What If Geeks 2nd Annual Geekie Awards
The Oscars rarely honor the Geek-friendly contributions to the TV and film industry. So the Geeks hold a special Geekie Awards podcast where we nominate our favorite films, shows, actors characters and moments - then argue amongst ourselves to determine the winner. Below are the results of this year's "Geekies"!
[*** Warning: may contain spoilers for multiple films and television series from 2019 ***]
Note: In the interest of time, we didn't necessarily cover all nominees during the podcast episode.
Best Picture
The Geek's choice for best movie of the year, taking into consideration acting performances, character development, screenwriting, directing, cinematography, special effects and musical scores.
Considerations - Avengers: Endgame, Spider Man: Far From Home, Joker, Terminator: Dark Fate, Shazam!
Winner - Avengers: Endgame
We're sure this doesn't come as much of a surprise after our unanimously rave Avenger's: Endgame podcast review. But we certainly weren't alone in our opinion - the film was widely praised by critics and audiences across the globe. This installment brought the Avenger's saga to an epic and well received ending, despite a few surprises. It also set a multitude of box office records in the process, including: highest-grossing opening weekend, fastest to reach $650 million and several single-day earnings records. It also became the highest grossing movie of all-time, earning a whopping $2.8 billion in the box office.
Best New Streaming or Television Series
The Geek's choice for best overall series, taking into consideration acting performances, character development, screenwriting, directing, cinematography, special effects and musical scores.
Considerations - The Mandalorian, The Boys, Watchmen, The Witcher, Another Life
Winner - The Mandalorian
This is another winner that probably comes as no surprise. The Geeks reviewed every single episode of the series on our podcast and published an extensive Easter egg list for each episode. Despite all the divisiveness in the fandom over the prequel trilogy, sequel trilogy, spin-offs and general discontent over the Disney buyout, The Mandalorian stands as one of a few ventures that Star Wars fans far and wide were genuinely excited to watch.
Best Sci-Fi Picture
The Geek's choice for a film that best represents the progression of the science fiction genre on screen.
Considerations - Brightburn, Detective Pikachu, I am Mother, Terminator: Dark Fate, Godzilla: King of Monsters
Winner - Brightburn
It's hard for the Geeks to watch any "What If" story without some level of excitement, but the fact that this was a dark and sometimes gruesome, Superman-esque, alternative origin story made it all the better. The R rating didn't hurt either, which is something of a rarity in this genre. We like twisted comic characters, we love dark storytelling themes and we appreciate a bit of unanticipated blood and gore. Brightburn delivers on all counts.
Best Hero
The Geek's choice for the character in film or TV that best represents virtues of heroism: selflessness, courage, compassion, fortitude, loyalty, conviction, integrity, determination and/or sacrifice.
Considerations - Iron Man, Captain America, The Mandalorian, Shazam
Winner - Iron Man / Tony Stark
This was a really tough call. While Tony Stark isn't always as righteous as Cap, as compassionate as Mando or as selfless as Shazam, he did make the ultimate sacrifice to save his fellow heroes and restore the universe to it's rightful state. And he did it despite his reservations about leaving behind his family and everything he had built at Stark Industries. Tony Stark had everything he wanted, and he let it all go for the benefit of others. This final selfless act earned him a well deserved title.
Best Villain
The Geek's choice for the character in film or TV that best represents a compelling villain.
Considerations - Mysterio (Spider Man: Far From Home), Brandon (Brightburn), Thanos (Avengers: Endgame), The Joker (Joker), The Horde (Glass)
Winner - Mysterio
What makes a compelling villain? Well, there are many plausible answers to that question because it's subjective. Instead of running through a list of traits, let's talk about why we chose Mysterio. When he makes his initial appearance in Spider Man: Far From Home, you wouldn't necessarily know he's the bad guy. He's sympathetic, supportive and seems genuinely interested in helping Peter Parker Of course, that's not really the case; and anyone familiar with the character would suspect that plans of world domination are lingering on his mind. What makes this particular portrayal unique, though, is that he takes a decidedly different approach than most would-be villains. In a world that is sorely in need of heroes, he adopts the good guy role to execute his diabolical plans, rather than revealing his villainous intent. It's almost as if he's aware of all the bad guy tropes in hero films.
