Warner Bros.

Smallville, although well shot and portrayed has never been a favorite series of mine. Growing up I was a Marvel comics fan, I hardly ever crossed into the DC market and if I did, it was for Batman, never Superman. Of course, for those of you that don't know Smallville follows the life of a young Clark Kent in the years prior to him becoming Superman. Of course it started out in season 1 with Kent in high school, very unsure of his potential but six seasons later he's very Superman esque.

With season seven already underway, our favourite TV drama about young Clark Kent's journey to becoming Superman is still going strong. Back in 2001, I have to admit I wasn't all that optimistic about the show's prospects. The pilot was strong, but after viewing the first few freak-of-the-week episodes, thing weren't exactly looking up, up and away. At least not for me, anyway. Thankfully, I don't make the decisions, because Smallville grew to become an entertaining show with decent story arcs and interesting twists in the lives of its characters.

Do you know what happens when creative people get toys and wacked out people get a tv show? Robot Chicken happens. The first season was a great success on Adult Swim, so that meant two things. One, creators Seth Green and Matthew Senreich would be able to move out of their parent's house (okay, not really) and we would get Season 2. Robot Chicken for those who don't know is toy figures (or special sculpted toys) put to life in hilarious sketches and parodies with the use of stop motion capture technology.

The death of Superman was a tremendous event for comic fans and media circuits around the world. Sure, it had been teased a hundred times in the past but if they did it legitimately and made people believe that he was really gone; they would create a landmark achievement and bring comics back to a worldwide stage. With the release of Superman #75, they did just that. Newspapers, television shows; circuits that never showed a comic book in their life were showing the black bag and the tattered image on the front cover. Superman had died and the world mourned. In the months that followed, the story went in four different directions and eventually he was brought back.

If you are a fan of the original Kolchak: The Night Stalker, you were more than likely disappointed in the remake a couple of years ago on ABC. Your hope is now once again restored. Supernatural is the closest thing I’ve ever seen to The Night Stalker. Like Kolchak, the Winchester brothers are faced with weekly incarnations of evil. They’re forced to research these legends and figure out a way to stop them. As Kolchak discovered, it’s a thankless job. Sure, Supernatural is populated with all sorts of beasties and nasties, but it also manages to hold on to a sense of humor that rounds out these adventures to make this one of the most entertaining shows around. When UPN and WB merged, I was a little worried about Supernatural.

If you told me about a film by the screenwriter of Forrest Gump, The Insider and Munich, and the director who brought us L.A. Confidential, I'd say bring it on. If you went on that it was set in the high stakes world of professional poker, I'd be excited. But then you'd say it's a romance starring Eric Bana (Troy) and Drew Barrymore (Never Been Kissed). I'd begin to doubt. Then I'd think back to The Insider, and tell myself a great script is the only way to make a great film.

Then I'd watch Lucky You and realize even a great screenwriter can turn out a clunker. But maybe there'd be hope for the DVD?

2004 brought moviegoers two big-budget historical epics in Oliver Stone's Alexander and Wolfgang Petersen's Troy. One bombed. The other performed well, but was by no means heralded as a critical success. No, Troy was praised for slick production values and exciting battles, but derided for a lack of emotional depth.

Can it all be blamed on running-time constraints and compromises made for the ratings board? The answer is here, with the unrated Troy: Director's Cut, Petersen's second shot at eternal glory, this time with more than 30 minutes of additional footage.

When I picked up Rio Bravo – Ultimate Collector’s Edition to review, I realized I had never seen a John Wayne movie. “The Duke” starred in well over 100 films, so I was more than a little surprised at this gaping hole in my viewing repertoire. Then I looked up director Howard Hawks (The Big Sleep) and discovered another long list of films I’ve overlooked. Defensively, I asked myself whether I was really missing out. Could their old movies be worth my time so many years later?

If Rio Bravo is any indication, their films are absolutely worth watching, though they’re perhaps not as masterful as they’re reputed to be. No matter your opinion, this Ultimate Collector’s Edition is one fine DVD set.

When I first heard the title I was thinking, documentary on celebrities impact on making the planet go green. But now having seen Everyone’s Gone Green I can assure you that’s not the case. Instead this is a low budget Canadian movie about a slacker, which doesn’t leave me with much more expectations than when I thought it was a documentary on global warming. As a Canadian I can admit that besides producing some great actors and actresses and supplying some great filming locations, Canadian cinema is about as entertaining as watching the wind blowing around a plastic bag. This movie doesn't prove to be any different.

Written by Evan Braun

Most cartoons of the Saturday morning variety are written for kids and little else in mind, but every once in a while a show offers a little something extra. Pinky and the Brain is one such anomaly, providing plenty of great antics for kids, but even more for the grown-ups among us. It's full of parodies and Hollywood in-jokes that a 10-year-old could simply never appreciate. Strangely, as a 24-year-old, I felt very much within the target audience.

The memorable Pinky and Brain mice started as supporting characters on the WB's Animaniacs back in 1993, but quickly spun off onto their own show.