2024 was a year with a lot of personal life changes and adjustments. I didn’t have as much of a creative output as I wanted – but I ultimately think it was necessary to recharge, absorb, research, and just… survive in a year full of Ls. Anyway, here are some of my favorite media and other experiences in 2024 that I want to reflect on, ramble about, and possibly recommend.

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Games

1000xResist

When I say peak fiction, I’m genuinely not kidding. I never write earnest reviews on letterboxd or backloggd or whatever media review/logging website – mostly out of laziness sure – but I genuinely wrote a quick, off the cuffreview for 1000xResist if it meant more people would play it. I’ll just copy paste what I said in that review here to urge you to play it:

"i'm not exaggerating when i say this is one of the most incredible games i've had the pleasure of playing. everything about this game is so carefully crafted and unapologetic about its style and sentimentality. the cinematic shot compositions and camera work are peak -- every cutscene frame could be a painting made for a wong kar-wai animated sci-fi film.

without digging into spoilers, the wide breadth of themes present in the narrative (anti-asian racism, experience of the asian diaspora, historical revisionism, intergenerational trauma, cycles of abuse and violence, motherhood and girlhood, etc etc) are covered with such thought-provoking depth and care. the writing is so succinct and sharp -- cutting straight to the emotional core that perfectly balances tragedy and the grief that follows with hope and levity in the connections we make within our relationships. it never feels pretentious or preachy -- it's honest. it perfectly captures both the beauty and cruelty of what it means to be alive.

genuinely a game i will think about forever... i never write reviews and i don't think i'll make a habit of doing so, but i felt the need to write something short because i genuinely think this is a masterful portrayal of storytelling in games....thank you to the devs who worked on this game"

Mouthwashing

I won’t spend as much time praising Mouthwashing as I did with 1000xResist because this was the people’s indie darling this year, and I don’t have much to add to the conversation. I want to avoid posting spoilers as much as possible, but I loved it! It’s pretty short (3-4 hours to complete), and an incredibly charming game. I adore the PSX art style and direction – and the writing and cutscenes are incredible. I’m going to be honest and just copy-paste this message I sent to a friend:

“the bojack horseman evangelion space horror tragedy game with psx aesthetics made in unity...that is Jamelcore”

Balatro

All the praise you’ve heard about this game is well-deserved. I don’t even know what to say if you’ve never heard of this game til now. It’s Poker, but you cheat and manipulate your deck to do insane plays, defeat big blinds, and inject dopamine directly into your veins. I adore this game – it’s been one of my go-to games to play when I’m trying to unwind. If I’m not listening to the banger in-game music, I’d put on a podcast and play some Balatro.

I don’t have Balatro purposely installed on my phone because it would ruin any remaining shred of productivity I could muster. With that being said, go play Balatro. you’ll be charmed and hooked in instantly.

Ravenswatch

I have no witty segue or interesting introduction for this section, I just really love this game y’all. I’ve done sooo many runs both solo and with friends after FFXIV raid nights. The gameplay is a rogue-lite action game -- akin to Supergiant’s Hades -– where you defeat enemies, complete tasks, get loot, fight bosses, and customize your skills. What drew me in are the playable various fairy tale and folklore characters like Scarlet (Little Red Riding Hood), The Snow Queen, Beowulf, The Pied Piper, and several others (with some DLC on the way!). My favorite character that got me to purchase and actually play the game was Carmilla – the first vampire. I am sooo happy they put her in and integrate her folklore unchanged (no sapphic censorship yay!) into the game. Reading this snippet after some friends and I cleared Darkness difficulty -- genuinely made me cry. It’s such a love letter to Carmilla’s character I didn’t expect to see in this game.

"It is the memory of you that makes me want to carry on. It is the memory of you that keeps me human."

I recommend grabbing this game if you’ve got an itch for this kind of action roguelikes/lite gameplay. If you’re also into fairy tales and folklore, then the character roster and setting of this game are just icing on an already delicious cake.

