And another year of pop culture geekery comes to a close. I've enjoyed travelling around the UK, visiting the various Comic/Geek Cons and events this year, meeting people from some of my favourite movies, games and books, plus some of the finest comic creators and alternative poster artists!
Highlights from 2017 include meeting lots of the cast from the 'Star Wars' movies, past and present, at the various Geek Cons and adding their autographs to my collection; meeting 'Rogue One' director, Gareth Edwards at a BAFTA talk in London; shaking hands with one of my favourite authors, Brandon Sanderson at a book signing in London for his latest book 'Oathbringer'; attending Michael Giacchino's 50th birthday concert at the Royal Albert Hall that also included some very special guests like JJ Abrams, Andrew Stanton, Gareth Edwards, Matt Reeves which was also hosted by Adam Savage; as well as finally meeting Don Thompson and Jack Woodhams, the guys behind Poster Posse and PosterSpy respectively.
It's also been 6 years since I first posted on this blog, way back on this day in 2011. The Geeky Nerfherder has come a long way since then too, with my social media profiles continuing to grow, where I sometimes post bonus content - such as highlighting my comics Pull List each week, gaining new followers on Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, Twitter, Ello and more. So if you’re not already following, here are the links to my profiles on each of these sites:
Stores:
On the blog, I've been continuing my 'Artist Spotlight.' series, where I showcase some of my favourite artists, as well as my #ArtOfTheDay series, where I post a random piece of pop culture artwork. I've also added more reviews in 2017, of the books and movies I read and watch over the year.
As always, a big thanks to everyone I've met at the Comic/Geek Cons I've been to this year, and to everyone that drops by the blog and/or follows me through the various social networks I post to. I hope that you continue to enjoy my posts of cool art and pop culture geekery.
And so, it's that time of year once again, where everybody lists all their favourites of the past year, and here are mine:
Movies:
2017 was off to a bit of an inauspicious start as I sat down in the cinema to watch my first movie of the year, the what turned out to be abysmal 'Assassin's Creed', but fortunately that was more than made up for by with my second movie of the year, the wonderful 'A Monster Calls'. The rest of the year's movie viewing was pretty much good going after that, except for the awful 'The Mummy' (better off sticking with the 1932 Boris Karloff or 1999 Brendan Fraser versions).
Here's a few of my favourite movies I've seen this year.
'John Wick: Chapter 2'. If you've seen the first movie, then it's more of the same, with John Wick (Keanu Reeves) killing his way through a seemingly endless stream of cannon fodder, this time to get to the mob boss (played by Riccardo Scamarcio) who put a hit out on him after Wick turns him down on a job.
It's thrilling stuff as John Wick takes on the onslaught of bounty hunters and assassins looking to bag the big name kill.
'Logan'. If you know my tastes in comics, then you'll know that I'm not too fussed with supers. The same can be said about superhero movies too. Granted, I do enjoy watching them, but they're not something I fanboy over, regardless of whether they're Marvel or DC. But 'Logan' was a bit different. An aging former 'mutant' who has hidden himself away and is now caring after an ailing mentor, discovers a young girl, who is very much similar to what he used to be (played by Dafne Keen), on the run from nefarious forces.
This is very much different from the usual comic book movie fare, and is all the more better for it! An almost real world near future, with the two main players (Hugh Jackman and Sir Patrick Stewart) bringing their A game and making the characters so grounded and compelling. The R rating helps with the storytelling and allows the film to breathe without having to dilute the action or narrative.
'Wonder Woman'. In another year of super hero comic book movies, there was only one that stood out for me. The journey of a sometimes naive and protected princess from the island of Themyscira, to a very grim World War One setting, to finally realising her potential as someone with the strength and power to help and do good in the world, was really good to watch. 'Wonder Woman' (played by Gal Gadot, who fits the part perfectly) may be a part of the DCEU movies, but instead of continuing the grim and dark feel of the previous films, takes a sharp turn and becomes a film about hope and courage, which is definitely a case for the better, especially bearing in mind when the majority of the film is set.
A wonderful film, pun intended, with a great female lead, that is certainly worth watching.
