 |
| Rolling Stones is right. Best show on TV. | Credit: Rolling Stones |
Just as most bloggers do, I write about the best stuff of the year when it is about to end (and in this case, it has already ended). 2010 has been a remarkable year for me. I think it was the best year in Sports for me. I rarely experience multiple championships of my favorite teams in a calendar year. All my teams except for the Boston Red Sox reached the playoffs. Early on the year, I discovered how hot female curlers are. The Ateneo Lady Eagles – which boasts of the most hotties in UAAP Women’s Volleyball – reached the Final Four. By June, I was treated to a Boston-LA NBA Finals which went the full route. When NBA ended, the Atlanta Braves were slugging it out in Major League Baseball. I may have been used to seeing the Braves enter the playoffs before but because of the recent “drought,” their run to reach the playoffs was extra special. Furthermore, it was the last year of Bobby Cox – the only Atlanta Brave manager that I knew. Then, Ateneo achieved its three-peat. It might be the first time that I was unable to watch the championship game live in Araneta but it was still extra special as the Blue Eagles proved that they are for real despite notable subtractions of key players. Then, it was NFL craze in the final two months of 2010. It was fulfilling because I stuck with New England despite their early season woes. The Patriots traded Randy Moss and I was ready for a rocky season. However, the opposite happened as the Pats dominated. They are now possessing the league’s best record. Brady is enjoying an MVP year as he has achieved the longest no-interception streak. As for the Packers, they ended the year with a bang by beating the New York Giants to have the inside track of the playoffs. Things are just awesome last year.
What about LeBron’s “The Decision” and his stinker in the Boston series? Uhhmmm… did that happen in 2010?! I already forgot about it. I choose to still forget about it. 2010 is my best sports year ever.
On the entertainment side, 2010 was a bit of a downer. There were cool movies like “Inception,” “Iron Man 2” and “Kick-Ass” but there was no elite caliber movie. TV shows were shaky with usually exceptional shows becoming just OK (i.e., How I Met Your Mother, Grey’s Anatomy, The Office) but I have to say that 2010 also produced some of the best seasons in recent TV history. “Mad Men” Season 4 was top notch while newcomer “Modern Family” delivered a very memorable first season. Of course, “Lost” ended with a bang. I have not watched this yet but “Breaking Bad” had extreme rave reviews for its third season (I would not doubt this as the show is really one-of-a-kind).
There was a dearth of good rock music in 2010 but with all of the amazing events that occurred in the year, I am already pleased. We cannot have them all. Unless you are Tom Brady, you cannot have them all. I have learned it the hard way in 2010.
On a collective level, 2010 was one of the awesome years for me. But on a personal note, it was actually an uphill climb. 2010 was tough, thus it was easy for me to relate to the most common theme of TV series last year – downward spirals and hitting rock bottom. I think the only thing that improved for me last year was my career and it was not even a smooth ride as well. However, 2010 overall was still better than 2009. 2010 – after all – may have been tough for me but it was not rock bottom level at least. And if it was, I believe that I have handled it a lot better than I had before. Well, that’s what I thought.
Nevertheless, my blog was never meant to discuss and pick nits of my personal and career life. Thus, we move on to the important parts of my usual year-ender lists.
Best Movies
 |
| Credit: Inception |
5. Paranormal Activity 2. Again, temper your expectations. This movie was actually good. It had several thrills which were more shocking (but sometimes more over-the-top) than the first one. They were able to tie events with the first one. Also, I liked the security camera thing even if it diminished some of the anticipation thrill that the single camera possesses. At least, the writers changed the idea behind it.
4. Kick-Ass. Great realistic take of how a literal superhero can be in the real world. They also used current technologies (i.e., YouTube and Internet) aptly.
3. The Book of Eli. Probably one of the best religious movies in recent memory.
2. Inception. Awesome movie. This is probably the popular pick for most people but not me. Why? With all the compelling thought that this flick brought, I wondered what is its major relevance to our daily lives. Up to now, I still cannot answer this question.
1. Shutter Island. This Scorsese flick was deep, compelling and disturbing all at the same time. Yeah, it gave away the answer to the puzzle near the end but the pros outweighed the cons on this film. I liked how they depicted the movie through the perspective of the protagonist. Scorsese was successful in making the audience understand why the insane man thinks he is sane and why he won’t believe that he is insane.
Best Sports Stories
 |
| LeBron, how could you?! | Credit: ESPN |
5. Duke University Blue Devils beat Butler Bulldogs in US NCAA Division 1 Basketball Finals. Fairy tale scenario with America’s most hated team prevailing in the end. It was a classic match as it came down up to the end.
4. Manny Pacquiao beats two boxers convincingly in Dallas Cowboys Stadium. These cemented Pacquiao’s legacy as one of the greatest boxers of all-time.
3. LeBron’s “The Decision.” Like him or not, LeBron is the face of the NBA. His controversial one-hour show had high ratings and it was the talk of the town for several months.
2. Spain wins World Cup as Paul the Octopus was accurate in its predictions. The whole world might disagree with me on this one as I did not put this in the top of my list but once you read my #1 pick, you will realize that it is more rare than the World Cup happening (Come on, soccer fans! Your World Cup occurs every four years anyway. There is no need to always have the World Cup being the best sports news every four years)
1. LA beats Boston in Game 7 in the NBA Finals. This is just rivalry at its best. Yes, these teams have faced each other the most times than any team in the NBA Finals had but last year’s matchup extended up to seven games. Basketball fans (including me) were betting on who would win.
