Throughout 2022, multiple different entertainment mediums had a wide variety of content that released to varying reactions. There were great movies, horrible albums and everything in between.
Movies:
Top Gun Maverick: After a close to 40 year gap between the original Top Gun and Maverick, this movie surprised audiences with a fantastic movie. Tom Cruise as usual brings a great presence to the screen, and Miles Teller continues to impress with his acting capabilities. With a great script, good acting, and amazing effects, Top Gun: Maverick was one of the best movies of 2022.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: The fourth phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe came to a close with Black Panther, and it did not disappoint. Following the death of Chadwick Boseman, the writers had a big obstacle to write around, and they did a very good job. They handle his death with taste and respect and are still able to create an engaging story. They also continue to have another very well-rounded villain. Overall Black Panther: Wakanda Forever wound up being the best MCU property of phase 4.
Doctor Strange: In the Multiple of Madness: Like the first Doctor Strange, the effects in this movie are very ambitious, however they do leave a lot to be desired, the Marvel team had been over-worked throughout 2022, and it shows. That being said, this ended up being better than the first movie, mainly due to Director, Sam Raimi coming in and bringing a horror touch. ELizabeth Olsen also shined as being the main villain this time. The movie does also suffer from some annoying characters and a repetitive plot.
The Batman: Not since 2017 have audiences seen Batman in live action since his portrayal by Ben Affleck in Zach Snyder’s Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Joss Whedon’s Justice
League. Both movies were slammed for a lack of a comprehensible story. With The Batman, Matt Reeves took the reins. He went for a grittier and more realistic take on Batman similar to Chistopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy. The Batman has been praised by fans and critics alike for great writing, good action, fantastic performances by Paul Dano, and Robert Pattinson, and an engaging mystery.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery: After extreme success with his 2019 murder mystery, Knives Out, it was inevitable that Rian Johnson would make a sequel. Glass Onion continues the trend from the last movie of having an amazing mystery with good comedy and great characters and good acting to go with them. Just like the last movie, Daniel Craig steals the show with his performance as Benoit Blanc, and Janelle Monae was a standout part of the movie.
Minions: The Rise of Gru: As far as Illumination animation goes, Minions: The Rise of Gru is a great watch. It has the usual quick and quippy comedy that’s become standard for Illumination, and Steve Carrel has another good performance as Gru. The movie became a viral sensation for having groups of people show up to view it in suits, which added to its popularity and allowed it to become a massive box office success.
Avatar: The Way of Water: Like the first, the movie’s visuals are the centerpiece. The storyline while simplistic, was more tangible than the first. What really lets this movie down is its 3-hour runtime, which it doesn’t really earn. There were a lot of filler scenes here that if cut, would’ve made the move much more enjoyable. Overall, the movie is enjoyable but runs too long.
Morbius: Morbius struggles to have any redeeming factors. The acting is bad, the script is bad, the effects are bad. The only reason this movie exists is to piggyback off of the Spider-Man hype train. The only good thing about Morbius is that it is good movie to laugh at.
TV:
Stranger Things Season 4: After a string of increasingly successful season, Stranger Things came out with one of its best. For the first time in the series, they have an actual villain to fight,
Vecna, who is undoubtedly the best part of the season. The season is divided into three subplots, the front against Vecna, the plot with 11 finding her strength again, and the Russian subplot. Not all subplots are created equal, the Vecna story is miles better than the other two. The 11 story is easily the worst part of the season, as nothing happens and the characters just make irrational decisions. The Russian part of the story has the same bad decision making, but it has more interesting characters, more action and things actually happen. If it weren’t for the amazing villain this season, then it wouldn’t be half as good as it is. Ultimately, Stranger Things 4 is another good link in a chain of well-made TV, and if didn’t have the boring subplots then it might easily be the best season.
Wednesday: Coming from the creative mind of Tim Burton, Wednesday stars Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams. Jenna Ortega has been heavily praised for her unique take on the character and has blasted to a new level of fame. Other standout performances include Gwendoline Christie and Christina Ricci. The show has Tim Burton’s usual flair and cinematic style which elevates it from a typical teen drama starring Wednesday Addams to something far beyond that. The show has great writing, great performances, great cinematography, and great humor and is an almost perfect reimagining of the Addams family.
Dahmer: Monster: The Jeffery Dahmer Story: This deeply disturbing miniseries is almost flawless on a cinematic level. It has fantastic acting and writing. Evan Peters steals the show with his portrayal of the serial killer. The show also has heartbreaking dramatic moments and is very good at getting you invested. The problem with the show lies in its existence in the first place. Many people were horrifically affected by the brutal acts of Dahmer, and the show almost glorifies him. This led to a massive amount of backlash to the show. If you sit and watch Dahmer, there will be nothing wrong with the actual making of the show, but when you remember what you’re watching actually happened, it starts to leave a sour taste in your mouth.
