Category Archives: Viral Vids

10 Random Things I Am Thankful For in 2011

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Hi out there!  Did everyone have a good Thanksgiving?  I know I did.  Now, I know that some people will say that this has been a disappointing year in entertainment.  Steve Carrell left the Office, Whitney Cummings got a sitcom, and — while I’ve truly loved a handful of films this year, it’s hard to ignore the fact that 2011 has yet to produce anything close to a Black Swan, A King’s Speech, or even a Social Network.  Instead, the best films of the year have been ignored by both audiences and critics while good but definitely flawed films like J. Edgar are being touted as being the best was can hope for.  Even Pixar failed to tug at our heart-strings this year.

However, I think we’re running the danger of giving too quickly into negativity when it comes to considering 2011.  No, 2011 is no 2010.  But there’s still a lot to be thankful for and below are just 10 examples of some things that, as 2011 reaches its conclusion, I’m thankful for.

10) This.

9) The time I have left with Community.

With The Office current flailing about in its attempts to establish a consistent post-Carrell identity, I have a new favorite sitcom and its name is Community.  Now in its third season, Community has truly hit its stride and Joel McHale is, of course, to die for.  So, naturally, Community has been yanked from the mid-season schedule while NBC continues to heavily promote shows like Whitney.  This is indeed the darkest timeline but I know that I will continue to tweet things like #savecommunity, #6seasonsandamovie, and #NBCSucks for as long as it takes.

8 ) A second season of Game of Thrones

With the current season of Dexter getting bogged down in its attempt to make a villain out of Colin Hanks and the Walking Dead remaining a flawed masterpiece, the 1st season of Game of Thrones is now the unquestionable highlight of an otherwise uninspired season in television drama.  I can’t wait to see what happens in season 2.

7) Higher Ground

Vera Farmiga’s directorial debut is probably one of the best films that you’ve never seen. 

6) Black Swan is available on DVD and Blu-ray.

5) For that matter, so is the original, non-American, non-Hollywood, non-David Fincher, non-Daniel Craig, non-Rooney Mara Girl With The Dragon Tattoo trilogy.

4) Shame is rated NC-17.

What does this mean?  It mean the Full Fassbender.

3) Hanna

This intriguing and criminally underappreciated postmodern fairy tale remains my favorite film of 2011. 

2) Oscar Isaac

Seriously.  Love him.  I still love to imagine him shouting, “And I declare him to be an OUTLAAAAAAAAWWWWWWW!” whenever I’m annoyed at being stuck in traffic.  You know what else I love?  Listening to him as he sang over the end credits of Sucker Punch.

1) And finally…

I am thankful that I have the greatest sister ever!  You may know her as Dazzling Erin and, if you’re on twitter, you can find her under the name TakeSumE.  However, for me, she will always simply be my best friend and my older (but only by 11 months) sister.  Yesterday was not only Thanksgiving but it was also her birthday!  Now, for those of you who don’t know, Erin is not only my sister but she’s also a talented photographer, a great cook, a wonderful roommate, and the greatest guardian angel that anyone could possibly ever hope to ask for!  And on top of all that, she’s hot too.  Happy birthday, Erin Nicole! 

It's Erin Nicole!

Something Horrific That Was Found On YouTube: The 1987 Max Headroom Incident

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

This is something that I came across on YouTube about a year ago.  Apparently, way back in 1987, person unknown managed to hijack the signal of Chicago television station.  The end result can be viewed below.

Personally, I find this video to be … well, disturbing.  And kinda scary, though not as scary as this one time in Arkansas when I was walking along these train tracks and I nearly placed my foot right into the middle of the mushy, maggot-ridden remains of a dog that had apparently been hit by a train.  (Agck!  Now, that was scary….)  I also find it kinda sad that somebody went through all the trouble to hijack a television signal (which I assume is not easy) and this is why they did it.

Anyway, Halloween seems to be the perfect time to share this video.  Not only does it feature a guy in a mask but it’s also one of those mysterious events that make Halloween a holiday worth celebrating.  So, without further jibber jabbering on my part, here is the 1987 Max Headroom Incident:

The Greatest Thing Ever To Show Up On YouTube

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Believe it or not, I can occasionally be a little bit moody.  Sometimes, I simply get a frown on my face and not even all the Italian horror films in the world can turn that frown into a smile.  I’m like a lot of people in that I’ve always had to battle that creeping depression and I hate that feeling.

Luckily, whenever I start to feel sad, I go to YouTube and I watch the greatest viral video of all time.  Now, I know that some people will always debate whether or not a 3-minute viral video deserves to be considered entertainment in the same way as a 2-hour film and a 22-episode season of a well-written television series.  I can see both sides of the argument but ultimately, it comes down to the one thing.  The video below never fails to make me feel happy.

Without further ado, here’s my favorite YouTube video of all time: Noisy Kittens Waiting For Dinner!

By the way, I know that most people seem to like the jumpy kitten the best but I think they’re all adorable.  The little quiet orange one is just simply to die for.

