Favorite Articles of 2023 – Part 1
Last year, I took a look at some of my favorite and least favorite pieces of media I reviewed for 2022.
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Doctor Who Special Reviews: The Church on Ruby Road
The Church on Ruby Road marks the beginning of Ncuti Gatwa’s tenure as the Doctor, and while the episode was a mixed bag, Ncuti did such a good job.
Dawn of the Nugget: A Slap-Stick Dystopia
Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget is inescapably a nostalgia grab of a movie, relying on people like me and our fond memories of the original film. If it weren’t for that history, I’m not sure it would’ve been that big of a deal for there to be a new kid’s movie about chickens attempting to escape being eaten.
It Came From The Archives “Klaus: Instant Christmas Classic”
Klaus is a heartwarming, magical, wonderful film that does what the best Disney and Pixar movies manage and is instantly a classic.
Doctor Who Special Reviews: The Giggle
The Giggle marks the end of Doctor Who’s trilogy of specials, and, like each one, I enjoyed it a lot and found a core issue. This one is perhaps the most flattering flaw on paper, though, even if I consider Wild Blue Yonder to be the stronger episode overall. Simply put, The Giggle is too short—way, way too short.
Doctor Who Special Reviews: Wild Blue Yonder
If Doctor Who: Wild Blue Yonder had been a novelization, it would be in my top ten favorite Doctor Who stories across any season, with any Doctor. Full stop. I love it when Doctor Who leans into horror and the weirder side of the universe.
Doctor Who Special Reviews: The Star Beast
Doctor Who: The Star Beast marks the return of so many things. The return of Russell T. Davies as showrunner. The return of David Tennant as the 14th Doctor. And a continuation of Catherine Tate’s Donna Noble story that had originally ended in a tragic mindwipe after she helped save the universe.
Elemental: Adorable And Thematically Complex
Elemental marks Pixar’s first romance-focused story since Wall-E, and as a fan of romance stories—yes, most people also find that surprising when they find out—I have to give it a glowing endorsement right off the bat.
It Came From The Archives! “The Storage Papers: As Scary As The Magnus Archives?”
Before listening to The Storage Papers, I never thought a podcast could scare me as much as The Magnus Archives. That the mind-melting, the dark-is-dangerous thrill it gave me was the peak of horror storytelling.
Luca: Another Great Pixar Movie
Luca serves as another reminder of why Pixar has the reputation it does. Yes, stuff like The Good Dinosaur and the Cars franchise unsettled that a little, making it guesswork if the newest Pixar movie will be worth the time, but Luca is worth the time.
Nimona: An Unexpectedly Emotional Story
Nimona hit the media landscape with such explosive power that avoiding spoilers was difficult. A stylized, bombastic, irreverent sci-fi fantasy mashup with an animation style reminiscent of Spider-Verse and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish has become a winning combination, practically guaranteed to get the attention of the critic community, and I’m no different. The question of Nimona was when I would review it, not if I would.
The Bureau of Magical Things: A Fun Suprise
Even after watching the first three episodes, The Bureau of Magical Things feels like a show that doesn’t exist. A hypothetical series a nerdy character might watch in the background of a scene. I’ve heard no one discuss The Bureau of Magical Things, reference it, or allude to it anywhere online in critic circles, yet it has all the trappings of a show that people make video essays about.
“So many people get shived!” – Merril
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