2012 was a big year to be a geek, nerd and/or poindexter. This is the year geek culture went mainstream. Like, really, really mainstream. We're at the point where geek culture isn't just accepted -- you now have to be into comics, video games, sci-fi or fantasy if you want to be at all keyed into contemporary pop culture. It's embrace geekdom or stick to NCIS and Two and a Half Men reruns. Those are basically your two entertainment options as of the end of 2012.
It wasn't all roses though -- there were still plenty of legitimate reasons for nerdrage this year. Hit the jump for the best and worst of geek culture in 2012...
Best: Kickstarter Makes Nerd Dreams Come True
This time last year most of us nerdish types were only vaguely aware of what Kickstarter was -- what a difference a year makes, huh? It's almost impossible to list all the nerd dreams Kickstarter has made possible this year. New Wasteland, Shadowrun and Broken Sword games? The intriguing, open, free-to-play, indie console Ouya? A longbox full of cool indie comics projects? Uhhh, Thankskilling 3?
Us nerds love to play the "I wish they'd make another..." game, but now, thanks to Kickstarter, we can actually make some of those wishes come true. Awesome.
Best: Batman Has His Best Year In Forever
I'm totally into Batman as a character, but the sad truth is the dude's comics were a mess for long damn time. Generally they were either dull, outright bad, or Grant Morrison at his sloppy indecipherable worst. Then Scott Snyder happened.
I was into Snyder's stuff before he started on Batman (his work on American Vampire and Detective Comics was damn good) but he took it to a new level in 2012. Snyder and the also fantastic Greg Capullo put together one of the best Batman runs in the character's long history in 2012. The Court of the Owls was the most gripping Bat-story since Frank Miller's 80s heyday, and while Death of the Family isn't quite as great, it's still a very good take on the badly overused Joker.
Worst: To Clarify, Batman Comics Were Great in 2012. Movies, Not So Much...
Okay, it's been a few months -- is it finally okay to admit The Dark Knight Rises just wasn't very good? It wasn't terrible or anything, but it failed to measure up to either of its predecessors in pretty much any way. The villain was a mumbly muddle, there was far too much padding and not enough action, and Batman barely played a role in the proceedings. TDKR was a Bane, Catwoman and Joseph Gordon Levitt cop guy movie (and not a great one).
Also in Batman movies this year, The Dark Knight Returns, the best Bat-story of all time, finally got an adaptation and eh, it was okay. It sticks to the story fairly faithfully, but everything about this two-part animated movie is just so bland, bloodless and unengaging -- basically everything the source material is not.
Best: Indie Games Get Mainstream Recognition
Up until 2012 mention of indie video games brought up images of blocky pixel-art throwback games only the most hardened, hipstery gamers kept up with or played. That changed big time in 2012. This year's top 10 lists are littered with breakout indie hits like Journey, Hotline Miami and Lone Survivor. Hell, the Spike Video Game Awards, the most mainstreamy mainstream thing possible, gave most of its awards this year to The Walking Dead, a friggin' indie adventure game. What glorious new planet am I living on?
Worst: Mid-size Developers Die Off In Droves
Yes, small indie developers had a lot of success this year, but unfortunately 2012 wasn't a great year for a lot of slightly larger, mid-size independent game makers. Studios like Eurocom, Hudson Soft and Psygnosis were the blue-collar backbone of the industry, doing the best they could with the licensed games and lower profile titles big name studios didn't want to touch.
Unfortunately gaming seems to be moving rapidly toward the movie industry model, in which you have lavish blockbusters, no-budget indies and little to nothing in between. Come on video game industry, the creamy middle is always the best part of anything -- don't let it go so easily.
Worst: Zombie Over Saturation
I've consumed more zombie media in my life than any sane individual really should. They're by far the most versatile movie monster there is, but holy crap did I get tired of them this year. Don't get me wrong, there are still certain, specific zombie-based entertainments I'm going to keep up with -- I'm still into The Walking Dead (mostly because of its excellent non-deceased characters) and I'll watch anything George Romero puts out, but otherwise I'm done. Once I saw hunky Brad Pitt running from a literal wave of zombies in the first World War Z trailer, I knew the genre had nothing more to offer me.
Best: People Who Actually Know Something About Art Declared Video Games To Be It
For years now people who don't really know much about art have been engaged in a heated debate with people who don't really know much about video games about whether the latter can be the former. It's been really f--king frustrating for both sides and for anyone watching.
