So in this thread you post what things you are reading/playing/watching for each month of 2011. Ideally you should have one post and come back and edit it each month. Of course, you can post more if you want to comment on what other people are doing. You can also give ratings to the various media.
At the end of the year we'll have something to look back on and see what we did!
Hopefully I'll get through it this time. I see in the 2010 thread that some people kept it up, which is awesome. Maybe the fact that I made this thread will get me to keep it up more.
*Meh
**Good.
***Great!
January
Books
- The Book Thief *** - A great book. Beautifully, almost poetically, written. Kinda sad, but anything about Nazi Germany is going to be sad.
- Ultimate Spider-Man Ultimate Collection Vol. 3 ** - Not as good as the first two.
- Star Wars: Dark Force Rising *** - I never thought I'd get into these books, but it really captures the feel of the classic trilogy and stays true to the characters.
- Ultimate X-Men Ultimate Collection Vol. 1 * - ugh, what a terrible take on the X-Men. Hope Joss Whedon's version is better.
Games
- Donkey Kong Country Returns (Wii) *** - Classic platforming at it's best.
- Portal (PS3) ** - It was fun, but short, and I expected more based on the hype it gets. GLaDOS is definitely amusing but I wouldn't rank her as the top game villain of all time.
- Eternal Sonata (PS3) - in progress
- Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep (PSP) *** - Probably the best battle system of any KH game, and a great story too.
- Dragon Quest IX (NDS) - in progress
Movies
- Toy Story 3 ***
- Once * - wenchfriend made me watch...neither of us finished it.
- Super Size Me ** - I'm glad I don't ever eat at McDonald's.
- Exit Through the Gift Shop *** - I smell a ruse, but either way this was entertaining as hell.
TV
- Two and a Half Men * - I can't remember laughing once. I used to love this show.
- Chuck ** - This show was getting bland but the last few episodes I watched were pretty good. Had me hooked.
- The Big Bang Theory **
- Modern Family *** - Best comedy on TV right now.
- Smallville **
- The Simpsons ** - Still makes me chuckle after all these years.
- Saturday Night Live * - Jim Carrey's appearance was great, but the rest was not.
- Jeopardy **
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman **
- NFL Playoffs **
- The Bachelor ** - Good in a 'I can't believe these people exist' type way.
- Top Chef All-Stars **
- The Office ** - In the fall they had a brief return to the greatness they once had. They lost it again.
- 30 Rock *** - Funniest show after Modern Family.
- Outsourced *
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer ***
- Angel ***
February
Books
- The Golden Compass ** - it was a fun adventure story, though I hear it takes an odd turn in the sequels
- Wolverine: Origin ** - overall a well done rendition of the most speculated origin in comics
- Born to Run ** (audiobook) - I never thought I'd like a book about running, but this is pretty fascinating.
- X-Men Unlimited * - Blech. Terrible. It's not a 'reboot' of the X-Men if you change all the characters' personalities. That makes it a whole new thing entirely. Calling this the X-Men is an insult.
Games
- Final Fantasy XI (PC) - always in progress!
- Eternal Sonata (PS3) - in progress
- Crisis Core (PSP) - in progress
- Dragon Quest IX (NDS) - in progress
Movies
- Waiting for Superman ** - Fascinating and horrifying at the same time.
TV
- Glee ** - Super Bowl episode kicked ass, but the short memory this show has is annoying.
- The Big Bang Theory **
- Modern Family *** - Best comedy on TV right now.
- Jeopardy **
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman **
- Super Bowl ** - Pretty decent game, even if I care little for those teams.
- The Bachelor ** - I could never do this.
- Top Chef All-Stars **
- The Office **
- 30 Rock ***
- Outsourced *
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer ** - Season 4 < Season 3. The Initiative is dumb.
- Angel ***
- The Simpsons * - They're back to making weird episodes.
- Two and a Half Men * - AVAST, YE LILY LIVERED LANDLUBBER! Chuck Sheen
- Saturday Night Live *
- Smallville **
- Raising Hope *** - This is a hilarious show and I hope it stays on the air.
March
Books
- Star Wars: The Last Command - in progress
- The Astonishing X-Men: Volume 1 ** - Whedon's version of X-Men so much better than Unlimited. SO MUCH
- The Astonishing X-Men: Volume 2 ** - The danger room stuff was an interesting storyline. I bet he wanted to use that for years.
