By Michael Pedro
2023 was a year of many twists, turns, and surprises. Let’s review what happened, starting with world events. Over the past year, numerous technological advances have occurred, especially with ChatGPT and other generative AI. What started small had become an imposing threat to many, primarily creatives, as AI could create uncanny art and stories. It had gotten to such a degree that schools had begun outright banning the use of it in classes. In May, the COVID-19 pandemic regulations were lifted, and Charles III was crowned King of England. Famous voice actor Charles Martinet, who was responsible for the voices of Mario, Luigi, and others in the Mario universe, announced his retirement from voice acting. Taylor Swift began her Eras Tour, a concert tour that is still running to this day. Speaking of Taylor Swift, it was made official that she is now dating football star Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs. On the more politically charged side of things, former US President Donald Trump was indicted and arrested, and his mugshot quickly became a meme. The war between Israel and Palestine came to a head in early October, with the extremist group Hamas leading coordinated attacks on Israel, leading to an outcry from several people worldwide.
In the world of sports, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won the Daytona 500. The Super Bowl also occurred between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. In the end, the Chiefs won. In the Kentucky Derby, Mage would emerge victorious with 15-1 odds. The Texas Rangers won the World Series over the Arizona Diamondbacks, while Max Verstappen clinched his third consecutive Formula One championship in extremely dominant fashion. The Denver Nuggets would win the NBA Finals.
Next, let’s talk about shows and movies. Video game movies got a lot more respect this year, as the Super Mario Bros. Movie was released to the joy of many fans. Starring Chris Pratt as the titular plumber, it became one of the highest-grossing animated films of all time, with a respectable $1.3 billion earned at the box office. That wasn’t the only big video game adaptation to hit the big screen, as the long-awaited Five Nights at Freddy’s movie finally graced fans with its presence. Other popular movies included Barbie and Oppenheimer, two movies with starkly contrasting moods released on the same day, creating the phenomenon known as “Barbenheimer” among moviegoers. Sony released the second movie in the Spiderverse saga, Across the Spider-Verse. On the show side of things, The Last of Us TV series was released to an extremely positive reception, while the long-awaited third season of the Star Wars series The Mandalorian provided a satisfactory result to diehard fans of the Star Wars universe. That wasn’t the only Star Wars show to be released this year, as Ahsoka and the second volume of the anthology series Star Wars Visions would also be released. Marvel released the second season of Loki, while indie animation studio GLITCH released the first episode of The Amazing Digital Circus, a dark comedy that, despite only having a single episode at the time of writing this, has quickly become one of the most successful indie projects of all time.
On the video games side of things, hotly-anticipated games like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Street Fighter 6 would be released, while remasters of Kirby’s Return to Dream Land and Super Mario RPG also headlined. Nintendo released the first 2D sidescroller Mario in nearly a decade in the form of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, which put a unique spin on many aspects of the classic Mario formula. Odyssey Interactive released Omega Strikers, a 3v3 MMO game that gained a very dedicated fanbase. On the same day as the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon, Nintendo released the long-awaited Pikmin 4. The newest entry in the Mortal Kombat franchise was released, and Rockstar Studios released some teasers for the heavily-anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6.
Last but certainly not least is music. Morgan Wallen, SZA, and Taylor Swift were among the biggest artists of the year, with Wallen’s hit “Last Night” being the most popular song on Spotify. Swift would emphasize her stranglehold on the music industry by releasing not one but two albums throughout the year, both being re-records of earlier albums “Speak Now” and “1989”. Stephen Sanchez, known for his 2022 hit “Until I Found You,” released his debut album, while, on a far more local scale, fellow Western New England University student John Bieszczad released his debut EP the same day. Lastly, music streaming services released their year-end roundups at the end of November.
Overall, 2023 was an interesting year. It brought good, and it brought bad. Bring on 2024!