Best Support Character
The Geek's choice for the best sidekick, assistant, guide, confidant, muse or comic relief for a hero.
Considerations - Tony Stark (Avengers: Endgame), The Yodalorian a.k.a. "Baby Yoda" (The Mandalorian), Jaskier the Bard (The Witcher), Goose (Captain Marvel)
Winner - Tony Stark
Wait, what? Why did we choose a superhero for this award? We felt like it was worth going off script this year. Stark's undeniable bond with Peter Parker is worth note. Peter is like the son that Tony always wanted, and Tony is the father figure that Peter needs. Stark acts as his mentor and confidant, while also amping up Spider Man's powers with technology. And there's some great comic relief in their frequent banter. This bond is so enduring that it continues to play a major part of Parker's story in Spider Man: Far From Home.
Best Story
The Geek's choice for the most engaging narrative in a film.
Considerations - Joker, Shazam!, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Ad Astra
Winner - Joker
If you listened to our multi-guest podcast review of this film, you might recall that we were split on whether we really needed this film at all. Nonetheless, most of us found it engaging and enjoyable in the end. Despite it being a serious deviation from the typical comic book movie, there's no question that director Todd Phillips and co-writer Scott Silver came up with an incredibly dark, gritty and engaging villain origin story.
Best Fight Scene
The Geek's choice for the most adrenaline inducing fight scene.
Considerations - The Knife Shop Fight (John Wick 3), Thor, Iron Man & Captain America v Thanos (Avengers: Endgame), Tunnel Fight / Final Battle (Rambo: Last Blood), Brixton v Hobbs & Shaw (Hobbs & Shaw)
Winner - The Knife Shop Fight (John Wick 3)
This knife throwing, torso stabbing, eye gouging, leg slicing fight is amazingly well choreographed. It's certainly no secret that John Wick has some impressive moves, but he really shines in this scene. Unlike some of the other contenders, there's little to no CGI backing up the action either. Its success is all in the cinematography and choreography. If you haven't witnessed this masterpiece yet, you really should hop over to Youtube and take a quick look.
Best Ass Whoopin'
The Geek's choice for the most devastating, appaling or comical beat down.
Considerations - IG-11 v the Scout Troopers (The Mandalorian), The Break-in Scene (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), Geralt v Renfri and Gang (The Witcher), Captain Marvel v Yon Rogg (Captain Marvel)
Winner - IG-11 v the Scout Troopers (The Mandalorian)
This beatdown is so fast and brutal that it falls square in the comical category (it doesn't hurt that the two scout troopers were played by real life comedians). But after these two knuckleheads literally punched the helpless Yodalorian in the face multiple times, it felt sinfully pleasing to watch it go down.
Best Chase Scene
The Geek's choice for the most exciting and entertaining chase scene.
Considerations - Hobbs & Shaw, Motorcycle Chase (Gemini Man), Moon Pirates (Ad Astra), Truck Chase (Terminator: Dark Fate)
Winner - Hobbs & Shaw
Which chase scene? How about all of them? If we have to pick one, maybe the cyborg motorcycle chase. But honestly, the entire film is basically a sequence of "fast and furious" chase and fight scenes, sprinkled with a little dialogue. How could you go wrong with a choice like that?
Most Surprising Performance
The Geek's choice for the most surprising performance in a film or television series.
Winner - Joaquin Phoenix (Joker)
You might be wondering why there are no nominees listed but the answer is simple. This is a rare case where the Geeks unanimously agree with Hollywood critics. Joaquin Phoenix's performance as The Joker was unexpected, captivating, disturbing and bordering on downright genius. It was no contest.
We covered a handful of other categories in the Geekie Awards podcast, so go have a listen if you're interested. And let us know what you think about our picks!