oj made in america

2016 has been full of ups and downs.  For a lot of people, the downs have seemed to be at their lowest, with celebrity deaths (wtf Leia too?!?!), corrupt elections and Justin Bieber still touring the world at the forefront of everyone’s attention.  Much like some drunk Mexican before me, I’d like to take a look at some things that I dug this year.  Keep in mind, my annual Year In Review will be dropping on New Year’s Day for you Bingers, so keep an eye out for that soon.

Making a Sassquatch

It would be easy to look back on that experience with some bitterness, but I can’t deny that I had a blast doing the show.  From Moreno and PeteMC’s involvement to the insanity that ensued from the mystery of who Sass was, I thought it was a rousing success and also, like Moreno, appreciated how organic it was.  Stuff like Making a Sass reminds me that the best ideas are sometimes also the dumbest ones, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

 

Horace and Pete/Louis CK Live at Foxwoods

If there’s one singular experience that sums up 2016 I think it’s probably Horace and Pete.  Likely now finding a new audience due to the fact it just premiered on Hulu, Horace and Pete was the story of Horace and Pete, owners and operators of Horace and Pete’s bar in New York City.  Horace, played by CK, and Pete, played by Steve Buscemi, play the two cousins doomed to live out the lives their fathers pre-ordained for them.  The series features show-stopping performances across the board and moments that come completely out of left field, but the resolution is where I think the story mirrors this year really well.  Nothing is easy, and happiness is a commodity that comes with a price for many folks.  I think that this series will stand as not only a great piece of art but a meaningful one, and it stands out as one of the great experiences I’ve had watching anything this year.  Couple this with the fact that I got to see Louie a few months later, with Kurt Metzger opening for him as a kicker, makes this one of my highlights of the year.

 

Dark Souls III

I play a few games now and again, and one of the great ones this year was Dark Souls III.  DSIII provides a level of challenge that most games shy away from, but anyone who has beaten their first boss after several frustrating failures can tell you that there is possibly no better feeling in all of gaming than what this series gives you.  From the opening moments avoiding dormant dragons to finding an imposter wearing the sacred Havel armor, DSIII delivers the goods and then some.  Absolutely one of the great games of 2016.

 

Completing my Associate’s Degree

Most of you know I’m still in school.  While my Bachelor’s degree is finishing up at the end of March, it’s easy to forget that I also completed my Associate’s Degree this year.  It was a big step, and something that I did not dwell on for too long as the Bachelor’s was always the ultimate goal, but it was a milestone in 2016 that I am quick to overlook.

 

Wake & Bake with Bob Ross

I was lucky enough to start up two pods this year, with both being equally rewarding and tons of fun.  As a casual idea that I threw out one BingeCast, the concept of sitting around, chilling the FUCK out and letting Bob Ross paint a god-damned masterpiece seemed like a great morning activity.  So, as one does, we recorded it, wrapped it up in a bow and made for you, the listeners, Wake & Bake.  Supka, myself and the occasional guest host dish on all the Pthalo Blue and Permanent Red you can shake your medium-length knife at.  This is another example of stupidity being the mother of invention, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned over the course of this year in Binge it’s got to be that no idea is useless, and this show is a good example of that.

 

Meeting Joe Fernandes & The Kicks

With the big meetup this past summer, some of you may recall my meeting with “Sass”.  The Kicks, consisting of TM, KariTM and PeteMC, came to Boston and I was lucky enough to meet the crew.  Add in Joe Fernandes, native of New Bedford, and we had ourselves a great time listening to some dulcet tones in a Jock-McFuckFace Sports Bar in Beantown.  It’s great to have met all of them and I can’t wait until our reunion in March.

 

Meeting Bruce Springsteen/Seeing Bruce Live

Four years ago, I saw Springsteen live at Gillette Stadium.  That night it ignited a passion and love for his music that has only strengthened over time.  I remember seeing a show that cracked a three-hour runtime with no breaks.  This year, he came back to Gillette and played for over four hours.  The madman brought his A-Game and did not disappoint.  That would have been enough, but a few short weeks later I was afforded the opportunity to meet the man.  It was brief, maybe all of 40 seconds, but one blurry picture marks the occasion for all time.  Autographs are nice, but I felt it was an honor to shake the man’s hand and say “Thank you”.  I got to do that this year.  It was pretty awesome.

 

New England Patriots

As I write this the Patriots are sitting at 13-2.  Our Quarterback was unjustly and unfairly persecuted and despite his absence we found a way to go 3-1.  We beat the Broncos.  We beat the Ravens.  The Seahawks…well they beat us, but we played a well fought game.  Who knows, that may still be the Super Bowl preview when all is said and done.  Each year the Pats are an absolute joy to watch and I am always looking forward to the next thing our dark overlord Coach Belichick and TB12 are cooking up next.  See you in Houston.

 

Tracy Morgan Live at the Comedy Connection

One comedy show would have been big, but thanks to Meg’s keen eye we got to see Tracy Morgan this year too.  In what must be his first tour since the accident, Morgan was on fire.  They had us lock up our cell phones, so I imagine some iteration of this show will be available online at some point, but it was great to see Morgan not only on his feet and enjoying himself but finding the humor in the situation he’s been forced into.  A great time and a great performance, Tracy Morgan, if he comes to your town, should be a priority.

 

Titanfall 2: Effect and Cause

Gaming has been good to us this year, no more so than this wonder of a mission from TItanfall 2’s brilliant single player campaign.  The story at this point establishes that you are on a colony where something bad happened, and you’re looking for spare parts.  As you’re traveling through, however, you begin to see people who look like they are halfway through a wall.  Soon thereafter, you find an item with the ability to “jump” between two different times.  This creates an interesting piece of strategy in an otherwise straightforward level, propelling this game into the must-play lists of 2016.  Levels like this show you things that even at this stage in gaming you can’t believe you haven’t seen before.  Here’s to more of this in 2017.

 

OJ Made in America

Easily the most powerful and fascinating documentary of the year, OJ Made in America aims to tell the story you know in a way that you don’t.  By taking a few steps back and really examining the racial implications of the OJ Simpson murder trial you begin to see the flaws in not only the criminal justice system but also in ideas about racial prejudice and fairness.  This five part documentary, totaling a little over seven hours, is essential viewing for anyone and everyone.

 

The Greasy Strangler/The Greasy Strangler Soundtrack

Thank you, thank you, thank you Jim Law.  This was absolutely not on my radar in any way until Law brought it up during a BingeCast.  This is the type of movie that you watch 5-10 minutes and decide whether or not you’ll be in for the long haul.  This movie is hilarious, the soundtrack is batshit catchy-insane and it’s full of awkward dicks, smoothies and bullshit artists.  You at least should give this a try if you’re at all curious.  I don’t know what it says about me that I love this flick as much as I do.  Probably nothing healthy.

 

That’s it for me.  There was plenty of other good shite this year but I’ll let the others cover that stuff.  As for myself, it’s an honor and a privilege being a part of Binge Media and I cannot wait to see what this year brings us.  Binge On!