Bruce Boxleitner

Experience the next phase in animated horror as the disturbing first chapters of the EA game Dead Space open up to reveal a cosmic terror that is truly out of this world. An ancient religious relic has been unearthed during a deep space mining mission to a remote planet. Some believe that the artifact provides irrefutable proof that God truly exists, but if there is a Heaven, there must also be a Hell. When the relic is taken aboard the ship, it unleashes a long-dormant alien race powerful enough to destroy all of mankind. One by one, the crew is being taken over by an alien force hell bent on devouring the entire human race. Can they be defeated before the ship returns to Earth, or has the ultimate Apocalypse finally been set into motion? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Armand Mastroianni, the gifted director of the legendary 1980 horror sleeper He Knows You're Alone, returns to helm the three-hour, all-star medical miniseries Pandemic. The program explores the lethal consequences that can unfurl when a deadly plague, with an unknown cure and an even more mysterious source, worms its way through the denizens of a terror-stricken metropolis. 90210's Tiffani-Amber Thiessen stars as Dr. Kayla Martin, an epidemiologist at the Center for Disease Control. When the news arrives of a plague victim on board a flight from Australia to LAX Airport in Los Angeles -- who promptly dies amid body-racking convulsions and a record-high fever -- Dr. Martin makes the pivotal decision to quarantine all passengers at LAX, sending the city, and the mayor (Eric Roberts), into an uproar. Meanwhile, the plague concurrently begins to appear in other areas of the city -- suggesting a beast that no one can even begin to contain. In time, the disease becomes known as "The Riptide Virus." As a thoughtless ACLU attorney schemes to wage war against Dr. Martin for an unlawful quarantine, Martin, her associate Carl Ratner (French Stewart), and FBI Agent Troy Whitlock (Vincent Spano) race to find a solution before time runs out. Faye Dunaway also co-stars. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

