Favorite of the Following

Strain42

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Just wanted to make another topic to maybe get to know some of my fellow Escapists a bit better. Let's talk about what some of our favorite things are :)

Movie:
Book:
Food:
TV Show:

Movie: Ratatouille. I have seen this movie countless times and I never tire of it. It's just such a fun story, well animated, good music, great screenplay, and of course Patton Oswalt is always fun.

Book: For a long time it was Pest Control by Bill Fitzhugh (the book that literally put the Strain in Strain42) and while that is still one of my favorite books, after recently reading Project Nemesis by Jeremy Robinson, I think that may have trumped it. A great sci-fi horror novel that also involves a giant monster destroying Boston. What's not to love?

Food: Japanese Curry. Growing up I never really liked curry, it left a bitter taste in my mouth and always gave me those annoying burps that make your throat hurt. But after I lived in Japan for a few years, I really developed a taste for the stuff. If anyone on this site ever wants to go to Japan, find a CoCos Curry. Trust me, you'll be glad you ate there :)

TV Show: Community. I was super sad to hear it was recently cancelled. It really seemed like they were going to get six seasons and a movie. It's especially disappointing because Season 5 ended up being so good when no one thought it would be. But it's still a great show, and I've watched the DVDs quite a lot. I'm always up for relaxing with some Community.

So that's me. How about all of you? :)
 

Eamar

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Feb 22, 2012
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Movie: The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. To say I'm a Tolkien addict would be an understatement, and even 10 years on I can't get over what a good job Peter Jackson et al did with the adaptation of LOTR. I even like some of the major changes they made to the story, as I understand that the original ideas wouldn't have worked so well on screen. My favourite thing about these movies though is the casting, from the main hobbits down to the more minor characters - in my opinion, it's perfect.

Book: The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien. I love LOTR, but really for me Tolkien's all about the ancient history/mythological stuff. I love all of the History of Middle-earth volumes too, but The Silmarillion wins out because Elves. Can't get enough of the Elves.

Food: Hot wings. I'm a massive foodie so this is a really tough one, but at the moment it's probably wings in Frank's Red Hot sauce. I can eat bottles of the stuff. I kinda felt maybe I should have said something more sophisticated (all sorts of interesting shellfish are right up there too, for example), but this is what I crave more often than anything else.

TV Show: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. After re-watching it from start to finish a few months ago, this has knocked various incarnations of Star Trek off the top spot. It's hilarious, it's engaging, it can pack real emotion when it wants to, it's feminist, it has great characters, and it was exactly what I needed to see when I was about 10 and saw it the first time round.
 

Scarecrow1001

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Movie: The Dark Knight. I REALLY like Batman, as a character. And in The Dark Knight, they did the best possible thing to him. They put him into second fiddle to the Joker, which was a fabulous decision. The Joker is one of those over-powering characters. While Bale's Batman was solid, it wasn't anything special, but the brilliant Joker sold it.
Book: Well, more of a play, but Hamlet. I love Hamlet, studied it in Year 11 and pulled it apart, and just the endlessly amazing plot, plus the ambiguousness of the character's sanity was so well done. Plus, the 2009 BBC Production starring David Tennant. Gosh darn.
Food: Pasta with cheese. Odd choice, I know. But hey, whatever! I've loved it since I was young, no sauce, just cheese.
TV Show: Community as well! No other show has made me as happy, given me as many quotes, and actually made me stop watching to laugh on occasion. Hopefully it will live on... On another channel! Just remember folks, #sixseasonsandamovie
Oh, and even if it has been cancelled fully. I don't care. It's still running in my mind.
 

GundamSentinel

The leading man, who else?
Aug 23, 2009
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Movie: Master & Commander: the Far Side of the World. There are few movies I can watch a dozen times and still enjoy them. This is one of them. A very well-made movie that perfectly captures the themes and atmosphere of the books it was based on.

Eamar said:
Book: The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien. I love LOTR, but really for me Tolkien's all about the ancient history/mythological stuff. I love all of the History of Middle-earth volumes too, but The Silmarillion wins out because Elves. Can't get enough of the Elves.
Seconded. I too am a massive Tolkien addict and I see the Silmarillion as the very core of it. I especially enjoyed the Narn i Chîn Húrin (later published as a separate book).

