2025 Media Recap
What I Watched, and Read, Listed to in 2025
My favorite movies, books, tv shows, and music I’ve watched in 2025, along with the complete list of media (not including music, of course), I’ve consumed this year.
Index
Movies
1. One Battle After Another
I don’t really think I am capable enough to write a review for this. I saw it, I loved it, I think about this movie still, but I am scared to go into the details because I don’t think I yet have the vocabulary to describe this movie and do it justice. What I can confidently say is that this movie, along with every actor (especially Leo), deserves an Oscar.
2. Sinners
I have seen some movies with vampires in them, some movies that are good historical fiction, some movies which have amazing music, but I had never seen anything like Sinners. I went to watch it twice. This movie was such a delight.
3. 28 Years Later
The above two movies are well liked by many, but this one’s not so much. I think this is the sort of movie that speaks very well to only a particular slice of audience. I was part of that audience. The way it’s shot is a work of art (it’s messy but it’s good). I am glad Dany Boyle is taking this medium forward with such a risky style of filmmaking. Also, the music is such a surprise coming from a lesser-known artist. I still listen to its soundtrack often.
Notable mentions
In 2025, I got to experience Interstellar in IMAX. It was one of the best experiences of my life (not just theater). I also got to watch The Godfather, The Brothers Karamazov, and Spider-Man 2 in theaters. Experiencing all of these was sublime. Watching Amélie felt like being heard. Boyhood might become my go-to movies to rewatch. Wake Up Dead Man was my favourite Knives Out movie. A Real Pain was really good.
- Total Movies: 69
- Theatrical Visits: 36
TV Shows
1. Pluribus
I am just glad this show exists in this age of 5-second gratification slop. It’s a slow burn; there’s deliberate focus on little things (which some might say might not make the plot go forward), which makes you believe in the reality of the fiction.
2. The Pitt
I like the shows that give me stress and put me in existential dread while also making me appreciate the extraordinary effort that goes behind a particular profession ( cough cough… The Bear).
3. Smiling Friends
This one’s just damn fun and aligns with my weird sense of humour.
Notable mention
Severance S2, The Studio (S1) Eulogy from Black Mirror S7, Rewatched Daredevil and The Bear; they are just masterpieces as ever.
| Name | Season / Episodes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Daredevil | S2 (E1-13), S3 | 9/10 (S3), 8/10 (S2) | Rewatch |
| Severance | S2 | 8.5/10 |
| Pluribus | S1 | 8.5/10 |
| The Bear | S1, S2, S3, S4 | 8/10 (S4) | Rewatch |
| Tour de Pharmacy | - | 8/10 |
| The Pitt | E1-12 | 8/10 |
| Smiling Friends | S1, S2, S3 | 8/10 |
| Adults | S1 | 7/10 |
| Harley Quinn | S5 E1-10 | 7/10 (E7-10) |
| The Studio | E1-10 | 7/10 |
| It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia | S17 E1-8 | Rewatch |
| Peacemaker | S1, S2 E1-8 | - |
| Creature Commandos | S1 | - |
| Mythic Quest | S4 | - |
| The White Lotus | S3 | - |
| Key & Peele | S3 E2-6 | - |
| Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man | E1, 2 | - |
| Conan O’Brien Must Go | - | - |
| BoJack Horseman | S2, 1 Ep | - |
| Daredevil: Born Again | E1-9 | - |
| Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | E3-6 | - |
| Dragon Ball Z | Ep 1- | - |
| Dragon Ball Daima | Ep 1 | - |
| Rick and Morty | S8 E1 | - |
| Black Mirror | S7 (E1, 2…) | - |
- Total Shows (with at least 1 season watched): 16
Books
1. Speaker of the Dead
I started reading this immediately after finishing Ender’s Game (its predecessor), and I was hooked from the very beginning. It starts off as a sort of mystery. It has elements of a family drama with a very well-written set of characters (who are very human even if they are aliens sometimes). It has surprisingly great humour. It’s subtle (not in your face Marvel humour), and the amazing backdrop of a great science fiction universe is just a cherry on top.
2. Siddhartha
I wouldn’t call myself a spiritual person, but this book has been the closest I could ever get to “getting it“. One of the most thought-provoking books I’ve read so far.
3. The Brothers Karamazov / Project Hair Marry
It’s a tie between Project Hair Marry and The Brothers Karamazov.
- Project Hair Marry: I loved it from start to finish, especially the final 1/3rd of the book, which I just couldn’t put down and finished in a day. There’s this particular character (no spoilers) that I just adored more than any other fictional character in recent memory. The flashback sequences were a bit annoying in the beginning. I can’t wait to watch the movie adaptation of this when it comes out in a few months.
- The Brothers Karamazov: Finishing this was sort of an achievement. I don’t think that my mind would come up with words that would do this one justice. All I can say is I liked it, but I couldn’t think of anyone in my life I would recommend this to (which is a bit annoying). This is the sort of book I might get something different out of if I read it in a different phase of life, which I look forward to doing maybe in a decade.
| Title | Rating | Notes / Status |
|---|---|---|
| Project Hail Mary | 9/10 | Finsihed |
| Speaker for the Dead | 9/10 | Finsihed |
| Siddhartha | 9/10 | Finsihed |
| The Brothers Karamazov | 9/10 | Finsihed |
| Pachinko | 8.5/10 | Finsihed |
| Ender’s Game | 8/10 | Finsihed |
| And Then There Were None | 8/10 | Finsihed |
| Roadside Picnic | 8/10 | Finsihed |
| Martyr! | 7/10 | Finsihed |
| All Systems Red | 7/10 | Finsihed |
| What I Talk About When I Talk About Running | Unrated | Finsihed |
| The Great Gatsby | Unrated | Finsihed |
| Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind | - | Partially Read (Ch 1-7) |
| Designing Data-Intensive Applications | - | Partially Read (Ch 3-4) |
| The Handmaid’s Tale | - | Partially read |
| Stoner | - | Partially read |
| 21 Lessons for the 21st Century | - | Partially Listened to Audiobook |
- Books finished: 12
Music
Video Games
Hmm now I forgot to save the PlayStation recap before It got taken down so I don’t have any data on this. From what I remember:
- Total Playtime ~ 100hrs (one of fewest in years :( )
- Platform Played: PS5 (~80hrs) and Nintendo Switch (~20hrs).
- Games Finished:
- Blackmyth wukong
- Bioshock: Infinity