New episode up...

Best of the rest

Tomorrow's episode (as we have been talking about now forever) will rank our top ten films of the decade. We each spent a lot of time researching, arguing and making some tough choices to get the list down to ten.

Stephanie already posted her 20-11, now here is my list of the films that JUST missed making my top ten films of the 2000s.

In no particular order:

"The Wrestler" - Which Stephanie still hasn't seen...
"X2" - The Phoenix scene was out of the blue and the audience gasped, great moment.
"Garden State"
"I, Robot"
"Along Came a Spider"
"Batman Begins"
"The Prestige"
"The King of Kong"
"In Bruges"

A bit of a bragging note, four of these films are also in the IMDB.com top 250.

Not too shabby.

Ew, yuck, nasty etc.

During our best of the decade show we'll also mention the picks for two of the worst movies of the decade.

Much like Stephanie's list yesterday, here is a list of some other really horrible movies of the 2000s.

10. Time Machine - Remake starring Guy Pierce
9. The Ladies Man
8. Vicky Christina Barcelona
7. Lady in the Water
6. The Box - Hint, hint for 2009
5. The Goods - Hint, hint for 2009
4. Say It Isn’t So - Walked out of this one with no refund.
3. Sin City - Walked out of this one WITH a refund.

Check back Friday for the top picks!

The Best of the Decade: Movies 11-20

Later in the week we'll post our special best of the decade edition of "Inscaped." To get ready for that, I thought I'd let you in on the first part of my list for the best movies of the decade.

11. "Hot Fuzz"

12. "The Queen"

13. "Monster's Ball"

14. "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl"

15. "Finding Nemo"

16. "The Bourne Identity"

17. "The Incredibles"

18. "Catch Me If You Can"

19. "Kingdom of Heaven"

20. "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"

I tried to show a broad range on this list, but you'll notice there are a few British films and two Pixar movies mixed in with a couple of huge blockbusters. However, you can't make everyone happy and I'm sure Tim will let me know what I've missed.

The Best of the Decade: 'American Idol'

Whether you love it or hate it no one can deny the cultural impact of "American Idol" on the last ten years.

This FOX singing competition debuted in June 2002 and as they say the rest was history. The show is the American version of the British program "Pop Idol." However, it is safe to say that it has far surpassed the original.

The instant buzz started when word got out about brutally honest judge Simon Cowell. Not one to mince words, Simon lets contestants know exactly what he thinks of them. If they're great he tells them, but if they're god awful he tells them that too. It is his razor sharp insults that originally propelled the show to icon status.

However, it was the talent and ability of the competitors that kept viewers entertained. The first winner Kelly Clarkson went on to chart-topping success. Her most recent hit "My Life Would Suck Without You" is one of Billboard's biggest songs of the year.

In the seasons that followed, the show's ratings hit astronomical proportions causing the competition to schedule around its premieres and finales.

The show has become such an industry juggernaut finalists like Chris Daughtry, Clay Aiken and Jennifer Hudson have been just as (and sometimes more) successful as winners like Fantasia, Ruben Studdard and Taylor Hicks.

The show has also become a great breeding ground for Broadway with several of the finalists starring in shows like "Rent," "Hairspray" and "The Color Purple." Season four finalist Constantine Maroulis was even nominated for a Tony Award earlier this year.

Undoubtedly the contest for most successful "Idol" alumni is between Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.

While Underwood has sold about 300,000 more albums than Clarkson. Kelly is the original American Idol and she set a very high standard for all those who followed her.

No discussion of the best of the 2000s would be complete without "American Idol" because let's face it, at some point we have all belted out a song in the car or the shower and wondered what Simon's reaction would be.

The Best of the Decade: JJ Abrams

JJ Abrams has been driving me crazy for nine years. Since he got me hooked on "Alias" and the many mysteries it created, he has been driving me crazy with questions.

From "Alias" to "Lost" to "Fringe," in the 2000s Abrams established himself as the go to guy for mysteries and secrets.

"Alias" was one of my favorite shows of the last ten years and has continued to thrive on DVD. "Lost" is about to end its six year run and will hopefully answer all of the questions it has inspired. And though, it's not one of my favorite shows the creativity and addictively shocking nature of "Fringe" can't be denied.

The genius of Abrams is that with all of his shows once you watch one episode, you're hooked.

The success of his TV shows helped boost his film career, leading to "Mission Impossible III," "Cloverfield" and of course, "Star Trek."

Looking ahead to next decade, Abrams is already working on the "Star Trek" sequel, "Mission Impossible IV" and "Morning Glory" with Harrison Ford and Rachel McAdams.

Being the geeks that we are, we couldn't have a best of the decade list without the man who gave us Oceanic flight 815, the Rambaldi Prophecy and the pattern.

The Best of the Decade: Joss Whedon

There is no doubt that the 2000s became the decade of the geek, and leading that revolution was Joss Whedon. For the uninitiated, Whedon is the creator and producer of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Angel," "Firefly" and "Dollhouse."

All of these shows are among the best of the decade and considered cult classics. Whedon has a very loyal fanbase called Whedonites that makes anything he touches successful. While their support couldn't save "Firefly" from cancellation it did lead to monstrous DVD sales and a feature film.

His current series "Dollhouse" is on the verge of cancellation but that hasn't stopped Whedon from producing quality TV every week. He also decided to tackle the Internet with his hugely successful musical "Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog." It was of course an instant web sensation that won Whedon an Emmy.

One of the great things about Whedon's projects is that he likes to work with the same group of actors in a lot of his projects. People like Nathan Fillion, Adam Baldwin, Gina Torres and Eliza Dushku have appeared in several Whedon shows. Their success in his projects has led to more high profile jobs where the Whedonites have continued to follow them.

We have been extremely vocal about our love for all things Whedon, so it seemed only natural that he would appear on our list of the best of the decade. We can only hope that in the next decade he continues to give us the same thrills, adventure and comedy that we have come to love.