Here are some of the things on pace for 2008 that have piqued my interest. Maybe I'll reverse this later and look back at 2007.
The Wire Season 5: My favorite television show comes to a close with ten installments in January. I fully believe this will be as engaging and insightful as the previous four seasons have been. David Simon has established at this point his ability to put his characters through a very realistic version of hell and I don't see him going soft now. I'm expecting major falls all around, with the usual mix of politics, economics and sociology that you never thought could be this entertaining. And maybe, just maybe, a sprinkle of hope or potential progress somehow surviving. I can't wait to watch this but I'll also be sad to see it go.
Fable 2: This doesn't have a complete release date but it is listed for '08. It's the anticipated sequel to the Xbox RPG made by famed designer Peter Molyneux. The original had plenty of character customization and a largely interactive world, but was seen as a disappointment by some because the possibilities weren't quite as endless as Molyneux had promised throughout development. It's no surprise things have been so quiet thus far with Fable 2, leading to very little gameplay information and no more guarantees. I spent a lot of time with the original and never understood most of the detractors. I really liked the design style of the graphics, the simple combat and tinkering with all the abilities, character images and alignment choices. I'm hoping they take the foundation and build it up to be even better.
Final Crisis: Grant Morrison is easily my favorite writer when it comes to superhero comics. The big event series is usually something I take cover from, but with his guiding hand, this has the potential to be another joyous explosion of mad ideas. Fortunately he's paired with a solid artist in JG Jones, who can hopefully interpret the script well enough to provide a good compliment to the writing. It can and has gone either way: will we get something on the level of Frank Quitely and JH Williams or Howard Porter and Tony Daniel? I haven't read Marvel Boy, the only previous Morrison/Jones collaboration I know of, so I can't say. And I'm praying that this doesn't require any knowledge of the flood of DC material that is leading into it. If so I might as well not even pull it off the shelf.
There Will Be Blood: The first trailer I saw for this had me really confused and weirded out in a bad way. The second trailer, seen last week, got the same reactions but this time in a good way. So I really need to see this to determine the final verdict. The critics have practically already given Daniel Day-Lewis the Oscar for his leading role, and I'll be the first to say in the trailers it came across as a great performance. The limited release could prove to be a problem in my one theater town, so I may be waiting a while.
A Dance With Dragons: The fifth novel in George RR Martin's fantasy series has seen countless delays and still has no release date. More than likely it should be done soon though, so I'm putting it on here. The Song of Ice and Fire series is really excellent because while it contains many tried and true fantasy elements it thankfully is absent of many others. The ridiculous good and evil, black and white morality is the chief hallmark that is nowhere to be found. Each of the chapters is written from a different character's point of view, so many opinions and explanations offer varying takes on events. Martin has also built a rich world with extremely detailed past occurrences that reflect and influence the myriad plot lines that run throughout. Martin was the final nail in the coffin for boring machines like R.A. Salvatore.
Frank Mir vs Brock Lesnar: An intriguing mixed martial arts matchup, pitting a former champion on the long climb back from injury in Mir against a former pro-wrestler stepping into a whole new world in Lesnar. While Mir may not be as good as he was after suffering heavy damage in a motorcycle accident, he is quite a challenge for Lesnar, who only has one pro fight to his name. Theoretically most newcomers from outside fighting sports are vulnerable on the ground and with Mir being a BJJ black belt, Lesnar could be in serious trouble if he gets taken down. But Lesnar is a former collegiate national wrestling champion, so he's not going to be helpless in there. He's also built like a walking tank and might not pass a steroid test. I think this is a great pairing of two fighters who have a lot to prove that could result in a good scrap or quick clunker.
So there you go: a television series, a video game, a comic book, a movie, a novel and an MMA fight. These are just all predictions; if everything on here ends up a letdown, don't gloat and tell me how wrong I was. My prophetic voice has always been pretty shaky.
