Top Ten Favorite TIME TRAVEL Television Episodes

Below is a list of my top favorite television episodes that feature time travel: 


TOP TEN FAVORITE TIME TRAVEL TELEVISION EPISODES



1. "Future's End" ("Star Trek Voyager"; 1996) - A 29th century timeship causes a time paradox when it accidentally sends itself and Voyager to two different periods in 20th century Earth.





2. "Tempus Fugitive" ("Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman"; 1995) - Lois Lane and Clark Kent are brought back to the past by H. G. Wells, in an attempt to stop the time-travelling villain Tempus from killing the infant Superman.





3. "Endgame" ("Star Trek Voyager; 2001) - Admiral Kathryn Janeway comes from the future to try and shorten Voyager's trip home.





4. "War Without End" (Babylon Five; 1996) - Former Babylon 5 commander, Jeffrey Sinclair, returns with a mission vital to the survival of the station - travelling back in time to steal Babylon 4.





5. "LaFleur" ("Lost"; 2009) - The remaining survivors of Flight 815 and the freighter find themselves permanently in the 1970s and become part of the Dharma Initiative, following John Locke's disappearance.





6. "The City on the Edge of Forever" ("Star Trek"; 1967) - After accidentally overdosing on a powerful stimulant, Dr. McCoy acts erratically and disappears through the Guardian of Forever, a newly-discovered time portal on a remote planet. Captain Kirk and Commander Spock follow after learning that McCoy somehow changed history. Arriving in the 1930s, the duo meet Edith Keeler, a New York social worker who gives them a place to stay. As the days pass, and McCoy is nowhere to be seen, Kirk finds himself falling in love with Keeler... but Spock discovers that Keeler must die to restore the timeline.





7. "Déjà Vu All Over Again" ("Charmed"; 1999) - As a demon makes plans for his attempt to kill the Charmed Ones, he receives a visit from another demon named Tempus, who will turn back time until the demon succeeds in killing all the sisters.





8. "Babylon Squared" ("Babylon Five"; 1994) - A previous station, Babylon 4, reappears at the same place it disappeared four years before; and Jeffrey Sinclair and Michael Garibaldi lead an expedition to evacuate its crew. 





9. "Chris-Crossed" ("Charmed"; 2003) - A mysterious woman from the future named Bianca arrives to take Chris Halliwell's powers and bring him back forcefully to the future. 





10. "D.O.A." ("Timecop"; 1998) - After Jack Logan and his boss, Gene Matuzek are murdered, Claire Hemmings takes an unauthorized trip back to the past to warn Logan.

"KNOWING" (2009) Review

"KNOWING" (2009) Review

Over five years ago, Nicholas Cage starred in a science-fiction disaster film with a plot that took me by surprise, when I saw it. Directed by Alex Proyas and written by Ryne Douglas Pearson and Juliet Snowden, the movie proved to be a surprise box office hit, despite mixed reviews. 

"KNOWING" told the story about M.I.T. professor John Koestler, whose son Caleb stumbles across a piece of paper from a time capsule that had been dug up at his son's elementary school fifty years ago. In it are some chilling predictions of disasters - some that have already occurred and others that are about to occur in the near future. This discovery leads Koestler to believe his family plays a role in the events that are about to unfold, as he sets out to prevent the ultimate catastrophe.

I must admit that I had not been that eager to see "KNOWING", when it first came out in 2009. Cage’s previous movie,"BANGKOK DANGEROUS", had been such a piece of crap. And if I must be brutally honest, his movie choices have been mixed for quite some time. But after learning that the movie had managed to reach the number one spot on the U.S. box office, I decided to give it a shot. Fortunately, "KNOWING" turned out to be somewhat of an improvement from"BANGKOK DANGEROUS". Pearson’s intriguing story, along with the screenplay co-written with Snowden, Alex Proyas’ direction and Cage’s performance helped a bit. I was especially impressed by one sequence that featured a commercial plane crash that occurred not far from where Cage’s character was stuck in a traffic jam, in the middle of a highway. I liked how Proyas and cinematographer Simon Duggan hinted the horrors of the crash’s aftermath through the use of rain, fire, smoke and soot-covered bodies, instead of giving the audience more graphic images. It was probably the best moment in the film.

