• Disney's 23 Best And Most Memorable Songs Ever, Ranked

    Start SlideshowStart SlideshowDisney has enchanted us for decades with its resplendent animation and fantastical stories of princesses, wicked witches, and fire-breathing dragons, but music has always been its most indelible sprinkle of pixie dust. There are songs that move us, make us dance, and help us understand the characters that have already been so lovingly drawn. With over 350 songs in the Disney canon, it’s nearly impossible to narrow them down, but we’ve chosen the 23 in honor of the year 1923, when Walt Disney founded the company. These songs are the most magical and remind us why Disney has endured for over a century.Previous SlideNext Slide2 / 25List slides23. “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White and the Seven DwarfsList slides23. “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White and the Seven DwarfsWhistle While You Work - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Larry Morey and Frank Churchill’s merry tune about finding the joy in the most mundane of chores is quite simple, with only nine lines, yet incredibly catchy. Adriana Caselotti’s warbling, baby voice is fitting for this old-fashioned, operetta-style number and the entire sequence that features the big-eyed, adorable forest creatures helping her out. The squirrels sweep the dust with their tails, and the raccoons wash dirty clothes in a nearby watering hole to every sprightly beat. It’s difficult not to be beguiled by this little ditty, and you’ll find yourself humming it the next time you do your spring cleaning. Previous SlideNext Slide3 / 25List slides22. “The Family Madrigal” from EncantoList slides22. “The Family Madrigal” from EncantoStephanie Beatriz, Olga Merediz, Encanto - Cast - The Family MadrigalLin-Manuel Miranda’s fingerprints are all over modern Disney soundtracks. He is a master at crafting clever, fast-paced, and genre-blending earworms. The biggest ones to emerge from Encanto are “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” and “Surface Pressure,” where he blends classic Broadway stylings with punchier salsa and reggaeton genres. “The Family Madrigal” may not have reached the same level of pop culture infamy as the other songs in this film, but it’s a clever and economical way to introduce the Madrigal family and their powers. Stephanie Beatriz’s bubbly voice as Mirabel suits the song’s bouncy rhythm perfectly, while the Colombian folk instruments such as an accordion, caja vallenata, and guacharaca match the colorful energy of the magical town the Madrigals call home. Previous SlideNext Slide4 / 25List slides21.“Dig a Little Deeper” from Princess and the FrogList slides21.“Dig a Little Deeper” from Princess and the FrogDig a Little DeeperRandy Newman’s toe-tapping blend of big-band swing and gospel choir refrains perfectly captures the vibrant soul of the New Orleans setting. The feisty Jennifer Lewis leads “Dig a Little Deeper” as Mama Odie, backed by the rousing Pinnacle Gospel Choir. The song’s brassy rhythms help Tiana let loose and Naveen to realize that he’s in love with her. The lessons Mama Odie imparts through the lyrics are wise and grounded: it doesn’t matter what you have or where you come from—that doesn’t define who you are. True fulfillment doesn’t come from material wealth, status, or outward appearances—it comes from understanding what you really want on the inside. The song crescendos with Anika Noni Rose’s powerful belt and the soulful shouts of Mama Odie’s bright flamingo chorus. Previous SlideNext Slide5 / 25List slides20. “I See the Light” from TangledList slides20. “I See the Light” from Tangled“I SEE THE LIGHT” | Tangled | Disney Animated HD The dreamy melody of “I See the Light” begins with a soft guitar. Glenn Slater and Alan Menken’s composition is fairly simple, allowing the glittering visuals to take center stage. The song takes place during the lighting ceremony that Rapunzel has yearned to visit after observing it from her tower for 18 years. Flynn and Rapunzel float on a gondola, surrounded by over 45,000 glowing lanterns floating in the air, dotting the sky and reflecting off the water that surrounds them. The characters sing the verses separately in their heads before their emotions burst, then they harmonize the chorus loudly, compelled by their realization that they’re in love. It’s a unique and touching way of framing a Disney love song. Previous SlideNext Slide6 / 25List slides19. “Friend Like Me” from AladdinList slides19. “Friend Like Me” from AladdinAladdin - Friend Like MeHoward Ashman’s playful lyrics and Alan Menken’s up-tempo, syncopated, vaudevillian song was the perfect musical playground for Robin Williams to fill with the zany impressions and quirky voices he was renowned for. A trumpet warbles in between one of the clever lyrics, sights and sounds so jam-packed with hilarity that you can barely stop to catch your breath. Robin Williams was so adept at improvisation that he had nearly an entire day’s worth of material. The animation is just as bonkers as his vocal performance, where Genie morphs into countless creatures—from a train whistle to a maître d’, a boxing trainer, a bunny, and a dragon. The Broadway-style showstopper culminates with a kick line under bright spotlights with monkeys, elephants, and dancing girls in crop tops and harem pants. “Friend Like Me” is a shining showcase for one of our finest comedic talents, the great Robin Williams. Previous SlideNext Slide7 / 25List slides18. “Baby Mine” from DumboList slides18. “Baby Mine” from DumboDisney’s “Dumbo” - Baby MineSongwriters Frank Churchill and Ned Washington are responsible for childhood traumas everywhere with “Baby Mine,” which takes place when Dumbo’s mother has been jailed as a “mad elephant” for fiercely protecting her son against his bullies. She reaches her trunk through the bars to cradle Dumbo to the soft, slumbering melody accompanied by haunting strings. Betty Noyes’ has that rich, rounded tone found in vintage singing, and it conveys Mrs. Jumbo’s maternal strength. The images of all the animals—zebras, tigers, monkeys, and even the underwater hippos—nestled in the love of their mothers, except for poor Dumbo, set against the song’s soothing orchestra, is absolutely heart wrenching. “Baby Mine” is the kind of song that inspires dreams of being comforted and cared for by a loving parental figure.Previous SlideNext Slide8 / 25List slides17. ”Once Upon a Dream” from Sleeping BeautyList slides17. ”Once Upon a Dream” from Sleeping BeautyOnce Upon A Dream | Sleeping Beauty Lyric Video | DISNEY SING-ALONGS Jack Lawrence and Sammy Fain craft a solo-turned-duet with a woozy, mysterious quality that perfectly complements the story of Sleeping Beauty. Mary Costa has such an elegant and operatic voice, with rich tones that make her sound far more mature than a 16-year-old girl. She’s soon joined by the strong, handsome voice of Prince Phillip, who appears unexpectedly in the forest. Their romance unfolds quickly, twirling together in the woods, surrounded by beautiful medieval-inspired, Gothic-Renaissance style visuals. The lilting orchestration and the grand choral ensemble add to the old-world mystique. The lyrics—of knowing someone before you truly know them, of seeing them in your dreams—add a tinge of mysterious excitement and mystical fate to their romance. Previous SlideNext Slide9 / 25List slides16. “Hellfire” from The Hunchback of Notre DameList slides16. “Hellfire” from The Hunchback of Notre DameHellfire - The Hunchback of Notre DameAlan Menken and Stephen Schwartz crafted one of Disney’s darkest songs. It’s hard to imagine Disney taking this type of creative risk again. “Hellfire” is sung by a corrupt priest consumed by lust for the Romani woman Esmeralda. The deep-voiced Tony Jay plays the dishonorable Frollo, who paints himself as a virtuous man—even though he killed Quasimodo’s mother and nearly killed Quasimodo. A true Catholic would have helped them. Today, Disney would never dare to show that authority figures—especially religious ones—can often be wrong and hypocritical, if not outright evil. This is one of the most provocative villain songs, in which Frollo essentially confesses his horniness. He sings of being enraptured by Esmeralda’s smoldering eyes and raven hair—a desire that burns and threatens to turn him to sin. “Hellfire” also has a spooky quality in its use of Latin and the intense religious choir that looms over Frollo in judgment, cloaked in red with faces like empty black holes. It’s a haunting song of operatic grandeur, with notes that flare and fade like the flames dancing in front of him. Previous SlideNext Slide10 / 25List slides15. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from CinderellaList slides15. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from CinderellaA Dream Is a Wish Your Heart MakesSung with silky warmth and a shimmering, ethereal vibrato by Ilene Woods as Cinderella, “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” is soft and soothing, yet carries an undercurrent of quiet determination. She sings to her loyal companions—adorable flocks of birds and mice—who wear the tiny outfits she’s lovingly made for them. They join in during a break of the song that is more playful and buoyant while she prepares for another grueling day of chores, yet she stays positive by believing her dreams will come true. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” has become a marketing anthem for the studio—used in various ads to evoke nostalgia, magic, and the promise that dreams really do come true, with Disney theme parks as the place where that magic can happen. Previous SlideNext Slide11 / 25List slides14. Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride from Lilo & StitchList slides14. Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride from Lilo & StitchHawaiian Roller Coaster RideThe rich voice of Mark Kealiʻi Hoʻomalu and the cheerful Kamehameha Schools Children’s Chorus come together for a song that is as sweet and breezy as a summer’s day. “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride” takes place during a touching moment of family bonding as Lilo, Nani, and David go surfing, gliding through the waves with ease. Stitch has been naughty, so he feels a little shy about enjoying the day with them, but he slowly begins to warm up to what it feels like to have a family. We see the adorable progression as the little thrill-seeker ends up riding the waves too. The song’s instrumentation—featuring ukulele, traditional Hawaiian fingerstyle guitar, and steel guitar—evokes the ocean waves and open skies, giving it that relaxed, beachy vibe. Both the animation and the song itself honors the film’s beautiful Hawaiian setting. Previous SlideNext Slide12 / 25List slides13. “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from MulanList slides13. “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from MulanMulan | I’ll Make a Man Out of You | Disney Junior UK “Let’s get down to business, to defeat the Huns” Donny Osmond sings in his perfectly crisp voice. The rousing number “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” by Matthew Wilder and David Zippel is the pump-up song for a training montage. It starts out comical as we see Mulan and her clumsy friends attempt to become the ideal Chinese soldier. The catchy chorus uses evocative nature metaphors for the type of strength and calm that Mulan needs to find, and the deep-voiced punctuation “Be a man!” at the end of each line adds to the hype. When Donny Osmond belts “Time is racing towards us, ‘till the Huns arrive,” you feel a thrilling rush of urgency and swell with courage. The final chorus plays against no instrumentation, the manly voices of the soldiers booming, allowing you to focus on Mulan and her friends now kicking ass. Previous SlideNext Slide13 / 25List slides12. “A Whole New World” from AladdinList slides12. “A Whole New World” from AladdinAladdin - A Whole New WorldBrad Kane’s voice carries an excited, breathy quality that draws you in as he whisks Jasmine away on a magic carpet ride. He sounds bright and earnest as he describes the shining, shimmering, and splendid world that Jasmine has never seen and he’s eager to show her. Lea Salonga, who is a Broadway legend in her own right, has an angelic innocence as Jasmine. Their voices come together in perfect harmony for this sweeping duet. “A Whole New World” is one of Disney’s most romantic love songs, with a melody that flutters and glides like the magic carpet itself. Written by Alan Menken and Tim Rice, the orchestration has lush strings that propel the adventurous animated sequence where they soar through the clouds, pass the Sphinx, and touch down near a group of horses. Previous SlideNext Slide14 / 25List slides11. “Strangers Like Me” from TarzanList slides11. “Strangers Like Me” from TarzanStrangers Like Me- TarzanOpening with a pulsing drum track, Strangers Like Me evokes the spinning wheels in Tarzan’s mind as he learns more about what lies beyond the jungle. The montage is gorgeously animated, featuring old-fashioned ink illustrations that Tarzan looks at through a magic lantern. He sees the city of London, a giant castle, the Sphinx, and even outer space for the first time. This flood of information drives the song’s urgent pace.The filmmakers craft the entire animated sequence as a response to the lyrics, as Tarzan watches Janeor shows off a pocket of the rainforest filled with parrots. Phil Collins’ bright voice captures Tarzan’s wonderment, especially in the soaring chorus, where Tarzan expresses his desire to learn more about strangers like him. You feel his hunger for the great, wide world in the song’s pounding, tribal drumbeats. Previous SlideNext Slide15 / 25List slides10. “I Won’t Say I’m in Love” from HerculesList slides10. “I Won’t Say I’m in Love” from HerculesHercules│ I Won’t SayThe story of the ancient Greek hero Hercules has such a unique musical style, with lyricist David Zippel and composer Alan Menken blending doo-wop, Motown, and gospel soul. The muses serve as a literal Greek chorus, commenting on the action with their sassy perspective. In “I Won’t Say I’m in Love,” Megara’s velvet-voiced, sarcastic Susan Egan stands apart from other Disney heroines, who often sing fluttering arias about dreaming of a prince. Instead, Megara resists her feelings because she’s been burned too many times before, creating a comical juxtaposition with the Muses, who cheekily insist that she’s in love. They tease her with “Check the grin, you’re in love.” It’s a playful and flirtatious song that celebrates an unconventional Disney princess and musical choices. Previous SlideNext Slide16 / 25List slides9. “How Far I’ll Go” from MoanaList slides9. “How Far I’ll Go” from MoanaAuli’i Cravalho - How Far I’ll GoEver since their introduction in The Little Mermaid, Broadway-style “I Want” songs have become a hallmark of Disney princess films. They are passionate solos that reveal what each heroine desires most in the world. Whatever her heart longs for becomes the emotional engine driving the story forward. In “How Far I’ll Go,” composed by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Moana is torn between her dream of exploring what’s beyond her remote island and her duty to her family. She’s genuinely torn, even wondering if she’s wrong to yearn for what lies beyond the horizon. Auli’i Cravalho’s pure, heartfelt voice captures all the wistfulness and uncertainty of growing up. The melody swells and crashes gently like ocean tides, mirroring the push and pull of Moana’s inner conflict. Previous SlideNext Slide17 / 25List slides8. “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the BeastList slides8. “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast - Be Our GuestMusic Video Broadway royalty Jerry Orbach helms this showstopper with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Howard Ashman. The suave candlestick Lumière uses the number to lure Belle out of her bedroom, and show that the enchanted castle is more friendly and exciting than spooky and depressing. “Be Our Guest” has clever, fast-paced lyrics sung in a classic “patter song” style which then explodes in a lively, French can-can finale. The living castle objects just want to serve and make someone happy again, offering Belle elaborate meals and dazzling entertainment. Everything is on the plate for Belle, from soup du jour, hot hors d’oeuvres, beef ragout, cheese soufflé, and of course, the grey stuff. What’s just as exciting about the number as its giddy music is the animation, with spoons swimming in punch bowls like a Busby Berkeley number, prismatic spotlights, sumptuous, brightly-colored cakes, a glowing chandelier, and dancing flatware. Previous SlideNext Slide18 / 25List slides7. “You’ll Be in My Heart” from TarzanList slides7. “You’ll Be in My Heart” from TarzanPhil Collins - You’ll Be in My Heart /TarzanPhil Collins knocked it out of the park with the entire Tarzan soundtrack. Somehow his earthy voice, drum-infused instrumentals, and heartfelt lyrics were the perfect mix for this jungle story. Rather than a traditional Disney musical, Phil Collins acts as an omnipresent narrator, commenting on the action or voicing the character’s thoughts. “You’ll Be In My Heart” rightfully earned the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Originally written as a lullaby for his own daughter, the song starts off tender, with Phil Collins almost gently whispering against soft marimbas. Its lyrics of true love and devotion are moving, especially in the scene where Kala sings it to a baby Tarzan, who, despite being a different species, experiences a bond where love and care know no bounds. The song eventually crashes into driving drums, moving toward a bridge that sees the child fly free on their own: “When destiny calls you / You must be strong / I may not be with you / But you’ve got to hold on.” This song is touching for anyone who has ever loved someone and watched them grow, no matter what type of relationship. Previous SlideNext Slide19 / 25List slides6. “Under the Sea” from The Little MermaidList slides6. “Under the Sea” from The Little MermaidThe Little Mermaid - Under the SeaThose solo calypso opening notes of “Under the Sea” immediately get you excited, and Samuel E. Wright delivers a rollicking underwater bash. His booming voice and vivacious energy are perfect for the overdramatic crustacean and his mission to convince Ariel that living under the sea “is the bubbles” with no troubles. “Under the Sea’ buoys the rainbow-colored montage of marine life that fills Ariel’s world—fish, dolphins, and coral reefs. The scene cleverly ties the instruments to various creatures and animation — harps echo the swirling school of fish, shells mimic steel pans, and a pair of octopuses intertwine their legs like bass lines. With its infectious Caribbean beat, Howard Ashman and Alan Menken’s song is a true banger and impossible not to love, which is why it won the 1990 Oscar for Best Original Song. Previous SlideNext Slide20 / 25List slides5. “Colors of the Wind” from PocahontasList slides5. “Colors of the Wind” from PocahontasPocahontas - Colors of the Wind“You think the only people who are people / Are the people who look and think like you / But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger / You’ll learn things you never knew, you never knew.” In this increasingly polarized world, that message has never been more relevant. Pocahontas is not immediately smitten with John Smith; instead, she condemns his entire culture, which prioritizes gold and hatred over acceptance and the beauty of nature. Stephen Schwartz’s lyrics paint gorgeous pictures of the American wilderness, questioning why the white men who have invaded these lands cannot appreciate the world around them — from the grinning bobcats to the sweet berries to the trees that stretch toward the sky, if only we let them grow. Alan Menken’s surrounding score is rapturous, carried by Judy Kuhn’s passionate vocals. More than just the profound lyrics, it’s the visuals that make this musical number so unforgettable — particularly John Smith and Pocahontas dancing in a pastel-colored wind. It’s no surprise that “Colors of the Wind” won an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Previous SlideNext Slide21 / 25List slides4. “When You Wish Upon a Star” from PinnochioList slides4. “When You Wish Upon a Star” from PinnochioPocahontas - Colors of the WindWritten by Leigh Harline and Ned Washington, “When You Wish Upon a Star” has come to define Disney itself, typically playing over the castle logo that opens every movie. The ethereal ballad is sung by Cliff Edwards as Jiminy Cricket, whose resonant yet quirky voice feels like someone sharing a story by a crackling fire. “When you wish upon a star / Makes no difference who you are / Anything your heart desires / Will come to you,” he tenderly sings over the opening credits. The gentle melody wraps you in a warm embrace of possibility. People often make fun of Disney adults, but perhaps one reason we hold on to Disney films long after growing up is that they offer hope in an increasingly grim world. This aspirational song reminds us there is more to life than the ordinary—if we just dare to imagine.Previous SlideNext Slide22 / 25List slides3. “Beauty and the Beast” from Beauty and the BeastList slides3. “Beauty and the Beast” from Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast Tale As Old As Time HD As Mrs. Potts, Angela Lansbury’s warm, cheery English voice adds a rosiness to this powerful love ballad, backed by an orchestra of sumptuous strings. The lyrics aren’t the pure romanticism of past Disney love stories; there is no love at first sight here. Instead, Mrs. Potts gently reflects on how true love can take time to blossom, and how relationships sometimes require change, admitting your faults and working hard to set aside your vices and worst qualities. It’s a surprisingly mature outlook for a Disney love song. The accompanying animation is one of the most exquisite sequences in Disney history: Belle’s golden dress glides delicately across the floor as she and the Beast dance in the grand ballroom, the camera swirling to reveal the sparkling chandelier and Michelangelo-esque ceiling of painted cherubs above them. That Howard Ashman wrote this song while dying from complications of AIDS makes it all the more poignant. Previous SlideNext Slide23 / 25List slides2. “Part of Your World” from The Little MermaidList slides2. “Part of Your World” from The Little MermaidJodi Benson - Part of Your WorldBefore The Little Mermaid kicked off the Disney Renaissanceprincess songs were mostly focused on their prince charmings. They had very few aspirations outside of dreaming about their prince or wishing for their prince. But the introduction of the songwriting team Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, who had worked on the off-Broadway show Little Shop of Horrors, helped develop a Disney princess that had greater ambitions. Ariel wanted to see the human world, and she would express that within a Broadway-style solo called the “I Want” song, where the protagonist sings about, well, what they want. “Part of Your World” has a flowing melody and a sweet yearning in Jodi Benson’s voice. We see her comical misunderstanding of what her treasures are, all whozits and whatzits galore. “Wouldn’t I love to explore that shore up above?” her voice soars while reaching out through the top of her grotto towards the sun. In that moment, with her big eyes and aching voice, you completely understand how much the human world means to her.Previous SlideNext Slide24 / 25List slides1. “Circle of Life” from The Lion KingList slides1. “Circle of Life” from The Lion KingCarmen Twillie, Lebo M. - Circle of LifeNo Disney song is quite as epic as Elton John’s “Circle of Life.” The image of the rising sun, paired with the opening lines sung passionately in Zulu by Lebo M., without any instrumentals, immediately hooks you into this sweeping story of the African savannah. The title, “Circle of Life,” is fitting for this tale of birth, death, and everything in between. The lyrics somehow encompass everything about our big, beautiful world — how finite life is, and the experiences, both good and bad, that give us balance. There’s despair and there’s hope. There’s faith and there’s love. The lyrics are poetic and make you think about the wonder and mystery of existence. The song reaches a powerful peak at the end when the chorus rises together. It’s impossible not to get full-body chills on that final soaring note, “It’s the circle, the circle of life,” punctuated by the thunderous drumbeat, where the sight of Rafiki lifting Simba on Pride Rock cuts to black. “Circle of Life” is a beautiful song with a grand vision, especially for a film geared towards children.
