Josh Sorokach’s Top 10 of Everything in 2018

You: “Hey! Hang Time’s a TNBC series from the ’90s! You can’t include that on your “Best of 2018″ list.”

Me: Shut up.

This article is about my favorite things of 2018, and honestly, the Hang Time theme song is one of them. Premiering back in 1995, Hang Time was basically a less popular Saved By the Bell… but with BASKETBALL and occasionally Dick Butkus. The first season of the show utilized a terrible theme song that sounded like a poor man’s facsimile of the California Dreams intro, but then teen sitcom gunslinger Peter Engel was named the Season 2 showrunner and (probably) said, “Do you idiots like money? Then how about we replace that abomination with the best theme song in TV history?”

I’ve never dabbled in cocaine, but I assume it has the same intoxicating effect as listening to the Hang Time intro. This ditty straight up bangs and will instantly improve your mood. Sure, the lyrics make absolutely no sense and the song sounds like it was written by a robot trying to describe friendship and basketball to a different, stupider robot, but that’s just part of its innate charm.

“Hang time! Running together. Putting it on the line. Hang time! Jamming forever. Taking it up for hang time.”

What?

“Hang time! Hanging together. Sharing a dream so fine. Hang time! I’ll always remember… me and my friend and Hang Time. Me and my friends and Hang Tiiiiime. Hang Time.”

1. I respect the lyrical bravado of following “hang time” with “hanging together.”

2. The term “Hang Time” is said eight times and flashes on the screen six times during this 48-second intro. I’m honestly surprised former Indiana Pacers center Rik Smits doesn’t pop up and say, “You’re watching Hang Time” and then dunk a basketball during one of those bitchin’ instrumental breaks.

3. At one point, Anthony Anderson appears to be acting like a chicken.

Hang Time!

The best sister (sister) combo since Tia and Tamara Mowry, Zoey and Madelyn Deutch were responsible for two of my favorite films of 2018: Netflix’s Set It Up and The Year of Spectacular Men. Set It Up revitalized the sluggish rom-com genre and The Year of Spectacular Men, which was not only written by Madelyn but directed by her mother Lea Thompson and produced by her father Howard Deutch, was one of the most entertaining indie movies of the year.

Acting, directing, writing, it doesn’t matter. More of the Deutch family in 2019, please.

Earlier this year I rewatched all 57 episodes of the cult ABC sitcom Happy Endings and tried to select the best joke from each episode. An idea that should have taken me a week ended up lasting a month because the show had too many insanely hilarious moments. It almost killed me, but at the same time it gave me life, ya know?

In terms of the quantity and quality of jokes, Happy Endings is one of the smartest, laugh-out-loud funniest shows in TV history. If you’re in need of a laugh, all three seasons are currently streaming on Hulu or you can revisit my magnum opus on Decider.

Where to stream Happy Endings

Here’s what I wrote about Hollywood Handbook in my Top 10 of Everything in 2017 list:

Earwolf is filled with a ton of entertaining podcasts. Comedy fans are undoubtedly familiar with Comedy Bang Bang, How Did This Get Made?, and improv4humans, but the hidden gem of the podcasting goliath is Hollywood Handbook. Hosted by comedy writers Hayes Davenport and Sean Clements, the subversive podcast purports to be an insider’s guide to Hollywood by two A-listers who are living the dream, but the show generally devolves into wonderful comedic chaos.

Ditto, past Josh. Ditto.

If you’ve never listened to the show, “Triumph at Comic-Con” and “Jameela Jamil, Our Close Friend” are two of the funniest episodes of 2018.

I’ve never seen an episode of Bosch or God Friended Me, but both shows provided me with so much joy in 2018.

Earlier this year I texted the word “Bosch” to 100 people just to see what would happen, and back in September I embarked upon a journey to get the TV show God Friended Me to follow me on Twitter. I didn’t intend to become, as my one friend so eloquently described it “the king of nonsense journalism,” but here we are.

Here. We. Are.

What can I say? Avery Monsen is an actual genius.

The Good Place is simply the best. Last year, I listed writer Megan Amran’s museum-worthy list of food puns as my favorite bit of 2017. This year, my favorite Good Place moment is this silly, silly, dumb, wonderful joke from “A Fractured Inheritance:”

“MGM Grand Luxury Resort and Casino Elementary School: Always Bet on READ!”

Of course an Arizona elementary school sponsored by a casino would have the tagline “Always Bet on Read.”

No two people made me laugh more heartily this year than John Mulaney and Sam Richardson. First, you should absolutely watch Mulaney’s Kid Gorgeous at Radio City and Sam Richardson’s criminally-underrated Comedy Central series Detroiters. That’s a given. Second, these two have the best line reads of… anyone on Earth.

Veep’s Richard Splett is one of the funniest characters in TV history, and Richardson’s Twitter vendetta against birds has brought me so much joy. Mulaney not only performed the delivered the funniest stand-up special of 2018, but he also hosted one of the best SNL episodes in recent history.

Back in October, Decider’s Meghan O’Keefe wrote that Jesse Plemons deserved a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nom for Game Night. Spoiler: She’s not wrong. No character provided me with more genuine joy in 2018 than Gary from Game Night. This silly, stupid, wonderful bit in which Max (Jason Bateman) and Annie (Rachel McAdams) attempt to conceal the fact that they’re hosting a game night from Gary is, to me, the funniest cinematic moment of the year.

“How can that be profitable for Frito-Lay?” Brilliance. Pure brilliance.

Where to stream Game Night

I must have texted this brief, five-second exchange from NBC’s A.P. Bio to at least 100 people. It’s short, it’s simple, and it’s my absolute favorite pop culture moment of 2018.

In Episode 6 (“Freaking Enamored”), Jack is having a romantic dinner with the mother of one of his students. Before Colin exits to go to bed, his mom, who’s portrayed by the always wonderful Erinn Hayes, simply says “Goodnight, baby duck” and Colin quacks. This an obvious inside joke between the two, a tender moment between mother and son.

Glenn Howerton’s Jack is decidedly not on board. Even though he’s not at all involved in their exchange, he shakes his head and tersely says “no.”

I don’t just love this moment, I admire it. I relate to Jack’s irritation on a visceral level. I’ve watched this exchange hundreds of times and I laugh out loud every single time. Jack’s disdain for their tomfoolery is so immense, so pure, that he simply must vocalize it. It’s so silly, but it makes me happy. A.P Bio is one of the best written shows on TV, and I can’t wait for Season 2.

Thanks for the laughs, A.P. Bio. Happy holidays!

Where to stream A.P. Bio