2013: My Year In Media

For better or worse, here's most of what I read, watched, etc. media-wise in 2013. It was a banner year for books, I read 79 by year's end, probably the most ever in one year. Much thanks for that goes to unemployment, and for not losing steam like I did the year before (a couple of months before I got laid off).

I also managed to see most of the films coming out this year I was interested, and the majority of those at the theater. Podcasts took a down turn towards the end of the year, however. I think that was mostly due to audio fatigue/overload since over 90% of the books I read were audiobooks, but also because a couple of my favorites either ended or changed personnel, causing me to lose interest.

I think I'll streamline the list a bit for 2014. Partly because I'm working again (I doubt I'll manage as many books this year), and also because my habits are evolving a bit (where did those podcasts go?)



Novels & Novellas:

For Love of Mother-Not by Alan Dean Foster
The Sagan Diary by John Scalzi
The Woman Who Wouldn't by Gene Wilder 
The Dead Man #1: Face of Evil by Lee Goldberg & William Rabkin 
The Outfit by Richard Stark
Fool Moon by Jim Butcher
Mucho Mojo by Joe Lansdale
Live and Let Die by Ian Fleming
The Mourner by Richard Stark
Grave Peril by Jim Butcher
The Boy at the End of the World by Greg van Eekhout
Moonraker by Ian Fleming
The Score by Richard Stark
Summer Knight by Jim Butcher
The Jugger by Richard Stark
A Tale Dark & Grimm by Adam Gidwitz
Archvillains by Barry Lyga
Death Masks by Jim Butcher
The Seventh by Richard Stark
World War Z (Abridged) by Max Brooks
Blood Rites by Jim Butcher
Diamonds Are Forever by Ian Fleming
The Handle by Richard Stark (audio)
The Dead Man #2: Ring of Knives by James Daniels, Lee Goldberg & William Rabkin
Dead Beat by Jim Butcher
The Damsel by Richard Stark
Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher
The Rare Coin Score by Richard Stark
The Green Eagle Score by Richard Stark
The Two-Bear Mambo by Joe R. Lansdale
The Guns of Avalon by Roger Zelazny 
Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman
The Dame by Richard Stark
White Knight by Jim Butcher
Sign of the Unicorn by Roger Zelazny
Bad Chili by Joe R. Lansdale
The Black Ice Score by Richard Stark
NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
The Hand of Oberon by Roger Zelazny
The Courts of Chaos by Roger Zelazny
Small Favor by Jim Butcher
The Sour Lemon Score by Richard Stark
Trumps of Doom by Roger Zelazny
The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
The Dead Man #3: Hell in Heaven by Lee Goldberg & William Rabkin
Kill City Blues by Richard Kadrey
The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker 
Rumble Tumble by Joe R. Lansdale
Deadly Edge by Richard Stark
The Black Bird by Richard Stark
Blood of Amber by Roger Zelazney 
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
Slayground by Richard Stark
Lemons Never Lie by Richard Stark
Changes by Jim Butcher
Aftermath (Side Jobs-novella) by Jim Butcher
Backup (Side Jobs-novellette) by Jim Butcher

Ghost Story by Jim Butcher

Cold Days by Jim Butcher

Knight of Shadows by Roger Zelazny

Plunder Squad by Richard Stark

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins,

Prince of Chaos by Roger Zelazny

Butcher's Moon by Richard Stark

Dr. No by Ian Fleming

Created, The Destroyer (The Destroyer #1) by Warren Murphy & Richard Sapir

Death Check (The Destroyer #2) by Warren Murphy & Richard Sapir

Captains Outrageous by Joe R. Lansdale

Under the Empyrean Sky (Heartland Trilogy, Vol. 1) by Chuck Wendig

Comeback by Richard Stark 

Backflash by Richard Stark

Vanilla Ride by Joe R. Lansdale

Flashfire by Richard Stark

Devil Red by Joe R. Lansdale

Firebreak by Richard Stark

Goldfinger by Ian Fleming

Breakout by Richard Stark

Nobody Runs Forever by Richard Stark

Ask the Parrot by Richard Stark

Dirty Money by Richard Stark

Dead Set by Richard Kadrey

Short Stories:

