My Favorite Books, Movies, Games, and Shows
Introduction
All right, so I’m new to being vocal about who I am on the Internet. I think it’s important that, if I’m going to be reviewing content in the open, my tastes be well established. When I look to a reviewer for an opinion, I generally look for a reviewer whose tastes are similar to my own. What better way to see if our tastes are aligned than listing a few of my favorite things? I’m going to tackle my top three books, movies, games, and shows. We’ll start with number three and work our way up, one category at a time.
By the way, this is all based on just how I’m feeling right now. I’ve found that my tastes can change with the wind. I’m sure that I have other movies, games, shows, and books that could swap spots with the items on this list at any given moment. This is just how I feel at the moment; by no means is this my ultimate, end-all list.
As always, you can check out the video version of this post here:
Favorite Books
We'll start off with my top three favorite books. This is a challenging list to make, and I've made it a little more challenging by restricting myself somewhat. Each book needs to be from a different author. This is to prevent me from just listing three Terry Pratchett books because... well, that's absolutely what would happen. So these are my top three favorite books--at the time of this writing--with the restriction that none of them can be from the same author in place.
#3: Ender's Game
Ender’s Game will likely always be in my top ten, at least. This book left a pretty significant impact on me in the way that we view not just war, but people who are different than ourselves. I think it’s the first book that actually helped to shape some aspects of my view of the world. Many books have made me think, but this one helped me understand a complex concept. It’s also just written masterfully, especially the zero gravity fight scenes. Despite how complicated that idea is to put to paper, I always felt like I had a clear comprehension of what was taking place. This is an easy, quick, excellent read. I’d say it’s a must-read for anyone who wants to get into science fiction.
I want to note here that it is Ender's Game, not its author that is in my top ten. I'm aware of the sort of things the author has said and done, I know about the controversies and issues surrounding him. The author of Ender's Game wouldn't appear in any top ten lists for me, but this book on its own is a remarkable piece of work with an excellent message. Just want to note that here and now. I'm of a mind that a creator and their work can be separated, with a few possible exceptions.
#2: The Final Empire
This is the first book in the Mistborn series, though you’ll commonly hear it just called Mistborn. Even though it’s the introduction to a trilogy of books, this novel actually stands perfectly well on its own. It has a solid beginning and a well-executed ending that gives you closure to the story. I enjoy the other two books as well, though I’m in the crowd that doesn’t particularly like the way the trilogy was closed; this one is absolutely my favorite of the three.
There’s a lot I could say about this book. I might even reread the trilogy and do reviews on these stories. The magic system is incredible and so well-thought-out. The characters are incredible. The twists are genuinely surprising. I love this book. It is masterful.
Oathbringer was originally the book at this level on the list. I swapped it for The Final Empire mainly because The Final Empire stands well on its own while Oathbringer requires the books prior to it in order to stand. Oathbringer is, I think, a better book all things considered, but if I want to just sit down and read a great Brandon Sanderson book from start to finish--and if I want to recommend a great one--The Final Empire is the best choice.
#1: Reaper Man
I want to just say that my number one book is every book in the Discworld collection. I love all of them. Even the few slightly weaker entries are still enjoyable, worthwhile reads. However, if I have to pick a favorite, I’m going to say... Reaper Man.
Death is such an incredible character--he’s probably my favorite character in all of fantasy, maybe even fiction in general. I could do an entire talk about how amazing Terry Pratchett’s rendition of Death is and why he is such an important literary icon. Terry humanized Death to an unprecedented degree. Seriously, if you only have a chance to read one Discworld novel in your lifetime, make it one of the Death books.
Reaper Man is my favorite because the premise is so incredibly absurd, yet simultaneously believable within the setting. In Reaper Man, we see Death go off to start working on a farm. Seriously. He assumes the name Bill Door and goes to work on a farm. If that alone isn’t enough to get you wanting to experience this story, I’m not sure what it’ll take.
So, Reaper Man. All of Discworld, really, but Reaper Man in particular.
I’ll note that it has been a while since I read through the entire Discworld collection. I’m planning to do so again starting later next year. However, I might come away with a different favorite from the collection once I’ve reread it all, again.
Favorite Movies
So, those were my favorite books. I’m already starting to think of some other books that might knock them out of their places (except for Reaper Man, of course--it could only be displaced by another Terry Pratchett book), but I’ve got to move on. My favorite movies are next. Now, it’s tempting for me to just list three Edgar Wright films and move on--he is my absolute favorite director. However, I’m going to refrain from doing so. Once again, here's my top three in a category, restricted somewhat to make it non-repetitive.
