Taskbar not working - Toshiba Satellite laptop

I was fiddling around with Task Manager trying to eliminate some unnecessary background processes. When I tried to end Windows Explorer I figured it would just close a few files I had open, but it made my taskbar/windows icon disappear, and my wallpaper is also just black now.

I can still alt-tab my current internet windows and use them, but if I were to close them I couldn't open a new window. The task bar is just a blank black stripe with no icons, and nothing happens when I right-click it. I've tried Googling answers, but most seem to involve using some Windows Key+x or +r command to access the Powershell, which isn't responding now.

I'm scared about what will happen if I try a hard reboot.

If you still have Task Manager open, Click File / Run New Task / type explorer and click ok. If you've closed Task Manager then Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager.

Perfect, thank you!