The Boys Season 3: Continuing the trend of being some of the most original TV you can find, The Boys’ third season is another fantastic addition to this show. There isn’t much to say about The Boys that hasn’t already been said, It had a great first, second, and now third season
House of The Dragon: After the heavily criticized eighth and final season of Game of Thrones, general audiences seemed to be done with stories by George R.R. Martin’s Westeros. Season eight of Game of Thrones was bashed for mostly poor writing, the show had been going on a downward spiral since its fifth season. The show always had great acting, good editing, impressive special effects and a very captivating world. All of the positives from Game of
Thrones have been translated into House of the Dragon, but the poor writing has gone away. House of the Dragon focuses on a much smaller set of characters than Game of Thrones and gives all of them deep development. The performances are the backbone of the show however, and the best are from Paddy Considine as King Viserys, and Matt Smith as Prince Daemon. House of the Dragon seems to have hit the spot for fans of A Song of Ice and Fire.
She-Hulk: The very inconsistent fourth phase of the MCU reached a boiling point in She-Hulk. The show was mocked for its poor sense of humor, odd writing style and weird fourth wall breaking. One thing that cannot be mocked is the acting. Tatiana Maslany gives the role her all and she is the best part of the show. She gives She-Hulk a charm that carries the show. The show was too heavily criticized on one hand, but it also does have some massive problems. It may have been the worst part of this phase of Marvel but it’s not the worst thing they’ve put out.
Moon Knight: Contrasting She-Hulk, Moon Knight has been praised for being incredibly original with deep characters, powerful moments, good acting, and an interesting premise. The action in Moon Knight does leave something to be desired however and it doesn’t really shine until the last episode. The show isn’t anything groundbreaking, and at some points does just seem like Mr. Robot except with superheroes, instead of hackers. Oscar Isaac has a standout performance in this show, he has to play multiple characters at once and he makes both standout and easy to care for. Overall, Moon Knight excels at character work, and works well as a standalone MCU project.
Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: This show was marketed as the most expensive show ever made, and it shows. The visual effects in this show are jaw dropping. The main problem with the show is that all its money went to the visuals, and close to none to the writing. The show is 90% with the first, sixth, and last two episodes being the only ones of substance. The acting for some of the main characters is also incredibly dull and lacks any direction. For a Lord of The Rings show, you’d expect it to have great battles, but the show has only one battle and it is over in one episode, to put that into perspective, the Battle of Helms Deep lasts 40 minutes, (The length of one episode), and the battle in The Rings of Power is half of that. The show also struggles to make you care for any characters. It has few moving character moments and when they do happen, they’re the bare minimum. All in all, the Rings of Power is a heavily flawed show that seems like it only exists to revive The Lord of the Rings, and to set up a second season that is hopefully better.
Obi-Wan Kenobi: After a close twenty-year break, fans were eager to see Ewan McGregor back in his role as Obi-Wan from the prequel Starwars movies. His performance did not disappoint and is probably the best part of the show. The other massive positive is Haden Christensen also returning from the prequels. The chemistry between these actors is very noticeable and they carry the entire series. The negatives of the show are a small list of big issues. The first and biggest is the writing, the show has a very weird pace of repetitive plot points, that don’t really go anywhere until the last episode which is the most fleshed out of them all. The other negative is the effects. After two very technically impressive seasons of The Mandalorian, Disney set a standard of great effects for their TV shows, and this show just doesn’t have the same look. The CGI here just looks unfinished, the costumes and makeup also look cheap for Disney’s standards. The final negative is the side characters. There is no character to care about that isn’t Obi-Wan or Darth Vader, the show introduces so many new people and tries to have dramatic moments with them, but it struggles to make you actually care, so when dramatic moments are supposed to happen, they feel underwhelming. Overall, Obi-Wan Kenobi is a deeply flawed show that is carried off the backs of two actors who have a massive passion for Starwars.
Music:
Drake: Honestly, Nevermind: After a moderately successful 2021 release in Certified Lover Boy, Drake seemed to be going back up to his position as the number one. Honestly, Nevermind exemplifies the worst parts of Certified Lover Boy. The lyricism is painfully mid, Drake sounds half asleep and his flow is also slow and lazy. The only notable song is ‘Jimmy Crooks’, and that’s mainly because 21 Savage carries the track.
Drake and 21 Savage: Her Loss: For the first time in years Drake actually sounds awake while he’s rapping and like he actually wants to be there. Having 21 on each track helps as he has a very unique voice and delivery. This album is like the third in a trilogy starting with Certified Lover Boy and unlike Honestly Nevermind, this album takes the best parts of CLB and amplifies them. Notable tracks are ‘Rich Flex’, ‘Pu**y and Millions’, and ‘Broke Boys’.