In the end, what started as a mystery surrounding a series of natural and man-made disasters turned into one of those "end of the world" stories. It seemed a group of aliens have been using the codes found on the list of disasters to warn children all over that the world was about to end, due to a massive solar flare that will have a global affect. This turn in the plot seemed to have a negative affect on the movie, transforming it from an intriguing mystery into a rather depressing and frantic tale. Rose Byrne, who portrayed the daughter of the young student who first left the mysterious piece of paper in the time capsule, did not help matters when her performance spiraled into a hammy rendition of a frantic mother trying to save her daughter and herself from being caught up in the oncoming apocalypse. Even worse, the story's narrative ended up reminding me of the plot for 2008's "THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL". And I found that rather unoriginal on the screenwriters' parts. 

Most of "KNOWING" proved to be . . . okay. The movie's three stars - Nicholas Cage, Rose Byrne and Chandler Canterbury - gave solid performances. Yes, the movie spiraled into a theatrical "end of the world" story. But despite the movie’s over-the-top ending and switch from an intriguing mystery to a badly handled disaster film, I found "KNOWING"rather tolerable. I would not mind watching it again . . . on cable television.

"LEATHERHEADS" (2008) Photo Gallery

Below is a gallery featuring photographs from the 2008 period piece comedy directed by George Clooney,"LEATHERHEADS". Clooney also stars in the movie, along with Renee Zellweger, John Krasinski and Jonathan Pryce: 


"LEATHERHEADS" (2008) Photo Gallery

Top Five Favorite "HELL ON WHEELS" Season One (2011-2012) Episodes

Below is a list of my top five favorite Season One episodes from the AMC series about the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad, "HELL ON WHEELS". Created by Joe and Tony Gayton, the series stars Anson Mount, Colm Meany, Common and Dominique McElligott: 


TOP FIVE FAVORITE "HELL ON WHEELS" Season One (2011-2012) Episodes



1. (1.07) "Revelations" - Financier Thomas C. Durant and widower Lily Bell leave the "Hell on Wheels" camp to travel to Chicago for different reasons. Thomas Moore and his Irish gang finds former slave Elam Ferguson in the tent of prostitute Eva.





2. (1.02) "Immoral Mathematics" - Vengeance seeking former Confederate Cullen Bohannon fights for his life, as he tries to evade camp security officer Thor "the Swede" Gundersen after killing one of the Union men who had murdered his wife during the Civil War. Joseph Black Moon track down the Cheyenne braves (including his brother) responsible for the attack on the surveyors' camp.





3. (1.10) "God of Chaos" - In the season finale, Cullen tracks down a former Union soldier named Harper, whom he believes was one of the men who killed his wife. Durant and Lily conspire to gain arriving investors' interests. And Elam and Eva express different views on what their future should be.





4. (1.09) "Timshel" - Cullen, Elam, Joseph Black Moon and a squad of soldiers find the Cheyenne responsible for the attack on the surveyor camp that led to the death of Lily's husband and for the derailment of a train.





5. (1.04) "Jamais Je Ne T'oublierai" - Cullen initiates his search for Harper. Lily finally arrives at the "Hell on Wheels" camp, following the Cheyenne attack on the surveyor's camp and the death of her husband. Elam becomes involved with a prostitute named Eva.

"THE FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER" (2007) Review

"THE FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER" (2007) Review

Eight years ago, I had found myself surprised that 20th Century-Fox decided to green light a sequel to the 2005 movie, "THE FANTASTIC FOUR". When the latter was released, many critics panned the movie as a ghost of other Marvel cinematic hits such as the "SPIDER-MAN" and the "X-MEN" franchise or the DC Comics hit, "BATMAN BEGINS". 

Unlike the above-mentioned films and others such as 2003's "DAREDEVIL", "THE FANTASTIC FOUR" told the story of how four people with close connections ended up with super powers . . . and how they dealt with it. It also introduced the quartet's main antagonist, Victor Von Doom. I found the movie rather entertaining. But if I must be honest, it felt more like a character study than a costumed action film. Although the 2007 sequel, "THE FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER" managed to retain the comedic element of the first story, it turned out to be a suprisingly good action piece with strong character development. 

The movie began with the arrival of a mysterious alien presence that caused havoc with the Earth's resources in various locations. This alien turns out to be the Silver Surfer (Doug Jones and voiced by Laurence Fishburne). The movie soon shifted to more familiar ground - namely the upcoming marriage of Reed Richards aka "Mr. Fantastic" (Ioan Gruffudd) and Sue Storm aka "The Invisible Woman" (Jessica Alba). Or should I say . . . another attempt by the couple to get married. It seemed their past efforts at matrimony have ended up being delayed by either their roles as costumed super heroes, or Reed's anal obssession with his work. With the threat of the new alien presence announced by Army General Hager (Andre Braugher in a rather intimidating role), Reed and Sue are forced to cancel their wedding plans once more and join other Fantastic Four members - Ben Grimm aka "The Thing" (Michael Chiklis) and Sue's younger brother, Johnny Storm aka "The Human Torch" (Chris Evans) - to save the Earth from the Silver Surfer.