    #disney039s #best #most #memorable #songs
    Disney's 23 Best And Most Memorable Songs Ever, Ranked
    Start SlideshowStart SlideshowDisney has enchanted us for decades with its resplendent animation and fantastical stories of princesses, wicked witches, and fire-breathing dragons, but music has always been its most indelible sprinkle of pixie dust. There are songs that move us, make us dance, and help us understand the characters that have already been so lovingly drawn. With over 350 songs in the Disney canon, it’s nearly impossible to narrow them down, but we’ve chosen the 23 in honor of the year 1923, when Walt Disney founded the company. These songs are the most magical and remind us why Disney has endured for over a century.Previous SlideNext Slide2 / 25List slides23. “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White and the Seven DwarfsList slides23. “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White and the Seven DwarfsWhistle While You Work - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Larry Morey and Frank Churchill’s merry tune about finding the joy in the most mundane of chores is quite simple, with only nine lines, yet incredibly catchy. Adriana Caselotti’s warbling, baby voice is fitting for this old-fashioned, operetta-style number and the entire sequence that features the big-eyed, adorable forest creatures helping her out. The squirrels sweep the dust with their tails, and the raccoons wash dirty clothes in a nearby watering hole to every sprightly beat. It’s difficult not to be beguiled by this little ditty, and you’ll find yourself humming it the next time you do your spring cleaning. Previous SlideNext Slide3 / 25List slides22. “The Family Madrigal” from EncantoList slides22. “The Family Madrigal” from EncantoStephanie Beatriz, Olga Merediz, Encanto - Cast - The Family MadrigalLin-Manuel Miranda’s fingerprints are all over modern Disney soundtracks. He is a master at crafting clever, fast-paced, and genre-blending earworms. The biggest ones to emerge from Encanto are “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” and “Surface Pressure,” where he blends classic Broadway stylings with punchier salsa and reggaeton genres. “The Family Madrigal” may not have reached the same level of pop culture infamy as the other songs in this film, but it’s a clever and economical way to introduce the Madrigal family and their powers. Stephanie Beatriz’s bubbly voice as Mirabel suits the song’s bouncy rhythm perfectly, while the Colombian folk instruments such as an accordion, caja vallenata, and guacharaca match the colorful energy of the magical town the Madrigals call home. Previous SlideNext Slide4 / 25List slides21.“Dig a Little Deeper” from Princess and the FrogList slides21.“Dig a Little Deeper” from Princess and the FrogDig a Little DeeperRandy Newman’s toe-tapping blend of big-band swing and gospel choir refrains perfectly captures the vibrant soul of the New Orleans setting. The feisty Jennifer Lewis leads “Dig a Little Deeper” as Mama Odie, backed by the rousing Pinnacle Gospel Choir. The song’s brassy rhythms help Tiana let loose and Naveen to realize that he’s in love with her. The lessons Mama Odie imparts through the lyrics are wise and grounded: it doesn’t matter what you have or where you come from—that doesn’t define who you are. True fulfillment doesn’t come from material wealth, status, or outward appearances—it comes from understanding what you really want on the inside. The song crescendos with Anika Noni Rose’s powerful belt and the soulful shouts of Mama Odie’s bright flamingo chorus. Previous SlideNext Slide5 / 25List slides20. “I See the Light” from TangledList slides20. “I See the Light” from Tangled“I SEE THE LIGHT” | Tangled | Disney Animated HD The dreamy melody of “I See the Light” begins with a soft guitar. Glenn Slater and Alan Menken’s composition is fairly simple, allowing the glittering visuals to take center stage. The song takes place during the lighting ceremony that Rapunzel has yearned to visit after observing it from her tower for 18 years. Flynn and Rapunzel float on a gondola, surrounded by over 45,000 glowing lanterns floating in the air, dotting the sky and reflecting off the water that surrounds them. The characters sing the verses separately in their heads before their emotions burst, then they harmonize the chorus loudly, compelled by their realization that they’re in love. It’s a unique and touching way of framing a Disney love song. Previous SlideNext Slide6 / 25List slides19. “Friend Like Me” from AladdinList slides19. “Friend Like Me” from AladdinAladdin - Friend Like MeHoward Ashman’s playful lyrics and Alan Menken’s up-tempo, syncopated, vaudevillian song was the perfect musical playground for Robin Williams to fill with the zany impressions and quirky voices he was renowned for. A trumpet warbles in between one of the clever lyrics, sights and sounds so jam-packed with hilarity that you can barely stop to catch your breath. Robin Williams was so adept at improvisation that he had nearly an entire day’s worth of material. The animation is just as bonkers as his vocal performance, where Genie morphs into countless creatures—from a train whistle to a maître d’, a boxing trainer, a bunny, and a dragon. The Broadway-style showstopper culminates with a kick line under bright spotlights with monkeys, elephants, and dancing girls in crop tops and harem pants. “Friend Like Me” is a shining showcase for one of our finest comedic talents, the great Robin Williams. Previous SlideNext Slide7 / 25List slides18. “Baby Mine” from DumboList slides18. “Baby Mine” from DumboDisney’s “Dumbo” - Baby MineSongwriters Frank Churchill and Ned Washington are responsible for childhood traumas everywhere with “Baby Mine,” which takes place when Dumbo’s mother has been jailed as a “mad elephant” for fiercely protecting her son against his bullies. She reaches her trunk through the bars to cradle Dumbo to the soft, slumbering melody accompanied by haunting strings. Betty Noyes’ has that rich, rounded tone found in vintage singing, and it conveys Mrs. Jumbo’s maternal strength. The images of all the animals—zebras, tigers, monkeys, and even the underwater hippos—nestled in the love of their mothers, except for poor Dumbo, set against the song’s soothing orchestra, is absolutely heart wrenching. “Baby Mine” is the kind of song that inspires dreams of being comforted and cared for by a loving parental figure.Previous SlideNext Slide8 / 25List slides17. ”Once Upon a Dream” from Sleeping BeautyList slides17. ”Once Upon a Dream” from Sleeping BeautyOnce Upon A Dream | Sleeping Beauty Lyric Video | DISNEY SING-ALONGS Jack Lawrence and Sammy Fain craft a solo-turned-duet with a woozy, mysterious quality that perfectly complements the story of Sleeping Beauty. Mary Costa has such an elegant and operatic voice, with rich tones that make her sound far more mature than a 16-year-old girl. She’s soon joined by the strong, handsome voice of Prince Phillip, who appears unexpectedly in the forest. Their romance unfolds quickly, twirling together in the woods, surrounded by beautiful medieval-inspired, Gothic-Renaissance style visuals. The lilting orchestration and the grand choral ensemble add to the old-world mystique. The lyrics—of knowing someone before you truly know them, of seeing them in your dreams—add a tinge of mysterious excitement and mystical fate to their romance. Previous SlideNext Slide9 / 25List slides16. “Hellfire” from The Hunchback of Notre DameList slides16. “Hellfire” from The Hunchback of Notre DameHellfire - The Hunchback of Notre DameAlan Menken and Stephen Schwartz crafted one of Disney’s darkest songs. It’s hard to imagine Disney taking this type of creative risk again. “Hellfire” is sung by a corrupt priest consumed by lust for the Romani woman Esmeralda. The deep-voiced Tony Jay plays the dishonorable Frollo, who paints himself as a virtuous man—even though he killed Quasimodo’s mother and nearly killed Quasimodo. A true Catholic would have helped them. Today, Disney would never dare to show that authority figures—especially religious ones—can often be wrong and hypocritical, if not outright evil. This is one of the most provocative villain songs, in which Frollo essentially confesses his horniness. He sings of being enraptured by Esmeralda’s smoldering eyes and raven hair—a desire that burns and threatens to turn him to sin. “Hellfire” also has a spooky quality in its use of Latin and the intense religious choir that looms over Frollo in judgment, cloaked in red with faces like empty black holes. It’s a haunting song of operatic grandeur, with notes that flare and fade like the flames dancing in front of him. Previous SlideNext Slide10 / 25List slides15. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from CinderellaList slides15. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from CinderellaA Dream Is a Wish Your Heart MakesSung with silky warmth and a shimmering, ethereal vibrato by Ilene Woods as Cinderella, “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” is soft and soothing, yet carries an undercurrent of quiet determination. She sings to her loyal companions—adorable flocks of birds and mice—who wear the tiny outfits she’s lovingly made for them. They join in during a break of the song that is more playful and buoyant while she prepares for another grueling day of chores, yet she stays positive by believing her dreams will come true. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” has become a marketing anthem for the studio—used in various ads to evoke nostalgia, magic, and the promise that dreams really do come true, with Disney theme parks as the place where that magic can happen. Previous SlideNext Slide11 / 25List slides14. Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride from Lilo & StitchList slides14. Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride from Lilo & StitchHawaiian Roller Coaster RideThe rich voice of Mark Kealiʻi Hoʻomalu and the cheerful Kamehameha Schools Children’s Chorus come together for a song that is as sweet and breezy as a summer’s day. “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride” takes place during a touching moment of family bonding as Lilo, Nani, and David go surfing, gliding through the waves with ease. Stitch has been naughty, so he feels a little shy about enjoying the day with them, but he slowly begins to warm up to what it feels like to have a family. We see the adorable progression as the little thrill-seeker ends up riding the waves too. The song’s instrumentation—featuring ukulele, traditional Hawaiian fingerstyle guitar, and steel guitar—evokes the ocean waves and open skies, giving it that relaxed, beachy vibe. Both the animation and the song itself honors the film’s beautiful Hawaiian setting. Previous SlideNext Slide12 / 25List slides13. “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from MulanList slides13. “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from MulanMulan | I’ll Make a Man Out of You | Disney Junior UK “Let’s get down to business, to defeat the Huns” Donny Osmond sings in his perfectly crisp voice. The rousing number “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” by Matthew Wilder and David Zippel is the pump-up song for a training montage. It starts out comical as we see Mulan and her clumsy friends attempt to become the ideal Chinese soldier. The catchy chorus uses evocative nature metaphors for the type of strength and calm that Mulan needs to find, and the deep-voiced punctuation “Be a man!” at the end of each line adds to the hype. When Donny Osmond belts “Time is racing towards us, ‘till the Huns arrive,” you feel a thrilling rush of urgency and swell with courage. The final chorus plays against no instrumentation, the manly voices of the soldiers booming, allowing you to focus on Mulan and her friends now kicking ass. Previous SlideNext Slide13 / 25List slides12. “A Whole New World” from AladdinList slides12. “A Whole New World” from AladdinAladdin - A Whole New WorldBrad Kane’s voice carries an excited, breathy quality that draws you in as he whisks Jasmine away on a magic carpet ride. He sounds bright and earnest as he describes the shining, shimmering, and splendid world that Jasmine has never seen and he’s eager to show her. Lea Salonga, who is a Broadway legend in her own right, has an angelic innocence as Jasmine. Their voices come together in perfect harmony for this sweeping duet. “A Whole New World” is one of Disney’s most romantic love songs, with a melody that flutters and glides like the magic carpet itself. Written by Alan Menken and Tim Rice, the orchestration has lush strings that propel the adventurous animated sequence where they soar through the clouds, pass the Sphinx, and touch down near a group of horses. Previous SlideNext Slide14 / 25List slides11. “Strangers Like Me” from TarzanList slides11. “Strangers Like Me” from TarzanStrangers Like Me- TarzanOpening with a pulsing drum track, Strangers Like Me evokes the spinning wheels in Tarzan’s mind as he learns more about what lies beyond the jungle. The montage is gorgeously animated, featuring old-fashioned ink illustrations that Tarzan looks at through a magic lantern. He sees the city of London, a giant castle, the Sphinx, and even outer space for the first time. This flood of information drives the song’s urgent pace.The filmmakers craft the entire animated sequence as a response to the lyrics, as Tarzan watches Janeor shows off a pocket of the rainforest filled with parrots. Phil Collins’ bright voice captures Tarzan’s wonderment, especially in the soaring chorus, where Tarzan expresses his desire to learn more about strangers like him. You feel his hunger for the great, wide world in the song’s pounding, tribal drumbeats. Previous SlideNext Slide15 / 25List slides10. “I Won’t Say I’m in Love” from HerculesList slides10. “I Won’t Say I’m in Love” from HerculesHercules│ I Won’t SayThe story of the ancient Greek hero Hercules has such a unique musical style, with lyricist David Zippel and composer Alan Menken blending doo-wop, Motown, and gospel soul. The muses serve as a literal Greek chorus, commenting on the action with their sassy perspective. In “I Won’t Say I’m in Love,” Megara’s velvet-voiced, sarcastic Susan Egan stands apart from other Disney heroines, who often sing fluttering arias about dreaming of a prince. Instead, Megara resists her feelings because she’s been burned too many times before, creating a comical juxtaposition with the Muses, who cheekily insist that she’s in love. They tease her with “Check the grin, you’re in love.” It’s a playful and flirtatious song that celebrates an unconventional Disney princess and musical choices. Previous SlideNext Slide16 / 25List slides9. “How Far I’ll Go” from MoanaList slides9. “How Far I’ll Go” from MoanaAuli’i Cravalho - How Far I’ll GoEver since their introduction in The Little Mermaid, Broadway-style “I Want” songs have become a hallmark of Disney princess films. They are passionate solos that reveal what each heroine desires most in the world. Whatever her heart longs for becomes the emotional engine driving the story forward. In “How Far I’ll Go,” composed by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Moana is torn between her dream of exploring what’s beyond her remote island and her duty to her family. She’s genuinely torn, even wondering if she’s wrong to yearn for what lies beyond the horizon. Auli’i Cravalho’s pure, heartfelt voice captures all the wistfulness and uncertainty of growing up. The melody swells and crashes gently like ocean tides, mirroring the push and pull of Moana’s inner conflict. Previous SlideNext Slide17 / 25List slides8. “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the BeastList slides8. “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast - Be Our GuestMusic Video Broadway royalty Jerry Orbach helms this showstopper with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Howard Ashman. The suave candlestick Lumière uses the number to lure Belle out of her bedroom, and show that the enchanted castle is more friendly and exciting than spooky and depressing. “Be Our Guest” has clever, fast-paced lyrics sung in a classic “patter song” style which then explodes in a lively, French can-can finale. The living castle objects just want to serve and make someone happy again, offering Belle elaborate meals and dazzling entertainment. Everything is on the plate for Belle, from soup du jour, hot hors d’oeuvres, beef ragout, cheese soufflé, and of course, the grey stuff. What’s just as exciting about the number as its giddy music is the animation, with spoons swimming in punch bowls like a Busby Berkeley number, prismatic spotlights, sumptuous, brightly-colored cakes, a glowing chandelier, and dancing flatware. Previous SlideNext Slide18 / 25List slides7. “You’ll Be in My Heart” from TarzanList slides7. “You’ll Be in My Heart” from TarzanPhil Collins - You’ll Be in My Heart /TarzanPhil Collins knocked it out of the park with the entire Tarzan soundtrack. Somehow his earthy voice, drum-infused instrumentals, and heartfelt lyrics were the perfect mix for this jungle story. Rather than a traditional Disney musical, Phil Collins acts as an omnipresent narrator, commenting on the action or voicing the character’s thoughts. “You’ll Be In My Heart” rightfully earned the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Originally written as a lullaby for his own daughter, the song starts off tender, with Phil Collins almost gently whispering against soft marimbas. Its lyrics of true love and devotion are moving, especially in the scene where Kala sings it to a baby Tarzan, who, despite being a different species, experiences a bond where love and care know no bounds. The song eventually crashes into driving drums, moving toward a bridge that sees the child fly free on their own: “When destiny calls you / You must be strong / I may not be with you / But you’ve got to hold on.” This song is touching for anyone who has ever loved someone and watched them grow, no matter what type of relationship. Previous SlideNext Slide19 / 25List slides6. “Under the Sea” from The Little MermaidList slides6. “Under the Sea” from The Little MermaidThe Little Mermaid - Under the SeaThose solo calypso opening notes of “Under the Sea” immediately get you excited, and Samuel E. Wright delivers a rollicking underwater bash. His booming voice and vivacious energy are perfect for the overdramatic crustacean and his mission to convince Ariel that living under the sea “is the bubbles” with no troubles. “Under the Sea’ buoys the rainbow-colored montage of marine life that fills Ariel’s world—fish, dolphins, and coral reefs. The scene cleverly ties the instruments to various creatures and animation — harps echo the swirling school of fish, shells mimic steel pans, and a pair of octopuses intertwine their legs like bass lines. With its infectious Caribbean beat, Howard Ashman and Alan Menken’s song is a true banger and impossible not to love, which is why it won the 1990 Oscar for Best Original Song. Previous SlideNext Slide20 / 25List slides5. “Colors of the Wind” from PocahontasList slides5. “Colors of the Wind” from PocahontasPocahontas - Colors of the Wind“You think the only people who are people / Are the people who look and think like you / But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger / You’ll learn things you never knew, you never knew.” In this increasingly polarized world, that message has never been more relevant. Pocahontas is not immediately smitten with John Smith; instead, she condemns his entire culture, which prioritizes gold and hatred over acceptance and the beauty of nature. Stephen Schwartz’s lyrics paint gorgeous pictures of the American wilderness, questioning why the white men who have invaded these lands cannot appreciate the world around them — from the grinning bobcats to the sweet berries to the trees that stretch toward the sky, if only we let them grow. Alan Menken’s surrounding score is rapturous, carried by Judy Kuhn’s passionate vocals. More than just the profound lyrics, it’s the visuals that make this musical number so unforgettable — particularly John Smith and Pocahontas dancing in a pastel-colored wind. It’s no surprise that “Colors of the Wind” won an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Previous SlideNext Slide21 / 25List slides4. “When You Wish Upon a Star” from PinnochioList slides4. “When You Wish Upon a Star” from PinnochioPocahontas - Colors of the WindWritten by Leigh Harline and Ned Washington, “When You Wish Upon a Star” has come to define Disney itself, typically playing over the castle logo that opens every movie. The ethereal ballad is sung by Cliff Edwards as Jiminy Cricket, whose resonant yet quirky voice feels like someone sharing a story by a crackling fire. “When you wish upon a star / Makes no difference who you are / Anything your heart desires / Will come to you,” he tenderly sings over the opening credits. The gentle melody wraps you in a warm embrace of possibility. People often make fun of Disney adults, but perhaps one reason we hold on to Disney films long after growing up is that they offer hope in an increasingly grim world. This aspirational song reminds us there is more to life than the ordinary—if we just dare to imagine.Previous SlideNext Slide22 / 25List slides3. “Beauty and the Beast” from Beauty and the BeastList slides3. “Beauty and the Beast” from Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast Tale As Old As Time HD As Mrs. Potts, Angela Lansbury’s warm, cheery English voice adds a rosiness to this powerful love ballad, backed by an orchestra of sumptuous strings. The lyrics aren’t the pure romanticism of past Disney love stories; there is no love at first sight here. Instead, Mrs. Potts gently reflects on how true love can take time to blossom, and how relationships sometimes require change, admitting your faults and working hard to set aside your vices and worst qualities. It’s a surprisingly mature outlook for a Disney love song. The accompanying animation is one of the most exquisite sequences in Disney history: Belle’s golden dress glides delicately across the floor as she and the Beast dance in the grand ballroom, the camera swirling to reveal the sparkling chandelier and Michelangelo-esque ceiling of painted cherubs above them. That Howard Ashman wrote this song while dying from complications of AIDS makes it all the more poignant. Previous SlideNext Slide23 / 25List slides2. “Part of Your World” from The Little MermaidList slides2. “Part of Your World” from The Little MermaidJodi Benson - Part of Your WorldBefore The Little Mermaid kicked off the Disney Renaissanceprincess songs were mostly focused on their prince charmings. They had very few aspirations outside of dreaming about their prince or wishing for their prince. But the introduction of the songwriting team Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, who had worked on the off-Broadway show Little Shop of Horrors, helped develop a Disney princess that had greater ambitions. Ariel wanted to see the human world, and she would express that within a Broadway-style solo called the “I Want” song, where the protagonist sings about, well, what they want. “Part of Your World” has a flowing melody and a sweet yearning in Jodi Benson’s voice. We see her comical misunderstanding of what her treasures are, all whozits and whatzits galore. “Wouldn’t I love to explore that shore up above?” her voice soars while reaching out through the top of her grotto towards the sun. In that moment, with her big eyes and aching voice, you completely understand how much the human world means to her.Previous SlideNext Slide24 / 25List slides1. “Circle of Life” from The Lion KingList slides1. “Circle of Life” from The Lion KingCarmen Twillie, Lebo M. - Circle of LifeNo Disney song is quite as epic as Elton John’s “Circle of Life.” The image of the rising sun, paired with the opening lines sung passionately in Zulu by Lebo M., without any instrumentals, immediately hooks you into this sweeping story of the African savannah. The title, “Circle of Life,” is fitting for this tale of birth, death, and everything in between. The lyrics somehow encompass everything about our big, beautiful world — how finite life is, and the experiences, both good and bad, that give us balance. There’s despair and there’s hope. There’s faith and there’s love. The lyrics are poetic and make you think about the wonder and mystery of existence. The song reaches a powerful peak at the end when the chorus rises together. It’s impossible not to get full-body chills on that final soaring note, “It’s the circle, the circle of life,” punctuated by the thunderous drumbeat, where the sight of Rafiki lifting Simba on Pride Rock cuts to black. “Circle of Life” is a beautiful song with a grand vision, especially for a film geared towards children. #disney039s #best #most #memorable #songs
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    Disney's 23 Best And Most Memorable Songs Ever, Ranked