- Batman: The Killing Joke - in progress
Games
- Final Fantasy XI (PC) - listing it but didn't play that much due to the service shutdown. Poor Japan.
- Crisis Core (PSP) ** - gameplay got a little stale but this felt much more like Final Fantasy than XIII ever did. I loved the ending, which was the expected tear jerker.
- Dragon Quest IX (NDS) * - A bit of a disappointment after the awesomeness of VIII. I got to the last boss and died horribly but I don't know if I have it in me to grind up the right classes to beat it. Maybe someday.
- Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (NDS) - in progress, had to restart because I missed a djinn (I hate when things are permanently missable!)
- Super Mario Kart Wii (Wii) - in progress
- Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together - in progress
Movies
- The Adjustment Bureau ** - A cute story though it gets cheesier as it goes on. But I'd probably watch anything starring Matt Damon.
TV
- Glee **
- The Big Bang Theory **
- Modern Family *** - Best comedy on TV right now.
- Jeopardy **
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman **
- The Bachelor **
- Top Chef All-Stars * - Too many gimmicky challenges
- The Office **
- 30 Rock **
- Outsourced *
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer **
- Angel **
- The Simpsons **
- Saturday Night Live *
- Smallville **
- Raising Hope *** - This is a hilarious show and I hope it stays on the air.
- Fringe *** - finally getting back into this show and it is pretty good.
- Survivor: Redemption Island ***
April
Books
- Star Wars: The Last Command ** - Not as good as the other two in the series. As a whole it was a pretty good series and stayed true to the spirit of Star Wars.
- Batman: The Killing Joke ** - It was a pretty good Joker story, though kind of simple.
- The Hunger Games *** - Really awesome book.
Games
- Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (NDS) - in progress
- Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (PS3) - in progress
- Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together (PSP) - in progress
- Super Mario Kart Wii (Wii) - in progress
Movies
- Aladdin *** - My favorite Disney movie holds up well to the test of time.
- Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace **
- Star Wars Eposide II: Attack of the Clones **
- Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith **
- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope ***
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back ***
- Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi ***
TV
- Jeopardy **
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman *
- Top Chef All-Stars * - The reunion show was better than the regular show.
- The Office **
- Fringe ***
- Survivor: Redemption Island *** - Rob makes this season awesome.
- Modern Family **
- The Simpsons **
- America's Next Great Restaurant *
- The Big Bang Theory **
- The Office *** - AVAST, YE LILY LIVERED LANDLUBBER! Will Farrell
- 30 Rock **
- Outsourced *
- Glee **
- Chuck **
May
Books
- Catching Fire *** - An awesome sequel to Hunger Games.
- Mockingjay ** - Not nearly as good as the other two in this series.
- The Silmarillion - in progress
Games
- Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (NDS) - in progress
- Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (PS3) ** - This game is fun, but I suck at it. I've lost a step in my old age.
- Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together (PSP) *** - Great remake. Almost like the older brother to FF Tactics, which I guess it kinda is, and that's a good thing.
- Eternal Sonata (PS3) * - This game is visually stunning and the battles are interesting, but I don't care at all about the story or characters and can't get into it.
Movies
- Cars * - For a Pixar movie, this was terrible. For a regular movie, it was ok. Why have they made a sequel to this?
- Thor *** - This movie kicked so much ass. Had everything you would want in a comic book movie.
- Hanna ** - This is an intense movie. Didn't really have a plot, but that wench kicked some ass.
- A Bug's Life ** - The final Pixar movie I had yet to see, and it was a good one. Kind of typical, but that's ok.
TV
- Jeopardy **
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman *
- The Office *** - The finale was fantastic.
- Fringe ***
- Survivor: Redemption Island *** - Rob wins his perfect season.
- Modern Family **
- The Simpsons **
- The Big Bang Theory **
- 30 Rock **
- Outsourced *
- Glee **
- Chuck **
- Smallville ** - Goodbye to a good friend.
- Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution * - He has a good heart but he's too idealistic and the show seems very produced.
- The Bachelorette ** - Ashley is boring but there is still plenty of drama.
- Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition ** - Has promise since you don't have to wait till the end of the season to see how skinny they get.
June
Books
- The Silmarillion - in progress
- Astonishing X-Men: Vol. 3 **
- Astonishing X-Men: Vol. 4 *** - Really digged Wheaton's take on X-Men.
Games
- Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (NDS) *** - I love me some GS and this stayed true to the series and improved on the first two games.
