The death of Kim Jong Il has inspired a flurry of reflections on the North Korean leader's reign and analyses of what the future holds for the impoverished nuclear power. But it's also prompted people to reminisce about the many spoofs of the idiosyncratic ruler over the years. References to Kim's appearance as a puppet dictator in the movie Team America are trending on Twitter today, and the actress Elizabeth Banks felt compelled to respond to her Twitter followers when they inquired about whether Kim's death would alter a storyline on the NBC show 30 Rock in which Banks' character, Avery Jessup, is kidnapped by the North Korean leader. "Appreciate all the concern over Avery Jessup's fate now that Kim Jong Il has died," she wrote. We're at a pivotal moment in history." 

Yes, while Kim Jong Il may have cultivated a personality cult at home, he also cultivated a great deal of comedy abroad. Here's a look at the top 10 moments in Dear Leader parody. 

Kim Jong-Il Looking at Things

In October 2010, João Rocha, a 26-year-old art director at Y&R Lisbon in Portugal, created the Tumblr "Kim Jong-il Looking at Things" after seeing pictures in the Boston Globe of the North Korean leader criss-crossing the country with his entourage to deliver "field guidance." The popular blog features photo after photo of Kim, almost always sporting shades and wearing either his trademark jumpsuits or a winter coat, fur hat, and mittens, inspecting mundane objects ranging from sausages to persimmon trees (he's checking out a steel factory in the picture above).

While propaganda is usually used to "make someone seem larger than life," Rocha tells the Wall Street Journal today, the North Koreans use it to make Kim "look like he's in touch with the regular people. A god amongst men, that's probably the angle they're going for." On Monday, Rocha announced that he will continue posting images and captions in the present tense as long as his photo archive lasts. "Much like [Kim's] father still is, and forever will be, the 'eternal president' of North Korea, so will Kim Jong Il forever look at things on this site," Rocha wrote.  

AFP/Getty Images

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