Food: Fries. After going to many restaurants around the world and tasting very diverse food, I still find that mostly I just enjoy simple fries, preferably from the shop around the corner. And of course, in true Dutch style with mayonaise (ketchup with fries, are you crazy?).

TV Show: I'm not certain, really. I'm not much of a TV watcher. At the moment I suppose I'd name Game of Thrones, but overall I just wouldn't know.
 

SckizoBoy

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Jan 6, 2011
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Nnnnnn...

I hate these list thingies because it really depends on my mood, inclinations and how I'm currently compartmentalised... which I am not at the moment... so, as the absolute cop-out answer:

Movie - depends on genre
Book - depends on genre
Food - depends on course
TV show - depends on medium/genre

...

Yeah...

...

-_-
 

Guffe

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Jul 12, 2009
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Hello!

I have no idea how you're going to remember all the answers in this thread :p

Movie: Pulp Fiction
It's just plain awesome, I love how the whole thing is made, cut in pieces, thrown down on the floor, and rebuilt by a blind man. Then of course, there are the dialogues :D

Book: This is a difficult one. I like biographies, I have several, mainly LiverpoolFC players and Snooker players, very interesting. Then of course Tolkiens books and "A Song of Ice and Fire". But I think the one I usually name in these kinds of questions has to "The Count of Monte Christo", mainly due to how surprised I was. It's a very good book, and I never thought it would be, I thought I was in for some of the most booring writing ever when I had to read the first book, it ended with me reading all six in just under 2 months (which is a lot of reading for me)

Food: "Makaronilåda"
Basically,
Boil macaroni 400g
Fry 400g of minced meat so it's brown
mix it, put in spices of own choice
6dl of milk and 3 eggs, mix, put some salt and pepper int the mix.
The Macaroni and meat combo into a dish that goes into the oven (what's the word for a thing you put food into that goes into the oven?)
Pour the milk egg mix into the macaroni meat combo
Put into oven on 200C for 40 minutes

TV-Show: Supernatural
Just love it, wishing it would end already, so it won't become a bad series at the end, but keep a high standard :/
 

McElroy

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Movie - The Truman Show : An incredibly good movie in all respects.

Book - Tintin in the land of the Soviets : Yeah, a bd. I read only one or two novels per year. Forrest Gump and The Alchemist tie for the best novel.

Guffe said:
Food: "Makaronilåda"
I second this. Hah-hah-haa-yeah. It's called macaroni casserole and the piece of crockery is called a casserole. I don't like it when the "official" international word for a lot of Nordic stuff is the Swedish one.

TV-Show - I used to watch a lot of shows from about 2005 to 2010, and so I can't really pick a favourite. Maybe it's Lost, maybe Hustle, maybe the first season of Prison Break, House too for a more recent example, or maybe Drawn Together takes the cherry off the cake after all.
 

fenrizz

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Movie: V for Vendetta and Fight Club
Book: Shantaram One mans tale from escaping prison in Australia to the slums of Bombay.
Food: Anything classic turkish/ottoman
TV-Show Firefly
 

L. Declis

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Apr 19, 2012
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Movie:
Christ, this is never easy (Film graduate). Shaun of the Dead, the Usual Suspects, Reservoir Dogs, Sinister... I'm going with Les Miserables as an overall winner though.

Book:
As it is an omnibus and I read it as an Omnibus, I'm going to say the Founding by Dan Abnett.

TV Show:
The Thick of It. Just bloody hilarious.

Food:
Lasagne. Are we doing recipes? Okay.

The meat:
Get a large frying pan ready. Throw in some garlic. Are they cooking nicely? Throw in the mince. All of it.
Brown the mince.
Add basil, onions, mushrooms, peppers and sweet peppers. Cook them.
Now pour out the oil and water (if you bought cheap mince).
Now throw in some bloody beef tomatoes and tomato puree.
Stir that.
Add in some mozerella, and add in some sauce you've already made below.

The sauce:
Get a nice sauce pan. Throw in some butter. Melt the butter.
Melted? Add some cream before it burns, you fool! Quite a bit.
Now grate in some cheese. Not chedder, you pleb. Mozzarella, parmesan, etc. Add some Thyme. Make a "time" related joke.
Stir it until it's nice and thick.