- God of War Collector's Edition (PS3) *** - Why did I never play this game. It's AWESOME. Can't wait to play the sequels.
- Batman: Arkham Asylum (PS3) ** - Great game. The disappointing boss fights is the only reason I didn't give it 3 stars.
- Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together (PSP) *** - How remakes should be done.
- Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy (PSP) - in progress
- Super Paper Mario (Wii) - in progress
Movies
- X-Men: First Class *** - Almost X2 quality. A few drawbacks but still well done.
TV
- Jeopardy **
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman *
- Chuck ** - Finally got around to finishing the season. Ending was AVAST, YE LILY LIVERED LANDLUBBER!.
- Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution *
- The Bachelorette **
- Battlestar Galactica *** - Rewatching this series for kicks and it's as awesome as it was. Can't believe SciFi produced something so great.
- Best Thing I Ever Ate *
- So You Think You Can Dance **
- Community *** - Love this show. The stop motion episode was brilliant.
July
Books
- The Silmarillion *** - Epic tale.
- The Glass Castle - in progress
- X-Men: The Dark Phoenix Saga ** - Classic X-Men, and full of that 80s comics cheese.
- A Study in Scarlet ** - First Sherlock Holmes story, a little rough around the edges.
- The Sign of the Four ** - More Holmes, I eat this stuff up.
Games
- Portal 2 (PS3) ** - Fun game, and the jokes were great, but it did get repetitive.
- Uncharted (PS3) ** - Definitely not as polished as Uncharted 2, but a fun adventure.
- inFamous (PS3) **
- Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy (PSP) - in progress
- God of War: Chains of Olympus (PSP) ** - Too short!
- Final Fantasy: Four Warriors of Light (NDS) - in progress
Movies
- Hot Tub Time Machine * - A few good jokes, but almost as many gross ones, and the plot was just silly.
- The Hunt for Red October **
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 **
- Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring ***
- Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers ***
- Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King ***
- Blade Runner * - Great concept, poor execution. And the 80s vision of the future was weird.
- Captain America **
TV
- Jeopardy **
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman *
- The Bachelorette ***
- Best Thing I Ever Ate *
- So You Think You Can Dance **
- Community *** - Love this show. The stop motion episode was brilliant.
- Mythbusters * - They are running out of good myths to test.
- Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition * - Guy on it last week was a FAILURE.
- Parks and Recreation ***
- Futurama *
August
Books
- The Glass Castle ** - It's crazy that this is actually how she grew up.
- Speaker for the Dead *** - Almost as good as Ender's Game, the ending is more polished at least.
- The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - in progress
Games
- God of War II (PS3) *** - Awesome sequel to awesome game.
- Mass Effect 2 (PS3) - in progress
- Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy (PSP) - in progress
- Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection (PSP) - in progress
- Final Fantasy: Four Warriors of Light (NDS) - in progress
Movies
- Cedar Rapids *
TV
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- Best Thing I Ever Ate *
- So You Think You Can Dance **
- Parks and Recreation ***
- Futurama *
- Happy Ending *
- The Great Food Truck Race **
- Entourage **
- Breaking Bad *** - Great show, watched like 20 episodes in 2 weeks.
September
Books
- The Maltese Falcon ** - Very old school. Spade was too stoic for my tastes. Only gets the second star for the San Francisco setting.
- World War Z *** - This book is unique in its subject matter and method of storytelling. I highly recommend it.
- The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - in progress
Games
- Mass Effect 2 (PS3) *** - Awesome game. Great characters and setting. Gameplay rocked. Storyline was just ok. Makes me want to play ME1 and ME3.
- Super Mario Sunshine (GC) * - This game is evil.
- Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy (PSP) ** - The fighting is fun but gets repetitive quickly. Story is a mess but is told very well for a fighting game.
- Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection (PSP) - in progress
- Final Fantasy: Four Warriors of Light (NDS) ** - Fun little game that is a cross between FF and DQ.
- Pokemon: Black Version (NDS) - in progress
Movies
- Contagion * - Cool cast and realistic response to an outbreak but I couldn't get into it.
- Along Came Polly * - Watched it because people always refer to this movie when I tell them my job. Too much typical rom com garbage for me though.
TV
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman *
- Jeopardy **
- Best Thing I Ever Ate *
- Futurama *
- The Great Food Truck Race *
- Entourage * - WTF was up with the last episode? It's like they didn't even try to make it fluid. Lamesauce.