'Baby Driver'. I'm a big fan of Edgar Wright, and absolutely love the TV series 'Spaced'. And 'Baby Driver' certainly has moments that takes elements of his previous work. The opening car chase is unreal, it's one of the best I've seen in a long while and very Blues Brothers-esque, and the way the music is seemingly in sync with what's up on screen sometimes, especially the opening credits, is really fun to watch. It also has shades of 'True Romance', with the excellent Ansel Elgort as Baby and Lily James as his girlfriend Debora, as they try to escape the clutches of the criminals that are after them.
'Blade Runner 2049'. Agent K (Ryan Gosling) stumbles upon a secret that sets off a chain of events as he tries to track down Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), who has gone into hiding since the last movie, all while Luv (Sylvia Hoeks), backed by the mysterious Niander Wallace (Jared Leto) chases after both. Director Denis Villeneuve's vision of the Sci-Fi noir, set 30 years after the original, looks absolutely stunning, I wish I'd seen it in IMAX instead of just in a standard cinema! I still really enjoyed it though. You can read my review here (the film also kickstarted me into doing movie reviews). Can't wait for the bluray and I look forward to seeing what Villeneuve does with his adaptation of 'Dune'!
'Star Wars: The Last Jedi'. Where 'The Force Awakens' gently reintroduced us all to the new 'Star Wars' universe, with a handful of legacy characters and a brand new cast but still with a familiarity of what had gone before, director Rian Johnson continues the saga with a movie that pushes the main characters of Rey (Daisy Ridley), Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and Finn (John Boyega), as well as movie into new directions.
The theme of 'letting the past die', is strong through out the movie. This could apply to the motivations of the characters, but also to the 'Star Wars' canon as a whole, much to the chagrin to some of the fandom, as on release, opinion was very much divided on the this new entry in the saga. Personally, I loved it, see my review here after my initial viewing, and a second and third viewing has cemented my positive thoughts on the film. It's a film that, to me, respects its past but is also firmly looking ahead at the bigger picture, and state of the galaxy, and as a huge fan of not just the movies, but also the expanded universe of books and comics, I can't wait to see where it goes!
Other movies I've enjoyed this year are 'A Monster Calls', 'Lego Batman Movie', 'Free Fire', 'Kong: Skull Island', 'Guardians Of the Galaxy Vol 2', 'Spider-Man Homecoming', 'Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets', and 'Thor Ragnarok'.
I'm not a fan of superhero comics or the majority of output from Marvel or DC Comics if I'm honest, they're just something I'm not into, preferring my comics in the Sci-Fi / Fantasy genre and from publishers like Image, Dark Horse, Boom Studios, Titan and the indies. There's more to comics than just supers, capes and spandex, and there's certainly been no shortage of series in my seemingly ever expanding Pull List this year (thanks to the excellent recommendations from my local comics shop, Spa Town Comics, I think I'm going to need another long box or two!).
My top titles, in no particular order, for 2017 were . . .
'Extremity', from Image Comics, by Darren Warren Johnson (w/a), Mike Spicer (c).
Thea dreams. Not of a better life, but of revenge on the clan that ruined her family. With ferocious battles between man, machines, and monsters ahead…who knows where her quest for vengeance will take her? Had heard very good things about this series, right from the beginning. Admittedly I was slow to get on it, but I'm now glad I did eventually, and thankfully there were only 6 issues in this series before I got caught up with it. 'Extremity' is a violent story, amidst a war between two factions, about vengeance and revenge that can tear a family apart. The story features Thea, our female protagonist (which seems to be a constant with some of the titles I have had in my Pull List recently), who is initially consumed by a need for revenge, spurred on by her father. But her motives change as her situation and circumstances change. The art work is stunningly detailed, comparable to perhaps Geof Darrow or Frank Quitely, and the occasional splash pages that have dotted the series so far, even more so. A compelling series that is most definitely recommended.
Where gods, every ninety years, are reincarnated as the ultimate pop stars and pop stars are the ultimate gods. But after two years, they die. Now one of my all time favourite titles and one of the ones I look forward to reading each month. Consistently awesome art, with a narrative that hooks into you, featuring a great cast of characters, all making you want the next issue as soon as you've just finished the one in your hands!
'Doctor Aphra', from Marvel Comics, by Kieron Gillen / Si Spurrier (w), Kev Walker / Emilio Laiso (a), Marc Deering / Rachelle Rosenberg (c).
