Best of 2023
Tracking What Media I Consume
In 2020, I started tracking all shows/movies/books/games I consume in a simple text file.
I rate everything using a rough 5-star scale. For the scale, I value “entertainment” and how well it captures my attention over “quality”. For example, if a movie is entertaining enough that I fully focus on the movie without browsing the web on a second screen, I might rate it 5 stars even when the movie is not perfect. As a result, I consciously “overrate” some media but I use more of the scale. The scale is rough in that it uses just five stars, I have not fully defined what each rating means. This focus on my attention might not be entirely fair to all movies: I’ll underrate some and overrate others.
Rough idea:
Games 2023
★★★★★ Gets me hooked; I play it frequently; also during the week; I choose it over TV
★★★★ Good to great game that does not get me hooked; might not value my time enough
★★★
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...
Books – Fiction 2023
★★★★★ Unputdownable
★★★★
★★★
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...
Books – Non-fiction 2023
★★★★★ Immediately helps me improve at my job
★★★★ Leaves me with new, skills/insights; does not drag
★★★
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...
Movies 2023
★★★★★ Engrossing
★★★★ Good to great movie
★★★ Doesn't fully capture my attention; doing something else on the second screen
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...
TV 2023
★★★★★ Would binge in a few sittings; have to watch the next episode before any other shows
★★★★ Good to great show
★★★ Doesn't fully capture my attention; doing something else on the second screen
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...Note: not everything I consumed in 2023 was released in 2023. I will include older content in my best-of lists when I consumed it in 2023.
Best Games 2023
I played a mere 6 games. After one year focused on Call of Duty Warzone and one year of Halo and Forza Horizon, I focused on single-player games in 2023. I finished two long (~80+ hours) strategy RPGs and three action adventures/RPGs.
- Jedi: Survivor ★★★★★ – I loved the gameplay and the universe
- Marvel’s Midnight Suns ★★★★ – Great game from the X-Com team with too much padding; dragged in the end
- God of War: Ragnarök ★★★★ – Fantastic story/graphics/set piece moments; but I don’t fully love the gameplay
- Fire Emblem Engage ★★★★ – I always like Fire Emblem
Not finished yet: Hogwarts Legacy ★★★★–★★★★★★
Need to pick up again: Cyberpunk 2077. I started playing it in my summer vacation but then stopped – who has time for these massive, long games? I want to pick it up again with the new updates and the story add-on.
Best games I haven’t played:
- Jagged Alliance 3 – Jagged Alliance 2 is one of my all-time favorite games
- Baldur’s Gate 3
Either of them could be my “Game of the Year” but I didn’t want to start those long games yet. Meanwhile, I’ll wait for some patches and play some shorter games.
Best Books 2023 – Fiction
I read a grand total of zero fiction books. After getting back into reading more books in 2021 (8 sci-fic books), I fell back to zero. I should pick that up again some time.
Best Books 2023 – Non-fiction
I read only 6 non-fiction books this year.
- Architecture Modernization ★★★★★
- Wardley Mapping (chapters 1–19) ★★★★
- Building a Second Brain ★★★★★
- How to Decide ★★★★
- Observability Engineering ★★★★
- The Crux ★★★★
Architecture Modernization by Nick Tune is my Book of the Year. When I work through non-fiction books, I tend to highlight the most important parts of the text. For this book, I highlighted so much of the book that my notes barely count as a “summary”. It’s directly applicable to my job.
Best Movies 2023
I watched 68 movies this year; only 4 of them “at the movies”.
My top 5 movies in the order that I watched them:
- Bullet Train ★★★★★ – Unexpectedly good; really fun movie
- John Wick 4 ★★★★★ – Oh my god – that “Hotline Miami” scene!
- The Menu ★★★★★ – Went into it blind and could not look away
- Guardians of the Galaxy 3 ★★★★★ – Great ending to a great trilogy
- Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1 ★★★★★ – With their focus on stunts over CGI, MI always stands out
Best Shows 2023
I watched an absolutely shameful amount of television this year: 100+ seasons :) I could probably spend my time better and do more productive things.
Part of the reason why I watched more TV this year may be that no games got me really hooked where I would pick games over shows.
Best shows this year – roughly ordered without overthinking it:
- The Bear S2 ★★★★★ – Who knew a show about running a restaurant could be that good…
- Ted Lasso S3 ★★★★★ – I also don’t care about soccer but I’d love to spend more time with these characters
- The Night Agent ★★★★★ – One of the surprise hits of the year; pretty simple action plot but fun
- The Diplomat ★★★★★ – The best “woman does diplomacy” since Madam Secretary ;)
- Shrinking S1 ★★★★★ – Good combination of fun and emotional with a delightful lack of soccer.
- The Last of Us S1 ★★★★★ – Contender for best video game adaptation ever
- Midnight Mass ★★★★★ – I’m generally not big on horror but after finally watching Midnight Mass and going in blind, I immediately watched three other Flanagan shows (both Hauntings and Usher)
- Marvelous Mrs. Maisel S5 ★★★★★ – It’s always great when long-running shows really stick the landing
- Loki S2 ★★★★★ – Time travel is always fun. Season started slow but the finale elevated it into my top 10
- Jury Duty ★★★★★ – I don’t watch a lot of unscripted shows and don’t care much about “mockumentaries” but after a few episodes I was hooked; great concept!
Honorable mentions:
- Ahsoka S1 ★★★★★
- Blue Eye Samurai S1 ★★★★★
- The Fall of the House of Usher ★★★★★
- Generation V S1 ★★★★★
- Domina S2 ★★★★★
- For All Mankind S2 ★★★★★
- You S4 ★★★★★
- Sex Education S4 ★★★★★
- Lessons in Chemistry ★★★★★
- The Haunting of Hill House ★★★★★
- The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart ★★★★★
- Fleishman is in Trouble ★★★★★
Best episodes of the year:
- The Bear S2 E7 – Forks (9.7/10 on imdb with 12k ratings)
- Loki S2 E6 – Glorious Purpose (9.5/10 on imdb with 23k ratings)
- Marvelous Mrs. Maisel S5 E9 – Four Minutes (9.5/10 on imdb with 3.6k ratings)
When a full episode focuses on a side story of a character you don’t care for / dislike, in which he polishes forks for a week and sings to Taylor Swift in his car… and then you go “Best episode of the year”…
The Loki finale elevated the whole season. Probably the best Marvel content since Endgame.
The Raw Data
It’s best you stop reading here (or don’t judge me).
Games 2023
★★★★★ Gets me hooked; I play it frequently; also during the week; I choose it over TV
★★★★ Good to great game that does not get me hooked; might not value my time enough
★★★
★★
★
1 Fire Emblem Engage ★★★★
2 Marvel's Midnight Suns ★★★★
3 Jedi: Survivor ★★★★★
4 Cyberpunk 2077 ★★★
5 God of War: Ragnarök ★★★★
6 Hogwarts Legacy ★★★★ ★
Books – Fiction 2023
★★★★★ Unputdownable
★★★★
★★★
★★
★
Books – Non-fiction 2023
★★★★★ Immediately helps me improve at my job
★★★★ Leaves me with new, skills/insights; does not drag
★★★
