2012 Year in Review - My Life in Law School

So now I present the part of the story you've all been waiting for.   I said that this is, in many ways, a story worth telling and I stand by that.   It's also a story that is far from over so that complicates things.   I don't want to bury the lead but at the same time I feel like I can't do this story justice without knowing the ending.   With that in mind I present the abridged version of my first semester of law school as well as a list of the top 5 most awesome moments/events.

It all starts with orientation.   Of course I was the first one to show up but I wasn't waiting long.   Those who know me well, actually those who know me at all, know that I am not type to let people in quickly but I found myself doing just that.   Perhaps this was part of my goal to reinvent myself and shed some of my own insecurities, perhaps it is a testament to the quality of some of the people I met here.   Either way... it happened.

After orientation came the start of classes.   I soon established a bit of a reputation as a "gunner" proving perhaps that despite my reinvention I am still me.   I actually enjoyed the classes I was taking... most of them anyway.   I also quickly fell into the social scene here both with extracurricular activites, including student government, and by going out to the bars and other social events.

Before long I had established a core group of friends but at the same time I endeavored to meet and get to know my whole section.   Perhaps my desire to establish myself as a leader both academically and socially led to a few hiccups here and there such as the less than stable lineup of my early study groups but for the most part the semester was a great experience.

Now it's over.   Finals have been taken and while a blizzard may have ruined my end of semester plans I am hopeful for the future and what it holds.

Now, as promised, the top 3 events of the first semester.   Yes there is a recurring theme to these events which further proves that I was right in declaring October to be 2012's "Month of Awesome."

3:  Barristers Ball - I was actually worried at one point that this night would end with me having to choose between honoring my responsibilities as a student leader and doing what I really wanted to do.   Needless to say I was happy when no such choice was required.   Instead it was a great party followed by a memorable journey through a maze of skywalks and finally the after party.   I am really looking forward to doing this again next year.

2:   Halloween Party - For those that know of both I am referring to the one where I was The Shadow not the one where I was Harry Potter.   First of all, how great is it that I was finally at a party where people knew who the Shadow was so I wasn't explaining the costume all night.   I have commented in the past that if someone took a picture of a perfect world and a picture of the world as it actually was on this night they would be unable to see any differences.

1:  Haunted House Night - OK if you didn't see this being at number one you were not there.   Every once in awhile I get a really good idea and this was one of them.   Five haunted houses, the opportunity to shoot zombies, a pitch black maze, ending the night with pizza, and featuring some of the most quotable moments of the semester.  This was a night that will be hard to top but I endeavor to try.

 My Life in 2012 - Part 1

So I know I said my next installment would wrap up the culture of 2012 but...  I lied.   That will come later.   For now I present my own personal reflections on my life in 2012.

The year 2012, for me at least, is really two different stories.   I think my time in NH and my time in Iowa really do seem like different stories each with a different cast of character and a different overarching life lesson.

The year started with the NH primary.   This was the first one that I just wasn't excited about.  I mean I like Mitt Romney and I think it's clear that out of everyone running he is the only one remotely qualified to lead a nation but... I think that was part of the problem.   Anyway perhaps the fact that the primary seems worth mentioning shows how uneventful the first few months of the year were.

As spring came around so too did my acceptance letters.   I remember when the first one arrived I was so overjoyed and a little lightheaded.   I immediately became convinced that it was where I was destined to go...  I guess I am entitled to be wrong once or twice over the centuries.   My moment of glory was, if not short lived, soon overshadowed by the arrival of my nephew who, despite his poor timing, I have grown quite fond of.   Perhaps it was unwise to form a new attachment so soon before I was to leave but what can I say?

In May I recieved an early birthday gift, a single perfect day, where I could do all the things I love doing including a trip to the IMAX 3D for the Avengers.   This experience was really special and was in no way dimished by the amazing things that are still to come.

Eventually the day I had been waiting for arrived.   Despite the best efforts of a certain national airline to delay me and ruin my plans I arrived roughly on time and no worse for wear.   Unpacking was a chore but it helped to fill the time between my arrival and the beginning of orientation.   In those first days I didn't really know anyone and in truth I had some moments of doubt about being in a new place so far from home.

Thus ends the tale of Adam Hanson.   Seriously that's the end of my story or at least the end of a major part of it.   My first day of law school orientation changes the narrative in such a profound way that it essentially becomes a new story with it's own cast of characters.   I will also say that it is shaping up to be a story worth telling and I will tell it next time... here on my blog!

 2012: A Year In Review - Part 1: Films

    Another year comes to a close and once again it's time for that celebrated holiday tradition.   My annual year in review, the time when I drop all pretense and explain exactly what was worth caring about during the past solar cycle.   This year I will be doing this in multiple installments with the first being my reviews of the films of 2012.

