There was a time (not very long ago) when Steven Spielberg doing a movie about Abraham Lincoln would not have evoked images of a “serious historical drama.” Seriously, can’t you throw in just one T-Rex? Alas, Spielberg’s upcoming Lincoln movie features no aliens, giant sharks, or vampires; not even a return to Neverland! The truth of the…
Author: Jim Ciscell
The news that Disney bought Lucasfilm has nearly caused the Internet as we know it to explode. There have been photoshops working overtime. There have been fan boys making trailers with everything from Mickey Mouse to Iron Man. The big question on most people’s minds is, “are they going to suck?” The surprising answer is…
Futurama is a cartoon; Futurama also currently plays on Comedy Central. This relationship would have viewers believe that Futurama is a funny cartoon, when in fact it is much more than that. Over the years, Futurama has had some of the finest dramatic writing on television this side of the year 3000. When it comes…
There are two levels to Halloween. First, there are adult parties, where you hope the girl in the cat outfit gets drunk enough to notice you. Second, there is the moment ten years later, when you have to come up with entertainment for the kids you made with Drunk Kitty Girl. At the very least,…
The character of James Bond has enjoyed a long, colorful, and contentious history, and not just in movies. Many times, the rights to portray a character as “James Bond” have ended up in a court of law. Sometimes, producers or writers have changed the character just enough to avoid legal action. The character portrayed is…
Darth Vader needed to find the plans stored within R2-D2. It stands to reason that Vader would have been desperate enough to use any means necessary, in order to secure those plans. “Any means necessary” could have included one of the most notorious bounty hunters in the Galaxy: Boba Fett. In that a bounty hunter…
Any artistic creation is open to interpretation. This means other artists will oftentimes take your artistic creations in new and exciting directions. The original artists may not have had these bold re-interpretations of their songs in mind when they composed and sang them. However, the result of these covers by people of foreign lands can…
About six years ago, I was outsourced to be a call center trainer in Manila. I would like to share what I consider to be a few helpful tips, should you ever happen to find yourself in that same situation. I’m not talking about subtle culture shock; karaoke obsession means squat compared to witnessing someone eat an…
The Democratic Party recently created a stir by leaving the word “God” off its political platform for 2012. Recently, it would appear that the Democratic Party has become disconnected, in matter of faith and religion, to many people. However, it may be surprising to many people that the Democratic Party has a long traditional relationship…
One of the great things about fiction is the ability to speculate about unnatural situations. One possible unnatural situation is long-lasting life. Sometimes long-lasting life can play out as a moral drama. Sometimes, long lasting life can lead to horrific implications. Sometimes, long lasting life can merely lead to laughs. Here is the list of…
On September 11, 2001 the date itself was irrevocably changed. The horrific attacks of 9/11 left thousands dead, and has turned the day into a solemn remembrance of those who were lost, as well as the World Trade Center itself. It is almost hard to imagine today that, before 2001, you actually had a choice…
Good television is good television. The medium is not important. There are moments that choke you up just thinking about them and animation is not an exception to this. As you may come to realize, televised animation may well be the rule. Read and enjoy the top 10 tearjerkers in televised animation. Just have a…
In the recent Snow White and the Huntsman, regular-sized actors played the ‘dwarves’, with the assistance of movie magic. The same approach was also used in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy as well as the upcoming The Hobbit (and its upcoming sequel). However, there is a lot to be said for using actual…
In everything, there are winners and there are losers. In real life, as opposed to movies, sometimes the winners are always winners and the losers are always losers. In over a hundred years of the modern Olympiad, there has been a lot of discussion over who is the best in which sports. However, there is…
Adolf Hitler. The German leader was one of the most divisive figures in world history. Nazism inspired hatred, loyalty, and study for decades. Hitler, though scarily real, has almost become a myth, a fictional symbol of villainy. As such, Hitler ran into many fictional characters willing to punch him in the mouth or bop him…
Celebrating TopTenz.net’s 1,000th list coming up on August 3, 2012, here is our 2nd list this week about the number 1,000. In 1974, Gene Wilder, playing Dr. Frederick Frankenstein, screamed in an annoyed tone at a young medical student, “Hearts and kidneys are tinker toys! I’m talking about the central nervous system!” As long as…
There are some debates that can literally lead to physical brutality. Who is the best home run hitter? Lord of the Rings versus Star Wars? Who is the hottest actress named Jessica? However, no debate has inspired more thought, discussion, and threatening motions than, “who is the best Batman?” We are bold enough to take…
Kids love to play with action figures. Adults do, too- they just call themselves collectors. Some action figures are awesome; but, let’s just say that some come out …wrong. Wrong in ways that leave you scratching your head decades later. A set of criteria was used to develop this list. First, no women. It just…
These days, everyone loves a Vampires. Vampires are romantic and seductive. You almost forget that any one could actually consider them to be … monsters. With the release of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, we thought that it might be good to see where old Honest Abe ranked on the list. Also, hasn’t the time come…