The prep work:
Get a lasagne dish. It's a big square dish. Can be rectangle, it's your choice, you fuck.
Butter up the sides. Use some baking paper if you've got it, your fingers if you didn't bother to read this bit before starting. But your fingers will never be clean again! (Butter is a dick to wash off- use detergent and pray)
First, add a layer of meat. About half of it. Throw some mozerella on top for good measure. No, not a lump, rip it up.
Add a layer of lasagne sheets. No, don't pre-cook it, we're making it properly, you bloody colonist.
Lather that in sauce. Not all of it. About 45%. Yeah, NOW I'm being precise.
Throw some meat on top. How much? The rest. What's that? Only two layers? Yes. Who are you trying to impress?
Minecraft a final level of lasagne sheets on top.
Add the rest of the sauce. Drop throw it into the sink yet, you'll need to lick it clean first.
Grate the rest of the cheese and herbs and all that shit on top. Make it look pretty before you tear it apart later that night.
Throw it into a pre-heated oven of 200 degrees C. That's "C" for correct, not "F" for failure. Or for the Americans reading this, the highest number you have. 6 or whatever.
Wait for 30 minutes until it's browner than your pasty hikkimori arse.
Enjoy.
 

dragonet111

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Movie: That's a hard one but I will go with Mononoke Hime. Everybody has an opinion for Ghibli masterpiece but for me it's Mononoke Hime (even if I prefer the music from tenkū no shiro rapyuta).

Book: The Belgariad by David and Leigh Eddings. Heroic fantasy full of action, humour and adventures. Very manichean, you know the good guys win at the end but the characters and adventures are so damn enjoyable. If you are looking for a fun and quick read it's perfect. Not the best fantasy, lots of people will argue its inferior to many series (Song of Ice and Fire, Wheel of Time, Lord of the Ring, ....) but for me it's just the best. As a side note it's also a very easy book to read in English if it's is not your mother tongue and you want to start reading in English.

Food: Oh man this is impossible to answer. there is too much choice so I will go with the official dish of my region Tartiflette. There is even stickers In "Tartiflette we Trust" on car here :)

TV Show: Stargate SG1. Just to hear the music of the opening theme makes me want to watch the 10 seasons again. Indeed.
 

King of Asgaard

Vae Victis, Woe to the Conquered
Oct 31, 2011
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Movie: This is a tough one, but I give this to Watchmen for being the best adaptation of a graphic novel to date.

Book: Shakespeare's Othello, because despite having to study it, I still enjoyed reading and rereading it. Also, Iago is portrayed by Ian McKellen in certain productions, which is awesome.

Food: Pizza. Mozzarella, peppers, pepperoni, tomato sauce and a dash of oregano. Don't ask me what goes into the pastry (I think honey's involved) but it is glorious.

TV: I'm torn. On one hand, there's Cowboy Bebop, single greatest anime ever made. On the other hand, with Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and Star Trek as my entertainment recently, I can't actually choose. Honourable mentions go to Avatar: TLA and Legend of Korra Book 1 (it all went to pot after that).
 

shrekfan246

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May 26, 2011
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Guffe said:
The Macaroni and meat combo into a dish that goes into the oven (what's the word for a thing you put food into that goes into the oven?)
A casserole. :D

Well, in America at least the actual cookware is generally called a pan and the resulting meal is known as the casserole, but that's because we're just dumb-dumbs.

OT:

Movie: Hrm. I'm going to be another annoying person and say that it really comes down to genre most of the time. I could be incredibly obnoxious and even differentiate between things like Firefly and Star Trek, but, well, I don't care enough about classifications to do that.

So I'll do my best -
Action: The Dark Knight. If I were to have a "Superhero" category, this would take it as well, but as it stands I'll keep things as simple as I care to manage. The fact that I'm using genres in the first place will probably annoy people. But The Dark Knight is just so good. Heath Ledger's Joker is probably one of my favorite acting performances ever. Runners-up would be perhaps Dredd. Weird, I know, but something about that film just resonated with me.

Comedy: Snatch. Debatably, this could go under "Action", but I find Guy Ritchie's wacky English boxing-ring-bet-gone-wrong thrill ride to be more about physical comedy than it is straight action. Riding off of Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, there are a lot of similarities between the two films (even down to some of the actors present), but I feel Snatch improves upon the formula in every way. Plus, it was before Jason Statham was typecast as "Action Hero Guy", and he played a damn good straight man. Runners-up would be Spaceballs, The Emperor's New Groove, and A Goofy Movie. I'm just weird all around.