Marvel's first ongoing series starring an original character created in the comics! Following her time in the clutches of Darth Vader, Doctor Aphra has barely escaped with her life. But for now, with the droids Triple-Zero and BT-1 in tow, she's off in search of rare artifacts from the galactic centre to the Outer Rim and everywhere in between. I've really enjoyed this series. She was a standout character in the first 'Darth Vader' comic series, and it's been fun to continue reading Chelli Aphra's adventures in her own comic, and sometimes learning more about the lore in the Star Wars universe in the process as she chases her next payday.
Honourable mentions to series that I've really enjoyed and have been on my pull list this year go to 'Saga', 'Lola XOXO: Vol 2 (Mini Series)', 'Lady Mechanika: The Clockwork Assassin (Mini Series)', 'Descender', 'Paper Girls', 'Monstress', 'The Autumnlands', 'The Unsound (Mini Series)', 'Black Magick', 'The Forever War (Mini Series)', 'Freeway Fighter (Mini Series)', 'Usagi Yojimbo'.
I've seen quite a few, scratch that, I've seen A LOT of very cool alternative posters (although not many official ones it has to be said), book and comic covers and new contemporary art over the past year. Way too many fantastic ones to even consider singling out just one, so here are are few of my favourites (in no particular order) from 2017.
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| by Martin Ansin |
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| by Matt Ferguson |
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| by Tracie Ching |
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| by Rory Kurtz |
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| by James Jean |
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| by Matthew Woodson |
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| by Maciej Kuciara & Ash Thorp |
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| by Kilian Eng |
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| by Martin Ansin |
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| by James Jean |
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| by Christopher Lovell |
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| by Michael C Hayes |
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| by David Mack |
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| by Rhys Cooper |
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| by Sana Takeda |
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| by Joe Jusko |
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| by Chie Yoshii |
I've been continuing to showcase some of my favourite artists in my 'The Art Of . . .' series on the blog. If you're new to the blog, each weekend I post a selection of art from two artists, one on a Saturday and another on a Sunday. I don't just restrict to pop culture art like alternative movie posters, book and comic art, I feature artists that have also caught my eye in the fields of new contemporary art, conceptual art and illustration, established artists and new up and coming artists. Researching and delving more into the work of some of my favourite artists has been a lot of fun, and as I'm working through the alphabet, currently only at the letter H, there's still a lot more to come!
I also continue to start the day (UK time at least) with a random piece of art every day in my #ArtOfTheDay series on the blog too. I also post them across the social networks, and the response continues to be pretty good. It could be anything from the Geeky Nerfherder archives or something that has caught my eye recently, in the realms of pop culture to fantasy art, book or comic covers, contemporary or concept art. Something a bit different every day.
At the end of every year, the #2017BestNine posts start popping up on Instagram. It's the nine most liked posts that you've posted over the course of the year along with total number of likes and number of posts, all in one handy image. You can go here to get yours to post on your IG feed. And here's mine.
For a glimpse of some of the gorgeous artwork on show from the supremely talented artists around the world, as well as this blog, of course, I'd also recommend following Poster Posse, PosterSpy, Beautiful.Bizarre, ImagineFX Magazine, Juxtapoz Magazine, Supersonic Art, WideWalls and Muddy Colors. All are worth checking out and highlight all that is good in the world of art.
Books:
I've read through quite a few books, comics and audiobooks this year, trying to read at least one a month, and although I've not read as many as last year's Reading Challenge, I still beat my GoodReads 2017 Reading Challenge target with a few months to go!
I've also been slowly continuing with writiing a Sci-Fi / Fantasy story I've had in my head for a while. I'm fairly happy with how it's going so far, but there's still a long way to go yet.
Once again, I've caught up with a few books that have been on my TBR list for a while. Including 'Elantris' by Brandon Sanderson, 'The Broken Earth Trilogy' by NK Jemisin, 'Jurassic Park' by Michael Crichton, '2001: A Space Odyssey' by Arthur C Clarke, and 'Contact' by Carl Sagan. Really enjoyed them and glad I finally got round to picking them up.
