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Favorite Films of 2009

#1 – Star Trek XI

The odd movie curse? Bullshit! This movie renewed my interest in Star Trek fandom. It was a big injection of new life, new blood into the fandom that supposedly started it all. Instead of going over the same old ground it took Star Trek and changed the publics perception of it, made it fun and accessible. Yes, I already thought it was a fun and I had liked Star Trek: The Original Series but my interest in that particular show had long waned though I never said no when glimpsing a rerun. I think the new movie was very much needed and while it changed quite a bit it didn’t make it so that old Trekkies couldn’t join in on the fun. One thought I remember having? They killed Amanda! She had been such a presence in my old fandom. The loss of Vulcan also shocked me to the core. I couldn’t image it not being there.

#2 – (500) Days of Summer

Yes, in many ways it was a typical indie flick and if it hadn’t been shown out of sequence would I have liked it as much? Probably not. Still, I think Joseph Gordon-Levitt makes me love this film. More so than Zooey Deschanel. His dance sequence, the bipolar ups and downs that came with the way the days were sewn together, his faith and then the loss of that faith because of a girl who I didn’t care for very much. I did dislike the ending, hated it. The joke, the pushing of the point fell flat. Still, there were many magic moments before that.

#3 – Up

To be quite honest, the last Pixar film I’d seen before Up was Finding Nemo and I was still working at the movie theater back then so it’s been a while. I think what grabbed a hold of me in Up was the humanity of the characters. It wasn’t afraid to show some of the sadder parts of being human without making the character the bad guy. It showed that age doesn’t mean there’s nothing to look forward in life. It had messages but these messages didn’t feel forced, they came naturally and they were accepted with little complaint. The love story brought me to tears, especially with its sad conclusion. Except the movie didn’t end sadly, it rose up and up.

#4 – The Hangover

To say I was not expecting this movie to be awesome is an understatement. I actually was pretty much in the dark until the day I saw the film and it exceeded my expectations by a mile and more. It’s funny in a way no other film has been funny this past year. Things kept piling on and on but it didn’t get tiresome. I kept wanting more clues, I kept wanting to figure out what happened that night. Following the characters backtrack through the night that had them waking up in a trashed hotel room with a baby, a tiger in the bathroom, and a chicken was a promising start. This movie delivered.

#5 – The Reader

This movie did not come out in 2009 but I didn’t see it until this past spring. Kate Winslet owned her role, she deserved the awards she won. I started watching this film expecting good things and was happy to see it fulfilled my expectations. It made me wonder what I would have done. How I would have felt. How do you feel when someone you love is revealed to be what many would consider a monster? When you learn that they have done terrible things, things they never shared with you, which you never suspected they were capable of. It’s not the story of a summer love, it’s said to be the story of the German people but it’s also the story of every person who finds out what they know about their loved one is not the reality, is so far from reality that it damages you forever.

Favorite Characters of 2009

#1 – Sheldon Cooper, Ph.D. from The Big Bang Theory (TV)

A mix of arrogance, genius and great naïveté. He’s not like Leonard who likes the things he’s nerdy about but doesn’t like that he’s nerdy about the things he’s nerdy about. Sheldon embraces his love of comic books, of Doctor Who, Star Trek, of physics. Despite his usually unwitting tendency to be an asshole he doesn’t come off as an unlikeable character. He is remarkably out of his depth when it comes to emotions and people and I think that mixture of arrogance, lack of tact, and vulnerability attracts many female viewers in a way the more tactful (or shall we say passive aggressive?) Leonard will never be able to do.

#2 – Leonard H. McCoy from Star Trek (TV/Film)

Despite the fact that I never found McCoy attractive until Star Trek XI I’ve always enjoyed him as a character. His playful (and sometimes not so) arguments with Spock in Star Trek: The Original Series were a high point of that show for me. McCoy may be old fashioned but he’s a hell of a doctor. He’s also n0t one to back down. His past may be dark and he’s pretty much the bitter alcoholic of the nu!Trek fandom but throughout the years he’s shown himself to be so much more than that. I still remember watching the campfire scene from one of the past Star Trek movies and being moved by the friendship he had with Spock and Jim and how it continued outside of the Enterprise. It wasn’t just a work friendship, they were lifelong friends.