Marvel Rivals

Honestly, this slid in here at the very last minute – I’ve been enamored by this totally, legally distinct Marvel-flavored Overwatch. I adore the art direction – the stylized character 3D models are incredible – with bold, comic-inspired textures and crisp shaders (I am researching how to achieve that bold, white rim lighting for my own research purposes hehe. ) I love the gameplay, and the inclusion of comic book lore through the pre-match dialogue interactions, the environmental detailing, and the hero lore pages. (Groot having a smiley face as his signature because he doesn’t know how to write healed something in me). The roster’s incredibly stacked with the MCU Marvel Icons and some cool comic picks like Cloak & Dagger, Jeff the Shark, Moon Knight, Magik, and several others.

It’s been a lot of fun playing with friends – even if I’ve mostly been relegated to support jail as Cloak & Dagger getting my ass beat by Iron Fist and Spiderman from the other team.

Metaphor: Refantazio

I'm currently chugging through this right now during holiday break, and I'm absolutely in love with it. I won't say more since I'm still in the middle of it, but so far I can say this is easily one of my favorite Atlus games in a very long time.

FFXIV: Dawntrail + The Epic of Alexander Ultimate

I won’t say anything about Dawntrail’s MSQ, because I have a personal rule not to judge the MSQ until the post-patches conclude this expansion’s main story arc. That being said, I’m loving this expansion thus far – this might even be my second favorite expansion after Shadowbringers. I’m absolutely in love with the encounter and environmental designs thus far (and looking forward to next year’s Plein Airpril wink wink). I’m so excited to watch how the main story unfolds and do the future raids with my friends.

This was earlier in the year before the Dawntrail expansion release, but I’d like to say progging and clearing The Epic of Alexander (frequently abbreviated as TEA among the community) was one of my personal highlights for this year. It’s been on my XIV bucket list for a long time ever since I started playing late in the Shadowbringers expansion - and being able to clear was immensely cathartic. I never expected to pick up raiding as a hobby, but it scratches an itch for tackling something difficult & rewarding execution. It’s also just… fun with friends or solo – it’s really satisfying to be able to help strangers and friends get their clear. My first clear was honestly me running into a group randomly & helping others get their first clear too!

I’m so in love with everything about TEA – the encounter design, the music, the reward weapon design, and the final phase boss Perfect Alexander himself. It’s genuinely one of my favorite fights in FFXIV. It’s hard to recommend this fight specifically if you're not playing FFXIV, but just look up a clear video from someone or even just listen to the Spotify playlist that contains the music from the fight.

Music

I have to preface this by saying sooo much good music came out this year. Below are some of my favorite albums that came out this year since I won’t write about all of them. I recommend them all depending on your taste for certain genres.

The artists + albums listed are:

• Porter Robinson - SMILE!
• Remi Wolf - Big Ideas
• Magdalena Bay - Imaginal Disk
• zild - Superpower
• Tinashe - Quantum Baby
• Poppy - Negative Spaces
• Vampire Weekend - Only God Was Above Us
• Charli XCX - brat
• Bring Me The Horizon - POST HUMAN: Nex Gen
• Tyler the Creator - CHROMAKOPIA
• Quadeca - Scrapyard
• NxWorries - WHY LAWD?
• Vince Staples - Dark Times
• ericdoa - DOA
• JPEGMAFIA - I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU

POST HUMAN: Next Gen by Bring Me The Horizon

The emo phase I had in middle school never ended -- it held on for dear life and evolved into whatever's going on with me now. I’ve been a fan since middle school with my favorite work of theirs being the Post Human: Survival Horror EP released in 2020. I genuinely didn’t think they could top that album, let alone with a member who left the band, but they did it. It’s phenomenal – an ambitious concept, blending metal and rock with elements of pop and electronic music, with lyrics that hit close to home. The album is full of bangers – it’s hard to choose a favorite track, but I think Top 10 staTues tHat CriEd bloOd and LosT are the stand outs to me.

