The decade in albums, part 2

119. Old 97's, Satellite Rides (2001)

The Old 97's have long been my favorite country band. Their songs are heartfelt and catchy, and often uplifting. "Rollerskate Skinny" is a perfect marriage of pop and country. "Question" might be an example of a perfect song. A love song about proposing is about as cheesy as it could get, but they pull it off magically.

118. Anaal Nathrakh, The Codex Necro (2001)

Anaal Nathrakh play a unique combination of black metal and grindcore. I usually loathe grindcore's cold, abrasive sound, but it works here. It combines with black metal to evoke frightening images of industrial wastelands. These guys have yet to release a bad album, but The Codex Necro, their first, remains their most fully realized work.

117. Deftones, White Pony (2000)

I've been really surprised to see this on more than a couple decade end lists. It's a great album, but I never really knew anyone besides me had noticed. With White Pony, Deftones broke away slightly from their nu-metal chains and created a deeply contemplative and soulful heavy record. "Change" and "Digital Bath" are two great standouts here.

116. Hot Water Music, A Flight and a Crash (2001)

Hot Water Music's greatest achievements were all in the late '90s, but after signing to Epitaph they proved they could still crank out their powerful brand of punk rock successfully. The title opener is one of the greatest album openers I've ever heard, and most of the tracks are great head banging, sing-a-long anthems.

115. One Reason, All Rivers Run South, All Roads Lead Home (2003)

This Southern infused folk punk band released an emotional bomb on the punk scene from out of nowhere with this record. From the Plan-it-x stable, this group featured male and female vocals yelling about anarchy and white guilt. It's wonderful. They made the line "the songs that we sing will have meaning," a regular chant among my friends.

114. Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Yanqui U.X.O. (2002)

People seem to overlook this album because it didn't hold a candle to their previous releases. Well, not holding a candle to a few of the greatest records of all time is okay,because this is still great in its own right. The songs are epic and beautiful, and the dystopian hell imagery evoked by the music can be down right disturbing. And "Rockets Fall on Rocket Falls" is definitely one of the best Godspeed tracks.

113. NOFX, Pump Up the Valuum (2000)

Yeah, I included NOFX. After the heavy hitting humorless 18 minute epic "Decline", NOFX came back the next year with a brilliantly crafted comic album. "My Vagina" aside, these songs are all legit, and this record marks the first time the group acknowledges their comfort with being old men in a young man's punk world. I consider most of these songs classics, but if I had to pick favorite, it would have to be "Herojauna", a semi-ballad on the relationship between state and drug use.

112. Do Make Say Think, Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn (2003)

Do Make Say Think play a great style of jazz-infused post-rock, and this record is their best. It's the most epic, and features the most variety of any of their releases. It plays out in three distinct movements, the first being the best, opening with the beautiful "Fredericia."

111. The Microphones, The Glow, Pt. 2 (2001)

Phil Everum's lo-fi psycadelic folk thing never gets old for me. This massive album feels like one big exercise in dark, haunted isolation. This also feels like it was recorded in a cave, enhancing the mood. It's not quite the level of his Mount Eerie project that started a couple years later, but it's still truly great.

110. Red House Painters, Old Ramon (2001)

Mark Kozelek's legendary slowcore band played all throughout the '90s, and only released one album this decade. It seems like no one cares about it, but it's almost as great as their peak releases. Mark's writing is simple, yet poetic, and the music slowly sweeps through a range of emotional levels.

109. We Were Promised Jetpacks, These Four Walls (2009)

Jetpacks will probably never escape the shadow of their more popular Scottish labelmates Frightened Rabbit and Twilight Sad, but this release proves they've got a sound and energy to make it on their own. "It's Thunder and Lightning" sets the mood for 40 minutes of Scottish dudes rocking the fuck out. Initially, I didn't take to this, but it keeps growing on me. I can't stop singing these tunes.

108. M83, Dead Cities, Red Seas, and Lost Ghosts (2003)

No M83 album has sounded the same, and they've all been great, but their electronic semi-instrumental shoegaze album, Dead Cities..., is one their best. This album feels like a journey through a landscape of industry noise, all repetitve and druggy.