- Breaking Bad ** - Third season is losing momentum.
- Survivor *** - Still the best reality game show.
- Two and a Half Men * - Ugh.
- Glee * - Glee sucks now.
- New Girl ** - First episode was gold. After that, not so much. Casting change from pilot hurt.
- Raising Hope ** - One of the better shows of last season starts off good.
- Modern Family ***
- The Office * - Will need to try a lot harder to make up for the lack of Carell.
- Community **
- Parks and Recreation ***
- The Big Bang Theory **
- NFL Football
- Spider-Man: The Animated Series ** - Classic.
October
Books
- Looking for Alaska ** - interesting young adult story about life and death
- The Brothers Karamazov - in progress
- The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes **
Games
- Red Dead Redemption (PS3) - in progress
- God of War: Ghost of Sparta (PSP) - in progress
- Pokemon: Black Version (NDS) - in progress
Movies
- Moneyball ** - Great movie if you like the Oakland As, baseball, statistics, or well written dialogue.
- Hobo with a Shotgun ZERO STARS - One of the worst things I've ever seen. It's one of those 'give those 40 minutes of my life back' situations.
- Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides ** - Silly and nonsensical even for this series but at least it was entertaining.
- Bridesmaids ** - It was funny, but Kristen Wiig still annoys me and I don't see how here character was sympathetic at all in this movie.
TV
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman *
- Jeopardy **
- Breaking Bad *** - Season 3 finale was insane. Now to catch up with season 4.
- Survivor *** - Still the best reality game show.
- Glee * - Glee sucks ass.
- New Girl **
- Raising Hope **
- Modern Family ***
- The Office **
- Community **
- Parks and Recreation ***
- The Big Bang Theory **
- NFL Football
- MLB Playoffs
- Fringe **
- The Simpsons **
- Satuday Night Live *
November
Books
- The Brothers Karamazov - in progress
Games
- Red Dead Redemption (PS3) *** - Awesome Old West tale.
- Ico (HD Remake) (PS3) * - Interesting experience, but a little too simplistic for me.
- Shadow of the Colossus (HD Remake) (PS3) ** - A beautiful game with great music. Figuring out the bosses was also fun. I felt sorry for the colossi.
- Final Fantasy IV: The After Years (PSP) - in progress
- Pokemon: Black Version (NDS) **
- Radiant Historia (NDS) - in progress
Movies
- Rise of the Planet of the Apes * - So bad.
- The Three Musketeers (2011) ** - Second star for the airships, otherwise forgettable.
TV
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman *
- Jeopardy **
- Survivor *** - Still the best reality game show.
- New Girl *** - Picking up steam.
- Raising Hope **
- Modern Family ***
- The Office **
- Community ** - Season thus far is disappointing.
- Parks and Recreation ***
- The Big Bang Theory **
- NFL Football
- Fringe *** - Catching up with Season 3.
- The Simpsons **
- Satuday Night Live *
- Top Chef **
December
Books
- The Brothers Karamazov ** - Not sure why this is on so many 'best of all time' lists, but it was a good book that is very well written.
- The Night Circus ** - It's a magical use of words with vivid descriptions but there's not much action. I liked it but it's not really my thing.
- Harrington on Hold 'em Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments, Vol. 1: Strategic Play - in progress
- Every Hand Revealed - in progress
Games
- Borderlands (PS3) - in progress
- Final Fantasy IV: The After Years (PSP) - in progress
- Tactics Ogre: Let us Cling Together (PSP) - in progress
- Radiant Historia (NDS) - in progress
Movies
- 50/50 ** - Endearing movie about dealing with something we will probably all deal with at some point.
- Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows ** - Fun, action-filled movie though it's not as good as the first one.
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo ** - Very good adaptation of the novel with some great performances.
- War Horse * - A little too cheesy and animal movies aren't my thing.
TV
- The Daily Show **
- The Colbert Report **
- The Late Show with David Letterman *
- Jeopardy **
- Survivor ***
- New Girl *** - A good new show.
- Raising Hope **
- Modern Family ***
- The Office **
- Community **
- Parks and Recreation ***
- The Big Bang Theory **
- NFL Football - Raiders
- Fringe **
- The Simpsons **
- Satuday Night Live *
- Top Chef **
- Mythbusters **
- Game of Thrones *** - Just got into this show and it's pretty good.