Favorite Media of 2024

I think it’s safe to say that at a global level 2024 was a bit of a nightmare, but in my personal life it was actually really good, something I am beyond fortunate to be able to say. I got a big promotion, went on an amazing road trip, got married, and turned 30.

I also consumed a lot of really great books, both new and old. Between prose and comics I read 67 books (and many more single issues of comics), watched some fun movies and TV shows, and played several great games. Here’s a quick rundown of some of my favorites.

Prose

House of Open Wounds by Adrian Tchaikovsky

This is the sequel to The City of Last Chances, one of my favorite books of last year, and expands on the already richly detailed world from that book. Lightly grimdark with fantastic worldbuilding, complex and believable characters, all in a really creative magepunk setting, this had almost everything I want to see in a fantasy novel.

The Secret History by Donna Tart

I’m not going to be able to say anything that hasn’t already been said about The Secret History, I can only say that I wish I’d read this sooner. If you like dark academia there’s a reason this is still held up as a high point of the genre, it really is just that good.

The Mercy of the Gods by James S. A. Corey

The first in a new series from the authors of the Expanse, I was impressed at how easily The Mercy of the Gods sets itself apart from their previous work. This is an wonderfully layered space opera, with an alien invasion/abduction plot as much concerned with domestication and ecology as politics, and sets up a number of mysteries I can’t wait to see explored further.

Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson

I fell short of finishing my Malazan Book of Fallen reread this year, but I got far enough to be reminded at just how much I love the fifth entry in that series. Equal parts heartbreaking and hilarious with an escalating plot of the kind Malazan is known for, this is Steven Erikson at his best.

Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen

This was the most terrifying book I have read in year. Extremely well researched, Nuclear War is an unflinching look at the devastating threat of nuclear war, how unprepared our society and leaders are for a nuclear crisis, and how horrifically easily such a crisis could come about.

Honorable mentions:

Vacuum Diagrams by Stephen Baxter reminded me of how much fun hard sci-fi can be and started me on my Xeelee journey. City of Bones by Martha Wells grabbed my inner Dark Sun fan and never let go. The Devil by Name by Keith Rosson is a worthy sequel to Fever House and a disturbingly current take on the apocalypse. The Bound Worlds by Megan E. O’Keefe brought the Devoured Worlds series to fun, kinetic, fungus-filled end. This Wretched Valley by Jenny Kiefer is the Dyatlov Pass Incident by way of the Red River Gorge, just that premise alone was enough to thrill me.

Comics

The One Hand and The Six Fingers by Ram V, Dan Watters, Laurence Campbell, Sumit Kumar, and Lee Loughbridge

A sci-fi noir following both the detective and criminal in a cat and mouse murder mystery, this story in two parts was one of the highlights of my pull list this spring and summer. Both halves are fantastic, but together this is a breathtaking work, dripping with atmosphere and full of twists.

Ultimate X-Men by Peach Momoko and Zack Davisson

All of Marvel’s new Ultimate line is worth checking out, but this feels the most unique by far. Peach Momoko brings the same energy to this as to her the Yashida Saga, reframing the X-Men as a high school horror manga. The art is of course fantastic, but the story is great as well reinventing the X-Men in a whole new light that nonetheless keeps their heart.

The Power Fantasy by Kieron Gillen and Caspar Wijngaard

The Power Fantasy is a phenomenal riff on the superhero genre with he genius conceit that its powerhouse main characters can never fight. One of my favorite things from this series is that as the alternate history of this world is revealed Wijngaard pulls an amazing trick with coloring and styling to indicate when a given scene is taking places. I hope this is a comic that sticks around for a long time.

Beneath the Trees Where No One Sees by Patrick Horvath

This is the kind of story that can really only be told in comic form, combining an adorably illustrated quaint town full of anthropomorphic animals with the violence, blood, and intrigue of the best episodes of Dexter. The contrast plays wonderfully, pairing perfectly with it’s story of a serial killer trying to live the quiet life.

Exceptional X-Men by Eve Ewing and Carmen Carnero

Six months in and the “From the Ashes” relaunch of the X-Men line has largely been a bust, with nice art but very little else that hold my interest. Fittingly enough this title has been the exception. Ewing and Carnero have crafted a book that actually feels like it’s in conversation with the current culture, while turning in incredible character work for its stars both new and old.

