Best of 2012: 30
Great Shows, 15 Crappy Ones
(By Tim Goodman,
The Hollywood Reporter, 27 December 2012)
There are too many great television series
to hold them to a list of 10 just because of some outdated meme. In fact, it
took a little discipline to keep my Best of 2012 television series to 15 dramas
and 15 comedies. In addition, there's so much woeful crap on the small screen
that it took herculean restraint to keep my "worst" list to 15. Hell,
even doing that I had to cut out unscripted shows. Otherwise I'd still be
writing. And yet, I guess all of this is still good news for the state of
television, which continues to thrive impressively. Here then, my lists (with
no galleries to click through).
Top 15 Dramas:
1. Breaking
Bad (AMC): What stands out about this series and its legacy is that it
almost never has stumbled. Breaking Bad is by far the most consistently
great drama, episode-to-episode, season-to-season, of any show on television.
Nothing in the final eight episodes could ever change that.
2. Mad Men
(AMC): Season 5 was more creatively erratic than other stellar Mad Men
seasons, but at the same time it was inherently more ambitious, elliptical and
challenging than the others. It’s hard to depict 1965 without falling into rote
imagery and concerns, and this series avoided those pitfalls deftly.
3. Game of
Thrones (HBO): It’s very rare that you can call a series “epic” anymore,
but it fits here. So would "dense," "smart,"
"addictive" and "wholly original." And the best of Game
of Thrones could be ahead of it, which is inspiring and impressive.
4. The Walking
Dead (AMC): Season 3 firmly elevated this series to the upper tier of
television. It’s massively popular, acclaimed and is hitting its creative
stride. A series you do not miss.
5. Justified
(FX): Talk about a series lacking respect. Timothy Olyphant is fantastic
as Raylan Givens, and the fact he hasn’t been got attention in the acting
categories is all kinds of wrong. Although the series does have some difficulty
spreading the wealth among its other characters, it completely nails the
season-long guest appearances. It’s smart, different and entertaining.
6. Boardwalk
Empire (HBO): While I wish Boardwalk Empire would be as addictive
and compelling as, say, The Walking Dead, you can’t ignore the studied
brilliance. There’s a classicism to the look and feel of it, and the dense
storytelling that seems to move slow at the beginning of the season often pays
off remarkably well at the end.
7. Sons of
Anarchy (FX): Moving forward to bring out the Hamlet elements
inherent in the premise was essential. A heightened drama like this can go
sideways pretty quick, but SOA course-corrected any worries right from
the start and stayed hyper-focused to the split of the infrastructure -- and
that was bloody good.
8. Sherlock
(PBS): Great acting, taut writing, suspense, humor, intrigue -- this modern
adaptation of Sherlock Holmes is pitch perfect. They just need to make more.
9. Dexter
(Showtime): Holy comeback, Batman. I had seriously left this show for dead.
Season 6 was an embarrassment -- too far past its sell-by date. But tightening
the noose on Dex was absolutely what was needed, and this season proved they
should have started earlier. It also proved that really good series sometimes
get a second chance.
10. Treme
(HBO): Here’s what we’ve all learned about Treme through the seasons:
It’s not so big on plot, nor movement. It goes at its own, odd pace. But if you
want to get to know people and music and place, this is your show. Watching Treme
makes you feel like you’re soaking in New Orleans, and that brings a better
understanding of the story structure.
11. The Hour
(BBC America): This British series really soared in Season 1 and, because of
that, reaps hard-earned dramatic benefits in Season 2. It's a costume drama
about journalism, class structure, the changing times in England and the cost
of celebrity. In fact, you can add three or four more strands to that. The
writing is impeccable, and the acting always fantastic.
12. Magic City
(Starz): Sure, it seemed like Starz was mixing Mad Men with The
Sopranos as it told the tale of a hotel on the beach in 1959 Miami -- with
mob ties, sex and swanky outfits -- but this series slowly earned its own
achievements of character, place and story. Too bad so many people are unaware
of it.
13. Boss
(Starz): Hey look, it’s another ignored series on Starz. Yes, the formula from
the network seems to be focused on sex and nudity to attract eyeballs to
high-quality fare. Not exactly how you’d normally draw it up, but these are
competitive times. Boss was not renewed by Starz after two strong,
completely ignored seasons, but it was well-crafted, and Kelsey Grammer delivered
a virtuoso performance that was unmatched.
