10 Things to be Stoked About in 2017

Whew barely made it through 2016. It was touch and go there for a minute but glad to see you are here too. I mean it, you're my favorite. I figured with a whole new year of movies, tv, and video games coming our way I would take you on a little journey that we are calling "10 things to be stoked for in 2017". Now this is by no means all there is coming up but its 10 things I can't wait to check out. Before I get into it let me just say that if I get an honorable mention (and I'm making this list and its rules up so look at that I do indeed get an honorable mention, what luck) it would be for Red Dead Redemption 2. I know Rockstar said 2017 but I'm not getting too excited until I see an exact day. So here is my 10 and I put them in as close to calendar order as I could. 

Logan- March 3 : Starting off this list is everyone's favorite knife handed Canuck. The X-men movies have been hit or miss for most people and the stand alone Wolverine movies are the extremes. Wolverine Origins was a pile. If you sat through it you know what I mean so I won't rail against it here. I mean the "Merc with a Mouth" not being able to speak, who thought that was what anyone wanted...Ok you're right, said I wouldn't do this, I'm done. The second Wolverine movie was a much much better take on our boy Logan. So they are tied up at 1 and 1 and here comes the third and final in Hugh Jackman's time as old Wolvey. I have checked out the trailer and it seems to be a much more somber take than I was expecting. What seemed to be a take on the "Old Man Logan" storyline by Mark Millar and Steve McNiven looks now to be a lot more of an original story. I really liked the "Old Man Logan" story but I also understand getting all the characters from that story in one movie would have been basically another avengers level event. Jackman has played the Wolverine for 17 years now (feel old yet?) so let's hope this movie can send him off right.

Iron Fist- March 17 : For me personally this is the event of the year. The Iron Fist is my favorite Marvel character and I have been waiting and waiting for his Netflix show to come. I am sure I will do a longer blog post to kind of set this up closer to the premiere but the super abridged version is that Danny Rand was orphaned and taken in by a magical Kung Fu city and as an outsider he rose up to become the "Immortal Weapon Iron Fist". May seem cheesy and the original story from the 70's were but since then the character has gone through many different writers and artists hands to become more interesting and nuanced than his popped collar kung fu beginnings would lead you to believe. So far Netflix has been nailing the Marvel heroes of Hell's Kitchen and Harlem so I have more than enough faith they will do my man proud. Just a little longer to wait until I can binge it all on Friday March 17th. (Totally unrelated if you are reading this on Friday March 17th and I called off sick, it has nothing to do with binge watching Iron Fist...total coincidence.)

Mass Effect Andromeda- March TBA : Taking place 600 years after the original M.E. trilogy this game looks like it will be what fans want. Taking what the developers learned from the old games and improving on it for the newest release. A lot of people had their complaints about M.E. 3's ending so hopefully the jump forward in time will let people start fresh although in the gameplay trailer that was released we see a lot of familiar alien races so maybe this isn't as removed as it seems. No matter what this is a game I am looking forward to getting into for a solid 40- 50 hours based on how long the others took for me to finish and if it can hold my attention as well as they did this could be a game of the year contender. Maybe high hopes but after No Man's Sky I don't think I am alone in wanting a real open world space game with plenty to see and more importantly do.

Nintendo Switch- March TBA : Let's just get this out of the way, Nintendo needs this console to be a win. The Wii U had to be a pretty big letdown after how well the Wii sold. Now coming out years after the PS4 and XBOX One this is a last stand of sorts for Nintendo. Now I hear you already, Nintendo is a classic they will be fine you say. While I don't think they are in a bankruptcy situation I do think they need to really pull people back in. When I think of the big N I get the same warm and fuzzies we all do. Then when I stop and realize that all the games I love from Nintendo are in their late 20's to early 30's that is a bit of a concern. I'm not saying that was the last time the games were good it's just those are my happiest memories with the company. I liked the trailer they put out and I am more than a bit curious. Besides not knowing the price and how long that battery lasts I am maybe 60/ 40 to get one on or near launch. For myself the idea of gaming at home and on the go in one is pretty awesome and I can easily see myself being "Karen" and taking it with me. Who am I kidding? All they really need is to show me that Little Mac throws his star uppercut as well as I remember on the Switch and I'm sold. 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2- May 5 : Happy birthday me!! Well mine isn't technically until May 10th (now that you know I will be expecting gifts, donation, cookies with chocolate chips..) but the sequel to what is one of if not my favorite Marvel movie is a hell of a gift anyways. The first Guardians took what is one of the weirdest groups in Marvel and made us all love them. James Gunn has a style that fit this bit of the Marvel universe perfectly and I am totally in for more. I don't need to sell you on this one just go rewatch the trailer...rad huh? In 2 minutes it makes you laugh, has some action, and you fall in love for a tiny tree person and if that doesn't make an amazing movie then I don't know what does. All together now "We are Groot!"