Honorable Mention

Fantastic Four by Ryan north is the best FF run of the last ten years, striking a near flawless balance of comedy, tragedy, and wonder. Somna by Beck Cloonan and Tula Lotay captures the eroticism and tension of the best witch stories perfectly. Secret Six by Gail Simone is my new high bar for villain focused cape comics, and reconfimred my love for seeing bad people try to be better. Planetary by John Cassaday and Warren Ellis is a love letter to everything great abut speculative fiction, with some of the best comic art of the last quarter century. Chainsaw Man by Tatsuki Fujimoto manages to both be stupid fun, and feature a layout decision so brilliant I still can’t stop thinking about it months later.

Games

Void 1680 AM

This was one of the first solo RPGs I’ve played and I’ve absolutely adored it. I did college radio when I was in undergrad and this brought back great memories of that with the caller generation adding a great layer to playlist creation.

Pathfinder 2E

Pathfinder 2e is currently my most played TTRPG and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. For a tactical fantasy game it strikes the perfect balance of crunch and streamlining that I want, and all of the releases this year have been phenomenal. I’ve especially loved reading Monster Core, Howl of the Wild and the Tian Xia Wolrd and character Guides.

Age of Worms

The PF2E game I run is an adaptation of this excellent 3.5 D&D adventure path, and reading through it to adapt it has yet to get old. Full of really fun ideas and some of the best adventure design of 3.X era Dungeon, I’m excited to pit my players against many wormy horrors for months to come.

Baldur’s Gate 3

I’ve enjoyed many CRPGs but the simple fact that this is turn based has made it my favorite. The depth of choice in this game is astonishing, as is the ways it adapts 5e D&D’s fairly boring system into something fun to play solo. I’m not sure how Larian will follow this up but I’m very interested for whatever that ends up looking like.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Over a year later and two playthroughs in, I still feel like there’s so much more I have to discover in this game. Like Breath of the Wild this is a game with a wonderful atmosphere that I feel like I fall into every time I play, while deeply satisfying both he part of me that likes quick kinetic fights and that wants to check items off a list.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard

The only video game I played that actually launched in 2024 – I’m enjoying Veilgaurd immensely. The gameplay is extremely fun and rewarding, and I’ve loved meeting (or being reunited with) the core companions. While it’s a new direction for the series in a lot of ways I think it’s still a really solid game and I hope to see more like it from the series.

Movies and TV Shows

Dune: Part Two

While a less faithful adaptation than the first film, this captured the themes and spectacle of the novel just as well. The changes made to the Fremen and Chani were welcome updates as well, adding some depth that is lacking in the original work.

Nosferatu

An incredible work of gothic horror that does a lot to elevate the original while still paying homage to it. The vibes are immaculate, with an eerie, slowly building sense of doom from start to finish.

The Venture Brothers: Radiant is the Blood of the Baboon Heart

The Venture Brothers is one of my favorite shows of all time and this was a worthy send off, featuring much of what made the show great and paying off on some of its longest running plots. I can only hope that when David Zaslav is finally thrown in the trash where he belongs that we’ll get another season picking up where this left off.

DanDaDan

This hooked me with it’s ghosts vs. aliens premise, with surprisingly deep cuts into UFO lore and top tier animation, but what really makes this show sing is the high school rom-com hiding underneath the occult action. Now I just have to decide whether I should try to read the manga while it’s on hiatus.

The Acolyte

Haters can die mad, this was one of the best Star Wars shows Disney has put out. With a nuanced take on the Jedi and the force and a compelling mystery, this has a lot of what I love about the Knights of the Old Republic comics in its DNA, along with some incredible fight choreography. The franchise is the worst for it not getting a follow up.

Shogun

This is already a top notch historical drama, but the added choice to have the majority of the series in subtitled Japanese brings the immersion to whole new level. If more historical shows don’t take this cue I’ll be really disappointed.

Special Mention

This buckwild scene from Once Upon a Time. I laughed harder at this one scene than anything else I read or watched this year, it’s insane.