My Own Little World

The Mission: Impossible series is one of the best action franchises around today. It hasn’t always been this way, but ever since 2011’s Ghost Protocol things have been looking up for Tom Cruise’s flagship films. These last two films have been an example of both the extreme lengths to which Cruise will go as his own stuntman and the correct way to make a ridiculous action movie. At their core, of course, that is what the M:I films are: bombastic, slightly silly, and self-aware heist films with a unique ability to also tie in more realistic threats than the average “grounded” spy film. I love that these films can walk that line without feeling stressed by doing so, and this latest entry is no exception: Mission: Impossible – Fallout is one of the best action films of the past decade, a monument to fun entertainment and excellent filmmaking at the same time. I would be remiss, though, if I didn’t express that the plot and characters are just as good as the action sequences...

One of the things I've discovered over my time binge-watching is that I love unique shows, especially when it comes to sitcoms. Yes, there's something nice about sitting back with something familiar and typical, but on the other hand things with originality can be much more refreshing than the typical fare. Enter 30 Rock . For those of you who haven't seen any of it, 30 Rock  was a game-changer at the time it was first released in 2006. There wasn't another show with its unique brand of comedy (no thanks to writer, creator, and star Tina Fey) or its unique style. To this day, the only show that comes close is Fey's other creation Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt  (which I've already talked about twice). This uniqueness of style is primarily due to two things: the show's single-camera setup and smash cuts. The camera setup distinguishes it from most more conventional sitcoms that run in the vein of Cheers , Seinfeld , Friends , and the like. Instead of havin...