14. Homeland
(Showtime): The first season’s impeccable, start-to-finish unpredictability
gave way, all-too-quickly, to style over substance in Season 2. Implausibility
replaced surprise. Taut writing unraveled. Homeland can be maddeningly
erratic, and the signs this season indicate that something is amiss -- though
the show still is riveting -- and it’s unlikely to get fixed, thus a tumble
down from previously lofty heights.
15. Shameless
(Showtime): This down-and-out, low-rent series on Showtime often is difficult
viewing. It’s raw and base and has one of the most unlikable characters at its
core, but it does so much else so wonderfully well and with great originality
that you can’t ignore it. The series pushes you down on the sidewalk and makes
you pay attention.
Top 15 Comedies:
1. Girls
(HBO): Only one other comedy -- see No. 2 -- was as real and honest and
fearless as Girls. Lena Dunham expertly mined laughs from the
often difficult and confusing postgrad lifestyle. In doing so, she nailed a
subculture; but more important, she just managed to connect her characters to
the craziness of making your way in the world.
2. Louie
(FX): The DIY nature of Louie is well documented, but the beauty of this
show is Louie C.K.’s ability to make the mundane elements of a life so
funny or sad or revealing. Louie follows no map on how to make 30
minutes of television; it doesn’t shy away from seemingly unconventional,
unconnected paths. It’s what makes the show so unique -- and brilliant.
3. Parks and
Recreation (NBC): The perfect election-year comedy. But beyond that, Parks
and Rec has been one of the elite comedies since its second season and has
only fleshed out its hilarious dissection of small-town American and small-city
politics via well-drawn characters.
4. 30 Rock
(NBC): What’s left to say about this series other than it’s going into the
comedy hall of fame, first ballot? Few shows ever matched its spot-on ability
to do verbal, physical and visual comedy, sometimes all at the same time.
5.Raising Hope
(Fox): Arguably the best show you’re not watching on the comedy scene.
Criminally ignored not only by viewers but awards shows. Hilariously off-kilter
and quirky but also warm. A wonderful show.
6. Archer
(FX): Best animated series on television? Sure, why not? And as I count it, Top
10 in all comedies. The writing is a treasure, and the voice talent makes it
all come together.
7. Veep
(HBO): Julia Louis-Dreyfus as the female vice president stuck in a job
she really didn’t want spoofs politics, the workplace and is a hurricane of
hilarious cynicism. From Armando Iannucci, creator of Brit series The
Thick of It, there’s still so much gold and potential to mine here.
8. New Girl
(Fox): Dismissed as too precious by people who weren’t really following it, New
Girl quickly hit its stride and manages quick-witted laughs from countless
scenarios. If you skipped it, rethink the choice.
9. Community
(NBC): Nobody knows what the Dan Harmon-less show will look or feel
like, but with him at the helm it’s always been a ridiculous, ingenious and
smart series that’s as meta about pop culture as any comedy ever.
10. It’s
Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FX): Want more big pronouncements? OK, here’s
the most overlooked, underappreciated (by the Emmys, the Golden Globes, etc.)
series of the past 20 years. It doesn’t need any outside love anymore -- the
reputation for greatness is already in stone.
11. Modern
Family (ABC): Reliably funny and always clever, Modern Family
somehow has been derided for too many awards and accolades. Strange,
considering they’re going to a show that utterly deserves them. Avoid the
jealousy, enjoy the jokes.
12. Don’t
Trust the B---- in Apt 23 (ABC): Another series meta about pop culture but
also wonderfully committed to being devious, it’s an underappreciated gem with
strong writing. Krysten Ritter is fantastic.
13. Wilfred
(FX): It didn’t get as much coverage in Season 2 as it did coming out of the
gate as your not-so-typical man-and-dog story, but Wilfred was just as
funny, twisted and wrong as ever. Both Elijah Wood and Jason Gann
are doing God’s work here.
14. House of
Lies (Showtime): Funny, cynical, sexy, vulgar -- and a dramatic sensibility
that reveals a surprising amount of heart? Sure, why not. Besides, Don
Cheadle is a force of nature in the lead role.
15. Ben and
Kate (Fox): Hey look, our only freshman series on this list. It went off
the air after 10 episodes, suffering -- like most new shows -- from a lack of
viewers. But it will return in January, and you should jump on it if you
haven’t already. Nat Faxon and Lucy Punch provide most of the
laughs while Dakota Johnson has the right chemistry to make this
sister-brother comedy about family and friends really work.