★★
★
1 Wardley Mapping (chapters 1–19) ★★★★
2 How to Decide ★★★★
3 Observability Engineering ★★★★
4 The Crux ★★★★
5 Architecture Modernization ★★★★★
6 Building a Second Brain ★★★★★
Movies 2023
★★★★★ Engrossing
★★★★ Good to great movie
★★★ Doesn't fully capture my attention; doing something else on the second screen
★★
★
1 The Worst Person in the World ★★★★
2 Massive Talent ★★★
3 Bullet Train ★★★★★
4 Black Panther: Wakanda Forever ★★★★
5 Devotion ★★★
6 Where the Crawdads Sing ★★★
7 The Bone Collector ★★★
8 Boston Strangler ★★★
9 Luther: The Fallen Sun ★★★
10 The Woman King ★★★
11 John Wick 4 ★★★★★ (Kino)
12 Rye Lane ★★★
13 November ★★★
14 The Menu ★★★★★
15 Banshees of Inisherin ★★★★
16 Violent Night ★★★★
17 The Book of Eli ★★★★
18 Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves ★★★★★
19 Guardians of the Galaxy 3 ★★★★★ (Kino)
20 Air ★★★★
21 Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania ★★★★
22 To Catch a Killer ★★★
23 Sisu ★★★★
24 Rise ★★
25 Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse ★★★★★ (Kino)
26 Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. ★★★★
27 Fast X ★★★
28 The Super Mario Bros. Movie ★★★★
29 Extraction 2 ★★★
30 The Flash ★★★★★ (Kino)
31 Eine Frage der Ehre ★★★★
32 Puss in Boots: The Last Wish ★★★★
33 Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1 ★★★★★ (Kino)
34 Vengeance ★★★★
35 They Cloned Tyrone ★★★
36 Joy Ride ★★★★
37 M3GAN ★★★★
38 Babylon ★★★★
39 Nimona ★★★
40 Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Arc ★★★
41 The Adults ★★★
42 No Hard Feelings ★★★★
43 Heart of Stone ★★★
44 A Man Called Otto ★★★★★
45 Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom ★★★
46 Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ★★★
47 Scream 6 ★★★★
48 Shazam! Fury of the Gods ★★★
49 TMNT: Mutant Mayhem ★★★★
50 Decision to Leave ★★
51 Blue Beetle ★★★★
52 Bottoms ★★★★
53 Gran Turismo ★★★
54 The Last Voyage of the Demeter ★★★★
55 Martha Marcy May Marlene ★★★
56 Equalizer 3 ★★★★
57 Totally Killer ★★★★
58 John Wick 4 ★★★★★ (en)
59 Silence of the Lambs ★★★★
60 Ballerina ★★★★
61 Batman Forever ★★★
62 Batman and Robin ★★★
63 The Killer ★★★★
64 The Creator ★★★★
65 A Haunting in Venice ★★★
66 Mystic River ★★★★
67 Leave the World Behind ★★★
68 Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny ★★★
TV 2023
★★★★★ Would binge in a few sittings; have to watch the next episode before any other shows
★★★★ Good to great show
★★★ Doesn't fully capture my attention; doing something else on the second screen
★★
★
1 Interview with the Vampire S1 ★★★
2 Teheran S1 ★★★★
3 Mythic Quest S3 ★★★★
4 Teheran S2 ★★★★
5 For All Mankind S1 ★★★★
6 For All Mankind S2 ★★★★★
7 For All Mankind S3 ★★★
8 Echo 3 ★★
9 Heartbreak High S1 ★★★
10 New Amsterdam S5 ★★★
11 Ginny & Georgia S2 ★★★
12 Women at War ★★★★