    Start SlideshowStart SlideshowDisney has enchanted us for decades with its resplendent animation and fantastical stories of princesses, wicked witches, and fire-breathing dragons, but music has always been its most indelible sprinkle of pixie dust. There are songs that move us, make us dance, and help us understand the characters that have already been so lovingly drawn. With over 350 songs in the Disney canon, it’s nearly impossible to narrow them down, but we’ve chosen the 23 in honor of the year 1923, when Walt Disney founded the company. These songs are the most magical and remind us why Disney has endured for over a century.Previous SlideNext Slide2 / 25List slides23. “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White and the Seven DwarfsList slides23. “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White and the Seven DwarfsWhistle While You Work - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Larry Morey and Frank Churchill’s merry tune about finding the joy in the most mundane of chores is quite simple, with only nine lines, yet incredibly catchy. Adriana Caselotti’s warbling, baby voice is fitting for this old-fashioned, operetta-style number and the entire sequence that features the big-eyed, adorable forest creatures helping her out. The squirrels sweep the dust with their tails, and the raccoons wash dirty clothes in a nearby watering hole to every sprightly beat. It’s difficult not to be beguiled by this little ditty, and you’ll find yourself humming it the next time you do your spring cleaning. Previous SlideNext Slide3 / 25List slides22. “The Family Madrigal” from EncantoList slides22. “The Family Madrigal” from EncantoStephanie Beatriz, Olga Merediz, Encanto - Cast - The Family Madrigal (From “Encanto”) Lin-Manuel Miranda’s fingerprints are all over modern Disney soundtracks. He is a master at crafting clever, fast-paced, and genre-blending earworms. The biggest ones to emerge from Encanto are “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” and “Surface Pressure,” where he blends classic Broadway stylings with punchier salsa and reggaeton genres. “The Family Madrigal” may not have reached the same level of pop culture infamy as the other songs in this film, but it’s a clever and economical way to introduce the Madrigal family and their powers. Stephanie Beatriz’s bubbly voice as Mirabel suits the song’s bouncy rhythm perfectly, while the Colombian folk instruments such as an accordion, caja vallenata, and guacharaca match the colorful energy of the magical town the Madrigals call home. Previous SlideNext Slide4 / 25List slides21.“Dig a Little Deeper” from Princess and the FrogList slides21.“Dig a Little Deeper” from Princess and the FrogDig a Little Deeper (From “The Princess and the Frog”/Sing-Along) Randy Newman’s toe-tapping blend of big-band swing and gospel choir refrains perfectly captures the vibrant soul of the New Orleans setting. The feisty Jennifer Lewis leads “Dig a Little Deeper” as Mama Odie, backed by the rousing Pinnacle Gospel Choir. The song’s brassy rhythms help Tiana let loose and Naveen to realize that he’s in love with her. The lessons Mama Odie imparts through the lyrics are wise and grounded: it doesn’t matter what you have or where you come from—that doesn’t define who you are. True fulfillment doesn’t come from material wealth, status, or outward appearances—it comes from understanding what you really want on the inside. The song crescendos with Anika Noni Rose’s powerful belt and the soulful shouts of Mama Odie’s bright flamingo chorus. Previous SlideNext Slide5 / 25List slides20. “I See the Light” from TangledList slides20. “I See the Light” from Tangled“I SEE THE LIGHT” | Tangled | Disney Animated HD The dreamy melody of “I See the Light” begins with a soft guitar. Glenn Slater and Alan Menken’s composition is fairly simple, allowing the glittering visuals to take center stage. The song takes place during the lighting ceremony that Rapunzel has yearned to visit after observing it from her tower for 18 years. Flynn and Rapunzel float on a gondola, surrounded by over 45,000 glowing lanterns floating in the air, dotting the sky and reflecting off the water that surrounds them. The characters sing the verses separately in their heads before their emotions burst, then they harmonize the chorus loudly, compelled by their realization that they’re in love. It’s a unique and touching way of framing a Disney love song. Previous SlideNext Slide6 / 25List slides19. “Friend Like Me” from AladdinList slides19. “Friend Like Me” from AladdinAladdin - Friend Like Me (HD 1080p) Howard Ashman’s playful lyrics and Alan Menken’s up-tempo, syncopated, vaudevillian song was the perfect musical playground for Robin Williams to fill with the zany impressions and quirky voices he was renowned for. A trumpet warbles in between one of the clever lyrics, sights and sounds so jam-packed with hilarity that you can barely stop to catch your breath. Robin Williams was so adept at improvisation that he had nearly an entire day’s worth of material. The animation is just as bonkers as his vocal performance, where Genie morphs into countless creatures—from a train whistle to a maître d’, a boxing trainer, a bunny, and a dragon. The Broadway-style showstopper culminates with a kick line under bright spotlights with monkeys, elephants, and dancing girls in crop tops and harem pants. “Friend Like Me” is a shining showcase for one of our finest comedic talents, the great Robin Williams. Previous SlideNext Slide7 / 25List slides18. “Baby Mine” from DumboList slides18. “Baby Mine” from DumboDisney’s “Dumbo” - Baby MineSongwriters Frank Churchill and Ned Washington are responsible for childhood traumas everywhere with “Baby Mine,” which takes place when Dumbo’s mother has been jailed as a “mad elephant” for fiercely protecting her son against his bullies. She reaches her trunk through the bars to cradle Dumbo to the soft, slumbering melody accompanied by haunting strings. Betty Noyes’ has that rich, rounded tone found in vintage singing, and it conveys Mrs. Jumbo’s maternal strength. The images of all the animals—zebras, tigers, monkeys, and even the underwater hippos—nestled in the love of their mothers, except for poor Dumbo, set against the song’s soothing orchestra, is absolutely heart wrenching. “Baby Mine” is the kind of song that inspires dreams of being comforted and cared for by a loving parental figure.Previous SlideNext Slide8 / 25List slides17. ”Once Upon a Dream” from Sleeping BeautyList slides17. ”Once Upon a Dream” from Sleeping BeautyOnce Upon A Dream | Sleeping Beauty Lyric Video | DISNEY SING-ALONGS Jack Lawrence and Sammy Fain craft a solo-turned-duet with a woozy, mysterious quality that perfectly complements the story of Sleeping Beauty. Mary Costa has such an elegant and operatic voice, with rich tones that make her sound far more mature than a 16-year-old girl. She’s soon joined by the strong, handsome voice of Prince Phillip, who appears unexpectedly in the forest. Their romance unfolds quickly, twirling together in the woods, surrounded by beautiful medieval-inspired, Gothic-Renaissance style visuals. The lilting orchestration and the grand choral ensemble add to the old-world mystique. The lyrics—of knowing someone before you truly know them, of seeing them in your dreams—add a tinge of mysterious excitement and mystical fate to their romance. Previous SlideNext Slide9 / 25List slides16. “Hellfire” from The Hunchback of Notre DameList slides16. “Hellfire” from The Hunchback of Notre DameHellfire - The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz crafted one of Disney’s darkest songs. It’s hard to imagine Disney taking this type of creative risk again. “Hellfire” is sung by a corrupt priest consumed by lust for the Romani woman Esmeralda. The deep-voiced Tony Jay plays the dishonorable Frollo, who paints himself as a virtuous man—even though he killed Quasimodo’s mother and nearly killed Quasimodo. A true Catholic would have helped them. Today, Disney would never dare to show that authority figures—especially religious ones—can often be wrong and hypocritical, if not outright evil. This is one of the most provocative villain songs, in which Frollo essentially confesses his horniness. He sings of being enraptured by Esmeralda’s smoldering eyes and raven hair—a desire that burns and threatens to turn him to sin. “Hellfire” also has a spooky quality in its use of Latin and the intense religious choir that looms over Frollo in judgment, cloaked in red with faces like empty black holes. It’s a haunting song of operatic grandeur, with notes that flare and fade like the flames dancing in front of him. Previous SlideNext Slide10 / 25List slides15. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from CinderellaList slides15. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from CinderellaA Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes (from Cinderella) Sung with silky warmth and a shimmering, ethereal vibrato by Ilene Woods as Cinderella, “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” is soft and soothing, yet carries an undercurrent of quiet determination. She sings to her loyal companions—adorable flocks of birds and mice—who wear the tiny outfits she’s lovingly made for them. They join in during a break of the song that is more playful and buoyant while she prepares for another grueling day of chores, yet she stays positive by believing her dreams will come true. “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” has become a marketing anthem for the studio—used in various ads to evoke nostalgia, magic, and the promise that dreams really do come true, with Disney theme parks as the place where that magic can happen. Previous SlideNext Slide11 / 25List slides14. Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride from Lilo & StitchList slides14. Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride from Lilo & StitchHawaiian Roller Coaster Ride (From “Lilo & Stitch”) The rich voice of Mark Kealiʻi Hoʻomalu and the cheerful Kamehameha Schools Children’s Chorus come together for a song that is as sweet and breezy as a summer’s day. “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride” takes place during a touching moment of family bonding as Lilo, Nani, and David go surfing, gliding through the waves with ease. Stitch has been naughty, so he feels a little shy about enjoying the day with them, but he slowly begins to warm up to what it feels like to have a family. We see the adorable progression as the little thrill-seeker ends up riding the waves too. The song’s instrumentation—featuring ukulele, traditional Hawaiian fingerstyle guitar, and steel guitar—evokes the ocean waves and open skies, giving it that relaxed, beachy vibe. Both the animation and the song itself honors the film’s beautiful Hawaiian setting. Previous SlideNext Slide12 / 25List slides13. “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from MulanList slides13. “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from MulanMulan | I’ll Make a Man Out of You | Disney Junior UK “Let’s get down to business, to defeat the Huns” Donny Osmond sings in his perfectly crisp voice. The rousing number “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” by Matthew Wilder and David Zippel is the pump-up song for a training montage. It starts out comical as we see Mulan and her clumsy friends attempt to become the ideal Chinese soldier. The catchy chorus uses evocative nature metaphors for the type of strength and calm that Mulan needs to find, and the deep-voiced punctuation “Be a man!” at the end of each line adds to the hype. When Donny Osmond belts “Time is racing towards us, ‘till the Huns arrive,” you feel a thrilling rush of urgency and swell with courage. The final chorus plays against no instrumentation, the manly voices of the soldiers booming, allowing you to focus on Mulan and her friends now kicking ass. Previous SlideNext Slide13 / 25List slides12. “A Whole New World” from AladdinList slides12. “A Whole New World” from AladdinAladdin - A Whole New World (HD 1080p) Brad Kane’s voice carries an excited, breathy quality that draws you in as he whisks Jasmine away on a magic carpet ride. He sounds bright and earnest as he describes the shining, shimmering, and splendid world that Jasmine has never seen and he’s eager to show her. Lea Salonga, who is a Broadway legend in her own right, has an angelic innocence as Jasmine. Their voices come together in perfect harmony for this sweeping duet. “A Whole New World” is one of Disney’s most romantic love songs, with a melody that flutters and glides like the magic carpet itself. Written by Alan Menken and Tim Rice, the orchestration has lush strings that propel the adventurous animated sequence where they soar through the clouds, pass the Sphinx, and touch down near a group of horses. Previous SlideNext Slide14 / 25List slides11. “Strangers Like Me” from TarzanList slides11. “Strangers Like Me” from TarzanStrangers Like Me (1080p Full HD) - Tarzan (1999)Opening with a pulsing drum track, Strangers Like Me evokes the spinning wheels in Tarzan’s mind as he learns more about what lies beyond the jungle. The montage is gorgeously animated, featuring old-fashioned ink illustrations that Tarzan looks at through a magic lantern. He sees the city of London, a giant castle, the Sphinx, and even outer space for the first time. This flood of information drives the song’s urgent pace.The filmmakers craft the entire animated sequence as a response to the lyrics, as Tarzan watches Jane (“Every gesture, every move that she makes / Makes me feel like never before”) or shows off a pocket of the rainforest filled with parrots (“Come with me now to see my world / Where there’s beauty beyond your dreams”). Phil Collins’ bright voice captures Tarzan’s wonderment, especially in the soaring chorus, where Tarzan expresses his desire to learn more about strangers like him. You feel his hunger for the great, wide world in the song’s pounding, tribal drumbeats. Previous SlideNext Slide15 / 25List slides10. “I Won’t Say I’m in Love” from HerculesList slides10. “I Won’t Say I’m in Love” from HerculesHercules (1997) │ I Won’t Say (I’m In Love) [DPU HD 4K] The story of the ancient Greek hero Hercules has such a unique musical style, with lyricist David Zippel and composer Alan Menken blending doo-wop, Motown, and gospel soul. The muses serve as a literal Greek chorus, commenting on the action with their sassy perspective. In “I Won’t Say I’m in Love,” Megara’s velvet-voiced, sarcastic Susan Egan stands apart from other Disney heroines, who often sing fluttering arias about dreaming of a prince. Instead, Megara resists her feelings because she’s been burned too many times before, creating a comical juxtaposition with the Muses, who cheekily insist that she’s in love. They tease her with “Check the grin, you’re in love.” It’s a playful and flirtatious song that celebrates an unconventional Disney princess and musical choices. Previous SlideNext Slide16 / 25List slides9. “How Far I’ll Go” from MoanaList slides9. “How Far I’ll Go” from MoanaAuli’i Cravalho - How Far I’ll Go (from Moana/Official Video) Ever since their introduction in The Little Mermaid, Broadway-style “I Want” songs have become a hallmark of Disney princess films. They are passionate solos that reveal what each heroine desires most in the world. Whatever her heart longs for becomes the emotional engine driving the story forward. In “How Far I’ll Go,” composed by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Moana is torn between her dream of exploring what’s beyond her remote island and her duty to her family. She’s genuinely torn, even wondering if she’s wrong to yearn for what lies beyond the horizon. Auli’i Cravalho’s pure, heartfelt voice captures all the wistfulness and uncertainty of growing up. The melody swells and crashes gently like ocean tides, mirroring the push and pull of Moana’s inner conflict. Previous SlideNext Slide17 / 25List slides8. “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the BeastList slides8. “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast - Be Our Guest (HD) Music Video Broadway royalty Jerry Orbach helms this showstopper with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Howard Ashman. The suave candlestick Lumière uses the number to lure Belle out of her bedroom, and show that the enchanted castle is more friendly and exciting than spooky and depressing. “Be Our Guest” has clever, fast-paced lyrics sung in a classic “patter song” style which then explodes in a lively, French can-can finale. The living castle objects just want to serve and make someone happy again, offering Belle elaborate meals and dazzling entertainment. Everything is on the plate for Belle, from soup du jour, hot hors d’oeuvres, beef ragout, cheese soufflé, and of course, the grey stuff. What’s just as exciting about the number as its giddy music is the animation, with spoons swimming in punch bowls like a Busby Berkeley number, prismatic spotlights, sumptuous, brightly-colored cakes, a glowing chandelier, and dancing flatware. Previous SlideNext Slide18 / 25List slides7. “You’ll Be in My Heart” from TarzanList slides7. “You’ll Be in My Heart” from TarzanPhil Collins - You’ll Be in My Heart /Tarzan(ターザン)Phil Collins knocked it out of the park with the entire Tarzan soundtrack. Somehow his earthy voice, drum-infused instrumentals, and heartfelt lyrics were the perfect mix for this jungle story. Rather than a traditional Disney musical, Phil Collins acts as an omnipresent narrator, commenting on the action or voicing the character’s thoughts. “You’ll Be In My Heart” rightfully earned the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Originally written as a lullaby for his own daughter, the song starts off tender, with Phil Collins almost gently whispering against soft marimbas. Its lyrics of true love and devotion are moving, especially in the scene where Kala sings it to a baby Tarzan, who, despite being a different species, experiences a bond where love and care know no bounds. The song eventually crashes into driving drums, moving toward a bridge that sees the child fly free on their own: “When destiny calls you / You must be strong / I may not be with you / But you’ve got to hold on.” This song is touching for anyone who has ever loved someone and watched them grow, no matter what type of relationship. Previous SlideNext Slide19 / 25List slides6. “Under the Sea” from The Little MermaidList slides6. “Under the Sea” from The Little MermaidThe Little Mermaid - Under the Sea (from The Little Mermaid) (Official Video) Those solo calypso opening notes of “Under the Sea” immediately get you excited, and Samuel E. Wright delivers a rollicking underwater bash. His booming voice and vivacious energy are perfect for the overdramatic crustacean and his mission to convince Ariel that living under the sea “is the bubbles” with no troubles. “Under the Sea’ buoys the rainbow-colored montage of marine life that fills Ariel’s world—fish, dolphins, and coral reefs. The scene cleverly ties the instruments to various creatures and animation — harps echo the swirling school of fish, shells mimic steel pans, and a pair of octopuses intertwine their legs like bass lines. With its infectious Caribbean beat, Howard Ashman and Alan Menken’s song is a true banger and impossible not to love, which is why it won the 1990 Oscar for Best Original Song. Previous SlideNext Slide20 / 25List slides5. “Colors of the Wind” from PocahontasList slides5. “Colors of the Wind” from PocahontasPocahontas - Colors of the Wind (Blu-ray 1080p HD) “You think the only people who are people / Are the people who look and think like you / But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger / You’ll learn things you never knew, you never knew.” In this increasingly polarized world, that message has never been more relevant. Pocahontas is not immediately smitten with John Smith; instead, she condemns his entire culture, which prioritizes gold and hatred over acceptance and the beauty of nature. Stephen Schwartz’s lyrics paint gorgeous pictures of the American wilderness, questioning why the white men who have invaded these lands cannot appreciate the world around them — from the grinning bobcats to the sweet berries to the trees that stretch toward the sky, if only we let them grow. Alan Menken’s surrounding score is rapturous, carried by Judy Kuhn’s passionate vocals. More than just the profound lyrics, it’s the visuals that make this musical number so unforgettable — particularly John Smith and Pocahontas dancing in a pastel-colored wind. It’s no surprise that “Colors of the Wind” won an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Previous SlideNext Slide21 / 25List slides4. “When You Wish Upon a Star” from PinnochioList slides4. “When You Wish Upon a Star” from PinnochioPocahontas - Colors of the Wind (Blu-ray 1080p HD)Written by Leigh Harline and Ned Washington, “When You Wish Upon a Star” has come to define Disney itself, typically playing over the castle logo that opens every movie. The ethereal ballad is sung by Cliff Edwards as Jiminy Cricket, whose resonant yet quirky voice feels like someone sharing a story by a crackling fire. “When you wish upon a star / Makes no difference who you are / Anything your heart desires / Will come to you,” he tenderly sings over the opening credits. The gentle melody wraps you in a warm embrace of possibility. People often make fun of Disney adults, but perhaps one reason we hold on to Disney films long after growing up is that they offer hope in an increasingly grim world. This aspirational song reminds us there is more to life than the ordinary—if we just dare to imagine.Previous SlideNext Slide22 / 25List slides3. “Beauty and the Beast” from Beauty and the BeastList slides3. “Beauty and the Beast” from Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast Tale As Old As Time HD As Mrs. Potts, Angela Lansbury’s warm, cheery English voice adds a rosiness to this powerful love ballad, backed by an orchestra of sumptuous strings. The lyrics aren’t the pure romanticism of past Disney love stories; there is no love at first sight here. Instead, Mrs. Potts gently reflects on how true love can take time to blossom, and how relationships sometimes require change, admitting your faults and working hard to set aside your vices and worst qualities. It’s a surprisingly mature outlook for a Disney love song. The accompanying animation is one of the most exquisite sequences in Disney history: Belle’s golden dress glides delicately across the floor as she and the Beast dance in the grand ballroom, the camera swirling to reveal the sparkling chandelier and Michelangelo-esque ceiling of painted cherubs above them. That Howard Ashman wrote this song while dying from complications of AIDS makes it all the more poignant. Previous SlideNext Slide23 / 25List slides2. “Part of Your World” from The Little MermaidList slides2. “Part of Your World” from The Little MermaidJodi Benson - Part of Your World (From “The Little Mermaid”)Before The Little Mermaid kicked off the Disney Renaissance (a period of more sophisticated storytelling and box office success) princess songs were mostly focused on their prince charmings. They had very few aspirations outside of dreaming about their prince or wishing for their prince. But the introduction of the songwriting team Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, who had worked on the off-Broadway show Little Shop of Horrors, helped develop a Disney princess that had greater ambitions. Ariel wanted to see the human world, and she would express that within a Broadway-style solo called the “I Want” song, where the protagonist sings about, well, what they want. “Part of Your World” has a flowing melody and a sweet yearning in Jodi Benson’s voice (and given a more soulful power in the live-action version from Halle Bailey). We see her comical misunderstanding of what her treasures are, all whozits and whatzits galore. “Wouldn’t I love to explore that shore up above?” her voice soars while reaching out through the top of her grotto towards the sun. In that moment, with her big eyes and aching voice, you completely understand how much the human world means to her.Previous SlideNext Slide24 / 25List slides1. “Circle of Life” from The Lion KingList slides1. “Circle of Life” from The Lion KingCarmen Twillie, Lebo M. - Circle of Life (From “The Lion King”) No Disney song is quite as epic as Elton John’s “Circle of Life.” The image of the rising sun, paired with the opening lines sung passionately in Zulu by Lebo M., without any instrumentals, immediately hooks you into this sweeping story of the African savannah. The title, “Circle of Life,” is fitting for this tale of birth, death, and everything in between. The lyrics somehow encompass everything about our big, beautiful world — how finite life is, and the experiences, both good and bad, that give us balance. There’s despair and there’s hope. There’s faith and there’s love. The lyrics are poetic and make you think about the wonder and mystery of existence. The song reaches a powerful peak at the end when the chorus rises together. It’s impossible not to get full-body chills on that final soaring note, “It’s the circle, the circle of life,” punctuated by the thunderous drumbeat, where the sight of Rafiki lifting Simba on Pride Rock cuts to black. “Circle of Life” is a beautiful song with a grand vision, especially for a film geared towards children.