The Top 15 Worst
Shows:
1. Neighbors
(ABC): The mere fact that Neighbors got on the air is bad enough. That
it wasn’t abhorred by the masses is even worse. It managed numbers good enough
for ABC to keep it on the air and keep the Gods of Culture weeping.
2. Guys With
Kids (NBC): Jimmy Fallon pitched NBC execs a skit. They bought it --
then realized it essentially was a one-joke skit. Wah-wah-wah.
3. Emily
Owens, M.D. (The CW): So bad even The CW canceled it. An embarrassment for
all women.
4. Malibu
County (ABC): Country folk move to Malibu. Hilarity was supposed to ensue.
It did not. The good news is it looks, from the production, like ABC is only
spending about $63 an episode on it.
5. Made in
Jersey (CBS): Take cookie cutter, press into poorly conceived series,
over-bake in oven. Cancel.
6. 2 Broke
Girls (CBS): Vagina, vagina, racist joke, vagina, vagina, hipster, penis.
7. Partners (CBS):
The people who created Will & Grace convince CBS that their own life
is funny, too. It’s not.
8. Whitney
(NBC): NBC decided it had too many smart cult shows, so it made this.
9. Scandal
(ABC): There’s one word for this: ridonkulous.
10. Glee
(Fox): Come on, you’re not still watching this, are you?
11. The Mob
Doctor (Fox): See, she’s a doctor. For the mob. Except that assignment was
canceled.
12. American
Horror Story (Fox): Watch me drop this kitchen sink into your convolutedly
insane nightmares. Boo!
13. 666 Park
Avenue (ABC): Hell, at least AHS is scary. This was the least scary
devil series in history.
14. Animal
Practice (NBC): Never work with animals. You know that. And now you’ll have
a chance to put the advice back into action, since the show was canceled.
15. Beauty and
the Beast (The CW): Sure, it’s spectacularly stupid, but think of the angst
the beast must have because he’s a tiny scratch on his hunky face. Where’s the
love? Or the pity?
OK, 2013, top
that. Let's do this!
The Top Concert Tours
Of 2012
(By Sophie
Schillaci & Kyleen James, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 December 2012)
1.
Madonna
Madonna's MDNA tour sold out all 72 of its
worldwide dates, raking in a whopping $228,406,085 in grosses. The tour also
generated plenty of publicity for the controversy-friendly singer, from
superimposing a swastika on the image of French right-wing politician Marine Le Pen, to supporting jailed
Russian girl group Pussy Riot, to flashing her nipple at her Istanbul stop and
mooning concert goers in Rome, the tour was nothing short of outrageous.
2. Bruce
Springsteen & the E Street Band
The Boss brought in $199,371,791 on his
72-date trek across the globe this year.
3. Roger
Waters
With The Wall Returns, Roger Waters's
tour raked in $186,466,703 in 2012.
4. Michael
Jackson The Immortal World Tour by
Cirque Du Soleil
The show, honoring the late Michael
Jackson and backed by the Jackson family, saw an astounding 183 dates and
brought in $147,310,505.
5. Coldplay
Coldplay hit North America, Europe,
Australia and New Zealand during a whirlwind 2012. All in all, the band brought
in $147,188,828 with their ticket sales. But fans might be waiting a while for
the next go-around, with lead singer Chris Martin hinting at a
three-year hiatus during one of the band's recent shows.6. Lady Gaga
Mother Monster kicked off her Born This Way Ball in April 2012 and will continue touring until March 2013. Lady Gaga sold out all 65 of her 2012 dates, earning $124,879,545.
7. Tim
McGraw Kenny Chesney
Tim McGraw and
Kenny Chesney brought double the trouble to their Brothers of the Sun
tour, kicking off in June for a 23-day trek. The venture raked in $96,458,890.
8. Van
Halen
Despite canceling 30 dates and postponing
several more due to illness, Van Halen still earned a spot on Billboard's
annual list with $54,425,548 earned this year on tour.
9. Jay-
Z, Kanye West
Among the most buzzed-about collaborations
of the decade, Jay-Z and Kanye West brought their Watch the
Throne on the road for a 31-date tour. And at the end of the day, Jay and
Ye made $46,986,464.