107. Moonsorrow, Kivenkantaja (2003)

Moonsorrow from Finland play blackened folk metal in the form of huge metal epics. This is their first great release, and the first displaying their matured folk influences. They also begin their love for extremely long songs here. Sometimes brutally agressive, but other times mellow and uplifting.



106. Queens of the Stone Age, Songs for the Deaf (2002)

For years, I only knew this band for "No One Knows." Then I actually listened. QotSA are a band that knows how to masterfully mix radio-friendly rock, such as "Go With the Flow", to genuine stoner metal. It's really strange, when you think about it, but unnoticeable when listening to it. Josh Homme is a rock god, and having Dave Grohl contribute the best drumming he's ever done sure helps this one reach classic status.

The decade in albums

I have been heavily into music since I was going into the second grade. I love it. This was a great decade for me. My musical horizons are expanding all the time. I need to consume as much as I can. I started off this decade in a strange pop-punk-that-i-mistakenly-called-emo phase in in 1999 that spilled over into this decade, briefly. I got past it quick. But even some of that spillage made it on my list of bests. It's not all bad. Hell, if well-respected music critics can dig Fall Out Boy and praise Britney Spears, I can like the occasional Taking Back Sunday album.

So here I begin another list. Is that all I do now? Maybe.
It's in descending order. No closed eye scrolling necessary.

135. Ulver, Perdition City (2000)

So one of the greatest and most influential black metal bands of all time decided to fuck-start everybody's heads and kick the decade off with a total break from their previous material. They went electronic. Mind blow. With the exception of a couple duds in the middle, Perdition City offers epic, and memorable electronic experimental music classics. Opener "Lost in Moments" and closer "Nowhere/Catastrophe" are classics of any genre.

134. Natural Snow Buildings, Shadow Kingdoms (2009)

The third album released this year by drone lords Natural Snow Buildings is easily their best. This year. It's my second favorite of 16 they've released in the 2000s. 12 of those have been in the past two years. Here the songs are huge and the imagery vivid, as always. At over 2 hours, it's a huge commitment, but Shadow Kingdoms is worth every beautiful moment.

133. Sleepwalker, ? (?)

I can't find anything on this group. I don't actually know when this came out, or if Sleepwalker is actually their name. I do know, however, that this is an amazing black metal release. Epic, frigid songs melt into warm acoustic passages. Moving stuff.

132. Loisirs, Glamoroso (2004)/Submerge Par le Sublime (2006)

Two very similar but fantastic records from French screamo-ish/pop outfit Loisirs. Glamoroso is a bit uneven, but features classics "Paquerette" and "City Song". Submerge is great pop/hardcore fusion all the way through. Their songs are fast and lean, but always catchy, with a great pair of fun vocalists.

131. Tegan and Sara, So Jealous (2004)

After the few Ani Difranco-mimmicking folk records they released first, I'm not sure how Tegan and Sara came to pop deconstruction music they play now, but somehow, in 2004, something strange obviously happened. So Jealous perfectly combines elements of every pop song you've ever heard to create the catchiest shit you'll ever hear. I drove around in my car with friends for hours singing these songs. I don't know how they crafted these, and I know they'll never do it again, but this one is special. (Pitchfork be damned!)

130. Lucero, Tennessee (2002)

Lucero has a pretty simple formula: country guitars and Ben Nichols raspy southern drawl. But damn if it doesn't get you every fucking time. The third Lucero album was made as the Against Me! fans really started picking up on his act, me being one of them. His songs of heartbreak and the rode eat you up inside, and make you want to drink something strong. Simply put: fucking awesome.

129. Skeletonwitch, Breathing the Fire (2009)



I just recently found my way to Skeltonwitch. I initially didn't expect much, as I'm no huge fan of thrash, but their particular blackened melodic style really works. Short fast songs manage to be epic and moving at the same time. And the cover art is ridiculously awesome.



128. The Black Heart Procession, 3 (2000)

I've never been able to articulate a good description of this band's sound. They do a mix of a sort-of Western thing like early Murder by Death, '90s slowcore like Low, and straight up indie-rock. They've also been one of the most consistent groups this decade. 3 is their most successful release yet. It's black as death, but Pall Jenkins' eerie yet also soothing vocals pull you through.

