Another year, another Hypable pop culture out/in list as we say goodbye to 2014 and hello to 2015. What are we over and what are we looking forward to in the new year? Check it out!
Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of the year. It’s hard to believe how fast the past twelve months flew by, but alas, here we are getting ready to close out the year. 2014 gave us a lot of gifts: Guardians of the Galaxy, 1989, and a heightened obsession with reality stars.
So, as the clock strikes midnight on December 31 next week, 2014 becomes a thing of the past and we look towards 2015. We’re looking forward to fresh stories, getting over antiquated movie-making standards, and finally letting it go.
Out: The male-dominated super hero movie-making business
In: Women in front of and behind the camera
In 2015, we hope to start hearing about more developments concerning female-centric super hero films. We have tentative word that we will finally see a super hero movie not only staring, but also directed by, a female for the first time within the next few years. Why it took so long for this to happen, we have no idea, but we’re happy to see Wonder Woman (and Wonder Woman) shatter the glass ceiling. Now, if we could also get to working on a Black Widow movie, that would be fantastic.
Out: Sequels
In: Original stories
There are few Pixar movies that deserve sequels. We’re looking forward to Dory, and will always wonder if a sequel to The Incredibles could hold up to the spectacular original, but after the heartbreaking goodbye to the characters of Toy Story 3 that had ’90s kids sobbing in theaters everywhere in 2011, we accepted the end of that chapter. Pixar’s original new movie, Inside Out, set to bow June 15, 2015, looks great with amazing comedians lending their voices to emotions inside a tween girl’s mind, like joy and anger.
Out: ‘Stephen Colbert’
In: Stephen Colbert
For the past nine years, there’s been “Stephen Colbert” the doofus of a late-night talk show host character, and Stephen Colbert, the genius behind it all. The former “died” yet became immortal last week, with the series finale of The Colbert Report commanding quite a lofty list of guest celebrities. The real Colbert will step in to fill David Letterman’s shoes next year, jumping from cable – Comedy Central – to network – CBS – to host The Late Show.
Out: Cereal
In: Serial
Maybe this is a cheap shot – but how could we not mention the podcast that has captivated listeners for the past few months? The story/case about a murder of a young woman, and the search to find her real killer – whether that be Adnan, or someone else – was dolled out in weekly installments this fall, and Serial made us forget how to actually spell the breakfast food. There are debates about whether or not this show will change podcasting, but in the meantime: we’ll be here, waiting for season 2 to arrive, due sometime in 2015.
Out: ‘Let it Go’ the song
In: Yelling ‘let it go’ at people singing the song
Frozen has been out for a little over a year, and by now, we’ve seen every feasible viral and staged video covering the famous (infamous?) song. Sure, it’s a hell of an ear worm, but enough time has passed that in 2015, you are fully within your rights to say – not sing – “let it go!” to fans. Plus, with great musicals like Into the Woods and The Last Five Years to carry us into 2015, the general public should stop singing like an ice queen and more like Cinderella soon enough.
Out: Olicity angst
In: The Flash and Arrow bromance
The state of Olicity’s relationship will always be a top concern for shippers who watch the show – we are not denying that – but for now, it’s taken a backseat to the Arrow’s newest comrade: Barry Allen and his alter-ego, the Flash. The DC comic was adapted for the CW this year, and The Flash season 1 has shown it can follow in the footsteps of its older vigilante brother, The Arrow. As we head into 2015, we’ll keep our fingers crossed that Felicity and Oliver find their way back together, and that Barry and Oliver team up a few more times.
Out: Haters
Taylor Swift has caught a lot of flack over the past year. Actually, a lot of famous celebrities have been criticized and scrutinized in every possible way. Whether it’s smack talk on Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram or Facebook, people have been harsh. For 2015, we’re saying “begone!” to the haters and taking Tay’s advice: shake it off. If you don’t like someone, whether they have a lot of K-initials in their family, or sing a song you’re not fond of, just try to turn the other way.
Ignoring the stuff you don’t like, and focusing on the things you do enjoy, will make for a far easier and happier 2015. Soon enough, something else will come along – another album or movie or television show – that will make the public forget about hating on particular person or thing, and move on.
In: TV shows finding a second life
It’s not particularly revolutionary to resurrect a television show, most notably, Arrested Development season 4 was produced by Netflix, and of course, Veronica Mars set the precedent for Kickstarting a movie through crowd-funded sources. The online streaming platform Hulu “picked up” the canceled ABC comedies, Selfie and Manhattan Love Story, airing their final few episodes one week at a time. Yahoo also got into the television production business a few months ago, announcing that they will fund and serve as the viewing platform for Community season 6.
In fact, with Yahoo deciding to continue the show, it allowed Community to cross the 100-episode threshold, a feat that only ten shows have been able to do before it.
We expect to see the line between television networks and online viewing platforms blur even more in 2015, and who knows, they soon usurp some traditional models in favor of more on-demand and unique viewing schedules.