Matt's Favorites
Matt's Favorite Book
Matt's Favorite Movie
Matt's Favorite TV Show
Matt's Favorite Video Game
Matt's Favorite Album
Matt Rants About Old Stuff
Favorites
Favorite Book
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
There were a lot of great books in the running for this spot. Fellowship of the Ring, Dune, The Fall of Reach, Leviathan Wakes and other such great novels. Shoot, I was even considering whether or not to include manga on the list of potential candidates. I decided they were out because you really have to consider those on the whole, you can have a favorite chapter, but even volume numbers can get shifted around every now and again. In the end, they weren't qualified becasue if I can't consider whole series for normal books, I can't consider full series for manga. (It's Steel Ball Run by the way).
So in light of all of the other great candidates, why does this one take the cake? That's easy, it's short, sweet, and the dry, absurdist humor is right up my alley. Vogon poetry, Slartibarfast, Agrajag, the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything just being an elementary level multiplication problem. Hilarious, all of it, start to finish. All of these things appear in the first book, they are just expanded on in sequels, I know, hush. The sequel novels are also pretty good, the quality of the comedy never dips too much, but I do feel that the stories of the sequels get a hair complicated, but I would not be surprised if that was on purpose and part of the joke. Douglas Adams struck gold with this first novel, and that's why it's my #1. It's also a pretty short read, you can knock it out in an afternoon if you feel like it. Give it a shot.
Favorite Movie
Blade Runner
In going over the candidates for this slot, I figured out something that I'm sure anybody who knew me could have told you a long time ago. I am a sucker for a good sci-fi film. Logan's Run, Star Wars, Alien, Robocop, Terminator, Starship Troopers, Serenity, I love a lot of them. Sci-fi anime too. I love the characters and aesthetics of Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Trigun, and Cowboy Bebop. I like movies in other genres, and I like anime in other genres, but I always end up coming back to science fiction eventually. Clean sci-fi, dirty sci-fi, 60's sci-fi, 2010's sci-fi. The only kind of sci-fi I can't stand is bad sci-fi. I don't mean schlock, I can deal with schlock, I enjoy schlock. When I say bad, I mean something bland, uninspired, unoriginal, and something without any interesting questions, thoughts, or feelings to leave the viewer with at the end. Something like Black Hole Sun! (nyuk nyuk nyuk). I digress.
Out of the plethora of fantastic science fiction movies, I picked Blade Runner over the rest of them because it poses an interesting question, and is just dripping with style. It's not perfect, I do understand when people complain that it drags, heck I thought the sequel dragged too, but this one does a lot right. The lighting, the score, the characters, and the performances are all phenomenal. Top all of that off with some shots that are pure eyecandy, and you have a recipe for a Matt Foster favorite. Do you think you could sympathize with a robot? If it looks human and acts human, does it matter all that much that it really isn't? Ultimately, I think the movie, in addition to asking these questions is also about how fleeting life is. The replicants have a built in lifespan, and there are constant allusions to running out of time. Life cannot last forever, so do the most you can with the short time you have. It's a shame you won't live, but then again, who does?
Favorite TV Show
Farscape
In reviewing my top 5 favorite TV shows ever, of all time, I found that each and every one of them were sci-fi. Battelstar Galactica, Firefly, The Expanse, Farscape, Stargate SG-1, each and every one of them sci-fi. Sure, I like other shows, thinking about it mostly comedies and sitcome. I think the earlier seasons of Spongebob Squarepants and The Simpsons are some of the all-time greats. I really enjoyed Breaking Bad as well. I like a good variety of TV shows, so long as they are worth my time. No matter what, someway, somehow, I always keep coming back to science fiction ones. That's not to say I'll watch any old show so long as it has spaceships and sciencey elements in it. It still has to be good. Taking a look at my top 5, 4 of them are turn of the century sci-fi shows. I swear they were specifically designed for maximum comfiness. I'm getting off topic.
Okay, this slot got updated on January 30th, 2025. I had two pretty long paragraphs typed out about what I thought about Stargate SG-1 now that I've finished seasons 9, 10, and the television films. I'm not typing that all out again, here is the short version. I think people overexaggerate how bad seasons 9 and 10 are. They still have some fun episodes and the rest aren't bad, they are just middling. I think the ending, both of the season 10 and the second film, were unsatisfying and were more of "life goes on" endings rather than anything with substance. I don't mind those endings, I think fishing at Jack's cabin at the end of season 8 was a great way to end the show. The second movie ends with the gang talking about getting lunch, I would have liked to end on them eating lunch and shooting the breeze, I don't even need any specific dialogue, just them having a well earned rest.
Farscape, on the other hand starts strong and stays strong. Every dollar in the budget ends up on screen, the puppetry is fantastic, the makeup and prosthetics are fantastic, the scripts are fantastic, the performances are fantastic, Ben Browder is my new favorite actor. The show balances comedy, drama, and geniune heart really well throughout and the chemistry between the cast is so great that I firmly believe it is the most realistic depiction of friendship, family, and romance I've ever seen. The protagonists are great, the villains are fantastic, and the ending feels earned and satisfying. Harvey is the best character, I will not be taking any questions, thank you.
