The 2025 Hate List

You would think a miserable year would be inspirational for a true hater. In actuality, it was hard to hold onto petty grievances and curmudgeonly grudges when the world has tilted into disarray. There is no respite from our constant toiling in a dystopian nightmare. Who really cares about Travis Scott and his Gatorade commercial music when you see what's happening to Palestine and Sudan and to immigrants right here at home? But criticism is about forming opinions and maintaining standards on what art should aspire to, and calling things out when that standard is not being upheld. Through the best of times and the worst of them.

And so we have the 2025 Hate List, my own Hater's Ball about the bullshit and shenanigans of a year that I cannot be silent about. It's a varied collection, a snapshot of the kinds of drivel and dishonesty that has been allowed to thrive mostly unchecked for much of the year. It's also full of pettiness, because sometimes you hate things for no other reason than the love of the game. But just as it's important to catalog the year's worst offerings, it's also important to give clarity on what is not featured on this list and why.