Best of 2025
The media I enjoyed most in 2025
Tracking What Media I Consume
In 2020, I started tracking all shows/movies/books/games I consume in a simple text file.
I rate everything using a rough 5-star scale. For the scale, I value “entertainment” and how well it captures my attention over “quality”. For example, if a movie is entertaining enough that I fully focus on the movie without browsing the web on a second screen, I might rate it 5 stars even when the movie is not perfect. As a result, I consciously “overrate” some media but I use more of the scale. The scale is rough in that it uses just five stars, I have not fully defined what each rating means. This focus on my attention might not be entirely fair to all movies: I’ll underrate some and overrate others.
Rough idea:
Games 2025
★★★★★ Gets me hooked; I play it frequently; also during the week; I choose it over TV
★★★★ Good to great game that does not get me hooked; might not value my time enough
★★★
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...
Books – Fiction 2025
★★★★★ Unputdownable
★★★★
★★★
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...
Books – Non-fiction 2025
★★★★★ Immediately helps me improve at my job
★★★★ Leaves me with new skills/insights; does not drag
★★★
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...
Movies 2025
★★★★★ Engrossing
★★★★ Good to great movie
★★★ Doesn't fully capture my attention; doing something else on the second screen
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...
TV 2025
★★★★★ Would binge in a few sittings; have to watch the next episode before any other shows
★★★★ Good to great show
★★★ Doesn't fully capture my attention; doing something else on the second screen
★★
★
1 ... ★★★★★
2 ... ★★★★
...Note: not everything I consumed in 2025 was released in 2025. I will include older content in my best-of lists when I consumed it in 2025.
Best Games 2025
I played quite a few games this year – mainly local multiplayer.
I was not motivated to play any single player games. It took me half a year to finish Indiana Jones; then I played Jagged Alliance 3 and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 but didn’t get far in either of them. I considered a bunch of other games that I could access as part of the Game Pass but I wasn’t feeling it this year.
The reason I played few single player games might be that I played a lot of local multiplayer games this year and playing the single-player games I tried felt a bit lonely in comparison.
- Boomerang Fu ★★★★★ – Highly replayable with up to six players; always fun.
- Tricky Tower ★★★★★ – Funnest take on Tetris since the Gameboy version.
- Split Fiction ★★★★★ (unfinished) – My favorite two-player coop game this year.
- Mario Kart Deluxe 8 ★★★★★ – I probably played more Mario Kart this year than any other games (across N64, Gamecube, Wii, Switch, Switch 2); most of the time went into Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
- It Takes Two ★★★★+ – I finally found out why this game did well in the Game of the Year awards in 2021.
Best Books 2025 – Fiction
I barely read any fiction this year.
- Murderbot 2: Artificial Condition ★★★★
- The Name of the Wind (partial) ★★★
The Name of the Wind didn’t grip me and I put it on hold for most of the year. I read one Murderbot book and enjoyed it – but I didn’t directly jump to the next one. Still waiting for the final book in the Red Rising series.
Best Books 2025 – Non-fiction
I didn’t read a lot of non-fiction, either. I spent some time in the self-help section this year…
- Anatomy of E-commerce Search ★★★★+ – Good overview on ecommerce search with some insights I can apply at work.
- The Brain at Rest ★★★★ – Supposedly, doing nothing is pretty good.
- Captivate ★★★★ – Some good lessons I don’t apply.
- Cues ★★★ – More good lessons I don’t apply.
Best Movies 2025
I watched 47 movies this year; only two of them “at the movies”.
My top 5 movies in the order that I watched them:
- The Gorge ★★★★★ – Biggest surprise this year; fun setting, visuals, and action.
- Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning (at the movies) ★★★★★ – Best set pieces.
- Thunderbolts* ★★★★★- – Good Marvel movie.
- Avatar: Fire & Ash (at the movies, en, 3D HFR) ★★★★★ – Impressive visuals; entertaining enough to pay attention for more than three hours.
- F1 ★★★★★- – Fun sports movie with good visuals and soundtrack.
Best Shows 2025
Best shows this year – roughly ordered without overthinking it:
- The Pitt S1 ★★★★★ – I loved the 24-style setup with all episodes taking place on one day; with a couple of really strong episodes.