127. Kanye West, The College Dropout (2004)

It's hard to believe there was a time before Kanye was Kanye when my friend could randomly pop in a hip hop record I hadn't heard that got me so immediately as this album did. I could probably never hear this for the first time now and love it. But back then, this guy's ego felt tounge-in-cheek, and his songs were masterfully crafted pop anthems. He never was that great of a rapper, but he did something right with The College Dropout.

126. Please Inform the Captain this is a Hijack, Please Inform the Captain... (2003)

Formed by punk legend Mike Kirsch after the demise of his group Bread and Circuits, Please Inform the Captain... was an experiment in punk with sampling. Five long pop punk songs are cut with heavy samples of old radio PSAs and political speeches. It was surprisingly effective. The released one more in 2006 that was almost as good, but made the samples their own tracks. Kirsch is now kicking ass in the heavier punk outfit Baader Brains.

125. Sean Price, Sean Price Superstar (2007)

Sean Price used to be a huge MC in the popular Heltah Skeltah. Now it seems that no one cares. Thing is, he knows no one cares, and he doesn't give a fuck about them. Nor does he give a fuck about how he used to be. He knows he can cut anything down with his words. And he does. This is angry fucking music.






124. Love Like.... Electrocution, Love Like.... Electrocution (2003)

Hailing from Australia, this young group practiced a unique style of screamo/punk. This album is barely 20 minutes long with 11 tracks, but it packs quite a punch. Their Aussie voices even remain intact. The songs are catchy, and also technically inspired. It's great stuff all around. I can't figure out what ever happened to these dudes.

123. Justinbailey, Bury Me with My Money (2005)

So I know they're local and I'm friends with a member, but these guys are for real. With their full length, they finally shed the skin of their former punk band Skullniks for a mature post-hardcore sound. These songs are all fantastic. I'm still waiting for them to finally break out, or record something new, but I'll always have this as a heavy local classic. "Part II" is just unreal.

122. Shining, IV - The Eerie Cold (2005)

I won't lie to you and say that all of Shining's albums don't sound almost the same, but somehow IV manages to be more memorable than the other 5 albums these Norwegians have put out before and since. This band is pure, cold despair, and they want you to hate it. They even say so in the first track. This is for their own fucked up selves, and you can fuck off. Unfortunately for them, they decided to create some truly mesmerizing , frozen black metal for me to enjoy.

121. Lightning Bolt, Hypermagic Mountain (2005)

Two weird ass dudes making chaotic, loud sounds. That's the Lightning Bolt way, and it's never faltered. This is their best offering. Moments of beauty shine through the chaos. And this band's live show is always worth a mention. They really make you need to dance.

120. Regina Spektor, Songs (2002)

Regina's second album was the only one I could ever take all the way through. Ditching the upright, and much of that weird funk/jazz thing she was unsuccessfully trying, Songs was just a cute Russian girl and a piano. The tunes can be weird, and the lyrics off-putting if you're not in the right mood, but she also creates some emotional melodies that tend to stay with you. I've always been a sucker for "Samson", and was sad that she included it on her pop record several years later. The original is easily one of my favorite singles this decade.



I will return

2000s documentaries

Documentaries are a funny thing. They all claim to tell the truth, but they are, of course, all full of shit. The ability to manipulate through editing kind of discredits any possible truth a film claims to present. Take The King of Kong, for example. It's a fantastic story of an underdog getting his due against a big bad. Any further research reveals that almost none of it actually took place the way it was presented. None the less, it's a fantastically crafted and immensely enjoyable film.

Because of this, I am skeptical of all documentaries. One has to be really fucking engaging for me to sit through it, and this decade has produced many of them.

Here is my list of the best documentaries released in this decade that I've seen:

(Sorry to all the Michael Moore lovers. All of his films this decade have been worth watching, but these were all better. And as always, I'm fucking right.)

16. No End in Sight (2007)

Honestly, the super serious political documentary is not something I usually go for. They tend to be the most boring, and the all-to-obvious political agendas of most of these filmmakers often feels in the way. I got past all that for No End in Sight. It's all about the Bush Administration's handling of the Iraq war and occupation, and how as long as his policies stand, the U.S. ain't ever getting out. More than just talking heads, and featuring a top-notch score are only a couple of the reasons why this is a must-see.

15. Fuck (2006)

This one is just really fun. Fuck is all about how the word became such a bad one, and the it's taboo status in major media outlets. It's really funny, and even thought-provoking. It's fun pondering who decided fuck was so evil.

14. Standard Operating Procedure (2008)

Errol Morris is undeniably a master filmmaker. His classic The Thin Blue Line is one of the greatest docs ever made. Here, he turns his focus to the prison torture photo incident in Iraq at Abu Gharaib a few years ago. Academy award-winning Taxi to the Dark Side tackled the same subject, but in a boring, style-less way. Standard Operating Procedure uses an intense visual style, incorporating real footage and recreations, to tell its story.

13. Wordplay (2006)

This entertaining doc was seemingly made because of the hype surrounding similar Word Wars about the competitive scrabble world. Wordplay takes place in the world of big crossword tournaments. It focuses on a couple of guys trying to win the title, and intercuts that with celebrities and such talking about their love for doing crosswords. It's probably as silly as it sounds, but it works.

12. This Film is Not Yet Rated (2006)

Kirby Dick's condemning investigation of the very secretive MPAA is informative and frustrating. Learning how much the MPAA really is bullshit is infuriating, but Dick keeps it fun and humorous. He even includes footage of his appeal of this movie in front of their council.

11. The Devil and Daniel Johnston (2005)

This is a look into the famous cult songwriters life. It's full of joy, pain, tears, laughter, and beautifully simple music. I'd never heard of Johnston before seeing this, but I knew I loved him immediately. There might not even be anything terrifically speacial about this movie, I don't know. It just really worked for me.

10. Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003)

Probably the most thorough study of anything fucking ever, Thom Anderson's three hour look at Los Angeles' portrayal in films throughout history is totally exhausting, but very much worth the time and effort. Anderson is obviously in love with his home town, but is deeply critical of the face it has shown in film. Of all the films on this list, this one is the least capable of bullshit, not trying to show anything but film clips showing Los Angeles. Because of the hundreds of clips shown, it will never be released properly on dvd or any other format, but it is available legally online for free.

9. The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. Macnamara (2003)

Errol Morris finally won an Oscar for his 2 hour interview with one of our countries most hated politicians, Robert Macnamara, the man blamed for Vietnam. The film portrays a normal man thrown into a conflict he didn't know how to handle. The man understands why he was so hated, and that makes it even sadder. The guy might be lying about everything, but for the run-time of this film I'm totally engaged in Macnamara's confessions.

8. Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2009)

This played the festival circuit unsold for well over a year, and I really don't get how. The saga of Anvil, a band struggling to make it big since they formed in 1972, is a wonderfully uplifting tale of the bonds of friendship and the strength of dreams. Sure, it's about metal, and has some metal music in it, but it's really not about that. Seeing what they go through day to day is heartbreaking, but their unflinching optimism and spirit bring tears of joy by the end.

7. Grizzly Man (2005)

Werner Herzog's chronicle of Timothy Treadwell, a man who lived with and was eventually killed by bears, is a fascinating look at obsession and its power. Herzog really knows what exactly to show and not to show the audience, keeping us intrigued the whole way through. Seeing a man lose himself to his obsession, and knowing he was actually killed by it, is horribly painful.

6. Man on Wire (2008)

James Marsh's doc is another one about an obsessed asshole, except this one,Phillipe Petit, wants to tightrope between the WTC towers. Petit's interviews are a highlight. His narcissism is somewhat endearing and his eccentricities are entertaining. But the greatest part is the Rififi-style break-in and rope set up over night. It's tense.

5. The Five Obstructions (2003)

Master provacateur Lars von Trier turns his focus away from hating women and America to famous Danish short-filmmaker Jorgen Leth. He challenges him to remake his famous short film "The Perfect Human" five different times, each with different and stingent restrictions. The idea of revisiting art so many years later is compelling, and Lars von Trier is such a fucking asshole, it's wonderful.

4. Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son about His Father (2008)

The story of a man killed by his wife whom is not brought to justice is horrifying and sad. Watching the deceased's parents forced to be social with their son's murderer just so they can see their grandchild was almost too much. This was made by his best friend, and is one of the most emotional experiences I've ever had watching any film. It's a little flawed, poorly paced in parts, but its emotional honesty is too sincere to for its flaws to hurt the film.

