I’m not a big fan of New Year’s Eve. When all is said and done, it’s a day like any other. Today becomes tomorrow and we all go on with our lives. There are probably a few more hangovers around the world than there are on a standard day and a lot of people have made half-hearted promises that they know they won’t keep. But every year around this time, I can’t help but get swept up in the excitement for what is to come in the next year. Living the nerd-life, there’s always something cool on the horizon and the companies involved are never remiss in giving us a lot of advance notice of what’s to come.
So in no particular order of time or release date (because my mind doesn’t work that logically), here’s a brief rundown of what I’m looking forward to most in 2012.
I’m going to start with something that a lot of you may actually have seen already: The Muppets. Much to my consternation, The Muppets isn’t released in Ireland until the 10th of February. Despite the fact that it’s been released in America and heavily talked about online and in the news (well, FOX News anyway), I have to wait almost another two months before seeing the movie. Despite the fact that every bit of the movie will likely have been spoiled by that stage, I’m still psyched for it. I’m a huge Segal fan and I’m already in love with the soundtrack. I’ve written already about how much I hate staggered releases already, and those reasons still stand. But The Muppets are the closest thing I’ve ever found to tangible happiness and I anxiously await the 10th of February.
Though it genuinely surprises me to say it, I’m really looking forward to the next Ghost Rider movie. As I am Underworld: Awakening, MIB3, The Avengers, Cabin In The Woods, and Total Recall. On the 4th of July, I am very excited to see Martin Sheen tell us that with great power comes great responsibility.
But the two big movies for me next year are the first Hobbit movie and The Dark Knight Rises. The trailer for The Hobbit will be released in America in front of the Tintin movie (which has been out here for quite a while) which leaves a pretty wide open question as to what movie the trailer will be released with on this side of the world. I have no doubt that it’ll be available online very soon after it’s theatrical release, but I want to see it on the big screen, not on my iMac.
The hype for The Dark Knight Rises has already started. The Prologue and the second trailer have been released in the cinemas in America and are starting to leak on to the Internet. The little that I have seen and heard already looks amazing. For a long time now (excluding a certain two movies), Batman has been a source of great entertainment and tremendous storytelling in every format that the character appears in. The Dark Knight Rises looks like it’s going to be no exception.
To this day, Christmas time is still Tolkien-time. For three glorious years in a row, when Christmas came around, it brought with it the promise of a week or so off work and a new LOTR movie in the cinema. The releases of the Extended Edition DVD boxsets made the Tolkien-tradition last a bit longer, and while I’ve watched the movies every year in a marathon at Christmas every year, I can’t wait for Christmas of next year when Tolkien returns to the cinema screens with the first of the Hobbit movies. I’m not a huge fan of the idea of splitting one book into two movies, though maybe that’s because of the bad taste the most recent Twilight bore-fest left in my mouth, but I do trust Jackson & Co. to make the two films worthy of the expended run time. I’m still doubtful that 3D will add anything that isn’t already there, but thankfully we’ll have the option of seeing the movie in either 2D or not 2D.
Because so much of my time lately is being spent in the cinema, I’m not watching as many shows as I used to. If I manage to catch How I Met Your Mother, House, Castle, and (a new addition as of this weekend) Once Upon A Time each week, I’m doing pretty well. But of the shows that I watch each week, House is the one that I’ll watch first and it’s the one that I’m looking forward to seeing most next year because it’s looking like the show is going to end. Now don’t get me wrong, I’d be delighted if House lasted for another three years. But I’m really curious to see how the show will end. House himself is becoming more and more obsessed with mysteries and puzzles and is going to increasingly further lengths to find and solve new puzzles. Will there be a puzzle so complex and so compelling that House will sacrifice his life to find the answer? If the show does end after this season, you can bet your cane that it’ll go out with a bang, it’ll be messy and we’re going to be left thinking and talking about what happened.
About the Author
Simon FitzGerald isn't your average Irishman. He has an unhealthy addiction to TV, movies and comic books and uses the word "awesome" far too much Though he does enjoy a pint as much as the average Irishman.Born in Dublin city in 1979, his first real exposure to nerdery was in 1986 when he was given a copy of the first issue of John Byrne's "Man Of Steel". Since then, he's absorbed all of the fiction he can get his hands on.
In order to offset all the time spent with fictional characters in make believe worlds, Simon works in the banking system. But that's becoming more unreal each and every day.
Simon also co-hosts the Pubcast, available on iTunes.
Now that 2012 is half over I am curious how these things have lived up to your expectations?