When we started our Top 5 lists, back at the dawn of time itself, we did so in conscious opposition to the bloviating bile being excreted by critics everywhere, where a combination of excessive self-appreciation combined with editors on holiday brought out a year-end product where the attention of audiences was not making anyone’s list. Our idea was simple: top five, not ten or more, sparse explanation. What we did not anticipate was how popular these little lists would become, or how creative. Today we publish a whopping eighty-seven Top 5 of Everything 2012 lists. Eighty-eight if I can find the time to write one more: The Top 5 Lists Among Newcity’s Top 5 of Everything Lists for 2012.
And don’t forget to plan your holiday filmgoing with all the new reviews at newcityfilm.com including “Django Unchained,” “Les Miserables” and “Zero Dark Thirty.”
*Top 5 Things That Almost Made Us Think The Mayans Were Right in 2012 “Red Dawn” Remake 70 Degrees in December That First Presidential Debate My Bank Account Snooki Had a Kid —Eric Lutz
Top 5 Wheelie Exciting Chicago Bicycling Stories of 2012 Hundreds of cyclists provide input for 645-mile Streets for Cycling Plan 2020 network Comrade Cycles, Chicago’s first worker-owned bike shop, opens in Ukrainian Village Couriers from around the globe gather here for Cycle Messenger World Championships Final plans for Bloomingdale Trail and “linear park” released; construction slated for 2013 CDOT builds Chicago’s first two-way protected bike lane downtown on Dearborn Street —John Greenfield
Top 5 Things that Made Chicago Sports Fans Swoon Darwin Barney’s Gold Glove The Sox Season Before September Peanut Tillman Cutler’s Mustache Northern Illinois Going to the Orange Bowl —Eric Lutz
Top 5 Things that Made Chicago Sports Fans Groan D-Rose’s Season-Ending Injury That Bears-Niners Monday Night Game The Chicago Cubs The Sox’s September Stinker The NHL Lockout —Eric Lutz
Top 5 Chicago 5K Races of 2012 Ravenswood Run (April 29) Chinatown 5K (July 14) Terrapin 5K (August 2) Burgers & Beer 5K (August 20) Carrera de los Muertos (November 3) —Zach Freeman
Top 5 Chicago Races Longer Than a 5K of 2012 Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K (March 25) Cinco de Miler (May 6) Soldier Field 10 Mile (May 26) Proud to Run 10K (June 23) Chicago Rock n Roll Half Marathon (July 22) —Zach Freeman
Top 5 Things That Should End After 2012 Those Bud Light Commercials with Pitbull The Word “Yummy” J’Marcus Webb’s Contract The Tea Party #HashtagJokes —Eric Lutz
Top 5 Not-So-Pedestrian Local Walking Stories of 2012 Chicago’s speed-camera ordinance passes, paving the way for safer walking conditions CDOT’s Make Way for People program turns parking spaces into miniature parks City releases first-ever comprehensive Pedestrian Plan Open Streets ciclovia expands to include Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park/Bucktown Mayor Emanuel announces $100 million plan to complete the Chicago Riverwalk —John Greenfield
Top 5 Rapidly Developing Transit Stories in 2012 CTA announces five-month closure of south Red Line, $240 million 95th Street station rehab Both CTA and Metra hike farecard prices Sparkling new CTA stations open at Green/Pink Morgan and Yellow Oakton Amtrak train hits 111 MPH downstate, paving the way for high-speed service to St. Louis Jeffery Jump debuts; plans for bus rapid transit downtown and on Western, Ashland —John Greenfield
Top 5 Places to Find Your New Furry Best Friend in 2012 PAWS Friends of Chicago Animal Care and Control Tree House Don’t Bully My Breed Red Door Animal Shelter —John Wawrzaszek
Top 5 Noticeable Improvements to/for City Transit in 2012 Expansion of Protected Bike Lanes Red Line north (Wilson to Jarvis) station improvements “New York style” train cars Bus Tracker made available on outdoor bus shelters Wicker Park/Bucktown Milwaukee Avenue bike corral —John Wawrzaszek
