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| Whew, made it through another year! |
TVB Series
The list of TVB series that I have watched this year is a short one:
- Threesome - A gem that TVB did not know how to appreciate. Mandy Wong is the true Best Actress in my mind for playing three vastly different characters and switch effortlessly between them.
- Flying Tiger - A run-of-the-mill police procedural with familiar elements - undercover agents, black cops, a brotherly showdown and a hot-headed Ron Ng.
- Deep in the Realm of Conscience - A messy, overpopulated series that tried to use extravagance to compensate for its lack of substance.
- Succession War - The better historical drama of the summer. The story was well-written, coherent and enticing, even if history books were thrown out the window.
- Life on the Line - A mundane series with too many convenient coincidences and miracles. I watched the majority of this, but never bothered to finish the last week of episodes.
- The Learning Curve of a Warlord - Without Dicky Cheung, this series would have easily been left in the skip column.
American TV
In the absence of good TVB dramas, I have turned to American TV. The first show I watched was Timeless. It is a history lover's dream show. It is well-researched and seamlessly incorporates historical details into the story. And it covered all sorts of historical events and characters. I loved tuning it each week to find out which historical time period the Time Time would travel to next. The second show I watched was Billions, a fast-paced, clever battle of the wits with unpredictable turns. The best thing about it is watching how far the characters are willing to go to win this fight.
Movies
I got to see a lot of movies this year because of Moviepass. Sadly, good things don't last forever.
- Jumanji
- The Shape of Water
- The Post
- I, Tonya
- All the Money in the World
- Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
- Black Panther
- Annihilation
- Kingsman: Golden Circle
- Marshall
- Avengers: Infinity War
- Guardians of the Galaxy I and II
- Game Night
- Chappaquiddick
- RBG
- Mission Impossible: Fallout
- Antman and the Wasp
- Agent Mr. Chan
- Searching
Books
Now that I don't have to read for school anymore, I am rediscovering the joys of reading for leisure. The first book that I finished in a long time is The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne. It was an unexpected emotional experience as I followed the life of an adopted Irish boy who struggles to understand his identity. The book was captivating, eye-opening, at times shocking, and deeply emotional. Highly recommend!
What reflections do you have on 2018? What do you hope for in 2019?