Thursday, December 31, 2015

Recap of 2015 & Our Wishlist for 2016


2015 was a year full of fandom and feels. From the moments that made us laugh to the moments that made us cry, here's our reaction to everything 2015 brought us. In addition, join us as we assemble our wishlists for 2016!

Major spoilers are enclosed in brackets and must be highlighted to read. Like this: [Hello!]


Amanda Horn

2015 has been an amazing year for fandom. I’ve discovered so many new and brilliant books, movies, and TV shows. So without any further unnecessary introduction, here are my favorite moments of fandom in 2015.
  •  Even though I was sad to see Parks and Recreation go, the thing I loved about its final episodes was that everyone found happiness. [April and Andy eventually had a baby (two, actually!), Tom married Lucy, Ron started working outdoors at a park…it was all perfect.]
  • Ant-Man. Just Ant-Man. It was hilarious and heart-breaking and just absolute fun and I adored all the characters. I don’t need to say any more. 
  • Clint Barton having a family. As much as I loved him before, I love him even more now. 
  • Bruce Banner being the dorkiest nerd I knew he could be. It’s marvelous.
  • Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt existing.
With all this being said, there is so much more on track for 2016! Here are some of the things I’m most excited for in the coming year.
  • Season 2 of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Season 1 ended really well and I can’t wait to see what happens next!
  • Captain America: Civil War. I know everyone’s excited for this and getting prepared for this super anticipated film, but I want to go in and have little to no knowledge about what’s going to happen. I tend to enjoy movies more if I don’t know how it’s going to play out. However, there is one thing that I think I won’t be able to stand. There’s a ton of speculation about a member of the Avengers dying in Civil War. While I don’t have any specific ideas about who it might be exactly, I don’t think I could stand it if Clint Barton died. (Or any member of his little family, for that matter.) I can take it all as it comes, but this would be...heartbreaking. I just want a marvelously happy ending for them. 
  •  Season 5 of Arrested Development. This is going to be fantastic. I’m pretty new to the show, but I watched all of the seasons in two weeks. (Oops?)

Anna Catherine

Best moments of 2015:
  • Tomorrowland (Tomorrowland is my favorite Disney World "land," and I was so glad it got its own film.   ^_^)
  • Inside Out (The best Pixar movie ever made. Hands down. {Monster's Inc. is still my favorite, though.})
  • Magnus Chase, Book 1 (Magnus is mine, 'kay?)
  • The Underworld entering Once Upon A Time.   (Bring us that sassy Hades!!!!)
  • STAR WARRRSSS (Particularly Luke coming back. He looks like such a nice grandpa man, and I want to give him a hug so badly.)
Wishlist for 2016:
  • More Sherlock (We're only getting one episode this year but miracles can happen.)
  • Hercules characters in Once Upon A Time (I need some of Hades' funny sass to go next to Regina's dry sass.)
  • More Percy Jackson adventures (Can Percabeth happen, plz?)
  • More Magnus Chase (aka MY BAE) adventures

Anna Gensimore

Favorite moments of 2015
  • It was a MARVELous year overall. Age of Ultron and Ant-Man were some of my favorite films to come out of this year. Both did their part to remind me of how much I love this franchise. And then Jessica Jones and Daredevil... just everything about the Netflix series realm is making me happy. My brain still needs some processing time to fully figure out Jessica Jones. All I know is I've found my favorite Avocados and will follow them wherever they go. Hell's Kitchen is quite literally on fire. 
  • Jurassic World. It felt good to be excited about dinosaurs again! Not that I ever really stopped of course. This was an example of rich storytelling that refreshed enthusiasm for a much beloved franchise. The actors did a brilliant job, and I was most pleased to see [Rexy return as the ultimate hero of the film].
  • Kingkiller Chronicle film/TV show/video game announced after Comic-Con. I'll be writing more about this series in the new year. 
  • The Force Awakens! I was crying in the theater the moment I saw Han and Chewie return to the big screen during the trailer. Seeing the film itself...well, I still can't process all my feelings!
  • Although I haven't seen all three yet, all of the Extended Editions of The Hobbit are now out. It is time for the marathon to end all marathons.
  • The Good Dinosaur and all of the cuteness, all of the feelings. 
  • Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer. I am so thrilled to see Rick Riordan back at it; this series looks to be interesting to say the least. 
Hopes for 2016
  • Deadpool: Guys I am begging you not to screw this up. The film has great potential to correctly represent Deadpool's story line. and I'm quite hopeful. 
  • New books! Several series I'm following have new volumes due out in 2016. Here's to them being finished on time! Is it too much to hope for Winds of Winter?
  • Oh my gosh, there are TWO Jungle Book adaptations coming in 2016. I could cry, I'm so excited; The Jungle Book was one of my favorite movies as a kid. The kind of favorite that your parents literally beg you to watch something else. Bill Murrray as Baloo...need I say more?
  • Rouge One: Let's just say I'm excited about anything Star Wars at this point. 
  • Civil WAAARRRRRRRRRR. I just...oh my goodness. 
  • Also X-Men Apocalypse: this looks bloody brilliant. 
  • Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them... My love for Harry Potter is made anew. I'm hoping this is as splendid as it looks. 
  • Suicide Squad: I am hoping this movie isn't too dark and portrays Harley Quinn well. She's one of my favorites, and I am thrilled she's getting screen time. Margot Robbie, do us proud. 
  • Basically, I hope 2016 is as great a year for movies as it looks. Also, season two of Daredevil is forthcoming.


Bethany Baldwin

There are so many fangirly moments I could talk about from this year, but I'll point out a few.

Favorite moments of 2015: 

  • The Sony and Marvel deal to bring Spider-man into the MCU. 
  • I finally watched The Flash and fell in love with it. I specifically fell in love with Barry Allen and Cisco Ramon. 
  • Jasper surviving season two of The 100.
  • Seeing Newsies the musical live, one of the largest highlights of my year. 
  • The "confrontation" between Jerome Valeska and Bruce Wayne on Gotham that I thought might be a nod to their future enmity.
  • David Tennant on Jessica Jones. 
  • Getting a friend to watch the entirety of Young Justice and love it. 
  • [Reveal of the Martian Manhunter] on Supergirl
  • Leopold Fitz. All of him. The mid-season finale of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. in general, though. 
  • The Doctor and River at the Singing Towers on Doctor Who
  • Ant-Man leading his insect friends on a quest. 
Hopes for 2016: 
  • I hope Civil War is great and not super depressing. 
  • I want Snowbarry to happen at least for a little while on The Flash because Barry and Caitlin could be adorable together. 
  • Jasper and Monty need to survive season three of The 100
  • The new companion on Doctor Who needs to be interesting and generally awesome. Please. And if there is a new Doctor before the year ends, the same goes double for him/her. 
  • I want more to happen with the plotvline of Supergirl, and I want Kara to give Winn a shot. 
  • FitzSimmons needs to happen for real on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. No more teasing.
  • There needs to be some forgiveness on iZombie. Liv and Major or Liv and Peyton or Liv and her mother/brother. Something needs to happen!
  • I hope any live musicals produced on TV will do justice to the source material. Here's hoping!

Giselle Abreu

Favorite Moments of 2015
  • Queen of Shadows coming out and [Aelin and Rowan becoming a thing]. 
  • Seeing the Twilight fandom dragged from beyond the grave when Life and Death came out. 
  • Star Wars. Need I say more?
  • Mateo being born on Jane the Virgin
Hardest Moments of 2015
  • Watching Rafael pull an Edward and break-up with Jane.
Wishlist of 2016
  • A Jane and Rafael wedding. Nothing more. If this occurs, I can die in peace.

Izzy Stevenson

My favorite moments of 2015:
  • Getting a second season of Gotham.
  • Watching Cameron Monaghan's fantastic performance as Jerome Valeska.
  • Getting a brand new Star Wars movie.
  • Getting to see m̶y̶ ̶s̶o̶n̶ Luke Skywalker on the big screen for the first time (since I wasn't born yet when the original trilogy was in theaters).
My hopes for 2016: 
  • More Star Wars fun and speculation.
  • Jerome Valeska hopefully returning to Gotham somehow.
  • Fish Mooney returning, as well.
  • That Theo Galavan either won't come back to Gotham. Or, if he must come back, that he will be more interesting this time around.
  • That Victor and Nora Fries will be awesome when they finally arrive on the show after the hiatus.


Jaime Heller

Favorite moments of 2015:
  • Star Wars. Just Star Wars. From seeing the first trailer to watching the opening scroll across the screen to falling in love with more characters and more stories, everything about The Force Awakens.
  • Finishing the Lunar Chronicles with tears and laughter and happiness. 
  • Jurassic World and the Raptor squad being badass. Chris Pratt and dinosaurs, you know?
  • The second Arrow and The Flash crossover joining together the start of the Legends of Tomorrow.
  • Anthony Mackie appearing in both Age of Ultron and Ant-Man as Sam Wilson/Falcon
  • All of Daredevil. Every moment, every word, everything. I’m not crying, there’s just an avocado in my eye. 
  • The ending to Parks and Rec. I watched the entire show in about three weeks. I loved it; the ending was perfect. I should go re-watch. 
  • I also finally finished The Office. Wonderful. 
  • When Kara Danvers took flight to save her sister and became Supergirl.
  • The totally tubular celebration of Back to the Future Day.
  • Lego Dimensions being hilarious and wonderful. 
  • Meeting Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard.
  • The Doctor saying, “Hello, Sweetie” to River Song in the Christmas special.
Hardest moments of 2015:
  • When [Kylo Ren killed Han Solo (his father!!!)] in The Force Awakens. I’m still angry.
  • The end of the Arrow mid-season finale where I don’t know [if Felicity died or not]!
  • [Finnick, Prim, everybody’s death] in Mockingjay Part 2
  • When Matt and Foggy fought in Daredevil.
  • [Quicksilver] in Age of Ultron
  • Saying goodbye to Leonard Nimoy and Christopher Lee.
  • When Joy cried in Inside Out.
  • When Barry Allen had to [let his mother die]. 
  • The Captain America: Civil War trailer. Ow, my heart! 
Wishlist for 2016
  • I hope Civil War isn’t too painful, but it does justice to the comic books
  • I hope Batman vs Superman doesn’t ruin DC’s chances for a good Justice League movie. 
  • I need Daredevil Season 2 now. 
  • I think the Sherlock holiday special will be wonderful
  • I hope Doctor Strange will be good. 
  • I think DC’s Legends of Tomorrow will live up to its potential.
  • I would like the final book in several series I’m reading to nicely wrap up the stories I’ve fallen in love with. 
  • I hope Deadpool will be worth watching.
  • I would like Star Trek Beyond to continue the reboot movies with epicness and give the 50th anniversary honor. 

Mirriam Neal

I can't believe it's been a year since I did this. Several of my wishlist items came true - Elena left The Vampire Diaries, Pan is coming back to Once Upon a Time. I don't know what my favorite moment was (I know I sobbed grossly over the ending of The 100 season two, but 'favorite'?) but let's see what items on my wish-list can come true this year!

• I need season two of Liar Game (the Korean version). I need it yesterday. I need it.

• Bonus points if it becomes a crossover with White Christmas (the Korean drama).

• I need to see a kdrama version of Pride and Prejudice starring Yoo In-Young as Lizzie and Shin Sung-Rok as Mr. Darcy.

• More Firefly references on Castle. I'm pretty sure I can bet on this one happening.

• Last year I asked for Bellarke to happen on The 100. Now, I'm just asking for Bellamy, Clarke, Octavia, and Lincoln to survive. Please.

• I need Death to become an antihero on Agents of SHIELD. Also, I already ship Death and Daisy. I don't know how on earth you give that a ship name, either. Deathy? Daiseth?

• I need mysteries cleared up in The Man from the High Castle season 2. I also need the Marshall to come back, and I need Frank to make it safely to the end. Also, I need to know where Kotomichi got his scars, and why he's so loyal to Tagomi.


