iamspok

[iamspok]

Top 5 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums

In May 2018, I started this article with the intention of finishing it that very same day as a simple ‘top 5′ list, over 6 months and 6 drafts later, I’m finally ready to set out the terms of discussion for not only what I believe are the best albums in hip-hop but how we should measure ‘greatness’ when it comes to the whole genre.

Different genre’s of music demand certain aspects from an artist to reach the top of the pyramid, some of which are almost entirely out of their control. Popularity is not necessarily an indicator of true greatness, although it certainly is a vehicle that an album can ride into the consciousness of new audiences for decades.

The greatest albums require both extremely high levels of style and substance to stand out from the rest and that is shown by the albums that sit at the top of the pile for each genre, including hip-hop.

When I originally started writing this, I wasn’t sure to include albums of significant importance to the genre (Straight Outta’ Compton, The Chronic..) or whether to recognize the early pioneers like Flash or Bambaataa, eventually I decided that to focus on what I believe to be the very best hip-hop has to offer, this is my write-up after all..

I’ve been a huge fan of hip-hop & rap since I was young and the only place to start this list is with what I commonly hear as an answer to the question ‘what is the best hip-hop album of all time?’...

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Nas - Illmatic (1994)

Imagine this; you start out your career as an MC and within a few short years, with the release of your debut album, you become one of the most important rappers on the planet and the album is not only talked about as the best rap album of all time, but it’s in the discussion for best album of all time, across any genre.

That is what happened to Nas in 1994 when he released the hardcore hip-hop masterpiece, Illmatic.

Showcasing rhythmic perfection and poetic lyrics from the young rapper paired with beats supplied by some of the best producers on the block such as DJ Premier, Q-Tip & Pete Rock, the album would wrestle the power away from the thriving west coast scene and signal the renaissance of the east coast, with the likes of Wu-Tang Clan & Mobb Deep following shortly after.

‘Halftime’ & ‘N.Y State Of Mind’ both showcase everything that is impactful about hip-hop and are consistently mentioned as two of the classics of the genre, alongside the ever-quotable ‘Life’s A Bitch’, the album would stun audiences upon its release, with many people fascinated with Nas’ multisyllabic rhymes and flawless delivery, but it was also the songs under the hood that keep Illmatic ticking along.

The nostalgic ‘Memory Lane (Sittin’ in da Park)’ showcases Nas’ poetic lyricism, mixing the styles of the old school and new school to create a haunting melody. ‘One Love’ is a storytelling marvel, composing of a series of letters to incarcerated friends, addressing unfaithful girlfriends, emotionally tortured parents and loyalty.

‘It Ain’t Hard To Tell’ wraps up the album up with a stylish, superior form of rap, the new sound of hip-hop was here and Nas will forever be one of the most important figures in the genre, largely thanks to the impact that Illmatic had and still has today.

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Run The Jewels - Run The Jewels II (2014)

I could have honestly put any of the three releases by RTJ here. the prodigious duo of Killer Mike & El-P smashed onto the rap scene in mid-2013 with their acclaimed self-titled debut album but it’s with the release of RTJII that they found their true sound.

Militant, raucous and heavily beat-driven (thanks to the production by El-P) you would be forgiven for not being able to name a single album that exploded onto the hip-hop landscape quite like this, picking up many ‘album of year’ accolades in the process including Rolling Stone and Pitchfork.

The natural chemistry between the two artists shines throughout, both of which were at the apex of their prime at the time of recording the album, delivering a powerful mix of hard-nosed disses and sophisticated composition.

Coming in successively at track 2, 3 and 4 on the album ‘Oh My Darling Don’t Cry’, ‘Blockbuster Night, Pt. 1′ & ‘Close Your Eyes (And Count To Fuck)’ are three of the most aggressive and abrasive tracks in hip-hop history, the last of which includes the ever-warring Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against The Machine.

In ‘Lie, Cheat, Steal’ they created their anthem, a song that will forever define this era for the duo and with ‘All Due Respect’ & ‘Early’ they have the help of multiple collaborator BOOTS and pop-punk superstar Travis Scott to add to the variety of tracks on the album, the former being a synth-heavy showcase.

They were one of the first bands to utilize new VR technology, experimenting with a music video for the astonishing, post-apocalyptic track ‘Crown’ and they gave fans a light-hearted parody remix album named ‘Meow The Jewels’ featuring beats created entirely from cat sounds that was released free for fans.

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GZA - Liquid Swords (1995)

When I was younger, a friend I knew was talking to me about hip-hop, I had just discovered the Wu-Tang Clan and I was excitedly telling everyone I knew about ‘Enter The Wu-Tang’ and she told me that it paled in comparison to the solo album put out by GZA, a member of the influential clan.