13 Lockwood & Co S1 ★★★★
14 Transplant S3 ★★★★
15 Extraordinary S1 ★★★★
16 Chemistry of Death ★★
17 Mayfair Witches S1 ★★★
18 Lidia Poet ★★
19 The Last of Us S1 ★★★★★
20 Class of '07 S1 ★★★★
21 You S4 ★★★★★
22 The Night Agent ★★★★★
23 Shrinking S1 ★★★★★
24 Shadow and Bone S2 ★★★★
25 The Resident S6 ★★★★
26 School Spirits ★★★★★
27 The Crossover ★★★★
28 The Mandalorian S3 ★★★★
29 Star Trek: Picard S3 ★★★★
30 Jury Duty ★★★★★
31 The Diplomat ★★★★★
32 Perry Mason S2 ★★★★
33 Fleishman is in Trouble ★★★★★
34 The Good Doctor S6 ★★★★
35 Will Trent ★★★
36 Animal Control S1 ★★★
37 Rabbit Hole S1 ★★★★
38 Ghosts S2 ★★★★
39 The Great S3 ★★★
40 Sullivan's Crossing S1 ★★★★
41 Night Court S1 ★★★
42 Tiny Beautiful Things ★★★★
43 Grey's Anatomy S19 ★★★★
44 Mixte S1 ★★★★
45 Marvelous Mrs. Maisel ★★★★★
46 Citadel S1 ★★
47 All American: Homecoming S2 ★★★
48 All American ★★★
49 Ted Lasso S3 ★★★★★
50 Chicago Fire S11 ★★★
51 East New York S1 ★★★
52 Der Greif S1 ★★★★★
53 Bloodhounds S1 ★★★
54 Based on a True Story S1 ★★★★
55 Never Have I Ever S4 ★★★★
56 Class of 09 S1 ★★★
57 Superman & Lois S3 ★★★★
58 Silo S1 ★★★★
59 The Bear S2 ★★★★★
60 Fubar S1 ★★★★
61 Lincoln Lawyer S1 ★★★★
62 Platonic S1 ★★★★
63 Jack Ryan S4 ★★★★
64 Deadloch S1 ★★★★
65 Secret Invasion S1 ★★★
66 The Witcher S3 ★★★★
67 Hardy Boys S3 ★★
68 Hijack S1 ★★★★
69 Lincoln Lawyer S2 ★★★★
70 Cruel Summer S2 ★★★
71 Good Omens S2 ★★★★
72 Strange New Worlds S2 ★★★★
73 Swagger S2 ★★★★
74 Yellowjackets S2 ★★★★
75 Barry S3 ★★★
76 Barry S4 ★★★
77 Domina S2 ★★★★★
78 The Summer I Turned Pretty S2 ★★★★
79 Heels S1 ★★★★
80 Tokyo Vice S1 ★★★★
81 The Clone Wars S1 (the good parts; 12 Folgen) ★★★
82 The Clone Wars S2 (the good parts; 18 Folgen) ★★★
83 Justified Primeval ★★★★
84 The Clone Wars S4 (the good parts; 13 Folgen) ★★★
85 The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart ★★★★★
86 Warrior S3 ★★★★
87 Special Ops: Lioness ★★★★
88 One Piece S1 ★★★★
89 P-Valley S2 ★★★★
90 Harlan Coben's Shelter S1 ★★★
91 Sex Education S4 ★★★★★
92 Telemarketers ★★★★
93 Minx S2 ★★★★
94 Dark Winds S1 ★★★
95 Dark Winds S2 ★★★
96 Only Murders in the Building S3 ★★★★
97 Ahsoka S1 ★★★★★
98 Wheel of Time S2 ★★★★
99 Surviving Summer S1 ★★★
100 Surviving Summer S2 ★★★★
101 The Contintental ★★★
102 Sebastian Fitzek: Die Therapie ★★★★
103 Generation V S1 ★★★★★
104 Bodies S1 ★★★
105 Bosch: Legacy S2 ★★★★
106 Loki S2 ★★★★★
107 Blue Eye Samurai S1 ★★★★★
108 The Morning Show S3 ★★★★
109 Lessons in Chemistry ★★★★★
110 Upload S3 ★★★★
111 Midnight Mass ★★★★★
112 The Fall of the House of Usher ★★★★★
113 A Murder at the End of the World ★★★★★
114 Vigil S2 ★★★★
115 The Haunting of Hill House ★★★★★
116 The Haunting of Bly Manor ★★★★
117 Reservation Dogs S1 ★★★
118 Slow Horses S3 ★★★★
119 Reservation Dogs S2 ★★★
120 Reservation Dogs S3 ★★★
121 The Afterparty S2 ★★★★