2015: The Year in Review

I've got a bit of time before I go straight back into Serling mode for the day, so I might as well get my Year in Review post out of the way now.

2015 was a really nice year for me, and for a lot of people in the blogosphere apparently. It was a very retro-driven year on all fronts, as if the past was more important than new, original ideas. And yet there was something refreshing about that, something that was new and worthy of the experience.

This was my most consistent year on the blog EVER. I had more posts than days in the year, which is new for me actually. I had record viewership in the summer months, and had a lot of really great post ideas. I have a feeling the next year is gonna be even more consistent and original.

As per usual on December 31st, I'll go over the highlights, and not-so-highlights, of the year that is just ending, all beginning with "this was the year that..." I've done this every year. 'If it ain't broke...'

This was the year that the Philadelphia 76ers made a case for one of the worst starts by any NBA team in YEARS. Somewhere Allen Iverson snickers, and then stops snickering at the absolute worst moment to go take care of his kid (yep, I'm still bitter.)

This was the year that Diamond Kings returned. I'd make a subjective comment about how DK went in 2015, but there was so much of a disconnect between reviews that I'm not exactly sure what the blogosphere thought about it. Personally, I thought it was worthy of some kind of merit, if slightly unspectacular. I'm sure those words were generous compared to some other bloggers.

This was the year that Universal put out a Jurassic Park movie that was adamant in its sameness and disownership of past failures, and while it made a ton of money, hardcore fans turned out it not long after its release.

This was the year that Disney put out a Star Wars movie that was adamant in its sameness and disownership of past failures, and while it made a ton of money, hardcore fans have...YET TO turn on it, as it's still being hailed as a solid product. Which once again proves my old theory...Star Wars is better than Jurassic Park.

This was the year that Oakland thought it would be a wise idea to trade its star third baseman for an equally-good third baseman for an up-and-coming team. Currently Oakland is without a third baseman, while their 2014 third baseman is in Toronto coming off an MVP season, and their 2015 third baseman just joined a power-hungry White Sox roster. Poor Billy Beane.

This was the year that The Big Bang Theory fell so far off the deep end that not even the UMPTEENTH shark-jumping character hookup could save it. Or make me care.

This was the year that the Patriots won the Super Bowl yet again, amidst a ball-deflating scandal that has basically subsided by now. I'm guessing Bill Belichick will be forgiven for flat-out-shooting someone next year, as it will be lost in the shuffle of their umpteenth Super Bowl victory.

This was the year that I attended four MLB games, at the White Sox, Cubs, Mets and Phillies stadiums. In all four games, the home team won. Even the Phillies game. I was their good luck charm, I hope.

This was the year that Cole Hamels, Chase Utley, Jonathan Papelbon and Ben Revere played for the Yankees. Just not after August. Then they played for teams that actually won games.

This was the year that we were alarmingly close to a Cubs-Astros World Series, which would have completely broken the entire fan base. Seriously, I would have paid to see that.

This was the year that ELO put out an album for the first time since before I knew who they were. And it was beautiful, synth-fueled music.

This was the year that Chase Utley plowed over a New York Met, and because he wasn't wearing a Phillies uniform, everyone got outraged.

This was the year that three of the highest grossing comedies of the year were headlined by women. Not including 50 Shades of Grey, of course. Unintentional comedies don't count.

This was the year that I pulled a game-used card of Tom Glavine out of a 13-year-old box of Upper Deck. Followed by a game-used of Omar Daal. You can't win 'em all.

This was the year that Topps put out one of its most refreshing flagship sets in years, and the base set's originality is going to be pave the way for more awesome, out-of-the-box ideas from Topps, including the 2016 design, which is, if anything, going to be different.

This was the year that a member of one of the most legendary rock'n'roll bands of all time did a song with Kanye West and Rihanna and confused the hell out of everyone.

This was the year that i FINALLY completed my 1988 Topps set. Now onto polishing off my 1984 Fleer and 1990 Topps ones.

This was the year that I made more customs than I've ever made in my entire Mint Condition career, which is pretty nice.

So, that was my 2015. It was fun, it was difficult at times, but it was all worth it. And 2016 is just as exciting.