I remember thinking that a solo member of the group could never create something as powerful as Wu-Tang’s debut release and I put off listening to it for weeks. To this day, I’ve not had the pleasure of experiencing an album for the first time like I did with Liquid Swords.

Heavily sampling the martial-arts cult classic ‘Shogun Assassin’, the dark atmosphere and outstanding storytelling has ensured that it’s only increased in popularity since it’s release almost 25 years ago, with many fans retrospectively proclaiming it the greatest hip-hop album of all time. 

It’s a testament to Liquid Swords that the Wu-Tang Clan, one of the most well-known, influential groups in rap history featuring the collective talents of RZA, GZA, Ghostface Killah, Method Man, Raekwon & Ol’ Dirty Bastard amongst others, have never managed to create such a memorable and strangely beautiful album. It cements GZA as the band’s greatest pure lyricist.

Proof of its greatness is in the knowledge that this album flows together seamlessly, so much so that it’s hard to pick out individual tracks that stand out, so I won’t. Each track is as important to the feel and story of this magnificently crafted classic.

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Kendrick Lamar - DAMN. (2017)

If you haven’t already heard, Kendrick Lamar is the new king of hip-hop.

Back in 2009, a supergroup formed under the name ‘Black Hippy’. The band would feature Schoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, Jay Rock and a young Kendrick Lamar. After gaining some attention early on in his career, he eventually outgrew the group and burst onto the west coast scene in late-2012 with his breakout ‘Good Kid, M.A.A.D City’.

‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ & ‘untitled unmastered’ would follow in 2015 and 2016 respectively, catapulting Kendrick to the very top of the rap game. But it was his 2017 masterpiece DAMN that would cement him as the top solo performer in hip-hop.

Featuring soul-baring, furious rhymes that are unrivaled by any modern rappers, the break-neck speed of ‘DNA’ would become the calling card for what would be the breakout moment for the young prodigy, the moment that the doubters finally had to stand up and take notice.

‘ELEMENT’, ‘PRIDE’ & ‘FEAR’ all showcase the swagger and drawl that has become synonymous with Kendrick’s style, but it’s the stand-out ‘FEEL’ that takes the album to the next level. The dynamic and sparse track is stripped down to only the essential beats, displaying Lamar’s evolving complexity in his material. 

There is even room for some notable cameos on a few tracks, with Rihanna featuring on ‘LOYALTY’ and Zacari providing the hook for the excellent ‘LOVE’. U2 even manage to contribute to the album with Bono lending his voice to ‘XXX’.

Still only 31 years old and with a few classics already under his belt, the world awaits the next album from the young king.

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A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory (1991)

How can anyone talk about the greatest, without mentioning A Tribe Called Quest?

Initially praised as a quantum leap for rap, the Tribe’s second album The Low End Theory is to hip-hop what Thriller is to pop music or Discovery is to electronic music; forever synonymous with the genre and in the years since it’s release, is seen as a major milestone for the genre.

People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, the debut album by the group, was ground-breaking in its own right. Giving audiences a glimpse into the sprawling, rhythmic sound that the band would go on to cultivate and along with the unique approach to the mic shown by Q-Tip, they released hit after hit starting with the classic ‘Can I Kick It?’ followed by ‘Luck Of Lucien’, ‘Rhythm’ and ‘Bonita Applebum’. They would follow on with their experimental, jazz-centric style with the second release only a year later.

The major difference between both albums comes down to two things; the emergence of Pfife Dawg and Q-Tip’s peerless production style.

A month after the release of People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, group member Phife Dawg learned that he was diabetic and almost left the group. After speaking with fellow member Q-Tip, they agreed to increase his participation on their second album and it would lead to a completely new element to the sound that the band were evolving on The Low End Theory.

This is no more prevalent than on the excellent ‘Buggin’ Out’ and lead single ‘Check The Rhime’ and despite initial worries for its critical success, the release of the stand-out ‘Jazz (We’ve Got)’ followed by ‘Scenario’, which is widely considered to be the Tribe’s greatest track and the breakout moment for the career of the young Busta Rhymes.

It’s also the strength of the other songs on the album that resonates with audiences to this day, the Q-Tip led opener ‘Excursions’ sets the pace whilst the exceptional ‘Butter’, ‘Vibes And Stuff’ & ‘Verses Of The Abstract’ feature beats and rhymes that are so well assembled that they could lead any other album, past or present.

[iamspok]

‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ - Kanyes One True Masterpiece?

Could it be that one of Kanye’s least successful albums is the jewel in his (self-professed) crown?

Well yes, it is.

I’m going to come out and say it, I believe that Kanye West is one of the greatest promoters in the industry and certainly a top-shelf producer of hip-hop music. He’s never been my favorite rapper or even close to it, but his bold approach to each album he undertakes is something that I’ve always admired. He is different and he has made a career out of being outspoken, outrageous and arrogant.