10. Andre
Rieu
Violinist Andre Rieu played nearly 100 shows this year, bringing in
$46,785,717.
11. Dave
Matthews Band
A staple of the touring music world, the
Dave Matthews Band played 41 dates in 2012 and earned $41,433,182.
12. Barbra
Streisand
Just 12 sold-out shows placed Barbra Streisand at No. 12 on
Billboard's list. Her touring intake: $40,657,170.
13. Jason
Aldean
Jason Aldean's Night Train debuted at No. 1 on
Billboard's 200 album chart earlier this year. His tour proved to be among the
hottest tickets in the nation this year, and his momentum is still rolling. His
July 2013 show at Boston's Fenway Park sold out in just 7 minutes, prompting
the country singer to add a second date. His 2012 tour earnings: $39,956,703.
14. Lady
Antebellum
Lady A may have canceled several tour
dates next year due to Hillary Scott's
pregnancy, but the band did plenty of touring in 2012 to make up for that. The
trio performed 88 shows and brought in $38,358,801.
15. Red
Hot Chili Peppers
2012 was a big year for the Red Hot Chili
Peppers. In April, the band was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame.
They rallied for the re-election of President Obama with a free show in
Cleveland, Ohio, to drum up volunteers for the campaign. And in October, Flea
celebrated his 50th birthday with a fundraising bash. All the while, they
continued to tour and raked in $33,911,873 along the way.
16. Brad
Paisley
One of five country acts (six if you count
Taylor Swift) to make the list, Brad Paisley's tour brought in
$33,794,719 this year.
17. Nickelback
Earlier this year, Nickelback frontman Chad
Kroeger asked punk rocker Avril Lavigne to be his wife with a
massive sparkler. Luckily for him, the band earned $33,790,267 on the road this
year.
18. The Trans-Siberian Orchestra (Not Pictured): earned $33,370,711.
19. Elton
John
This pop icon still knows how to entertain
an audience, drawing 240,381 eager concert-goers to his 38 shows this year. In
total, John brought in $32,920,986.
20. Justin
Bieber
He may still be waiting for that coveted
Grammy award, but Justin Bieber sure knows how to sell out a stadium.
The pop sensation filled 28 out of the 29 venues at which he performed this
year, drawing in $32,920,986 and 402,710 audience members.
21. Rod
Stewart
Audiences are still finding Rod Stewart sexy, pushing him to No.
21 on the list. For Stewart, 2012 marked a new deal with Universal, a Christmas
album, the release of his autobiography and $30,158,491 in touring dollars.
22. Neil
Diamond
While promoting The Very Best of Neil
Diamond, the legendary singer performed 30 dates and earned $29,910,078.
23. Pearl
Jam
Performing only 11 shows this year, none
of which were sold out, Pearl Jam still secured a spot on Billboard's list with
$27,363,430 in touring dollars.
24. Taylor
Swift
Touring for more than a full year, Taylor Swift wrapped up her Speak Now
Tour with 21 sold-out shows and $26,310,160 in revenue in 2012. She'll embark
on her next tour, promoting her latest album Red, in early 2013.
25. Rascal
Flatts
Country duo Rascal Flatts brought in
$26,155,360 over the course of 45 tour dates.
What Were The
Top 10 Most-Watched Shows This Season?
By Lisa de
Moraes, 05/23/2012, The WashingtonPost
CBS can call itself the country’s
most-watched network for the ninth time in the past 10 years.
The network won the 2011-12 television season, which
ended Wednesday, by averaging nearly 12 million viewers each week. That’s about
3 million more viewers than closest competitor Fox, the largest margin of
victory of any network in more than two decades. America continued to be passionate about
reality competition series this season, although there are signs of wear and tear
in the relationship. Half the country’s 10 most-watched programs this season
were reality competition shows, including two nights each of “American Idol” and “Dancing With the
Stars,” and NBC’s “The Voice.”
But both “Idol”
and “Dancing” took major hits. ABC’s “Dancing” fumbled about 4 million viewers
compared with last season, and Fox’s “Idol” lost about 6 million. “Idol’s” eight-season
streak as the country’s most watched program came to an end; it came in No. 2,
behind NBC’s Sunday football. Fox execs have said that they dropped the ball
this season and that “Idol” changes are in store for next season.
