Mike's Top 5 Lists

Top 5 Action Movies

mikecinc — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 02:34:53 +0000

The tough thing about this one is defining “Action”. To me, there are “Adventure” movies, there are “Comic Book” movies, and then there “Action” movies. Lethal Weapon movies are “Action”; Indiana Jones movies are “Adventure”. That said, I can’t really lay out the necessary characteristics of “Action”. I just know it when I see it.

5. Die Hard With A Vengeance

Wow, this was hard. So many good choices. I almost went with a Bourne or Lethal Weapon movie, but in the end I remembered how much fun I had watching the 3rd Die Hard.

4. The Rock

Nic Cage’s best action movie. And speaking of Nic Cage, you know what wouldn’t make my Top 500 Action Movies list? “Face-Off”. That movie sucks.

3. Speed

Spectacularly tense. If only they hadn’t made the “bus jump” look so silly. Just put down a ramp right before the gap, or something.

2. Terminator 2: Judgement Day

Pioneering special effects, a great story, Arnold…this one had it all.

1. Die Hard

Of course.

Top 5 Tom Petty Songs

mikecinc — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 02:31:23 +0000

I thoroughly enjoy Tom Petty’s music, but just as a caveat…I really only know two albums plus his Greatest Hits. So I am not familiar with his whole catalogue.

5. Free Fallin’

Figured I’d start things off with an obscure one.

4. The Apartment Song

One of the short, fun songs at the end of Full Moon Fever. Not sure why I enjoy it so much, but…um…I do. Excellent commentary, I know.

3. Mary Jane’s Last Dance

That whole second verse is great. “You never slow down, you never grow old.”

2. The Waiting

SportsCenter did a Red Sox montage to this song after the 2004 World Series. Excellent stuff…it might still be on my TiVo.

1. American Girl

My favorite non-Springsteen song.

Top 5 Worlds in Super Mario Bros 3

mikecinc — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 18:23:42 +0000

I’m taking it back to the early 90s, to one of the great video games of all time. After the radically different Super Mario 2, the third game was more like the first but on a grander scale. The 8 worlds had their own themes, which makes for convenient ranking.

5. Ice Land – World 6

It was slippery, I think.

4. Pipe Land - World 7

This one had the level where you could get extra lives until the power went out by turning the huge castle of blocks into a coin machine. Quite handy given the difficulties ahead.

3. Big Island - World 4

A brilliant idea. Those goombas weren’t so little.

2. Sky Land - World 5

I was always a sucker for the “platform” type levels where you had to jump form place to place.

1. Dark Land - World 8

Arguably the greatest “level” in the history of video games. It had 3 stand-out stages: the flying ship that forced you to make a series of difficult jumps without hesitation or mistake, the mini-fortress where you could use the doors to switch “dimensions”, and the final castle. Just a fantastic pay-off after hours of gameplay.

Top 5 Tom Hanks Movies

mikecinc — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 18:01:52 +0000

So I thought of this idea and then went to his IMDB page. Yikes! That’s a lot of very good movies. This is virtually impossible.

[ELIMINATED]. Splash

I had to take one of his early movies, before he turned all “serious actor”. It was either this or “Joe Vs The Volcano”. Lots of solid comedy in here.

5. Philadelphia

I haven’t seen this one since the theaters, but I remember it being very good and very sad.

4. Forrest Gump

May have stolen the Best Picture award, but it’s still an excellent movie. “…jumped up and BIT me!”

3. A League Of Their Own

If I stumble across this on TNT, I’m watching it.

2. Saving Private Ryan

The first 30 minutes alone could have earned it the top spot.

1. Big

I can’t believe I initially forgot about this. Shocking.

Top 5 Characters – The Wire, Season 3

mikecinc — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 17:50:11 +0000

I think Season 3 actually has the most characters, as it adds the political characters, Marlo’s people, Bunny Colvin, and Cuddy to the already staggering array. So there are a lot of choices for my favorites.

5. Avon Barksdale

Out of prison, but dealing with a new set of challenges. His pride got the better of him.

4. Bunk

If only for the scene where he calls out Omar and his “code”.

3. Freamon

Had some great conflict with McNulty, in addition to his typical detecting excellence.

2. Rawls

Several tremendous scenes in the Comstat meetings.

1. Stringer Bell

Desperate to establish himself as a legitimate businessman, the mistakes he made in the drugworld finally catch up with him.

Top 5 Seinfeld Episodes

mikecinc — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 19:54:31 +0000

This is a tough one, especially after the first two.

5. The Opposite

There were probably funnier episodes that could’ve taken this spot, but this was just a brilliant season finale. Having Elaine’s life fall apart while George’s turned around provided plenty of comedy while also setting up completely new dynamics for the next season.