    After 2011 which was just awesome with so many big movie releases 2012 faced an uphill battle which it won more with sheer scale and quality than with quantity.   I may have spent less time in the cinemas this year but the time was well spent.

    The first film that was really worth seeing this year was John Carter.   Yes despite the boring name, the complete failure of disney to market the film, and the fact that the original story literally invented a number of sci-fi and fantasy cliches this film was awesome.   Being an 80s/90s kid I grew up with Masters of the Universe so the swords and planets subgenre has a special place in my heart and it was nice to see that so well represented here.   Since you probably haven't seen it do yourself a favor and check this film out.

    From a personal favorite to a box office favorite...  The Hunger Games movie was good enough to finally get me to read the books.   Maybe I am reading too much into it but I like the grim parody of our recent cultural obsession with reality TV.   Yes the main character was uninspired and annoying taking the "reluctant hero" trope to it's most extreme and the use of shaky camera was, as always, a poor decision but the film was not bad and perhaps, in the right frame of mind, I would even call it "good".

    Snow White and the Huntsman was a good film.   There I said it and I would say it again.   It's a good film and it's a shame that it got more buzz over the director's dalliances than anything else.   It was good to see Chris Hemsworth doing what he does best, over the top fantasy action scenes and it was clear why they would make his the title character of the film.   It is less clear why they chose the actress they did for Snow White.   I imagine that there would be a great number of roles she would be perfect for, a female Data for a future star trek movie, a female terminator, essentially any time of female android, robot, or computer simulation that cannot grasp human emotion.   Still the film is saved by the performances of the other characters and by the fact that Snow White is less a character and more the magical MacGuffin over which everyone is fighting.

    Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter has the second most absurd premise I have ever enjoyed in a film (the first being Cowboys and Aliens).   Still I must say I did enjoy it.   There are just enough bits of historical trivia that history nerds will be able to enjoy the film with a sense of smug superiority and more than enough over the top action that regular nerds will enjoy the film too.

    From an original but absurd premise to a less than original reboot of a popular character.   Amazing Spider-Man, while good, is not a film that needed to exist.   Rather it didn't need to exist but Sony is unwilling to give up the rights to the character so they need to keep making movies.   Andrew Garfield is no Tobey Maguire and while he does a fine job I never once bought him as a high school student.   The design for the Lizard was as good or better than the villain designs in the Raimi/Maguire trilogy and the decision to go with the more comic accurate choice of Gwen instead of Mary Jane as the love interest is one I can get behind.   Perhaps my biggest complaint about this film, other than being made too soon after the last trilogy, is the decision to give Spider-Man a pair of web guns instead of having the webs be part of his powers.

    Penultimately we get to the most disappointing film of 2012.   I am of course talking about The Dark Knight Rises.   Yes, I said it, most disappointing film of 2012.   This is not to say it was a bad film because really it was... fine.   I mean, considering the fact that the filmmakers have obviously never read a comic or seen any cartoons featuring Batman they did a pretty good job.   I imagine that, under different circumstances, I would have liked the movie a lot.   Still, as I have said many times before:  Christopher Nolan made a great crime drama that explores human nature and some fairly deep political issues and he did all of that very well but do not slap ears and a cape on it and expect me to believe that it's Batman.   Batman lives in a world with aliens, gods, magic, monsters, robots and pretty much every other fantastic thing one can imagine.   If you try to take that away you are not making it more believable you are just making it.... not Batman anymore.

    Well dear reader I imagine by now you have noticed at least one glaring omission on this list.   I have tried to go in something resembling chronological order but one film needs to be saved for the end.   In past years it  has been easy to decide on my pick for best picture but this year we have two strong contenders, both masterpieces that build on and add to their respective franchises.   Yes I am talking about The Avengers and The Hobbit.

    Avengers was everything I hoped it would be.   It took the established characters and had them meet in a way that was believable.   It would have been easy to let one character, namely Iron Man, steal every scene but that never happened.   Instead every character got a chance to shine and we got a satisfying conclusion to the story that has been building since 2008.   If I have any complaints about this film I would have to say I was less than enthusiastic about the decision to re-cast Bruce Banner.   Edward Norton was believable in the role and the new actor was... less so.   Still, it was not as bad as if they had failed to get Downey, Jackson, Hemsworth, or Evans back because all of those people really brought their characters to life in a way that few others could have.

    When I was seven years old I entered into one of the most rewarding and satisfying relationships I have ever known...  my lifelong relationship with the written word in general and with fantasy specifically.   It started with a beat up old copy of The Hobbit I found in my grandfathers garage.  The point is that I have a love for Middle Earth that defies words.   For three years waited in anticipation of the next Lord of the Rings film and upon seeing each film I was left feeling.... satisfied in a way that goes beyond mere happiness.   After seeing the Hobbit I had that feeling again.   I know some people will complain that Jackson went off book both to draw from Tolkiens other works and to add in more action because, after all, this was a movie.   I am not one of those people.   I loved this film, I loved the casting choices (only one recast and they stil paid homage to the original actor), I loved the look, I even loved the lighter tone of the film compared to the trilogy which I felt respected the book.

