We have reached the end of 2015, the traditional time to look back and take stock of the year before plowing into a new one. I went through the archives and found the most-viewed and most viral posts and ranked the top twenty. The raw numbers mean little, because posts from January and February had a big head start over those in December. But it's fun to take another look at the ones that really impressed us long ago as we remember 2015. Click the title to go to each post.
20. Magnificat
Look at him. Just look at him!
19. How To Connect With Anyone
In January, we posted How to Fall in Love, which described a process that tends to make people fall for each other. In February, we got to watch it happen.
18. The Wonderful World Of Wonder Woman Cosplay
Wonder Woman comes in all shapes, sizes, ages, and flavors. Cosplayers can get prett creative intheir interpretations, combining the iconic Amazon with other characters. Zeon Santos found thirty great examples. Shown here is cosplayer Meagan Marie.
17. Women’s Ideal Body Types throughout History
This past year has seen a trend of historical recreations showing how things change over time: fashion, food, toys, and even people. Buzzfeed gave us a video that showed how what was considered the ideal woman's body changed through the ages.
16. Can You Find All 16 Hidden Faces?
Readers love puzzles, and we should post more of them. In February, Alex Santoso posted an advertisement on our large-format Spotlight blog with an image contianing 16 faces. The pareidolia is strong with this one.
15. Empathy Cards For Serious Illness
When Emily McDowell designed and created a line of greeting cards that said what we really wanted to say, everyone was interested. There are eight cards in this series, and in November she unveiled another set of designs.
14. A Map of Every Goat in the United States
Psst: wanna see a goat? Live and in person? Apparently a lot of people did, because this simple map of the U.S. that shows where the most goats are was pretty popular. I was surprised, although by now I shouldn't be.
13. What Game Of Thrones Characters Should Look Like, According To The Books
George R. R. Martin described the appearance of the characters in his A Song of Ice and Fire series, but translating those looks to TV wasn't in the cards. Like any TV production, actors were hired for Game of Thrones based on ability instead of looks. Besides, it would be unthinkable to cut off Peter Dinklage's nose just to make him resemble the Tyrion Lannister character in the books.
12. A Real Life Pokemon Gym Opens In Osaka, Japan
We are a long way from Osaka, but everyone wanted to at least see this gym. I bet it's doing great business with folks who want to train like Pokemon do.
11. Man Who Was Never Born Fathers a Child
This post was an example of a great headline making the story. The article at Buzzfeed was titled This Man Failed A Paternity Test Due To His Vanished Twin’s DNA, which is intriguing enough, but I think our shorter one was even more catchy.
10. Woman Takes Pic For Boyfriend That Turns Out To Be A Selfie From Hell
Okay, who's that standing in the background? Selfie From Hell is a horror short by actress/producer Meelah Adams and director Erdal Ceylan. It is quite, um, eerie, terrifying, seat-of-your pants thrilling. Posted in September, it really got us in the mood for the month-long Halloween season.
9. Couple Gets Revenge on Coworker Who Repeatedly Stole Woman's Lunch
In February, Lisa Marcus brought us a great story about a man who packed his wife's lunch, only to have it stolen by someone at her office who appreciated his cooking. What to do? He prepared a "special" recipe of wings with hot sauce and peppers. The story has a particularly satisfying ending.
8. Do You Live in These 10 Worst States in the USA?
In July, Nick Johnson of RoadSnacks crunched numbers and ranked the 50 United States. Alex posed the question above, and we all had to take a peek. And then argue about what makes a state "good."
7. Photo Series Captures 70s Rock Legends In Their Parents' Homes
John Olson's 1971 photo series for LIFE magazine is even more fascinating today than it was four decades ago. Who knew Frank Zappa, David Crosby, and Eric Clapton had regular parents who lived in typical '70s homes? Still, the Zappa's purple living room was a bit out of the ordinary.
6. Pit Bull - Dachshund Mix Is A Thing Of Bizarre Beauty
(Image credit: Moultrie Colquitt County Humane Society)
Back in January, we got a glimpse of what happens when a dachshund mates with a pit bull. Rami has the head of a pit bull terrier with the short legs of a weiner dog! He came into the care of the Moultrie Colquitt County Humane Society, and was adopted soon after his photographs went viral.
5. Dragon Cat
You have to wonder how they got the cat to sit still for this weird haircut by The Main Lion cat grooming salon of Paoli, Pennsylvania. It's one of those pictures you just have to show someone.
4. 10 Far Out Kid's TV Shows From The 1970s
Zeon posted several lists of kids' TV shows from the past, and the most popular was the one about the 1970s. It was a terribly weird decade for everything, and kids' TV was no exception. Do you remember The Bugaloos, The Wombles, and The Double Deckers? They were even more bizarre than you recall.
3. Exciting New Fashion for Men: Crocheted Shorts
(Image credit: LordvonSchmitt)
Whoo-hoo, look at these! You can get a pair for your very own! Who could resist?
2. CT Scan Reveals That Statue of the Buddha Is Actually a Mummy
(Image credit: M. Elsevier Stokmans)
What makes a post go viral? A combination of interesting subject, good framing, tantalizing images, promotion, which way the wind is blowing, and luck. Our number two post of the year apparently had all that, because it had triple the views of number three. John Farrier's story about a statue that was more than a statue was one of two super-viral posts we had in 2015.
1. Swineapple: Hollowed-Out Pineapple Stuffed with Ribs Wrapped in Bacon
(Image credit: Josh Bush)
And the biggest post of 2105, and a potential contender for one of the biggest in Neatorama's history, was a recipe. Rusty Blazenhoff found Josh Bush's account of cooking boneless pork ribs stuffed inside a pineapple wrapped in bacon on a smoker with an occasional spritz of apple juice. You could feel mouths watering across the internet. Everyone and his brother made sure to share it with their favorite chef, making it the biggest Neatorama post of 2015. Yum yum!
And you know who deserves the credit for these successes? You do! Without the great folks who visit every day, who leave comments, who share posts, who email their favorites to friends, and who make up the Neatorama community, we couldn't have done it at all. Thank you, everyone, and have a wonderful New Year!