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  • Acer’s Swift Edge laptop is gunning for the MacBook Air

    Acer is announcing a whole slew of new laptops at the Computex 2025 computer show in Taiwan, including the Swift Edge 14 AI that weighs half a pound less than the MacBook Air, and the Predator Triton 14 AI for a mix of both gaming and content creation. There are over a dozen new models from Acer, many using some of the latest chips from Intel, AMD, and Nvidia, and a couple examples running Qualcomm Snapdragon X and Windows on Arm. There are also some new gaming and creator-focused monitors to go with them all. The new laptops stretch across the wide Acer range of notebooks, like the Predator and Nitro lines, the Swifts, and Aspire. Like Lenovo, Acer isn’t announcing US pricing or availability for any of its new products just yet — that’s reserved for regions like Europe. Details for the US are expected closer to their eventual release, no doubt thanks to the ongoing back-and-forth with tariffs.The Swift Edge 14 AI is one of Acer’s new laptops I find particularly intriguing. It’s a 14-inch Copilot Plus PCwith Intel’s Lunar Lake chip options, a 2880 x 1800 OLED display, and up to 32GB of RAM / 1TB SSD. It’s also just 0.37- to 0.65-inches thick, and weighs slightly under 2.2 pounds. For comparison, the M4 MacBook Air is 0.44-inches thick from front to back and weighs 2.7 pounds. The Swift Edge is obviously following the Air’s mold, but Acer manages to fit two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A ports, a headphone jack, and even an HDMI 2.1 port in such a small and light chassis. It’s expected to start at €1,599in Europe with availability beginning in June.The new Acer Predator Triton 14 AI and its included trackpad stylus. Image: AcerOn the gaming side, Acer made a fairly big deal in my briefing call about the upcoming Predator Triton 14 AI. Unlike thicker gaming laptops that are purely gaming-focused, the Triton seems poised to compete with more portable models like the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14. It weighs around 3.5 pounds and measures just 0.68 inches at its thickest point, so it’s meant to easily go places. It’s got a 14.5-inch 2880 x 1800 120Hz OLED display that should be fit for both games and content creation, as well as a jumbo-sized haptic trackpad that supports an included stylus. Chip-wise, it’s got an Intel Arrow Lake Core Ultra 9 288V processor and a GPU up to Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 5070, with compatibility for Nvidia Studio drivers. But it won’t come cheap, with a starting price of €2,999when it launches in Europe in July.Other upcoming laptops from Acer include the Aspire 14 AI / 16 AI, Swift Go 14 AI and Swift Go 16 AI, and the Predator Helios Neo 14.1/9The Predator Triton 14 AI is pretty thin and has a bunch of ports. Though, it has a microSD card slot, not full-size SD. Image: AcerFor monitors, Acer has a pair of 27-inch QD-OLEDs, with its flagship Predator X27 X able to hit 240Hz at 4K and the 2560 x 1440 X27U F5 able to hit a very high 500Hz. They’re expected to run €1,099and €899, respectively, when they arrive in Q3. There are also lower-cost 32-inch and 34-inch Nitro monitors, and rounding out the non-gamer offerings are a 6K ProCreator PE320QXT and a line of portable monitors.Acer is flooding the zone with new laptops, as it often does. We’ll have to see what US pricing and availability are like as each of them gets closer to release.See More:
    #acerampamp8217s #swift #edge #laptop #gunning
    Acer’s Swift Edge laptop is gunning for the MacBook Air
    Acer is announcing a whole slew of new laptops at the Computex 2025 computer show in Taiwan, including the Swift Edge 14 AI that weighs half a pound less than the MacBook Air, and the Predator Triton 14 AI for a mix of both gaming and content creation. There are over a dozen new models from Acer, many using some of the latest chips from Intel, AMD, and Nvidia, and a couple examples running Qualcomm Snapdragon X and Windows on Arm. There are also some new gaming and creator-focused monitors to go with them all. The new laptops stretch across the wide Acer range of notebooks, like the Predator and Nitro lines, the Swifts, and Aspire. Like Lenovo, Acer isn’t announcing US pricing or availability for any of its new products just yet — that’s reserved for regions like Europe. Details for the US are expected closer to their eventual release, no doubt thanks to the ongoing back-and-forth with tariffs.The Swift Edge 14 AI is one of Acer’s new laptops I find particularly intriguing. It’s a 14-inch Copilot Plus PCwith Intel’s Lunar Lake chip options, a 2880 x 1800 OLED display, and up to 32GB of RAM / 1TB SSD. It’s also just 0.37- to 0.65-inches thick, and weighs slightly under 2.2 pounds. For comparison, the M4 MacBook Air is 0.44-inches thick from front to back and weighs 2.7 pounds. The Swift Edge is obviously following the Air’s mold, but Acer manages to fit two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A ports, a headphone jack, and even an HDMI 2.1 port in such a small and light chassis. It’s expected to start at €1,599in Europe with availability beginning in June.The new Acer Predator Triton 14 AI and its included trackpad stylus. Image: AcerOn the gaming side, Acer made a fairly big deal in my briefing call about the upcoming Predator Triton 14 AI. Unlike thicker gaming laptops that are purely gaming-focused, the Triton seems poised to compete with more portable models like the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14. It weighs around 3.5 pounds and measures just 0.68 inches at its thickest point, so it’s meant to easily go places. It’s got a 14.5-inch 2880 x 1800 120Hz OLED display that should be fit for both games and content creation, as well as a jumbo-sized haptic trackpad that supports an included stylus. Chip-wise, it’s got an Intel Arrow Lake Core Ultra 9 288V processor and a GPU up to Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 5070, with compatibility for Nvidia Studio drivers. But it won’t come cheap, with a starting price of €2,999when it launches in Europe in July.Other upcoming laptops from Acer include the Aspire 14 AI / 16 AI, Swift Go 14 AI and Swift Go 16 AI, and the Predator Helios Neo 14.1/9The Predator Triton 14 AI is pretty thin and has a bunch of ports. Though, it has a microSD card slot, not full-size SD. Image: AcerFor monitors, Acer has a pair of 27-inch QD-OLEDs, with its flagship Predator X27 X able to hit 240Hz at 4K and the 2560 x 1440 X27U F5 able to hit a very high 500Hz. They’re expected to run €1,099and €899, respectively, when they arrive in Q3. There are also lower-cost 32-inch and 34-inch Nitro monitors, and rounding out the non-gamer offerings are a 6K ProCreator PE320QXT and a line of portable monitors.Acer is flooding the zone with new laptops, as it often does. We’ll have to see what US pricing and availability are like as each of them gets closer to release.See More: #acerampamp8217s #swift #edge #laptop #gunning
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    Acer’s Swift Edge laptop is gunning for the MacBook Air
    Acer is announcing a whole slew of new laptops at the Computex 2025 computer show in Taiwan, including the Swift Edge 14 AI that weighs half a pound less than the MacBook Air, and the Predator Triton 14 AI for a mix of both gaming and content creation. There are over a dozen new models from Acer, many using some of the latest chips from Intel, AMD, and Nvidia, and a couple examples running Qualcomm Snapdragon X and Windows on Arm. There are also some new gaming and creator-focused monitors to go with them all. The new laptops stretch across the wide Acer range of notebooks, like the Predator and Nitro lines (gaming), the Swifts (general purpose laptops — not Swifties), and Aspire (the cheapest of the cheap). Like Lenovo, Acer isn’t announcing US pricing or availability for any of its new products just yet — that’s reserved for regions like Europe. Details for the US are expected closer to their eventual release, no doubt thanks to the ongoing back-and-forth with tariffs.The Swift Edge 14 AI is one of Acer’s new laptops I find particularly intriguing. It’s a 14-inch Copilot Plus PC (like all the models Acer brands with “AI” in the name) with Intel’s Lunar Lake chip options, a 2880 x 1800 OLED display, and up to 32GB of RAM / 1TB SSD. It’s also just 0.37- to 0.65-inches thick (from its thinnest to thickest points), and weighs slightly under 2.2 pounds. For comparison, the M4 MacBook Air is 0.44-inches thick from front to back and weighs 2.7 pounds. The Swift Edge is obviously following the Air’s mold, but Acer manages to fit two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A ports, a headphone jack, and even an HDMI 2.1 port in such a small and light chassis. It’s expected to start at €1,599 (about $1,800) in Europe with availability beginning in June.The new Acer Predator Triton 14 AI and its included trackpad stylus. Image: AcerOn the gaming side, Acer made a fairly big deal in my briefing call about the upcoming Predator Triton 14 AI. Unlike thicker gaming laptops that are purely gaming-focused, the Triton seems poised to compete with more portable models like the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14. It weighs around 3.5 pounds and measures just 0.68 inches at its thickest point, so it’s meant to easily go places. It’s got a 14.5-inch 2880 x 1800 120Hz OLED display that should be fit for both games and content creation, as well as a jumbo-sized haptic trackpad that supports an included stylus. Chip-wise, it’s got an Intel Arrow Lake Core Ultra 9 288V processor and a GPU up to Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 5070, with compatibility for Nvidia Studio drivers. But it won’t come cheap, with a starting price of €2,999 (about $3,350) when it launches in Europe in July.Other upcoming laptops from Acer include the Aspire 14 AI / 16 AI (each configurable with AMD, Intel, or Qualcomm chips), Swift Go 14 AI and Swift Go 16 AI (the cheaper entries in the thin-and-light Swift line), and the Predator Helios Neo 14 (a lower-cost entry in Acer’s flagship gaming line).1/9The Predator Triton 14 AI is pretty thin and has a bunch of ports. Though, it has a microSD card slot, not full-size SD. Image: AcerFor monitors, Acer has a pair of 27-inch QD-OLEDs, with its flagship Predator X27 X able to hit 240Hz at 4K and the 2560 x 1440 X27U F5 able to hit a very high 500Hz. They’re expected to run €1,099 (about $1,230) and €899 ($1,000), respectively, when they arrive in Q3. There are also lower-cost 32-inch and 34-inch Nitro monitors, and rounding out the non-gamer offerings are a 6K ProCreator PE320QXT and a line of portable monitors.Acer is flooding the zone with new laptops, as it often does. We’ll have to see what US pricing and availability are like as each of them gets closer to release.See More:
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  • 40 Apple TV+ Original Series You Should Be Watching

    We may earn a commission from links on this page.A surprisingly endearing sitcom about an American football coach moving to the U.K. to coach the other kind of football, Ted Lasso was Apple TV+'s first breakout hit, but it's long over by this point. While few of their other shows have commanded even a fraction of the zeitgeist, over the past few years Apple's streaming service has built a small but solid library of other original series that are at least interesting or pretty good, and occasionally more. Apple's offerings still can’t quite compare to what you’ll find on Netflix or Hulu, at least in terms of volume, but there’s enough money in the tech company's bank account that they’ve shown a willingness to experiment, particularly when it comes to high-cost genres like science fiction, and that’s not a bad thing. Here are 40 of Apple’s best original shows so far. I'm highlighting the ones you may not have binged yet, so Ted Lasso isn’t on the list—but consider him mentioned here.

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    Dark MatterJoel Edgerton, Jennifer Connelly, and Alice Braga star in this high-concept sci-fi thriller from the novel by Blake Crouch. Edgerton plays Jason Dessen, a former physicist living a fairly decent life with his wife, Danielain Chicago when he's drugged and kidnapped before waking up in a Chicago where he'd never married Daniela. It seems that a version of himself invented a device allowing for travel between infinite alternate universes—and that version of Jason wants the life that our Jason has, and who's now on a quest to make his way home. You can stream Dark Matter here. FoundationFoundation frequently misses the point of its source material, but that doesn’t make it any less of an impressively realized science-fiction epic on its own terms. Lou Llobel and Lee Pace lead the centuries-spanning series that sees a group of scholars and rebels working to bring down a galactic empire in order to save it. The first season was pretty great, the second season was even better, and ads for the third season look promising. You can stream Foundation here. Dope ThiefRay and Mannyare a couple of childhood friends from Philly who've been supporting themselves by impersonating DEA agents and robbing low-level stash houses in the inner city. Manny's looking to move on while Ray's eccentric mother, Theresaneeds a lot of money fast. And so, as you've probably guessed, we're about to enter "one last big score" plot territory, which, in this case, involves robbing a meth lab that is, it turns out, part of a large-scale operation that the real DEA has in its sights. The setup is nothing new, but everyone here is at the top of their game. You can stream Dope Thief here.Slow HorsesWith nods to the great spy dramas of John le Carré, Slow Horses updates the setting without losing either the thrills or the style of a time-honored genre. The “Slow Horses” of the title is a group of has-been MI5 agents—they’ve all made messes of significant jobs, but are still seen as having some use, if only in dull administrative tasks. Naturally, the groupfinds themselves in deeper waters than anyone had expected of them. The show has a sly sense of humor, and balances a cynical tone with a conviction that redemption is more than possible. You can stream Slow Horses here.SugarSugar doesn't try to obscure or downplay its reliance on old-school Hollywood noir tropes: Its characters are driven to emulate the style of antiheroes of old, and clips from old movies even play alongside the action as a means of driving the point home. The central mystery sees detective John Sugarsummoned to the mansion of a rich movie producer, whose granddaughter has gone missing. The first few episodes are intriguing, and  the premise is unique in that Sugar is kind of an anti-anti-hero—he's an actual nice guy in a world where he's expected to play the tough guy. The sixth episode, though, drops an absolutely wild, love-it-or-hate it plot twist that drives the remaining episode and, presumably, the forthcoming second season. The series comes from writer Mark Protosevichand smartly directed by City of God's Fernando Meirelles, so it has style to spare. You can stream Sugar here. PachinkoPachinko is technically an American production, but its largely South Korean cast and crew place it in very much in the wheelhouse of the K-dramas that have found success in the U.S. in recent years. The multigenerational saga follows one womanand her family from the Japanese occupation of Korea through the decades of the Korean diaspora. It’s as personal as it is epic, with better location cinematography than most movies—and it’s got an all-time great opening credits sequence. You can stream Pachinko here.Palm RoyaleKristen Wiig stars here as Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons, an endlessly inventive social climber in 1969 Palm Beach, Florida who sets out on a road to the top of the local hierarchy when she manages to nab herself a membership in the exclusive private club of the title. It's soapy and silly and occasionally over the top—which all just means that it's thoroughly entertaining and relatively stress-free. The cast here is among the best that streaming money can buy: Alongside Wiig, we get Laura Dern as a helpful hippie, Allison Janney as a demanding matriarch, Carol Burnett as mysteriouslocal royalty, and Ricky Martin as the sexy bartender. You can stream Palm Royale here. Bad SistersThe comedy/murder mystery genre is having a moment, with Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, Apple’s own The Afterparty, and the Knives Out movies all doing brisk business. Bad Sisters is in that same category, but set apart in interestingways. The Dublin setting and the dark comedy stand out, and the show is as much about solving the core murder as it is about rooting for the killer, whomever they may be. Among the title sisters, one has a particularly odious husband. When he turns up dead, each of the sistersis revealed to have had good reason for doing the job. You can stream Bad Sisters here. SeveranceLate-stage capitalism encourages “work-life balance” while simultaneously making it impossible, and then makes us feel guilty about it. In Severance, biotechnology giant Lumon Industries has a solution: They split your consciousness between your life at work and your life outside of it. For our lead charactersthe work- and home-based consciousnesses grow apart to the point that they become entirely different people. The show blends the conventions of office-based dark comedies with movies like Brazil and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and dives into the dangers of modern American-style totalitarian capitalism while providing a reminder that technology often promises to improve our lives while only making them worse. You can stream Severance here.The BuccaneersThe sassy, revisionist period dramais having a heyday and, with the success of HBO's The Gilded Age, it's only natural that things have come back around to the source—in this case, an unfinished Wharton novel telling the story of five American nouveau riche daughters being shuffled off to Europe to unitetheir family's ready cash with old European titles and lands. It's a fun, women-led show that splits the difference between The Gilded Age's relative faithfulness to history and Bridgerton's joyful anachronisms. You can stream The Buccaneers here. HijackThis solid action thriller stars Idris Elba as a business negotiator who finds himself among the passengers on a flight from London to Dubai that's been, well, hijacked. He's the only one onboard with a shot at saving himself and the other passengers, but will have to use his experience, brains, and brawn to do it. The show takes place in real time, more or less, adding to the suspense, and also making the second-season pickup slightly confusing. I'm not sure how a followup series will work, but if 24 could run for nine seasons, I'm sure that Elba's Sam Nelson can sustain at least a couple more. You can stream Hijack here. For All MankindI love a high concept—but execution is what counts, and For All Mankind makes good on its premise, thanks in large part to the involvement of writer/co-creator Ronald D. Moore. The show runs with a tantalizing "what if?": What if Soviet space pioneer Sergei Korolev hadn’t died prematurely in 1966 and instead helped bring his country’s space program to full flower, extending the space race indefinitely? If we’d been forced to continue and expand upon the space program, our pastwould look quite different, and this show dramatically imagines how that might go, jumping across decades to reveal our alternate past. A spin-off involving a Soviet space program, Star City, is in the works. You can stream For All Mankind here. DickinsonDickinson is so scrupulously weird that it gets points just for being unexpected. The most surprising thing about it, though, is that it's not merely idiosyncratic—it’s good. The show imagines the life of 19th-century poet Emily Dickinson, with the conceit that she didn’t fit especially well in her own time, a fact the show reflects through the casual use of anachronisms and more modern sensibilities. Think Netflix’s Bridgerton or Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette for similar vibes—but neither of those is about a person nearly as haunting or mysterious as Dickinson. Bonus: It’s also beautifully filmed and acted. You can stream Dickinson here.Visible: Out on TelevisionAn effective update to The Celluloid Closet that takes us up to date for the Peak TV age, Visible brings that sweet Apple money to bear in gathering an impressive assortment of talking heads. Going back to the earliest days of television, when queer characters and themes were either ignored, heavily coded, or mocked, the docuseries traces the ups and downs of queer representation on TV right up until the present moment. It entertainingly documents how far we’ve come, and makes clear there’s still work to do. You can stream Visible here. ManhuntBased on James L. Swanson’s book Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer, Manhunt reenactsnot just the night of Abraham Lincoln's assassination by John Wilkes Booth, but the hours, months, and years that followed, examining the political and cultural fallout at the dawn of Reconstruction. The surprising star here is Tobias Menzies' Edwin Stanton, the war secretary who fought to preserve Lincoln's legacy, with mixed results. The show also offers strong parallels, intentional or not, between Booth—violently racist, bombastic, and vainglorious while also somehow a perpetual victim—and modern-day political figures with whom you might be familiar. You can stream Manhunt here. The Last Thing He Told MeCritics and audiences are divided over The Last Thing He Told Me, the crime drama earning only mixed reviews while also ranking as the streamer's most watched limited series ever. Based on the bestseller by Laura Dave, the popularity of the book might have something to do with that, as might Jennifer Garner's sensitive performance. While it scored those impressive numbers as a limited series, the series has subsequently been renewed for a new season, to be based on a forthcoming sequel novel, currently scheduled for release in 2025. Co-starring Angourie Rice, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and David Morse, the series finds Garner's character trying to forge a bond with her stepdaughter in order to help solve the mystery of her missing husband. You can stream The Last Thing He Told Me here.Monarch: Legacy of MonstersMonarch does a surprisingly effective job of telling its own story within the universe of all those American Godzilla movies of the past decade or so, bringing those big stories back down to Earth while building out an entire monster-verse mythology in the process. Anna Sawai stars as a young teacher searching for her father, missing since Godzilla's attack on San Francisco, and finds herself drawn into the past and present of a secret government agency. Wyatt and Kurt Russell play the past and present incarnations of the Army colonel who helped set the whole thing in motion. You can stream Monarch here.SeeThe pitch meeting for this must’ve been a hoot. “We’ll do ‘The Country of the Blind’—but, you know, in the future!” Just as in that H.G. Wells story, we learn here that being one of the only sighted people among the blind doesn’t necessarily grant you any special privileges. A few centuries from now, humans have lost their senses of sight, and the few born sighted are hunted and despised. As high concepts go, it’s a little goofy, but the beautifully produced and entertaining show blends Game of Thrones vibes with dystopian sci-fi, and boasts Jason Momoa and the always brilliant Alfre Woodard. You can stream See here.Central ParkCentral Park, from creators Loren Bouchard, Josh Gad, and Nora Smith, retains much of the look and feel of Bouchard’s belovedBob’s Burgers, which is probably enough of a recommendation to get many adult-leaning cartoon fans onboard. It differs, though, in its ambition: Unlike Bob’s, this show invests more heavily in serialization to tell the story of a park manager fighting to save the titular Central Park from greedy developers. It’s also a true musical, incorporating big numbers into each and every episode.You can stream Central Park here.SiloThe casts of many of these shows are pretty extraordinary, but this one is at least a small step above: Rebecca Ferguson, Rashida Jones, David Oyelowo, Common, and Tim Robbins are all included in the main cast. The science fiction series, based on High Howey’s self-published sensation Wool, is set in a post-apocalyptic future; the show’s characters live in the 144-story silo of the title, a sealed environment sustainingthe last dregs of humanity. Societal politics blend with elements of mysteryin an impressively conceived dystopia; the series is set to conclude, but not before two further seasons are produced. You can stream Silo here. Schmigadoon!There’s a big theater-kid vibe to Schmigadoon, no question, with references and in-jokes not everyone is going to get. I’m not sure it matters. When Melissaand Joshset out on a camping trip to strengthen their relationship, they instead stumble into the title town, where everyone sings their feelings, just like characters in a... you get it. The only way out? True love—which Melissa and Josh thought they already shared, but maybe not so much. It’s both a tribute to classic musicals and a satire of the common tropes and the more problematic aspects of those old productions. The second season switches location and eras to “Schmicago,” taking on the darker-tinged musicals of the 1970s. You can stream Schmigadoon here. The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick TurpinThe Great British Bake Off's Noel Fielding stars in this wildly ahistorical British import involving the real-life highwayman of the title, who lived in the mid-1700s. Truth and legend are impossible to sort out when it comes to Turpin, so the show defers to the legend, adding a bunch of inspired silliness to the mix. It's not quite Our Flag Means Death, but it takes a similarly loose and fun approach to history. The well-received show shut down for good during production of a second season, under slightly mysterious circumstances, but the existing season is still worth a run. You can stream Dick Turpin here.Masters of the AirA spiritual successor and companion to earlier WWII minis Band of Brothersand The Pacific, Masters of the Air focuses on the “Bloody Hundredth,” the 100th Bomb Group—pilots tasked with bombing targets inside German-occupied Europe. Austin Butler, Barry Keoghan, and Ncuti Gatwaare part of the impressive ensemble. You can stream Masters of the Air here.ConstellationSeverance, Foundation, For All Mankind, and Silo have established Apple TV+ as a home for high-concept, big-ish budget science fiction. Which is cool, given that even the SyFy channel is't filling that niche anymore. This one finds astronaut Noomi Rapace returning to Earth after an accident, and discovering that the reality she's returned to isn't quite the same as the one she left behind. You can stream Constellation here.Criminal RecordThe apparently IRL-delightful Peter Capaldi is one of our most effortlessly menacing actors, imbuing even The Doctor with an unpredictable inscrutability, so it's no surprise that he excels at playing a hardened police detective with a checkered past. He's joined here by Cush Jumbo's June Lenker, a by-the-book and far more idealistic detective who's as suspicious of Capaldi's DCI Hegarty as she is of the facts involving the cold case the pair are investigating. Think of them like a twisted version of Mulder and Scully. You can stream Criminal Record here.The Morning ShowLess high-concept than some of Apple’s other originals, The Morning Show still serves as a solid drama led by an out-of-character performance from Jennifer Aniston. She plays Alex Levy, co-host of a major network morning show. “Co-host,” that is, until Mitch, with whom she’s worked for 15 years, is fired due to sexual misconduct shortly before the show goes on the air one morning, leaving Alex to explain the situation. The resulting shake-ups and power grabswere inspired by Brian Stelter’s real-life book Top of the Morning, about thesurprisingly dramatic and cutthroat world of morning television, so with the TV-ready drama comes an air of verisimilitude. You can stream The Morning Show here. The Me That You Can’t SeeAn Oprah Winfrey/Prince Harry co-production might inspire understandable cynicism, but the effort here is worthwhile: Approaching both stars and non-celebrities, the miniseries explores issues related to mental health, particularly the stigma and difficulties in finding care. The celebs are all impressively frank, and the less-famous individuals come from a wide array of backgrounds and face a diverse set of issues. Naturally, the presentation is highly polished, but the mere fact that the streamer is putting its money into expanding conversations about mental illness make it worth checking out. You can stream The Me That You Can't See here.Truth Be ToldHonestly, they had me at Octavia Spencer. It’s not just her, though: The cast here is uniformly first-rate. The premise is also solid, and timely: Spencer plays a true-crime podcaster who condemned a now-convicted killer with her reporting, but who now learns that she might have gotten some crucial details wrong. The execution stumbles a bit in the first season, but picks up in the second and into its concluding third. You can stream Truth Be Told here.The AfterpartyAt a high school reunion afterparty, a murder occurs that, naturally, sets the series in motion—a scenario rife with possibilities, given the dramas that swirl around any real-life reunion. The spin here on the comedy murder mystery is its Rashomon-like structure: Each episode explores the night from the POV of one of the participants, shifting genre styles to suit the character in question. Tiffany Haddish and Sam Richardson are great as the leads. You can stream The Afterparty here.Little AmericaWith a sense of humor, the anthology Little America dramatizes a series of Epic Magazine pieces telling the stories of immigrants in America. Each 30-minute episode plays like a movie in miniature, and each is packed with emotion—sometimes heartbreak, often joy. Seriously, they cram a lot of heart into these little episodes. Each one ends with a tag about the real people on which it is based, which serves to ground the emotion in reality. You can stream Little America here.Home Before DarkI love, love, love that this one’s based on a true story. Home Before Dark dramatizes the story of Hilde Lysiak, award-winning crime reporter and the youngest member of the Society of Professional Journalists, who began her career at age nine. Here she’s fictionalized as Hilde Lisko, who moves with her mother to a Twin Peaks-esque coastal town where she slowly, doggedly, uncovers the truth behind a long-forgotten cold case. You can stream Home Before Dark here.ServantCreepy nanny meets creepy doll in this utterly strange psychological thriller, co-executive-produced by the occasionally brilliant but notoriously inconsistent M. Night Shyamalan. The horror here isn’t really overt, but the show plays some interesting and disturbing games centered on the relationship of the lead couple, played by Lauren Ambrose and Toby Kebbell. Following the death of their 13-week-old son, the pair acquires a lifelike doll as a therapeutic tool. Naturally, something’s not quite right with the doll, and something’s definitely not right about the young live-in nanny who they hireto take care of fake baby Jericho. You can stream Servant here.GhostwriterThis new, updated Ghostwriter goes in a different direction than the ‘90s-era original, focusing a little bit less on the mystery elements of the stories and more on reading fundamentals. Operating out of a bookstore belonging to the grandfather of two of the main characters, four kids are brought together by a ghost who brings characters from classic and modern literature to life, with CGI that’s sometimes great —and sometimes less so. Where the show really shines is in its depiction of kids who are believably smart and savvy, unlike an awful lot of shows that can’t seem to tell the difference between a 12-year-old and a fivr-year-old. It’s definitely for kids, but that’s to its credit. You can stream Ghostwriter here.Defending JacobBased on the book by William Landay, this one’s premise is clever, and harrowing: In an upper-class Massachusetts suburb, Andyand Laurielearn that a classmate of their 14-year-old son has been murdered in a local park. What happens next is even more shocking: their son is arrested for the murder. The show sometimes leans unnecessarily into melodrama, but the performances are solid and the central mystery is so compelling, it’s hard not to get drawn in. You can stream Defending Jacob here.Black BirdNovelist Dennis Lehanedeveloped the based-on-a-true-story miniseries, and his touch is evident if you’re familiar with his books, or with the movies they’ve inspired. Taron Egerton plays Jimmy Keene, a former football star given a 10-year prison sentence for drug dealing. Before long, he’s given another shot: His sentence will be erased if he transfers to a much higher security prison for the criminally insane and gathers evidence against a suspected serial killer incarcerated there. That’s a killer premise, and Egerton is great here. You can stream Black Bird here.TryingAfter having difficulty conceiving a child, Nikki and Jason begin the adoption process, and find themselves in a bind. Were they able to conceive, there’d be no other qualifications necessary to have a baby. Adoption, on the other hand, is long process full of screenings, classes, paperwork, home visits, and money. This is one of those rare comedies that’s both genuinely funny and gentle—the show even revisits all of its characters at the end of each episode so that we know how everyone has made out. You can stream Trying here. Mythic QuestIt might sound a littleniche, but we’ve seen enough headlines about the working conditions at many video game production houses to understand why a workplace comedy set against such a backdrop would make for effectively dark and juicy comedy. Charlotte Nicdao and Rob McElhenney are the leads here, as a brilliant and driven workaholic and an unsociable egomaniac respectively, and the chemistry between their two characters give the show more than enough spark. There's also a four episode spin-off: Side Quest. You can stream Mythic Quest here. AcapulcoInspired by the 2017 film How to Be a Latin Lover, the ambitious English/Spanish-language comedy spans generations in telling the story of Maximo Gallardo Ramos, a Malibu mogul who began life as a pool boy at a fancy resort hotel. The sweet, sun-drenched show has a gorgeously retro visual style. You can stream Acapulco here. DisclaimerCreated, written, and directed by four-time Oscar winner Alfonso Cuarón, Disclaimer has as impressive a pedigree as you could hope for on streaming TV: It stars Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline, alongside Sacha Baron Cohen and Leila George. Blanchett plays Catherine Ravenscroft, an award-winning journalist who receives a mysterious manuscript—it's a novel in which she, herself, appears to be the main character, and which reveals secrets of her past that she thought were long buried. Cuarón moves deliberately through a story that takes its time, even as each episode shifts through points of view and timelines to offer up consistent and impressive surprises. You can stream Disclaimer here. The StudioIndustry exec Matt Remickloves movies, and when he signs on for a high-profile role at the fictional Continental Studios, he's feeling like his time has come, like he can make a real difference in fixing an increasingly IP-driven movie industry. That is, until about a minute into his new job when the CEOlets him know that his first job will be marketing Kool-Aid Man, a thin attempt to rip off the success of Barbie. Hollywood satires of yore have focused on the industry as one that eats people up and spits them out, but the spin here is that Remick yearns for those days. This very funny, often intentionally cringe, comedy finds Hollywood in a state of decline and focuses on a man who'd love nothing more than to rebuild the movie industry of old. Catherine O'Hara, Ike Barinholtz, Chase Sui Wonders, and Kathryn Hahn also star, and the show boasts a seemingly endless list of celebrity cameos. You can stream The Studio here.