James Remar and Melvin Van Peebles headline this relentlessly tense tale of a special ops sniper who reluctantly accepts one final mission before disappearing into retirement. Dillon (Remar) is a special ops sharpshooter extraordinaire - the kind of triggerman who could take out a Tic Tac at twenty yards without so much as using his scope. But now that Dillon has experienced his fair share of the war game, he's about to hang up his rifle for good. Just as he's preparing to disappear into obscurity, however, Dillon learns that some very bad people are attempting to obtain some very volatile nuclear materials. Suddenly, an ambitious terrorist plot goes unexpectedly awry, and the man who was supposed to stop it is now at the center of a deadly conspiracy. Will Dillon be able to unravel the explosive mystery that could bring about his death, or is he playing right into the hands of the powers that be. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Reunited as adults, childhood friends Mark Lucas (Bridget Brannagh and Theresa Connolly (Crystal Allen) fall in love and decide to get married. The wedding plans are okay so far as Mark and Theresa's golfing-buddy dads are concerned. Alas, the couple's mothers constitute a different story: Betsy Lucas (Shelley Long) and Bridget Connolly (Patty Duke) have carried on a bitter feud for the past 25 years, and they aren't about to go into "all is forgiven" mode just because their kids are in love. The situation reaches a disastrous peak when Betsy and Bridget take it upon themselves to arrange the couple's Catalina Island wedding--and as terrifying as these two ladies are when they're on opposite sides of the fence, they're even more so when they join forces! Falling in Love with the Girl Next Door was first telecast February 4, 2006, as a cinematic Valentine card from cable's Hallmark Channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cashing in on the real-life influx of pesky "snake-head" fish in Midwestern lakes, this inexpensive sci-fi epic is set in a small Maryland fishing community called Cultus Lake. A dangerous strain of mutated snakeheads has decimated the lake's fish population, whereupon Doc Jenkins (played by X-Files' William B. Davis, aka "Cigarette-Smoking Man"), the shady owner of a nearby chemical plant, fills the water with pollutants to kill off the invaders. At the same time, the local leaders, desperate to pull Cultus Lake out of a severe financial slump, has dumped human growth hormones in the lake to improve the stock. You guessed it: Both the chemicals and hormones succeed only in making the snakeheads even larger and more ferocious--and worse still, they are now leaving the lake and crawling around on dry land, in search of human blood! Caught in the middle of the crisis is Sheriff Patrick James (Bruce Boxleitner) and the standard-issue beautiful female biologist Lori Dale (Carol Alt). An amalgam of every cheesy CGI effect ever seen on the many Jaws ripoffs that have proliferated as made-for-cable and direct-to-video thrillers, Snakehead Terror received its biggest audience when it was telecast by the Sci-Fi network on March 13, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Although the small town of Rutland, VT, lives contentedly in the shadow of the huge, newly constructed Rankin Dam, there are those who realize that the dam was built "below code" and with inferior materials for the purpose of saving a few bucks. City Counsel President Natalie Powell (Michele Greene) soon has reason to regret the short-cuts taken with the project when the town is threatened by a raging flood. Even worse: Natalie's architect husband David (Joe Lando) and son Garth (Matthew Eward) are trapped inside the dam. Made for television, Killer Flood: The Day the Dam Broke debuted over the PAX network April 25, 2003, the same day that the filmed was screened at a benefit premiere in the real-life Rutland, VT. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Not dissimilar to such earlier Hollywood features as Boys' Ranch and Johnny Holiday, this made-for-cable drama stars Bruce Boxleitner as ex-cop and former marine J.T. Hope. The owner of a 2,000-acre ranch in Utah, Hope makes it his mission in life to rehabilitate youngsters who, as a result of their criminal records, have been deemed incorrigible. In this instance, Hope focuses his attention on a trio of street punks, including incipient drug-dealer Keith Frazier (Brian Gross). With the help of his no-nonsense ranchhands Colt (Lorenzo Lamas) and Shorty (Barry Corbin), Hope works the boys hard and long (12 hours a day, in fact), tending the horses, cleaning out the barns, and tackling other such grueling chores -- all the while promising the kids that if after two weeks they have straightened themselves out, they will not have to return to the penal system. At first reacting in horror to the strict regimen of Hope's ranch (one of the teens declares, "What is this? An episode of Survivor?"), two of the boys begin showing signs of redemption, and even begin to enjoy their working vacation in the great outdoors. Alas, Keith proves to be a bigger challenge than Hope had anticipated, especially when the boy steals some horse tranquilizers and escapes into the mountains. One of the first films to be produced exclusively for the Animal Planet cable network, Hope Ranch debuted on September 2, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Known as The Last Breath on cable TV and Epidemic abroad, this contemporary technothriller was filmed in 2001 under the title Contagion. When the President of the United States (Bruce Boxleitner) is struck by a poisoned dart, a shadowy terrorist claims that the Chief Executive has been infected with a lethal virus, for which the terrorist has the only antidote. As frenzied negotations proceed between the Government and the assailant, virologist Dr. Diane Landis (Megan Gallagher) races against time to save the President's life and avoid a worldwide crisis, with or without the aid of the typically uncooperative Secret Service. Even though the basic situation is fraught with thrills and terror, somehow or other the film climaxes with an out-of-left field cliffhanger involving a child in jeaopardy. Withheld from release in the wake of the Anthrax scares attending the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, Contagion was finally seen by American viewers courtesy of the Lifetime network on October 7, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Although the popular science fiction series Babylon 5 had officially run its course, one final two-hour episode was deemed necessary to segue into the spinoff series Crusade. Thus, on January 3, 1999, the TNT Network offered the world premiere of Babylon 5: A Call to Arms. The year is 2266: After several years' development, the first destroyer prototypes based on the White Stars (proposed by B5 crew member Delenn in the fifth-season episode "Movements of Fire and Shadow") have been completed. While inspecting the results, Alliance President Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) experences disturbing visions of a future Apocalypse -- and of a doomsaying stranger named Galen. Sheridan's visions seem poised to become reality when the Drakh, the dreaded allies of the defeated Shadows, mount a counteroffensive against humanity. It is up to a new team of space warriors, manning the twin battlecruisers "Excalibur" and "Victory," to prevent Galen's predictions from coming true. Babylon 5: A Call to Arms was written by J. Michael Straczynski, and later novelized by Robert Sheckley. As for Crusade, that oft-postponed series finally debuted on June 9, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Unbeknownst to President Sheridan, Delenn sends Lennier on mission to the Centauri border. The purpose: to determine where the cargo-vessel attacks are coming from. And Vir reacts strangely upon receiving a political promotion. Keep an eye out for a brief spoof of the McDonald's restaurant chain (Hint: look for the Golden Headbones). Written by J. Michael Straczynski, "Meditations on the Abyss" first aired on May 27, 1998. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

First telecast October 28, 1998, "The Fall of Centauri Prime" was the payoff for the earlier Babylon 5 cliffhanger "Movements of Fire and Shadow" --- and also the opening volley in the series' final four-episode story arc. As the Alliance and Centauri Prime wage war upon one another, Londo discovers that the hostilities were instigated by the Drakh, who have killed the Centauri regent and taken control of his homeworld. Forcing Londo to go along with their plans, the Drakh effectively seal the fate of the Centauri populace. Wayne Alexander appears as the Drakh leader. "The Fall of Centauri Prime" was written by J. Michael Straczynski. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide