The 16 very specific things we most loved this year

This year at Mashable, we decided to show a little extra love to our favorite onscreen moments with a new weekly series, Thanks I Love It. We searched through our favorite films and TV shows to find the most fabulous costumes, dazzling characters, exciting lines, and fun features — and then we obsessed about them.

Rather than just checking out the entertainment MVP of last week, we’re here to look back at the greatest entertainment elements of the entire year. From the opening credits of Mrs. America to the dancing in Never Have I Ever, here are the supporting stars and moments of 2020 that stole the show.

1. The ultimate egg sandwich in Birds of Prey 

Birds of Prey stuffed with colorful personalities and explosive action, and yet its single most memorable moment comes courtesy of a humble bodega breakfast sandwich. The close-up montage of its creation is a thing of beauty: bacon sizzling softly, hot sauce dripping on the griddle, over-easy eggs quivering just so as Sal gently closes the bun, Harley watching the whole thing from the counter with a hunger so ravenous it borders on lust. 

It’s the only thing in the world that can set Harley right in the middle of her breakup-induced hangover — and its destruction on the pavement, just minutes later, becomes the unthinkable tragedy that finally wakes her up to the peril she’s in. Tearing through a city’s entire criminal underworld just because they dared rob you of the BEC you so richly deserved? Honestly, we can relate. —Angie Han, Deputy Entertainment Editor 

Where to watch: HBO Max

2. “The Last Great American Dynasty” performance, Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions

In a year basically without concerts, we took music performances wherever we could find them. One delightful example was Taylor Swift’s Disney+ special, Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions, where she and her collaborators played through her gorgeous folklore album together for the first time. 

It was all fun, but a particular thrill had to be her performance of “The Last Great American Dynasty” (my personal favorite song off the album). Before the performance, Swift explained the story behind the tune: It’s about Rebekah Harkness, a real character who owned Swift’s Rhode Island mansion before she did. But it’s also about herself (classic country music narrative device, she notes). It’s a sweet story, made all the more charming by the obvious fondness collaborator Jack Antonoff has for that tune specifically. They then play the song, and it’s even more playful and warm than on the album. Pour a glass of cider and let the cozy vibes wash over you. You’ll have a marvelous time. -Erin Strecker, Entertainment Editor

Where to watch: Disney+

3. The portrayal of Jewish New York City in Hunters

Amazon’s Hunters weaves some kind of magic. It’s a riff on exploitation cinema that turns its gratuitous gaze on the Jewish experience in late-20th century America, and the New York Jewish experience specifically. There’s a thrilling story here about a gang of Nazi hunters uncovering a sinister plot in 1977 — and ruthlessly murdering Hitler’s surviving aherents along the way — but what’s really striking about Hunters is its sense of place. 

From the floral patterns and gaudy tchotchkes in the apartment of Jonah Heidelbaum’s bubbe to the sprinklings of Yiddish throughout the script — not to mention the entirety of the performances delivered by Carol Kane and Saul Rubinek — Hunters immediately takes me back to early ’80s Passover dinners spent in Canarsie with my grandparents and sprawling extended family. I can almost smell the thick aroma of kneidlech and latkes every time I hit play. —Adam Rosenberg, Senior Entertainment Reporter

Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video

4. The shtreimels in Unorthodox

Unorthodox’s authentic character portrayals, sets, language, and costumes meld together into a perfect platform for its striking story of a young woman escaping the Satmars, an ultraorthodox Hasidic Jewish community. All of it is so thorough and impressive, but one detail outlined in the Making of Unorthodox minidocumentary on Netflix stood out. The furry Shtreimel hats that men in the Satmar community wear were a key part of costuming, but as creator and executive producer Anna Winger explained in the minidoc, they were prohibitively expensive.

“We couldn’t afford them because they cost more than 1,000 Euros each, and each hat involves the fur of six minks, which kind of seemed to us unnecessary,” she said. “We needed a lot of them. So a theater company in Hamburg made them out of fake fur.”

To make sure the hats looked realistic, costume designer Justine Seymour would spray, comb, and zhuzh the hats to perfection. Not only that, these custom hats had to stay on the heads of all the actors.

