Best of 2021

Disney+ Marvel shows were a hit in 2021

Just like in years past, I want to give a quick shout-out to the entertainment that helped me get through the past 365 days. Similar to 2020, having so many streaming services and channels at my disposal made a year of Covid at least somewhat palatable. Look, TV this year – specifically, the news – gave us some terrible moments: climate disasters, billionaires going for space joy rides, and of course, January 6th. That’s not even mentioning how for some inexplicable reason my whole Twitter feed is obsessed with “Succession.” What I listed below were things that, thankfully, provided distractions, entertainment, and joy. These are presented chronologically from when I saw them, unless otherwise noted for grouping purposes. Please let me know in the comments what entertainment you most enjoyed in 2021!

“Framing Britney Spears, Parts 1 and 2,” Hulu: The first one told the story of her conservatorship, and the second one seemed to point at what eventually did happen, the demise of it. Well done, excellently told, and also provided great legal context about her case.

“WandaVision,” Disney+: The first Marvel show, and the first one on this list, came out of the gates swinging, effectively aping 1950s and 1960s TV tropes.

“Allen V. Farrow,” HBO: A really tough watch, but an expertly crafted documentary series that ensured I’ll never watch another Woody Allen movie again.

“Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” Disney+: A solid Marvel show, although the last episode was a hot mess.

“Dancing with the Devil,” the Demi Lovato documentary: An interesting YouTube documentary that was at times unflinching, but at times came across too sanitized.

“Tina,” the Tina Turner documentary on HBO: A fitting capstone to an incredible career, this no-holds barred look at Turner’s life from young singer to genuine pop phenomenon was really well done.

“Made for Love,” HBO Max: You had me at Cristin Milioti, Ray Romano, and sci-fi.

“Kid 90,” Hulu: Soleil Moon Frye’s look – via her own videotapes – at kid stars in the 90s. Definitely featured more House of Pain than I’d have expected, but a fun nostalgia tour for sure.

“Superstore” and “Brooklyn 99” Series Finales, NBC: Both were not as capital-g Great as they had been in years prior, but both finales stuck the landing.

“Mighty Ducks: Game Changers” and “Doogie Kameāloha, M.D.” on Disney+: While I’m never the biggest fan of reboots, both of these shows got what reboots to correct by honoring the original source material. “Doogie,” for instance, merely exists in a world where “Doogie Howser, M.D.” was a TV show, and has another fresh-faced, youthful doctor. “Mighty Ducks” still brought back some fan favorites (Averman! Fulton! Banks! Guy and Julie the Cat!) but made fans root for a new generation of underdogs.

“Mare of Easttown” on HBO: For all the binge-watching we do these days, “Mare” genuinely broke into the zeitgeist, with the days leading up to new episodes rife with speculation (“did the priest do it?”). Bonus points for the best SNL parody in ages.

Speaking of SNL, the “Zillow” sketch was an all-timer:

And so was Man Park:

“Loki,” Disney+: While I might quibble with a show whose season finale was a 35-minute info dump, on the whole, it was inventive, clever, and advanced the idea of the Marvel multiverse. And a great use of Owen Wilson.

“Hacks,” HBO Max: Jean Smart is a great actress – am I the only one who remembers who dynamite she was on “Samantha Who?” – and this show felt tailor-made for her. Can’t wait for season 2.

“F9,” aka the one we waited an extra year for: John Cena plays Vin Diesel’s younger brother about whom we just learned. Need I say more?

“Good on Paper,” Netflix: Based on a crazy – true! – story, comic Iliza Schlesinger mined her own personal trauma to make a clever rom-com turned horror story.

The last week of “Conan,” TBS: He was never my all-time go-to late night host, but Conan provided decades of laughs, and I’m glad he got to go out with the fanfare he deserved – especially with Paul Rudd pulling a “Mac and Me” prank on him one final time:

Woodstock ’99: Peace, Love, and Rage,” HBO: Wow, did this totally change my perspective on the music fest. Really well done, and also informative and drew a clear line from the white male rage in 1999 to our present-day madness.

