This post is part of AOL Money & Finance's Best & Worst in Money 2008 feature.

Well, 2008 has come and gone. If you were looking to be entertained over the past 12 months, you had a lot of choices. From Batman's battle with the maniacal Joker to Hannah Montana singing her little heart out in 3-D, there was something for everyone. Let's look at five of the hottest properties that made their way into the heart of the cultural mindshare in '08.

Up first is The Dark Knight, the second iteration of director Christopher Nolan's new vision of the Caped Crusader. That movie killed at the box office, and Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) could not have been happier. Knight scored almost $1 billion at the global box office. More than half that number was captured in the domestic marketplace. There's no question that the movie mesmerized the collective intellect of the audience. There's also no question that Heath Ledger, who tragically passed away earlier in the year, impressed everyone with his portrayal of the chaotic and cruel Joker villain. I, however, do have a question. Is it just me, or was Knight not as awesome a film as the hype makes it out to be? I saw it, thought it was okay. I don't know, I'm just not sure that this new entry in the cinematic Batman mythos would have brought in as many bucks if the notoriety of Ledger's death wasn't attached to these particular reels of celluloid. To be honest, I didn't think Ledger did that unique of a job. And I thought The Joker's voice was annoying, almost sounding like Sam Raimi -- did anyone else happen to think that? Maybe it's just me. Nevertheless, I salute the success of Knight and respect the project for the impact it had on theaters 'round the world.

Dr. Pepper's (Cadbury-Schweppes PLC, NYSE:CSG) longtime 10-2-4 slogan might become 24-7 as they launch a new promotion, Dr. Pepper Band in a Bubble, in cooperation with MTV. Beginning May 24th, the pop band Cartel will live around the clock for 20 days in a transparent domicile on Pier 54 in New York while they put together a new CD. MTV will compile the best of the video captured by cameras placed throughout the edifice into four half-hour broadcasts. The full feeds will also be available throughout the session via the internet.

The idea of packing a house with incandescent personalities and recording their meltdowns is tired fare for television, the most notable being CBS' Big Brother. Rock stars are well-mined too, as witnessed by Kiss frontman Gene Simmon's Family Jewels and Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne's The Osbournes. What we haven't seen before is a group of artists working in harmony to produce sterling music. That's probably the Doctor's biggest worry, though -- harmony makes poor television. There's a reason Anna Nicole Smith had her own TV show and Jamie Lee Curtis didn't.

The concept comes from the Mediaedge:cia agency. The five-person group is from Atlanta, and best known for their song "Honestly" (see below). I'd give you odds of 10 to 4 that it's no coincidence that their guitarist's name is Joseph Pepper.

The self-proclaimed "Prince of Darkness" has a soul after all. Earlier this year, Ozzy Osbourne and wife Sharon announced that admission would be free of charge to Ozzfest, an 11 year-old melee of metal madness. The change is quite a show of generosity, as last year's festival tickets were as pricey as $125 a pop. Earlier this week the official festival website provided detailed instructions for procuring these free passes.

Currently, the only headlining artists who have signed up for the tour (and will not be compensated for their time or efforts) are Lamb of God, Hatebreed, and Lordi (three of my favorites, right after Hanson, Billy Joel, and Duran Duran!) An article in today's Fortune briefly explores the ramifications behind Osbourn's "free" offering, asking "why would a headliner perform for nothing?" Ozzy's lovely wife Sharon argues that the festival provides a captive audience, some of whom will buy pricey merchandise and some of whom will be converted into new fans, with the power to buy CDs down the road.

Even though it should be all about the music, the fans, and the devil-horned hand gestures, the lineup is conspicuously different. Last year's Ozzfest featured such high-profile names as System of a Down and Disturbed; previous years have offered performances from Velvet Revolver, Slipknot, Korn, Marilyn Manson, Tool, and Black Sabbath. One has to wonder how the audience turnout will be for this free show of lesser-known artists. If Lamb of God sings "Walk With Me In Hell" but no one pays to hear it, is it really a concert?

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.