    So, my 2012 film of the year is, wait for iiiiitttttt......     The Avengers.   It was a tough call but in the end I think it's harder to finish a story than it is to start one (just look at every film trilogy ever).    So for that reason, for giving me the climactic payoff I have been waiting years for, Avengers wins as my favorite film of 2012.

    Before closing out the movie section I should probably say a few words about some of the really bad films of 2012.   I don't think anyone was surprised that Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance or Battleship have earned dishonorable mentions but still... wow.   Ghost Rider manages to be the most half assed reboot in film history.   Instead of building on past continuity (I admit to actually liking the first one) this film throws out the past story for no reason whatsoever.   They didn't use the same settings and most of the characters were new so they didn't have to explain any casting changes, they even used the same lead actor from the first film.   It. Doesn't. Make. Sense.   Battleship, the second worst film I saw this year, seems like another film that didn't need to exist.   Seriously, the filmmakers did a few good action scenes but those could have been seamlessly cut and pasted into any of the Bayformers movies and nobody would question it.  

    So, there you have it.   My exhaustive look at the films of 2012.  I hope you enjoyed it and that you will share your agreement and/or disagreement in the comments.   In our next installment I will discuss the best and worst games and TV programs of 2012 before concluding with a more autobiogaphical look at what seems to be one of the biggest years in my life.

Top 10 Holiday Movies

 I have wanted to do this list for awhile now and early December seems like the best time for such a thing.   I love Christmas, always have, it's the one time of year where it becomes easy to believe in magic.   In doing this list I opted to do some of the entries as film series.   This is mainly so the number 1 spot would not be a whole list unto itself.   So without further adieu....

#10 Star Wars Christmas Special
I've never seen it.   I know it's supposed to be one of the worst films ever made.   I may have put it here to be ironic...  but come on Christmas and Star Wars are the two of the top 10 things that ever existed how could combining them be bad?

#9 He-Man and She-Ra Christmas Special
I imagine this came about as an idea to remind parents to buy their kids He-Man action figures for Christmas...   It worked!    The story is bizarre involving intergalactic travel, He-Man spending Christmas with his long lost sister, and Skeletor finding the holiday spirit and turning good for a little while.   I admit that were it not for nostalgia this would probably not make the list.

#8 A Christmas Story
 For every kid that really wanted that one special gift and tried everything to make sure he got it.   This film is misanthropic and yet strangely heartwarming at the same time.   If nothing else this makes the list for being so darn easy to quote.

#7 The Santa Clause 1 + 2
Not including the third one which was just painful to watch but these two are an interesting take on Santa Claus.   I imagine that as a law student I would find some additional humor in some of the situations portrayed in the film since it is about someone getting "lawyered" in to being Santa.   Note to self, make a contracts hypo out of this.

#6  Santa Claus: The Movie
In the 80s films didn't need original names.   I think I love this one so much because my parents love this one and I remember watching it with them when I was little.   It also pokes fun at the modernization of Christmas and, as somewhat of a traditionalist when it comes to holidays, I can appreciate that.

#5 Prep and Landing Specials
Starting the top 5 with the most modern one on the list.  While I don't usually like modern attempts to make a "Christmas Classic" this series about a group of black-ops elves that get houses ready for Santa is just fun.   From the holiday themed code names to the Elf who has to "rev up the engines" there is plenty of stuff to enjoy here.

#4 Nightmare Before Christmas
A movie that combines my two favorite holidays and does so in the most darkly humorous way imaginable.   The mix of Tim Burton and Disney produced something that shouldn't work but does work on every level. 

#3  It's a Wonderful Life
Put down your torches and pitchforks I have a reason for not putting this higher.   While this movie is a timeless classic it's not the kind of movie that instantly appeals to all ages and I think that is something a holiday movie needs to do.   Still, there is a reason this has been referenced so often in other films and I think it's because the idea that one person can make such a difference touches and inspires each of us.

#2  The Muppet Christmas Carol
If you know me you probably know I love the Muppets and this is one of their better films.   It's also the best of the "novelty" adaptations of the Dickensian classic.   If Christmas comes and goes and I don't see this one I feel kind of sad.

#1 Rankin Bass Christmas Specials
As I said in the introduction this could be a whole list unto itself.   Rudolph, Frosty, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Year Without a Santa Claus, and all of the classic hand-drawn or stop-motion animation specials have survived for a reason...   I do not include in this list the modern attempts to capitalize on these classics; those should probably be retconned out of existence.