“Ted Lasso” and “Mythic Quest” second seasons, Apple TV: Lasso, I think, took a step back, especially with some odd character arcs and plots (Nate, Rebecca/Sam), and Mythic Quest took a step forward, but both are terrific comedies for the Tim Cook brand.

“Hemingway,” PBS: A three-part documentary about my favorite writer, done by preeminent documentarian Ken Burns.

“Val,” the Val Kilmer documentary on Amazon Prime: A rare inside glimpse into an actor who recently had fallen from grace. Especially interesting to see him on the “Island of Dr. Moreau” set.

“Girls5Eva,” Peacock: Much better than the streamer’s other efforts (the “Saved by the Bell” reboot and “Rutherford Falls”), and my friend Jeff would be very disappointed if it weren’t on this list.

“Get Back,” Disney+: I’m no Beatles-ologist, but man some of these interactions are fascinating. Nothing beats an icy George telling Paul, “I’ll do it however it pleases you, but I don’t think you even know what that is,” except – maybe – Paul telling a butting-in Linda, “easy, Yoko.”

“Scenes from a Marriage,” HBO: Brutal. Just brutal. Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain have never been better, and Chastain was also amazing in “The Eyes of Tammy Faye.” (Isaac, who I have really loved as an actor for over 10 years now, was the best part of an otherwise lame “Dune.”)

“Dopesick” on Hulu and “Worth” on Netflix: Both stellar Michael Keaton showcases.

“Big Mouth” and “Chicago Party Aunt,” Netflix: Maybe it’s because I was reared on “The Simpsons,” but there is something still so charming about cartoon characters – especially kids, in the case of “Big Mouth” – just saying the most absurd, insane things. I loved the “cool teacher” parody with Mr. Keating/Adam Scott:

“Maid,” Netflix: Without hyperbole, I’ll say it’s easily the best thing I watched this year. A tough, bleak, heartwarming, well-acted, well-paced, well-plotted show that hopefully serves as a springboard for future star Margaret Qualley. That show just packed such an emotional punch. Months later, I’m still thinking about it.

“Knebworth ’96,” the Oasis documentary, Paramount Plus: A documentary about one of the most famous concerts in all of England, featuring my all-time favorite (favourite?) band.

Matt Amodio: He went on an incredible run on Jeopardy, enough to almost – almost – help us forget what a disaster their new-host search was.

“Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” Marvel: Marvel movies often have different pastiches (“Winter Soldier” is a spy movie, “Ant Man” is a heist movie), so it was great that they finally made a martial arts film. Awkwafina also stole the movie.

“What If?” Disney+: An animated Marvel show that presented a lot of fun hypotheticals (what if Captain America’s serum were taken by Peggy Carter? What if zombies? What if T’Challa had been Star Lord?).

“Hawkeye,” Disney+: Maybe Marvel saved the best for last? This show – with cameos from Yelena from “Black Widow” and the MCU debut of Kingpin (!), and set at Christmas, was my favorite of the shows they debuted this year.

“Challenge All-Stars,” Seasons 1 and 2, Paramount Plus: Man, do I love seeing old faces of the Challenge back – especially people like Teck and Ruthie from RW: Hawaii, and legends like Darrell and Derrick.

“The Year of the Dog,” Netflix: Benedict Cumberbatch is going to win the Oscar.

“The Shrink Next Door,” Apple TV+: I don’t know anyone who watched the show with whom I can compare notes, so this might just be me shouting into the void, but I honestly really enjoyed it.

“Station Eleven,” HBO: Not sure I needed to see a fictionalized world going through the aftershocks of a pandemic, but this one was really well done.

Olivia Rodrigo: I don’t usually delve into the music space, but she had an undeniable tour-de-force year, with no fewer than four catchy earworms.

“Spider-Man: No Way Home,” actually in theaters: The first movie I saw in a theater since Covid first hit, and man, did I need a jolt of energy like this. Tying in villains from other Spidey films, this was a genuine crowd pleaser.

