Every December (and sometimes November), The A.V. Club fills its waking hours with obsessive list-making: Bests, worsts, weirdests, things we remember, things we forgot. But amid all of that high-risk (for external and internal arguments) and high-reward (for the satisfaction of a job well done) work, we like to include at least one year-end index that’s no-risk, all-reward. And here it is: our annual effort of running an old Sears Wish Book and an Oprah’s Favorite Things through the filters of The A.V. Club staff’s personal preferences and impeccable tastes in entertainment and popular culture. Suggestions from and for multiverse-traveling role-players, exacting kaiju enthusiasts, and record collectors who are into ’90s R&B and loving parodies thereof—consider them our gift to you.
Dungeons & Dragons Vs. Rick And Morty ($20.91)
In a pairing that becomes more complementary and obvious the longer you think about it, Dungeons & Dragons Vs. Rick And Morty combines the thrills of saving throws with the chills of Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland’s tragicomic animated series. This starter set makes it easy to dive right into tabletop gaming, even as the campaign and rule books—which are primarily written from Rick Sanchez’s sardonic perspective—guide you and deride you on your quest. The game comes with pre-made character sheets for all the members of the Sanchez-Smith family (with bonus barbarian), but you can also explore the boundaries of The Lost Dungeon Of Rickedness: Big Rick Energy with your own PCs. Start a session to tide yourself over until the next season of Rick And Morty, drown out the voices of your visiting family members, or, as Rick puts it, to “get a little taste of what it’s like to be me, all the time.” [Danette Chavez]
The Batman Who Laughs ($19.38)
If you’re one of the many who digs the shenanigans of DC’s Dark Multiverse, then The Batman Who Laughs should be a given for your stocking this holiday. The handsome graphic novel is a compendium of the seven-issue series (plus a special one-off) following the story of one of the bleaker “What if?”s: The titular villain, birthed when alt-verse Batman was turned into a new Joker. Reuniting writer Scott Snyder with artist Jock (All-Star Batman), Bruce Wayne’s twisted nemesis unleashes an even nastier threat known as the Grim Knight—and in case the name doesn’t make it obvious, fans of Dark Nights: Metal will be very pleased. It’s a graphic novel that makes the case for the solution to “dark and gritty” being “even darker and grittier, and also super creepy.” [Alex McLevy]
Mary J. Blige, Herstory Vol. 1 ($109.98)
When Mary J. Blige debuted in the summer of ’92, she heralded and set the standard for the hip-hop soul boom, the influence of which can still be heard at the top of the charts almost 30 years later. Herstory Vol. 1. is a celebration of those momentous early years, a re-pressing of Blige’s biggest original singles from What’s The 411? and My Life alongside rare remixes. The collection is available in multiple formats, but we recommend the 45s for revisiting these tracks one by one. They feel as vibrant as they ever did: Blige is so expressive and in the pocket across the muscular beat of “Real Love” and the jazzy staccato synths of “Love No Limit,” a streetwise vision of R&B’s future. [Kelsey J. Waite]
Chet Baker, The Legendary Riverside Albums ($149.99)
The Legendary Riverside Albums, Craft Recordings’ reverent look at Chet Baker’s 1958-59 run at the East Coast label, is as tasteful and intentional as a melody from the man himself. These five LPs—including It Could Happen To You, Chet, and Chet Baker In New York—glimpse a rich and precarious moment in Baker’s catalog, just before tragedy would find him in Europe, in which he is maturing as vocalist and trumpeter, and especially in the space between the two. The box set’s well-designed packaging matches the sublime audio quality (cut from the original analog recordings), making these Riverside Albums so nice to come home to in the long winter evenings. A worthwhile rediscovery for longtime fans and a great entry point for new ones. [Kelsey J. Waite]
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping vinyl LPs ($35)