“We’ve had to fit and make them work for every individual actor, yes, even the extras,” she said in the minidoc. That extra step to preserve authenticity is replicated again and again throughout the production, bringing justice to the story of Unorthodox. —Kellen Beck, Entertainment Reporter

Where to watch: Netflix

5. Drogon from Game of Thrones showing up on Westworld

It’s difficult these days to pull off a genuinely surprising cameo in a media world rife with interconnected tv and film universes. No one bats an eye when the Avengers show up in each others’ films or one of those Chicago emergency people arrives at another television catastrophe, which made the unexpected inclusion of Game of Thrones’ Drogon the dragon in Season 3, Episode 2 of Westworld all the more delightful. There have been some fun fan theories about why Drogon appeared in the park’s almost decommissioned bunker alongside Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, but it’s more fun to enjoy the gesture at imagined HBO crossover synergy at face value. —Alexis Nedd, Senior Entertainment Reporter

Where to watch: HBO Max

6. The opening credits of Mrs. America

If there’s one lesson to be learned from Mrs. America, it’s that progress is rarely a simple, straightforward thing. And nowhere in the show is that point made more starkly than in the mesmerizing credits sequence (by design firm yU+co) that opens each episode. 

Walter Murphy’s disco classic “A Fifth of Beethoven” sets the tone — upbeat, dramatic, a little mysterious — as animated symbols of feminism and conservativism clash across the screen. Protestors are safely contained in a lattice pie crust. Shirley Chisholm’s campaign bus bursts out of Phyllis Schlafly’s megaphone. The text of the Equal Rights Amendment is vacuumed up by an army of housewives. In the end, neither side wins: Both are incorporated into the stripes of a flag. So goes the story of America, and of Mrs. America. —A.H.

Where to watch: Hulu

7. The dancing in Never Have I Ever

American TV has been fascinated with popular Indian music and dance for years, but rarely was it ever respected enough to give a choreographer creative freedom. But that’s exactly what happened in Never Have I Ever episode 4, when the Vishwakumar family attends a religious celebration. Dancers led by choreographer Joya Kazi perform to 30 seconds of “Nagada Sang Dhol,” a popular Bollywood songs for gatherings like these. —Proma Khosla, Entertainment Reporter

Where to watch: Netflix

8. Ghost doll Nadja, What We Do in the Shadows

FX’s mockumentary about Staten Island vampires reached new comedy heights in Season 2, setting up an outstanding running gag starting with episode 2, “Ghosts.” When the vampires hold a seance to conjure their own spirits, Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) forms a fast friendship with hers. While the other ghosts require help with unfinished business, Nadja’s decides to transfers herself into an old doll so she can stick around and hang out. Doll! Nadja never fails to amuse because she is both exceptionally creepy and yet utterly benign. She looks like she might grab a knife and call her friend Chucky any minute now, but all she does is offer snarky asides and horny quips for the rest of the season. The result is a gimmick that always shocks just a little but never gets overused.—P.K

Where to watch: Hulu

9. Daniel Radcliffe’s “I’m the opposite of a good boy” line in the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt interactive special

Netflix’s special Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy Vs. The Reverend was a delightful interactive distraction that brought back the full cast and zany humor of the original series. It also brought on Daniel Radcliffe in the role of Prince Frederick, Kimmy’s sheltered English (and royal) fiancee. Radcliffe took to Kimmy Schmidt’s fast-paced, wordy humor like a duck to water, imbuing Freddie with eternal optimism that matched Kimmy’s inadvisable level of cheeriness and only dropped it for his character’s rock bottom moment of hilarious despair: “I’m the opposite of a good boy…I’m a bad girl.” Radcliffe nailed the line and made Freddie’s poor little rich boy persona one of the standout characters of 2020. —A.N.

Where to watch: Netflix

10. The “Lion of Love” performance in Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways: Dan Stevens’ performance as a Russian Eurovision star in the Netflix comedy is pitch perfect throughout, and is so goddamn delightful during his big musical moment I want to scream. The song itself is catchy as hell. The costumes? Spectacular. Choreography? Awe-inspiring. Stevens’ wink to Rachel McAdams’ character midway through? Begging to become a GIF.

It’s campy, over-the-top, theatrical, and silly. It’s everything I’ve ever wanted, hidden in the middle of a goofy comedy I didn’t know I needed during this weird, hard year. 

Dan Stevens, you’ll always be the lion of love in my heart. Thank you. —E.S.