Big Winners: Music documentaries and Marvel shows, clearly! Also mini-series with great female leads (“Mare” and “Maid”).

Gone but not forgotten: Dustin Diamond, aka Screech from “Saved by the Bell;” Jackie Mason; Stephen Sondheim; Tawny Kitaen; James Michael Tyler, aka Gunther on “Friends;” Willie Garson; Markie Post; Gavin MacLeod; Olympia Dukakis; Charles Grodin; Peter Scolari; Alan Kalter; Michael K. Williams; Norm MacDonald; and Ed Asner.

Disappointments: “Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar,” which was…just so bad; The Oprah/Harry/Megah interview; the Oscars doing Best Actor last, apparently to coronate Chadwick Boseman…and then giving the Oscar to Anthony Hopkins!; Master of None season 3 (too bleak!); White Lotus (too weird!); Bo Burnham’s Inside (ditto!); Lego Masters season 2 (weaker than the first); He’s All That (woof); Black Widow and The Eternals (rare Marvel misses); Tick, Tick…Boom (just…too much for me); The Many Saints of Newark (I would have preferred a whole Sopranos prequel series, i.e. too overstuffed!); Godzilla v. Kong, Mortal Kombat, and Space Jam: A New Legacy, because they all were misses for HBO Max even though I could stream them at home; the Olympics – especially when Simone Biles chose not to compete and when Sha’Carri Richardson was banned from competing; Squid Game (hard pass for me); Love Life Season 2 (didn’t have the pizzazz of the first season); No Time to Die (I love Bond, but this was a weak send off for the Daniel Crag version); and The Challenge (non-All Stars version), because when Josh, Fessy, and (ugh) Devin are the faces of the show, it’s disappointing.

Best of the Decade

While of course I’ll write a post about what caught my eye this year, I wanted to take some time to highlight what were the best performances, movies, or stretch of movies over the past decade.  What do we call this decade? Is this the teens? Does that mean we’re about to embark on the roaring 20s again?

Though political machinations have made the last three years feel like they were a decade in their own right, entertainment since 2010 has really seen a lot of change: three Tonight Show hosts, two Late Night hosts, two different Spiders-Man, nearly every movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, two different Batmen, the rise and fall (and rise?) of the DC Comics movies franchise, the rise and fall and rise and fall of Ben Affleck, Netflix becoming the most powerful player in the TV landscape, and – oh yeah – the return of actual Star Wars movies to theaters. Suffice it to say, it’s been a memorable decade. Let’s take a look and see what the true highlights were, shall we?  (Note: As always, this is an extremely personal list. You’ll notice no mention of “sitcoms” created by Lena Dunham, nor any shows about and/or containing dragons, to name a few. Glad if others enjoyed them, but they are definitely not for me.)

Best: New “Star Wars” Movies! In 2005, I went to see the first showing of “Revenge of the Sith” in London with my brother and some friends from college. I then saw it six more times in the theater, because it was billed as the final Star Wars movie.  So imagine my shock in 2012 when Disney purchased Lucasfilm and promised to release more movies. “The Force Awakens” was amazing, “Rogue One” was inspiring, and then “The Last Jedi” and “Solo” left me wanting. Also worth mentioning the fantastic “Rebels” animated series here.

Best (for a while): The McConnaissance: Between his bonkers cameo in “Wolf of Wall Street,” his star-making turn in “Dallas Buyers Club,” and the one-two punch of him and Woody Harrelson in “True Detective,” McConaughey could do no wrong.  And then, of course, he made a movie in which he plays a fisherman in a video game. And “Interstellar.” No good thing lasts. 

Best: Sam Rockwell: “The Way, Way Back” is an underrated gem, and though he was primarily known as merely a character actor for much of the decade, Rockwell scored back-to-back Oscar noms (and a win) for his turns his “Three Billboards” and “Vice.” 