3. The King of Kong (2007)

As I wrote above, this is an underdog story. It's total bullshit. It features an evil, rich tyrant with loyal henchmen, and a nobody hero just trying to get what he has earned. It's also about a man trying to get credit for getting the highest donkey kong jr. arcade score. Yeah, that's right. It's put together perfectly. By the end you'll literally be yelling and cheering for our hero.

2. Jesus Camp (2006)

This is the story of an evangelical summer camp for evangelical children. It's one of the scariest movies I've ever seen. Religion is scary. These children believe whatever their parents tell them. But what's really scary is that an evangelical person could watch this same film and see it as something praising their beliefs.

1. Lake of Fire (2007)

Tony Kaye's first film since American History X, is a indepth look at abortion and the two sides surrounding it in America. Brilliantly filmed in black and white, Kaye has no problem showing both sides at their ugliest, but also at their most moderate. He seems to truly understand the gray area surrounding the issue. It's also a truly informative experience, even having the guts to show us an abortion, uncut. It's my favorite documentary of the decade, and possibly ever. I could never look at abortion the same way again. It is truly a perfect film.

the real list, part 2

19. "30 Rock"

Tina Fey's network variety show send up produced by variety show mogul Lorne Michaels, and starring former variety show stars is more than a little meta. It's also great. It's sometimes hard to keep up, as the laughs are seriously nonstop. Its first two seasons were pure beautiful comedy. The third was a show clearly caught up in its new popularity, relying too much on wacky guest stars, but it was still funny. Currently, the beginning of the fourth season has been strangely unfunny, but I'm sure it will bounce back.

18. "Dead Like Me"

The first of Bryan Fuller's three shows to grace my senses this decade, it was a show obsessed with death, and finding ways to grow as a person even after the realization of our morality has been made all too real. Some characters unfortunately never became more than the sum of their deaths, but others were fully realized undead human beings. Great ponderings on life came from an unlikely place, the dead.

17. "Rescue Me"

Dennis Leary's slimy, alcoholic fireman is only one of the great things about this entertaining drama. From the beginning, it's been funny as hell, explosive, and gutwrenching watching these New York firemen try to stabilize their complicated lives. It went through a dull stretch somewhere last season, but it came back with a vengeance. It's one of the most consistent shows on television, being great for over half the decade.

16. "Flight of the Conchords"

Jemaine and Bret write parody songs of all genres, and somebody had the amazing idea to make it a television show. The first season had the duo turning old classics into hilarious plot points in this surreal musical. The second had songs written specifically for the show. The songs staggered slightly in quality, but the rest of the writing never did.

15. "Extras"

Ricky Gervais really hit the jackpot with this show. A socially inappropriate aspiring actor works as an extra on any set he can, just waiting for his big break. Awkward situations and hilarious guest spots abound (highlights: Kate Winslet and Patrick Stewart). This show brought all the laughs and hit all the emotional chords that make a great show.

14. "The Office" U.S.

The U.S. version of The Office started out just recreating scenes from the British version. It very quickly shed its predecessor and morphed into a great comedy with some of the greatest characters on television. Watching Pam and Jim's relationship grow from pained office flirtations to married couple has truly been a delight, and Steve Carrel's ludicrous Michael Scott always comes out with our sympathy. Somehow.

13. "Pushing Daisies"

Bryan Fuller's most recent show was also heavy on the death thing. A shy piemaker has the ability to make dead things live again, and then dead again. Leaving dead people alive takes its toll in the form of another human life. Emotional conflict and great chemistry really sold me on "Pushing Daisies", but the real strengths of the show were its beautiful production design and great supporting role by Kristen Chenowith.

12. "Gungrave"

This anime is truly great, if not very original. For most, I imagine this plays out like a standard anime series, but this story of growth, betrayal, and, finally, vengeance played out like one huge crime epic for me. Its twists were always great, the action was fun, and the characters were more fully realized than your traditional anime fare.

11. "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia"

Another show needing no description. This group has been making crazy satire for almost five seasons. It's delirious, crazy, vulgar, politically incorrect, and awesome. Danny DeVito continues to look more like a crazy hobo with each new episode.