#3 – James Tiberius Kirk from Star Trek (TV/Film)

I’ll admit that Jim Kirk was my least favorite of the trio back when I was catching Star Trek reruns. Back then my crush on Spock was pretty hardcore. I think the new, more damaged Jim of Star Trek XI interests me more than his TOS counterpart. Yes, they’re both chasing after women but Jim is rougher around the edges, he has scars, he has survived. Not that TOS Kirk had a perfect life but he had more a surety when it came to his parents, especially his father. Frat boy Jim is all right to read about, sometimes very fun, but I think the fact that he is a genius, driven to do in three years what typically takes four, and does not believe in failure can become very minimized, sometimes even forgotten. Not that every story needs to be a sobfest or serious but the guy is not an airhead. Love you, Jim.

#4 – Spock from Star Trek (TV/Film)

It may be hard to believe but I was actually in Star Trek fandom as early as 2001. I remember signing up for a Spock/Chapel mailing list on September 11, 2001 (messed up, yeah?). That was because Spock was the character I thought was the most attractive of Star Trek: The Original Series. It was serious and I could not tell anybody in real life because, seriously, a teenager liking Spock from Star Trek? Laaaaame! I cared about such things back in my youth. After a couple of years I pretty much stopped reading Spock/Chapel fanfiction but I still loved Spock. The reason I did not name him higher than Jim or McCoy was because this is 2009 and the Spock I saw on the big screen in 2009 kicked ass but he was no Leonard Nimoy! Even my glee at seeing Spock in a relationship (yes, I like Spock/Uhura despite the suckage of the fic in the past few months) could not change this fact. Still, I feel Quinto makes a good Spock and seeing Spock gain so much popularity was a big middle finger to the people who previously said Star Trek was uncool. Spock is genius, he genuinely cares about his friends, he is a child of two worlds (seeing him grapple with his human and Vulcan side was another one of my favorite bits of TOS) and, yes, the Vulcan-ness is plain hot.

#5 – Nyota Uhura (TV/Film)

I wish I could say I was a fan of Star Trek: The Original Series Uhura but she registered very little with me then. Probably because 1960s audiences weren’t ready for a kickass woman of color. Yes, I liked her but what strikes me is that oftentimes she did very little other than her job. Maybe this is bad memory because it’s been a while since I was watching reruns but there you have it. Revolutionary for her time but by the standards of a young woman in the 1990s not revolutionary at all. Star Trek XI made me love Uhura. She was smart, sassy, and ambitious. She retained some of that nurturing streak she had from TOS but she was no longer strong and silent. She was strong and she let the world know. I know that did not sit well with many fans used to TOS Uhura or who felt the main relationships were destroyed by her presence, by her being more important to Spock than either McCoy or Jim. I still enjoyed her a lot more and felt that she wasn’t just the “girlfriend”. Well, unless McCoy was just the “best friend”?

Music of 2009

#1 – Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog Soundtrack

I downloaded this soundtrack on whim after remember how much I enjoyed watching this web film. It garned over 100 plays in a few weeks and became a staple of my 2009 music experience. I even made my first music ringtone a clip from one of the songs. My favorite voice of the soundtrack is Neil Patrick Harris, closely followed by Felicia Day. It’s an entertaining soundtrack to listen to, a mixture of angst and humor.

‘Brand New Day’, ‘Freeze Ray’, ‘My Eyes’.

#2 – Metric

I’d been a fan of Metric ever since I heard the first song off Grow Up and Blow Away but my admiration for the band didn’t reach its full potential until the release of Fantasies. It was a solid album for me and it converted some of the people in my life into Metric fans (always a plus in a family that considers my music jarring to listen to). It was great to listen to a song on the radio (before I got my hands on the album) and say, ‘That sounds like Metric!’ For me, seeing a band I enjoy find some fame doesn’t mean they lose their cool points… not automatically, anyway.

