The last month of the 2025 and we do have some big hitters coming into play, some disappointments and some surprises. This is also the month where I decided to consume anything with Ken Liu's name attached to it and you'll see it reflected in our LIST. Also on the right hand side of the blog is our new 'How I Rank' module that breaks down my rating system. With that said, lets begin.
17. Young Avengers by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie (full series): 5.5 - RANT
My biggest disappointment of this month was Young Avengers by Gillen and McKelvie. After a near flawless run with The Wicked + The Divine, I decided I'll finally give their Young Avengers run a fair shot, despite hearing it was near as good as the original run by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung (which stands tall as one of my favorite comic runs of all time.) Little did I know that I would not only be disappointed but I would be upset by the end of it. I really did not like this.
Let it be said, most of this score comes from Jamie McKelvie's art which continues to be impactful but at the same time so clean. McKelvie is no Cheung (who is my favorite comic book artist of all time) but I see the same kinetic energy which he infused the Wic + Div with and his art is a stand out despite the story. My main problem with this series lies with Gillen's writing and plotting. For me Gillen seems to be writing the Young Avenger's team like Wic + Div characters and not the established characters they are. Gone is much of their original nuance, now they are just horny teenagers on a nothing burger quest which never captured my attention at all. The main universe characters leaves them alone despite their connection to the Avengers and multiple big name teams something Heinberg used and mastered during his run.
Worst is Gillen's character assassination of my two favorite characters, Kate Bishop and Patriot. Eli Bradley's Patriot is not even featured instead his image is used purely for plot purposes and not even in a good way with an un-satisfying reveal who he was. Kate does not escaped unscathed either, the confidant, take charge leader is now a boy mad pre-teen who barely does anything. Gillen seems to play favorites especially with characters he had written before (Teen Loki), new characters who were never Young Avengers (X-men's Prodigy) and America Chavez (tho she feels like Wic + Div character in a Marvel comic). That there might be my big problem, they feel more like Wic + Div characters cos-playing as Young Avengers fans and cos-playing them very badly I might add.
To be honest, I truly wished I never read this comic and I am so happy I didn't pay for it. This comic makes me doubt Kieron's skill as a writer, does he only have one speed and style? For some people this might be up their alley but for me this was the worst graphic novel series of this month, maybe of the year.
16. The Wake by Scott Snyder and Sean Murphy: 7 - OKAY
Even though it is one space above Young Avengers, The Wake was not a bad comic. Snyder continues to explore popular myths and monsters but in his own unique style with The Wake. This time instead of vampires or Wytches, he explores mermaids. Snyder and Murphy tell a good story, tied together by an interesting premise of before and after a massive disaster with suitably creepy mermaids but as a whole just like Wytches, this story was just good to me.
It never really caught my attention and the characters were pretty paper-thin and I really did not really connect with any of them. The scope was big but I never felt any real stakes especially from the main bad guys who just felt like generic government folks gone bad. Wytches was able to get a 7.5 last month but that was based on the strength of Snyder's BTS where he shared how he came up with his ideas and the reception to Wytches. The Wake has none of that and as a comic, it really is just OKAY. Snyder can write monsters well but I am starting to think his writing outside of Batman and American Vampire might not be my cup of tea.
15. As You Stood By (Kdrama): 7.5 - OKAY
As You Stood By was frustrating to watch at times. We had a great premise and a tense couple of first episodes but after the 'deed' it lost a lot of momentum and our lead actors continued to make bad decision after bad decisions to extend the storyline. It was confronting at first, taking on a very known but taboo subject of spousal abuse but it seemed to lose its nerve a lot and not go as in depth as the subject matter required.
This drama would have rated even lower if not for the final episode turning the story around and actually giving us (me and my wife) better characters moments and reminded us of how much potential the drama had. Giving credit where credit was due, the actors did as well as they could with the material provided. I also felt if this was a movie with a much more focused storyline, it could have worked better.
14. Love Hurts: 7.5 - OKAY
As a big fan of comeback stories, I love seeing people embrace Ke Huy Quan after he stopped acting because he felt he was been typed casted too much. After stealing the show in 'Everywhere, Everything All at Once', he is a hot commodity again and I feel one of the reasons he was casted in Love Hurts. The premise is straight forward, Quan's character used to be a stone cold killer but turns his life around and becomes a mild-mannered sales man. He is however dragged back into the world he left behind because of an ex-love.
For a movie called Love Hurts, I barely felt any chemistry between Quan and his female co-star and it never convinced me why either was drawn together and later on drawn back together. We clearly see they had a connection but the connections feels heavily implied and not really established and any romance just falls flat. The action is above average with some crazy action sequences and it is always cool to see under appreciated Daniel Wu get some love (playing Quan's crazy gangster brother) and why the film gets a 7.5 but I never felt any of the Love and that hurts (that was a bad pun I know) because seldom an Asian male lead gets the girl (a woman of color no less) but when its so phoned in, we have to wonder why they bothered.