So, thankfully this year the New York Museum of Modern Art, an outfit that I think we can safely assume knows a thing or two about art, stepped in and ended the discussion by establishing a permanent video game exhibition. Based on the list of games they hope to eventually display, they also did their video game homework. So there you go, video games are art -- now how 'bout we change the subject to literally anything else?
Best: Disney Buys Lucasfilm
In easily the biggest geek-relevant news story of the year, Disney bought Star Wars, Indiana Jones (and more) from delusional, out-of-touch, Droopy Dog-esque shell of a man George Lucas and immediately green-lit Star Wars Episode VII! The movie that will be worked on by some of Hollywood's hottest talent and will almost certainly be better than those terrible damn prequels. Hooray!
Worst: Disney Buys Lucasfilm
In easily the biggest geek-relevant news story of the year the Disney mega-conglomerate bought Lucasfilm, the most successful independent movie studio of all time, wresting control of Star Wars and Indiana Jones from their creator, the once visionary (and kinda sexy) George Lucas. Disney kicked off the exploitation by immediately green-lighting Star Wars Episode VII, a movie that will be worked on by competent, but ultimately voiceless hired hands, and almost certainly won't live up the legendary original trilogy. Boo!
This is where I leave you for now -- 2012 was such a geeky year I need two features to cover all the highs and lows. Come back Monday for the conclusion of The Best And Worst Of Geek Culture 2012!
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1) KickStarter is a scam
3) Admit it – we all love the Bane voice
5) “The creamy middle is always the best part of anything” – words to live by
8/9) Star Wars Episode VII seems to be coming too quickly. Let’s hope it isn’t rushed.
1) Some things on it are. Kickstarter as a whole isn’t.
2) No. It was dumb. Bane should sound like Javier Bardem. And look. Bane should have just been Javier Bardem.
1) Kickstarter is a way for people to ask for people to invest for nothing in return an with no say in production. That’s a scam
3) “A man’s wife is his life, Mr. UPS man.”
Um, every single reputable Kickstarter has rewards depending on how much you pledge. Also, you know, you get the game/movie/comic they were promising to make to begin with. Also, investors usually don’t get a say in how an artistic endeavor is executed.
A reward is different from a return, though. I may get something for my pledge, but it’s not a return on my investment. If the projects were asking for charitable donations, like the one to build the RoboCop statue in Detroit, I wouldn’t have a problem with it, but most of these reputable Kickstarter projects are asking for donations to make a consumer product. It’s asking people to make an investment without becoming investors. It’s a scam.
And if Tim Schafer wasn’t worried about corporate meddling in the project that started the so-called “Kickstarter Revolution”, he wouldn’t have turned to the site in the first place.
Kickstarter isn’t an investment — it’s crowdfunding. There’s a reason they’re called “pledges”, not investments. You’re not buying stocks. That language isn’t used anywhere on the site. The product is your return — that’s the very clearly stated concept of Kickstarter. There’s no deceit. There’s no scam.
That’s the scam.
It must be tough living life surrounded by so many scams the rest of us can’t see.
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
I’ve had great luck with Kickstarter. I’ve pitched in for 5 projects. Two of them failed to fund (thus no expense to me) and three funded. Two of them I’ve already received my product for and the third one comes to me in March.
I like The Dark Knight Rises. It’s not as good as the other Nolan Batman movies, but it being disappointing doesn’t make it drivel.
Yup. Like everyone, I thought this would be minute after minute of awesome. It was still better than I’d have expected a major studio to put out. But in the end, Avengers kicked its booty for best comic film of the year.
That said, I’ve now seen it three times, which is something I would never do for a film I got nothing out of.
The Dark Knight Rises is the best of the trilogy in terms of story. Yes Heath Ledger’s performance was the crown jewel of the series, but story-wise I’m going with #3.
Since we’re comparing the three, does anyone else prefer the one piece suit from “Begins” over the plated, sectional armor he gets in TDK?
Also, Katie Holmes > that pug they found to take her place.
TDKR was a mess story wise. They have Wayne go through the exact same character arc twice in the same movie, they have about half a dozen extraneous characters that should have been excised, and the themes go nowhere.
I hate that sad turtle Maggie Gyllenhall. I she really got the short end of the stick in that family am I right?
I’m on of those “Batman Begins” is the best of the trilogy guys. We are few, but strong.
In terms of chicks the last one easily wins.
TDKR was awesome man, I don’t see why these guys are so pissed. The ending was perfect, the story was great, and the acting was top notch.
I’ll allow “wasn’t very good” in the most literal sense. The Dark Knight was very good; the Dark Knight Rises and Batman Begins were good.