#3: Mr. Nobody
I don’t want to sound like I’m some pretentious viewer of lesser-known media, but Mr. Nobody genuinely is one of my favorite movies. It’s a beautifully told story that I can’t quite explain without feeling like I’m giving away spoilers. It stars Jared Leto in the central role. He’s recounting his life to an interviewer in the future, but the recounting of his life conflicts with itself, ultimately making no sense and unraveling. This movie never fails to break my heart. I love it.
#2: The Prestige
The Prestige is a Christopher Nolan film that stars Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale. It follows two competing magicians who gradually escalate their competition over time, raising the stakes for their tricks in an effort to be superior to the other. It gets really intense and there is a lot of subtlety in the film that you likely won’t pick up on until you’ve seen the whole thing through to the end. This is an excellent movie and it gets better with each rewatch, in my opinion. I have lost count of the number of times I’ve watched this, but it’s a wonderful experience each time. It even raises some really grueling questions by the end of it that make me squirm when I think about them for too long.
#1: Baby Driver
Baby Driver. It’s hard to pick a favorite Edgar Wright movie, but this is the one for me. This movie is so good that it’s still my number one despite the presence of a particular cast member. Apart from him, the casting in this movie alone is unexpectedly perfect. I would never have thought to put these people in these roles, but it is done and it is beautiful. I love this story so much. The fact that the whole movie is in time to the music, too, is just… incredible. I love it. The whole thing is a masterpiece.
It was a challenge to choose this one over The World’s End, another film by Edgar Wright. I know that isn’t everyone’s favorite from the Three Flavors Cornetto trilogy that he did, but it’s definitely mine. This one is just unexpectedly absurd and I love it.
Here is how I recommend watching The World’s End because it’s how I watched it and had a great time: do not read anything about it. Shush anyone who tries to tell you what it’s about. Put the film on and sit down to enjoy a silly comedy about a bunch of friends going back to their hometown for a pub crawl. That’s all you need to know.
Gosh, now I’m thinking I should change my favorite movie to The World’s End…
Nope. No, I’m sticking to my guns. It’s Baby Driver.
Even though…
Nope, gotta move on.
Favorite Games
This list has actually stayed largely consistent over the years. It wasn’t until this year that it changed since the first time I played The Witcher 3, which used to be in my number two spot. Eh, I guess that spoils one thing on the list, so might as well dive into it. These are my top three favorite games and, unlike my other two lists in this post, it rarely changes. I'm pretty rigid and critical when it comes to games and, even if I really love one, the odds of it pushing out something in my top three is slim to none. I have to be genuinely blown away to make changes to this list... and I was finally blown away for the first time in years, this past Spring. So... what blew me away?
#3: The Witcher 3
I didn’t enjoy the first witcher game. I thought the second one was all right. But the third game. The third game was absolutely incredible. I loved it. I have well over one thousand hours in it. I love the stories; even the side quests are amazing. The DLC was packed with remarkable content that was far more vibrant and wonderful than anyone would reasonably expect from a game's DLC. Even talking about it now has me wanting to start another play-through. I’ve beaten this game on every difficulty at least once, some difficulties a few times. It’s a story that is absolutely worth experiencing repeatedly. Honestly, replayability is how I tend to judge many games: do I want to experience this story, again? With Wild Hunt, the answer is "yes, uncountable times".
I will say that this position is nearly tied with my fourth and fifth place choices, Dark Souls 3 and Majora’s Mask, respectively. It is hard to choose who belongs in this position, but I think Wild Hunt is the right choice.
#2: The Last of Us
This is a game that showcases video games as a storytelling medium better than any other game I have played. When I first played it after its initial release, it immediately shot to my number one spot. It wasn’t unseated until this year, which was something I didn’t expect.
If you haven’t played the Last of Us, I strongly recommend doing so. I myself am not really a fan of the zombie genre, so I wasn’t all that eager to play it at first. However, this story revealed how much depth and meaning you can extract from this apocalyptic horror genre. It was done in a way that only a game can do, which I can’t really talk about without giving examples that would be spoilers, which I want to avoid, here. Overall, though, the story for this game was unlikely anything I had ever seen in a game until this point. It blew me away, crushed my heart, made me cry… it was remarkable. I can’t recommend it enough.
#1: Ghost of Tsushima
And finally, we arrive at the game that unseated The Last of Us from a position it had held in my heart for eight freaking years. Seriously, I’d played so many games since the Last of Us, many of which I’d loved, but I always held The Last of Us as my favorite game of all time. I never thought I’d play something that would move it from its position as number one. Yet, this year, something finally did. This year, I played and finished Ghost of Tsushima.