My Favorite Sports Stories (Because I am a homer)
 |
| Credit: Bleacher Report |
5. Atlanta Braves are back in the MLB Playoffs.
4. Duke beats Butler as I beat Obama and Simmons' NCAA brackets at my first try
3. Manny Pacquiao dominating his opponents
2. Bobby Cox retires. Thank you, Bobby!
1. Ateneo Blue Eagles are the three-peat champions. Suck it, haters!
Biggest Disappointments
Honorable Mention: (Wait, there is no honor in being part of this list) “The Expendables,” New York Yankees offseason, “Glee,” “How I Met Your Mother”
5. Peyton Manning. He chokes in Super Bowl and he threw a barrage of interceptions last year. Well, he is still Peyton Manning and he might make me eat my words come playoff time this year but 2010 is already done so he cannot undo it anymore.
4. NU 107. Farewell to the best radio station of all-time
3. Brett Favre. Need I explain more?
2. American Idol. Worst season ever.
1. LeBron James. D’uh!
Best Console Games (This is obviously biased because I played very few games last year)
 |
| Credit: Fallout: New Vegas |
4. Red Dead Redemption. Wild West/Cowboy theme was one of my favorites when I was a kid. Then, it became a boring theme when I grew older. “Red Dead Redemption” redeems the theme big time.
3. NBA 2K11. Who would see this happening? I love the NBA 2K franchise for the past few years. Furthermore, NBA 2K11 is easily the best NBA 2K game ever. However, I was not compelled to play it as much as the next two games. Maybe, playing basketball games are getting old for me.
2. Fallout: New Vegas. Finally, the Fallout 3 game has excellent writing. New Vegas had the wit that Fallout 1 and 2 had. New Vegas also featured a cooler environment – I really love the New Reno setup.
1. Madden 11. AFL Mode + Gameflow Mode + Tim Tebow in Superstar Mode. Yeah, “Madden 11” had fewer plays in “Ask Madden” but at least it made me use audible more.
Worst Douchebags
 |
| Ouch! Brett had an enduring year. He should've retired, I guess. Credit: Bleacher Report |
4. Don Draper. He was in a downturn this year which caused him to have several douchebag moments. Is it a bad thing? Yes, for Draper. No, for Jon Hamm who might win the Best Actor because of his douchebag portrayal.
3. Vincent Chase. From being a cool character to a very hated one. Vince is in a downward spiral but what made it worse was the fact that there was little reason why he should have been wasting his life.
2. Brett Favre. On a popularity standpoint, Brett’s retire-not retire antics worked big time but it just meant that he became a bigger douchebag. Karma got the better of him as he did not participate in the offseason.
1. LeBron James. It started when he decided not to join the Slam Dunk competition after flirting with the idea for a year. Then, he gave up trying when the Celtics swarmed on them in the playoffs. After that, “The Decision” happened. He did not stop as he continued to tweet ridiculous comments during the offseason. Total heel turn for The Chosen One.
Best/Worst Quote of the Year: “I am taking my talents to South Beach.” – LeBron James
Honorable Mention: “We all have to decide for ourselves how much sin we can live with.” – Nucky Thompson of “Boardwalk Empire”
Best TV Characters
 |
| Coach Taylor is one of the best characters in 2010 | Credit: Friday Night Lights |
5. Jack Shephard (Lost). From hero to zero to a much wiser hero. That’s what Jack did in “Lost’s” final season. From being an afterthought at the start of the season, Jack ended his wild journey by being the focal character in this stellar TV series.
4. Enoch “Nucky” Thompson (Boardwalk Empire). Steve Buscemi transformed his not-so-attractive looks to a charismatic leader in the 1920’s. Although a lot of people may disagree on that statement, I understand the viewpoint on how Nucky was a charismatic guy in a different era. Other than which, I liked how complex his character is with how he juggles his good and bad traits.
3. Ari Gold (Entourage). Ari Gold’s restaurant scene with Amanda Daniels was just tremendous.
2. Coach Eric Taylor (Friday Night Lights). Kyle Chandler needs to return to the Emmy’s Best Actor nomination list with his strong performances in “Friday Night Lights.” It’s a shame that the series is on its last season because of low ratings.
1. Don Draper (Mad Men). Give Jon Hamm the Best Actor award!
Best TV Shows
 |
| Credit: Mad Men |
5. Boardwalk Empire. Best new TV series of 2010. Having said that, I would have to admit that I was somehow disappointed though. Blame the hype. I expected a lot on this extravagant show. I was bored in several parts. I do not know if they intended the frequent nude scenes (which were staple up to the eighth or ninth episode) in order to break the ice. “Boardwalk Empire” was still excellent – aesthetically, artistically and in character depth. I loved how they made a “Godfather”-esque scene in the finale.
4. Modern Family. A phenomenal first season for this feel-good family story. However, Season 2 lost some of its luster. But still, “Modern Family” Season 1 deserves to be in one of the best TV seasons of all time.
3. Lost.
2. Friday Night Lights. Amazing final two seasons for this TV series. We experience superb drama acting from Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton. Heck, even newcomer Michael B. Jordan’s acting was astonishing especially in S05E03. The year ended with FNL gaining huge momentum as its main focus has been on the football team. Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose!
1. Mad Men. This is so easy. “Mad Men” Season 4 is probably the best TV season that I have ever watched. “The Suitcase” is the best episode of the year as well. I guess “Mad Men” became better after it moved out from the Draper household.
No comments:
Post a Comment