S***T! Javier Bardem as Bane would be brilliant!!!
I liked Dark Night Rises but I couldn’t understand the commotion about it at the time of its release, I thought it was a good movie but not a great one.
About zombies: I totally disagree with you here. There’s no way I can get enough of good zombie stuff. I have to admit that I prefer the Walking Dead Comics (I adore it to be honest) than the TV series (I hate what they have done to some of my favorite characters) and that World War Z looks like a total disaster but I have the feeling that we-zombie lovers are still waiting for someone in Hollywood or somewhere in Europe with cojones and money to make a real badass mind blowing zombie movie. I know I am.
And about being the nerd/geek year, I agree that the nerd thing went mainstream but only in a lighter note. I still think that the real nerds(not the godforsaken hipster types) are outsiders and will remain that way.
I’ll stop saying the Dark Knight Rises was very good when the Internet says the Avengers wasn’t very good either.
/spits into spittoon
/continues rocking in chair on porch
The Avengers wasn’t very good either.
Predictions:
* Spider-Man is on the “worst” list for part 2. The Ultimate Spider-Man TV show, the disappointing Amazing Spider-Man film, and Dan Slott are some of the worst comic book-related stuff that came out this year
* Joss Whedon is on the “best” list for part 2. That The Avengers didn’t suck is good, that it’s actually good is incredible, and that it’s as good as it is is nothing short of a miracle. Between that and Cabin in the Woods, this was Whedon’s year.
case in point
I did like Cabin in the Woods a lot though.
I’d say the best thing that has happened for geeks in 2012 is that Joss Whedon now has enough clout to walk into any studio or network in Hollywood and dictate terms for a whatever project he wants.
I like that you refer to SCE Liverpool as Psygnosis. I miss that company and their crazy logo. Wipeout is all well and good, but I wish they had been allowed to keep making games like Colony Wars and G-Police after all the reshuffling and renaming happened. Would probably have fared a little better overall.
Death in the family is WAY better than Court of Owls, I thought that story line was terrible, like..”oh you have some assassins who cant be killed that were actually a secret society and OH! one of them is Bruce Wayne’s long lost brother he didnt know he had?” Get real. The joker is so insane and terrifying right now, read Batman and Robin #15 and tell me it isnt brilliant.
Death in The Family being way better is a good thing though it means that the brand is improving even more. Court of Owls was a good start for the relaunch though.
What about assassins, secret societies and long lost brothers is incompatible with Batman?
Morrison’s Batman is probably the best long-form dissection of the character in 70+ years of his history. Except for some recently-introduced strands that are still waiting to be tied up, I can’t think of a single element from the last 60 or so issues of this story that can’t be cogently explained. It’s what got me back into both comics AND Batman after years away. I’ve never seen a mainstream superhero book be this ambitious and actually hold together. The sheer amount of layers and connections and ideas is staggering. It actually kinda angers me that most authors can’t be bothered to put so much effort in and are fine with just running through the same villain-of-the-month stories.
Synder, on the other hand, is a competent bore. He seems like a nice guy and he obviously loves the characters, but his stories are filled with tired tropes, predictable dialogue and thin shocks. Observations about how important Alfred is to Bruce or how Batman and the Joker define each other are all well and good, but it’s been done. So. Many. Times. It reads like fan fiction at this point. Synder’s Batman would make a good “Intro to Batman” course, but there’s no freakin meat on the bones beyond that.
(Also; Rises was great.)
I love that Journey was also nominated for a Grammy.
Note: I seem to have come down with the bubonic plague, so part 2 of this is postponed until Tuesday (or whenever I’m able to write coherent posts longer than a few paragraphs again).
We sure have different opinions on what makes for good Batman.
Grant Morrison’s epic domination of the Batman franchise brought about the most fascinating (and desperately needed) changes to the status quo in decades. Dick Grayson could have gone on for years as the new Batman, with the fantastic dynamic with Damian. Too bad DC had to chicken out of doing some real writing and decided to reboot instead.
The Dark Knight Rises was a triumphant film dragged down by the fact that people had impossibly high expectations after The Dark Knight. TDK was lightning in a bottle, featuring one of the greatest villain performances of all time by an actor whose death galvanized the public. Objective analysis of the three Nolan films reveals three excellent but very different films, but asking the geek community to be objective is like asking gamers to wear deodorant at a LAN party. The verdict was in on TDKR before it even came out, and the fact that it still got so much critical and fan praise despite all the presumption only goes to show how good it was.
*bro grab*