2015 went Pabebe!!!

Year of The Sheep in pictures

Perhaps without our knowing it, The Monkey will soon rule the next 12 months, officially starting on the Chinese New Year on Feb. 8.

But first, let’s take a misty-eyed look at the Year of the Sheep just past. It was a bad and a sad year marked by, as they would say, “passing of eras” and some such unpleasant happenings. It was a good and a happy year, highlighted by weddings and triumphs both here and abroad. It was this heady mixture of the sad and the bad, the happy and the good that made 2015 an intriguing year.

It was a year of many surprises, too, the most prominent, unique, unexpected, unprecedented, memorable and “historical” was the birth of the AlDub tandem of Alden Richards and Maine “Yaya Dub” Mendoza.

It was a year that went Pabebe, a “wave” that prompted people to greet the world with gently moving palm beside one side of the face, AlDub style!

Fond farewells: Susan Calo Medina, Jam Sebastian (of the YouTube sensation Jamich), Liezl Sumilang-Martinez, Ritchie D’Horsie, Lucita Soriano, Jose Romulo, Robert Campos, Elizabeth Ramsey, directors Nards Belen and Willie Milan; and movie writers Ruben Marasigan, Emy Abuan, Jeff Valisno and William Reyes.

PROUD PARENTS OF THE YEAR. Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera marked their first wedding anniversary on Dec. 30 with a new addition to the family, daughter Maria Letizia who was born on Nov. 23.

WEDDING OF THE YEAR. Heart Evangelista and Sen. Chiz Escudero vowed to stay together for better or for worse, ‘til…on Feb. 15 which they will celebrate with a new exchange of vows to accommodate Heart’s parents who were not present at the couple’s Balisin Island wedding. (Other weddings: Yeng Constantino and Yan Asuncion, Patrick Garcia and Nikka Martinez, Diana Zubiri and Andrew Smith, Toni Gonzaga and Paul Soriano, Saab Magalona and Jim Bacarro, Nikki Gil and BJ Albert, Kitchie Nadal and Carlos Lopez, Gab Valenciano and Tricia Centenera, Solenn Heussaff and Nico Bolzico, Kean Cipriano and Chynna Ortaleza and John Prats and Isabel Oli (who are expecting their first child anytime now.)

LOVE TEAM OF THE YEAR. After tons of stories about them in all media, need we say anything more about AlDub sensation Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza?

BIG WINNERS. El Gamma Penumbra made the country proud by finishing first at Asia’s Got Talent (with our very own Gerphil Flores third placer). Heneral Luna (starring John Arcilla) proved that a historical film can draw ‘em in by grossing more than P250M.

SA TAMANG PANAHON. After decades of turning ABS-CBN what it is and where it is today, Charo Santos-Concio retired as she turned 60 (although not looking it). Of course, the company wouldn’t let her go. According to inside sources, Charo will stay as adviser.

ALL-TIME BOX-OFFICE HIT. John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo’s re-teamup A Second Chance took more than P566M at the tills, making it the highest-grossing local movie. A yearend letdown was John Lloyd losing the Best Actor plum (for Honor Thy Father) to Jericho Rosales (#Walang Forever) at the controversial (ho-hum!) Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF).

WEDDING BETWEEN EQUALS. After getting married in San Francisco in 2014, Aiza Seguerra and Liza Diño renewed vows back home in January, going down in history as the first female celeb same-sex marriage.

LIKE A RUBBER BALL. Ai-Ai delas Alas bounced back after her own annus horribilis by returning to the Kapuso Network where she used to belong, capping the year with an MMFF top-grossing starrer (My Bebe Love) with Vic Sotto and the AlDub tandem.

(E-mail reactions at [email protected].You may also send your questions to [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on www.twitter/therealrickylo.)