Being a big fan of 'Star Wars', I've enjoyed quite a few of the books in the new canon this year, which have been consistently good so far; the 'Battlefront II' video game tie in 'Battlefront II: Inferno Squad' by Christie Golden, the 'Journey To The Last Jedi' series that included 'Leia, Princess Of Alderaan' by Claudia Gray, 'Phasma' by Delilah S Dawson and the 'Canto Bight' anthology, as well as the 'A New Hope' anthology of short stories 'From A Certain Point Of View', the two 'Rogue One' spinoffs 'Rebel Rising' by Beth Revis and 'Guardians Of The Whills' by Greg Rucka and 'Thrawn' by Timothy Zahn.
Aside from the 'Star Wars' books, I've also enjoyed 'Traitor To The Throne' by Alwyn Hamilton, the second book in her 'Rebel Of The Sands' series, the next instalment in 'The Expanse' series from James SA Corey 'Babylon's Ashes', the 'Mass Effect Andromeda' tie ins 'Mass Effect: Nexus Uprising' by Jason M Hough and 'Mass Effect: Initiation' by NK Jemisin & Mac Walters, the second book in Nnedi Okorafor's 'Binti' series 'Home', the third book in Brandon Sanderson's 'The Stormlight Archive', the epic 'Oathbringer' and his compendium of short stories in the same literary universe 'Arcanum Unbounded', plus the next in the space opera short story anthology series 'Beyond The Stars' as well as quite a few of the original fiction short stories at Tor.com.
But my favourite for this year is Neil Gaiman's 'Norse Mythology'.
It's a short (I finished it in a day), but entertaining and educational retelling of the classic mythic tales of Odin, Thor, Loki and more, from the birth of the world to the end and Ragnarok. The tales are very familiar, and variations of them have appeared in one form or another in popular culture and other stories, even Neil's own 'American Gods'. But it was good to actually read the original tales altogether in one anthology.
Written with Gaiman's typical flair, and filled with humour and charm from the Gods and Goddesses, as well as all their complexities, making them feel modern and very human.
It's a fast paced and absorbing read that is very much recommended.
Gaming:
I'm not into FPS or sports games, I like my games, like I like my movies, books and comics, with engaging characters, in depth world building, and a compelling narrative that keeps me playing, wanting to explore the vast worlds and follow the story until the end, as well as of course good gameplay.
My favourite games of 2017 are . . .
'Horizon Zero Dawn', by Guerrilla Games.
A superb game! It ticks all my gaming boxes. Pretty damn good for a games company that's only really done FPS games (Killzone) before and wanted to try something different!
Playing through as Aloy, an exile from the Nora tribe, you traverse a huge open world of a future United States, where settlements of tribes live on after a devastating global cataclysmic event has reverted technology back to essentially the stone age, and a world that is overrun with mechanical beasts.
The main story was pretty good, and I would've loved to read a spinoff or tie-in story of Aloy, as she discovers the world outside of her tribal territories and uncovers the mystery of how the world has changed from what we know now and into how it is in Aloy's time and how the mechanical beasts came to be. The DLC 'The Frozen Wilds' expansion builds on top of what is already a brilliant and massive game, with even more of the world to explore, new characters to meet and interact with, deadlier creatures to battle and an extension of the main story. I hope there's more to add in the future!
It is a great looking game filled with incredible mechanical creatures and some good NPCs that progress the story and side quests. Aloy is great to playthrough as too! I love her confidence and especially her attitude when she's in conversation with some of the NPC's. She certainly doesn't have the patience for some of them.
If you like action RPG's then definitely give this a go if you have a PS4! And I would recommend checking out this excellent documentary on the making of the game too.
'Uncharted: The Lost Legacy', by Naughty Dog.
I'm a huge fan of the 'Uncharted' series, and although Nathan Drake, the main protagonist of the games, has had his story told over the course of the series, the focus changes for 'The Lost Legacy' in that it features leading ladies Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross, who were introduced in previous games.
Even without Nathan Drake, this still feels very much like an 'Uncharted' game. There's the familiar lead characters - that work very well together despite their differences of opinion from the previous games, a very similar style of gameplay - third person shooter, the stealth, and the clambering about the environments etc, the lush scenery as you travel around India in search of the legendary Golden Tusk of Ganesh, and of course, a great narrative that drives the story.
The downside is that it's shorter campaign than the average 'Uncharted' game, the pricing of the game reflects this, making it a cheap pickup. But that's the only negative I can say about this game.
'Uncharted: The Lost Legacy' was well received at launch, and hopefully we get a return, featuring more characters from the series. A Sully and Sam Drake game in a similar vein would be cool!
