Even in a twelvemonth as bad as 2018 , there are thing to be grateful for . Things that keep us going every 24-hour interval , and bring us joy and promise and prove that no matter how fierce things get , there are still weird , wonderful pockets of pop music culture that we can be appreciative of .
As it ’s Thanksgiving here in the U.S. , the io9 staff pull up a Voltron and combine force to write about a cluster of awful , random stuff we ’re thankful for this year .
Aunt Hilda on Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
Though the first season of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina offereda mostly entertaining sundry bagof Satanic sport , the out-and-out highlighting for me was Lucy Davis ’ portrayal of Sabrina ’s Aunt Hilda . Davis is effortlessly hilarious , so Hilda often provided funny relief ( her facial expressions alone are substantial gold ) , but Davis ’ carrying into action run low far profoundly than that , express us a woman capable to balance some very sinister secret with a really kind , bang middle . Also , she rocks a Bride of Frankenstein hive like no other . Bring on the holiday special ! – Cheryl Eddy
Beebo
All Glory to Beebo , Long May He draw close . The magnanimous Beebo is just a bantam fraction of all the reasons I ’m thankfulfor DC ’s Legends of Tomorrow . I ca n’t tell you how refreshing it is to see a superhero serial that celebrates its own absurdity . fortune does n’t bog itself down by caring about the details , it claim us on a hebdomadal wild ride with a ragtag crew of dear characters . dedicate the hellscape we ’re all long-suffering , we all could use a vacation every once in for a while — ideally one with demonic unicorns and dying by cuddles . Praise Beebo . – Beth Elderkin
Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge
Galaxy ’s boundary is the name for the soon to openStar Wars - themed sectionsof Disneyland and Walt Disney World . So , plain , we have yet to set substructure inside them and wo n’t for several month . That does n’t stop us , though , from being overly excited that in just a few unforesightful months , you ’ll be able to literally visit a full realized replication of a Star Wars planet . It ’s but psyche - boggling . – Germain Lussier
Being a Digital Tourist in Video Game Photo Modes
As someone with a drop dead interest in picture taking and not the fancy tv camera tool to act on it , I ’ve found a current gaming movement to be my outlet lately . More and more self-aggrandising - name secret plan titles in this era ofeasily - shareable screenshots are adding swank photo modesto rent gamers tweak and monkey with find the perfect moment to frame . From God of War to Spider - Man , fromAssassin ’s Creed Odysseyto , err , Super Mario Odyssey , I ’ve spent the last yr and interchange happily tear my means through these vibrant world , adding on hours and hour to my game time as I get distracted by finding the correct astuteness of field , the right angle , the right filter , produce digital scrapbooks of my journeying through a game . The leaflet on my PC of pictures , pictures of Spider - Man , is 2.55 GB and farm — and dammit , no one can stop me . – James Whitbrook
Cobra Kai
Imagine one of your favourite films becoming a YouTube TV show decade after the franchise was over . The concept itself almost feels like a slap in the expression to that franchise ’s legacy . Now , imagine that alternatively , it ’s the opposite word . It ’s theultimate , arrant sequelthat not only pays the ultimate court but expands and furthers it in ways you never quite imagined . That ’s what Cobra Kai is to The Karate Kid enfranchisement , one of the most unbelievable follow - ups to an senior flick , well , maybe ever . And the serial is currently make its 2d season.- Germain Lussier
Comic Book Adaptations That Strayed From the Source Material
If a telecasting show or moving picture can successfully take legacy characters who have n’t really age all that well , and reimagine them into Modern versions of themselves that experience unfermented for the moment and just as compelling , it ’s a solid sign that the overall project is going to be a success . Between Black Panther , Luke Cage , and Iron Fist , Marvel really prove just how effective that kind of revamping can be . – Charles Pulliam Moore
Genre Fans Who Are Welcoming of Newbies
Some oddball can get a little gatekeepy when it come to their favored dealership ( I wo n’t name fandoms ) , so I value those who are activated to hear from new devotee and receive them into the bend with open arms . We all started somewhere , after all , and what ’s better than geeking out with someone else over something you love ? – Jill Pantozzi
General Amaya from The Dragon Prince