The One Who Waits by Ray Bradbury
Seven Days of Rain by Chris F. Holm
The Human Division, Ep. 1: The B-Team by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 2: Walk the Plank by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 3: We Only Need the Heads by John Scalzi
A Restoration of Faith (from Side Jobs) by Jim Butcher
The Human Division, Ep. 4: A Voice in the Wilderness by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 5: Tales from the Clarke by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 6: The Back Channel  by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 7: The Dog King  by John Scalzi
The Game of Rat and Dragon by Cordwainer Smith
The Human Division, Ep. 8: The Sound of Rebellion by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 9: The Observers by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 10: This Must Be the Place by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 11: A Problem of Proportion by John Scalzi
Tomorrow's Child by Ray Bradbury
The Human Division, Ep. 12: The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads by John Scalzi
The Human Division, Ep. 13: Earth Below, Sky Above by John Scalzi
A Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury
Suspect Zero by Richard Kadrey
Dark They Were, and Golden Eyed by Ray Bradbury
The Secret of the Growing Gold by Bram Stoker
Shoggoth's Old Peculiar by Neil Gaiman
Dagon by H. P. Lovecraft
If You Were a Dinosaur, My Love by Rachel Swirsky
Dead Pig Collector by Warren Ellis
Doctor Who: 11 Doctors, 11 stories by Various
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher


Comics & Graphic Novels:

The Hive by Charles Burns
Saga, Vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughn (w), Fiona Staples (a)
Fatale, Vol. 1: Death Chases Me by Ed Brubaker (w), Sean Phillips (a)
iZombie, Vol. 4: Repossession by Chris Roberson (w), Michael Allred (a)
Gotham Central, Vol. 1: In the Line of Duty by Ed Brubaker/Greg Rucka (w), Michael Lark (a)
Gotham Central, Vol. 2: Jokers & Madmen by Ed Brubaker/Greg Rucka (w), Michael Lark (a)
Gotham Central, Vol. 3: On the Freak Beat by Ed Brubaker/Greg Rucka (w), Michael Lark (a)
Gotham Central, Vol. 4: Corrigan by Ed Brubaker/Greg Rucka (w), Kano/Gaudiano (a)
Powers, Vol. 1: Who Killed Retro Girl? by Brian Michael Bendis (w), Michael Avon Oeming (a)
The Black Beetle #0: Night Shift by Francesco Francavilla (w/a)
Mangaman by Barry Lyga (w), Colleen Doran (a)
The Muppet Show Comic Book: Meet the Muppets by Roger Langridge (w/a)
Ultimate Spider-Man, Vol. 1: Power & Responsibility by Brian Michael Bendis (w), Mark Bagely (a)


Music:

Musicians (Mostly new ones):

• Walk off the Earth
• Pentatonix 
• Peter Hollens
• AV Byte
• Axis of Awesome

Concerts:

• Walk off the Earth (2/20/13, online at Stageit.com)
• Pentatonix (2/21/13, Best Buy Theater, NYC)
• Walk off the Earth (04/18/13, Gramercy Theater) 
• Josh Ritter (05/18/13, Terminal 5)

Movies/Documentaries:

Theatrical Release:

• The Guilt Trip
• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
• Oblivion 
• Iron Man 3 
• Star Trek Into Darkness 
• Now You See Me
• Pacific Rim 
• World War Z
• Man of Steel 
• Riddick 
• Gravity 
• Monsters University
• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug 

DVD/Cable/Netflix/etc:

• Your Sister's Sister
• The Making of South Park: 6 Days to Air
• Magic Mike 
• Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead
• Robot & Frank 
• The Cabin in the Woods 
• Wreck-It Ralph 
• Pitch Perfect 
• May I be Frank 
• Taken 2 
• The Time Traveler's Wife 
• Dark Shadows 
• Oz the Great and Powerful 
• Hansel & Gretel 
• Warm Bodies 
• True Grit (1969) 
• Spirited Away

TV Shows/Specials:

Ongoing current series:

• Doctor Who
• Community
• Castle
• The Big Bang Theory
• Person of Interest
• New Girl
• Games of Thrones
• Grimm
• Tron: Uprising
• Go On (cancelled, blah!)
• Elementary
• Revolution - Gave up on it
• Iron Chef America  
• The Following 
• Golden Boy (cancelled, blah!)
• Orphan Black 
• Hannibal 
• Beware the Batman  
• Luther
• Broad Church
• Marvel's Agents of SHEILD
• The Blacklist

DVD/Cable/Netflix/etc:

• Star Trek: The Animated Series
• Hungry For Change
• TED Talks: Jamie Oliver's TED Prize Wish: Teach Every Child About Food
• Alias

Web Series/Movies:

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman (BBC Audio Dramatization)
TableTop (season one & two)
LearningTown (season one)

Podcasts:

Adventures in Sci Fi Publishing hosted by Shaun Farrell, Moses Siregar III and Brent Bowen
If You're Just Joining Us hosted by Jon Armstrong
Radio Free Burrito hosted by Wil Wheaton
The SF Signal Podcast hosted by Patrick Hester
The Functional Nerds hosted by Patrick Hester and John Anealio
Writing Excuses hosted by Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Howard Tayler, and Mary Robinette Kowal
Webcomics Weekly hosted by Scott Kurtz, Dave Kellett, Brad Guigar, and Kris Straub (Updated: I thought they weren't doing anymore, but they got back together recently for a new one in December 2012, with a hint they might do more, cool!) 
The Nerdist hosted by Chris Hardwick
Martini Shot hosted by Rob Long
The Memory Palace hosted by Nate DiMeo

2012: My Year in Media

For the past several years I've been keeping track of what I read. One of the new things I did last year was post publicly what I had consumed. This also included movies, TV, web series and podcasts. Originally, I had been keeping more detailed lists of those additions at the start of the New Year, but the insanity of listing every single episode of a show or podcast I enjoyed soon became apparent, and I stopped that, choosing to confine my detailed listing to what I read. In the end I settled for a simple listing of new films, the TV shows I watched regularly (or entirely if it was something older and available to watch via DVD, Netflix, etc), the web series I enjoyed and the podcasts I listen to. For 2013, I'm adding music to the mix, because we all have a soundtrack.

Last year I had set a goal to read a book a week, a goal I fell short of. That doesn't mean I didn't get a lot done, as I did. I was fairly active throughout the year, but I noticed my reading trended down for novels and up for comics (consisting of single issues, graphic novels, and collected editions). I definitely got fatigued a little short of the halfway point in 2012. I got as far as I did in part because the year before I discovered the joys of audiobooks, and had a job with a commute that afforded me time to listen.

Among my favorites in general were Joe Hill's Heart-Shaped Box, Terry Moore's Rachel Rising comic series, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Doctor Who (the new companion is awesome!), Life on Mars, the If You're Just Joining Us podcast, and, of course, the latest season of The Guild. I've highlighted a bunch of my other favorites from last year below.

So, here it is, the list of things enjoyed (or not) in 2012, more or less complete:

Novels & Novellas:

Farhenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (audio)
The Magician's Nephew by C. S. Lewis (audio, re-read)
Psycho by Robert Bloch (audio)
The Last Battle by C. S. Lewis (audio, re-read)
The Alchemist by Paolo Bacigalupi (print)
Foundation by Isaac Asimov (audio)
The Magician King by Lev Grossman (print/audio)
Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler (audio)
Savage Season by Joe R. Lansdale (audio)
Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill (audio)
Baby Moll by John Farris [writing as Steve Brackeen] (print)
The Witches by Roald Dahl (audio)
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl (audio, re-read)
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson (audio)
Matilda by Roald Dahl (audio)
A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (audio)
Storm Front (The Dresden Files, Book One) by Jim Butcher (audio)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl (audio, re-read)
The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry Harrison (audio)
Here, There Be Dragons by James A. Owen (audio)
Abarat: Absolute Midnight by Clive Barker (audio)
John Carter of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs (audio, re-read)
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (audio)
Elric of Melniboné by Michael Moorcock (audio)

The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway (audio)

Sailor in the Seas of Fate by Michael Moorcock (audio)

The Little Sisters of Eluria by Stephen King (audio)

Everything's Eventual by Stephen King (audio)
Fair Coin by E. C. Myers (print)

Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist (audio)
Kid Vs. Squid by Greg van Eekhout (print)
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (audio)
Logan's Run by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson (audio, re-read)
Redshirts by John Scalzi (print)
Dead Harvest by Chris F Holmn (audio)
The Man with the Getaway Face by Richard Stark (audio)
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (audio)
Devil in the Dollhouse by Richard Kadrey (ebook)
Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny (audio)
Butch Fatale, Dyke Dick in Double-D Double Cross by Christa Faust (ebook)
Doctor Who: Devil in the Smoke by Justin Richards (ebook)
Legion by Brandon Sanderson (audio)
Abarat by Clive Barker (audio, re-read)

Short Stories:

From the collection Doug Bradley's Spine Chillers, Vol. 1, an audiobook:

• The Signalman by Charles Dickens
• August Heat by William Harvey
• The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe (re-read)
• The Outsider by H. P. Lovecraft
• The Open Window by Saki
• The Beast With Five Fingers by William Harvey

Comics & Graphic Novels:

Locke & Key Vol 1: Welcome to Lovecraft by Joe Hill [w] and Gabriel Rodriguez [a]