Favorite Game
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
More sci-fi, who would have guessed? Though honestly, this is just one that happens to be sci-fi, a lot of my favorite games are actually more fantasy oriented or have a more realistic setting. Unlike books, film, or tv, the quality of the writing and the story aren't the only important thing anymore. Now, you have gameplay mechanics thrown into the mix as well. Oh man, if you want gameplay mechanics that are somehow simple and complex at the same time, the Metal Gear Solid series is the place to go. In general, I do prefer games with a carefully crafted sandbox where the bulk of the gameplay consists of the player figuring out how to best use those tools. That's a big part of why I like Metal Gear, Halo, and the Batman: Arkham games. That does not mean I don't enjoy more atmospheric, yet mechanically simpler games. ICO, Shadow of the Colossus, and Void Stranger are all great in this regard, though that last one being simple is up for debate. I just really like video games, especially those that had a lot of restraints placed on the development. I don't think it is impossible, but it is a lot harder to make great art when you have no restraints and can just do whatever you want. This applies to other mediums too, truly great art is created under restraint. I'm off topic again, you guys really need to stop letting me do that.
So out of the whole series, why the second one? Don't get me wrong, I loved sneaking around Shadow Moses and building up MSF and the Diamond Dogs, but I think MGS2 has the strongest combination of vibes, aesthetics, story, gameplay, and soundtrack. Sneaking around the Big Shell just feels really cozy for some reason. I think it is a combination of the Y2K visual aesthetic in combination with the jazzier soundtrack. That, and the bad Russian accents. And the sometimes corny dialogue. It really was a perfect storm of factors, and it actually had something to say on top of all of the fun stuff. MGS2 was developed and released in 2001, which was right near the start of the modern digital information age. With all of the boons that the information age brought us, it also had some baggage that we needed to be mindful of. On the whole, we weren't all that mindful. I don't know. I just think MGS2 is the coziest of the games, though 1 and V are my other two favorites in the series. I think the visual design and mechanics went a really long way in this one. The story isn't bad either and has something halfway poignant about misinformation and being careful about the things you choose to pass on to the next generation. We are the products of our experiences, and with that in mind we need to be particular about what we teach the young'uns. Both what we choose to teach them, and what they learn from us inadvertently. It's a hefty responsibility, but it is one we share with those who came before and those who will follow. In that light, it's not so bad.
Favorite Album
Roses and Violets - Trocadero
I first found out about Trocadero in middle school I believe. There was a popular web series, Red vs Blue, and Trocadero were fans who had sent the creators a song they had made about the show, and from then on the creators paid Trocadero to use some of their pre-existing music, as well as make new music they could use in the show. The webseries creators even paid for the band to record their first album, this one that I'm talking about right now. I do like their other albums, Ghosts that Linger, Flying by Wire,and You Were There. Shoot, I even bought that last one on CD in 2022 and received with it a signed note from Nico Audy-Rowland, the driving force of the band. Shame it went up in flames. Ah well. I'm not a one note kind of guy either, I like so much different music. I love everything from Daft Punk to Breaking Benjamin to Weezer to ska. I like a lot of soundtracks too, but that's more on a case by case basis. Well anyway, Trocadero's first album, let's dig in to it.
I think part of the reason I like this album more than their others is because this one contains the most music they had written before getting picked up for Red vs Blue. The band had formed in 1997 and RvB didn't start airing in 2003, so that's a full six years of creating music and doing local gigs. They finally had the opportunity to record those six years and they either only made bangers or only decided to record their bangers. Either way, nearly every track on this album is a banger. I'm looking at the tracklist as I write this, and I'm only seeing three songs out of sixteen that I only listen to when I'm in the right mood. The other thirteen I will listen to anytime, they are great. Some people might listen to the album and say it is hot garbage, I understand where they are coming from. Trocadero's sound is a little strange and everything sounds slightly off key, I get it. The mood the music sets is what keeps me coming back. Those thirteen songs always put me in the headspace of cruising down the highway with the windows down on a beautiful day. No cares, no worries, just good times. Those three songs set the mood of someone who has hit rock bottom and drinks the day away, which can be cathartic at times. Like I said earlier, I like them, but I can only listen to those songs when I'm in a certain mood. I was considering listing the standout tracks, but they are all standouts. If you forced me to pick a favorite, gun to my head, I would have to go with A Girl Named Tex because that is one of the first songs I learned to play on the guitar. Oh, that just unlocked another point, I like Trocadero because their music is music I can sing and be 99% accurate. There aren't any high notes I can't hit or really low growling that I can't do. It's all stuff I could sing. It really is just the whole vibe the album has, I've done my best to explain it, but the easiest way to understand is to just go listen to it. You'll either see where I'm coming from or write off as complete crap, but you will have listened to it.
Matt's Old: Closing Thoughts and a Short Rant
Well there it is, my favorite pieces of media in each of the main mediums. Whether or not you agree or disagree with my list is irrelevant, I'm the one with the website. If I've convinced you to at least try a few of these out and see if you like them, great, if not, oh well. I have long since learned that the things I like are a little niche in this day and age, so I stopped trying to defend them in the court of public opinion. A lot of these are older works, and for some reason anything older than a few years is almost totally written off. There exists nearly 100 years of films, 70 or so years of television, 40ish years of video games, and centuries worth of books and music. If you are struggling to find new things to watch that you enjoy, go looking for things in the past. Sure, you run the risk of some of it feeling like things you have already seen, but that is likely due to it having influenced the creators of something newer you have seen. You can really feel this after watching through something like Dragonball and Dragonball Z. Every battle shonen that came out afterwards follows the pattern those two set up. Everytime I watch the battle shonen that Lexi likes, I see nothing but a reskinned Dragonall Z but with worse characters and less charm. I've effectively ruined the genre for myself, which means that on the one hand, I have more time to watch other things because I know what I'm missing, but on the other hand it's difficult to have conversations with others because they have only seen the newer things and haven't really delved into the past works of the genre. This applies to more than just the battle shonen anime genre, but that was the easiest example I can think of. Honestly, I would say it is worth missing out on contributing to some conversations to see some truly great works. Give old media a shot, a lot of it is still great today.