In recent years he’s gone off the rails, heavily supporting the much-maligned Donald Trump, his references to slavery and his hospitalization for mental health issues. It seems like the constant spotlight and paparazzi attention (that he instigated, let’s be honest) has got the better of him, it’s no longer about his music. 

Even when his latest solo release ‘Ye’ was released, the attention was on him and his actions as opposed to the music and despite the album not being a classic for many fans, it seemed like no one really cared about the album, it was the process and Kanye that was under scrutiny. 

days later he would co-release the sparse, modern hip-hop driven ‘KIDS SEE GHOSTS’ with Kid Cudi, an album that was released to very positive reviews, however, you would be forgiven for not even knowing that it existed until weeks later, as the press hunted Kanye for his bipolar diagnosis and his on-going support of Trump.

But let's go back to the beginning, the point of this article is to highlight that Kanye was (and hopefully still is) an artist that wants to expand the genre of Hip Hop. It’s easy to discount him because of the superstar he’s become and the almost cartoon figure that he presents to the world these days, but once upon a time, he was at the very top of the rap game and when it seemed like he had lost his touch, he released one of the best modern Hip Hop albums in memory.

In the short years leading up to ‘MBDTF’, Kanye West was already one of the most successful hip-hop artists in history. Before he burst onto the scene as a rapper in 2004, he was a well-renowned producer, working with the likes of Mase, Goodie Mob, Roc-a-fella and Jay-Z. Just a few short years after his debut album ‘The College Dropout’ came out, he was a global superstar and a household name thanks to such mega-hits as All Falls Down, Touch The Sky, Gold Digger & Stronger but he would soon start to make headlines for different reasons.

He worked out that his flamboyance and frequent outbursts made for great press and he suddenly became a media darling, speaking out against homophobia in rap music and criticizing then-President Goerge Bush for ‘not caring about black people’ following Hurricane Katrina. The death of his Mother and his subsequent struggles to come to terms with the loss followed and the world waited for his next material.

The spotlight was on him and it seemed like it got the better of him when his overly-experimental ‘808′s & Heartbreak’ dropped in 2008, showcasing barely any rapping, instead focusing on auto-tuned, electronic R&B. An album that was filled with references to grief and loss, years later it is now seen as an influence in the new wave that would follow with the likes of The Weeknd and Frank Ocean. At the time it seemed like he’d gone a step too far and the hype began to subside as Kanye took a step away from the limelight to study fashion and eventually into self-imposed exile following the now-infamous Taylor Swift incident at the 2009 VMA’s. Few thought that he’d ever return to that early career form.

Then in May 2010, the world heard an unmixed, unreleased version of what would become ‘POWER’ and interest was peaked. The bold, grandiose single would later become a blueprint for Kanye’s style and swagger and embodied what the album would become.

As the months passed, Kanye decided to release free music via his program ‘GOOD Fridays’ through his website, something that was labeled as a marketing master-stroke and generated considerable publicity for the late November release of the album, not all of the songs released made it onto the album, peaking the interest of fans. The release of the apocalyptic ‘moving painting’ music video for ‘POWER’ sent those fans into overdrive.

The album, a powerful extravaganza, is Kanye West at his absolute peak and was met with widespread critical acclaim. Billboard, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork and TIME would all go on to name it the best album of 2010.

Despite the likes of ‘Gorgeous’, ‘So Appalled’ and ‘Monster’ showcasing the rap skills of Kanye and others such as Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross and Pusha T, it’s the pop-laden ‘All Of The Lights’, ‘Lost In The World’ & the already-popular monster hit ‘POWER’ that pushed the album into the limelight.

‘Runaway’ would also prove a big hit in late 2010 helping the album stay at the top and hardcore Ye fans (me included) will tell you that ‘Devil In A New Dress’ & ‘Blame Game’ would be among his lead singles on most other albums. 

The album will, as it stands, go down as Kanye’s masterpiece, a truly artistic endeavor that proved that he will always be one of the best producers in the game and helped cement his place as hip-hop’s latest and arguably biggest superstar. Less than a year later, he would co-release the much-loved ‘Watch The Throne’ alongside long-time friend and collaborator Jay-Z, an album which alongside ‘MBDTF’ would put Kanye back into the hearts and minds of all Hip Hop heads.

Who else could say that they released a 35-minute short film featuring only music from the album, depicting a romantic relationship between a half-woman, half-phoenix starring himself to help promote his latest release?

Only Kanye.

#kanyewest mybeautifuldarktwistedfantasy #hiphop rap music

[iamspok]

Defining Game Of Thrones Moments

Not including any wedding, because we all know.

Game Of Thrones is no doubt the powerhouse of the TV world. We’ve all been along for the ride as Jon Snow rose from the bastard son of a northern lord to the king in the north, Danearys stepped out of her brother’s shadow to attempt to conquer the seven kingdoms with her ‘children’ and Cercei’s journey from being an evil bitch to..well, she hasn’t changed that much.