I went into Ghost of Tsushima with no expectations, which is how I generally like to experience content. I like to have as little knowledge as possible. If I need information, I think it should be “here’s how you should consume this thing”. E.g., "Is this something I should actively sit and pay attention to, or can I have it on in the background?" So I went into Ghost of Tsushima with only the generic recommendation from some coworkers I barely knew that it’s “pretty good”.
Either they were deliberately underselling this game or they just hadn’t been paying attention. Ghost of Tsushima is an amazing, beautiful, and heartbreaking story. It is executed perfectly. Seriously. I would have to really sit here and think to find a flaw that I have with it. I loved every minute of my playing experience. I jumped in on the hardest difficulty I could and it was tough but I found myself insisting on perfection, often letting myself be killed so I could retry a duel if I felt I hadn’t performed well enough.
I wasn’t totally sure how I was going to feel about the game at first, but when I got to the title sequence, I felt butterflies in my stomach. Seriously butterflies. I can’t remember the last time a game gave me that prior to Ghost of Tsushima. It was such a beautiful sequence. It made me eager to dive into this world and explore it. And then the story to match this incredible gameplay and gorgeous game? Unreal. Devastating, wonderful, it’s everything. I love it so much.
I recommend this game to anyone I can. If you aren’t one for a challenging game but you love a good story, just put the game on its easiest mode and play casually so you can experience this beautiful tale. Seriously. This game deserves its number one spot on my list without question. I could rant for another hour on how amazing it is, but I’ll refrain.
Favorite Shows
We arrive now at my final category: shows. This is just a general series that I enjoy or love. This selection is especially hard to pick because there are so many different categories. I could split them up into comedy and drama and still have a hard time picking, but choosing from every show out there? That’s a challenge. I’m going to do my best, though. You're going to notice right from the start that these shows are all pretty different from one another... I have broad tastes in general, but especially when it comes to films and shows. So... here we go.
#3: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Do you want to hear something weird? This number three spot was a toss-up between It’s Always Sunny and Luther. Two vastly different shows, but I couldn’t choose which one to put, here. I settled on Always Sunny because I feel like Luther gets a little weaker over time while Always Sunny just keeps getting stronger and funnier. I can’t wait for the new season that’s coming out.
Always Sunny follows a cast of awful characters. They’re supposed to be awful; these people are a reflection of some of the worst, most degenerate people out there. They just suck and they’re supposed to suck. This show can do some of the most outlandish, insane, awful things and make it amusing because it has a cast you’re meant to dislike and even be disgusted by. Yet, because of how well done this show is, you enjoy watching these awful people and their misadventures. That is exceptionally challenging to pull off. Most often when you have a completely awful cast, the show is nigh on unwatchable.
#2: Breaking Bad
When I first heard the premise for Breaking Bad, I was part of the crowd that dismissed it as dumb. It took me way too long to start watching it, but when I did, I saw the genius of the show. It has so much depth. The writing, acting, and cinematography all come together to bring this amazing, gut-wrenching story to life.
Many moments of this show had me on the edge of my seat when I first watched it through, unsure of what was coming next. It always made sure to set the stakes high and make sure you knew that those stakes were real. No one had plot armor, at least not that I can remember. No one was truly untouchable--some people acted like it, but you always had a sense as a viewer that everyone was at risk one way or another. They might be killed, they might get locked up, they might get kidnapped… I never knew and I was always nervous.
#1: Travelers
This might surprise some people, I think. Travelers is my favorite television show at the time of this writing. It’s a science fiction story whose plot I don’t really want to get into because, again, I think that the best way to experience something like this is to do so blindly. The first episode is a confusing, fascinating ride that sets up the story in a way I haven’t seen before. The premise of this series alone should be enough to land it in my number one spot, but when you add the raw emotion that comes through in the writing and performances, it takes the cake. I am deeply disappointed that Travelers was canceled and I hope to see it return in some fashion, but am glad that we at least got an ending in some form.
Whoever’s in charge of deciding if a show comes back, if you’re watching this, please make a fourth season or sequel series happen. I’m begging you.
Conclusion
So, there you have it. My top three books, movies, games, and shows. I hope that this gives you a bit of insight into my tastes. I like to think that I’m diverse in what I enjoy and appreciate--I like everything from drama to absurdism to dark humor. I’ve got fantasy, science fiction, and contemporary media that I enjoy, among so many others. But those are just my tastes. I'm curious about yours! What do you think of my list? Have you watched, read, or played any of the stories in this list? If so, what’s your opinion on my rankings? If you happen to check any of them out for the first time because of this list, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Thanks so much for taking the time to check out this post. I hope you enjoyed it. If you wish to support me, you can do so by liking this, subscribing to my YouTube channel, and commenting about how wrong my list is and what sort of punishment I should endure because of its sheer wrongness. I don’t know. Say something.
Bye!