CHROMAKOPIA by Tyler The Creator

I’ve been a fan of Tyler since OFWGKTA and grew up on his music and sneakily watching Loiter Squad on Adult Swim past my bedtime. I remember blasting Tamale on my iPod as a middle schooler and listening to his album Flower Boy on the bus commutes to college classes. I remember listening to Igor and being in genuine awe at Tyler’s artistry in crafting a compelling album concept and narrative that has become my go-to breakup album. It’s such a wonderful thing to watch an artist bloom and come into their own voice – and CHROMAKOPIA is another amazing showcase of Tyler’s artistry.

It’s so hard to choose a favorite track, but my favorites are Darling, I , Sticky, and Balloon. Darling, I scratches my itch for lush melodies and instrumentals that Tyler’s production excels at. Sticky has a bold instrumental that makes me nostalgic for high school marching band and a stacked feature list on the verses. Doechii’s (Watch her NPR Tiny Desk performance by the way) feature on Balloon is showstopping and light-hearted – infecting the track with replayability that makes it irresistible to listen on repeat. I think this is definitely up there in my favorite Tyler the Creator albums and I urge you to listen if you've always been curious about his music.

SMILE :D by Porter Robinson

I’ve been a long time fan of Porter Robinson – ever since I first heard Sad Machine from Worlds as a preteen on Tumblr. My love for his music only intensified when I heard Nurture in 2021 and it healed something in me after the worst year of my life.

Expectations were admittedly high, and he delivered. From the singles alone, I was genuinely so excited for this album. My favorite track from SMILE :D is easily Is There Really No Happiness? with Mona Lisa being a close second. All the songs are amazing though – filled with iconic moments like the “Bitch, I’m Taylor Swift” lyric from KNOCK YOURSELFOUT XD, the anthemic synth and guitars on the lead single Cheerleader, or the emotional bridge on Russian Roulette. My favorite work from Porter will forever be Nurture, but this album was enjoyable & got me through this year.

I also saw him perform live in October for the SMILE :D World tour along with my younger sibling! It genuinely was my favorite concert experience I’ve ever been to. The live renditions of past songs in his discography with some updated instrumental breaks. i still think about how the live guitar on Fresh Static Snowfrom Worlds was so electrifying, and I can’t listen to the studio version the same way again. Someone uploaded the performance I went to on Youtube, and I regularly revisit just to re-experience some of these live renditions.

Films + TV

Problemista + Fantasmas

Problemista is easily my favorite film I’ve watched this year. Everything about it was incredible – the performances, the story, the balance of comedy and drama, the cinematography and setpieces – I can’t sing its praises enough. I’ve been a fan of Julio Torres’ stand up, comedy special, and show Los Espookys, so I was excited for his directorial debut – and this easily became one of my favorite films of all time. I don’t want to say anything else because I feel like it’s best to go into this film without knowing anything about it, and just enjoy the ride. Out of all these films I mentioned today, if you choose only one(1) film to watch, please let it be this one. (Or at least let this be a strong contender, there’s a lot of incredible films this year)

If you watched Problemista and you want to watch more from Julio Torres, I highly recommend his show Fantasmas. It’s an incredible mini-series – it’s filled with incredible set pieces, cinematography and vibrant color grading, and hilarious performances from a stacked cast. (I guffawed when I saw Steve Buscemi, Emma Stone, and Jaboukie Young-White). It’s also best to go into this knowing nothing about it, but if you want to peep a bit of it, I recommend this this skit featuring Alexa Demie and Ziwe Fumudoh.

I Saw The TV Glow

“There is still Time”

I Saw the TV Glow was one of my favorite films released this year. Its themes hit super close to home for me; it’s wonderfully shot, written, scored, and performed. Justice Smith is one of my favorite actors, and he does a standout job in this role. I know I sound like a broken record saying I think it’s best to go into this film knowing as little as possible – but I genuinely mean it.

Also, I adore the soundtrack. It’s stacked with amazing songs all from musicians I love (yeule, Bartees Strange, Phoebe Bridgers, Caroline Polachek, etc.) – the cover of Broken Social Scene’s Anthems for a Seventeen Year Old Girl by yeule is an incredible homage that captures the same feeling as the original, but elevates it to another level. Starburned And Unkissed is an incredible track by Caroline Polachek -- as always, her vocals are ethereal and the instrumental on this track are soaring and deliciously, crunchy and grunge.

