Top 10 Viral Videos Toronto 2010

The top 10 Toronto viral videos of 2010

The top 10 Toronto viral videos of 2010 are not surprisingly heavy on G20 offerings. In fact, one could devote an entire list to just these videos, but how much fun would that be? And besides, we basically already did this back in June. So in addition to clips of looters, beatings, and bubbles, the collection below includes things like human flying contraptions, a little duck family and Toronto turned into a CGI wonderland.

As with any top 10 list, I'm inclined to offer the usual provisos and qualifications. The issue in question involves what exactly the word "viral" means. Nowadays, marketers label clips uploaded to YouTube as "viral" before anyone even watches them. Obviously, that doesn't make much sense. Then there's the matter of numbers. How many views does something need to be legitimately termed viral? As much as I'd like to say a million views is the minimum, the reality is that local content should really make the cut at much, much lower numbers. As such, this list doesn't completely eschew those Toronto-based videos that have lower views on account of their local focus (but 10,000 is a minimum).

And, on to the videos...

G20 Looter

The title, "G20 looter gets owned," pretty much says it all. Roger Reis, a banker with a black belt, partakes in a little vigilante justice and makes guys like me wish I were so tough.

Shopper's rage: the Eaton Centre closes during the G20

"Why are you closed? I WANT TO GO SHOPPING IN THE EATON CENTRE." Who knows why all those people who where wrongly jailed complain? This guy is obviously the true victim. Simply unforgettable.

Officer Bubbles

Poor officer Bubbles. He clearly doesn't like being baited by pinko bubble-blowers, but little does he know that this is just the beginning. Toronto Police Constable Adam Josephs would eventually filed a $1.2-million lawsuit against YouTube and some of its users over cartoon parodies of his alleged anger-management issues.

Flight of the HPO

A rather unbelievable project by Todd Reichert, a student at U of T's Institute for Aerospace Studies, the Human Powered Ornithopter flew for 19.3 seconds, which may not seem like much until you realize that the contraption has basically turned its creator into one giant bird.

Duck Family battles the wind

Believe it or not, this is the most viewed video of the bunch, with over 5-million hits. It's pretty adorable, though. Caught on camera at Woodbine Racetrack, I wonder if this could make Officer Bubbles smile?

Batelco Infinity

Toronto is turned into a city in Bahrain and given made into one of the coolest places in the world thanks to some serious CGI. Truthfully, the whole thing doesn't make much sense, but it doesn't have to: this all about unabashed fun.

Leslieville residents confrontation religious group

Although the same sex couple outside of whose house the group were preaching have distanced themselves from the incident, I still think the reaction of the residents is priceless and admirable. You can join my community group any time.

Chuck and Vince: "We want it"

Here's a good example of what I was talking about in the intro. The City of Toronto's electronic waste ad might only have 35,000 views, but given the subject matter, but the catch phrase "we want it" is the definition of viral. It's stuck in my head already.

Fog City

The fog that engulfed Toronto on November 12/13 was pretty astounding. And while there are loads of great photos of that eerie night, this is by far the best video. Leave it to Sam Javanrouh, who looks like he was quite well prepared for the weather (position of height, skyline shot, time-lapse sequence).

Bridge Eaters

I wouldn't have thought that the demolition of a bridge would be so captivating, but Spacing's Matthew Blackett and the already mention Sam Javanrouh get er done here. The selective focus is a nice touch, too.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Around the Loop

This video doesn't really match my already loose viral criteria, but I like Tyler Freedman's trip along the YUS subway line so much that I include it here anyway. And, hey, 7,500 view ain't bad for a video of a TTC ride.


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