Good Riddance 2020

2020 was a terrible year. It really was. And while I know that the problems we face won’t end with a new calendar on the wall, there are things that are looking optimistic for the future.

When we look back on this time, we will all have our stories of what happened, and what we saw, and what we learned.

While I was safe and healthy throughout the year, I understand I am better than many, but that does not mean my grief is invalid. The pains and frustrations I felt were just as real as anyone’s, as is yours. Understanding both that there are others who aren’t here to celebrate the new year, as well as the validity of your own trials is necessary to go into the new year, and raise our heads and hearts in cautious optimism.

So join me, in looking back at this year, and saying good bye, and good riddance.

As of writing this, the Covid pandemic took the lives of 1.75 million people worldwide.

All of our conventions, celebrations, and adventures were cancelled, as we tried to understand what exactly was happening.

We lost a large amount of famous, loved celebrities.

• Chadwick Boseman, Black Panther
• Ian Holm, Bilbo Baggins
• David Prowse, the body of Darth Vader
• Jeremy Bulloch, the body of Boba Fett
• Grant Imahara, Mythbuster
• Sean Connery, the first James Bond (also, the guy I was named after)
• Alex Trebek, host of Jeopardy
• Regis Philbin, record holder for “Most Hours on U.S. Television”
• Jerry Stiller, comedian and father of Ben
• Fred Willard, comedian
• James Lipton, host of Inside the Actors Studio
• Eddie Van Halen, Rockstar
• Kenny Rogers, Country Singer
• Kobe Bryant, NBA Superstar
• John Lewis, Civil Rights Activist
• Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Influential U.S. Supreme Court Justice

As far as more casual events this year, these were the highest grossing movies of the year…as many of them were released in the first 2.5 months of the year.

Rank	Title	Distributor	Domestic gross
1	Bad Boys for Life	Sony	$206,305,244
2	Sonic the Hedgehog	Paramount	$146,066,470
3	Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn	Warner Bros.	$84,158,461
4	Dolittle	Universal	$77,047,065
5	The Invisible Man	Universal	$70,410,000
6	The Call of the Wild	20th Century Studios	$62,342,368
7	Onward	Disney	$61,555,145
8	Tenet*	Warner Bros.	$57,898,000
9	The Gentlemen	STX Films	$36,471,795
10	The Croods: A New Age	Universal	$29,166,740

We had some popular shows, some of which returned this year, but some of which were brand new. Let’s be honest, we wouldn’t know so much about the world of Tiger-ownership if it weren’t for the fact we were all stuck indoors.

• Tiger King
• The Mandalorian
• Picard
• Harley Quinn
• What We Do in the Shadows
• Queen’s Gambit
• The Good Place
• Schitt’s Creek
• The Crown

Lastly, not a lot of big video games came out this year, but a few did.

• Last of Us part II
• Cyberpunk 2077
• Animal Crossing New Horizons

Take a moment and think back on this year, and join me in saying goodbye to 2020.

Goodbye, 2020