As we prepare ourselves for the final season and the last installment in Westeros (at least, in this era) we’re all looking back at the moments that have made this show what it is today and it’s not easy to pick out only a few. Let’s all assume that the Red Wedding is the universal winner, it was shocking, amazingly executed and utterly heart-breaking; it is perfect.

But let’s give some other scenes a chance at glory!

S1, E6 -  A Golden Crown - A crown for a king.

Before the shocks started coming thick and fast, we had this and it was very unexpected.

I’ll be honest, I liked the character of Viserys, the same way I liked Joffrey’s character. Shows like these need people who inspire hate so that we can get behind the ‘hero’ and Viserys inspired hate in all of us, you would forgive anyone for expecting him to stick around for a long time.

Viserys was tired of not being treated like the rightful king he felt he was by Khal Drogo and the Dothraki, who seemed to accept his sister Danearys more than him, but he didn’t understand how little fucks the Dothraki gave.

As he confronted his sister and the Khal, Drogo promises him ‘’a golden crown that men will tremble to behold‘’. As he’s restrained, Drogo melts down some gold medallions and proceeds to pour the molten gold over the head of Viserys, giving him the crown he promised.

‘‘He was no dragon, fire cannot kill a dragon’‘

S1, E9 - Baelor - Ned Stark’s judgment.

This was probably the moment that the entire world heard about, this was when Game Of Thrones became a must-watch TV show.

Ned Stark was the character that Game Of Thrones was going to be built around, at least, that's what everyone (excluding the people who had read the books) thought at the time. It wasn’t just his character, noble, brave and the head of a powerful house, it was also the fact that Sean Bean was essentially the only well-known actor who was in the show!

Ned had left his home at Winterfell to serve as the hand of the king to his lifelong friend, Robert Baratheon. As the episodes went on he started to uncover the secrets that would lead to his estrangement and when Robert was killed on a boar hunt, he believed that Joffrey was not the rightful heir to the throne and sought to keep the Lannister’s at bay until he got word to Stannis Baratheon, King Robert’s brother.

But he under-estimated the lengths to which the Lannister’s would go to seize power and due to his lack of allies in the capital, found himself on the execution block.

Even at this moment, I was waiting for someone to save him, even when the sword was swung up. As soon as that blade hit, Game Of Thrones took off and the world was now watching.

S2, E9 -  Blackwater -Wildfire.

The first episode that focused entirely on one event and what an event it was.

Stannis is approaching blackwater bay and King’s Landing is very likely to fall, the only person standing in the way? Tyrion Lannister.

As the powerful figures of the capital try and reconcile the fact that 100,000 men are coming to sack the city and take the throne, Tyrion is the only one that sees victory in the reflection of the water with a special weapon, Wildfire.

As the boats approach the shore, Davos is confused as to why there is no opposition to their invasion until a lone ship passes by them. Before he can warn anyone, Bronn sends the arrow that will (largely) defeat an army.

As the first blockbuster set-piece of the show, this was a special moment and the first of a few episodes dedicated to just one battle.

S3, E4 -  And Now His Watch Is Ended - Danearys’ army.

There are many ‘fuck you’ moments in Game Of Thrones and Danearys has a lot of them, alluding to the fact that even in the seven kingdoms, men still underestimate powerful women. Of all of these moments, this is the one that burned the most (no pun intended).

Danearys has traveled to Astapor to seek an army for her upcoming conquest of Westeros and she has come across the Unsullied; an army of elite eunuchs that are bred for war, they feel no pain nor emotion under the rule of Kraznys, a slaver who is also a ‘master’.

At this point, we’re already aware that Danearys is not a fan of slavery so it’s a surprise when she offers the master a dragon in exchange for 13,000 men, which she is heavily advised against.

She was never going to give away one of her children, was she.

Dracarys.

S4, E6 -  The Laws of Gods and Men - Tyrion’s Speech.

My god, a speech has never sounded or felt so good. I’d be shocked If you didn’t get goosebumps during Tyrion’s trial outburst.

Tyrion is on trial for Joffrey’s murder due to Cersei’s insistence that he was responsible. Despite Jamie’s doubts and protestations, the trial would go ahead and Tywin would use Tyrion’s own ex, Shae, against him. As his disgust rises at Shae’s carefully crafted lies he confesses...to hating pretty much everyone in the room!

You can feel his anger coming through the screen, Peter Dinklage has given many rousing performances throughout the show’s history but this is his stand out.

The demand for a trial by combat is the pay-off the scene needed & one of the more satisfying ending’s the show has ever had. This leads me to...

S4, E8 -  The Mountain and the Viper - Oberyn’s fate

Who else is still sore from this scene?