    #apple #original #series #you #should
    40 Apple TV+ Original Series You Should Be Watching
    We may earn a commission from links on this page.A surprisingly endearing sitcom about an American football coach moving to the U.K. to coach the other kind of football, Ted Lasso was Apple TV+'s first breakout hit, but it's long over by this point. While few of their other shows have commanded even a fraction of the zeitgeist, over the past few years Apple's streaming service has built a small but solid library of other original series that are at least interesting or pretty good, and occasionally more. Apple's offerings still can’t quite compare to what you’ll find on Netflix or Hulu, at least in terms of volume, but there’s enough money in the tech company's bank account that they’ve shown a willingness to experiment, particularly when it comes to high-cost genres like science fiction, and that’s not a bad thing. Here are 40 of Apple’s best original shows so far. I'm highlighting the ones you may not have binged yet, so Ted Lasso isn’t on the list—but consider him mentioned here. Apple TV+ Per Month at AppleTV+ Learn More Learn More Per Month at AppleTV+ Dark MatterJoel Edgerton, Jennifer Connelly, and Alice Braga star in this high-concept sci-fi thriller from the novel by Blake Crouch. Edgerton plays Jason Dessen, a former physicist living a fairly decent life with his wife, Danielain Chicago when he's drugged and kidnapped before waking up in a Chicago where he'd never married Daniela. It seems that a version of himself invented a device allowing for travel between infinite alternate universes—and that version of Jason wants the life that our Jason has, and who's now on a quest to make his way home. You can stream Dark Matter here. FoundationFoundation frequently misses the point of its source material, but that doesn’t make it any less of an impressively realized science-fiction epic on its own terms. Lou Llobel and Lee Pace lead the centuries-spanning series that sees a group of scholars and rebels working to bring down a galactic empire in order to save it. The first season was pretty great, the second season was even better, and ads for the third season look promising. You can stream Foundation here. Dope ThiefRay and Mannyare a couple of childhood friends from Philly who've been supporting themselves by impersonating DEA agents and robbing low-level stash houses in the inner city. Manny's looking to move on while Ray's eccentric mother, Theresaneeds a lot of money fast. And so, as you've probably guessed, we're about to enter "one last big score" plot territory, which, in this case, involves robbing a meth lab that is, it turns out, part of a large-scale operation that the real DEA has in its sights. The setup is nothing new, but everyone here is at the top of their game. You can stream Dope Thief here.Slow HorsesWith nods to the great spy dramas of John le Carré, Slow Horses updates the setting without losing either the thrills or the style of a time-honored genre. The “Slow Horses” of the title is a group of has-been MI5 agents—they’ve all made messes of significant jobs, but are still seen as having some use, if only in dull administrative tasks. Naturally, the groupfinds themselves in deeper waters than anyone had expected of them. The show has a sly sense of humor, and balances a cynical tone with a conviction that redemption is more than possible. You can stream Slow Horses here.SugarSugar doesn't try to obscure or downplay its reliance on old-school Hollywood noir tropes: Its characters are driven to emulate the style of antiheroes of old, and clips from old movies even play alongside the action as a means of driving the point home. The central mystery sees detective John Sugarsummoned to the mansion of a rich movie producer, whose granddaughter has gone missing. The first few episodes are intriguing, and  the premise is unique in that Sugar is kind of an anti-anti-hero—he's an actual nice guy in a world where he's expected to play the tough guy. The sixth episode, though, drops an absolutely wild, love-it-or-hate it plot twist that drives the remaining episode and, presumably, the forthcoming second season. The series comes from writer Mark Protosevichand smartly directed by City of God's Fernando Meirelles, so it has style to spare. You can stream Sugar here. PachinkoPachinko is technically an American production, but its largely South Korean cast and crew place it in very much in the wheelhouse of the K-dramas that have found success in the U.S. in recent years. The multigenerational saga follows one womanand her family from the Japanese occupation of Korea through the decades of the Korean diaspora. It’s as personal as it is epic, with better location cinematography than most movies—and it’s got an all-time great opening credits sequence. You can stream Pachinko here.Palm RoyaleKristen Wiig stars here as Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons, an endlessly inventive social climber in 1969 Palm Beach, Florida who sets out on a road to the top of the local hierarchy when she manages to nab herself a membership in the exclusive private club of the title. It's soapy and silly and occasionally over the top—which all just means that it's thoroughly entertaining and relatively stress-free. The cast here is among the best that streaming money can buy: Alongside Wiig, we get Laura Dern as a helpful hippie, Allison Janney as a demanding matriarch, Carol Burnett as mysteriouslocal royalty, and Ricky Martin as the sexy bartender. You can stream Palm Royale here. Bad SistersThe comedy/murder mystery genre is having a moment, with Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, Apple’s own The Afterparty, and the Knives Out movies all doing brisk business. Bad Sisters is in that same category, but set apart in interestingways. The Dublin setting and the dark comedy stand out, and the show is as much about solving the core murder as it is about rooting for the killer, whomever they may be. Among the title sisters, one has a particularly odious husband. When he turns up dead, each of the sistersis revealed to have had good reason for doing the job. You can stream Bad Sisters here. SeveranceLate-stage capitalism encourages “work-life balance” while simultaneously making it impossible, and then makes us feel guilty about it. In Severance, biotechnology giant Lumon Industries has a solution: They split your consciousness between your life at work and your life outside of it. For our lead charactersthe work- and home-based consciousnesses grow apart to the point that they become entirely different people. The show blends the conventions of office-based dark comedies with movies like Brazil and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and dives into the dangers of modern American-style totalitarian capitalism while providing a reminder that technology often promises to improve our lives while only making them worse. You can stream Severance here.The BuccaneersThe sassy, revisionist period dramais having a heyday and, with the success of HBO's The Gilded Age, it's only natural that things have come back around to the source—in this case, an unfinished Wharton novel telling the story of five American nouveau riche daughters being shuffled off to Europe to unitetheir family's ready cash with old European titles and lands. It's a fun, women-led show that splits the difference between The Gilded Age's relative faithfulness to history and Bridgerton's joyful anachronisms. You can stream The Buccaneers here. HijackThis solid action thriller stars Idris Elba as a business negotiator who finds himself among the passengers on a flight from London to Dubai that's been, well, hijacked. He's the only one onboard with a shot at saving himself and the other passengers, but will have to use his experience, brains, and brawn to do it. The show takes place in real time, more or less, adding to the suspense, and also making the second-season pickup slightly confusing. I'm not sure how a followup series will work, but if 24 could run for nine seasons, I'm sure that Elba's Sam Nelson can sustain at least a couple more. You can stream Hijack here. For All MankindI love a high concept—but execution is what counts, and For All Mankind makes good on its premise, thanks in large part to the involvement of writer/co-creator Ronald D. Moore. The show runs with a tantalizing "what if?": What if Soviet space pioneer Sergei Korolev hadn’t died prematurely in 1966 and instead helped bring his country’s space program to full flower, extending the space race indefinitely? If we’d been forced to continue and expand upon the space program, our pastwould look quite different, and this show dramatically imagines how that might go, jumping across decades to reveal our alternate past. A spin-off involving a Soviet space program, Star City, is in the works. You can stream For All Mankind here. DickinsonDickinson is so scrupulously weird that it gets points just for being unexpected. The most surprising thing about it, though, is that it's not merely idiosyncratic—it’s good. The show imagines the life of 19th-century poet Emily Dickinson, with the conceit that she didn’t fit especially well in her own time, a fact the show reflects through the casual use of anachronisms and more modern sensibilities. Think Netflix’s Bridgerton or Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette for similar vibes—but neither of those is about a person nearly as haunting or mysterious as Dickinson. Bonus: It’s also beautifully filmed and acted. You can stream Dickinson here.Visible: Out on TelevisionAn effective update to The Celluloid Closet that takes us up to date for the Peak TV age, Visible brings that sweet Apple money to bear in gathering an impressive assortment of talking heads. Going back to the earliest days of television, when queer characters and themes were either ignored, heavily coded, or mocked, the docuseries traces the ups and downs of queer representation on TV right up until the present moment. It entertainingly documents how far we’ve come, and makes clear there’s still work to do. You can stream Visible here. ManhuntBased on James L. Swanson’s book Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer, Manhunt reenactsnot just the night of Abraham Lincoln's assassination by John Wilkes Booth, but the hours, months, and years that followed, examining the political and cultural fallout at the dawn of Reconstruction. The surprising star here is Tobias Menzies' Edwin Stanton, the war secretary who fought to preserve Lincoln's legacy, with mixed results. The show also offers strong parallels, intentional or not, between Booth—violently racist, bombastic, and vainglorious while also somehow a perpetual victim—and modern-day political figures with whom you might be familiar. You can stream Manhunt here. The Last Thing He Told MeCritics and audiences are divided over The Last Thing He Told Me, the crime drama earning only mixed reviews while also ranking as the streamer's most watched limited series ever. Based on the bestseller by Laura Dave, the popularity of the book might have something to do with that, as might Jennifer Garner's sensitive performance. While it scored those impressive numbers as a limited series, the series has subsequently been renewed for a new season, to be based on a forthcoming sequel novel, currently scheduled for release in 2025. Co-starring Angourie Rice, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and David Morse, the series finds Garner's character trying to forge a bond with her stepdaughter in order to help solve the mystery of her missing husband. You can stream The Last Thing He Told Me here.Monarch: Legacy of MonstersMonarch does a surprisingly effective job of telling its own story within the universe of all those American Godzilla movies of the past decade or so, bringing those big stories back down to Earth while building out an entire monster-verse mythology in the process. Anna Sawai stars as a young teacher searching for her father, missing since Godzilla's attack on San Francisco, and finds herself drawn into the past and present of a secret government agency. Wyatt and Kurt Russell play the past and present incarnations of the Army colonel who helped set the whole thing in motion. You can stream Monarch here.SeeThe pitch meeting for this must’ve been a hoot. “We’ll do ‘The Country of the Blind’—but, you know, in the future!” Just as in that H.G. Wells story, we learn here that being one of the only sighted people among the blind doesn’t necessarily grant you any special privileges. A few centuries from now, humans have lost their senses of sight, and the few born sighted are hunted and despised. As high concepts go, it’s a little goofy, but the beautifully produced and entertaining show blends Game of Thrones vibes with dystopian sci-fi, and boasts Jason Momoa and the always brilliant Alfre Woodard. You can stream See here.Central ParkCentral Park, from creators Loren Bouchard, Josh Gad, and Nora Smith, retains much of the look and feel of Bouchard’s belovedBob’s Burgers, which is probably enough of a recommendation to get many adult-leaning cartoon fans onboard. It differs, though, in its ambition: Unlike Bob’s, this show invests more heavily in serialization to tell the story of a park manager fighting to save the titular Central Park from greedy developers. It’s also a true musical, incorporating big numbers into each and every episode.You can stream Central Park here.SiloThe casts of many of these shows are pretty extraordinary, but this one is at least a small step above: Rebecca Ferguson, Rashida Jones, David Oyelowo, Common, and Tim Robbins are all included in the main cast. The science fiction series, based on High Howey’s self-published sensation Wool, is set in a post-apocalyptic future; the show’s characters live in the 144-story silo of the title, a sealed environment sustainingthe last dregs of humanity. Societal politics blend with elements of mysteryin an impressively conceived dystopia; the series is set to conclude, but not before two further seasons are produced. You can stream Silo here. Schmigadoon!There’s a big theater-kid vibe to Schmigadoon, no question, with references and in-jokes not everyone is going to get. I’m not sure it matters. When Melissaand Joshset out on a camping trip to strengthen their relationship, they instead stumble into the title town, where everyone sings their feelings, just like characters in a... you get it. The only way out? True love—which Melissa and Josh thought they already shared, but maybe not so much. It’s both a tribute to classic musicals and a satire of the common tropes and the more problematic aspects of those old productions. The second season switches location and eras to “Schmicago,” taking on the darker-tinged musicals of the 1970s. You can stream Schmigadoon here. The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick TurpinThe Great British Bake Off's Noel Fielding stars in this wildly ahistorical British import involving the real-life highwayman of the title, who lived in the mid-1700s. Truth and legend are impossible to sort out when it comes to Turpin, so the show defers to the legend, adding a bunch of inspired silliness to the mix. It's not quite Our Flag Means Death, but it takes a similarly loose and fun approach to history. The well-received show shut down for good during production of a second season, under slightly mysterious circumstances, but the existing season is still worth a run. You can stream Dick Turpin here.Masters of the AirA spiritual successor and companion to earlier WWII minis Band of Brothersand The Pacific, Masters of the Air focuses on the “Bloody Hundredth,” the 100th Bomb Group—pilots tasked with bombing targets inside German-occupied Europe. Austin Butler, Barry Keoghan, and Ncuti Gatwaare part of the impressive ensemble. You can stream Masters of the Air here.ConstellationSeverance, Foundation, For All Mankind, and Silo have established Apple TV+ as a home for high-concept, big-ish budget science fiction. Which is cool, given that even the SyFy channel is't filling that niche anymore. This one finds astronaut Noomi Rapace returning to Earth after an accident, and discovering that the reality she's returned to isn't quite the same as the one she left behind. You can stream Constellation here.Criminal RecordThe apparently IRL-delightful Peter Capaldi is one of our most effortlessly menacing actors, imbuing even The Doctor with an unpredictable inscrutability, so it's no surprise that he excels at playing a hardened police detective with a checkered past. He's joined here by Cush Jumbo's June Lenker, a by-the-book and far more idealistic detective who's as suspicious of Capaldi's DCI Hegarty as she is of the facts involving the cold case the pair are investigating. Think of them like a twisted version of Mulder and Scully. You can stream Criminal Record here.The Morning ShowLess high-concept than some of Apple’s other originals, The Morning Show still serves as a solid drama led by an out-of-character performance from Jennifer Aniston. She plays Alex Levy, co-host of a major network morning show. “Co-host,” that is, until Mitch, with whom she’s worked for 15 years, is fired due to sexual misconduct shortly before the show goes on the air one morning, leaving Alex to explain the situation. The resulting shake-ups and power grabswere inspired by Brian Stelter’s real-life book Top of the Morning, about thesurprisingly dramatic and cutthroat world of morning television, so with the TV-ready drama comes an air of verisimilitude. You can stream The Morning Show here. The Me That You Can’t SeeAn Oprah Winfrey/Prince Harry co-production might inspire understandable cynicism, but the effort here is worthwhile: Approaching both stars and non-celebrities, the miniseries explores issues related to mental health, particularly the stigma and difficulties in finding care. The celebs are all impressively frank, and the less-famous individuals come from a wide array of backgrounds and face a diverse set of issues. Naturally, the presentation is highly polished, but the mere fact that the streamer is putting its money into expanding conversations about mental illness make it worth checking out. You can stream The Me That You Can't See here.Truth Be ToldHonestly, they had me at Octavia Spencer. It’s not just her, though: The cast here is uniformly first-rate. The premise is also solid, and timely: Spencer plays a true-crime podcaster who condemned a now-convicted killer with her reporting, but who now learns that she might have gotten some crucial details wrong. The execution stumbles a bit in the first season, but picks up in the second and into its concluding third. You can stream Truth Be Told here.The AfterpartyAt a high school reunion afterparty, a murder occurs that, naturally, sets the series in motion—a scenario rife with possibilities, given the dramas that swirl around any real-life reunion. The spin here on the comedy murder mystery is its Rashomon-like structure: Each episode explores the night from the POV of one of the participants, shifting genre styles to suit the character in question. Tiffany Haddish and Sam Richardson are great as the leads. You can stream The Afterparty here.Little AmericaWith a sense of humor, the anthology Little America dramatizes a series of Epic Magazine pieces telling the stories of immigrants in America. Each 30-minute episode plays like a movie in miniature, and each is packed with emotion—sometimes heartbreak, often joy. Seriously, they cram a lot of heart into these little episodes. Each one ends with a tag about the real people on which it is based, which serves to ground the emotion in reality. You can stream Little America here.Home Before DarkI love, love, love that this one’s based on a true story. Home Before Dark dramatizes the story of Hilde Lysiak, award-winning crime reporter and the youngest member of the Society of Professional Journalists, who began her career at age nine. Here she’s fictionalized as Hilde Lisko, who moves with her mother to a Twin Peaks-esque coastal town where she slowly, doggedly, uncovers the truth behind a long-forgotten cold case. You can stream Home Before Dark here.ServantCreepy nanny meets creepy doll in this utterly strange psychological thriller, co-executive-produced by the occasionally brilliant but notoriously inconsistent M. Night Shyamalan. The horror here isn’t really overt, but the show plays some interesting and disturbing games centered on the relationship of the lead couple, played by Lauren Ambrose and Toby Kebbell. Following the death of their 13-week-old son, the pair acquires a lifelike doll as a therapeutic tool. Naturally, something’s not quite right with the doll, and something’s definitely not right about the young live-in nanny who they hireto take care of fake baby Jericho. You can stream Servant here.GhostwriterThis new, updated Ghostwriter goes in a different direction than the ‘90s-era original, focusing a little bit less on the mystery elements of the stories and more on reading fundamentals. Operating out of a bookstore belonging to the grandfather of two of the main characters, four kids are brought together by a ghost who brings characters from classic and modern literature to life, with CGI that’s sometimes great —and sometimes less so. Where the show really shines is in its depiction of kids who are believably smart and savvy, unlike an awful lot of shows that can’t seem to tell the difference between a 12-year-old and a fivr-year-old. It’s definitely for kids, but that’s to its credit. You can stream Ghostwriter here.Defending JacobBased on the book by William Landay, this one’s premise is clever, and harrowing: In an upper-class Massachusetts suburb, Andyand Laurielearn that a classmate of their 14-year-old son has been murdered in a local park. What happens next is even more shocking: their son is arrested for the murder. The show sometimes leans unnecessarily into melodrama, but the performances are solid and the central mystery is so compelling, it’s hard not to get drawn in. You can stream Defending Jacob here.Black BirdNovelist Dennis Lehanedeveloped the based-on-a-true-story miniseries, and his touch is evident if you’re familiar with his books, or with the movies they’ve inspired. Taron Egerton plays Jimmy Keene, a former football star given a 10-year prison sentence for drug dealing. Before long, he’s given another shot: His sentence will be erased if he transfers to a much higher security prison for the criminally insane and gathers evidence against a suspected serial killer incarcerated there. That’s a killer premise, and Egerton is great here. You can stream Black Bird here.TryingAfter having difficulty conceiving a child, Nikki and Jason begin the adoption process, and find themselves in a bind. Were they able to conceive, there’d be no other qualifications necessary to have a baby. Adoption, on the other hand, is long process full of screenings, classes, paperwork, home visits, and money. This is one of those rare comedies that’s both genuinely funny and gentle—the show even revisits all of its characters at the end of each episode so that we know how everyone has made out. You can stream Trying here. Mythic QuestIt might sound a littleniche, but we’ve seen enough headlines about the working conditions at many video game production houses to understand why a workplace comedy set against such a backdrop would make for effectively dark and juicy comedy. Charlotte Nicdao and Rob McElhenney are the leads here, as a brilliant and driven workaholic and an unsociable egomaniac respectively, and the chemistry between their two characters give the show more than enough spark. There's also a four episode spin-off: Side Quest. You can stream Mythic Quest here. AcapulcoInspired by the 2017 film How to Be a Latin Lover, the ambitious English/Spanish-language comedy spans generations in telling the story of Maximo Gallardo Ramos, a Malibu mogul who began life as a pool boy at a fancy resort hotel. The sweet, sun-drenched show has a gorgeously retro visual style. You can stream Acapulco here. DisclaimerCreated, written, and directed by four-time Oscar winner Alfonso Cuarón, Disclaimer has as impressive a pedigree as you could hope for on streaming TV: It stars Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline, alongside Sacha Baron Cohen and Leila George. Blanchett plays Catherine Ravenscroft, an award-winning journalist who receives a mysterious manuscript—it's a novel in which she, herself, appears to be the main character, and which reveals secrets of her past that she thought were long buried. Cuarón moves deliberately through a story that takes its time, even as each episode shifts through points of view and timelines to offer up consistent and impressive surprises. You can stream Disclaimer here. The StudioIndustry exec Matt Remickloves movies, and when he signs on for a high-profile role at the fictional Continental Studios, he's feeling like his time has come, like he can make a real difference in fixing an increasingly IP-driven movie industry. That is, until about a minute into his new job when the CEOlets him know that his first job will be marketing Kool-Aid Man, a thin attempt to rip off the success of Barbie. Hollywood satires of yore have focused on the industry as one that eats people up and spits them out, but the spin here is that Remick yearns for those days. This very funny, often intentionally cringe, comedy finds Hollywood in a state of decline and focuses on a man who'd love nothing more than to rebuild the movie industry of old. Catherine O'Hara, Ike Barinholtz, Chase Sui Wonders, and Kathryn Hahn also star, and the show boasts a seemingly endless list of celebrity cameos. You can stream The Studio here. #apple #original #series #you #should
    LIFEHACKER.COM
    40 Apple TV+ Original Series You Should Be Watching
