Guardians Of The Galaxy

It’s that time of the year, when pop culture websites and critics publish their annual Best Of lists and we heap praise on the best and most beloved movies and TV shows of the year. But what about the average moviegoer and TV-viewer? That’s where Facebook comes in. The social media site has released their top 10 movies and top 10 TV shows of the year, based on the most discussed titled of 2014. While some are fairly obvious, the lists might surprise you and inspire you to contemplate the overlap between what’s popular and what’s actually good.

As successful as 'Guardians of the Galaxy' was at the box-office (and, as the highest-grossing film of the year, it certainly was that), the film's iconic soundtrack was equally as successful. "Awesome Mix Vol. 1" spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and is currently the 10th largest selling album of 2014. You've been able to buy the digital album, the CD, vinyl and even a "Deluxe Edition," but so far, no actual cassette like the mix tape in the film. But, that's all about to change.

We'd previously heard that the 'Bond 24' filmmakers wanted the villain for the upcoming sequel to be unlike the modern day villains and instead a throwback to the big hulking henchmen like Jaws or Oddjob. The casting call was looking for "an imposing, extremely physically fit actor" over 6'2" tall. Not a ton of guys like that around, but the director Sam Mendes didn't have to look further than the biggest movie of the year.

As we quickly learned after watching Marvel's 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' the world has much more love to give to this intergalactic band of superhero misfits. Aside from the upcoming 'Guardians of the Galaxy 2' in 2017, an announcement at New York Comic Con confirms a new animated TV series is coming to Disney XD, and the first poster and test footage for the affair have landed.

We all know what you've been thinking since you saw Rocket Raccoon and dancing Groot steal our hearts on the big screen: when can we take home Marvel's 'Guardians of the Galaxy' on Blu-ray and DVD, or even Digital Download? Just, when can we take this bad boy home, period? Well, you're in luck, because Marvel announced the home release dates for its superhero space opera. And guess what?! They come with an exclusive sneak peek at 'Avengers 2'!

There actually was a new film released this week. It's called 'The Identical' and it's a Christian-themed fable about what would have happened if Elvis Presley's stillborn twin brother had survived. Well, for reasons that should be obvious after reading that sentence, 'Guardians of the Galaxy' held onto the number one spot this weekend while 'The Identical' opened outside of the top 10, never to be heard from again.

A few weeks ago, this column was skeptical that Marvel's 'Guardians of the Galaxy' could reach $300 million. Now, it seems impossible that it won't. Thanks to ecstatic word of mouth, killer marketing and only one genuinely successful box office challenger (that would be 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'), Marvel's oddball space opera has managed to spend three of the past four weekends at the number one spot at the box office, giving it enough momentum to officially become the highest grossing film of 2014.

Marvel Studios and the character of Tony Stark/Iron Man transformed Robert Downey Jr. from a has-been into one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, so it's not surprising that he'll sing their praises outside the context of the movies he stars in. However, he recently took it a big step further, declaring 'Guardians of the Galaxy' to be the best Marvel movie yet. Yep, even the ones that he's not in.

Ever since James Gunn's 'Guardians of the Galaxy' got Marvelites hooked on these intergalactic superheroes with attitude, the cosplay world has been a boomin' with Rocket Raccoons, Gamoras, Star-Lords and even a bunch of Nebulas, but nothing makes us say "I am Groot" quite like this incredible Groot cosplay.

30 years after their comic book debut and several decades since they last ruled the box office, the 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' returned this week and proved that they're as relevant and popular as ever. Although many people wondered if the turtles would have the power to overtake Marvel's 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' it now seems obvious in retrospect: of course they could...