I could go on about how delirious I am about The Dragon Prince anda steel new original storynot based on a old franchise or property , but Amaya is in truth a great model of how much care and particular work into making this show . Amaya is indifferent and they animated her speak real American Sign Language every time she ’s on screen , and she has an interpreter so kids who ca n’t read subtitles can understand her . While the representation is awe-inspiring , she ’s also an directly likeable and well - written character . I loved hearing at New York Comic Con about how the production team animated her sign language in a similar direction to how they animated the warriorlike art and bending inAvatar : the Last Airbender . – Klaudia Amenábar
Hasbro’s Star Wars: The Black Series Action Figures
I started collecting Star Wars toys as a six - year - old in the ‘ 90s , and never grew out of it . While I can never forget getting my first activeness pattern of Luke ( who looked a bit more like He - Man than he did Mark Hamill ) , and Darth Vader ( oh , the galosh olfactory modality of the cape ! ) , before I ’d even understand A New Hope for the first meter , these solar day Star Wars activity figure have never been better . Hasbro ’s 6 - inch Black Series blood line is one I ’ve pretty much followed since it first start , but this year the crease got a huge upgrade in the strain of new face - paint technical school that ’s made the truth of the alikeness go from “ eh , not bad for $ 20 ” to “ holy moo-cow , it ’s a mini [ insert actor here ] for my desk ! ” Every time a new figure show up up on my doorstep ( and hell , there ’s been a few this year ) , it bring a grin to my face , getting to see my favorite heroes and villains rendered in such a remarkable , tiny scale . – James Whitbrook
His Dark Materials
Philip Pullman ’s His Dark Materials is the series that first incur me into science fiction , so it should come as no surprise to say I was a shade let down with the first alive - military action version . When I learnedthe BBC was creating its own adjustment , with Logan ’s Dafne Keen taking on the role of Lyra , I was beyond thrilled . It finally bet like we ’ll be getting the adaption fans have long been waiting for , and I ’m extremely grateful . – Beth Elderkin
Janelle Monáe
In addition to solidifying her legacy in the queer daddy culture canon , Janelle Monáe droppedone of the hottest albumsof 2018 alongside a gorgeous ocular accompaniment that made it very obvious just how quick she is to begin crafting her own cinematic existence in the arrive years . – Charles Pulliam Moore
The Good Place Season 3
The best sitcom on TV asks challenging questions about living , philosophy , and relationship — while also smartly spit pop civilization and inventing fatuity like the “ tarantula squid . ” Spoilers ! The current season flipped the playscript ( for the third time),bringing the human characters back to lifeto see how they ’d fare on planet Earth , a place where ingredient of both heaven and hell manage to coexist . At the closing of the most late sequence , the Soul Squad escaped a mathematical group of round demons by diving into all - eff AI Janet ’s void … which stand for they ’re all dead again with just one episode to go . What consist ahead ? Uncharted territory in the afterlife — and hopefully a fourth time of year . – Cheryl Eddy
Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor Who
The return of Doctor Who has felt like a breath of refreshed air — thanks in no small part to Jodie Whittaker ’s debut as the first distaff Doctor . In just the duo of a few episodes , she has managed to prove to all of us that she really is the Doctor , in every mother wit of the news . Her curiosity , her heart , and her unfazed dedication to the common goodcarry across the small screen — making us all feel a little lighter and more hopeful . I ’m excited about the future of Doctor Who with her behind the bicycle of the Tardis . – Beth Elderkin
A Year Without Game of Thrones
I know , desecration ! But honestly , it was nice to have a break from the drama . – Jill Pantozzi
Getting Into My Hero Academia
Both Kohei Horikoshi ’s blockbuster superhero manga and ivory ’ cosmos - light anime adaption have been huge for a while now , and I had eternal friends and workfellow recount me that I should perfectly give it a go , because I ’d be intimate it … which , paradoxically push me away from actually giving it a go until in the first place this year . And , well , duh , I have it away it . It ’s wild and energetic superhero rabidity with a ton of earnest heart , which retick all my boxes in the right way . I ’ve enounce it before , I was dumb for being so hesitating , but I ’m so happy I finally jumped aboard . I ’ve gone from not knowing my All Mights from my All for Ones to having a 15 - volume raft of manga sitting on my bedside table I ’m delve into on a veritable basis , and I would n’t have it any other way . – James Whitbrook
Pokémon
BetweenDetective Pikachu , the newLet ’s Go!games , and Pokémon ’s expanded persona in the Super Smash Bros. franchise , Nintendo really reminded everyone this year how much we all still lie with Pokémon — and the potential drop the dealership still has to make us all desire to go out and explore the world of pocket monsters . – Charles Pulliam Moore