    We may earn a commission from links on this page.A surprisingly endearing sitcom about an American football coach moving to the U.K. to coach the other kind of football, Ted Lasso was Apple TV+'s first breakout hit, but it's long over by this point. While few of their other shows have commanded even a fraction of the zeitgeist, over the past few years Apple's streaming service has built a small but solid library of other original series that are at least interesting or pretty good, and occasionally more. Apple's offerings still can’t quite compare to what you’ll find on Netflix or Hulu, at least in terms of volume, but there’s enough money in the tech company's bank account that they’ve shown a willingness to experiment, particularly when it comes to high-cost genres like science fiction, and that’s not a bad thing. Here are 40 of Apple’s best original shows so far. I'm highlighting the ones you may not have binged yet, so Ted Lasso isn’t on the list—but consider him mentioned here. Apple TV+ $9.99 Per Month at AppleTV+ Learn More Learn More $9.99 Per Month at AppleTV+ Dark Matter (2024 – , renewed for a second season) Joel Edgerton, Jennifer Connelly, and Alice Braga star in this high-concept sci-fi thriller from the novel by Blake Crouch (he's also the showrunner). Edgerton plays Jason Dessen, a former physicist living a fairly decent life with his wife, Daniela (Connelly) in Chicago when he's drugged and kidnapped before waking up in a Chicago where he'd never married Daniela. It seems that a version of himself invented a device allowing for travel between infinite alternate universes—and that version of Jason wants the life that our Jason has, and who's now on a quest to make his way home. You can stream Dark Matter here. Foundation (2021 —, renewed for a third season) Foundation frequently misses the point of its source material (a series of influential Isaac Asimov novels), but that doesn’t make it any less of an impressively realized science-fiction epic on its own terms. Lou Llobel and Lee Pace lead the centuries-spanning series that sees a group of scholars and rebels working to bring down a galactic empire in order to save it (in the very, very long run). The first season was pretty great, the second season was even better, and ads for the third season look promising. You can stream Foundation here. Dope Thief (2025, miniseries) Ray and Manny (Brian Tyree Henry and Wagner Moura) are a couple of childhood friends from Philly who've been supporting themselves by impersonating DEA agents and robbing low-level stash houses in the inner city. Manny's looking to move on while Ray's eccentric mother, Theresa (Kate Mulgrew, clearly having a great time) needs a lot of money fast. And so, as you've probably guessed, we're about to enter "one last big score" plot territory, which, in this case, involves robbing a meth lab that is, it turns out, part of a large-scale operation that the real DEA has in its sights. The setup is nothing new, but everyone here is at the top of their game. You can stream Dope Thief here.Slow Horses (2022 – , renewed for fifth and sixth seasons) With nods to the great spy dramas of John le Carré, Slow Horses updates the setting without losing either the thrills or the style of a time-honored genre. The “Slow Horses” of the title is a group of has-been MI5 agents—they’ve all made messes of significant jobs, but are still seen as having some use, if only in dull administrative tasks. Naturally, the group (lead by Gary Oldman and Jack Lowden, with their spymaster played by Kristin Scott Thomas) finds themselves in deeper waters than anyone had expected of them. The show has a sly sense of humor, and balances a cynical tone with a conviction that redemption is more than possible (it's also probably my personal favorite Apple TV+ show). You can stream Slow Horses here.Sugar (2024 – , renewed for a second season) Sugar doesn't try to obscure or downplay its reliance on old-school Hollywood noir tropes: Its characters are driven to emulate the style of antiheroes of old, and clips from old movies even play alongside the action as a means of driving the point home. The central mystery sees detective John Sugar (Colin Farrell) summoned to the mansion of a rich movie producer (James Cromwell), whose granddaughter has gone missing. The first few episodes are intriguing, and  the premise is unique in that Sugar is kind of an anti-anti-hero—he's an actual nice guy in a world where he's expected to play the tough guy. The sixth episode, though, drops an absolutely wild, love-it-or-hate it plot twist that drives the remaining episode and, presumably, the forthcoming second season. The series comes from writer Mark Protosevich (The Cell, I Am Legend) and smartly directed by City of God's Fernando Meirelles, so it has style to spare. You can stream Sugar here. Pachinko (2022 – , third season renewal pending) Pachinko is technically an American production, but its largely South Korean cast and crew place it in very much in the wheelhouse of the K-dramas that have found success in the U.S. in recent years. The multigenerational saga follows one woman (Youn Yuh-jung and Kim Min-ha) and her family from the Japanese occupation of Korea through the decades of the Korean diaspora. It’s as personal as it is epic, with better location cinematography than most movies—and it’s got an all-time great opening credits sequence. You can stream Pachinko here.Palm Royale (2024 – , renewed for a second season) Kristen Wiig stars here as Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons, an endlessly inventive social climber in 1969 Palm Beach, Florida who sets out on a road to the top of the local hierarchy when she manages to nab herself a membership in the exclusive private club of the title. It's soapy and silly and occasionally over the top—which all just means that it's thoroughly entertaining and relatively stress-free. The cast here is among the best that streaming money can buy: Alongside Wiig, we get Laura Dern as a helpful hippie, Allison Janney as a demanding matriarch, Carol Burnett as mysterious (and initially comatose) local royalty, and Ricky Martin as the sexy bartender (with Bruce Dern, Julia Duffy, and Mindy Cohn among the recurring cast). You can stream Palm Royale here. Bad Sisters (2022 – , third season renewal pending) The comedy/murder mystery genre is having a moment, with Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, Apple’s own The Afterparty (to which I’ll return later in this list), and the Knives Out movies all doing brisk business. Bad Sisters is in that same category, but set apart in interesting (and significant) ways. The Dublin setting and the dark comedy stand out, and the show is as much about solving the core murder as it is about rooting for the killer, whomever they may be. Among the title sisters, one has a particularly odious husband. When he turns up dead, each of the sisters (one played by Catastrophe's Sharon Horgan, who co-created) is revealed to have had good reason for doing the job. You can stream Bad Sisters here. Severance (2022 – , renewed for a third season) Late-stage capitalism encourages “work-life balance” while simultaneously making it impossible, and then makes us feel guilty about it. In Severance, biotechnology giant Lumon Industries has a solution: They split your consciousness between your life at work and your life outside of it. For our lead characters (played by Adam Scott, Patricia Arquette, Britt Lower, and more) the work- and home-based consciousnesses grow apart to the point that they become entirely different people. The show blends the conventions of office-based dark comedies with movies like Brazil and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and dives into the dangers of modern American-style totalitarian capitalism while providing a reminder that technology often promises to improve our lives while only making them worse. You can stream Severance here.The Buccaneers (2023 – , renewed for a second season) The sassy, revisionist period drama (think Bridgerton) is having a heyday and, with the success of HBO's The Gilded Age (itself an Edith Wharton pastiche), it's only natural that things have come back around to the source—in this case, an unfinished Wharton novel telling the story of five American nouveau riche daughters being shuffled off to Europe to unite (in marriage) their family's ready cash with old European titles and lands. It's a fun, women-led show that splits the difference between The Gilded Age's relative faithfulness to history and Bridgerton's joyful anachronisms. You can stream The Buccaneers here. Hijack (2023 – , renewed for a second season) This solid action thriller stars Idris Elba as a business negotiator who finds himself among the passengers on a flight from London to Dubai that's been, well, hijacked. He's the only one onboard with a shot at saving himself and the other passengers, but will have to use his experience, brains, and brawn to do it. The show takes place in real time, more or less, adding to the suspense, and also making the second-season pickup slightly confusing. I'm not sure how a followup series will work, but if 24 could run for nine seasons, I'm sure that Elba's Sam Nelson can sustain at least a couple more. You can stream Hijack here. For All Mankind (2019 — , renewed for fifth season) I love a high concept—but execution is what counts, and For All Mankind makes good on its premise, thanks in large part to the involvement of writer/co-creator Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica). The show runs with a tantalizing "what if?": What if Soviet space pioneer Sergei Korolev hadn’t died prematurely in 1966 and instead helped bring his country’s space program to full flower, extending the space race indefinitely? If we’d been forced to continue and expand upon the space program, our past (and present) would look quite different, and this show dramatically imagines how that might go, jumping across decades to reveal our alternate past (and future). A spin-off involving a Soviet space program, Star City, is in the works. You can stream For All Mankind here. Dickinson (2019 – 2021, two seasons) Dickinson is so scrupulously weird that it gets points just for being unexpected. The most surprising thing about it, though, is that it's not merely idiosyncratic—it’s good. The show imagines the life of 19th-century poet Emily Dickinson, with the conceit that she didn’t fit especially well in her own time, a fact the show reflects through the casual use of anachronisms and more modern sensibilities. Think Netflix’s Bridgerton or Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette for similar vibes—but neither of those is about a person nearly as haunting or mysterious as Dickinson. Bonus: It’s also beautifully filmed and acted. You can stream Dickinson here.Visible: Out on Television (2020, miniseries) An effective update to The Celluloid Closet that takes us up to date for the Peak TV age, Visible brings that sweet Apple money to bear in gathering an impressive assortment of talking heads. Going back to the earliest days of television, when queer characters and themes were either ignored, heavily coded, or mocked, the docuseries traces the ups and downs of queer representation on TV right up until the present moment. It entertainingly documents how far we’ve come, and makes clear there’s still work to do. You can stream Visible here. Manhunt (2024, miniseries) Based on James L. Swanson’s book Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer, Manhunt reenacts (in detail) not just the night of Abraham Lincoln's assassination by John Wilkes Booth (Anthony Boyle), but the hours, months, and years that followed, examining the political and cultural fallout at the dawn of Reconstruction. The surprising star here is Tobias Menzies' Edwin Stanton, the war secretary who fought to preserve Lincoln's legacy, with mixed results. The show also offers strong parallels, intentional or not, between Booth—violently racist, bombastic, and vainglorious while also somehow a perpetual victim—and modern-day political figures with whom you might be familiar. You can stream Manhunt here. The Last Thing He Told Me (2023 – , renewed for a second season) Critics and audiences are divided over The Last Thing He Told Me, the crime drama earning only mixed reviews while also ranking as the streamer's most watched limited series ever. Based on the bestseller by Laura Dave, the popularity of the book might have something to do with that, as might Jennifer Garner's sensitive performance. While it scored those impressive numbers as a limited series, the series has subsequently been renewed for a new season, to be based on a forthcoming sequel novel, currently scheduled for release in 2025. Co-starring Angourie Rice, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and David Morse, the series finds Garner's character trying to forge a bond with her stepdaughter in order to help solve the mystery of her missing husband. You can stream The Last Thing He Told Me here.Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (2023 – , renewed for a second season) Monarch does a surprisingly effective job of telling its own story within the universe of all those American Godzilla movies of the past decade or so, bringing those big stories back down to Earth while building out an entire monster-verse mythology in the process. Anna Sawai stars as a young teacher searching for her father, missing since Godzilla's attack on San Francisco (depicted in the 2014 film), and finds herself drawn into the past and present of a secret government agency. Wyatt and Kurt Russell play the past and present incarnations of the Army colonel who helped set the whole thing in motion. You can stream Monarch here.See (2019 — 2022, three seasons) The pitch meeting for this must’ve been a hoot. “We’ll do ‘The Country of the Blind’—but, you know, in the future!” Just as in that H.G. Wells story, we learn here that being one of the only sighted people among the blind doesn’t necessarily grant you any special privileges. A few centuries from now, humans have lost their senses of sight, and the few born sighted are hunted and despised. As high concepts go, it’s a little goofy (and the reviews have been a little rough), but the beautifully produced and entertaining show blends Game of Thrones vibes with dystopian sci-fi, and boasts Jason Momoa and the always brilliant Alfre Woodard. You can stream See here.Central Park (2020 — 2022, three seasons) Central Park, from creators Loren Bouchard, Josh Gad, and Nora Smith, retains much of the look and feel of Bouchard’s beloved (and long-running) Bob’s Burgers, which is probably enough of a recommendation to get many adult-leaning cartoon fans onboard. It differs, though, in its ambition: Unlike Bob’s, this show invests more heavily in serialization to tell the story of a park manager fighting to save the titular Central Park from greedy developers. It’s also a true musical, incorporating big numbers into each and every episode. (The more sporadic musical numbers in Bob’s Burgers are always the best part, so upping that quotient here is all to the good.) You can stream Central Park here.Silo (2023 —, renewed for third and fourth seasons) The casts of many of these shows are pretty extraordinary, but this one is at least a small step above: Rebecca Ferguson, Rashida Jones, David Oyelowo, Common, and Tim Robbins are all included in the main cast. The science fiction series, based on High Howey’s self-published sensation Wool, is set in a post-apocalyptic future; the show’s characters live in the 144-story silo of the title, a sealed environment sustaining (and imprisoning?) the last dregs of humanity. Societal politics blend with elements of mystery (nothing in the silo is quite what it seems) in an impressively conceived dystopia; the series is set to conclude, but not before two further seasons are produced. You can stream Silo here. Schmigadoon! (2021 — 2023) There’s a big theater-kid vibe to Schmigadoon, no question, with references and in-jokes not everyone is going to get. I’m not sure it matters. When Melissa (Cecily Strong) and Josh (Keegan-Michael Key) set out on a camping trip to strengthen their relationship, they instead stumble into the title town, where everyone sings their feelings, just like characters in a... you get it. The only way out? True love—which Melissa and Josh thought they already shared, but maybe not so much. It’s both a tribute to classic musicals and a satire of the common tropes and the more problematic aspects of those old productions. The second season switches location and eras to “Schmicago,” taking on the darker-tinged musicals of the 1970s. You can stream Schmigadoon here. The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin (2024, one season) The Great British Bake Off's Noel Fielding stars in this wildly ahistorical British import involving the real-life highwayman of the title, who lived in the mid-1700s. Truth and legend are impossible to sort out when it comes to Turpin, so the show defers to the legend, adding a bunch of inspired silliness to the mix. It's not quite Our Flag Means Death, but it takes a similarly loose and fun approach to history. The well-received show shut down for good during production of a second season, under slightly mysterious circumstances, but the existing season is still worth a run. You can stream Dick Turpin here.Masters of the Air (2024, miniseries) A spiritual successor and companion to earlier WWII minis Band of Brothers (2001) and The Pacific (2010), Masters of the Air focuses on the “Bloody Hundredth,” the 100th Bomb Group—pilots tasked with bombing targets inside German-occupied Europe. Austin Butler (Elvis), Barry Keoghan (Saltburn), and Ncuti Gatwa (Doctor Who) are part of the impressive ensemble. You can stream Masters of the Air here.Constellation (2024 – ) Severance, Foundation, For All Mankind, and Silo have established Apple TV+ as a home for high-concept, big-ish budget science fiction. Which is cool, given that even the SyFy channel is't filling that niche anymore. This one finds astronaut Noomi Rapace returning to Earth after an accident, and discovering that the reality she's returned to isn't quite the same as the one she left behind. You can stream Constellation here.Criminal Record ( 2024 – , renewed for a second season) The apparently IRL-delightful Peter Capaldi is one of our most effortlessly menacing actors, imbuing even The Doctor with an unpredictable inscrutability, so it's no surprise that he excels at playing a hardened police detective with a checkered past. He's joined here by Cush Jumbo's June Lenker, a by-the-book and far more idealistic detective who's as suspicious of Capaldi's DCI Hegarty as she is of the facts involving the cold case the pair are investigating. Think of them like a twisted version of Mulder and Scully (minus the aliens, of course). You can stream Criminal Record here.The Morning Show (2019 — , renewed for a fourth season) Less high-concept than some of Apple’s other originals, The Morning Show still serves as a solid drama led by an out-of-character performance from Jennifer Aniston. She plays Alex Levy, co-host of a major network morning show. “Co-host,” that is, until Mitch (Steve Carrell), with whom she’s worked for 15 years, is fired due to sexual misconduct shortly before the show goes on the air one morning (a la Matt Lauer), leaving Alex to explain the situation. The resulting shake-ups and power grabs (including by an up-and-comer played by Reese Witherspoon; the star power in this thing!) were inspired by Brian Stelter’s real-life book Top of the Morning, about the (perhaps) surprisingly dramatic and cutthroat world of morning television, so with the TV-ready drama comes an air of verisimilitude. You can stream The Morning Show here. The Me That You Can’t See (2021, miniseries) An Oprah Winfrey/Prince Harry co-production might inspire understandable cynicism, but the effort here is worthwhile: Approaching both stars and non-celebrities, the miniseries explores issues related to mental health, particularly the stigma and difficulties in finding care. The celebs are all impressively frank, and the less-famous individuals come from a wide array of backgrounds and face a diverse set of issues. Naturally, the presentation is highly polished, but the mere fact that the streamer is putting its money into expanding conversations about mental illness make it worth checking out. You can stream The Me That You Can't See here.Truth Be Told (2019 — 2023, three seasons) Honestly, they had me at Octavia Spencer. It’s not just her, though: The cast here is uniformly first-rate (Lizzy Caplan, Aaron Paul, Mekhi Phifer, and Kate Hudson also star). The premise is also solid, and timely: Spencer plays a true-crime podcaster who condemned a now-convicted killer with her reporting, but who now learns that she might have gotten some crucial details wrong. The execution stumbles a bit in the first season, but picks up in the second and into its concluding third. You can stream Truth Be Told here.The Afterparty (2022 — 2023, two seasons) At a high school reunion afterparty, a murder occurs that, naturally, sets the series in motion—a scenario rife with possibilities, given the dramas that swirl around any real-life reunion. The spin here on the comedy murder mystery is its Rashomon-like structure: Each episode explores the night from the POV of one of the participants, shifting genre styles to suit the character in question. Tiffany Haddish and Sam Richardson are great as the leads. You can stream The Afterparty here.Little America (2020 — 2022, two seasons) With a sense of humor, the anthology Little America dramatizes a series of Epic Magazine pieces telling the stories of immigrants in America. Each 30-minute episode plays like a movie in miniature, and each is packed with emotion—sometimes heartbreak, often joy. Seriously, they cram a lot of heart into these little episodes. Each one ends with a tag about the real people on which it is based, which serves to ground the emotion in reality. You can stream Little America here.Home Before Dark (2020 — 2021, two seasons) I love, love, love that this one’s based on a true story. Home Before Dark dramatizes the story of Hilde Lysiak, award-winning crime reporter and the youngest member of the Society of Professional Journalists, who began her career at age nine (she’s now a whopping 14). Here she’s fictionalized as Hilde Lisko (Brooklynn Prince), who moves with her mother to a Twin Peaks-esque coastal town where she slowly, doggedly, uncovers the truth behind a long-forgotten cold case. You can stream Home Before Dark here.Servant (2019 — 2023, four seasons) Creepy nanny meets creepy doll in this utterly strange psychological thriller, co-executive-produced by the occasionally brilliant but notoriously inconsistent M. Night Shyamalan (the show was created by Tony Basgallop). The horror here isn’t really overt, but the show plays some interesting and disturbing games centered on the relationship of the lead couple, played by Lauren Ambrose and Toby Kebbell. Following the death of their 13-week-old son, the pair acquires a lifelike doll as a therapeutic tool. Naturally, something’s not quite right with the doll (or Dorothy’s attachment to it), and something’s definitely not right about the young live-in nanny who they hire (rich people, amirite?) to take care of fake baby Jericho. You can stream Servant here.Ghostwriter (2019 — 2022, three seasons) This new, updated Ghostwriter goes in a different direction than the ‘90s-era original, focusing a little bit less on the mystery elements of the stories and more on reading fundamentals. Operating out of a bookstore belonging to the grandfather of two of the main characters, four kids are brought together by a ghost who brings characters from classic and modern literature to life, with CGI that’s sometimes great —and sometimes less so. Where the show really shines is in its depiction of kids who are believably smart and savvy, unlike an awful lot of shows that can’t seem to tell the difference between a 12-year-old and a fivr-year-old. It’s definitely for kids, but that’s to its credit. You can stream Ghostwriter here.Defending Jacob (2020, miniseries) Based on the book by William Landay, this one’s premise is clever, and harrowing: In an upper-class Massachusetts suburb, Andy (Chris Evans) and Laurie (Michelle Dockery) learn that a classmate of their 14-year-old son has been murdered in a local park. What happens next is even more shocking: their son is arrested for the murder. The show sometimes leans unnecessarily into melodrama, but the performances are solid and the central mystery is so compelling, it’s hard not to get drawn in. You can stream Defending Jacob here.Black Bird (2022, miniseries) Novelist Dennis Lehane (Gone Baby Gone, Mystic River) developed the based-on-a-true-story miniseries, and his touch is evident if you’re familiar with his books, or with the movies they’ve inspired. Taron Egerton plays Jimmy Keene, a former football star given a 10-year prison sentence for drug dealing. Before long, he’s given another shot: His sentence will be erased if he transfers to a much higher security prison for the criminally insane and gathers evidence against a suspected serial killer incarcerated there. That’s a killer premise, and Egerton is great here. You can stream Black Bird here.Trying (2020 — , renewed for fifth season) After having difficulty conceiving a child, Nikki and Jason begin the adoption process, and find themselves in a bind. Were they able to conceive, there’d be no other qualifications necessary to have a baby. Adoption, on the other hand, is long process full of screenings, classes, paperwork, home visits, and money. This is one of those rare comedies that’s both genuinely funny and gentle—the show even revisits all of its characters at the end of each episode so that we know how everyone has made out. You can stream Trying here. Mythic Quest (2020 — 2025, four seasons) It might sound a little (or a lot) niche, but we’ve seen enough headlines about the working conditions at many video game production houses to understand why a workplace comedy set against such a backdrop would make for effectively dark and juicy comedy. Charlotte Nicdao and Rob McElhenney are the leads here, as a brilliant and driven workaholic and an unsociable egomaniac respectively, and the chemistry between their two characters give the show more than enough spark. There's also a four episode spin-off: Side Quest. You can stream Mythic Quest here. Acapulco (2021 – , renewed for a fourth season) Inspired by the 2017 film How to Be a Latin Lover, the ambitious English/Spanish-language comedy spans generations in telling the story of Maximo Gallardo Ramos (Eugenio Derbez), a Malibu mogul who began life as a pool boy at a fancy resort hotel. The sweet, sun-drenched show has a gorgeously retro visual style. You can stream Acapulco here. Disclaimer (2024, miniseries) Created, written, and directed by four-time Oscar winner Alfonso Cuarón, Disclaimer has as impressive a pedigree as you could hope for on streaming TV: It stars Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline (both, incidentally, Oscar winners), alongside Sacha Baron Cohen and Leila George. Blanchett plays Catherine Ravenscroft, an award-winning journalist who receives a mysterious manuscript—it's a novel in which she, herself, appears to be the main character, and which reveals secrets of her past that she thought were long buried. Cuarón moves deliberately through a story that takes its time, even as each episode shifts through points of view and timelines to offer up consistent and impressive surprises. You can stream Disclaimer here. The Studio (2025 – , renewed for a second season) Industry exec Matt Remick (Seth Rogen) loves movies, and when he signs on for a high-profile role at the fictional Continental Studios, he's feeling like his time has come, like he can make a real difference in fixing an increasingly IP-driven movie industry. That is, until about a minute into his new job when the CEO (Bryan Cranston) lets him know that his first job will be marketing Kool-Aid Man, a thin attempt to rip off the success of Barbie. Hollywood satires of yore have focused on the industry as one that eats people up and spits them out, but the spin here is that Remick yearns for those days. This very funny, often intentionally cringe, comedy finds Hollywood in a state of decline and focuses on a man who'd love nothing more than to rebuild the movie industry of old. Catherine O'Hara, Ike Barinholtz, Chase Sui Wonders (Bodies Bodies Bodies), and Kathryn Hahn also star, and the show boasts a seemingly endless list of celebrity cameos. You can stream The Studio here.