“Don’t You Forget About Me” — The Psych Version

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Okay, so basically this is just a commercial for a show that I don’t watch but it’s just so adorable that I had to feature it.  The show, by the way, is called Psych and it’s on the USA network.  I know a lot of people who love this show but I’ve honestly never seen it, largely because I always forget just where exactly the USA network is located on AT&T U-verse.

But if I do end up tracking down the USA Network and watching an episode, it’ll be because of this commercial.  Seriously, it’s just so adorable!

 

What David O. Russell’s The Fighter Should’ve Shown

Posted on by Arleigh

Everyone who has seen David O. Russell’s The Fighter knows by now the life and travails of not just Mickey Ward but that of his half-brother Dick Eklund. The film showed Ward at his lowest and struggles to get another chance to succeed and make a name for himself in the annals of boxing lore. The climactic bout between Ward and Neary to finish off the film was well choreographed and looked quite realistic (compared to the one’s for the Rocky series).

I am one of the film’s fans who would’ve picked another fight to truly make that impact to Ward finally making it big after all the drama and familial issues Mickey Ward had to maneuver to finally get his chance to shine. As great a fight as the Neary-Ward fight was in the end the one that should’ve been picked and re-enacted was the first of what would be called one of the greatest trilogy of fights between two fighters in boxing history: Gatti-Ward I.

The fight would earn Ring magazine’s 2002 fight of the year and the 9th round would go down as one of the greatest boxing rounds ever as both Arturo Gatti and Mickey Ward would not give an inch to each other. To be able to see this re-enacted would’ve been a dream of any boxing fan. It’s a good thing we have HBO to keep a visual record of the round so we can continue to watch and marvel at two fighters who actually deserve the label of having “heart and soul”.

(The Fighter review by Lisa Marie)

 

Don’t Mess With Texas, Texters!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Okay, quick warning: If you’re from Vermont, this post might upset your sensitive, crunchy gronola soul.  So, I’m warning you now so you don’t have to waste your time getting all offended, spitting up your maple syrup all over your framed, autographed picture of Howard Dean, and leaving angry comments about the death penalty and Jerry Jones. 

Anyway, I may have mentioned here that the American public is in desperate need of education when it comes to proper movie-going etiquette.  Whether its people texting and talking during the movie (which, by the way, starts the minute the first trailer starts to play out on-screen), bringing their annoying, shrill-voiced little children to movies that clearly are not appropriate for them, hanging their smelly, ugly feet over the seat (and audience member) in front of them, or showing up late for a movie and loudly going, “Where do you want to sit?”, the American public seriously needs to learn how to go to the movies.

And, on the basis of this PSA, the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas is exactly where those lessons need to be taught.

Amen!

Why Pikachu Still Defines Cute Overload

Posted on by Arleigh

Who doesn’t know who Pikachu is?

I’d say that not many people don’t know who this cute, little yellow furball is. From the time he stormed the American shores through the first Pokemon series up to it’s most current version. Then there’s the yearly Pokemon DS titles from Nintendo. If there’s one thing which many fans of that franchise agree on it’s that Pikachu is the one character everyone recognizes.

But Pikachu has branched out from just those anime series and DS games he has dominated for over a decade. He has made his way into viral YouTube videos which has remained known only to anime and manga fans but has slowly gained traction with non-fans as well. Below are just some of the viral video memes starring the one and only Pikachu in all his Cute Glory.

Pika Pika Yukai

The original version minus Pikachu

Pikachu Dango Daikozoku

Original Daiko Daikozoku

Pikachu Does the Caramelldansen

NBC Still Doesn’t Understand The Internet

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

A few days ago, an old clip from the Today Show showed up on YouTube.  That clip was from 1994 and it featured Katie Couric and Bryant Gumbel trying to figure out what the Internet is.  Apparently, the clip was posted by an employee of NBC.  If you’ve seen the clip, you already know that while it’s mildly amusing, it’s also pretty tame. 

Well, NBC didn’t see it that way because they’ve responded by 1) firing the guy who posted it and 2) pulling the clip off of YouTube so quickly that you’d think the NBC offices are located in either Egypt or Iran.

Well — joke’s on you, NBC.  As my friend Ron always reminds me whenever I post a picture on plixi during Thong Thursday, the Internet is forever and now, so is that clip.

So, here’s one of the many copies of that clip that can be found on YouTube.  See it now before NBC demands that it be pulled down.

(Incidentally, my mom always hated Bryant Gumbel and I can still remember, when I was 13 or maybe 14, laughing so hard when my mom turned on the TV and was greeted by his image.  “Pendejo,” she said as she changed the channel.) 

The Dark Lord of the Sith is also a Televangelist

Posted on by Arleigh

After seeing this video highlighted on G4TV’s Attack of the Show a couple days ago I just had to go to Youtube and favorite the video.

What else is there to say other than I knew televangelists were actually Dark Lords of the Sith in sheep’s clothing. My favorite part is close to the end where the hapless congregation just filed into his lightsaber strikes one after the other like they wanted to die.

Source: YouTube