Meanwhile, the
season’s 10 most-watched shows include four scripted ones, all from CBS. One of the comedies — the Thursday show “The
Big Bang Theory” — was also one of the season’s most popular scripted series
among 18- to 49-year-old viewers who are the currency of TV ad sales, trailing
ABC’s No. 1-ranked “Modern Family” by just 82,000 viewers in the age bracket. In that “money” group, the season’s Top 10
list also includes such scripted shows as CBS’s “Two and a Half Men” and new “2 Broke Girls.”
CBS, which is
known as the network that attracts large numbers of older viewers, finished a
close second with this younger age bracket for the season — much closer to
front-runner Fox than it did last season. That said, football reigned supreme
this season — among 18- to 49-year-olds as well as viewers of all ages —
followed by two editions of “Idol” and NBC’s “The Voice.”
Here’s a look at
the 2011-12 TV season’s Top 10 most-watched programs:
1. “NBC Sunday
Night Football.” In
ending “Idol’s” streak as the country’s most-watched program, Sunday football
on NBC averaged 20.7 million people during the season; “Idol’s”
performance night averaged 19.7 million.
2. “American
Idol” performance
show. After eight seasons in the top spot, Fox’s singing competition series
got bumped down a notch, finishing its 11th edition in second place — about
1 million viewers shy of NBC’s Sunday football. Industry pundits point to
the proliferation of singing competition shows this season, including “The
Voice” and Fox’s own “The X
Factor.”
3. “NCIS.” CBS’s long-running crime drama is the
country’s most-watched scripted series for the third consecutive season,
virtually matching last season’s audience with about 19.5 million viewers.
There’s an age-old Hollywood truism — although usually only told to young
starlets being talked into doing nude scenes — that there is no such thing as
overexposure. And in its sixth season, when USA Network began to telecast an
orgy of “NCIS” reruns across its schedule — the original’s audience on CBS
actually grew by more than 3 million viewers, though it was the show’s sixth
season on the air. The next season, CBS cloned the show, following it with yet
another hour of “NCIS” — this one set in Los Angeles — and the original’s
audience grew again, by nearly another million viewers.
4. “American
Idol” results show. In
its 11th edition, the results night of Fox’s singing competition series still attracted
more than 18 million viewers each week, behind only its own performance night,
CBS’s “NCIS” and NBC’s Sunday football. As with its Wednesday performance
night, “Idol” took a ratings fall this season. Pundits
place some blame on singing show fatigue, what with NBC adding “The Voice” and
Fox adding “The X Factor” to the prime-time landscape this season.
5. “Dancing
With the Stars” performance show. The 13th and 14th editions of ABC’s dance
competition — airing in
the fall of ’11 and spring of ’12 — collectively averaged more than 18 million
viewers on its performace night broadcasts This was the first season “Dancing”
encountered NBC’s singing competition series “The Voice” in its time slot.
6. “NCIS: Los
Angeles.” CBS. In its
third season, CBS’s “NCIS” spinoff was the country’s second most popular
scripted series, behind only “NCIS,” and averaged about 16 million viewers.
7. “Dancing
With the Stars” results show. Results night of ABC’s popular dance comepetition series was the country’s
seventh most watched program, averaging 16 million viewers; this season it
battled NBC’s singing competition “The Voice” on Tuesday nights.
8. “The Big
Bang Theory.” America’s
most popular scripted comedy series (airing on CBS Thursday nights) became the
first scripted show to beat “Idol” in head-to-head competition. In its fifth season
“Big Bang” is one of the country’s fastest-growing broadcast TV series,
averaging 18 percent more viewers this season than last.
9. “The
Voice.” NBC’s singing
competition is the only “new” show in this season’s Top-10, though the show’s
first edition debuted four weeks before the end of last season, running the
bulk of its episodes over the summer. It was the country’s ninth most watched
show, with an average of 15.8 million people tuning in weekly.
10. “Two and a
Half Men.” Replacing star
Charlie Sheen with
Ashton Kutcher was a Hail
Mary by CBS and production house Warner Bros., in the hopes they could keep the
sitcom going for one last season (its ninth). Instead, the show enjoyed 16
percent more viewers this season than last — and a whopping 30 percent increase
among 18- to 49-year -olds. Some of these season-to-season spikes are due to the
33 million people who watched the show’s return back in September to see Sheen’s character killed
off, and Kutcher
introduced.