Oberyn Martell (aka The Red Viper of Dorne) came to King’s Landing to attend the king’s wedding to represent Dorne in the place of his brother, Prince Doran,  who had become sick, but that wasn’t his only reason for traveling north. Oberyn came to seek the truth and justice for his murdered sister Elia & her children, who he believed was murdered by Gregor Clegane (aka The Mountain) on the orders of Tywin Lannister.

So imagine his joy when The Mountain is named as the crown’s champion in Tyrion’s-demanded trial by combat, this was his chance to confront his sister’s killer and rapist.

Fast forward to the battle and The Viper take’s Gregor down to his knee’s and stabs him through his breastplate; that’s it right? wrong.

As Oberyn is distracted by seeking a confession from Tywin, the mountain trips The Viper and proceeds to not only kill him but to gauge his eyes out and literally crush his head in his bare hands, all the while, confessing to his sister’s rape and murder.

Brutal.

S5, E8 - Hardhome - The walker's attack.

We all know that white walkers are the enemy, through all of the fight’s that are breaking out all over the seven kingdom’s, the walker’s don’t give a shit about politics and they don’t care about the throne or who sits on it, they just want to kill everyone, but up until this point we hadn’t seen what they were capable of.

Enter Hardhome.

Jon is heading south to seek a truce with the wildling’s to bring them south of the wall, protecting them from the advancing white walkers, thus allowing them to help protect the wall from the dead.

This meeting would be interrupted. As the fog closes in the walkers attack, almost immediately taking out thousands of wildlings and attempting to take out the lord commander and his new allies.

Jon escapes just in time, but as he’s leaving, the true nature of the army of the dead makes itself known as the Night King raises all of the dead bodies left from the battle.

S6, E5 - The Door - HODOR!

No, you’re crying.

There are a lot of shocking moments in Game Of Thrones, but it’s quite light on genuinely upsetting moments but this one made up for them all.

Brann is continuing his journey as the three-eyed raven and his ever trusty companion Hodor is still with him. As the walker’s manage to locate them, they close in on the group. As they attack, Brann must take control of Hodor as he’d done in past episodes to help them escape.

At this point, Brann’s storyline had just started to take shape and it was starting to become apparent that he has a big role to play in the rest of the show, but he’s also not properly trained and doesn’t know his own power.

As they’re escaping the clutches of the dead, Brann is still controlling Hodor as he holds the door (cry) closed so that Brann can get away. He’s struggling to keep it closed and Meera is screaming ‘’hold the door!’’

We see that the strain on Brann’s connection to Hodor affects his past, as young Wylis has a seizure, eventually leaving him unable to say anything but ‘’hold the door’’ eventually shortened to ‘’hodor’’.

Heartbreaking on so many levels and also shocking, not only has Brann affected the past and is the reason that Hodor has become (as they like to say in Game Of Thrones) simple-minded but he is now gone forever.

S6, E9 - Battle Of The Bastards - Snow vs Snow

The highest rated episode of Game Of Thrones (IMDb), there couldn’t be a list without this incredible piece of television.

Jon has rode south with a small army to take back his home of Winterfell and take down Ramsey Bolton, the new warden of the north and his sister Sansa’s violent husband.

We get a taste of what’s to come when Ramsey puts an arrow through Ricon Stark, Jon’s brother whom he hadn’t seen for years. This leads to a series of up’s and down’s for Jon and his army as a brutal battle starts, the to-and-fro of this episode is enough to make your heart stop, it’s blockbuster television at it’s finest.

Just as the battle seems lost, Sansa saves the day when the Knights of the Vale ride to her aide to take down the Bolton army and help take back Winterfell, giving power in the north back to the Stark’s.

We get an extremely satisfying payoff for Sansa as she watches Ramsey’s own hungry hounds rip him apart.

S7, E6 -  Beyond the Wall - A dragon falls.

There’s quite a lot that’s not right with this episode. There are continuity errors and the timing is questionable, it’s not surprising as since they’ve fully strayed from the books, the show has stepped up its efforts to reach the end of the story.

For me, it’s taken away some of the charm of the show and its restraint in advancing certain parts of the story when it just needed to simmer for a while. However, one of the biggest moments of the show takes place at the end of this episode.

Jon and his rag-tag bunch of mates have gone north of the wall looking to capture a walker to persuade Cersei to stop the war and turn her attention to the dead, in the process they find themselves surrounded by the Night King and his army.

Luckily, Usain Bolt (aka Gendry) manages to get back to Eastwatch to warn Davos that they are in trouble just in the nick of time, Davos sends a raven to warn Daenerys and she decides she needs to go and help, with all three of her dragons.

They manage to take out a lot of walkers and start to save the group, but the Night King has other ideas as he launches an arrow straight into Viserion, knocking it to the ice and under.

As the rest of the episode plays out, the group manage to get out alive but all is not well as we see the Night King commanding his army to pull Viserion from under the ice. As it’s lifeless body is pulled out, he works his magic...