Challengers

Everyone gushed their praises for this film – and rightfully so. Luca Guadagnino always made films about sensuality and human connection for freaks – but this one was on another level. I imagine that it helps when paired when your script was written by the creative genius of the Potion Seller video – Justin Kuritzkes. Zendaya’s performance was killer in this – genuinely could not imagine this film with anyone else in her role. The soundtrack is incredible – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross did an amazing job. The soundtrack is so bombastic and energizing. I don’t think the film’s tennis match scenes would be the same without it.

It’s an incredible, energizing film – watching this unfold with friends over a Discord call only added to the experience. It’s so nice I watched this film twice – and it’s incredible picking up all the subtle details and character parallels upon rewatch. It’s a great film and I highly recommend it. Even if you don’t consider yourself an enjoyer of sports, I urge you to give this film a chance.

Velocipastor

The first time I watched this film was with a couple of friends over a Discord call, and I could not stop laughing, smiling, or having my jaw dropped throughout the entire runtime. I think if I had to write any sort of recommendation for this film, it would just be this:

"they have the yaoi for ivana they have the catholic / repressed desire monster metaphor for me they have the camp for dood they have the scuffed cantonese for skye-"

For once, I have to say that you should come into this film NOT expecting something Unironically Good™. If you want a film that’s so-bad-it’s-actually-peak this is it. ( I will admit that there’s one(1) exception – a certain musical sequence was genuinely incredible and up my alley. )

Poor Things

I am a huge Yorgos Lanthimos enjoyer – I think he is partially to blame as a contributing factor for my eternal celebrity crush on Colin Farrell. I love how Lanthimos directs his actors to give such strange, off-kilter performances – with my personal favorite film being The Lobster.

Out of all his films, this and The Favourite are probably the most digestible…even if the setting and some characters/premises of this film are abstract and surreal. I think this film might be my favorite of his now – it’s filled with comedic, yet emotionally compelling performances, incredible production set pieces, and an interesting plot to watch unfold. I highly recommend it, but with a caveat and maturity warning for nudity, sex, and other body horror-y elements.

Look Back

With the rise of Generative AI, the general state of the world, and personal life stuff – I nearly gave up on art this year. My sketches and paintings sucked. I wasn’t creating anything I was proud of. I was too tired from work to try to draw & then get disappointed by how much I sucked at art. I was ready to give up on art entirely honestly. I still engaged in other activities like writing, web design, linocut printing, etc. to fill the urge to make something – but it didn’t hit the same.

But watching this film after months of those feelings with my art – was immensely cathartic and healing. I ugly cried multiple times while watching this movie with friends – I’m so glad I was muted in the Discord voice call because I was a sniffling, sobbing mess. The film is an adaptation of Tatsuki Fujimoto’s one shot – Look Back, and it’s such a faithful adaptation of the original manga. It’s a short and sweet special; runtime spanning slightly less than an hour, but packed to the brim of breathtaking and expressive animation with a simultaneously heartwrenching and heartwarming story. I don’t want to say much more other than I urge you to watch it.

Interview With A Vampire - Season 2

It is an insanely stacked season - some of the episode standouts are E5 & E7 for me. The acting is phenomenal & the production design is on a whole other level. I won’t go into depth to avoid spoilers, but my favorite performances are from Assad Zaman and Sam Reid. I’m excitedly looking forward to Season 3.

Very Important People - Season 1

Everyone with a Dropout subscription would probably tell you the subscription is worth it for Gamechanger and Dimension 20 – and those shows are good don’t get me wrong – but I think the peak show is Very Important People. I’m telling you to find someone with a Dropout subscription you can leech off of/watch together (thanks David) and watch this show immediately.