‘Sick Muse’, ‘Help I’m Alive’, ‘Gimme Sympathy’

#3 – Yeah Yeah Yeahs

I’d had ‘Art Star’ kicking around on my computer for years and enjoyed ‘Warrior’, ‘Maps’, ‘Y Control’ and other songs off their earlier albums. In fact, much of 2009 was spent listening to their earlier albums. It’s Blitz was a different sound from them with some great songs but it didn’t match my favorites. Perhaps because once I choose a favorite it’s hard to oust it from it’s top position. Still, 2009 was the year I fell in love with Yeah Yeah Yeahs and before their newest release. I love Karen O’s voice, it’s rawness and power is exactly what I like to hear.

‘Heads Will Roll’, ‘Warrior’, ‘Maps’

#4 – Woods

From the moment I heard ‘Rain On’ I knew this band would take up more than one or two slots on my playlist. That haunting music and voice. It’s low-key in ways that many of the other artists I listen to aren’t but I find the Songs of Shame album gorgeous. I even downloaded their Daytrotter Session because this sort of sound is what I was hoping to hear from 2009 but hadn’t until I heard Woods.

‘Rain On’, ‘Gypsy Hand’, ‘Where and What Are You?’

#5 – Camera Obscura

I’d heard and dismissed Camera Obscura in less than 30 seconds years ago. Then I heard ‘Other Towns & Cities’ from My Maudlin Career and thought, ‘well, this is a different sound than what I remember’. I listened to the song on and off, enjoying its melancholy and the lead singer’s voice. Then I downloaded the rest of the album and fell in love with ‘French Navy’. I like this version of Camera Obscura, it’s far more entertaining than whatever it was I heard all those years ago. I hope they continue with this new sound.

‘French Navy’, ‘Other Towns & Cities’, ‘My Maudlin Career’

Favorite Books of 2009

#1 – Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

I think what puts this at the top of the list is how interesting this novel was to read. It wasn’t Atwood’s best. It was no The Blind Assassin but it was entertaining. Jimmy is the only real character of the piece and not a very likeable one at that but this different future — this dystopia — Atwood spins is hard to look away from. The funny names and wordplay were great to read, the websites, how the classes had separated even further, how the arts had fallen so far they were considered pointless, it was a fast read. The first chapter is the hardest to get through. It gets easier and easier as the book goes on.

#2 – Henry and June by Anaïs Nin

I’d collected a number of quotes from Anaïs Nin before ever reading one of her journals in full. Her way of expressing things captivated me. Henry and June was a good start into her writing. In many ways Nin is terrible person, very deceptive and self-indulgent. In other ways, she expresses her story of awakening in such a beautiful way it’s easy to overlook the fact she’s in love with two people at once, both who are not her husband and leads on several more. There is a glamour to her life, a beauty, and, oh the way she expresses her feelings.

#3 – Nine Stories by J.D. Salinger

I’d read and loathed Catcher in the Rye over ten years ago. Holden was the sort of character I wanted to choke to death and because of that I avoided Salinger’s work like the plague. Then I got some good reviews of his short stories and took interest. Nine Stories was the one I bought and read this past year and it completed changed my view of Salinger. “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” and that shocking and perfect ending. The beauty of “For Esmé – with Love and Squalor”. Salinger knows how to write and his dialogue is spot on.

#4 – The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

I enjoyed the animated film when I was a kid, it was one of those that never seemed to get old. The book is even better. Gorgeous writing and an awareness that it’s a fairytale while still losing none of its magic. It’s has a sense of humor. All the characters are searching and it rather reminds me that I too am searching for something. Like them I have not found it but I must carry on. A book which is more lyrical than the film based upon it but in which the film captures much of its beauty.