Locke & Key Vol 2: Head Games by Joe Hill [w] and Gabriel Rodriguez [a]
Locke & Key Vol 3: Crown of Shadows by Joe Hill [w] and Gabriel Rodriguez [a]
Locke & Key Vol 4: Keys to the Kingdom by Joe Hill [w] and Gabriel Rodriguez [a]
Locke & Key Vol 5: Clockworks by Joe Hill [w] and Gabriel Rodriguez [a]
Nemesis by Mark Millar [w] & Steve McNiven [a]
Rachel Rising Issue, 5-11 by Terry Moore [w/a]
Boneyard Issues 1-2 by Richard Moore [w/a]
The Walking Dead Vol. 15: We Find Ourselves by Robert Kirkman [w] and Charlie Adlard [a]
Gantz, Vol. 1 Hiroya Oku, [w/a]
Hellraiser: Pursuit of the Flesh by Clive Barker/Christopher Monfette [w], Various [a]
Hellraiser: Reqium by Clive Barker/Christopher Monfette [w], Various [a]
The Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle by Jim Butcher [w], Ardian Syaf/Various [a]
Wolves by Becky Cloonan [w/a]
Goliath by Tom Gauld [w/a]
Athos in America by Jason 
ST:TNG/Doctor Who: Assimilation² Issue 1 by Scott & David Tipton [w], J.K. Woodward [a]
Superior by Mark Millar [w], Leniel Yu [a]
The Moon Moth by Jack Vance [original writer], Humayoun Ibrahim [art/adaptation]
The Hidden by Richard Sala [w/a]
Batman: Earth One by Geoff Johns [w], Gary Frank [a]
RASL by Jeff Smith
Northlanders, Vol 1: Sven the Returned by Brian Wood [w], Davide Gianfelice [a]
Northlanders, Vol 2: The Cross + the Hammer by Brian Wood [w], Ryan Kelly [a]
Northlanders, Vol. 3: Blood in the Snow by Brian Wood [w], Various [a]
Northlanders, Vol. 4: The Plague Widow by Brian Wood [w], Leandro Fernandez [a]
Northlanders, Vol. 5: Metal by Brian Wood [w], Various [a]
Northlanders, Vol. 6: Thor's Daughter by Brian Wood [w], Various [a]
Beartato and the Various Things That Happened by Anthony Clark
Irredeemable Vol 1-10 by Mark Waid [w], Peter Krause [a] and Various [a]
Incorruptible Vol 1-7 by Mark Waid [w], Various [a]
Joker  by  Brian Azzarello [w], Lee Bermejo [a]
X'ed Out by Charles Burns

Movies:

Theatrical Release:

• John Carter
• The Hunger Games
• The Avengers
• Prometheus
• Moonrise Kingdom
• The Amazing Spider-Man
• The Dark Knight Rises
• Brave
• The Bourne Legacy
• Total Recall (2012)
• Dr. No (yes, a re-release, but I never saw the whole thing, let alone in a theater, so I'm counting it!) 
• Frankenstein (1931)
• The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower

DVD/Cable/Netflix/etc:

• Let the Right One In (Swedish version)
• Toy Story 2
• Rise of the Planet of the Apes
• Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
• Hugo
• 21 Jump Street (Yeah, I know, it was stupid. Stupid funny!)
• The Adventures of Tintin
• Conan the Barbarian (2011) 
• Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
• The Odd Life of Timothy Green
• Ted

TV Shows:

Ongoing current series:

• Doctor Who
• Community (Fourth Season: Yay!, Dan Harmon fired: Boo! Delayed to 2013: Boo, again!)
• Castle
• The Big Bang Theory
• Person of Interest
• New Girl
• Games of Thrones
• Grimm
• Tron: Uprising
• Go On 
• Elementary
• Revolution

DVD/Cable/Netflix/etc:

• Life on Mars (UK version, which is awesome)
• Kingdom (Stephen Fry series)

Web Series/Movies:

• The Guild (Season 5)

Podcasts:

Adventures in Sci Fi Publishing hosted by Shaun Farrell, Moses Siregar III and Brent Bowen
If You're Just Joining Us hosted by Jon Armstrong
Radio Free Burrito hosted by Wil Wheaton
The SF Signal Podcast hosted by Patrick Hester
The Functional Nerds hosted by Patrick Hester and John Anealio
Writing Excuses hosted by Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Howard Tayler, and Mary Robinette Kowal
Webcomics Weekly hosted by Scott Kurtz, Dave Kellett, Brad Guigar, and Kris Straub (I don't think they are doing any new ones at this point, but well worth the time for the backlist for the info and advice they have) (Updated: they got back together recently for a new one in December, with a hint they might do more, cool!)

The Nerdist hosted by Chris Hardwick
Martini Shot hosted by Rob Long
The Memory Palace hosted by Nate DiMeo
Mission Log: A Roddenberry Star Trek Podcast hosted by John Champion and Ken Ray