Best: The Marvel Movies: Imagine introducing Thor, and Captain America, and Black Panther, and (the best version of) Spider-Man, and Captain Marvel…and then also making several movies wherein they team up? And having each of those movies make hundreds of millions of dollars, and be entertaining (“Thor 2” excepted)? It’s a stunning achievement that so many studios tried to copy (DC and Sony tried to make cinematic universes out of Batman/Superman/Wonder Woman and Spider-Man/Sinister Six, and Universal wanted to make a Dark Universe out of its horror movie monsters).  It’s an incredible accomplishment. 

Mixed Bag: Other Comic Book Movies: “X-Men” movies were both great (“Days of Future Past,” “First Class”) and terrible (“Dark Phoenix,” “Apocalypse”); their spin-offs were good (“Logan,” “Deadpool”); and some of the DC Universe movies were enjoyable (“Joker,” “Wonder Woman,” “Man of Steel”) while others (“Justice League,” “Batman v. Superman,” “Aquaman”) were what this critic might call “atrosh.”

Best: Netflix Series: “Master of None.” “GLOW.” “Love.” “Russian Doll.” “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo.” “Black Mirror.” Both iterations of “Wet Hot American Summer.” And dozens more. It’s no wonder that Disney+ and Apple+ wanted in on the streaming action. 

Worst: Most Reboots and Remakes: Not everyone needed to know about the continuing adventures of the Tanner Family (“Fuller House”) or “Will and Grace.”  Similarly, did we need another “Magnum, P.I.,” another “MacGyver,” or another “Hawaii 5-0?” 

Best: Zoe Kazan: “Ruby Sparks” was brilliant, her work in “Olive Kitteridge” was Emmy nominated, I loved her on “The Deuce,” and then she goes and makes “The Big Sick,” which was the best movie of the year in 2017. (I also *loved* “What If” with her and Daniel Radcliffe.)

Best: Michael Keaton: from getting a scene-stealing turn in “The Other Guys,” to being a great MCU villain in “Spider-Man,” to “Spotlight” and “Birdman,” and even “The Founder,” Keaton put together an incredible decade.

Best: Jake Gyllenhaal: What a weird decade. He moved on from chasing box-office glory (“Day After Tomorrow,” “Prince of Persia”) to really interesting artsy territory (and, you know, “Spider-Man: Far From Home”). His work in “Wildlife,” “Stronger,” “Everest,” “Southpaw,” “End of Watch,” “Nightcrawler,” and “Source Code” show an actor who is hitting his stride.

Best: Bradley Cooper aka Cooper Bradley: “Silver Linings Playbook.” “American Hustle.” Rocket Raccoon. “American Sniper.” “Limitless.” All great. And then he gives us the best movie of last year, “A Star Is Born.”

Worst: Blah Origin Stories: How many “Robin Hood” movies did we need? Surely not the two we got. (Bonus points if you remember both “Robin Hood” movies this decade. One had Russell Crowe!)

Best: Quality Sitcoms: “Happy Endings,” “The Good Place,” “Suburgatory,” “New Girl,” “Brooklyn 99,” most of “Parks and Rec,” most of “Community,” “Superstore,” “Silicon Valley,” the best (i.e. non-first season) of “Cougar Town,” and “Veep” really set a high bar for laugh riots.

Best: Bill Hader: His work on SNL and in “Trainwreck,” were great, and then he went and made “Barry” into one of HBO’s best shows in years.

Best: Brie Larson: Also great in “Trainwreck,” plus solid work to garner an Oscar in “Room,” and then an incredible MCU debut with “Captain Marvel.” Even her work in “21 Jump Street” was great!

Worst: Unnecessary Sequels: The “Hangover” Sequels totally sully the good work of the first one. “Wreck-It Ralph 2” was clearly a cash grab. “Independence Day: 2” might be the biggest drop-off in quality from one film to the next since…well, “Jurassic World 2: Fallen Kingdom.”

Worst: No National Treasure 3?
I mean, what are we even doing here then? 