#5 – Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez

A beautiful book with lush descriptions. It is not the story of one love, of The Love, but of many loves, in all their different forms. It’s a book that needs re-reading and then more re-reading. Florentino explores what love means, what it is, in what forms it comes as. I think I have a very limited understanding of this novel because it’s outside of the realm I usually travel in but I find I like visiting there.

Top ‘Ships of 2009

#1 – Sheldon & Penny (The Big Bang Theory)(TV)

I discovered this relationship back in the spring, it’s what caused me to take a second look at The Big Bang Theory. Sheldon and Penny are nothing alike in many ways but their scenes together on the show are magic. They bring out the best in the show. It’s obvious they both care for one another and that they are the alpha male and female of their group and that they have very little chance of being a couple at this point. I spent a month reading all the fic in the fandom which was a lot smaller back then. Since then interest in the ‘ship has exploded.

#2 – Spock & McCoy (Star Trek) (TV/Film)

I prefer their Star Trek: The Original Series counterparts when it comes to fanfiction. The show had them bickering with one another like an old married couple. They genuinely cared for one another. This ‘ship can be a fluff fest (well as fluffy as fic with a Vuclan can be) or it can be the darkest angst possible. I do not like their mirror!universe counterparts very much, at least not when it comes to ‘shipping them. The affection and teasing in their relationships is one of the biggest draws for me and I feel most of that is lost in mirror!universe fic.

#3 – Kirk & McCoy (Star Trek) (TV/Film)

This is mostly a ‘ship brought about by the Star Trek XI film. It works in Star Trek: The Original Series, too, but it lacks the academy fic. Both the characters from the new film are damaged and they clearly come to care about one another to the point that McCoy risks his career by sneaking Kirk onto the ‘ship, he just cannot bear to leave him behind. He might grumble about it but that’s just because that’s what he does. The potential for angst is enormous and the fic writers have delivered.

#4 – Billy & Penny (Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog) (Web Film)

A clearly dysfunctional and hopeless pairing, considering the ending of the film. Yet I found myself drawn into it again after listening to the soundtrack over 100 times. Billy is clearly too damaged for a real relationship even though the lighter first part of the film allows there to be hope for one but the stormclouds draw down and the end is tragic and it’s hard to ‘ship when one half of your pairing is gone but there’s always fic.

#5 – Susan & Peter (Chronicles of Narnia) (Book Series)

My 2500 word short story started as a 700 word Susan & Peter semi-incestuous fic. Most of my Narnia fic is tied to Susan and Peter, usually with only hints of incestual feelings. Susan is my favorite character of the Chronicles of Narnia series and darkness I see in her feels perfect for this sort of relationship. Her relationship with Peter in Narnia was as Queen to his High King, they came in pairs. Narnia fandom is full of incest and it’s not hard to see why, the setting is perfect for it.

Favorite Television Show of 2009

#1 – The Big Bang Theory

The only show I remain watching from 2009. I lost interest in Heroes and The Big Bang Theory is far more entertaining. It can make me smile on the worst of days. The four nerds and their normal neighbor form unlikely friendships and a lot of the jokes are at their expense but it’s genuinely a fun show. It’s nice to see people on television who watch and do some of the things you have done (when it comes to fandom, at least). Sheldon is by far the favorite and despite my misgivings about Leonard I don’t hate any of the characters on the show, they all bring something to it and when their friendship rises above the relationships it’s a joy to watch.

Favorite Celebrity of 2009

#1 – Jim Parsons

Do I have a crush? Hell yes! I participated in a web chat with Jim Parsons (with a lot of other people) and he came across as a genuinely nice guy, very sweet and nice to his fans. He got a little freaked out by some of the questions but he never made us feel bad about it and he sang soft kitty to us. It was one of my best fandom moments ever. I got to share it with one of my online best friends and this friend and I didn’t even meet through fandom. I haven’t had a celebrity crush this huge in many, many years. Go Jim Parsons!