Top 6 of 2012

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Now that 2012 is coming to an end, we can reflect on what has happened this year: we didn't perish in the fires of Mayan Hell, Curiosity lands on Mars, Whitney Houston died (no surprise there), The Black Eyed Peas didn't die, some famous couple got married, and Hollywood finally figured out how to make an acceptable movie.  Here at TBMP, we are going to look at the high points of the year and make you forget about the awful things that have happened, like The Black Eyed Peas I mentioned earlier.


Movies
Movies are an outlet for us to forget about how much our lives suck and fantasize about being Brad Pitt and Jessica Biel, or hooking up with Brad Pitt and Jessica Biel.  Although films are supposed to entertain us, 2012 brought some of the worst movies imaginable (you know, The Lucky One, Piranha, Ghost Rider), but, like every year, there are a few that shine and give us hope that more watchable movies will be released.

The Dark Knight Rises
     Robbie

A fire rises as well, coincidence?

Christopher Nolan's Batman movies will go down in history as one of the most successful trilogies of all time.  He took a fantasy land and put it into a gritty, real-world setting.  When The Dark Knight Rises was first announced, all I could think about was, "What a terrible title."  I just could not get past that.  But, seeing the movie in theaters blew the thought of a crap title out of my head and damn near into my pants because the movie was so good.

Once you get past Bane's nearly incomprehensible speech impediment, "Gosham, take conshrol of your shity.  Behold, the inshtrument of your liberation!" and stop getting distracted by Selena Kyle's good looks, it is a solid movie, worthy of many more viewings.  And really, I don't even care that Batman is gone for most of the movie, Bane became one of my favorite villains and I could have watched the whole movie with just him.  I cannot find a flaw in these Batman movies through my rose-colored glasses, so I will always see them as the most perfect films ever and they will have a place in my heart.

"Peash hash cosht you your shtrength! Victory hash defeated you!"

The Cabin in the Woods
     Devon

 

Do you like horror movies? How about comedies? What about zombies?  If you like any or all of the above (and we all know you like zombies), The Cabin in the Woods is a perfect movie that has elements for just about any viewer. Although starting out as a run-of-the-mill horror flick, the underlying plot lines provide comedic releases and elaborate twists that break up the norm of typical horror movies, creating its own genre entirely. But let’s be honest, the zombies are probably a good enough reason for most to see it. 

The movie follows a group of college students and their vacation to...yep, you guessed it, a cabin in the woods, which happens to be secluded from society and the vital institutions an individual may need if they were to stumble upon dangerous circumstances. But don’t let this typical horror plot fool you, this movie is far from obvious, providing an originality and uniqueness other movies of 2012 failed to compete with. Plus, it has zombies.

Music
Music is heading down a very dark path filled with dropping basses and (insert pop star) Fevers.  2012 is strengthening that by giving us people like Skrillex, One Direction, Frank Ocean, and Deadmau5.  Not all music from this year is bad, though.  Artists like Taylor Swift and Fun. have created great music and sure as hell deserve the title, "Artist."  The two songs we picked for Best of 2012 broke out and became huge hits, like, really huge.  These two deserve all the recognition they have received.

Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen
     Robbie

If haven't heard this song, you are either stupid and living under the rock where you belong or deaf.  It is perfect and loved by everybody, ever, in the world.  No more explanation needed.

Some Nights - Fun.
     Devon

The band Fun. did not only achieve a breakout into mainstream this year, but they provided some of the biggest songs of 2012. "We Are Young" is a song many are familiar with, teaching to live life fully, have fun, drink, and all around carpe the diem.  "Carry On" is another song that has received some mainstream success, but "Some Nights" is a song that not only makes you analyze yourself and your life choices, but also relates them back to your relationships and the meaningful parts of life, all while doing so in a danceable fashion. Easily relatable, infectiously catchy and the only song that brought me out onto the dance floors of weddings and parties this year without the influence of alcohol, "Some Nights" is the top song of 2012.

"Screw girls, I just want to dance!"

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T.V.
What's better than watching a movie and thinking, "I wish this was cut up into hour-long segments."  That's T.V.  Great movies broken up and played over several months; it's such a genius scam.  The only positive to this is that a great story can be extended several hours, not confined to the two hourish time limit for movies.  Here we pay homage to two shows that can be watched in blocks of ten hours and not get sickening.

The Walking Dead
     Robbie

The Walking Dead pre-season three was a decent show, nothing too spectacular; although, it still did satisfy my zombie blood thirst.  It was basically a soap opera with zombies stumbling around.  After a droning season two, they could only go up from there.  It's like they had a writer's meeting and said, "Season two was absolutely terrible.  How about we add a lot more zombies, a lot more killing, a lot less wandering around, kill some children, and kill the group members nobody likes."  And it worked.  Season three is bringing pure epicness.  Nothing pleased me more than when they started killing off the retarded members of the group; especially Lori, the annoying voice of reason that everybody wanted dead since she got knocked up.  Even though they killed off a lot of the main characters, they introduced some of the most interesting ones so far: The Governor, Michonne, and the two prisoners.  The only thing that could make this season better is getting rid of Judith, just leave her in the basement, right where Carol should have stayed to die.

"Shut up or I will shove this sword through this little girl's head and it will be totally awesome!"
Yes, that actually happens.

Life's Too Short
     Devon

Generally speaking, the ability to convey comedy can vary drastically between the American and British cultures. However, Life’s Too Short, a mockumentary show about the failing acting career of Warwick Davis, breaches that gap of humor and brings the funny on both levels. From ruining a charity event thrown by Sting to alienating an entire society of little people, each episode’s plot is ridiculous and funny.

Acting: You're bound to make some bad choices along the way...

For those unfamiliar with the series, it is created by Warwick Davis, as well as Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the creators of The Office (the original British version), which also follows the same format. Warwick Davis played the Ewok Wicket in The Return of the Jedi and has been in a number of big movies, such as Willow, the Leprechaun film series, the newer (and worse) Star Wars movies and also the Harry Potter films. Davis has dwarfism, only standing about four feet tall, which is a facet of the actor’s life much of the show satires.