13. Nemesis Rogues' Gallery: 8 - Rave
Nemesis is Mark Millar's 'What If' Batman was a evil and a psychopath character he created for his Millarverse. This picks up right after him nearly dying in 'Big Game' and shows how he recovers and gets his empire back. This is the third Nemesis centric comic I read this month and sadly I have to say the initial thrill of reading Nemesis again had died off by this volume.
Sure it still has the trademark shocking violence Nemesis comics are known for, the twist was dark but also not un-expected but I feel by the third go around I am cool with Nemesis' stories for awhile. I enjoyed it, no doubt but compared to the other two entries on this LIST, it was just good, hence a 8 and regular Rave. Nemesis really is better in small doses and I feel I gorged myself too much on a good thing at this point. I feel his resurrection was also way too soon, timeline wise and it un-does a lot of the impact that happened in Big Game. This is a good example of a serviceable Rave. I enjoyed it but it did lack something.
12. The Elenium # 1. The Diamond Throne by David Eddings: 8 - Rave
The Elenium and David Eddings for me is like The Lord of the Rings and Tolkien is other people. The Elenium is how I feel in love with high fantasy and a big part of me being an avid reader growing up. As I re-discover reading for fun, I decided to do a re-read of some of my classic books which I loved as a teen/ young adult. So it was too my surprise I remembered so much of The Diamond Throne as I was re-reading it, certain characters, the big moments and I see how a young Phillip would love it.
However as much more older discerning reader, I now see a lot of flaws with The Elenium that I can not ignore. The story is pretty straight-forward and the enemies are not that compelling and especially in this first book, it feels very 'fetch quest' story-telling where each chapter is just designed to move the plot a long. This storyline structure might have been favorable when it came out but as it stands now, it is just very basic. I still enjoyed my re-read and I will keep continuing with the series but I think The Elenium was a good entry into fantasy and I am ready for bigger stories and a bigger scale.
11. Nobody's Fool by Harlan Coben: 8.5 - RAVE
A great return to form for Coben after Miracle Cure was just a good story but lacked some of the oomph I have associated with Coben's latest works. Nobody's Fool feels like it was written to be turned into a TV show with its breakneck pacing, over the top characters and complex twists and turns.
This book has a couple moments I won't spoil but they really hook you in and I really enjoyed my time with it. Harlan's sharp, snappy style also continues to inspire my own writing and I feel he writes like how I wish to write one day.
10. The Magisterium # 3. The Bronze Key: 8.5 - RAVE
The Magisterium continues to be a good YA flavored romp with appropriate storylines, twists and character development. I previously stated I enjoyed how each book of the Magisterium raises the stakes and that is true for The Bronze Key. Stuff of importance happens in this installment and they are not just spinning their wheels *cough* Fever series *cough*.
I enjoyed this just as much as the second one and I look forward to the penultimate book and the finale. This book is also my reminder to eventually get back into Cassandra Clare's other books and to give Holly Black an honest try because I am thoroughly enjoying this collaboration.
9. Wake Up Dead Man. A Knives Out Mystery: 8.5 - RAVE
Wake Up Dead Man continues Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig's collaborative Knives Out series and it is nice return to form but also not a re-tread. I thoroughly enjoyed Glass Onion but I feel it did lack some of the impact the initial Knives Out had. Wake Up Dead Man brings back the mystery and the enjoyable dynamic between all the characters but it changes things in a nice way that made it feel like something different. I also enjoyed Craig playing the straight man and pessimist to Josh O'Connor's true believer and the dynamic it caused and the message it conveyed.
I have a few nitpicks with it though. I feel not all the characters were needed with a couple just being there just to be there, Kerry Washington feels very under utilized as well and just given the bare amount of things to do. Overall though, it was a good film with a nice twist and well worth our time.
8. Pantheon (Whole series): 8.5 - RAVE
Based on a couple Ken Liu's short stories specifically his 'Gods' trilogy, Pantheon was a mind blowing exploration of what makes us truly human and the importance of family. Overall the show was good but I won't lie it did lose me a lot when it got too caught up in its own mythos and trying to create villains just to have someone for us to hate. Ken Liu's stories didn't feel the need to have a 'big bad' and I feel this addition was not necessary but eh, drama TV needs to drama TV. My other real down mark is the animation most of the time look really pedestrian and seemed to only exist to tell the story, not to enhance it.
However the final two episodes of season 2 is when I really got invested again and those two episodes raised its overall final rating. This was when the story really got deep (no surprise because this is where they really tapped into Ken Liu's story stories again for inspiration) and made me think outside the box. The animation budget went up significantly as well which helped with telling the story. Pantheon is not for everyone, especially if you are not a fan of hard sci-fi and nebulous concepts like digital immortality but when it hit, it HIT and I enjoyed it.
7. Behind Her Eyes: 8.5 - RAVE
Behind Her Eyes was truly a mind fuck and something you really have to experience for yourself. To break it down, our heroine Louise finds herself attracted to a married man in a controlling strange relationship and soon falls into a bizarre relationship with the married man's wife as well. In six suspense filled episodes, it goes surprisingly deeper with a twist you'll need to see for yourself.
All the actors in this drama really understood the assignment and combined with a believable story, wonderfully shot and each episodes ends with the right amount of oomph to encourage to keep watching, Behind Her Eyes is a drama that will stick with you way pass the final credits roll. Highly recommended.