10. "The Tick"

Patrick Fucking Warburton. The mysterious blue tick, a clueless retard of immense strangth, was the lead in this short-lived superhero comedy series. Everything he said was gold. We never saw anybody fight bad guys, but we did see funny people dressed up in stupid costumes make magic.

9. "Undeclared"

Judd Apatow's second attempt at coming of age comedy was set in college fresman dorms. Apatow regulars like Seth Rogen and Jason Segel starred in a show that really got the college experience (parties, dorms, roommates, insecurities) like no other show I've seen. It was great, honest television for the short while it lasted.

8. "Firefly"

Joss Whedon's space cowboy opera was too tonally difficult to FOX to let it stay on the air more than 10 episodes, but its since become a cult favorite for good reason. Nathan Fillion led a crew of freighters in the comedy/drama/sci-fi/western/thriller series. At once deeply complex in its storytelling but insanely accessible in its humor and action, the show was almost perfect for its brief run. The companion movie Serenity is also great.

7. "Mad Men"

This will probably end up at number 1 or 2 on most people's lists. It's compelling, dramatic, and haunting with its use of real landmark historic events to propel story. It's not perfect. It can be boring for stretches, but by the end of a season, it's usually very apparent that everything you watched for 13 episodes was important.

6. "Wonderfalls"

The greatest of Bryan Fuller's series this decade. This toned down the death, but upped the crazy people seeing figurine animals talk to them. Bryan Fuller has to be the greatest man doing television this decade. All of his shows were cancelled too early, but they were all special. This one had a college graduate fumbling to find a place in the worls, and stuck in a town at the Niagara Falls. Figurines spole to her, forcing her to help or save people, and never shutting up until she did. It was hilarious, and honest in its depiction of a girl dealing with a shitty job, shitty family, hard romantic life, and talking animals.

5. "Curb Your Enthusiasm"

Larry David's abrasive asshole is a true wonder to behold. Conflicts come back full circle to haunt him. It's always surprising, funny, and cringe-worthy. He's gotten divorced, broken Shaq's leg, and been kicked out of heaven by angel Dustin Hoffman, but Larry always comes back to nitpick and social conventions and ruin somebody's day.

4. "Veronica Mars"

Rob Thomas's saga of a highschool daughter of a private detective was dark and witty. It was a highschool straight out of hell. Cheating, killing, social heirarchies. Kristen Bell was hot and fierce as the titular sleuth. The show fumbled when she got to college, but it stayed enjoyable. Some poeple make fun of me for digging this show, but they know nothing. "Veronica Mars" hits all the right notes. Thrilling, funny, and human. Veronica is a human with flaws and contradictions, she often does not come out on top and is forced to learn lessons about life she would rather never have to deal with.

3. "Home Movies"

Originally beginning in 1999, it was immediately cancelled and then picked up by Adult Swim for new episodes in 2002. Drawn in squiggle vision, this cartoon gem had an overly mature eight year old film nerd struggling to create films in his basement, get the attention of his single mother, and deal with his hard drinking insane soccer coach, John McGirk. McGirk is magical gold from awesome town. This show at once proved to be far greater than anything on Adult Swim, making people think that they might have taste. We quickly abandoned all hope soon after, but this show remains an absolute classic.

2. "How I Met Your Mother"

I've never been able to peg why I love this show so completely, but I do. Great cast and writing? Probably helps. This laugh track sitcom is far greater than any other that has ever existed (excepting "seinfeld"). It's perfect balance of laughs and pathos as Ted searches for "the one" is truly special. It deconstructs sit com conventions to create a truly original show about 5 friends trying to figure things out.

1. "Arrested Development"

Really, what else could it have been? The funniest, greatest show possibly ever on television. It's impossible how perfect this whole series was. I won't degrade it by describing it. If you haven't seen it, you're sad. There's talk of a movie, but I hope it never happens. What more could they possibly do with an hour and a half? Which is not to say that I couldn't have handled more. I always wanted more. Lets leave this artifact undisturbed and pure.

the real list, part 1

Here it begins. The best television this decade.