Adventure: This is where I'll probably annoy people the most, since "Adventure" tends to go hand-in-hand with "Action", but my choice for this is nothing other than The Lord of the Rings. I've had days where I watched all three Extended Editions back to back.

Drama: After thinking about it, I believe I have to give this one to Schindler's List. It's one of the only movies I can recall where I simply sat for an hour thinking after it was finished. I'm not even entirely sure if I would necessarily say I "enjoyed" it, but it was well worth watching. Runners-up would be Scorsese films. Take your pick, really.

Now is where I'm glad sci-fi is technically a theme and not a genre, because I think I would have too difficult a time trying to decide between Star Wars, Serenity, Blade Runner, and Inception. And with that I think I'll leave it off.

Books: To be honest, I have a large collection I still need to work through. A very large one, in fact, filled with many classics and modern contemporaries, and it's going to take me a long time to read through them all. But some of my favorites right now include A Song of Ice & Fire and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. And one of my favorite series when I was younger was Brian Jacques' Redwall. I also own three different copies of The Lord of the Rings, which I need to get around to reading again because it's been a decade since I first read them.

Food: Well, first I'm wondering why we're including movies, television, and books, but not music, but okay. I should be grateful though, since my list of music would likely be far too long for anyone to care. Er... it's possibly a toss-up between quesadillas, pizza, and buffalo chicken. I like the simple things, what can I say? Honestly though, I'm a fan of many different types of food and there are many still I have yet to experience and would like to try. But in a pinch, those three things are what I would never potentially tire of. With a bit of salad, broccoli, pears, and pineapple thrown in for good measure.

Television: I won't be as infuriating with this as I was with films, though I could be. Scrubs is probably my all-time favorite television show. And the oddest thing to me is that I never seem to find other Americans who enjoy it, while many Europeans I've talked to express great adoration for it. Oh well. It's very closely followed by Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek (in that order), Firefly, M*A*S*H, Stargate SG-1, Arrested Development, House, Cowboy Bebop, Baccano!, Steins;Gate... yeah, this is why I'm not classifying these ones.
 

WaysideMaze

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I'm going to go slightly out of order on this bear with me.

You can probably sum up my favourite movies with '80s Action Blockbusters,' but if I have to pick one, I'm going with
Movie - Die Hard
Pure action schlock of the best kind.

TV Show - Sons of Anarchy
I describe Sons to people who've not seen it as 'a soap opera, but with bikes and guns.' Full of cheesy drama and acting, but with some pretty grotesque violence, and some genuinely hard hitting emotional moments, I was absolutely hooked on this show from episode 1. The last season will be airing this year, I really hope that they don't fuck it up.

Food - Pizza/Cheeseburgers
I can't pick between them guys, I'm sorry!
There's a pub near me that recently started a new menu, and just look at this thing!
Fucking cheeseburgers dude...
And pizza as well. If I'm kicking back watching my cheesy action films/shows, a big ass pizza covered in jalapenos, peppers and chicken. And pepperoni. With a nice cold beer. Fucking A.

So why have I done books last and ruined everyone's order? Well after establishing myself as a beer swilling, pizza munching, cheesy 80s action schlock fanboy, my book choice is a little different.

Book - Small Gods, By Terry Pratchett
I read the discworld books completely out of order, so I'd heard some of the characters in this book referenced by others, and finally getting to see them was a bit of a surprise. Brutha and Om started off nothing like I'd pictured them in my head, and watching their journey, and seeing how they develop (particularly Brutha) was an absolute joy.
And there are some deeper themes as well, satirizing religion and politics, and how the 2 interact. I'd recommend the entire discworld series to be honest, but this book is my personal favourite.
 