Sarah Munson

It’s hard to believe 2015 is at an end, and 2016 is upon us. 2015 was a year filled with fandom, which makes it hard to choose the most memorable moments. Here are a few favorite experiences that spring to my mind:
  • Agent Carter not only airing but being totally awesome! This Marvel series quickly climbed to my top five of television shows. I could not get enough of it, and when I heard it was scheduled for a second season, I was ecstatic… More on that in a second, though. :)
  • I saw a Marvel movie on the silver screen for the first time! Avengers: Age of Ultron was the first superhero film I experienced in theaters, and I was not disappointed.
  • THE CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR TRAILER. I watched that footage on loop for the first week of its release. Few trailers excite me that way, but it completely grabbed me. It almost made up for not having a Hobbit trailer this year (sob). Moving on.
  • Inside Out reminded me why I love Pixar. And now I cannot stop watching it. Or singing the Triple Dent Gum song.
  • Mockingjay Part 2 made me proud. I was a little hesitant, since I didn’t absolutely love Part 1, but I think the ending was done brilliantly. It was essentially everything I hoped for in the Hunger Games conclusion. Never mind the devastation it caused me. It resolved the series as it was supposed to. (Not that I can be comforted by such knowledge in some aspects.)
  • I’m not a true Star Wars fan, (shhhh, calm down there angry mobs!) but even I was really excited to witness the movie event of the year with The Force Awakens.
What am I looking forward to in 2016? Glad you asked!
  • The Victorian Sherlock special! I love that it’s taking place in the “original” time period for Sherlock. I love that it’s slightly longer than typical Sherlock episodes. I love that it’s FINALLY HERE. I may be more excited for this than I was for Christmas.
  • Season 2 of Agent Carter! I’ve missed Peggy’s adventures and having a show to follow. I’m looking forward to whatever awaits her in the upcoming episodes. And hoping that she finally takes down her she-devil nemesis from last time. On a less dramatic note, I’d also like to find out who Jarvis is actually married to.
  • I’m both anticipating and dreading Captain America: Civil War. I already feel so much emotion for this film, that I actually hope it lives up to my loaded expectations. (Even if that means I’m basically asking for heartbreak.) I would also love for Bucky to have a substantial role, and it’s looking like I’ll get that wish.
  • DOCTOR STRANGE!!! A few photos were released, featuring Benedict Cumberbatch as the title character. I had tears welling up when I saw those images. I know very little about the Doctor Strange stories, but I’m so thrilled anyway.
  • Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is happening--a.k.a. a return to the Wizarding World! Take me there now!
  • In the book world, I’m keeping an eye out for the release of Glass Sword, the sequel to Red Queen. I can tell this is going to be one of those series I somewhat despise but keep coming back for.
  • Cheers to another fantastic fandom year!

Sky Destrian

This year, a couple of things on my wishlist came true! Skye kicked butt on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Fitzsimmons were reunited (after a horrible time, but still). Andy and April had a child and Leonard and Penny got married. Sadly, Avengers: Age of Ultron didn't live up to as many of my expectations like I'd hoped, but Ant-Man made up for it. I got more Steve and Bucky and Steve and Natasha. And I got lots of feels, feels, feels.

Favorite moments of 2015:
  • Watching The Walking Dead for the first time and falling in love with it (and all the characters).
  • Daredevil. Recapping it was one of the most fun things I've done for The Fangirl Initiative. I'm so in love with Matt Murdock, Foggy Nelson, and the entire show.
  • Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. This made me super happy.
  • The ending of Parks and Recreation. Everything was perfect.
  • Reading Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. (It's so accurate, guys.)
  • Getting into Good Mythical Morning. 
  • Watching Jane the Virgin with my sister upon Giselle's recommendation, then proceeding to fall 100% in love with it.
  • Seeing Ant-Man in the theater with my sister.
  • Finally understanding why Friends is so funny.
  • Jessica Jones. Every single bit of it was amazing, and Jessica is that badass heroine I've been waiting for.
  • Watching Inside Out on Thanksgiving with my family. (And I am actually Sadness, guys.)
  • STAR WARS. Excuse me, I've fallen into my next fandom pit (the Great Pit of Carkoon).
Hardest moments of 2015:

  • I watched all five seasons of The Walking Dead on Netflix this year, so all the deaths on the show were consolidated into 2015. So that was difficult.
  • The Civil War trailer. I'm pretty sure Marvel landed a punch hard to my chest. 
  • Pretty much all of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Also, [Rosalind's death. Ugh].
  • Age of Ultron. While initially my emotions were positive, as time has gone on, I've become a bit disappointed with the film, especially the portrayal of Natasha and Tony. Here's hoping that this was just a misstep. I'm definitely hopeful for Civil War.
  • When [Glenn went missing] on The Walking Dead. [Thank God for that dumpster, am I right?]
Wishlist for 2016
  • A Black Widow movie. I'm going to put this on my wishlist every year until it happens.
  • For Bruce Banner to be okay. I love that guy.
  • For Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to retain its quality and not jump the shark.
  • For Finding Dory to be good and not just a repeat of Cars 2
  • I can't wait for Daredevil season 2, as well as Luke Cage.
  • Civil War. Here we come. I hope it's a good one.
  • Last year, I wanted "feels, feels, feels." In 2016, I hope I make it to the end of the fandom year with my feels somewhat in tact.

What were your favorite moments this year? The worst moments? What do you want to see happen in 2016?

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