Holy shit!

Viserion is seen being ridden by the Night King at the end of season 7 as he takes down a part of the wall and the walkers head towards Westeros.

So there you have it, my defining moments of Game Of Thrones, a show which has transcended pop culture and become the most watched TV show of all time.

Let us pray for a satisfying ending.

[iamspok]

Better Call Saul is the best show on TV, let me explain...

Ever since The Sopranos was released in 99′, TV has never been the same. Shortly after came Band Of Brothers & The Wire, whether you like them or not we’ve experienced evolutions through the likes of Lost, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Black Mirror, The Walking Dead, Sherlock, True Detective, Game Of Thrones, Westworld and of course, Breaking Bad.

All of these shows have expanded on the idea that the small screen can have a much bigger impact than the big screen, think back to the first time you saw the pilot for Lost, when you first visited the ‘upside down’ in Stranger Things or when Jack Bauer started hunting down those damn terrorists in 24, it grabbed you by the throat and demanded attention and beyond the effects and the pazazz was TV’s secret weapons against the big screen; story, character & time.

Television was always seen as the ugly sibling of the cinema, it was seen as a downward trajectory for an actor’s career and somewhat of a death knell until HBO almost singlehandedly took a stand and decided to use the platform to showcase stories that would never be able to be shown in a movie. They cut the episode count thus reducing the ‘filler’ & they brought in talent; whether that be behind or in front of the camera. Nowhere is that more on show than 2001′s Band Of Brothers, recruiting the team of Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks to helm a gritty, emotional powerhouse that still stands as one of the greatest projects brought to any screen.

HBO didn’t stop there and possibly their most ambitious investment in talent is still running today; Game Of Thrones. The phenomenon has almost transcended popular culture now thanks to the writing of George R.R.Martin and the talents of the cast and crew (Dinklage, anyone?) and stands as the benchmark for a blockbuster TV show. Speak to the general viewer however and there is one more show that will always be mentioned in the same breath, that is, of course, Breaking Bad.

Breaking Bad didn’t have a huge investment, it didn’t boast grand special effects or set pieces, in fact, most of the show didn’t even have a score or a soundtrack but what it did have in abundance was an amazing writing team that delivered an intense, sprawling story and characters that were not only well written (and well acted, lets be honest) but very well utilised when needed, it knew it didn’t have the money or even the platform to compete (the UK didn’t see any real advertisement for it until around season 3!) but slowly and surely, it became an indispensable part of our TV schedule and this is largely down to its creator, Vince Gilligan.

Jump forward a few years and Breaking Bad had finished (cryemoji) and it became an instant classic and Vince Gilligan was going to ride off into the sunset as an innovator and a titan of television..so it’s a massive surprise to everyone when we first see this on our newsfeeds.

‘’Is he fucking crazy?!’’ & ‘’Why would you ruin a legacy’’ were two of my repeated statements when I found out that he was returning to the world to expand on the character of Saul Goodman, who although was entertaining throughout, didn’t offer much to the overall story of Breaking Bad.

This is where I start my argument for Better Call Saul’s supremacy.

My three stages of acceptance;

1. ‘’This is actually really good’’

I was always gonna watch it, for better or for worse, I’m a huge Breaking Bad fan, I’m a Gilligan fan and I’m an optimist at heart. After the first 3 / 4 episodes I started to realize that we might be actually getting a great show here but still, at the end of every episode I was expecting the next episode to fall flat and for the quality to diminish but every week they started to build these characters and these plot’s that hooked me, by the end of the season I was fully invested and I didn’t even realize it.

How has he managed to make Saul (aka Jimmy) a character that I can empathize with? How has he managed to make me love Mike even more than I already did?! I couldn’t wait for season 2 and I said to myself ‘you keep the quality at this level and this is a good prequel series that doesn’t ruin Breaking Bad’ which is all I hoped for, initially, but as the episode’s rolled on, I came to this realization.

2. ‘’This is making Breaking Bad better’’

If the point in a prequel is to improve the overall experience of the source material (basically the opposite of Star Wars) then it hit me somewhere between season 2 and 3 that this was doing just that, to great effect. It made me excited to rewatch everything once Better Call Saul was over, people were given new life and the introduced characters were well-written and used perfectly, Kim and Chuck, in particular, were as developed as anyone in Breaking Bad outside of Walt and Jessie.

At around the midway point of season 3, I was intensely hooked on just about everything the show was offering and after ‘Chicanery’ (episode 5) I was obsessed, I couldn’t have my phone in the same room as me when I watched an episode just in case it distracted me for a second, I couldn’t watch it with another person just in case they dared to speak and I was refreshing my Netflix feed at 9am every Tuesday until it appeared. When season 3 finished on that bombshell, I didn’t know what to do with myself, I’ve never felt withdrawl’s about any show like I did with Better Call Saul. 