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  • See the US's presidential aircraft fleet that Trump wants to add to with a $400 million gift

    President Donald Trump is considering using a Qatari Boeing 747-8 given as a gift as Air Force One while the new presidential jet faces delays.The ruling family of Qatar gifted the US president the $400 million luxury jumbo jet, and Trump said he would "never be one to turn down that kind of offer."The potential plane deal faced pushback from critics and even some Trump allies over security concerns and the legal and ethical issues associated with using a foreign-origin aircraft as Air Force One, the president's airborne command center.Besides Air Force One, the presidential fleet includes other fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft depending on the mission.
    Presidential aircraft fleet
    A VC-25A aircraft and a VH-3D Sea King helicopter taxi following former President Joe Biden's sendoff ceremony at Joint Base Andrews.
    US Air Force photo by Hayden Hallman

    Air Force One is a call sign that refers to any US Air Force aircraft transporting the president, though it is commonly recognized by its blue-and-white livery.The Air Force has two "specially configured" Boeing 747-200B jets that are primarily used as Air Force One.
    The VC-25A aircraft is uniquely modified to serve as an airborne command-and-control center for the president, staff, and guests with the same level of safety and security as the White House.Other than the number of passengers it can carry, the main differences between the VC-25 and the standard Boeing 747 include more advanced electronic and communications equipment, a self-contained baggage loader, and the capability for in-flight refueling.The VC-25 also has a rest area and mini-galley for the aircrew, six passenger lavatories, and a compartment with medical supplies and equipment for minor in-flight emergencies.
    Marine One
    Nighthawk 46 arrives for the 46th president's send-off ceremony at Joint Base Andrews.
    US Air Force photo by Hayden Hallman

    For shorter distance trips, especially to and from the White House, the president flies in Marine One, which includes military helicopters like the VH-3D Sea King and the VH-60N White Hawk.In service for nearly five decades, both military helicopters are set to be phased out and fully replaced with modernized rotary-wing aircraft, the VH-92A.The next-generation Marine One is designed to be a militarized variant of the Sikorsky VH-92 Patriot.
    Other aircraft
    An 89th Airlift Wing C-40 and C-37 sit near UH-1N Iroquois helicopters and a C-17 Globemaster III at Joint Base Andrews.
    US Air Force photo by Senior Master Sgt.
    Kevin Wallace/RELEASED

    The presidential fleet also includes other fixed-wing aircraft besides the modified 747.
    The C-32A, a modified Boeing 757-200, is better suited for smaller airports or low-profile missions.The C-40, based on the Boeing 737, can be used to fly the president but is more often used for Cabinet members or other VIP individuals.Based on General Dynamics' Gulfstream long-range business jets, the C-37 is used to transport high-ranking government and Defense Department officials for worldwide missions.
    'Next Air Force One'
    An artist rendering of the "Next Air Force One," the VC-25B, which will succeed the current Air Force One, VC-25A.
    Courtesy rendering/US Air Force

    The two planes currently being used as Air Force One have been in service for nearly four decades.
    They are set to be replaced by a modernized variant dubbed the "Next Air Force One."Officially designated the VC-25B, the new presidential aircraft is set to feature "electrical power upgrades, a mission communication system, a medical facility, an executive interior, a self-defense system, and autonomous ground operations capabilities," according to an Air Force release.The two future VC-25B jets were initially scheduled to be fielded in 2024, but supply chain issues and shifting requirements could postpone their delivery to 2029.Facing pressure from the White House to have the new aircraft ready before Trump leaves office in January 2029, the Air Force and Boeing are aiming to have the new aircraft delivered by 2027, according to Darlene Costello, the Air Force's principal deputy assistant secretary for acquisition, technology, and logistics.
    A 'security nightmare'
    US President Donald Trump's motorcade is parked next to a Qatari Boeing 747 on the tarmac of Palm Beach International Airport.
    ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images

    An Air Force official told Air and Space Forces Magazine that the service is coordinating with the White House and Boeing "to further define the requirements and acceleration options while ensuring we provide a safe, secure, and reliable aircraft for the president."Trump has previously expressed his frustration with receiving the next-generation Air Force One, suggesting earlier this year that he may seek "alternatives, because it's taking Boeing too long."Despite the backlash, the president doubled down on his proposal to use the Qatari jet as Air Force One, saying he doesn't plan on using it after his term and would donate it to a future presidential library."I could be a stupid person and say, 'No, we don't want a free, very expensive airplane,'" Trump told reporters Monday.Though free in cost, there's still a major cost to overhaul and retrofit the plane with the strict security requirements needed to serve as Air Force One."Along with the obvious ethical and legal issues, a $400M gifted luxury jet is not Air Force One," US Rep.
    Joe Courtney of Connecticut wrote on X.
    "Retrofitting a plane from Qatar would create huge costs & a security nightmare that would impede the work underway to deliver the actual AF1 by 2027."


    Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/air-force-one-aircraft-trump-boeing-747-2025-5" style="color: #0066cc;">https://www.businessinsider.com/air-force-one-aircraft-trump-boeing-747-2025-5
    #see #the #us039s #presidential #aircraft #fleet #that #trump #wants #add #with #million #gift
    See the US's presidential aircraft fleet that Trump wants to add to with a $400 million gift
    President Donald Trump is considering using a Qatari Boeing 747-8 given as a gift as Air Force One while the new presidential jet faces delays.The ruling family of Qatar gifted the US president the $400 million luxury jumbo jet, and Trump said he would "never be one to turn down that kind of offer."The potential plane deal faced pushback from critics and even some Trump allies over security concerns and the legal and ethical issues associated with using a foreign-origin aircraft as Air Force One, the president's airborne command center.Besides Air Force One, the presidential fleet includes other fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft depending on the mission. Presidential aircraft fleet A VC-25A aircraft and a VH-3D Sea King helicopter taxi following former President Joe Biden's sendoff ceremony at Joint Base Andrews. US Air Force photo by Hayden Hallman Air Force One is a call sign that refers to any US Air Force aircraft transporting the president, though it is commonly recognized by its blue-and-white livery.The Air Force has two "specially configured" Boeing 747-200B jets that are primarily used as Air Force One. The VC-25A aircraft is uniquely modified to serve as an airborne command-and-control center for the president, staff, and guests with the same level of safety and security as the White House.Other than the number of passengers it can carry, the main differences between the VC-25 and the standard Boeing 747 include more advanced electronic and communications equipment, a self-contained baggage loader, and the capability for in-flight refueling.The VC-25 also has a rest area and mini-galley for the aircrew, six passenger lavatories, and a compartment with medical supplies and equipment for minor in-flight emergencies. Marine One Nighthawk 46 arrives for the 46th president's send-off ceremony at Joint Base Andrews. US Air Force photo by Hayden Hallman For shorter distance trips, especially to and from the White House, the president flies in Marine One, which includes military helicopters like the VH-3D Sea King and the VH-60N White Hawk.In service for nearly five decades, both military helicopters are set to be phased out and fully replaced with modernized rotary-wing aircraft, the VH-92A.The next-generation Marine One is designed to be a militarized variant of the Sikorsky VH-92 Patriot. Other aircraft An 89th Airlift Wing C-40 and C-37 sit near UH-1N Iroquois helicopters and a C-17 Globemaster III at Joint Base Andrews. US Air Force photo by Senior Master Sgt. Kevin Wallace/RELEASED The presidential fleet also includes other fixed-wing aircraft besides the modified 747. The C-32A, a modified Boeing 757-200, is better suited for smaller airports or low-profile missions.The C-40, based on the Boeing 737, can be used to fly the president but is more often used for Cabinet members or other VIP individuals.Based on General Dynamics' Gulfstream long-range business jets, the C-37 is used to transport high-ranking government and Defense Department officials for worldwide missions. 'Next Air Force One' An artist rendering of the "Next Air Force One," the VC-25B, which will succeed the current Air Force One, VC-25A. Courtesy rendering/US Air Force The two planes currently being used as Air Force One have been in service for nearly four decades. They are set to be replaced by a modernized variant dubbed the "Next Air Force One."Officially designated the VC-25B, the new presidential aircraft is set to feature "electrical power upgrades, a mission communication system, a medical facility, an executive interior, a self-defense system, and autonomous ground operations capabilities," according to an Air Force release.The two future VC-25B jets were initially scheduled to be fielded in 2024, but supply chain issues and shifting requirements could postpone their delivery to 2029.Facing pressure from the White House to have the new aircraft ready before Trump leaves office in January 2029, the Air Force and Boeing are aiming to have the new aircraft delivered by 2027, according to Darlene Costello, the Air Force's principal deputy assistant secretary for acquisition, technology, and logistics. A 'security nightmare' US President Donald Trump's motorcade is parked next to a Qatari Boeing 747 on the tarmac of Palm Beach International Airport. ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images An Air Force official told Air and Space Forces Magazine that the service is coordinating with the White House and Boeing "to further define the requirements and acceleration options while ensuring we provide a safe, secure, and reliable aircraft for the president."Trump has previously expressed his frustration with receiving the next-generation Air Force One, suggesting earlier this year that he may seek "alternatives, because it's taking Boeing too long."Despite the backlash, the president doubled down on his proposal to use the Qatari jet as Air Force One, saying he doesn't plan on using it after his term and would donate it to a future presidential library."I could be a stupid person and say, 'No, we don't want a free, very expensive airplane,'" Trump told reporters Monday.Though free in cost, there's still a major cost to overhaul and retrofit the plane with the strict security requirements needed to serve as Air Force One."Along with the obvious ethical and legal issues, a $400M gifted luxury jet is not Air Force One," US Rep. Joe Courtney of Connecticut wrote on X. "Retrofitting a plane from Qatar would create huge costs & a security nightmare that would impede the work underway to deliver the actual AF1 by 2027." Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/air-force-one-aircraft-trump-boeing-747-2025-5 #see #the #us039s #presidential #aircraft #fleet #that #trump #wants #add #with #million #gift
    WWW.BUSINESSINSIDER.COM
    See the US's presidential aircraft fleet that Trump wants to add to with a $400 million gift
    President Donald Trump is considering using a Qatari Boeing 747-8 given as a gift as Air Force One while the new presidential jet faces delays.The ruling family of Qatar gifted the US president the $400 million luxury jumbo jet, and Trump said he would "never be one to turn down that kind of offer."The potential plane deal faced pushback from critics and even some Trump allies over security concerns and the legal and ethical issues associated with using a foreign-origin aircraft as Air Force One, the president's airborne command center.Besides Air Force One, the presidential fleet includes other fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft depending on the mission. Presidential aircraft fleet A VC-25A aircraft and a VH-3D Sea King helicopter taxi following former President Joe Biden's sendoff ceremony at Joint Base Andrews. US Air Force photo by Hayden Hallman Air Force One is a call sign that refers to any US Air Force aircraft transporting the president, though it is commonly recognized by its blue-and-white livery.The Air Force has two "specially configured" Boeing 747-200B jets that are primarily used as Air Force One. The VC-25A aircraft is uniquely modified to serve as an airborne command-and-control center for the president, staff, and guests with the same level of safety and security as the White House.Other than the number of passengers it can carry, the main differences between the VC-25 and the standard Boeing 747 include more advanced electronic and communications equipment, a self-contained baggage loader, and the capability for in-flight refueling.The VC-25 also has a rest area and mini-galley for the aircrew, six passenger lavatories, and a compartment with medical supplies and equipment for minor in-flight emergencies. Marine One Nighthawk 46 arrives for the 46th president's send-off ceremony at Joint Base Andrews. US Air Force photo by Hayden Hallman For shorter distance trips, especially to and from the White House, the president flies in Marine One, which includes military helicopters like the VH-3D Sea King and the VH-60N White Hawk.In service for nearly five decades, both military helicopters are set to be phased out and fully replaced with modernized rotary-wing aircraft, the VH-92A.The next-generation Marine One is designed to be a militarized variant of the Sikorsky VH-92 Patriot. Other aircraft An 89th Airlift Wing C-40 and C-37 sit near UH-1N Iroquois helicopters and a C-17 Globemaster III at Joint Base Andrews. US Air Force photo by Senior Master Sgt. Kevin Wallace/RELEASED The presidential fleet also includes other fixed-wing aircraft besides the modified 747. The C-32A, a modified Boeing 757-200, is better suited for smaller airports or low-profile missions.The C-40, based on the Boeing 737, can be used to fly the president but is more often used for Cabinet members or other VIP individuals.Based on General Dynamics' Gulfstream long-range business jets, the C-37 is used to transport high-ranking government and Defense Department officials for worldwide missions. 'Next Air Force One' An artist rendering of the "Next Air Force One," the VC-25B, which will succeed the current Air Force One, VC-25A. Courtesy rendering/US Air Force The two planes currently being used as Air Force One have been in service for nearly four decades. They are set to be replaced by a modernized variant dubbed the "Next Air Force One."Officially designated the VC-25B, the new presidential aircraft is set to feature "electrical power upgrades, a mission communication system, a medical facility, an executive interior, a self-defense system, and autonomous ground operations capabilities," according to an Air Force release.The two future VC-25B jets were initially scheduled to be fielded in 2024, but supply chain issues and shifting requirements could postpone their delivery to 2029.Facing pressure from the White House to have the new aircraft ready before Trump leaves office in January 2029, the Air Force and Boeing are aiming to have the new aircraft delivered by 2027, according to Darlene Costello, the Air Force's principal deputy assistant secretary for acquisition, technology, and logistics. A 'security nightmare' US President Donald Trump's motorcade is parked next to a Qatari Boeing 747 on the tarmac of Palm Beach International Airport. ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images An Air Force official told Air and Space Forces Magazine that the service is coordinating with the White House and Boeing "to further define the requirements and acceleration options while ensuring we provide a safe, secure, and reliable aircraft for the president."Trump has previously expressed his frustration with receiving the next-generation Air Force One, suggesting earlier this year that he may seek "alternatives, because it's taking Boeing too long."Despite the backlash, the president doubled down on his proposal to use the Qatari jet as Air Force One, saying he doesn't plan on using it after his term and would donate it to a future presidential library."I could be a stupid person and say, 'No, we don't want a free, very expensive airplane,'" Trump told reporters Monday.Though free in cost, there's still a major cost to overhaul and retrofit the plane with the strict security requirements needed to serve as Air Force One."Along with the obvious ethical and legal issues, a $400M gifted luxury jet is not Air Force One," US Rep. Joe Courtney of Connecticut wrote on X. "Retrofitting a plane from Qatar would create huge costs & a security nightmare that would impede the work underway to deliver the actual AF1 by 2027."
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  • #333;">Qatar's luxury jet donation poses significant security risks, experts say. It poses a "counterintelligence nightmare," a former CIA field operative said.
    The Trump administration's plan to accept a luxury jet donated by the Qatari government to use as Air Force One raises significant security concerns, intelligence experts and government officials say, as President Donald Trump said it would be "stupid" not to accept a free plane.Trump on Monday defended the administration's plans to receive a luxury jet donated by the Qatari government during remarks at the White House, calling the donation a "very nice gesture.""I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer.
    I mean, I could be a stupid person and say, 'No, we don't want a free, very expensive airplane.' But it was, I thought it was a great gesture," he said.MORE: Trump admin live updatesRhode Island Sen.
    Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, slammed the move, arguing that using the plane as Air Force One would "pose immense counterintelligence risks by granting a foreign nation potential access to sensitive systems and communications.""This reckless disregard for national security and diplomatic propriety signals a dangerous willingness to barter American interests for personal gain," Reed said in a statement Monday.
    "It is an affront to the office of the presidency and a betrayal of the trust placed in any U.S.
    leader to safeguard the nation's sovereignty."Air Force One a 'high-value target'Air Force One sits on the tarmac, May 12, 2025, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.Win McNamee/Getty ImagesThe primary aircraft used in the current Air Force One fleet includes two aging Boeing 747-200 jumbo jets that have been operational since 1990.
    Despite flying for more than 35 years, the current pair of Air Force One jets are considered some of the safest and secure aircraft in the world.Many of the security features on the plane remain classified.
    It has anti-missile defenses or countermeasure systems to protect against surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles, and the communication devices can also withstand the pulse of a nuclear blast.
    It is also outfitted with sophisticated communications capability to allow the president to securely run the country from the plane and protect him from cyberattacks."It's designed to transport the president in a safe way and be able to withstand physical attacks, but to also ensure that the president maintains communication with military, his cabinet, other government leaders in a safe and secure manner," said John Cohen, an ABC News contributor and former acting Homeland Security official.
    "Any building or vehicle or airplane that the president is located is a high-value target for foreign intelligence services who want to gather as much information about the president."Air Force One can also remain in the air for several days due to its ability to refuel in midair.
    The plane also houses a small medical facility where doctors could perform surgery if needed.All of these systems would likely need to be installed on the Boeing 747-8 that Trump would receive as a gift from Qatar.MORE: Trump defends Qatar jumbo jet offer, says it would be 'stupid' to turn away free planeA jet donated by Qatar would also be a "counterintelligence nightmare," ABC News contributor Darrell Blocker, a former CIA field operative, said."If you go back to almost anything that is given by a foreign government, there are regulations and restrictions and guidelines for ensuring that they're not being bugged, and a plane would be an absolute nightmare to be able to confirm that it's not," Blocker told ABC News Live on Monday.
