Nini’s Top 10: 3/30/15

Nini Truong, Assistant Editor| April 1, 2015

  1. The world is a weird and scary place. There are things like spiders and the Church of Scientology. The latter reached new levels of “What?” when the film about the Tom Cruise’s religion “Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief” premiered on HBO. Some crazy allegations include a creation story about a galactic dictator named Xenu, a prison camp for re-indoctrination, the church searching for a new girlfriend for Cruise and a torture process that included Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” playing in the background.

 

  1. Before he was Derek Zoolander or Alex the Lion, Ben Stiller was a drummer in his high school punk band, Capital Punishment. In their time, they managed to self-released their one and only album, Roadkill. The album will be getting a reissue courtesy of Captured Tracks and should be out this fall.

 

  1. “Downtown Abby” will be coming to an end after its sixth season. The series brought to life the pre-World War era of English nobility. When the series finale rolls around, be sure to keep some tissues or hankies around because it is going to be a crier.

 

  1. If you want more opportunities to watch your favorite shows live or to see your favorite bands live without using your television or going to a concert, just open up your Twitter app. Twitter launched Periscope on March 27, a live-streaming service that allows anyone to join in and watch. I’m honestly really excited to see how it’s going to be used by musicians because I’d love to get live concerts without paying excessive amounts of money. Periscope is available on the app store now.

 

  1. The Tunisian town of Tunis was once the backdrop for the fictional city of Tataouine in “Star Wars.” Now it’s a wayward station for members of ISIS. While many tourists used to come and look at the setting of their favorite franchise, there is now a 12-mile-deep buffer zone and a 1.8-mile no-go zone and no one is allowed to have fun.

 

  1. What’s better than one “Game of Thrones?” Two “Game of Thrones.” A remake of the popular fantasy series for Indian television will be called “Rani Mahal.” The series will still follow “A Song of Fire and Ice” by George R.R. Martin. Casting has already begun and Sakshi Tanwar will be playing Daenerys Targeryen and Anita Hassanandani as Cersei Lannister. The series appears to be focusing on the female characters, with Daenerys as the focus.

 

  1. Finally I can satisfy my cheap, greasy breakfast craving at all times of the day. For the next few months, McDonald’s will be testing the profitability of 24-hour breakfast and I’ll be able to get a Sausage Egg McMuffin at all times of the day. Sometimes I disgust myself.

 

  1. Legendary rapper Tupac Shakur may have some more unreleased music. His mother, Afeni Shakur Davis, has been trying to help JAM, Inc., Tupac’s record label gain access to all of his previously unreleased material. With 2012’s hologram at Coachella, the record label is really looking to push his legacy even further.

 

  1. When The Daily Show representatives announced that Jon Stewart was leaving, I was quite upset, but on March. 30, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah will be taking his place. Under Stewart’s 16-year reign at The Daily Show, the series skyrocketed in popularity. Hopefully Noah can find the same success.

 

  1. On March 25, the world as we knew it fell apart. Zayn Malik left One Direction. I’ll let you pause to weep. Leading up to his departure, there were rumors circulating about him cheating on his fiancée, Little Mix singer Perrie Edwards, and taking recreational drugs to prevent stress. Malik has already entered the studio and allegedly recorded three RnB tracks. Whatever his future holds, I wish him the best.