Where to watch: Netlfix

11. The leather jacket line in She Dies Tomorrow

The trophy for my favorite movie line of 2020 was retired the moment Kate Lyn Sheil uttered the standout phrase in writer-director Amy Seimetz’s She Dies Tomorrow. “I think I’d like to be made into a leather jacket,” Sheil’s character Amy, whose existential crisis serves as the main catalyst for the film, says while pondering her own, imminent death. It’s just one line, revisited only briefly in a later scene. And yet, it paints such a vivid, hysterical, and dark image that I haven’t been able to purge it from my mind. “I think I’d like to be made into a leather jacket.” She just says it. Just like that. Astounding. —Alison Foreman, Entertainment Reporter 

Where to watch: iTunes, Prime Video

12. The biker bar dance scene in Palm Springs

Palm Springs is a breath of fresh air. The Hulu comedy puts an original spin on the Groundhog Day-style time loop by trapping wedding attendees Nyles (Andy Samberg) and Sarah (Cristin Milioti) on the same repeating day together. Obviously, if one is a victim of this curse, they might as well make the most of it by performing a choreographed dance at a biker bar — so that’s exactly what this couple does.

Nyles and Sarah’s dance is wild fun. They burst through the doors unannounced, rock matching bandanas and jean jackets, and jive around to a vibey synth-filled tune. It ends with Sarah flipping off all the customers, kicking down a chair, and breaking a glass, thereby confusing the heck out of everyone around. Seems like time well spent.

Where to watch: Hulu

13. Nicky’s “he’s not my boyfriend” monologue in The Old Guard

The Old Guard took me by surprise. I signed up to cover it because I like the (ostensible) star, Charlize Theron, and the idea of an immortal gang of do-gooders righting wrong throughout history. The Old Guard is definitely that, but it’s so much more. That the titular gang is largely non-white and non-hetero is welcome and refreshing. But it’s the way the move leans in that stands out, particularly around the characters of Joe and Nicky.

This is realized most powerfully in one particular scene that’s made the viral rounds since the movie hit Netflix in July. In the scene, Old Guard-ers Joe (Marwan Kenzari) and Nicky (Luca Marinell) are prisoners. They’re also lovers, and one of the guards derisively refers to the unconscious Nicky as Joe’s “boyfriend.” This casual expression of homophobia immediately sets Joe off, prompting a beautiful speech and expression of enduring love that makes me well up with emotion every time I see it: 

“He’s not my boyfriend. This man is more to me than you can dream. He’s the moon when I’m lost in darkness and warmth when I shiver in cold. And his kiss still thrills me even after millennia. His heart overflows with the kindness of which this world is not worthy of. I love this man beyond measure and reason. He’s not my boyfriend. He’s all and he’s more.” —A.R.

Where to watch: Netflix

14. Anya Taylor-Joy’s makeup in The Queen’s Gambit

It’s no secret that I’m obsessed with The Queen’s Gambit’s stunning visuals. But if there’s a single element in it that I can’t stop thinking about, it’s Anya Taylor-Joy’s makeup. As her character Beth grows older, she gets more glamorous. Her wardrobe and hair start out simply, but by the end, she’s donning lavish coats and perfect curls.

Beth’s makeup also goes through this gradual transition, getting more intense as she rises to the top of her game. Her winged eyeliner and vivid lipsticks pop against her red hair and fair complexion — but she doesn’t just wear it for the aesthetics; Beth also uses her makeup to try on different versions of herself as comes of age and determines whom she wants to be. She can add “genius makeup artist” to her resume right under “genius chess player.”

Where to watch: Netflix

15. Baby Yoda’s favorite food: endangered species eggs

Episode two of The Mandalorian Season 2 sees Baby Yoda, aka Grogu, discovering a delicious new snack: eggs. But these aren’t just any eggs. These are colorful aquatic eggs from a frog-like lady who is trying to reunite with her husband so they can fertilize the eggs and help stop their species from going completely extinct. 

That’s right, this frog lady and her froggy husband are literally the last of their species, so getting these eggs to hatch is extremely important. Grogu doesn’t care. He wants to eat eggs. He eats several of them. Not all of them or even the majority, but enough to make a pretty big dent in that species and probably significantly hamper the chances of successful succession.

There’s something so funny about the creative decision to have Grogu eat something like 20 percent of this species simply because he’s a hungry little baby. It’s effectively unintentional genocide performed for a laugh. Astounding. —K.B.

Where to watch: Disney+

16. Big Mouth Season 4’s extremely good Russian Doll crossover

Of course, I’m delighted to see a Russian Doll reference anywhere at any time. Still, Big Mouth Season 4’s spectacular crossover with the beloved time-loop dramedy was so good and so layered that I can’t help but gush over it. From Lola as the Road Runner inside a wormhole of Andrew’s repeated deaths to that positively flawless rendering of Natasha Lyonne (and her lending her voice to the character and saying cock-a-roach!!), this whole bit works top to bottom. It was a standout moment in another solid season; second, perhaps, only to the season’s equally killer Pen15 crossover. Gotta get up, gotta get out… —A.F.

Where to watch: Netflix