Tuesday, March 3, 2009

"Capitalism is ending, either because of the Soviets or of something ridiculous, like a woman president..."

(I'm obviously at a loss for a post picture, so this one--despite being a total non-sequitur in relation to what follows it--will have to do.)

2008 Greatest Hits (or something...)


Well...I appear to think I'm pretty awesome, in that I've included forty-eight posts below...and only posted sixty-two times the entire year (in my defense, three of the posts included here are year in reviews, and weren't put up until '09). Perhaps "Recapping 2008" is a more appropriate title. Anyway, off we go:

-January 11th:
Kid Nation Running Diary: re-read part of this today and, I have to say, how the hell did they not renew this show? It's priceless. (Shame it didn't air on the increasingly desperate NBC, where they would, no doubt, have made it their flagship program).

-January 30th:
The Wire: Season Four review: of note is me teasing a Wire vs. Sopranos head-to-head comparison that, thirteen months later, I still haven't started. (Don't go holding your breath for that one, all five of my readers--although, interestingly, I don't think any of my friends have watched both these programs in their entirety...Robbie, have you watched The Sopranos? If so, you might be the only one that qualifies...future team-up?)

-February 5th: Super-Duper Tuesday Liveblog: I thought it turned out fine, but it was a massive fucking pain to update every few minutes (in real time), so, yeah, I won't be doing that again anytime soon...

-February 11th:
The Moment of Truth running diary: kicking myself for not having the foresight to do this for last night's Bachelor season finale, which was both spectacular and disgraceful (you suck, Jason). Next time.

-February 20th:
Best TV Shows of the 1990s: ah, nostalgia.

-March 13th:
Best Albums of the 1990s: I remember this one taking wayyyy longer than I anticipated (the TV one, too). As a result, this "best of each decade" project has a target completion date of 2045.

-March 20th through April 8th: NCAA Tournament posts:
Teams 65 - 33, Teams 32 - 1, Recap: The First Four Days, Round 3 and 4 Preview, Recap: Rounds 3 and 4, Championship Game Thoughts: truthfully, on the whole, these posts were remarkably poorly received (two comments for the six posts combined), which suggests the whole thing was pretty self-indulgent. And you know what? I'm totally going to do it again this year. Also: notable for me including the following in my tournament preview about eventual national champion Kansas: I know, I know, you this team, John Q. Office Pool. You loved them last year (lost in the Elite Eight), and in 2006 (First Round), and in 2005 (First Round), but not as much as this year. No way. Go for it. I dare you. I dare you. I dare you. Ouch.

-May 15th:
On Revamping College Football: amazingly, this is the only time I've written about college football. I like this piece because I absolutely crush the BCS. Nine months, a full season, and another lackluster national championship between two one-loss teams (ratings were down 9% this year) later, it still holds up.

-May 28th:
The Best Lost Episodes of All-Time: also, if you watch Lost, Mark and I rank the best episodes:

-June 3rd: Running Diary of the Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee:
Future Potential Employer in 2018: Kyle, why do all your running diaries involve small children?

Me: [horrified] I. Don't. Know.
-June 11th and June 14th: The Top 25 Video Games of the 1990s: Part one (#25-#13) and part two (#12-#1). Lots of comments between these two posts--18 in all--as nothing seems to get people more nostalgic than 8- and 16-bit gaming systems. Probably my two favorite post pics.

-June 17th:
Shuk and I Rank Tiger's Major Victories: ...happily, this post isn't obsolete, insofar as Tiger hasn't played in a major since we wrote it. Yay!

-June 19th and June 22nd:
Revisions to the AFI 10 Top 10's: part one and part two. In retrospect, maybe a bit hard to follow.

-June 27th: Euro 2008 Recap: because, really, when else will I talk about soccer on the blog? Notable for two of the three comments (one here, one on Facebook) strongly insinuating (not unjustifiably) that I'm a total idiot when it comes to the sport itself.

-July 6th:
Wimbledon Recap: suck it, Simmons. (And, for good measure, my U.S. Open recap from September.)

-July 25: On Mad Men: Admittedly, this one doesn't quite work, but I feel it does a pretty good job of expressing why I like the show (and why its success is so improbable).

-August 22nd:
Ranking the Olympic Events: Because, a mere six days after returning from our honeymoon, I clearly had too much time on my hands.

-August 27th:
Little League World Series running diary: You see?? You know, sometimes you get a real gem of a game (2007's extra-inning thriller), and sometimes you just get a fucking dud (this year's 12-3 fiasco). I enjoyed this entry (even though I'm vamping for all but the first thirty minutes), but prefer the '07 edition.

-August 28th:
Shuk and I discuss the Summer Olympics: Tragically, I selected Usain Bolt first overall in our "Which Summer Olympic Star Will Be Implicated in a Pot-Smoking Scandal in the Next Six Months" Fantasy Draft.

-September 23rd:
Shuk and I discuss the Emmys: Spark Notes version: we weren't fans of it.

-September 23rd*
: Best Books of the 1990s: ...which doubles nicely as a tribute to the late David Foster Wallace. Can't believe that was six months ago already.

* =
Wait, what the hell? I posted twice in one day? Impressive!

-October 9th through November 27th:
Ranking the U.S. Presidents (in ten parts):
part one, part two, part three, part four, part five, part six, part seven , part eight, part nine, part ten.

-October 28th: Annotated Superman paper from grad school: I'm tinkering with the idea of busting out some old history papers, too, and doing this again, but I'm not sure if I really want you guys to know precisely how little work I did for those three years.

-
November 1st: Shuk and Kyle Discuss the NFL at Midseason: Notable for me saying that Peyton Manning was out of the MVP running (he, of course, later won it), that the Bills and Packers would make the playoffs, that the Redskins would play in the Super Bowl (oops! But I was right about the Steelers making it), and Shuk and I piling on Joe Flacco, who proceeded to reel off a QB rating of 90 or higher in six of the next nine games (whatever, he stunk--50.8 rating in three games--in the playoffs). Good times!

-December 6th through December 23rd: The Best Albums of Our Lives: Shuk and I (Misha jumps in for the last part) pick the best album of every year of our lives (with playlists!): 1979-1989, 1990-1999, 2000-2004, 2005-2008.

-January 16th (2009):
Top 30 TV Shows of 2008: technically '09, but thematically tied to '08.

-February 4th (2009):
Top 25 Albums of 2008: same.

-February 21st (2009):
Top 30 Movies of 2008 (and Oscar Preview): same.

Alright, then, thanks for indulging.

6 comments:

Jesse said...

That could not possibly have been more self-indulgent. I tip my hat to you, sir.

Hal Incandenza said...

lol...thank you. But, just think, if I ever get that sixth reader, I can just send them that one link.

[dusts off hands triumphantly]

Jesse said...

But then won't the five of us, but ESPECIALLY those of us not directly related to you, be jealous?

The R.O.B. said...

I actually haven't seen the Sopranos, but maybe - once I get my computer back - I'll have a go through S1.

I've gotta be honest though, I'm not sure there's anyway I see it touching the Wire...

Jesse said...

Rob's right; Sopranos sucks.

Hal Incandenza said...

wait...what??