4. The Little Kicks

Two words: Elaine dancing.

3. The Boyfriend

The hour-long Keith Hernandez show was full of hilarity, including the classic “…and you want to be my latex salesman” line. Also, the “JFK” parody nearly killed me.

2. The Chinese Restaurant

This was one of the early episodes that really sent the show down a new path for sitcoms. Set in real time, it was like a mini-version of “24″…though I think Jack Bauer would’ve gotten a table.

1. The Alternate Side

The first half of this episode is full of so many great jokes that it’s almost unbelievable. “Who put the cookies in his mouth? You’re not supposed to do that.”

Top 5 Songs on Born in the USA

mikecinc — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 19:39:04 +0000

These were tougher than the rankings for “Darkness”, probably because a lot of the songs are so similar.

These rankings are based on the album version of the song.

5. Born in the USA

I heard Bruce turned down something like 78 bazillion dollars for this to be used in a commercial.

4. Glory Days

One of Bruce’s “fun music, depressing lyrics” classics.

3. Darlington Country

Great for road trips.

2. I’m Goin’ Down

A big favorite back in college.

1. No Surrender

One of Bruce’s best opening lyrics.

Top 5 Songs on Darkness on the Edge of Town

mikecinc — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 16:47:45 +0000

These rankings are based on the album version of the songs.

5. Darkness on the Edge of Town

Great last verse.

4. Candy’s Room

Short and awesome.

3. The Promised Land

I usually associate this one with “Prove It All Night”. This is better on the album, but “Prove It” is better in concert.

2. Racing in the Street

I used to dislike this one…I was an idiot.

1. Badlands

It ain’t no sin to be glad you’re alive.

Top 5 Characters – The Wire, Season 2

mikecinc — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 16:28:19 +0000

The second season wasn’t as purely entertaining as the first, but it may have been better. We’ll sort through all that once I finish Round 2 of the whole series. For now, there’s a bunch of new characters vying for a spot in the Top 5.

5. Ziggy

The first time I watched the season, I found Ziggy mainly annoying. But watching him get more and more frustrated, knowing what’s going to happen to him, made me appreciate how they developed him. This poor kid finally did something “right” with the car heist, but he still got ripped off and laughed at. And that was the final straw.

4. Daniels

Another great season for Daniels, who made a tough career decision despite the pressure from his wife. I particularly enjoyed his negotiations with Burrell and Rawls to put his team together, take the murders, and even rescue poor Jimmy from the boat.

3. Stringer

Stringer is in over his head. He knows how to make the right business decisions, but can’t manage the personal/emotional aspects of the game. Or as Avon said, “This isn’t your business school stuff…this is that other thing.”

2. Frank Sobotka

A good guy who got mixed up with some very bad ones. It was a tough season for the Sobotka family.

1. McNulty

From using the tides to pin the murders on Rawls, to getting “overwhelmed” in the brothel raid, this was the signature McNulty season. And nobody plays drunk like Dominic West.

Top 5 Survivor Contestants

mikecinc — Wed, 14 May 2008 20:25:46 +0000

In honor of the recently-ended 16th season of Survivor, I thought I’d rank my favorite players. And while we’ here, I can’t believe how this season played out. For second season in a row, Amanda totally botched the final few Tribal Councils by getting all weepy and trying to be everyone’s best friend. She is a fantastic player, but just falls apart at the end…the Chris Webber of Survivor.

5. Earl (Fiji)

I had a tough time with this 5th spot. Earl probably ended up here because his season was so recent. But he seemed like a nice guy and played a great game.

4. Stephenie (Palau and Guatemala)

A fearsome competitor. So good at swimming, so bad at puzzles. I think she and her tribes hold the all-time record for “most challenges blown at the end despite having a big lead”.

3. Yul (Cook Islands)

The leader of the most likable alliance in the show’s history: Yul, Ozzy, Beckie, and Sundra. They were outnumbered 8-4 and somehow managed to wipe out the other 8 consecutively. He was also able to use the hidden immunity idol to flip the whole game rather than save himself for one week. Fantastic.

2. Michelle (Fiji)

Outrageously screwed over by a tribal switch in which it was in both tribes’ best interests to lose the Immunity Challenge. She seemed to be having a great time and even provided a hilarious fall in the background of the action during a challenge.

1. Boston Rob (Marquesas and All-Stars)

Probably not the most likable, but delivered an immensely entertaining performance in the All-Stars season. Dominated challenges, dominated strategy, even dominated another tribe’s vote. Contrary to Amanda’s comment in the last episode, he (and others, like Tom Westman) is a better all-around player than Ozzy, who got voted out without playing his Immunity Idol and was basically just good (VERY GOOD) at challenges.