With the exception of Knives Out 2, which used magic to dispose of the pandemic in the first act, nobody wants to relive some of the worst shit that happened!
It's not reliving it to acknowledge the reason many people don't want to sit in a dangerous movie theater, or a crowded concert is the ongoing pandemic. And the lack of it in art and culture is why you think it's "insane" to even mention it.
Hush, taboo, wouldn't want to spook the customer.
This part.
Yes, artists are not required to traumatize themselves! But also, it's WEIRD AF that so many shows and movies just...didn't acknowledge its existence at all. TV isn't reality, but it usually at least *tries* to pretend it happens in our world (unless outright fantasy/SF).