It’s an interesting premise with an insane execution — a comedian gets a total makeover without seeing the character they become until it’s finished. They then conjure up a character based off their look and get interviewed by the host, played by Vic Michaelis. Hilarity ensues. Vic is insanely charismatic; knowing how to play off all these characters like it's the back of their hand. The production is also insane; episodes for the season dropped bi-weekly. So on the off weeks, I’d watch the Behind The Scenes videos centered on the costuming and make-up for the official episodes.

Season 2 is currently airing as of writing this, and I’m excited to have more episodes coming soon!

Books

I’ve been slowly getting back into reading, so here are some of my favorite first reads of this year. Some of these works did not necessarily come out in 2024, but were some of what I read this year.

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

I am a romance enjoyer and I’m not afraid to say it. I read a lot of romance books this year for personal project research and enjoyment, and this book sticks out as my clear favorite. This is a romcom enthusiasts’s romcom. If you’re an oldhead romance enjoyer like me - if you wish you could rewatch When Harry Met Sally like the first time over and over again – this is the romance book for you.

As a Hallmark Holiday Romance Movie hater and someone who loves a trope spun on its head, the premise of this book already caught me – e.g. the jilted, dumped woman who’s left in the city by her partner who ditches her during the holidays for a small country town romance. It’s a wonderful read – a romance for people who love good rivals/enemies to lovers dynamics and banter, vulnerable realistic portrayals of grief, and a heartwarming sisterhood that never failed to make me smile. This is definitely in my favorite romances of all time. I recommend this book, but all of Emily Henry’s other works are just as superb as this.

This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

I was super late on the viral, hype train for this book, but nonetheless, I absolutely loved it. It’s a relatively short read compared to my other picks, but it’s packed to the brim with a great science-fiction time-war, an entertaining correspondence between the two leads, and a romance so compelling that I could not close my phone’s library app. I highly recommend this book if you're looking for a relatively quick read with great dialogue. I'm quite fond of science fiction that doesn't quite baby the audience -- that shoves you in there with zero context which is a little reminiscient of 1000xResist mentioned earlier on this list. I don’t want to spoil much more of this novel, but I end this section with one of my favorite quotes from this book.

“Love is what we have, against time and death, against all the powers ranged to crush us down. You gave me so much–a history, a future, a calm that lets me write these words though I’m breaking. I hope I’ve given you something in return–I think you would want me to know I have. And what we’ve done will stand, no matter how they weave the world against us. It’s done now, and forever.”

This Time Tomorrow by Emily Straub

It took me a while to get hooked on this book, but when I did – I was all in. I love a well-written time travel story. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (dir. Mamoru Hosoda) and Seconds by Bryan Lee O’Malley are some of my favorite time travelling stories. Mix that in with grief – or at least the process of grieving someone who’s still alive, but know that their time is coming up? Yeah that’s the good shit.

I don’t want to spoil the twists and turns, but it’s best to go into this book knowing as little as possible. It’s a book that made me laugh, cry, and stay up past my bed-time just to read more.I recommend the book and to call up your loved ones afterwards.

One Piece by Echirio Oda

I started reading this early in the summer before the release of Dawntrail under the presumption of long login queues (which was not true), so I’d have something to do. I’ve been bombarded by some of my favorite works and artists citing it as an inspiration – so I’ve always been curious about this series. And let me just say, I have become a full-fledged fan and enjoyer of this modern-day Odyssey – I’ve caught up to the manga and even watched a couple of the movies on Netflix (Gold, Strange World, & Red).

While reading, I was so engrossed in the world of the series and its colorful cast of characters. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the writing aged; especially its in-world geopolitical conflicts – feeling ahead of its time with how it handles & writes these issues. The series has so much heart – perfectly balancing the comical, slapstick-comedy with universal and raw, human emotion. From one page, I’ll be laughing my ass off at the recurring gag of Zoro getting lost then the next I’ll be ugly crying over a Strawhat’s declaration of their hope and dreams.

My favorite arcs in particular are Water 7/Enies Lobby, Whole Cake Island, and the most recent Egghead arc. If I wasn’t trying to end a section that’s already running longer than I’d like, I’d probably list at least five other arcs too. I won’t divulge into spoilers, but Nico Robin and Sanji are my favorite characters, so these arcs in particular really hit home for me. If you know, you know. I’ll leave one of my favorite recent series of panels here that still sticks with me – especially during these times.

