Holy shit, that was actually good

[Hannabella Doe]

With me there was two movies I can think of at the top of my head, the first one was Les Misérables (yes the one with Russell Crowe) at first I thought I was gonna hate it or just find it meh; but then I watched it in theaters after a friend recommended it; and I actually LOVED it and became obsessed with it for months (but I understand it isn't for anyone.) Another movie is Phantom of the Opera (the one with Gerald Butler,) only this time I rented it on DVD.

With TV Shows, it would be My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, I didn't even consider watching it at first; but I decided to what the hype was about after hearing about it a lot online. Then after watching the first episode, I was hooked.

Finally with books, the only book I can think of was Lord of the Flies; I thought I was gonna hate it when I started reading it in High School. But I ended up loving it and it was actually the book that inspired me to be a writer.

 

[Zen Bard]

"Starship Troppers". Seriously, staring Casper Van Diem, Doogie Howser AND Denise Richards? What could possibly go right? Ah...but it was directed by Paul Verhoven. And he made a smart, satirical movie that, ironically, took the opposite point of view as the novel.

And...throw me in with the rest of the people who were pleasantly surprised by "Rise of the Planet of the Apes". When I was a little tyke, the original movies were my favorite. And since I still had a bad taste in my mouth from Tim Burton's "re-imagining", I expected more of the same. Then I saw it and was genuinely blown away. Everything...the story, the effects, the acting...was excellent.

For video games, "Darksiders II". Figured this would be a cheap "God of War" knockoff for the XBox. But it was a richly imagined original world with great gameplay elements and the great Michael Wincott (of "The Crow" fame) voicing Death. What's not to love?

Oh and finally, classic "Diablo". I never thought a point-and-click game could suck me in so deep. But it did and I've been hooked on the franchise (even "Diablo III") ever since.