Eliam_Dar

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I have several favorites of the same thing and since I cannot really rate them, I'll cheat a bit and put several:

Movie:The thin red line, LOTR, Savior, Equilibrium, Willow (and the one you'll never hear me say out loud, Parent Trap)
Book: LOTR, World War Z, The Black Corsair (loose translation), David Eddings Elenium (and the one you'll never see me holding "Hunger Games")
Food: BBQ, Sushi
TV Show: MST3K, Star Trek TNG, Battlestar Gallactica. (and the one you'll never see me watching Master Chef)
 

shootthebandit

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movie: pirates of the carribean: curse of the black pearl. Seriously this film is still great after the 100th time you watch it. Its got action, humour and surprise. The characters and actors are great. The score is superb too

Book: Im not a big reader but I'll probably say hitchhiker's guide. Its very clever and witty. The movie does a good job but the book is still better

food: nachos with melted cheese and salsa/sour cream. The ultimate snack full of taste and calories

tv show top gear. I love cars and banter so top gear wins this hands down. Ive loved the show since it first came out and i think richard, Jeremy and james have a great chemistry
 

Auron225

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Oct 26, 2009
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Movie: Slumdog Millionaire - I decided when I'd seen it that it was my favourite film and nothing since then has changed my mind. I'm not certain I'd still say it is but it's very high up there.

Book: Damn, it's hard to pick one. I guess I'd have to go with The Hunger Games - the first one that is. Blood Red Road, The Girl Who Played With Fire and Paper Towns are great too though.

Food: Christmas Dinner :D Turkey, stuffing, roast potatoes, carrots, parsnip, gravy - it cannot be topped.

TV Show: Firefly. Without a shadow of a doubt.
 

Frezzato

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Oct 17, 2012
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Favorite--

[li]Movie: Too many, the list continues ad infinitum.[/li]
[li]Book: Indeterminate.[/li]
[li]Food: Indiscriminate.[/li]
[li]TV Show: I don't really watch TV. Well, TV as a category is like video games to me, so there would have to be at least five.[/li]
Let's say Connections with James Burke, Parks and Rec, NOVA and/or Frontline, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and then perhaps any of the truly dark reality shows like Monsters Inside Me, I Shouldn't Be Alive, or River Monsters. Oh right, and Freak Encounters. Thanks for that one, Canada!
 

SoranMBane

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May 24, 2009
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Movie: A toss-up between the Tremors series and The Secret of NIMH. Probably edging more towards Tremors, particularly the second one.

Book: The Land Fit For Heroes series. There aren't many books capable of making me squee in delight.

Food: Spicy Thai curry.

TV show: Invader Zim. So much ham. So glorious.
 

Ratty

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Jan 21, 2014
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Surprised by how many people list The Lord of the Rings films here. I liked them alright but I guess for a lot of people they're an important part of childhood now. I wonder if we'd see more mentions of Star Wars if the prequels had never come out?

This list is all subjective to my mood but just off the top of my head now...

Movie: Batman 1966 Probably the first movie I watched constantly as a little kid. It's great going back now and appreciating it in another light. It's a brilliant bit of camp that's just as enjoyable whether you approach it with childlike wonder or adult cynicism.

Book: Dracula probably. I don't like the "letters and journals" format of the book, the "found footage" genre before their was such a thing as footage, but I've read it 3 or 4 times. Quite an enjoyable story. Runners up would be Dune and Frankenstein which I've also read multiple times.

Food: Chili, preferably with lots of habanero sauce.

TV Show: Mystery Science Theater 3000 (aka MST3K) it was incredibly influential in developing my sense of humor growing up and I still love all the characters. (Ok maybe not Dr. Erhardt)

Sleekit said:
food: Chilli. and i make a mean one...although i can't eat it any more as my gut has gotten old :( so now its literally "weak sauce". that and my legendary chedder chicken and broccoli lasagna verde....which is almost heart attack inducing in its stodginess but ohhhh so delicious...

tv show: Star Trek. i like positive views of the future. indeed i rile against the fact there isn't more of that about nowadays (i f'ing hate "grimdark" sci-fi) and console myself with Who. Trek was one of the few things i actually liked that i was allowed to watch growing up. also the relationship between me and my nearest brother was very much "Kirk and Spock" even down to our body shapes and general attitudes...and when we were young...haircuts...also he's brainy as hell and a massively earning computer scientist now...needless to say i did not end up getting to captain a starship and im bitterly disappointed about that :( but i did almost join the Navy as an officer.

* ye Gaelic Elves...

Yeah my own lasagna is a close second for me as well. And having seen TNG first as a kid (and I mean a little kid, Geordi was my favorite because I recognized LeVar Burton from Reading Rainbow) I was never able to get into TOS until much later. I just finished watching all but about 3 episodes of TOS a month or two ago in fact. I still prefer TNG but TOS is a fine show and more historically significant. What did you think of the grimdarkness of DS9?