SZA: SOS: After a five-year hiatus from her last album Ctrl the wait for SZA’s second full length album was reaching an all-time high. On December 9th SZA dropped SOS. The album was praised for outstanding vocals, and great production that ranged from slow instrumental sounds to being fast and electric. With deep lyrics and amazing range, SZA released another great album this year. Notable tracks include ‘Low’, ‘Kill Bill’, and ‘I Hate U’.
JID: The Forever Story: JID has proved over the past few years that he is one of the most unique and prolific rappers in the game. His slick flow and clever wordplay have propelled him to the status of rappers like Kendrick Lamar, Denzel Curry, Joey Bada$$, and Lupe Fiasco for the year of 2022. This being his fifth studio album, he continues his streak of well-rounded releases. The album has a very wide range of sounds for JID and he works well all of them. The best tracks are ‘Dance Now’, ‘Can’t Make U Change’, ‘Surround Sound’, and ‘Raydar’.
Kendrick Lamar: Mr. Moral and the Big Steppers: This being the sixth studio album for Compton Rapper, Kendrick Lamar, fans were anxious to see what he would bring to the table. His last album, 2017’s Damn was a massive success with many praising Kendrick as usual for fantastic vocal range, great rapping, amazing production and a good narrative about all the stress he’s been feeling with his star status. Kendrick had a lot of pressure put on him for his next record, and some will say he more than delivered, others will harshly disagree. Mr. Moral and The Big Steppers was s stylistic divergence for Kendrick. Not only was his narrative deeper than ever, focusing on guilt and maturity and what it means to grow up, he complimented that message with much slower, and heavy production. The album was not made for anyone which was why it feels so different to other Kendrick projects, it was made for Kendrick, the album has a sort of therapy session going on throughout with the frequent conversations Kendrick has with himself. The album culminates with him choosing to better himself and focus on healing. Notable tracks include ‘United in Grief’, ‘N95’, ‘Count Me Out’, ‘Silent Hill’, ‘Mr. Moral’, and ‘Mirror’.
Beyonce: Renaissance: Beyonce has been a massive star for over 20 years. She has consistently dropped hit after hit and transcended being a popstar into becoming a music icon. Her range of sound is so diverse at this point, it was inevitable that she’d get out of her comfort zone again and add another genre to her catalogue. Beyonce has gone from making standard pop albums, to hip-hop collabs, to R&B, and even into incredibly deep subject matter as seen on her 2016 album Lemonade. Renaissance shifts Beyonce to a new disco/dance sound that meshes very well with her voice and delivery. As usual, Beyonce delivered another standout album. Notable tracks include, ‘CUFF IT’, ‘BREAK MY SOUL’, and ‘VIRGO’S GROOVE’.
Denzel Curry: Melt My Eyez See Your Future: This being the fifth studio album of rapper Denzel Curry, a man who has never dropped a bad project, Melt My Eyez See Your Future had a lot to live up to. It may not have been Denzel’s best album, but it is in its own an incredibly good album. It has the flashy production that comes normal with Denzel Curry projects, deep lyrics,
and outstanding vocals. Notable lyrics include, ‘Walkin’, ‘Ain’t No Way’, ‘The Smell of Death’, and ‘The Ills’.
Kanye West: Donda 2: Releasing early in 2022, Kanye’s 11th album was bashed by fans and critics alike for being unfinished with inconsistent production, no narrative, and Kanye’s rapping not being up to par with previous projects. Notable tracks include, ‘Security’, and ‘Happy’.
The Weeknd: Dawn FM: Dropping on January 7th of 2022, The Weeknd came out with his fifth studio album, Dawn FM. The album was both a narrative and stylistic follow-up to his 2020 album, After Hours. The narrative saw Abel (The Weeknd) choosing to try and be a better lover, rather than continuing down his path of one-night stands and meaningless relationships which was all set up in After Hours. Stylistically, this album goes with the ‘80’s style of After Hours and takes it further. Songs like ‘How Do I Make You Love Me’, and ‘Sacrifice’ sound like they were ripped straight out of the ‘80’s. Dawn FM however sounds more like his 2016 album Starboy rather than After Hours, due to a clear inspiration from Daft Punk. The Weeknd has noted that Dawn FM is the second part of a new trilogy for him. He is likely just now making a follow up trilogy to contrast against his first, which was a compilation of three mixtapes titles, House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence. Dawn FM, though not as much of a hit as his previous records, is still a fantastic project all on its own with great presentation, great narrative, fantastic vocals and excellent production. Notable tracks include ‘Gasoline’, ‘Out of Time’, ‘How Do I Make You Love Me’, and ‘Sacrifice’.
