TOP PICK
The Dark Knight
(Warner)
The best movie of 2008 is also one of the best DVDs of 2008, with a two-disc set that includes Gotham Tonight clips and a half-dozen scenes from the IMAX version of the film. But the real reason to add this to your collection is for the stellar storytelling and for Heath Ledger's Joker – hands down, the best performance of last year.
CD
Death Cab for Cutie – Something About Airplanes
(Barsuk)
Death Cab's debut album celebrates its 10th anniversary with a deluxe edition that tags on an extra disc featuring the band's first-ever Seattle gig (which includes a cover of a Smiths song). Frontman Ben Gibbard set a temperamental template on Airplanes that would be refined and perfected on last year's Narrow Stairs. But it all starts here.
VIDEOGAME
Far Cry 2
(Ubisoft)
One of 2008's best, and most involving, games (for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3) is part mercenary shoot-'em-up, part wildlife travelogue. It takes place in Africa, so expect plenty of animals … and plenty of time to explore your surroundings. But hold on tight when the game turns into a terrific first-person shooter with grenades, machetes and flamethrowers.
VIDEOGAME
Nerf 'N-Strike'
(EA)
It's two games in one! You can use the gun as a traditional Nerf dart blaster. Or you can attach your Wii remote to it and play the videogame, a quick-moving shooter that isn't as easy as it looks. Both versions are tons more fun when there's a friend around to help take down virtual targets or to dodge the very real darts you're firing.
CD
Pavement – Brighten the Corners: Nicene Creedence Ed.
(Matador)
The fourth album by the band that defined hipster-rock is the group's most laid-back record, a rumination of sorts on Pavement's own self-propelling myth. Like other volumes in the band's terrific reissue series, this two-disc set adds more than 30 bonus tracks to the original 1997 album, including b-sides, live cuts and outtakes.
This article appears in Dec 31, 2008 – Jan 6, 2009.