Part of the
ratings spike, however, is only the natural result of CBS having aired so many
“Men” repeats last season while Sheen was in
“rehab.”
USA
TODAY Reviews The Best In Sports In 2012
(By David Leon Moore, USA TODAY, 28 December 2012)
This year
featured historic performances, compelling figures and the most precocious
group of athletes in recent memory. David Leon Moore of USA TODAY Sports picks
the best of the best:
Top accomplishment of 2012?
Michael Phelps' Olympic swimming career was amazing. He won
22 medals, 18 gold, both are Olympic records.
Also amazing is Usain Bolt's track career. His double triple — winning
the Olympic 100, 200 and 4x100 relay in 2008 and 2012 — is one of the most
remarkable accomplishments in Olympic history.
Their booty came over a span of years, though, more
impressive because of the repeat factor. In 2012 they basically accomplished
what they had done in 2008. Both are
worthy winners of this category. But in just the calendar year 2012, nobody in
sports did anything more impressive — and historic — than Detroit Tigers
slugger Miguel Cabrera, the last Triple Crown winner since the Boston Red Sox's
Carl Yastrzemski in 1967.
Cabrera, a 29-year-old Venezuelan, led the American League
with a .330 batting average, 44 home runs and 139 RBI. In this steroid era, sluggers tended to
lengthen swings and go for homers; batting averages suffered. Cabrera's ability
to combine a high average with lots of power made it a year to remember for him
and baseball.
Best team of 2012?
The Miami Heat were 46-20 in the shortened regular season,
then won 16 of 23 playoff games in their march to the NBA title, the first for
LeBron James, who had some memorable performances.
In Game 7 of the Eastern finals against the Boston Celtics,
James, Dwyane Wade and, off the bench, Chris Bosh, came up big. James had 31
points and 12 rebounds. Wade had 23 points, six assists and six rebounds and
Bosh had 19 points and eight rebounds. Miami's defense clamped down on the
Celtics, the Heat winning 101-88.
Then they beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 4-1 in the Finals,
when The Big Three, especially James, was again magnificent. When they played like that, the Heat were the
best team in the NBA, and the best team anywhere in 2012. Perhaps the best argument to the Heat comes
from Waco, Texas, where the Baylor Lady Bears, led by center Brittney Griner,
forged perfection, going 40-0 to win the NCAA women's basketball championship,
crushing Notre Dame by 19 in the final.
The men's NCAA champ was also impressive, Kentucky going
38-2 and, behind Anthony Davis' dominance in the middle, winning coach John
Calipari's first national title.
Notre Dame football logged a perfect regular season but
wasn't convincing enough to make the Irish the favorites against one-loss
Alabama in next month's BCS title game.
The U.S. women's gymnastics team was almost perfect,
knocking off the Russians and winning team gold for the first time since 1996.
They were bouncy, and they were skilled, but none of them could guard LeBron.
Best athlete of 2012?
A truly loaded field:
There's Bolt, electrifying the Olympics again with his
signature speed, style and showmanship. There's James, who reached a level few
in the NBA have. There's Adrian Peterson, who made a run at Eric Dickerson's
single-season rushing record and left no doubt who is the NFL's best running
back.
At the Olympics, Phelps said goodbye with 22 career medals
while 17-year-old swimmer Missy Franklin said hello with five medals, four
gold, and the promise of many more to come in 2016.
But the one who rose slightly above the others in 2012 was
tennis star Serena Williams, who turned 31 in September and turned the major
playing courts of the world into a showcase just for her. Williams won her fifth Wimbledon, where she
had a tournament-record 24 aces against second-seeded Victoria Azarenka.
Williams won her fourth U.S. Open, where she was so dominant that at one point
she won 23 consecutive games.
In-between, she headed back to the Wimbledon grounds for the
Olympics, where she was also triumphant, winning her first Olympic singles
title by demolishing Maria Sharapova 6-0, 6-1 in the final. She won 81% of her
games in the Olympic tournament and did not lose a set. She finished up winning her third WTA
Championships, her seventh title of the year, and being voted WTA Player of the
Year for the fourth time.
Most interesting of 2012?
Oscar Pistorius was interesting in both an inspirational and
controversial way. South Africa's "Blade Runner," an elite-level
quarter-miler despite being a double below-knee amputee, lifted spirits around
the world with his mere presence at the Summer Games. Alas, there were some who
thought his carbon fiber blades were actually an advantage.
