Welcome back to Random Rants with Annemarie! This week, the question I am posing is what makes something overrated. Also, is being overrated necessarily a bad thing? 

There have been so many instances where I am talking about things I love and I go to recommend it to someone and they reply, “Oh I’m staying away from that. It has gotten too mainstream,” or “I like something more underground,” or “I’m waiting for popularity to die down,” or the worst one, “that thing is SO overrated,” and it drives me NUTS. 

Is it overrated or are you just pretentious?

Okay, okay, I know that is a bit accusatory, but some people can be extremely pretentious for no reason. So here I am to tell you: it is okay to like things. Shocking right? 

Finding out about something because it’s popular is perfectly okay and normal. You can still adore the niche things you love without tearing down others. Now this whole article isn’t going to be coming for people. I’m not about that. I’m going to do a tad bit of a review of popular things I’ve seen or played I love, and I’ve heard of people writing off because it was too popular.

Stranger Things: One of my comfort shows. I absolutely adore this show and how dedicated it is to nostalgia. Not only that, but the characters are so developed. Steve Harrington’s arc is amazing. The writers even said he originally wasn’t supposed to be a recurring character. Also, two words: Eddie Munson. 

Harry Potter: Now, I’m not going to get into JK Rowling’s politics because I can do a whole article itself on that. From a concept standpoint and from what the fan base has done by reclaiming it, I love the series. Nostalgia standpoint? Also great. Rereading the books with the nostalgia goggles off I now see the many plot holes and…other controversial things. All in all, I’d say give it a chance but take some things with a grain of salt. 

I could go on, but then this article would be miles long. The theme here is love what you love and don’t let people make you feel bad about it. Some things may not be as good as what they’re hyped up to be, and that is okay too. Make your own opinions, and don’t let others bring you down.

Annemarie Karabinus is an opinion writer. Contact her at [email protected].