The Lonely Island’s deliriously inspired Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping is perhaps a touch too lewd to enjoy with the family this holiday season, but the film’s stellar soundtrack remains a miracle in and of itself. Mondo is serving up the first-ever vinyl release of its blush-worthy batch of singles, which find the likes of P!nk, Adam Levine, Michael Bolton, and Seal joining Andy Samberg’s Connor4Real and the Style Boyz for cuts like “Finest Girl (Bin Laden Song),” “Equal Rights,” and the ever-enduring “Donkey Roll.” Better yet, the release manifests in a handful of different editions featuring album art for the Style Boyz’ cult classics or Conner4Real’s (unfairly) panned sophomore album, Thriller, Also. [Randall Colburn]
Parasite Family T-shirt ($25)
Did you see one of the year’s best films, or have you merely infiltrated the upper echelon of fashionable cinephiles by receiving this wearable celebration of Bong Joon-ho’s taut Palm d’Or winner? Only you and the Kim family know for sure, their anonymized images from the film’s promotional materials obscuring how they feel about anyone who dare question your knowledge of “Jessica”’s credentials and biography. (Only child; Chicago, Illinois—classmate Kim Jin-mo, he’s her cousin.) No product specs listed, so we can’t say for sure if it’s safe to give anyone with a stone-fruit allergy; lucky/cursed scholar’s rock not included. [Erik Adams]
Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954-1975 box set ($179.95)
The Criterion Collection has a reputation for only releasing films that feel like homework. That distinction has never been entirely fair, but Criterion’s newest showstopper box set, Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, should put it to rest entirely. Packaged in an oversized art book emblazoned with a pop-art illustration of the Big G spewing eyeball-singingly bright blue fire over a neon pink background, the set is as fun to flip through as it is to watch—and has a lot less filler. The films include 15 balsa-stomping adventures spanning two decades, ranging from the original, relatively serious Godzilla (1954) to the very silly All Monsters Attack (1969). These come packaged along with your usual audio commentaries and video interviews, along with essays and film notes from cinema historians who know their Kumongas from their Kamakuras. And if Criterion is out of your price range, Mondo also just dropped a collection of Godzilla T-shirts, hoodies, and enamel pins that should satiate the kaiju nerd in your life. And don’t forget about those Barnes & Noble 50% off sales! [Katie Rife]
The Eve Babitz bundle from NYRB Classics ($52.85)
The Eve Babitz revival continued apace in 2019, following a steady stream of reissues over the past five years. This January saw the publication of Lili Anolik’s bestselling biography of the writer known for chronicling a glamorous, hedonistic subset of musicians, actors, and artists in 1960s and ’70s Los Angeles. And in October, NYRB released I Used To Be Charming, Babitz’s collected criticism, journalism, and sundry other writing. For the best representation of Babitz’s bawdy humor and breezy prose, we recommend pairing Charming with modern classics Eve’s Hollywood and Slow Days, Fast Company. With their complementary covers, the books make for a handsome trio. [Laura Adamczyk]
21 Comments
My recommendation for Holiday gift giving is World Peace and Unbridled Joy and they can be had for the sale price of $25.** Checks or money orders made out to AlienJesus, credit cards add 2.5% processing. You must be 21 or older to purchase, . Buyer agrees to purchase World Peace and Unbridled Joy, subject to all of the covenants, terms and conditions hereof, and to pay Seller the
purchase price set forth in the Order. Typographical and other clerical errors in the Order are subject to correction. Buyer
reserves the right at any time to modify the Order upon notice to Seller. Upon such notice, Buyer and Seller shall negotiate
an equitable adjustment in price and/or time of performance. Buyer shall have the right to stop all or part of the work under
the Order or cancel any future delivery of any Peace and Joy upon notice to Seller.
stay away from my bridle.
I want world peace and unbridled joy for everyone except my neighbor across the street. That guy’s an asshole.
Keep your fucking dog off my lawn and I wouldn’t be!
1/5Seller promised World Peace and Unbridled Joy, but package merely contained packing pellets, an expired can of tomatoes and a pile of torn 1970s porn magazines crudely censored with black crayon.