6. The Hidden Girl and other stories by Ken Liu: 8.5 - RAVE
Stories like Maxwell's Demons, Thoughts and Prayers and The Reborn got me amazed at Liu's imagination and utilized his patented mix of humanity focused stories and bold ideas. One of the best examples of this is The Message which tapped into the same emotions The Paper Menagerie (the short story) was able to navigate so well. Now it has an 8.5 because unlike The Paper Menagerie collection, I felt this collection had more 'mid' stories and 'that was nice' but nothing else moments.
However when Ken Liu tapped into mythology and world building, I was entrapped again. Stories like The Hidden Girl and Grey Rabbit, Crimson Mare, Coal Leopard really showed the Ken Liu I feel in love with and got me really excited to read his full length stories but more on that later. A good collection, not great but definitely happy I read it and continued my exploration into one of my new favorite authors.
5. Nemesis Reloaded: 9 - RAVE
Our first nine of this LIST and its a banger. Mark Millar revisits a character he previously created, Nemesis aka the evil Batman and creates a whole new mythos for him. This was my first time reading Nemesis after the initial mini-series which I read ages ago and I must say, everything about this newer series was on point.
From Millar's snappy dialogue to Jorge Jimenez's amazing art and a surprising amount of gore, this was everything I wanted in a comic and more. On the strength of this story, I decided to dive in deep for Mark Millar's universe for the rest of this month and I had a good time. However this was not the peak of Nemesis because later on this LIST we will see when Millar is really able to pull no punches.
4. Good Hunting (short in Love Death + Robots): 9 - RAVE
Above we had a good interpretation of Ken Liu's ideas in Pantheon. Good Hunting is Ken Liu's short story (found in The Paper Menagerie...) brought to life and it is amazing. Everything about this showed love and care with a very faithful adaption that brings a already great story to life.
The animation is amazing, the voice talent was perfect and it really put all its trust in the source material. There was only one newly added scene and that scene fit so well it felt like it was a cut from the original and was faithfully re-added. As mentioned in my sixth entry on this LIST, I really enjoy Ken Liu's mythological stories and I look forward to more future adaptation works of his that understand the assignment as well as this one did.
3. Big Game: 9.5 - RAVE
Never has a series made me think the bad guys was going to win so much more than this one. Twist after twist he kept me hooked to the very satisfying conclusion. I would not be surprise if a lot of people have missed this event because it was not done by Marvel or DC but if they get a chance to read it I give this my highest recommendation. This event convinced me to look more into Millar's other works which I will be exploring in January.
2. Last Samurai Standing Season One: 9.5 - RAVE
This was the great disruptor. Literally seeing this a couple of nights before the end of the year not only almost disrupted our top pick for this month but I would say if I watched this before I made my top 15 LIST for the year, it would have placed incredibly high in that as well.
Feeling like an anime come to life, this series sees samurais fighting for their lives in a world that has moved on from them. Our heroes are thrown into dangerous situation after dangerous situation and the action never stops. Speaking of, main star Junichi Okada also choregraphed a lot of the fight scenes, knows how to showcase action without it ever getting overwhelming. Each battle is shot to perfection and I consumed all six episode of season one in record time. Never have I wanted a second season more badly than I did when this show ended. Easily the best TV show I have seen in recent memory.
1. The Dandelion Dynasty # 1. The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu: 9.5 - RAVE
Earlier in this LIST I mentioned my tastes in high fantasy getting a bit more elaborate. I want more intrigue, more drama, more three dimensional characters and much more epic scope. So much to my pleasure, The Grace of Kings delivered on all fronts.
Part modern retelling of an ancient China conflict, part epic in the vein of Game of Thrones, this book/ audio-book (which I read along with the book) had me in a chokehold for a whole month and it made me break my 'one chapter of a book a night' rule multiple times. I believe one night I read at least seven chapters in a row and it kept me up until the early light of day.
I knew I would enjoy Ken Liu's writing based on The Paper Menagerie... and The Hidden Girl... collections but little did I know how much I have been waiting for a writer like this to completely draw me into his imaginary worlds. I am so excited my journey with The Dandelion Dynasty has just begun and I have already bought the third and fourth books (something I aim to do with the first and second one) and I can't wait to read them. In my previous month of Reviews, I stated I may have found my new Jonathan Hickman/ Clive Barker and that was a bold claim. After completing The Grace of Kings I can now say, it is no doubt, Ken Liu is one of the main reasons why I am happy I feel in love with reading fantasy again. This book maybe the closest I have ever gotten to giving something a perfect ten but there was so small pacing issues near the beginning which slightly brings it down but other than that. If you have not picked up The Grace of Kings and a fan of high fantasy, you owe it to yourself to give it a try. You will not be disappointed.
I believed I promised in my last LIST that Ken Liu would play a big role in this new LIST didn't I? Now you see why. It was a good month, with one of my favorite pieces of content, some I really enjoyed (this month has a surprising big amount of 8.5's) and one of my biggest disappointments. What a way to end the year. Now we prepare for a new year and LIST is not going anywhere, till next time.
AV
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