Top SIX, Dammit!


1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 Roger Waters: The Dark Side of the Moon Tour. The creative genius behind Pink Floyd's most fertile years took to the road in 2006 to perform the Floyd's best known album thirty years after its release. Dark Side of the Moon is one of those rare albums that gets better with each listen. Roger Waters didn't write this album alone, but the creative concept behind the album was undeniably his. Waters' 2006 shows brought fourth a brilliant retrospective of his career (coupled with a fittingly visually stunning stage show), the triumphant return of "The Pig", his latest single and B-Side and Dark Side of the Moon in its entirety. Not only did Waters and his band sound incredible, but his performance of Dark Side of the Moon exceeds even that of the current Pink Floyd's live performance of that album (see Pulse). Even better, Waters wasn't alone in his presentation, but surprised the fans by bringing out Floyd's drummer Nick Mason for a set on the set. An unparalleled success! Inside Man Spike Lee is no stranger to success as a director, but his 2006 offering was almost as much a play against type as Woody Allen's Match Point was last year. What could have been an overwrought heist thriller turned out to be a well-acted and intelligently paced mystery thriller that paid off in cool, cool ice. Spike has managed to make a commercially successful film (his highest grossing to date) without losing his independent integrity in the mix. See it... or, steal it if you've got a plan. Lost ABC's Lost started out incredible in its first season, got better in its second and blew us away in its third. Every new revelation leads to about a thousand new questions, every new character leads to a deeper wrinkle in the mystery. Lost's mythos is growing (the second season's cliffhanger still hasn't been answered or even touched on), but the best quality of the show is the acting. From confident defiance to silent frustration to pensive longing to deep fear, the cast pulls it off in ways that both convey their character's emotions and implies that something much deeper is lying just behind the eyes, unseen... but not lost. Battlestar Galactica I've taken issue with Ronald Moore's re-imagining of Glen A. Larson's temporary Sci-Fi hit Battlestar Galactica even from the beginning. Missed opportunities, dull moments and plodding storylines marred an otherwise interesting premise. The final episodes of Season 2 were the best example of what was wrong with the show. The season ended with what was essentially a re-boot (or even, remake) of the opening mini-series' premise (but with far less humans to skewer this time). However, as Season 3 got started on October 6, 2006 I was proven as wrong as the right-wing. As if the best moments of the show were combined into an exciting opener that topped virtually everything that had come before. The best episodes have always balanced the cerebral with the thrilling... Battlestar Galactica's second season's episodes 3 and 4 ("Exodus" Parts 1 and 2) were the prime examples of this mix, featuring eye popping visuals (even when watched on an iPod) and smart, gritty storytelling. Thankfully, the third season hasn't slowed down... the show keeps getting better. Superman Returns Not everyone loved the world's first Superhero's return to the big screen. However, Bryan Singer's interpretation of The Man of Steel recaptured the feel of the Reeve series, added a touch of darkness, but still kept the hope and light that Superman is still all about. Star Brandon Routh gave us a good tribute to Chris Reeve, but added his own mark as well. The film on the whole may not have been perfect, but was so memorable, I can't even remember if I got laid that night. Slither Virtually unnoticed in its theatrical run (see also last year's #3), Slither was a killer combination of Horror, Sci-Fi and hilarious comedy. Where else can you find galaxy-spanning alien hive mind worms boring into people's heads to create zombies amid a backdrop of sarcastic humor and... a truly touching romantic love story. Okay, Night of the Creeps, but where else? Besides, Night of the Creeps didn't have Zombies that all acted and talked like that Henry Serial Killer dude nor did it have Tania Saulnier naked! In all seriousness, Slither is a hilariously funny action-comedy-romance-invasion-horror flick. Slither, I love you, now leave me the fuck alone!

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Roger Waters: The Dark Side of the Moon Tour.
The creative genius behind Pink Floyd's most fertile years took to the road in 2006 to perform the Floyd's best known album thirty years after its release.
Dark Side of the Moon is one of those rare albums that gets better with each listen. Roger Waters didn't write this album alone, but the creative concept behind the album was undeniably his. Waters' 2006 shows brought fourth a brilliant retrospective of his career (coupled with a fittingly visually stunning stage show), the triumphant return of "The Pig", his latest single and B-Side and Dark Side of the Moon in its entirety.
Not only did Waters and his band sound incredible, but his performance of Dark Side of the Moon exceeds even that of the current Pink Floyd's live performance of that album (see Pulse). Even better, Waters wasn't alone in his presentation, but surprised the fans by bringing out Floyd's drummer Nick Mason for a set on the set. An unparalleled success!
Inside Man
Spike Lee is no stranger to success as a director, but his 2006 offering was almost as much a play against type as Woody Allen's Match Point was last year.
What could have been an overwrought heist thriller turned out to be a well-acted and intelligently paced mystery thriller that paid off in cool, cool ice. Spike has managed to make a commercially successful film (his highest grossing to date) without losing his independent integrity in the mix. See it... or, steal it if you've got a plan.
Lost
ABC's Lost started out incredible in its first season, got better in its second and blew us away in its third. Every new revelation leads to about a thousand new questions, every new character leads to a deeper wrinkle in the mystery.
Lost's mythos is growing (the second season's cliffhanger still hasn't been answered or even touched on), but the best quality of the show is the acting. From confident defiance to silent frustration to pensive longing to deep fear, the cast pulls it off in ways that both convey their character's emotions and implies that something much deeper is lying just behind the eyes, unseen... but not lost.
Battlestar Galactica
I've taken issue with Ronald Moore's re-imagining of Glen A. Larson's temporary Sci-Fi hit Battlestar Galactica even from the beginning. Missed opportunities, dull moments and plodding storylines marred an otherwise interesting premise.
The final episodes of Season 2 were the best example of what was wrong with the show. The season ended with what was essentially a re-boot (or even, remake) of the opening mini-series' premise (but with far less humans to skewer this time).
However, as Season 3 got started on October 6, 2006 I was proven as wrong as the right-wing. As if the best moments of the show were combined into an exciting opener that topped virtually everything that had come before. The best episodes have always balanced the cerebral with the thrilling... Battlestar Galactica's second season's episodes 3 and 4 ("Exodus" Parts 1 and 2) were the prime examples of this mix, featuring eye popping visuals (even when watched on an iPod) and smart, gritty storytelling. Thankfully, the third season hasn't slowed down... the show keeps getting better.
Superman Returns
Not everyone loved the world's first Superhero's return to the big screen. However, Bryan Singer's interpretation of The Man of Steel recaptured the feel of the Reeve series, added a touch of darkness, but still kept the hope and light that Superman is still all about.
Star Brandon Routh gave us a good tribute to Chris Reeve, but added his own mark as well. The film on the whole may not have been perfect, but was so memorable, I can't even remember if I got laid that night.
Slither
Virtually unnoticed in its theatrical run (see also last year's #3), Slither was a killer combination of Horror, Sci-Fi and hilarious comedy. Where else can you find galaxy-spanning alien hive mind worms boring into people's heads to create zombies amid a backdrop of sarcastic humor and... a truly touching romantic love story.
Okay, Night of the Creeps, but where else?
Besides, Night of the Creeps didn't have Zombies that all acted and talked like that Henry Serial Killer dude nor did it have Tania Saulnier naked! In all seriousness, Slither is a hilariously funny action-comedy-romance-invasion-horror flick. Slither, I love you, now leave me the fuck alone!