Wikipedia:Top 25 Report/February 18 to 24, 2024

Prepared with commentary by Rajan51, Igordebraga, I am RedoStone, Rahcmander, Shuipzv3, and CAWylie.

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2 years after Ukraine was invaded, Russian controversies again get the top spot. Thankfully the rest of the list is the usual escapism.

Rank	Article	Class	Views	Image	Notes/about
1	Alexei Navalny		1,165,437		Though the imprisoned Russian opposition figure died on February 16, ostensibly of natural causes as said by the authorities, it wasn't until February 24 that his body was released to his mother, after several attempts were denied, as well as pressure on his family into burying him in secret or within the prison grounds. His wife, Yulia Navalnaya, has vowed to continue his work. The US and UK announced sanctions on officials it said were connected to Navalny's death, as the second anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine looms.
2	Madame Web (film)		1,138,299		2023 demonstrated the "superhero fatigue", regarding audiences getting tired of so many comic book movies to the point they're not as willing to go to theaters for them, particularly if questionable quality and\or lesser-known characters are involved. And both these boxes are ticked by Madame Web, based on a minor Spider-Man side character and deemed just as bad as Morbius, showing that it takes more than allusions to the Webhead (including one of the final scenes being his mother giving birth to him!) to win over viewers, leading to sluggish box office and ensuring that sequel hook regarding a team of Spider-Women will probably never pay off. At least superheroes will stay away for a while, until Deadpool & Wolverine arrives in July.
3	J. Robert Oppenheimer		1,007,592		Oppenheimer already blew up the box office last year, and now the movie about the physicist who helped build the atomic bomb is wrecking up the awards season, the last one being the 30th Screen Actors Guild Awards, where along with all actors earning Outstanding Performance by a Cast, "Oppie" portrayer Cillian Murphy won Best Actor and Robert Downey Jr. Best Supporting Actor for playing the government official who questioned Oppenheimer's loyalty given his sympathy for Communism. Makes the movie's fans hopeful for its Academy Awards prospects on March 10. (In the meantime, Barbenheimer will become a trashy comedy-horror by Charles Band!)
4	Deaths in 2024		1,001,761		As it was in the beginning ( one love ) So shall it be in the end (one heart)...
5	Elimination Chamber: Perth		869,248		Australia received the latest WWE extravaganza, which included Rhea Ripley (pictured) defending her Women's World Championship belt.
6	Bob Marley		760,714		One Love". Reviews were mixed, praising the soundtrack and Kingsley Ben-Adir as the protagonist, but found director Reinaldo Marcus Green to play too safe into biopic conventions, yet audiences clearly approved as One Love led the box office and has already made over $100 million worldwide.
7	True Detective (season 4)		729,263		The newest season of this anthology crime series, starring Jodie Foster (pictured) this time, concluded on February 18.
8	Avatar: The Last Airbender (2024 TV series)		693,573		Water, Earth, Fire, Air. Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when M. Night Shyamalan attacked. 14 years passed, and Netflix released a new remake, and although it looks great, it has a lot to learn before it can live up to the original. Netflix's newest fantasy series is a retelling of the beloved animated series that premiered 19 years ago. While, it is certainly an improvement on the movie that does not exist, it is still not as good as the original. Netflix may have hoped for positive reception like their other live-action remake, One Piece series from last year, but that is not the case here, with the reception from both critics and audiences being quite mixed. While many fans want the series to get renewed for a second season, there are some who think that live-action remakes of animated movies and shows are disrespectful to animation as a medium.
9	Pakistan Super League		657,092		This year's edition of this cricket tournament began on February 17, and is set to conclude on March 17.
10	Griselda Blanco		642,260		If you want to hang out, you've gotta take her out, cocaine... Viewers are still intrigued by the late Colombian drug chronicled by Netflix on Griselda.
11	Taylor Swift		635,740		It was time for Australia to experience The Eras Tour, with the Melbourne Cricket Ground hosting 96,000 fans (the biggest crowds of her career) each night for three consecutive nights, before the show moves to Sydney's Accor Stadium for four consecutive nights.
12	Oppenheimer (film)		587,915		The main winner at this year's BAFTAs, Christopher Nolan's twelfth film received the award for Best Film (not "Best Picture" here), along with both the most awards (7) and nominations (13) overall, including #16 winning Best Leading Actor.
13	ChatGPT		572,206		The renowned writing tool powered by artificial intelligence continues to stay relevant even over a year after its initial explosion in popularity.
14	Ilia Topuria		498,311		This professional UFC became the undefeated Featherweight Champion on February 18.
15	Avatar: The Last Airbender		496,336		While the live action series was a big step up from the live action movie, it's safe to say that the animated original is the best version by far.
16	Cillian Murphy		479,904		The star of #12 won Best Leading Actor at the BAFTAs for his portrayal of #3.
17	Sydney Sweeney		476,087		In late 2023, one of the stars of Euphoria got a sleeper hit in Anyone but You, a raunchy romantic comedy based on Much Ado About Nothing. Yet her second Columbia Pictures movie in two months, #2, is far from the same success and deemed as a waste of her talents. In any case, Ms. Sweeney will soon return to theaters playing a nun in the thriller Immaculate.
18	Premier League		473,480		The latest season of English football rolls on, and three teams are neck-to-neck for the top position (Liverpool, who won the pandemic-hindered 2019-20 edition; Manchester City, who got the three titles ever since; and Arsenal, who are 20 years removed from their last, undefeated championship and choked away last year's title).
19	One Day (TV series)		473,146		This British series follows the 20-year relationship of two graduates from the University of Edinburgh. It stars Leo Woodall (pictured) and Ambika Mod and was the most-watched Netflix series last week.
20	Dune (2021 film)		466,225		Denis Villeneuve took a seminal sci-fi novel, adapted only half of it to ensure it worked properly, and the results earned much praise (including six Academy Awards) and money (over $400 million in spite of a pandemic and a simultaneous streaming release). The other half (#25) is about to reach theaters.
21	Bridgit Mendler		470,674		Following the footsteps of Hedley Hedy Lamarr, an artist with an input on technology, as this singer and actress (who was once part of the Disney stable) became CEO of a satellite data startup.
22	Robin Windsor		444,568		The professional dancer and choreographer, known for his appearances on Strictly Come Dancing, died on February 20, aged 44.
23	Albert Einstein		442,978		#12 features a brief appearance by the most famous physicist ever, and for those wanting more on the man who discovered the mass–energy equivalence that "fuels" nuclear weapons Netflix had the BBC docudrama Einstein and the Bomb.
24	Kagney Linn Karter		441,673		While the Argentinian Prime Video show Porno y helado had some inexplicable high views and got excluded, the former part of that title still got in for a sad reason, as adult actress Kagney Linn Karter killed herself at the age of 36.
25	Dune: Part Two		439,765		The conclusion to the epic filled with sand and worms at #20 was originally scheduled for November before the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes made Warner Bros. delay it to early 2024 (it will make this here writer's Leap Day very special!). Hype is high not only due to early reviews deeming it a masterpiece, but also AMC Theatres issuing a Sandworm-themed popcorn bucket of questionable design, down to inspiring a Saturday Night Live sketch!