It was like a drug, that’s when it dawned on me...

3. ‘’Wait..this is actually better than Breaking Bad!”

Here’s where I usually lose my audience, but let me try and explain.

Everything that made Breaking Bad a classic show & everything that made it stand out from the crowd is executed with higher quality on Better Call Saul. It’s subjective of course, what made it great for me was its methodical pace, I admired the fact that they never rushed a story, there was almost a restraint in the way they approached their development.

I’m one of those viewers that appreciates the smaller details and Vince Gilligan doesn’t give much of a shit in pointing the audience in a certain direction. The reason that so many people can’t relate the same way that they did to Breaking Bad is that Better Call Saul expects the viewer to do the work, they give you the story/scene/characters and say to you ‘you’ve been watching, you figure out what’s going on’ which depending on how you’re watching, can make it seem like nothing’s going on.

This is not a show for the casual viewer and I think that’s why it’ll never have the same size fanbase as Breaking Bad, but it’s also why I think Better Call Saul will be seen as a classic in the future. Not appreciated fully in its own time, I truly believe we’ll look back on this as a masterpiece but what is even more clear to me is that they will exist alongside each other.

Gilligan knows that all he needs to do is connect these together, it’s more than 2 separate shows now, it’s a project, he doesn’t bring characters back just for the sake of nostalgia or because it’ll get a cheap pop, there’s a method and there’s a deeper story being told. If Breaking Bad was the exterior, sleek & beautifully crafted then Better Call Saul is what’s under the hood, it’s the engine that powers the whole thing, they are now a part of each other in more than just the extended story.

When it finishes and I can watch them back-to-back, I’m taking 2 weeks off work.

#breaking bad #better call saul #amc #netflix

[iamspok]

Top 10 Video Game Sidekicks

Modern day gaming is a much more collaborative experience, geared towards often fast-paced, multiplayer or co-operative gameplay, whether you like it or not the days of the story mode is in it’s twilight with many of the bigger developers now opting to either forego the traditional single player experience or incorporating it into an overall online mode (see Destiny, Titanfall, Star Wars Battlefront) and while gamers have pushed back, there is no doubting that the further into the future we get, the more integrated we are.

But for many years, there have been characters who were designed to help you on your path and simulate that collaborative experience, some of which became beloved heroes of the gaming community and some, well, not so much (I personally still have nightmares about Natalya from Goldeneye and her casual stroll through a hail of AK-47 gunfire)

This article is dedicated to the characters that made the game a better experience, whether it be for gameplay or purely for the story, they live on with the legacy of each game on the list.

Dogmeat (Fallout)

The idea that dog is man’s best friend always seems to have been prevalent in everyday life but never has it been more important than in the post-apocalyptic world of Fallout.

Dogmeat would do anything to protect you, he would attack anyone or anything at anytime, he sniffs out valuable items that aid your survival in this unforgiving world, he will follow a scent for miles and he is your only remaining family, if that’s not enough to earn this dog a place on this list, then you obviously aren’t a dog person.

Cortana (Halo)

Cortana is the first blockbuster sidekick on this list that was introduced to the world in the incredibly successful Halo.

The supercomputer would assist you by hacking rogue alien systems, providing tactical assistance and decoding transmissions essential to your mission and gives Master Chief his only human link (ironic) in the entire game.

To put into perspective how successful this sidekick would become, she now resides on tens of millions of PC’s around the world as a virtual assistant that helps operate the Windows system, if that’s not a sign that you’ve been important, I don’t know what is.

Otacon (Metal Gear Solid)

‘’Snake, you of course know the saying ‘one for all, all for one’. It’s from ‘The Three Musketeers’ - the book, not the candy bar’’

In one of the most intense gaming series of all time, often with cut-scenes that were obscenely longer and more detailed than anything that had come before it or since, Otacon brought a lighter tone to the world of Metal Gear Solid.

With his often ill-timed explanations of totally random subjects (see pre-ripped jeans, daylight savings, Chinese proverbs) he became a cult favorite amongst hardcore MGS players, the fact that he used to help Snake through various missions with his codec updates is only an added bonus that gets him on this list.

Weighted Companion Cube (Portal)

‘‘It’s just an object..it doesn’t even do anything’’ said absolutely no one who has ever played Portal. This little cube was pretty much your only ally in the entire game, starting out as just a lump that you would use to hit switches or complete a puzzle it eventually became a friend (yes, I said a friend) and as the game presented more challenging obstacles it became invaluable.

Then came the incinerator, I struggle to think of anything else in pop culture that felt as crushing a blow for the loss of something that was not even alive in the first place (maybe Wilson from Castaway)

Godspeed trusted companion cube, we will meet again.

Yoshi (Super Mario World)

Step aside Luigi, because Yoshi is the one true sidekick to Mario.