Worst: Seriously? They made a TV show…musical….called Crazy Ex-Girlfriend? Oy. Hard pass.

Best: Some Reboots (When done properly): “Creed” and “Jurassic World” put oomph back into their respective franchises (though their sequels did not continue the upward momentum).

Best: Guilty Pleasures: “This is Us” reliably tugs on the heart strings every week. “Hart of Dixie” – a show about Zoe Hart, a City doctor who became a small town physician – lasted four majestic seasons. “Girl Meets World” – while admittedly a cash grab – finally answered what happened to Mr. Turner. And “The Challenge” produced a lot of memorable drama, and a number of Johnny Bananas and Cara Maria wins.

Worst: Seriously?? When you watch award shows and things like “Green Book,” “The Shape of Water,” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” win awards but Amy Poehler never got an Emmy for Leslie Knope, you know that…well I guess that award shows are meaningless!

Best: Amy Adams: Her role in “Arrival” alone probably gets her on this list, but also her work in “Sharp Objects,” “American Hustle,” “Her,” “The Master,” “The Muppets,” and “The Fighter.”

Best: Don Cheadle: His work on “House of Lies,” “Black Monday,” and as Rhodey in the MCU made it a fine decade for the actor. Speaking of “House of Lies…”

Best: Kristen Bell: Her work on “House of Lies,” “Veronica Mars,” “The Good Place,” and brief cameos on “Parks and Rec” moved Bell to the A-list.

Best: Rami Malek: His work on “Mr. Robot” (even when the show’s quality has waned) is fantastic, and when you’ve won an Oscar and an Emmy in the same decade, you’re obviously doing something right.

Best: Other Streamers: Disney+ only just started but it already has a content library (MCU/Star Wars/Old Disney) that will sate me for weeks on end; Amazon Prime and Hulu had quality offerings (“The Handmaid’s Tale” being the best of the lot); and even Yahoo rescued “Community” for its last season.

Best: HBO dramas: “The Leftovers” – What an amazing three-season journey the Garvey/Durst clan took us on. “Boardwalk Empire” and “The Deuce” were the network at its best. And the aforementioned first-season of “True Detective” was sublime. And I may be one of the only ones left, but I’m still a huge “Westworld” fan.

Best movie of each year of the decade:
2010: The Social Network
2011: Drive (this year was hardest for me to choose from of the decade, easily; I also loved 10 Years, Planet of the Apes, First Class, the first Captain America, and more.)
2012: Avengers
2013: Prisoners
2014: Lego Movie
2015: Force Awakens
2016: Arrival
2017: The Big Sick
2018: A Star is Born
2019: Avengers Endgame

Best: This Blog!: Because it gives me a reason – frequently – to thank you for reading my rambling, nonsensical thoughts on the entertainment industry.

If I had an Emmy Ballot 2016

Emmy nominations are nearly out for the 2016 telecast, so I thought I’d make a quick post for what shows and actors I would nominate, if I were lucky enough to have a ballot. Feel free to disagree or make suggestions in the comments.

Best of 2015

In many ways, 2015 was pre-ordained to be a massive year. After a down year at the box office in 2014, pundits predicted 2015 would be huge, given the releases of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” the final “Hunger Games” movie, and “Jurassic World.” And (for those that have been released), those movies delivered well at the box office (including “World” setting an opening weekend record, and then, you know, “Star Wars” demolishing it.). But there were a number of pleasant surprises that pundits didn’t see coming, and that’s what made 2015 quite an impressive year for entertainment. These are my favorite pieces of entertainment from 2015, presented in no particular order, but, for sake of readability, I’ve broken my list down by categories. Let me know what I missed, or what you enjoyed, in the comments. And, as always, thank you for reading this blog – and I hope you’ll stay with me in 2016.

Fall TV Preview

With the Emmy’s tonight (I’ll be live-tweeting; follow along @jacobsjj), and the fall TV season kicking off tomorrow, I figured I may as well do my annual preview for what I’ll be watching in the 2015-2016 (network) TV season.