's based on a well-known Astro Boy story from the sixties, but was remade into a thoughtful sci-fi murder mystery. In a way, it reminds me of Sandman and how it retold old DC stories.



The Great Outdoor Fight by Chris Onstad. The story itself is available for free on the website, but there's something so satisfying about holding the story in your hand, especially when it's the best Achewood story yet. What great writing.



Black Jack by Osamu Tezuka. Yeah, those books I won in that contest? Beautiful! All this medical drama makes me want to start watching House again.

And finally, the internet gave me a late Christmas present. It's an acoustic rendition of the Wind Waker theme by Fredrik Larsson, a 23-year old Swede. Tell me this isn't beautiful.



Happy new year, everybody.

It's such a perfect day