This year was unfortunate compared to the last 2 years. Political correctness really began to rear its ugly head in the films and tv shows. Thankfully, there were still some solid entries. And I’m hoping this is just because this was an election year, with typical liberal Hollywood rooting for the Democratic candidate, who did beat George H.W. Bush in the end. The L.A. Riots didn’t help matters.

Music

Really hated that my restrictions prevented me from listing Gotthard, Wildside, Faith No More, and Kyuss.

Not listing album of the month because I don’t feel qualified to do that here.

Sir Mix-a-Lot: Mack Daddy (February)

Shakespears Sister: Hormonally Yours (February)

2 Unlimited: Get Ready (February)

Pantera: Vulgar Display of Power (February)

Right Said Fred: Up (March)

L7: Bricks are Heavy (April)

The Cure: Wish (April)

XTC: Nonsuch (April)

Iron Maiden: Fear of the Dark (May)

Testament: The Ritual (May)

Kiss: Revenge (May)

Billy Ray Cyrus: Some Gave All (May)

W.A.S.P.: The Crimson Idol (June)

Black Sabbath: Dehumanizer (June)

Helmet: Meantime (June)

Blind Guardian: Somewhere Far Beyond (June)

Suicidal Tendencies: The Art of Rebellion (June)

Dream Theater: Images and Words (July)

Danzig: Danzig III: How the Gods Kill (July)

Megadeath: Countdown to Extinction (July)

House of Pain: House of Pain (July)

INXS: Welcome to Wherever You Are (August)

Damn Yankees: Don’t Tread (August)

Bad4Good: Refugee (18)

Stone Temple Pilots: Core (September)

Alice in Chains: Dirt (September)

Soul Asylum: Grave Dancers Union (October)

4 Non Blondes: Bigger, Better, Faster, More! (October)

Rage Against the Machine: Rage Against the Machine (November)

DC Talk: Free at Last (November)

Movies

Personally, I didn’t feel this year’s selections were as strong as those of the last 2. That being said, in spite of the more bullshit films that came out (which were in far higher proportion compared to the last 2 years combined), there was still a fantastic selection of films to go through this year. It just didn’t feel the selection was all that strong mainly because, well, I’ve seen most of the good ones before. But any year where I can highlight at least 20 films that I believe are fantastic, or at least have a fun positive impact on the general 90s film culture, is considerably better than any year of the past decade. The only film mentioned here that I don’t care for too much personally is the last one, but that’s only because it has that famous quote. White Men Can’t Jump is more on the mediocre side for me (though definitely not without its merits).

In any case, there are plenty of others that I would give a solid recommendation for even if they’re not on the main highlights. Films such as, but not limited to, A Midnight Clear.

And you may notice the absence of Blade Runner being highlighted. There’s a reason for that. While this year may be the first time the film graced us with its Director’s Cut, it’s still a re-release of a 1982 film as far as I’m concerned, so I don’t consider it eligible.

Juice (January)

Wayne’s World (February)

Memoirs of an Invisible Man (February)

American Me (March)

My Cousin Vinny (March)

Basic Instinct (March)

White Men Can’t Jump (March)

Deep Cover (April)

The Player (May)

Alien 3 (May)

Patriot Games (June)

Batman Returns (June)

Universal Soldier (July)

Death Becomes Her (July)

Unforgiven (August)

South Central (September)

The Last of the Mohicans (September; film of the year)

Glengarry Glen Ross (October)

Under Siege (October)

Candyman (October)

Reservoir Dogs (October)

A River Runs Through It (October)

Bram Stoker’s Dracula (November)

Malcolm X (November)

Bad Lieutenant (November)

Aladdin (November)

The Bodyguard (November)

A Few Good Men (December)

Games

It was painful narrowing this down to 30 games (I’ve decided to cap off every yearly highlight to 30 for each category; will likely edit the prior yearly highlight posts to adhere to this limitation). I had to remove some great games. This year was chock full of them. And I fear it’s only going to get more difficult next year (ie 1993).

The only thing more painful than that is naming a game to be game of the year. There were 3 titles that I was trying to decide between. And, regrettably, I had to choose one. This was the most painful one to decide on yet.

Golden Axe II (January; Sega Genesis)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project (February; NES)

Star Trek: 25th Anniversary (February; PC)

The Addams Family pinball (March)

Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss (March; MS-DOS; Game of the Year)

Contra III: The Alien Wars (April; SNES)

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (April; SNES)

Ultima VII: The Black Gate (April; PC)

Wolfenstein 3D (May; PC)

Splatterhouse 2 (June?; Sega Genesis)

Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (June; PC, Amiga)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time (August; SNES, Arcade [March 1991])

Alone in the Dark (August; PC)

Art of Fighting (September; Arcade)

Super Mario Kart (September; SNES)

Dragon Warrior IV, aka Dragon Quest IV (October; NES)

Mortal Kombat (October; Arcade)

Night Trap (October; Sega CD)

Prince of Persia (October?; Turbografx, Sega CD, SNES and NES [December 1], Sega Genesis [1993], Game Gear, Game Boy [December 1991])

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (November; Game Boy)

Home Alone (November; Sega Genesis)

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (November; Sega Genesis)

Super Star Wars (November; SNES)

Soul Blazer (November; SNES)

Star Control II (November; PC, 3DO [January 1994])

Road Rash II (December; Sega Genesis)

Sunset Riders (December; Sega Genesis, SNES [June 1993], Arcade [September 1991])

Streets of Rage 2 (December; Sega Genesis)

Shinobi II: The Silent Fury (December; Game Gear)

Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty (December; PC, Sega Genesis [1993, as Dune II: Battle for Arrakis])

Shows

What this year may have lacked in quantity of good shows it certainly made up for in quality, at least when it came to kids shows. I mean… it’s so goddamn difficult for me to rate any individual show here as Series of the Year. I had to choose between Batman, X-Men, Beakman, and Are You Afraid of the Dark? Gah! I hate making a decision like this! All of these shows are 90s icons!

*sigh*

Fuck it, I’ll choose one based primarily on how well it holds up, and how it can appeal to people of all ages.

Nick Arcade (January; Nickelodeon)