Uncharted Lost Legacy- TBA : I am putting this one here cause I am hoping we get an E3 release. I have no reason to assume that but I love the Uncharted games so I just want to hope its sooner rather than later. This stand alone story will have us playing as Chloe and Nadine all through India as we try to get to a fabled treasure and keep it away from a war profiteer. Now this is coming from a guy who pretty much bought a Vita so I could play Uncharted Golden Abyss and who has Uncharted 4 as their easy game of the year pick for 2016. So whatever Naughty Dog is selling as far as the Uncharted series goes I am buying. They haven't released a ton but there is a gameplay trailer you can check out that gives us a good idea how these ladies will get things done. Nathan may be sitting this one out but it looks like there will be plenty of chases and shoot outs to keep everyone busy with just the same.

Wonder Woman- June 2 : This is the one thing on the list that I am just going with my gut the most on. I know the least about it but I am still pumped on it. Wonder Woman was by far the best part of Batman vs Superman and more than deserves her own movie. This sounds like it will be an origin story for her so its easy enough for anyone to come in and follow plus who doesnt want to see Princess Diana getting into her own WW2 story. Plus if it wasn't for this all DC would be putting out this year is the Justice League movie. Not sure where I stand on that one? See this list of things I'm looking forward to that you're reading? See how it's not on this list? Yea 

Spider-Man: Homecoming- July 7 : Of course I am stoked on Spidey. I already wrote him his own blog and we have his Midtown shirt available since pretty much the day the very first pics were leaked. The latest trailer seemed perfect for what I want out of this movie. Peter is in school still learning the ropes or webs (sorry) of being a hero, Tony Stark is guiding him along, and the villians look to be just enough. It's easy to put too much into a movie but Marvel seems to know just what to add without diluting the whole thing. Have to bring up Michael Keaton as the Vulture too. In the comics there have been a few iterations of the Vulture including an elderly guy with a feather boa on and a mobster who was turned into a half man half vulture with acid spit. So it would be easy to go real campy with this guy but the little they have shown is Keaton making him menacing and that can only up the stakes for old webhead. 

Game of Thrones- TBA : I'm not sure when this season will premiere but we know it will be a bit after the usual April G.O.T. premiere so I am taking a guess and saying mid summer. There is entirely too much going on with this show for me to even try to mention it all here. Let's just be honest you most likely are a fan of this already because if you aren't you would be a monster. A literal monster is just about the only thing I could imagine that isn't interested in seeing who will finally win this here game about thrones. So let's just all be patient and wait for Winter to return to our tv's. 

Thor Ragnarok- Nov 3 : Last on my list is the third Thor movie this time titled "Ragnarok". There isn't a trailer for this one yet so lets cover the basics that we do know. Looking for the plot for this on Wikipedia gives the following sentence "After the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron,Thor, the Hulk and Doctor Strange come together to face off against intergalactic enemies both familiar and new." If you are here reading this you probably saw Doctor Strange and saw this coming from the end credit scene and there have been serious rumors that a certain big green guy will be doing some gladiator type battling. So yea, safe to say this one will be worth checking out. Plus it will be directed by Taika Waititi who did "What We Do in the Shadows" with Jemaine Clement and I am definitely interested in seeing what he can do with a big budget superhero movie.

So there are 10 things to get hyped for in 2017. I know I missed a ton so feel free to let me know what you are all looking forward to. Even if it is the Justice League lol I know there have to be a few people into it so let me know if I am dismissing it early. We are planning a big year with a ton more shirts, Funko Pops!, and even a few more events and cons so stick around to find out where you can come out and pick up everything you need to rep all your loves this year and beyond!