Unfortunately, there is an end to everything. Nothing lasts forever, but that doesn’t mean you can’t cherish those moments you spent. Unus Annus was a YouTube channel preaching that message from the very start to the very end of the channel.

Unus Annus was made by two already well-known YouTubers named Markiplier and Crankgameplays, also known as Ethan, and they had this idea for a while. They collabbed and made videos together until the very end of their channel.

Their name, Unus Annus, means “one year” and their full slogan was “memento mori, unus annus,” which means “remember death, one year” in Latin. The name makes a reference to how everything ends and it was a reminder to everyone watching that they only had a limited amount of time to watch all these videos.

During their final livestream, they explained how they came up with the name idea at a Buffalo Wild Wings before quarantine first struck. They tried several different ideas, plugging them into google translate. Funny enough, their first idea was “annus singulos” which they commented on, saying to imagine how different it would be if they settled on that name instead (and how goofy it sounded in comparison to their final choice).

Their goal was to delete their channel once a full year was up. Even through quarantine they made videos, but they expressed how difficult it was. Nonetheless, they stated true to their word and uploaded a grand total of 365 videos. They committed to posting videos every single day, no matter how much lack of sleep they got. 

Despite just being a YouTube channel, the videos touched a lot of people and helped them get through the day. Everyone enjoyed keeping up with the channel, and now that the full year is up, the feeling of the end has even caused some to mourn it’s loss. Especially when everyone had to stay home, it was a good way to pass the time. 

At the last hour of the live stream, over 5 million people joined to watch the deletion of the channel. Out of those 5 million there were a few who were students at MCHS.

“I think I got to watch pretty much all of it,” Hailie Balding, senior, said, “I enjoyed it a lot. I think it was a fitting closure to the channel and it was nice to go back on everything.”

During their livestream, they had random surprise guests and they always had something planned to do or talk about to keep everyone engaged.

“I watched it from 9 p.m. to when it ended, 2 a.m.,” Jocelyn Reavis, senior, said. “I loved it. They reviewed a few of their old videos, showed fanart and memes. It was very wholesome.”

Kirstin Hobbs, senior, watched the entire 12 hours of the live stream and also loved it.

“I didn’t miss a single second and I enjoyed it a lot,” she said.

Seconds before the timer was up, Markiplier, Ethan, and Markiplier’s girlfriend Amy all gathered around the computer. The moment the clock behind them struck zero, the screen went black and the live stream ended. 

Once the channel had finally ended, that’s when it truly hit people.

“I’m pretty hurt about it [ending],” Audrey Bitterman, now graduate of MCHS, said. “I go into YouTube expecting a new video, but every time there isn’t one and I get reminded that they’re gone.”

Unus Annus made it clear that once their channel was gone, they wouldn’t make another channel for it and they would take down any reuploads of their videos. After all, it would ruin their message and everything they worked hard for. 

“I was definitely upset that the channel was going to be deleted,” Reavis said. “Even though I knew it was going to happen eventually, it was still hard to grasp. I tried to avoid thinking about it.”

Not only have their videos touched people and made them laugh, but their final message has resonated with their viewers too.

“Their message really struck to start living in the moment and accepting things as is because not a lot of us think about having a timer,” Balding said. “The whole concept of Unus Annus having a set beginning and a set end really stuck as something that we all have, but we don’t get to know when it stops.”

Many of them have said that it has allowed them to appreciate the little things as well and spend their day doing something worthwhile. 

“Once things are gone, you’ll never get that chance ever again to experience it… The message that they were sending was so big and so important,” Reavis said, “Just do what you love. Do what you want because you never know when you’ll be taking your last breath.”