35-33. "Clone High"; "Undergraduates"; "Spy Groove"

MTV was on a fucking in the first half of the 2000s. All three of these shows were very short-lived, have seen no good dvd release, were absolutely hilarious, and almost completely forgotten. MTV Animation has a serious track record with me, beginning with "Downtown" in 1999. "Spy Groove" was the funniest of the bunch, "Undergraduates" was the most heartfelt, and "Clone High" was just the strangest, surreal bit of brilliance to grace my brain while in high school. I dream of a day when I can buy and revisit all of these fantastic comedies

32. "Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog"

While not technically a television show, this has gotten enough press and acclaim in pop culture that I feel okay including it. The incredible, and incompetently evil Neil Patrick Harris takes on the just douchebaggery of Nathan Fillion. A rivalry straight out of my dreams. The fact that it was a musical made it even better. NPH singing makes everything better. How was he not contacted to host the Oscars?

31. "Californication"

This is worth watching for David Duchovny's performance alone. The first season of the hedonistic, male wish-fulfillment series was truly perfect. It also overcame a serious and obvious a serious case of "we didn't think we'd make any more" the following year. It's third season and current season so far continues this stretch of greatness, but a loss of the incredibly hot and charismatic Madeline Zima (off to have a stint in the truly horrible "Heroes") may end up hurting it.

30. "Venture Bros."

This show is hard to pin down. It started as a Johnny Quest send up, and has become something else entirely. It's always absurd, and always funny, seemingly getting better with each new episode. And I love anything that includes Patrick Warburton.

29. "Pardon the Interruption"

Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser have created the most entertaining sports show I've ever seen. They throw out strange pop culture references, make jokes at athletes' expense, and are brutally honest in the most humorous way possible.

28. "Reno:911"

What could I possibly need to say about this show. For its whole, lengthy run, it was consistently hilarious. Its shtick never got old for me. The movie sucked.

27. "Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law"

This was what I fell asleep to every weekend night for about a year in highschool. At some point in the second season, Stephen Colbert's character all but took over the show, making it even more absurd and nonsensical, but "Harvey Birdman" was never about making any sort of sense anyway.

26. "Three Sheets"

A guy travels to a new location every week and engages in the local drinking customs and traditions with the locals. Simple? Yes, but I never realized I would learn so much about other cultures in learning about how and what they drink. The host, Zane Lamprey, is often hilarious (and drunk), but this show really is very insightful.

25. "Battlestar Galactica"

I haven't seen the whole series yet, but I'm no fool. With the whole first season, half of the second, and a few scattered episodes throughout the rest, I know BG is something special. I look forward to starting over and going through the whole thing.

24. "Eastbound and Down"

The saga of Kenny Powers is a sad and beautiful one. Danny McBride's brutal portrayal of the fallen star is something to behold. The six episode run of the first series played like a three hour film, and a few of the episodes were even directed by David Gordon Green. Absolutely hilarious supporting roles from Will Ferrel and Craig Robinson.

23. "The Loop"

"The Loop" was seemingly hated by everyone. Its absurd tone seemed to throw off critics and it didn't connect with audiences, but I have recently discovered that it's amazing. It's totally unrealistic and silly, but always hilarious. It's about a guy trying to balance a serious and taxing job while maintaining the healthy social life of a man his age. Running only 17 episodes over two seasons, FOX decided the show needed less social life and more Phillip Baker Hall. I can't decide if that was the right decision, but it definitely stayed great. The character Derek Tricolli might be my favorite tv show character from this decade. D-TRAIN OUT!

22. "Sealab 2021"

Taking place in the same sealab as the classic '70s cartoon "Sealab 2020", this moves us a year ahead, after the whole crew has gone insane cooped up under the sea. This has the distinction of the only Adult Swim original show to never get fucking annoying. Using footage from the old show turned out to be a hilarious restriction, never letting certain characters leave certain rooms, or furniture pieces.

21. "The Office" U.K.

I know people will kill me for liking the original series less than the U.S. version, but fuck you, I'm right. This was still hilarious though. A cold as ice, dry as sand comedy show that the British seem to do best, particularly the great Ricky Gervais. Unfortunately this show just never attempted to get all emotional with its audience, but that was probably intentional. These were terrible people.

2o. "Six Feet Under"

Wow, the first drama on the list. "Six Feet Under" was special in its ability to engage me for 5 long seasons of total depression black hole sadness. It just never fucking lets up. But the direction and writing were always impressive, and the performances always perfect. I loved watching this fucked up family grow in their abilities to fail to communicate in healthy ways with eachother.