    "From an intelligence perspective, it's not the brightest move."Blocker cited that when the U.S.
    embassy was being built in Moscow in the 1980s, the U.S.
    had to "take it down to its bare bones" because the Russians "put bugs through every room, every facility.""I think the people of Troy, when they accepted that horse, regretted it after the fact also," he said.The complexity and time needed to retrofit and inspect the plane raise questions on cost and a timeline."Even under the best of circumstances, it's going to take a significant effort for the military to be satisfied that the aircraft is constructed safely, that it's not compromised from the standpoint of intelligence collection capabilities being planted on it, and that it is built in a way that it will be able to assimilate the sensitive communications and countermeasure capabilities that are that are present on any plane that's Air Force One," Cohen said.
    "To be done right, it's not going to happen quickly.""In order to adequately ensure that this airplane -- which was operated by a foreign government that happens to have a relationship with Iran and China and Russia -- in order to ensure that that plane has not had collection capabilities introduced into it when it was constructed, they're gonna have to basically tear it down to the airframe," he added.White House working on 'legal details'Both the U.S.
    Air Force and the Department of Defense referred questions to the White House when asked about the possible transfer of the Qatari-owned Boeing 747 to the Department of Defense."The plane will be donated to the Department of Defense, and as with any foreign gift given to the United States Government, all proper safety and security protocols will be followed," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told ABC News.House Speaker Mike Johnson said Monday he would not comment on Trump preparing to receive the jet from Qatar because he hasn't seen the "details."The White House is working on the "legal details" of the Qatari government's donation to the Defense Department, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday in an appearance on Fox News."But, of course, any donation to this government is always done in full compliance with the law.
    And we commit ourselves to the utmost transparency and we will continue to do that," Leavitt added.President Donald Trump boards Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md., on his way to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 12, 2025.Manuel Balce Ceneta/APTrump said during remarks at the White House on Monday that he doesn't plan to use the plane after he leaves office.
    Pressed by ABC News Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott on what he would say to people who view the luxury plane as a personal gift to him, Trump said it was not a gift to him but "a gift to the Department of Defense."Sources familiar with the proposed arrangement told ABC News that the plane would be a gift that is to be available for use by Trump as the new Air Force One until shortly before he leaves office, at which time ownership of the plane will be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation.If a private contractor were able to complete the modifications needed to the donated plane before the end of Trump's presidency, many of the systems installed would then need to be removed should the Trump presidential library foundation take possession of the plane upon Trump leaving office due to the sensitive nature of the technology.Ultimately, Cohen said he suspects that members of the intelligence community and the military will assess the risk to national security and "the level of effort to minimize the risk to national security.""If they're doing their job, the president's national security team will explain to him the level of risk that exists if a foreign intelligence service were able to introduce collection capabilities that could intercept face-to-face communications on the plane, electronic communications coming from the plane," Cohen said.
    "They should also be explaining to him the level of effort that it will involve in order for that risk to be mitigated.
    And with that information, he can then make an informed decision on whether and under what conditions to accept the airplane."
    #0066cc;">#qatar039s #luxury #jet #donation #poses #significant #security #risks #experts #say #quotcounterintelligence #nightmarequot #former #cia #field #operative #said #the #trump #administration039s #plan #accept #donated #qatari #government #use #air #force #one #raises #concerns #intelligence #and #officials #president #donald #would #quotstupidquot #not #free #planetrump #monday #defended #plans #receive #during #remarks #white #house #calling #quotvery #nice #gesturequotquoti #never #turn #down #that #kind #offeri #mean #could #stupid #person #039no #don039t #want #very #expensive #airplane039 #but #was #thought #great #gesturequot #saidmore #admin #live #updatesrhode #island #senjack #reed #top #democrat #senate #armed #services #committee #slammed #move #arguing #using #plane #quotpose #immense #counterintelligence #granting #foreign #nation #potential #access #sensitive #systems #communicationsquotquotthis #reckless #disregard #for #national #diplomatic #propriety #signals #dangerous #willingness #barter #american #interests #personal #gainquot #statement #mondayquotit #affront #office #presidency #betrayal #trust #placed #any #usleader #safeguard #nation039s #sovereigntyquotair #039highvalue #target039air #sits #tarmac #may #joint #base #andrews #marylandwin #mcnameegetty #imagesthe #primary #aircraft #used #current #fleet #includes #two #aging #boeing #jumbo #jets #have #been #operational #since #1990despite #flying #more #than #years #pair #are #considered #some #safest #secure #worldmany #features #remain #classifiedit #has #antimissile #defenses #countermeasure #protect #against #surfacetoair #airtoair #missiles #communication #devices #can #also #withstand #pulse #nuclear #blastit #outfitted #with #sophisticated #communications #capability #allow #securely #run #country #from #him #cyberattacksquotit039s #designed #transport #safe #way #able #physical #attacks #ensure #maintains #military #his #cabinet #other #leaders #mannerquot #john #cohen #abc #news #contributor #acting #homeland #officialquotany #building #vehicle #airplane #located #highvalue #target #who #gather #much #information #about #presidentquotair #several #days #due #its #ability #refuel #midairthe #houses #small #medical #facility #where #doctors #perform #surgery #neededall #these #likely #need #installed #gift #qatarmore #defends #qatar #offer #says #039stupid039 #away #planea #darrell #blocker #saidquotif #you #back #almost #anything #given #there #regulations #restrictions #guidelines #ensuring #they039re #being #bugged #absolute #nightmare #confirm #it039s #notquot #told #mondayquotfrom #perspective #brightest #movequotblocker #cited #when #usembassy #built #moscow #1980s #ushad #quottake #bare #bonesquot #because #russians #quotput #bugs #through #every #room #facilityquotquoti #think #people #troy #they #accepted #horse #regretted #after #fact #alsoquot #saidthe #complexity #time #needed #retrofit #inspect #raise #questions #cost #timelinequoteven #under #best #circumstances #going #take #effort #satisfied #constructed #safely #compromised #standpoint #collection #capabilities #planted #will #assimilate #present #that039s #onequot #saidquotto #done #right #happen #quicklyquotquotin #order #adequately #this #which #operated #happens #relationship #iran #china #russia #had #introduced #into #gonna #basically #tear #airframequot #addedwhite #working #039legal #details039both #usair #department #defense #referred #asked #possible #transfer #qatariowned #defensequotthe #united #states #all #proper #safety #protocols #followedquot #spokesperson #anna #kelly #newshouse #speaker #mike #johnson #comment #preparing #hasn039t #seen #quotdetailsquotthe #quotlegal #detailsquot #government039s #press #secretary #karoline #leavitt #appearance #fox #newsquotbut #course #always #full #compliance #lawand #commit #ourselves #utmost #transparency #continue #thatquot #addedpresident #boards #riyadh #saudi #arabia #2025manuel #balce #cenetaaptrump #doesn039t #leaves #officepressed #senior #political #correspondent #rachel #scott #what #view #quota #defensequotsources #familiar #proposed #arrangement #available #new #until #shortly #before #ownership #transferred #presidential #library #foundationif #private #contractor #were #complete #modifications #end #trump039s #many #then #removed #should #foundation #possession #upon #leaving #nature #technologyultimately #suspects #members #community #assess #risk #quotthe #level #minimize #securityquotquotif #doing #their #job #president039s #team #explain #exists #service #introduce #intercept #facetoface #electronic #coming #planequot #saidquotthey #explaining #involve #mitigatedand #make #informed #decision #whether #conditions #airplanequot
    Qatar's luxury jet donation poses significant security risks, experts say. It poses a "counterintelligence nightmare," a former CIA field operative said.
    The Trump administration's plan to accept a luxury jet donated by the Qatari government to use as Air Force One raises significant security concerns, intelligence experts and government officials say, as President Donald Trump said it would be "stupid" not to accept a free plane.Trump on Monday defended the administration's plans to receive a luxury jet donated by the Qatari government during remarks at the White House, calling the donation a "very nice gesture.""I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer. I mean, I could be a stupid person and say, 'No, we don't want a free, very expensive airplane.' But it was, I thought it was a great gesture," he said.MORE: Trump admin live updatesRhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, slammed the move, arguing that using the plane as Air Force One would "pose immense counterintelligence risks by granting a foreign nation potential access to sensitive systems and communications.""This reckless disregard for national security and diplomatic propriety signals a dangerous willingness to barter American interests for personal gain," Reed said in a statement Monday. "It is an affront to the office of the presidency and a betrayal of the trust placed in any U.S. leader to safeguard the nation's sovereignty."Air Force One a 'high-value target'Air Force One sits on the tarmac, May 12, 2025, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.Win McNamee/Getty ImagesThe primary aircraft used in the current Air Force One fleet includes two aging Boeing 747-200 jumbo jets that have been operational since 1990. Despite flying for more than 35 years, the current pair of Air Force One jets are considered some of the safest and secure aircraft in the world.Many of the security features on the plane remain classified. It has anti-missile defenses or countermeasure systems to protect against surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles, and the communication devices can also withstand the pulse of a nuclear blast. It is also outfitted with sophisticated communications capability to allow the president to securely run the country from the plane and protect him from cyberattacks."It's designed to transport the president in a safe way and be able to withstand physical attacks, but to also ensure that the president maintains communication with military, his cabinet, other government leaders in a safe and secure manner," said John Cohen, an ABC News contributor and former acting Homeland Security official. "Any building or vehicle or airplane that the president is located is a high-value target for foreign intelligence services who want to gather as much information about the president."Air Force One can also remain in the air for several days due to its ability to refuel in midair. The plane also houses a small medical facility where doctors could perform surgery if needed.All of these systems would likely need to be installed on the Boeing 747-8 that Trump would receive as a gift from Qatar.MORE: Trump defends Qatar jumbo jet offer, says it would be 'stupid' to turn away free planeA jet donated by Qatar would also be a "counterintelligence nightmare," ABC News contributor Darrell Blocker, a former CIA field operative, said."If you go back to almost anything that is given by a foreign government, there are regulations and restrictions and guidelines for ensuring that they're not being bugged, and a plane would be an absolute nightmare to be able to confirm that it's not," Blocker told ABC News Live on Monday. "From an intelligence perspective, it's not the brightest move."Blocker cited that when the U.S. embassy was being built in Moscow in the 1980s, the U.S. had to "take it down to its bare bones" because the Russians "put bugs through every room, every facility.""I think the people of Troy, when they accepted that horse, regretted it after the fact also," he said.The complexity and time needed to retrofit and inspect the plane raise questions on cost and a timeline."Even under the best of circumstances, it's going to take a significant effort for the military to be satisfied that the aircraft is constructed safely, that it's not compromised from the standpoint of intelligence collection capabilities being planted on it, and that it is built in a way that it will be able to assimilate the sensitive communications and countermeasure capabilities that are that are present on any plane that's Air Force One," Cohen said. "To be done right, it's not going to happen quickly.""In order to adequately ensure that this airplane -- which was operated by a foreign government that happens to have a relationship with Iran and China and Russia -- in order to ensure that that plane has not had collection capabilities introduced into it when it was constructed, they're gonna have to basically tear it down to the airframe," he added.White House working on 'legal details'Both the U.S. Air Force and the Department of Defense referred questions to the White House when asked about the possible transfer of the Qatari-owned Boeing 747 to the Department of Defense."The plane will be donated to the Department of Defense, and as with any foreign gift given to the United States Government, all proper safety and security protocols will be followed," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told ABC News.House Speaker Mike Johnson said Monday he would not comment on Trump preparing to receive the jet from Qatar because he hasn't seen the "details."The White House is working on the "legal details" of the Qatari government's donation to the Defense Department, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday in an appearance on Fox News."But, of course, any donation to this government is always done in full compliance with the law. And we commit ourselves to the utmost transparency and we will continue to do that," Leavitt added.President Donald Trump boards Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md., on his way to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 12, 2025.Manuel Balce Ceneta/APTrump said during remarks at the White House on Monday that he doesn't plan to use the plane after he leaves office. Pressed by ABC News Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott on what he would say to people who view the luxury plane as a personal gift to him, Trump said it was not a gift to him but "a gift to the Department of Defense."Sources familiar with the proposed arrangement told ABC News that the plane would be a gift that is to be available for use by Trump as the new Air Force One until shortly before he leaves office, at which time ownership of the plane will be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation.If a private contractor were able to complete the modifications needed to the donated plane before the end of Trump's presidency, many of the systems installed would then need to be removed should the Trump presidential library foundation take possession of the plane upon Trump leaving office due to the sensitive nature of the technology.Ultimately, Cohen said he suspects that members of the intelligence community and the military will assess the risk to national security and "the level of effort to minimize the risk to national security.""If they're doing their job, the president's national security team will explain to him the level of risk that exists if a foreign intelligence service were able to introduce collection capabilities that could intercept face-to-face communications on the plane, electronic communications coming from the plane," Cohen said. "They should also be explaining to him the level of effort that it will involve in order for that risk to be mitigated. And with that information, he can then make an informed decision on whether and under what conditions to accept the airplane."
    المصدر: abcnews.go.com
    #qatar039s #luxury #jet #donation #poses #significant #security #risks #experts #say #quotcounterintelligence #nightmarequot #former #cia #field #operative #said #the #trump #administration039s #plan #accept #donated #qatari #government #use #air #force #one #raises #concerns #intelligence #and #officials #president #donald #would #quotstupidquot #not #free #planetrump #monday #defended #plans #receive #during #remarks #white #house #calling #quotvery #nice #gesturequotquoti #never #turn #down #that #kind #offeri #mean #could #stupid #person #039no #don039t #want #very #expensive #airplane039 #but #was #thought #great #gesturequot #saidmore #admin #live #updatesrhode #island #senjack #reed #top #democrat #senate #armed #services #committee #slammed #move #arguing #using #plane #quotpose #immense #counterintelligence #granting #foreign #nation #potential #access #sensitive #systems #communicationsquotquotthis #reckless #disregard #for #national #diplomatic #propriety #signals #dangerous #willingness #barter #american #interests #personal #gainquot #statement #mondayquotit #affront #office #presidency #betrayal #trust #placed #any #usleader #safeguard #nation039s #sovereigntyquotair #039highvalue #target039air #sits #tarmac #may #joint #base #andrews #marylandwin #mcnameegetty #imagesthe #primary #aircraft #used #current #fleet #includes #two #aging #boeing #jumbo #jets #have #been #operational #since #1990despite #flying #more #than #years #pair #are #considered #some #safest #secure #worldmany #features #remain #classifiedit #has #antimissile #defenses #countermeasure #protect #against #surfacetoair #airtoair #missiles #communication #devices #can #also #withstand #pulse #nuclear #blastit #outfitted #with #sophisticated #communications #capability #allow #securely #run #country #from #him #cyberattacksquotit039s #designed #transport #safe #way #able #physical #attacks #ensure #maintains #military #his #cabinet #other #leaders #mannerquot #john #cohen #abc #news #contributor #acting #homeland #officialquotany #building #vehicle #airplane #located #highvalue #target #who #gather #much #information #about #presidentquotair #several #days #due #its #ability #refuel #midairthe #houses #small #medical #facility #where #doctors #perform #surgery #neededall #these #likely #need #installed #gift #qatarmore #defends #qatar #offer #says #039stupid039 #away #planea #darrell #blocker #saidquotif #you #back #almost #anything #given #there #regulations #restrictions #guidelines #ensuring #they039re #being #bugged #absolute #nightmare #confirm #it039s #notquot #told #mondayquotfrom #perspective #brightest #movequotblocker #cited #when #usembassy #built #moscow #1980s #ushad #quottake #bare #bonesquot #because #russians #quotput #bugs #through #every #room #facilityquotquoti #think #people #troy #they #accepted #horse #regretted #after #fact #alsoquot #saidthe #complexity #time #needed #retrofit #inspect #raise #questions #cost #timelinequoteven #under #best #circumstances #going #take #effort #satisfied #constructed #safely #compromised #standpoint #collection #capabilities #planted #will #assimilate #present #that039s #onequot #saidquotto #done #right #happen #quicklyquotquotin #order #adequately #this #which #operated #happens #relationship #iran #china #russia #had #introduced #into #gonna #basically #tear #airframequot #addedwhite #working #039legal #details039both #usair #department #defense #referred #asked #possible #transfer #qatariowned #defensequotthe #united #states #all #proper #safety #protocols #followedquot #spokesperson #anna #kelly #newshouse #speaker #mike #johnson #comment #preparing #hasn039t #seen #quotdetailsquotthe #quotlegal #detailsquot #government039s #press #secretary #karoline #leavitt #appearance #fox #newsquotbut #course #always #full #compliance #lawand #commit #ourselves #utmost #transparency #continue #thatquot #addedpresident #boards #riyadh #saudi #arabia #2025manuel #balce #cenetaaptrump #doesn039t #leaves #officepressed #senior #political #correspondent #rachel #scott #what #view #quota #defensequotsources #familiar #proposed #arrangement #available #new #until #shortly #before #ownership #transferred #presidential #library #foundationif #private #contractor #were #complete #modifications #end #trump039s #many #then #removed #should #foundation #possession #upon #leaving #nature #technologyultimately #suspects #members #community #assess #risk #quotthe #level #minimize #securityquotquotif #doing #their #job #president039s #team #explain #exists #service #introduce #intercept #facetoface #electronic #coming #planequot #saidquotthey #explaining #involve #mitigatedand #make #informed #decision #whether #conditions #airplanequot
    ABCNEWS.GO.COM
    Qatar's luxury jet donation poses significant security risks, experts say. It poses a "counterintelligence nightmare," a former CIA field operative said.
    The Trump administration's plan to accept a luxury jet donated by the Qatari government to use as Air Force One raises significant security concerns, intelligence experts and government officials say, as President Donald Trump said it would be "stupid" not to accept a free plane.Trump on Monday defended the administration's plans to receive a luxury jet donated by the Qatari government during remarks at the White House, calling the donation a "very nice gesture.""I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer. I mean, I could be a stupid person and say, 'No, we don't want a free, very expensive airplane.' But it was, I thought it was a great gesture," he said.MORE: Trump admin live updatesRhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, slammed the move, arguing that using the plane as Air Force One would "pose immense counterintelligence risks by granting a foreign nation potential access to sensitive systems and communications.""This reckless disregard for national security and diplomatic propriety signals a dangerous willingness to barter American interests for personal gain," Reed said in a statement Monday. "It is an affront to the office of the presidency and a betrayal of the trust placed in any U.S. leader to safeguard the nation's sovereignty."Air Force One a 'high-value target'Air Force One sits on the tarmac, May 12, 2025, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.Win McNamee/Getty ImagesThe primary aircraft used in the current Air Force One fleet includes two aging Boeing 747-200 jumbo jets that have been operational since 1990. Despite flying for more than 35 years, the current pair of Air Force One jets are considered some of the safest and secure aircraft in the world.Many of the security features on the plane remain classified. It has anti-missile defenses or countermeasure systems to protect against surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles, and the communication devices can also withstand the pulse of a nuclear blast. It is also outfitted with sophisticated communications capability to allow the president to securely run the country from the plane and protect him from cyberattacks."It's designed to transport the president in a safe way and be able to withstand physical attacks, but to also ensure that the president maintains communication with military, his cabinet, other government leaders in a safe and secure manner," said John Cohen, an ABC News contributor and former acting Homeland Security official. "Any building or vehicle or airplane that the president is located is a high-value target for foreign intelligence services who want to gather as much information about the president."Air Force One can also remain in the air for several days due to its ability to refuel in midair. The plane also houses a small medical facility where doctors could perform surgery if needed.All of these systems would likely need to be installed on the Boeing 747-8 that Trump would receive as a gift from Qatar.MORE: Trump defends Qatar jumbo jet offer, says it would be 'stupid' to turn away free planeA jet donated by Qatar would also be a "counterintelligence nightmare," ABC News contributor Darrell Blocker, a former CIA field operative, said."If you go back to almost anything that is given by a foreign government, there are regulations and restrictions and guidelines for ensuring that they're not being bugged, and a plane would be an absolute nightmare to be able to confirm that it's not," Blocker told ABC News Live on Monday. "From an intelligence perspective, it's not the brightest move."Blocker cited that when the U.S. embassy was being built in Moscow in the 1980s, the U.S. had to "take it down to its bare bones" because the Russians "put bugs through every room, every facility.""I think the people of Troy, when they accepted that horse, regretted it after the fact also," he said.The complexity and time needed to retrofit and inspect the plane raise questions on cost and a timeline."Even under the best of circumstances, it's going to take a significant effort for the military to be satisfied that the aircraft is constructed safely, that it's not compromised from the standpoint of intelligence collection capabilities being planted on it, and that it is built in a way that it will be able to assimilate the sensitive communications and countermeasure capabilities that are that are present on any plane that's Air Force One," Cohen said. "To be done right, it's not going to happen quickly.""In order to adequately ensure that this airplane -- which was operated by a foreign government that happens to have a relationship with Iran and China and Russia -- in order to ensure that that plane has not had collection capabilities introduced into it when it was constructed, they're gonna have to basically tear it down to the airframe," he added.White House working on 'legal details'Both the U.S. Air Force and the Department of Defense referred questions to the White House when asked about the possible transfer of the Qatari-owned Boeing 747 to the Department of Defense."The plane will be donated to the Department of Defense, and as with any foreign gift given to the United States Government, all proper safety and security protocols will be followed," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told ABC News.House Speaker Mike Johnson said Monday he would not comment on Trump preparing to receive the jet from Qatar because he hasn't seen the "details."The White House is working on the "legal details" of the Qatari government's donation to the Defense Department, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday in an appearance on Fox News."But, of course, any donation to this government is always done in full compliance with the law. And we commit ourselves to the utmost transparency and we will continue to do that," Leavitt added.President Donald Trump boards Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md., on his way to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 12, 2025.Manuel Balce Ceneta/APTrump said during remarks at the White House on Monday that he doesn't plan to use the plane after he leaves office. Pressed by ABC News Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott on what he would say to people who view the luxury plane as a personal gift to him, Trump said it was not a gift to him but "a gift to the Department of Defense."Sources familiar with the proposed arrangement told ABC News that the plane would be a gift that is to be available for use by Trump as the new Air Force One until shortly before he leaves office, at which time ownership of the plane will be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation.If a private contractor were able to complete the modifications needed to the donated plane before the end of Trump's presidency, many of the systems installed would then need to be removed should the Trump presidential library foundation take possession of the plane upon Trump leaving office due to the sensitive nature of the technology.Ultimately, Cohen said he suspects that members of the intelligence community and the military will assess the risk to national security and "the level of effort to minimize the risk to national security.""If they're doing their job, the president's national security team will explain to him the level of risk that exists if a foreign intelligence service were able to introduce collection capabilities that could intercept face-to-face communications on the plane, electronic communications coming from the plane," Cohen said. "They should also be explaining to him the level of effort that it will involve in order for that risk to be mitigated. And with that information, he can then make an informed decision on whether and under what conditions to accept the airplane."
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