By contrast, American hurdler Lolo Jones and U.S. soccer
goalkeeper Hope Solo were almost as much sideshows as Olympic competitors. Both
drew major internet attention. Jones did
for the controversy over her major marketing campaign and good looks vs. her
modest results, and for tweeting about her virginity. Solo did for her never-dull off-the-pitch
life, including saying she went on the Today show drunk, tweeting critical
remarks about Olympics soccer commentator Brandi Chastain and, after the
Olympics, showing up in a police report when her boyfriend, former football
player Jerramy Stevens, was arrested in November on investigation of assault
after an altercation that left Solo injured. He was not charged, and he and Solo
got married the next day. That's a lot
of interest, and doesn't even include the all-year soap opera/failing football
career of Tim Tebow.
But if you want to lift "interesting" to the point
of "compelling," you just couldn't beat Linsanity. Undrafted point guard Jeremy Lin, the NBA's
first American-born player of Chinese or Taiwanese descent, coming out of
Harvard, was at the end of the injury-riddled New York Knicks' bench Feb. 3.
Desperate for a live body, Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni played Lin the next
night, and so began an 18-day-long Walter Mitty dream life that was as shocking
as it was entertaining.
On Feb. 4, off the bench, Lin had career highs of 25 points
and seven assists against Deron Williams in a win against the New Jersey Nets.
The next game, his first start, Lin had 28 and eight assists and the Knicks won
again. On Feb. 10, he had 38 points, seven assists against the Los Angeles
Lakers, outdueling Kobe Bryant (34 points) and leading another win.
In an 11-game stretch, the previously anonymous Lin averaged
23.9 points and 9.2 assists, shot 50% and the Knicks went 9-2. The Knicks then changed coaches to Mike
Woodson and Linsanity waned. Lin was allowed to seek a deal that landed him
with the Houston Rockets after the season.
His stardom is muted now, but for those who at this time of the year
truly believe and cling to miracles in their hearts, Linsanity lives!
Brightest future for rookie?
It's hard to have a much brighter future than playing one
season and having a lot of people believe you are the best in major league
baseball. But so it is with Mike Trout,
the Los Angeles Angels' phenomenal outfielder, the AL Rookie of the Year and
MVP runner-up to Cabrera. Trout's
production was off the charts. Leading off, Trout hit .326 with 30 homers, 83
RBI, 49 stolen bases and 129 runs scored. He is 21, and better so far than the
other baseball phenom, the Washington Nationals' Bryce Harper, 20.
The NFL produced the best rookie quarterbacks since maybe
the 1983 draft of John Elway, Dan Marino and Jim Kelly. At the top were Andrew
Luck, 23, and Robert Griffin III, 22. Both seemed better than advertised, if
that were possible. The future should
also be very kind to Texas A&M's irrepressible quarterback Johnny Manziel,
20, the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy. But Trout is the big fish in this category.
Most disliked sports figure of 2012?
The NFL replacement refs were a mess in some games, most
notably the botched touchdown call at the end that cost the Green Bay Packers a
victory against the Seattle Seahawks. But
disliked? Actually, some people began to look forward to the next gaffe, in a Saturday
Night Live parody kind of way. And besides, these guys were asked to do
something beyond their experience level. They were set up to fail.
Parody them? Sure. But most disliked? No. Now, the guy that set up the replacement ref
system – commissioner Roger Goodell – now there's a candidate for most
disliked. Goodell's fumbles included the refs fiasco as well as the awkward,
controversial handling of penalties to the New Orleans Saints coaches and
players over a bounty system investigation.
At least Goodell's sport played games. NHL commissioner Gary
Bettman saw labor negotiations drag on and on and no hockey for the 2012-13
season was played through December. Of
course, commissioners are set up to be disliked, anyway. They often can't
please fans or players or both. It's hard in their jobs not to make people mad. Speaking of making people mad, Bobby
Valentine certainly had an interesting year as the manager of the Red Sox. He
might have been the most disliked man in the Sox clubhouse, but certainly not
in the sports world at large.
No, the "winner" in this category is Lance
Armstrong. We know, Armstrong has been a champion fundraiser for cancer research,
and he is to be praised for that. But on
the road, where his sport was conducted and where he raced to false glory for
many years, he was proven to be a liar and a cheat of epic proportions. No topping that.
No comments:
Post a Comment