….and if you’re not one for Peace and Joy, i’m selling coupons worth a +4 on Attack and Damage Rolls. We got them in little booklets of 20 or so. I’m looking for $20 each, a total steal considering hockey season is upon us
Take my money!!!
While fun at first, those sparkles on the pictures get distractingly annoying.
If you liked ‘Parasite’ and are bored with American TV you might consider the gift of Asian Television! VIKI streaming service is now offering a 30% off sale on registration. Television series from Korea, mainland China. Taiwan. Japan and more. Plus a very deep library of past series that goes back more than a decade. It might take some internet searching for a newbie to separate the best from the rest, but some of this stuff is the best TV I’ve ever seen. There’s more to Asian Television than what Netflix offers.
https://www.viki.com/
Any recommendations on shows? Guess, I’m more of a scifi and horror fan, but anything creative usually gets a chance from me. Would be interested in some comedies as well, though I know humor doesn’t always translate well culturally. I do watch some comedy animes, so I imagine some will click.
Hmmm… let me think. I’ll pick only what’s on Viki.If you want a combo of humor and horror there’s a series airing right now named ‘Psychopath Diary’ about a milquetoast office worker who loses his memory and somehow convinces himself he’s a psycho killer (which he definitely isn’t), only to attract the attention of a real psycho killer who thinks he’s found a soul-mate. One scene last episode gave me my biggest laugh of the week.There’s the 2016 sci fi drama named ‘W’ where a portal opens between the real world and the world of a manga comic and things get very freaky very fast. There’s the ghost story ‘Chicago Typewriter’ from 2017 where a modern author’s past life as a 1930s freedom fighter starts overlapping with his current life.If you like cute and funny there’s ‘Feel Good To Die’ where each time an office worker murders her boss time automatically resets to the previous morning again.For epic/comedy/drama/rom-com big budget supernatural there’s ‘Guardian the Lonely and Great God’ where a goblin demi-god, the grim reaper, and a teenage girl wind up sharing the same flat. Starring the lead actor from ‘Train To BusanFor spy action there’s ‘The K2′, Which starts out great (though the story kind’a fall apart towards the end).
I’ll add another one. In Viki’s ‘coming soon’ list I see ‘My Mister’ from 2018, which I describe as the best television I’ve ever seen. Its almost impossible to describe – a workplace/espionage/thriller/family/social drama starring that rich guy from ‘Parasite’. From the director of ‘Misaeng’ and ‘Signal’ two more jaw-dropping series that are both on Viki.
Thanks a lot. Will def give them a go. Going to do a week long trial and if I dig it will def do the year at that deal. For $35 a year I may even give it as a gift as well.
Eve Babitz is a hack and a precursor to the Kardashians.
The Batman who laughs is a terribly written, contrived piece of crap. The joker in arkham was a fake joker, if you kill the real joker his heart releases poison creating a new joker. HAVE YOU TRIED SHOOTING HIM FROM A DISTANCE? This bullet has a taser and bose noise cancelling headphones built into it, so don’t even try to activate your Alexa, batman. What a dumb, goddam book.Get out of here with that crap. There are so many good graphic novels right now, and you grab roadkill thats been left out in the sun.Get your friend or family member the complete Saga compendium instead.
DC is going to regret DK: Metal and all the offshoots. Metal was unreadable (except for the Batman/Aquaman hybrid story) and all this universe shattering shit they’re letting Snyder do is really tedious.
And the whole Batman Who Laughs thing is already boring.
Wow, you’re the first person I’ve seen who agrees with me on this. I like Snyder fine generally, but I thought Metal and the Batman Who Laughs mini were mostly nonsense made even worse by the constant can-you-top-this? moments.
And don’t forget about those Barnes & Noble 50% off sales!
Posted right after the month long sale ended : (
*ahem*
CHEAP TOY ROUNDUPThank you. Here ends my annual pointless plea for Cheap Toy Roundup.
Chet…Baker?!OK, boomer, who the fuck is he? Can we get some CHET HAZE up in this shit?