I can’t say 2014 wasn’t good to me because there was so much to enjoy. Entertainment from movies and television to comic books and video games had their moments to shine. But even with that there were some… less than stellar attempts that didn’t quite make the mark. I won’t go over a lot because there’s just too much but there were a few things (good and bad) that did stand out.

If I didn’t start with movies, It would be kind of odd. They were up and down but movies like Interstellar, Birdman, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and Gone Girl kept me more than entertained. Even seeing the return of franchises like Godzilla more than served their purpose. I have been a huge fan of Godzilla for so long and with news that Toho is reviving it’s own Godzilla franchise makes me a very happy person. Many more movies were enjoyable to me, but these movies were just some that stuck out for different reasons. Speaking of movies that stuck out… Transformers: Age of Extinction and The Legend of Hercules that had me anything but entertained. That’s the end of that as I don’t want to pile on anymore than everyone else has.

Mentioning television without mentioning one of the most beloved franchises in Avatar (The Legend of Korra) would just not be right. It was sad to see it go but it won’t be forgotten. I don’t really watch a lot of television but I found shows like Game of Thrones and even Showtime’s The Knick to be some of the best television I have seen in a long time. It even surprised many like myself to see HBO’s The Wire return with every season remastered in HD format. It’s not that I really needed it because it is more than fine on it’s own (more on that coming soon), but for many it was a welcomed sight and long overdue.

There were some games that I liked and some that I didn’t but just as a whole I just hope this year is more kind to those like myself who are Xbox One owners. The library is thin but for me I had a lot of fun with Titanfall and thought for the most part it was the only thing that kept my interest. What surprised me but really shouldn’t was the run of success for the WiiU had during the fall and winter as games like Bayonetta 2, Super Smash Bros, and even Hyrule Warriors marked a solid quarter for Nintendo. I’m not that guy that regrets a lot of things but the PS4 is starting to make me regret not going with that instead if only because of the accessibility and more appealing library of games to begin with and the fact that they didn’t spend the next several months after its debut slashing its price any way they could. But lets hope 2015 is much better for all consoles, both platform and handheld.

Comic book properties as a whole dominated the year starting with Captain America: The Winter Soldier and continuing through the summer with more movies like X-Men: Days of Future’s Past, The Amazing Spider-man 2, and Guardians of the Galaxy. Some were hits and some were misses (I’ll leave others to debate which one’s were and were not). The fall and winter belonged to the television premieres of Gotham, Constantine, and The Flash. Along with returns from Arrow, Agents of SHIELD, and The Walking Dead, there seems to be a niche being carved out for comic book fans and it is spreading to the mainstream.

Both hardcore and casual fans seem to have embraced the notion that these properties can appeal to all kinds of viewers as there is something there for everyone. I tend to enjoy all of them in some way, but I am partial to some over others. As a whole though I am simply thankful that so many of these characters have live action counterparts that I can see and enjoy whether on the big screen or small. It is no longer a risky venture to attempt to make a show based on comic book characters and now it’s even welcomed. There’s definitely a bit of a shift in what is popular in media and with so many project on tap for the next several years (and probably more to come) I think it’s safe to say it’s a good time to be a comic book fan.

Many more things made this year a pretty memorable one but I have said more than enough. Most like myself looked past 2014 because so much is expected for 2015 and even 2016, but if you did then you missed out on a really good year of entertainment of all types. That doesn’t mean that this year is going to be any better or worse than last because it remains to be seen, however it is nice to look back on the good (and even some of the bad) and not feel like it was a waste.