"Someone once told me that... 'The voices of the past call out to you'... History is written by the victors... And the words of the vanquished are usually cast into a deep, dark ocean... That being said, their truth can still come to light... If the oppressed carry it on their backs and endure!!"

Misc.

This section is for miscellaneous media and experiences that were highlights of my year that I want to document here, but might not fit in neatly into the previous categories.

Dracula Flow

I have to start this section off right -- here is my favorite lyric from Dracula Flow.

“I have no morals or belief system
I have no spirtuality or anything that gives my life meaning or structure
They asked me to shoot, I do it
I have no character”

Dracula Flow 5 from PLUMMCORP RECORDS came out this year, and like every previous entry in this series, it irreversibly altered my vocabulary. Iconic classics like “They must have amenesia, they forgot I’m him” or “This shit ain’t nothing to me man” have become part of my daily lexicon and in an “about myself” section when I don’t know what else to put.

I don’t know how else to rave about this – those who get it, get it.

Not a Game Jam 2024

I wrote more at length about the game jam in a different blog post here, but I just wanted to list it here. It was such a joy to work on with one of my closest friends, and it's one of my favorite projects I've worked on this year.

Versus Wolves Podcast

... is a fun monthly book club-like podcast where I've gotten a bunch of cool recommendations from this year. I’ve been following both Super Eyepatch Wolf and Woolie individually for a while now, so a podcast with both of them is really exciting. I’ve yet to join their Patreon, but I’d eventually love to for their bonus episode on one of my favorite shows of all time – Bojack Horseman.

Shadow Wizard Money Gang

... aka my FFXIV raid static! We’ve been raiding together for a while now (a little over a year) and I know it’s a little silly to put “my friends” in a blog post centered around my fave things/experiences of the year, but I just wanted an excuse to share this video reel I made onto this website. It’s just a silly video I put way too much effort into, but I rewatch it now and then whenever I need a little pick-me-up.

Linocut Printing

I got back carving linoleum and block printing around November. It’s been a relaxing hobby after getting home from a stressful shift at work. It’s nice when I want to do something creative, but might not have the brain power to draw or write. I took it up so I could print on some of my leftover fabrics and make them into sewed patches, so I wouldn't let the clothes go to waste. Here are some of the carvings I’ve done.

A lot of the designs I've carved so far are fairly simple -- a mix of FFXIV fanart (specifically Dark Knight themed stuff because I’m a Dark Knight enjoyer), Astrodyne Academy themed stamps, and an Espurr from Pokemon (for my sister). I’ve stamped them on several denim patches and journals – and even on a jacket I’ve had in my wardrobe. It’s a lot of fun, and I want to do more in the future.

Neocities

I had a lot of fun messing around with web design stuff for this website and my OC site for Astrodyne Academy this year. It’s still a work in progress, but nonetheless it’s fun working on components and seeing it all come together. Especially during a turbulent time of social media imploding on itself (R.i.P. Twitter) – it’s nice creating and personalizing your own spaces online.

Currently, my favorite section of my OC website is the Yearbook section – a digital scrapbook of sorts containing different inspirations, WIPs, and other old works centered around different projects over the years. It’s a fun way to archive and share some old works that might not fit neatly anywhere else.

It’s really funny to me how my personal website is a lot simpler than that one – but I kind of prefer that. In a way, it’s kind of freeing because my creative energy is spent on my own OCs and their world rather than focusing on portraying myself on the internet.

Conclusion

A redraw of Akira Toriyama's original self-portrait.
R.I.P. to the legend

Anyways, that’s all I got for now! I return to my introverted cave for the rest of the year where I sew on my patches and play Metaphor:Refantazio. I wish you a safe and healthy holiday season. Congratulations on making it through this year and blog post. I'm happy you are alive and still here. 2024 was an insane year, and I wish you the best in all your endeavors for 2025.

Take care and be well,
janel