'Assassin's Creed Origins', by Ubisoft.
A welcome return to the franchise for me, as I've only fleetingly played some of the games in this series, the last being 'Black Flags'.
'Origins' reminds me so much of games like 'The Witcher 3' and 'Horizon Zero Dawn', taking very familiar elements and putting its own twist on them, which is probably why I enjoy it.
There's the huge expansive open world of ancient Egypt to explore as you roam as Bayek, the protagonist of the game, and sometimes as his wife Aya, completing the linear story of founding the Brotherhood of Assassins. And there are lots of side quests to undertake if you want to step away from the main quest, or get side tracked, for a while. Or even if you just want to explore the world of ancient Egypt, with cities like Alexandria (and it's lighthouse), Giza (with monuments like the pyramids, which were cool to climb up and wander around the tombs inside, and the Great Sphynx), Memphis and a whole lot more!
Apparently, this is one of the most historically accurate renderings of ancient Egypt, set around 48 BCE. This will be even more so with a 'Discovery Tour' update, scheduled for early 2018, a sandbox mode that will allow you to freely explore with no objectives or combat, and embark on guided tours that highlight aspects of Egyptian history!
I've really enjoyed this game, and would thoroughly recommend it if you like action RPGs, have a thing for games set in an historical setting and into Egyptology.
'Mass Effect: Andromeda' by Bioware.
The game may not have been critically received, but I enjoyed playing through as Sara Ryder, the Pathfinder charged with finding a new habitable colony in the Andromeda galaxy, set 634 years after events in 'Mass Effect 2'.
As in previous games the playable character is customisable, and you're able to choose to play as one of the Ryder twins, either Scott or Sara Ryder. I always tend to playthrough as the female protagonist in the Mass Effect games, as the voice acting is so much better than the male's in my opinion. I loved Jennifer Hale's performance in the original trilogy, and Fryda Wolff's in Andromeda picks up the quality where the last games left off.
This time around, ME:A is much more of an open world than before, allowing you relative free reign over exploring the new worlds in the Andromeda galaxy, a new feature I liked. There's still the familiar alien races, Asari, Turian and Krogan, but also a few new ones to encounter, the friendly Angara, the mysterious Remnant, and the game's big bad, the Kett.
I found the playthrough to be fun, exploring the new worlds, discovering the new races and battling against the enemies. The story was compelling enough to keep playing too, and I liked the personalities of Sara Ryder and the NPC's of the crew you assemble. But it's shame that EA / Bioware have decided to put the game 'on ice' for the time being, with no further single player DLC planned. There is a comic tie-in series from Dark Horse Comics however, plus a series of novels too (two of which I've read so far - 'Nexus Uprising' and 'Initiation' and the next, 'Annihilation', out in 2018) that continues the stories.
Soundtracks:
My favourite soundtrack from 2017 has been 'Mass Effect: Andromeda', composed by John Paesano. The musical score is much more cinematic sounding than the previous instalments, as are most video game soundtracks these days. The main theme, 'A Better Beginning' - the first track on the album, is one my favourite tracks and certainly defines the intent of the game for me. It's very inspiring as it builds up to the crescendo and back down again. The rest of the soundtrack is pretty good too, setting the mood and tone of game.
Other movie, TV and video game soundtracks I've enjoyed this year;
Alien Covenant, composed by Jed Kurzel.
Blade Runner 2049, composed by Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch.
Dunkirk, composed by Hans Zimmer
Horizon Zero Dawn, composed by Joris de Man, The Flight, Niels van der Leest and Jonathan Williams.
Legion, composed by Jeff Russo.
The Last Post, composed by Solomon Grey.
Wonder Woman, composed by Rupert Gregson-Williams.
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, composed by Henry Jackman.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi, composed by John Williams.
So there you have it, a list of some of my favourites from 2017. Thanks again to everyone who drops by the blog, and follows me on social media, making 'The Geeky Nerfherder' a lot of fun to curate! Here's to more of the same in 2018!
And to finish, here's a video I've put together from my photos of the various Geek Cons I've been to this year, featuring visits to Geek Cons in Birmingham, London, Leeds, Leamington Spa (my local), events at BAFTA and the Royal Albert Hall, meeting actors from some of my favourite movies, TV shows and games plus artists and creators of my favourite comics too.
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