Looking Back, Looking Forward | 2023 Pop Culture in Review
Every year around this time I start to think that I should really get back into posting more often. I sincerely love doing it - writing, taking photos, creating something that is uniquely mine to share with the world. At this point it’s more diary than anything (do people even read blogs anymore, now that there’s TikTok and Insta and Substack?), but I’m still both proud and fond of it as a way to tell my story the way that I want to.
Also, my domain automatically renews this time of year, and I’m not gonna let that $$ go to waste.
Anyway, here’s my 2023 year in review, starting with the pop culture that made me happy (plus a couple that pissed me off).
Pop Culture Highs and Lows
High: Blue Eye Samurai
Sometimes I wonder if the creators of Blue Eye Samurai weren’t trying to enrage a certain brand of incel by taking the most bloodthirsty, badass, unstoppable action anti-hero since John Wick and making that character a woman of color. I can’t tell if they failed or succeeded; Mizu is like a vengeful Terminator, but through her and everyone around her (shoutout to Akemi and Ringo), we get to explore gender, race, class, disability, and so much more, all without feeling didactic. The visuals are gorgeously painterly, and the needle drops hit every. single. time. If you liked Netflix’s previous hit Arcane, or just great storytelling in general, don’t miss it.
Low: Ant-Man and the Wasp - Quantumania
Look, I know saying “Marvel’s in decline” isn’t exactly a hot take at this point, but this movie was so shit. Boring, ugly, and lacking all of the elements that made the first one charming, Quantumania also failed to make now disgraced star Jonathan Majors an interesting or compelling villain, no matter how overwrought and Shakespearian his delivery. The Marvels was better, especially in comparison, but I think the Marvel machine has truly run out of steam this year.
Low: Netflix cancels the excellent 1899 and hands it’s budget over to the middling Bodies
Last year, my end of year obsession was twisty sci-fi thriller 1899, which I gave up on recapping after it was abruptly cancelled right after the new year. A few months ago, Netflix dropped another twisty sci-fi thriller, this one based on some moderately well-known IP from Vertigo Comics. Don’t get me wrong, I binged Bodies, and it’s a good time, but it seems symptomatic of a narrowing of options from the streaming giant. It’s not hard to imagine the meeting where some middle management type ran a cost benefit analysis of making an effects heavy original series that didn’t have a conclusion written yet vs. a known property that could be wrapped up in under 12 episodes (but with the option to tease a season 2 if it’s a big enough hit!). I get why they did it, but my weirdo heart is going to file 1899 away with The OA and Sense8 as “big swings Netflix didn’t have the balls to follow through on.”
High: Beyonce and Taylor Swift’s recording breaking year
I actively dislike Taylor Swift and have never been that into Beyonce (Crazy in Love might be my favorite song of hers, and that came out when I was in high school), but post-pandemic, it’s really exciting to see women dominate the music industry the way these two did this year. When you pair it with Barbie, it hearkens back to the “Girl Power!” era of the 90s - yes, they’re products of a massive, soulless marketing campaign, but you can’t say that the women at the center aren’t exercising agency and inspiring conversations about what it means to be a woman in 2023.
2024 Pop Culture Resolutions
Read more books. I really fell off this year, despite being so happy every time I picked up a book. Next year, I’d like to read a minimum of 1 book a month.
Expand my musical horizons. Like so many people, I tend to listen to the same bands over and over again. I’ve gotten a little better in the past few years, but I want to keep seeking out new things to inspire and entertain me rather than falling back to the same few things.
Switch up my streaming habits. I’ve had Netflix and Amazon Prime for forever, and with their offerings shrinking, I’m considering doing 6 months of Apple+ or something to check out a few shows I’ve heard are worthwhile.
Try out some stuff that I don’t think I’ll like. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with my preference for sci-fi and fantasy over “literary” fiction, or my preference for action and comedy over drama, but I don’t want to miss out on good stuff just because I feel like it’s not my thing.