The blue-suited quartet are eventually embroiled in other crisis as well. As I had stated earlier, Reed and Sue end up enduring an angst fest over their failure to get married. Johnny's first encounter with the Silver Surfer ended up changing his DNA structure. Because of this, he is able to exchange powers with any of his colleagues with only a touch. Even worse, Johnny's uncertainty regarding his powers and his failure to seduce General Hager's beautiful aide - Captain Raye (Beau Garrett) - led him into an emotional crisis. Also, an old nemesis returned in the form of Dr. Victor von Doom (Julian McMahon). Claiming a desire to help the Army and the Fantastic Four deal with the threat of the Silver Surfer, Victor' real agenda turned out to be a desire to claim the Surfer's power source for his own use.

As I had earlier stated, the 2005 movie mainly told the story about how the quarter acquired their powers and became a costumed super hero team. The 2007 sequel, on the other hand, features a solid action-filled story on how the Fantastic Four battled the Silver Surfer, Victor von Doom, the U.S. Army and their own neurosis. This is probably why "THE FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER" proved to be a lot better than the original film. Yes, the humor had remained. But the 2007 movie seemed better paced, more solid . . . and dare I say it? More mature. Their interactions with both the Silver Surfer and General Hager turned the story from a basic comic book action flick into something more complex. And adding to the complexity were Reed and Sue's further obstacles facing their relationship, and Johnny Storm's troubles with his powers and his own self esteem.

Thankfully, the people at Marvel and 20th Century Fox had decided to reunite director Tim Story with the cast from the 2005 film. Because of this, Story was able to maintain the style created two years ago and take the FANTASTIC FOUR franchise to a more complex level. With the exception of Michael Chiklis and Julian McMahon, the returning cast managed to take their roles to a new level in characterization. Do not get me wrong . . . both Chiklis and McMahon gave excellent performances as Ben Grimm aka "The Thing" and Dr. Victor von Doom aka "Dr. Doom". But their characters were never given the opportunity to shine as much as the others. I could be wrong, but I suspect this was due to possible conflicting schedules with their respective TV series ("THE SHIELD" and "NIP/TUCK"). Andre Braugher's tough and intimidating performance as General Hager struck me as first-rate. I thought he really provided an excellent performance and strong presence that put the rest of the cast on their toes. The movie also featured solid performances from Kerry Washington, who continued her portrayal of Ben Grimm's girlfriend, Alicia Masters and Beau Garrett, who portrayed General Hager's non-nonsense aide, Captain Frankie Raye.

Both Ioan Gruffudd and Jessica Alba's screen chemistry seemed a lot more believable in this film as their characters, Reed Richards and Sue Storm. Their characters' struggle to take their relationship to another level despite the obstacles put in their paths provided more energy into their screen chemistry. The real surprise turned out to be Chris Evans' portrayal as the usually shallow Johnny Storm. In this movie, Johnny discovered their was more to his life than fast vehicles, women and his celebrity status as one of the Fantastic Four. Who would have thought that this superficially charming character could possess real pathos? Yet, Evans' first-class performance made this possible. He also provided one of the movie's funniest scenes, when he "accidentally" torched the bridal bouquet before his new girlfriend, Captain Raye, could catch it. Although I found the Silver Surfer's abilities and his impact upon the Fantastic Four impressive, I must say that his personality struck me as a little too distant for me to really care about him. At least the revelation of his bondage to a powerful and destructive alien entity made his character a little more interesting than I had originally believed. And I have to give Laurence Fishburne kudos for doing an excellent job with the character's voice over.

I would highly recommend "THE FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER" if you are looking for some solid comic book action to pop into the DVD player. Granted, it does not have the level of angst or epic-like proportion of other Marvel movies such as the "SPIDER-MAN", "X-MEN" or Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) franchies, it is still a more complex and interesting story than its 2005 predesessor, "THE FANTASTIC FOUR".

"THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN" (2008) Photo Gallery

Below is a gallery featuring images from the 2008 movie, "CHRONICLES OF NARNIA:  PRINCE CASPIAN", the 2008 adaptation of  C.S. Lewis' 1951 novel and the second installment of his "NARNIA" saga.  The movie was directed by Andrew Adamson:

"THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN" (2008) Photo Gallery