SciFi List

We’d be hard-pressed to pick the 5 best time travel stories of all time, given the sheer magnitude of the genrethat would be like picking the 5 best Direct TV channels. Instead, we’ve picked out some of the most popular uses of time travel, no matter what the medium. There are, of course, many other uses besides the ones mentioned below, but we don’t have all the time in the world, now do we?5. Becoming your own (step)father: One of the best recent examples is in Chuck Palahniuk’s novel Rant. When the main character discovers that certain car crashes have the ability to jar you loose from time, he sets himself up as a stepfather to his younger self in order to protect his family. Another example (or at least its possibility) is played for comedic effect in the first Back to the Future film.4. Leaving a warning for the past: In Isaac Asimov’s 1955 novel The End of Eternity, Eternity is an organization outside time composed of benevolent travelers. One of the characters conceals a warning of the atomic bomb in a 1932 ad for stock tips.3. Finding your soul mate: The saying, “Opposites attract,” has never been more true. In the 2001 film Kate & Leopold, a duke travels from 1876 to modern-day New York and falls for an ambitious business exec. In The Time Traveler’s Wife, a modern-day man with a genetic disorder travels through time and meets his wife at various points in her life. Also see: The Lake Housealthough we don’t recommend it.2. Solving a mystery: In the 2006 film Dj Vu, an ATF agent uses a time window to solve the case of a Navy ship explosion. Eventually, the agent discovers that he can also send objects through the window and tries to stop the crime before it is committed.1. Getting rich: In Terry Gilliam’s 1981 film Time Bandits, a group of time dwarves steal from some of the most notable figures from history and myth. Of course, while making money may be one of the most popular, it’s certainly not the most honorable use of time travelafter all, no one wants to be like Biff (Back to the Future Part II).

Robots were first envisioned as humanity’s servants, but who would have thought that so many would capture our hearts and minds? If any robots are reading this and plan on taking over the world, you could do worse than emulating these hard-wired heroes.10. Gort (The Day the Earth Stood Still): This mechanical marvel wowed audiences in 1951 as the companion of Klaatu, the alien visitor who comes to Earth to offer them a way out of their nuclear arms race. According to Klaatu, “there’s no limit” to what this hulking robot can do.9. T-800 (The Terminator series): Arnold Schwarzenneger’s iconic turn as “The Terminator” demonstrated a perfect killing machine that, in the 2^nd and 3^rd films, could turn into a protective father as if at the flick of a switch. He represents one of the more frightening visions of what robots could become.8. RoboCop (Robocop series): Okay, technically he’s a cyborg, but his visored helmet and mechanical armor are all metal, baby. The human brain behind it all gives RoboCop an empathy other mechanical characters lack. Read all »