10 Backwash – I’ve loved Josh Malina forever but this web series he wrote and starred in was one of the most unexpected pleasures of the year. Every moment of the 13 episodes was a surprise, and though it got off to a slow start and dragged at times, it was refreshingly imaginative and incredibly stupid. But like, in a good way. Claymation, opera singing, plenty of physical comedy and cheap sight gags fill the story while a cast of guest hosts hold their own as reason enough to tune in. The best is Jon Hamm, and the reappearance of his springtime beard was certainly welcome. Notice how so many of the other hosts talk about him? Who can stop themselves? But Michael Vartan and John Cho were hilarious, and Dulé Hill tap danced. Add those to Michael Ian Black’s flamboyant ice cream truck driver and you’ve got the makings of a top notch way to kill time.
9 Psych’s homage to Twin Peaks – May have more to do with the fact that Twin Peaks was one of my biggest obsessions in 2010; frankly this wasn’t the best episode of Psych this year. Nonetheless, it was fun. And two decades later, Sherilyn Fenn is still hot.
8 Jenny Wade (@jenny_wade) on twitter – The star of Fox’s The Good Guys is hilarious. In a really unfair sort of way. But she’s incredibly smart and irreverent, and you could spend forever scrolling through her old tweets and laughing out loud (and I have).
7 Mark Paul Gosselaar’s guest appearance on Weeds – We should never take it for granted that Mark Paul Gosselaar is hot. We should be reminded of it every day. He’s that hot. Breathtaking at times. And what better reminder than to watch him have his way with Mary Louise Parker in the most graphic sex scene the show has ever done? The much-talked-about scene was too much for some people, and well, just enough for others. The tension Nancy is feeling being alone is drawn out in great scenes with Gosselaar and Parker sharing chemistry and pushing one another’s buttons in a dark, empty bar. Then their charged “no smoking” argument is almost hotter than the sex scene itself. Almost. This is what TiVo was invented for.
6 Secretly Memorizing Ke$ha songs – There is this recurring daydream I have whenever I hear a Ke$ha song on the radio that involves a riotous party where out of nowhere one of Ke$ha’s interchangeable dance anthems comes over the speakers and my friends and I get to gleefully belt out the terrible lyrics (I mean, you guys have heard “Take It Off” right?) with the joyful abandon of youth. Nevermind that I don’t go to riotous parties anymore and have, mostly, bid farewell to the joyful abandon of youth. I still can’t help but listen when I’m alone in my car and succumb to the catchy hooks and danceable beat. Oh, what life must look like covered in glitter…
5 True Grit – I didn’t really have a great year at the movies. Despite my best laid plans, I didn’t see Inception, or The Social Network, or even Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. I saw Twilight something or other. In my defense I was a guest and it was free, and you know, I was going in to hide from a rainstorm, or something… Anyway, by the end of the year I was ready to see at least one of the important movies, and I’ve been obsessing over True Grit since I first heard about it. And it’s great. It’s not the Coens’ best film by a long shot, and it’s probably not the best movie of the year, but it’s good. It’s not as heavy handed as it threatened to be, but strikes a great balance between humor and intensity and doesn’t take itself too seriously. Matt Damon plays the best part in the film, even if no one is talking about it. My love for it though mostly has to do with setting my feet back down in Arkansas, and hearing a familiar history on screen, told by warm accents that are endearing, not mocking. True Grit is everything it promised to be, and a little better.
4 Sleepwalk With Me – Mike Birbiglia’s book of comedic memoirs, Sleepwalk With Me and Other Painfully True Stories, based on his 2009 off-Broadway one man show of the same name, deserves all the praise it’s gotten from his comic peers Lewis Black and Eddie Izzard, as well as This American Life host Ira Glass and fellow contributors. Birbiglia toes the line between stand-up comic and American illuminary, and his book is both laugh-out-loud funny and personally affecting. I obsessed about the play when I knew I could never see it. When I learned it was going to print, I waited anxiously for most of the year for the chance to read it, and was so glad to find out how well it delivers. The hilarious stories of “My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend” and his mom’s quip “Like Fun” are familiar, but new stories about his relationship and reaction to Mitch Hedberg’s death and his sleepwalking disorder are surprising and moving.
3 Community – From the beginning, Community was a creative comedy with an ensemble cast of players who ALL manage to be funny, but as time went on Dan Harmon and company continually pushed the envelope with high-concept theme episodes that pay off in spades to the viewer who can give them the leeway to do it. The zombie nightmare Halloween episode, a secret garden with a magic trampoline, and “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas” make Community one of the best shows on television. I just wish I could get Jeff and Britta’s awkward, super French kiss from the season premiere out of my head.
2 Sally Draper – Mad Men didn’t lose stride at all during season 4, but instead managed to go broader and more daring with the growth of characters. And as nice as it was to see Don Draper working on self-improvement, this year was all about the women (see “The Beautiful Girls”). Joan faced new levels of disrespect, sexism, and personal drama as her career reached new heights; Peggy struggled to find a balance between her career and personal life and found she could never please everyone. Over and over we were shown that these women would have to face their struggles alone (We saw Faye left high and dry by Don Draper, but if we know anything about Don, it doesn’t look all that hopeful that Megan won’t have a life of loneliness ahead of her). Surprisingly the biggest standout this year though is Sally, who it seems has a snowball’s chance in hell of growing up well-adjusted. It’s one thing to be among the first of her peers to have divorced parents but she’s got a self-involved, workaholic lush for a father and an emotionally-stunted mother who shows no qualms about slapping her hard across the face. Not to mention stifling Sally’s maturity and growth to save her the inconvenience. Sally was the most compelling character in a room full of intrigues, and I can’t wait to see what happens to her next year.
1 Joe Pug – I haven’t been able to shut up about Joe Pug all year, though I promise I’ve tried. His full length album Messenger dropped at the beginning of the year and I’ve been drooling over it ever since. Pug’s introspective, prophetic brand of Americana music is the kind you can’t seem to shake. He sings with the intensity of a man who has a message he desperately has to get out, and songs like “Not So Sure” and “Bury Me Far (from my uniform)” display a wisdom far beyond his years. The pain and regret he so eloquently conveys in “Not So Sure” are haunting, and whether listening to Messenger or last year’s Nation of Heat EP, it’s impossible to hear Joe Pug and be unaffected. He inspires the kind of pensive self-reflection that has to make other writers jealous, not just songwriters. Also, “Speak Plainly, Diana” is virtually impossible to get out of your head. Resistance is futile.
Psch... Jon Hamm anywhere there?
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