Again, more later. I think I liked more dramas in the next section. But who knows.

Best TV shows this decade

So I read that the AV Club is beginning their best of the decade lists on Tuesday, and they're starting with tv shows.
Because it makes me feel cool, I'm beating them to it with my own tv show lists.

First, I'll point out the fact that I have never seen a few shows that are loved by all, such as "The Wire", "Deadwood", "Big Love", and "Breaking Bad".
And, with one exception, I'm listing only shows that began in 2000 and since. This means no "Daily Show"and "Freaks and Geeks", and saddest of all, no "Angel" or "Buffy the Vampire Slayer".

Here are the best shows that have had too few episodes to be considered best of the decade right now, but are insanely good so far.

6. "Dollhouse"

Starting off with an interesting premise, that of a company using beautiful people as maleable dolls imprinted with personalities to suit requests of rich clientele, and Joss Whedon being the brains behind it, "Dollhouse" had an uneven first few episodes. Certain story threads seemed to be going nowhere, some of the personalities of the week weren't very intriguing, and Eliza Dushku was unsurprisingly not very good as the doll who is experiencing memories of her life before the dollhouse. Then, BOOSH! Episode 7. Everything turned around. Dushku suddenly seemed wonderful and the overarching story amped up significantly. It's become a wonderfulling compelling and thrilling hour of television every Friday night.

5. "Parks and Recreation"

When it debuted in March, I found "Parks and Recreation" funny, but not great, sometimes not even very good. Those first 6 episodes showed promise of a great ensemble cast, but instead focused only on Amy Poelher's sometimes irritating lead. But this fall it came back and it finally started fleshing out all its great characters and is now the funniest show on NBC's Thursday night lineup.

4. "Community"

This new show is similar to "Parks" in that it has a huge ensemble from which an endless amount of conflict and funny can arise. And holy fuck, does it ever! The misfits at misfit community college thing is seriously special. The writers are doing some great things with character match-ups every week. Chevy Chase is even hilarious!

3. "Better Off Ted"

This magical office comedy comes from the creator of the criminally short live "Andy Richter Controls the Universe". Jay Haarington plays the most loveable executive on television, and Portia De Rosi the funniest as his boss. Ted's monologues to the camera, Phil and Lem's wonderful friendship in the lab. and de Rosi's heartless narcissism make this one of the funniest new shows.

2. "Modern Family"

This show took me by surprise. The ads looked thoroughly awful, but this is a great new show. It does wonders with its faux-documentary format, embracing it much more than "Parks and Rec" and "The Office", having the couple do confessionals together. The show has also found a new star in Ty Burrel, the socially clueless and clumsy father. He conveys so much in that goofy face of his. Him staring embarassed as his hot step-mother-in-law through her underwear all over him was comedy gold.

1. "Party Down"

I watched the first episode of "Party Down" when it aired and I thought it was hilarious, but something was missing. Around episode 3, all the kinks had been ironed out, and it was really getting into its hilarious characters. Co-created by Paul Rudd and Rob Thomas, creator of "Veronica Mars", the show features several Mars regulars working comedy magic. The wonderful Ken Marino, Martin Starr, and Jane Lynch are only but a few of the great employees at the titular catering service. By the last episode, guest starring a wonderfully scary Kristen Bell, the show has reached comedy perfection. I can't wait for season 2.


This took forever. More later.

Antichrist (2009)

Oh my lord, what has Lars von Trier done?

Antichrist might be one of the most disturbing films I've ever seen. And it's not just the well publicized third act gruesomeness. Every conversation, every glance and facial tick Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsburg convey are twisted and unsettling.
I'll only divulge the first scene, as people hate spoilers. In what has to be the most beautifully shot scene I've seen all year, married couple Dafoe and Gainsburg are engaging in a serious fuck session as their toddler escapes his crib and dives out of their apartment window to his death. Yeah, a cheery sort of film.
The film deals a great deal with psychosis, religion, human nature, and may or may not serve up a serious dish of misogyny. I am, however, not convinced it does.
I don't pretend to get everything going on in Antichrist, but its images are powerful, frightening, and (most unsettling of all) immensely beautiful. They stay with you

This is definitely one of my favorites of the year.
9/10

Next time I begin my decade lists with albums, then films.