First introduced in 1990, Yoshi first came about simply as a mode of transportation for the famous brothers but soon became very useful on their adventures. You could ride him (which was cool as hell anyway) you could sacrifice him to get over obstacles or just throw him away when he wasn’t needed, he would help you take care of those pesky enemies and I defy you to name any other sidekick that pooped out power-up’s at the rate he did.

He’s stuck with the series over the years and has even managed to get a few game’s of his own (Yoshi’s Island, Yoshi’s Story, Yoshi’s Wooly World to name a few) which is something that only one other character on this list has managed to accomplish, impressive.

Claptrap (Borderlands II)

Let's be honest, usually when you have a sidekick whose main purpose is to provide comic relief it falls flat on its face, but in the world of Borderlands, it is exactly what you expect and what you need.

Despite the fact he raised an army and tried to kill you at the end of Borderlands, by the time you come across him in Borderlands II all is forgiven after a few minutes, mainly acting as a guide through the wastelands of Pandora, the game quite literally would not have been the same without him. Not just satisfied to be the life and soul of the party, Claptrap will also open doors for you and help you open those magical loot chests that you lust after.

Leonardo Da Vinci (Assassins Creed 2)

Assassins Creed 2 was an excellent game, ranking as either many gamers favorite of the franchise or most important, it overhauled the game mechanics from the original which had been hailed as a storytelling master stroke, but showcased cumbersome climbing and fighting physics that often made the game feel like a chore, it’s hard to put into words just how much this installment lit a fire under the series that has since become a juggernaut, reaching as far as Hollywood.

Among the riveting missions, the outlandish, often villainous supporting characters and mysterious storyline set in the various visually stunning cities of Italy, you had the chance to meet the one and only Leonardo Da Vinci.

At first you’re excited about how he fits into the narrative of the story but when you realize that he’s building you item’s that the game hasn’t presented to you before, the real fun starts. First, there was the hidden blade, he then introduced you to some new fighting techniques, which in a game like Assassins Creed is very important to keep things fresh, along with the ability to poison enemies (honestly, is there anything more satisfying than poisoning just one guard in a group and seeing him go crazy? no) but this all lead up to arguably the best mission of the game in sequence 8...WHERE YOU FLY OVER THE ROOFTOPS OF VENICE IN A GIANT DAMN WOODEN BIRD!

Tails (Sonic Series)

There may be no more important entry into this list than Tails. In 1992 when the beloved character was first introduced, gaming culture was still in its relative infancy on the mass market and was about to take a big upward swing over the next few years and Sonic The Hedgehog would play a major role in its development.

Sonic would become one of the most popular games on the Sega mega drive and its marquee title, with its addictive side scrolling action and it’s fast-paced boss fights, it was in the rarefied atmosphere only shared by Super Mario Bros at the absolute crux of the gaming community, but where Mario had his trusty Luigi, Tails would be a more useful sidekick to Sonic, his power of flight would occasionally be invaluable for successfully completing a level and without him, there would be no biplane to take down Dr. Eggman’s wing fortress.

I’m sure anyone reading this article who had a younger sibling and had to share a mega drive would also agree, Tails is the best!

Ellie (Last Of Us)

Although being a playable character later on in the game and spawning a spin off (Left Behind) there could have been no list without the incomparable Ellie from The Last Of Us.

This is widely regarded now as the greatest video game of all time and the character of Ellie provides a huge reason for this, as you navigate the post-apocalyptic world following an outbreak that ravages the United States, you lose your family and your hope for a new humanity until you are introduced to Ellie, the 14-year old girl who could potentially hold the fate of humanity inside her.

A connection with any character in a video game this intense is incredibly rare as she becomes increasingly important, not just to the story but to you as the player and explains the mixed emotions at the end when Joel would essentially rather see the human race die then have Ellie taken away from him, totally fair in my books.

Elizabeth (Bioshock Infinite)

The best AI sidekick of all time? I would say so.

Bioshock has always been an immersive story-driven experience, through the underwater steampunk world of Rapture featured in the first 2 installments, gamer’s were presented an extremely dark, often terrifying experience as we learned to deal with the psychopathic enemies that lurked in the shadows, by the time Bioshock:Infinite was released, we were ready to ascend to the clouds of Columbia.

Often times, ’escort’ missions in video games are incredibly tedious so if I were to tell you that Infinite is basically one, long escort mission, many would simply not bother playing it but Elizabeth proves to be the most helpful and one of the most interesting sidekicks in video game history.

She keeps herself out of the way of danger, she tosses you supplies and ammunition when it’s needed most, she can find money and open locked doors and if you played the game on the hardest difficulty like me, she is absolutely necessary.

I can still say to this day that the feeling of accomplishment I had upon completing Infinite is unparalleled and Elizabeth is the very definition of what a video game sidekick should be.