Sci-fi and Fantasy Fiction Podcasts
Some of the best sci - fi stories I ’ve run through in year have been in this audio sensitive , with some of the most innovative storytelling . Podcasts ( like the Adventure Zone , Welcome to Night Vale , and Alice Is n’t beat ) can be heed to when TV , motion picture , books , or comedian are n’t accessible , and I wo n’t lie I ’ve cried quite a mint at some import in these sort of podcasts ( attend at you , Adventure Zone : proportion finale ) . Any prison term I see a new fiction podcast , I ’m so intrigued by the new ideas and Earth being put out there , which is so refreshing compare to the same reboots we ’re seeing again and again in movies and television . – Klaudia Amenábar
She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
I ’m not old enough to have been a devotee of the first one , but the flash the new She - Ra was first announced , I was hooked . I hope it would be as beneficial as everyone said it would be , and watching it this hebdomad I’venever felt so seen by a show . From the humor and the character intent to the representation , this is the variety of show young me could only have daydream of . It combines the Elphaba / Glinda dynamic , witching little girl anime , Star Wars reference , and sawhorse girl laugh , and is just so wonderfully , beautifully gay . I have n’t enjoyed watching a show this much in years . – Klaudia Amenábar
Short Treks
Star Trek : Discovery will render next class , but fans have n’t had to hold off quite so long for novel Trek content thanks tothe four - part CBS All Access Short Treks seriesof miniskirt - episodes . So far we ’ve had two episode and they ’ve been fantastic — inventive , a little wacky , energetic , and blissfully free from any pressures associated with being part of the main serial publication . Sure , they ’re basically just fun makeweight , expanding the world of Discoverywithout alter it too much . But any time we can getmore Sylvia Tillyis always a undecomposed thing . – Cheryl Eddy
Spider-Man
It ’s always a good meter to be a rooter of Spider - Man and his amazing champion — there ’s a reason he ’s the greatest superhero in the human beings . But between excellent comics ( especially Chip Zdarsky ’s unbelievable political campaign on Spectacular Spider - Man and Spider - Geddon ) , tantalize for Tom Holland ’s next big entanglement - sling escapade in Far From Home , and the incredibleMarvel ’s Spider - Man PS4 game , 2018 , in particular , has feel like the ultimate celebration for Spider - Fans . And we ’ve still gotInto the Spider - Verseon the way ! What a clip . – James Whitbrook
Super Random Funko Pops
Funko Popsare pretty polarizing . On the one bridge player , they ’re everywhere , completely taking over every dada culture convention known to humankind . But that degree of amount also intend a surprising degree of weirdness . There are dad for franchise and characters that would never , in a million years , get figures otherwise . And that ’s worth being thankful for . character from pic or show like The Lost Boys , The Goonies , come in to America , Gilmore Girls , Scrubs , and on and on . Plus , we ’ve seen someextremely specific pullsfrom really popular film . No other troupe gets that abstruse or recess with its products and we are so , so here for it . – Germain Lussier
Star Wars Resistance
I ’ve gotten cynical about Star Wars lately , and had no idea what to anticipate withthis show , but was so pleasantly surprised by how it boom on the things I love about Star Wars , especially the continuation era . As a hardcore fan , I ’m always craving more about what it feel like to hold out in the galaxy far , far away , and this show feels so lived - in , from the environment to the characters that feel like real people , rather than great - than - biography heroes ( especially Poe ! ) . Also , the brio is really beautiful . – Klaudia Amenábar
Fandom Challenges
WhenI first started playingAssassin ’s Creed Odyssey , I was faced with solving an ethical dilemma : Should I kill one possibly unhinged home to save an entire group of people ? I opt to spare the family , feeling in my heart it was the right-hand thing to do — only to find out that an entire island got infected as a upshot . I was heartbroken and confused , and neither of those belief have pass away . I love bit in our favorite works that challenge us to think differently about the world around us . We should always be receptive to examining our own ideals , desire , and biases , specially in the thing we devour for fun . You might terminate up surprising yourself . – Beth Elderkin
What are the thing you ’re grateful for in papa culture this class ? Tell us below — and we trust you all have a very happy Thanksgiving .
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