- Invincible S3 ★★★★★ – Some of the best action that is only really possible in an animated show.
- Cobra Kai S6 ★★★★★ – Good conclusion of the series.
- Paradise ★★★★★ – Surprise hit of the year; most enjoyable if you go in blind.
- Ghosts S4 ★★★★★ – Consistently great comedy.
- The Bear S4 ★★★★★ – As always, the season had one or two standout episodes.
- The Sandman S2 ★★★★★ – Not as good as the first season but still great.
- The Last of Us S2 ★★★★★ – This will be a long wait until they finish the entire story of the game.
- Hacks S3 ★★★★★- – Season 3 was Hacks at its best; good plot.
- Gen V S2 ★★★★★- – I binged this pretty quickly.
Honorable mentions:
- The Diplomat S3 ★★★★★-
- Peacemaker S2 ★★★★★-
- Wednesday S2 ★★★★★-
- On Call ★★★★★-
- American Primeval ★★★★★-
- The Night Agent S2 ★★★★★-
- The Recruit S2 ★★★★★-
- DareDevil: Born Again S1 ★★★★★-
Best episodes of the year:
- Invincible S03E07 – What Have I Done? (9.7/10 on [imdb]((9.1/10 on imdb with 17k ratings)) with 37k ratings)
- Invincible S03E08 – I Thought You’d Never Shut Up (9.8/10 on [imdb]((9.1/10 on imdb with 17k ratings)) with 81k ratings)
- The Pitt S01E12 – 6:00pm (9.6/10 on imdb with 6.2k ratings)
- The Pitt S01E13 – 7:00pm (9.6/10 on imdb with 4.7k ratings)
- The Pitt S01E15 – 9:00pm (9.1/10 on imdb with 4k ratings)
- Adolescence E03 (9.1/10 on imdb with 17k ratings)
- Paradise S1E07 – The Day (9.5/10 on imdb with 6.6k ratings)
The Raw Data
It’s best you stop reading here (or don’t judge me).
Games 2025
★★★★★ Gets me hooked; I play it frequently; also during the week; I choose it over TV
★★★★ Good to great game that does not get me hooked; might not value my time enough
★★★
★★
★
1 Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Multiplayer ★★★★★
2 Indiana Jones: The Great Circle ★★★★
3 Overcooked 2 / All You Can Eat ★★★★★ (because of co-op)
4 Mario Kart 8 ★★★★★
5 Boomerang Fu ★★★★★
6 Tricky Tower ★★★★★
7 Jagged Alliance 3 (unfinished) ★★★★
8 It Takes Two ★★★★+
9 Out of Space ★★★★
10 Mario Kart World ★★★★★
11 A Way Out ★★★★
12 As Dusk Falls ★★★★
13 Split Fiction ★★★★★ (unfinished)
Books – Fiction 2025
★★★★★ Unputdownable
★★★★
★★★
★★
★
1 Murderbot 2: Artificial Condition ★★★★
2 The Name of the Wind (partial) ★★★
Books – Non-fiction 2025
★★★★★ Immediately helps me improve at my job
★★★★ Leaves me with new, skills/insights; does not drag
★★★
★★
★
1 Cues ★★★
2 Captivate ★★★★
3 The Brain at Rest ★★★★
4 Anatomy of E-commerce Search ★★★★+
Movies 2025
★★★★★ Engrossing
★★★★ Good to great movie
★★★ Doesn't fully capture my attention; doing something else on the second screen
★★
★
1 The Order ★★★★
2 Gladiator 2 ★★★+
3 A Real Pain ★★★★
4 The Black Phone ★★★★
5 Saturday Night ★★★
6 Anora ★★★★
7 MaXXXine ★★★+
8 Arthur the King ★★★★
9 Nosferatu ★★★★
10 Longlegs ★★★
11 Boy Kills World ★★★★
12 The Gorge ★★★★★
13 Picture This ★★★
14 A Complete Unknown ★★★
15 Havoc ★★★★
16 The Accountant ★★★★+
17 Black Bag ★★★★-
18 Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning (Kino) ★★★★★
19 Mickey 17 ★★★+
20 Captain America: Brave New World ★★★+
21 Sinners ★★★★
22 Novocaine ★★★★+
23 Final Destination: Bloodlines ★★★★+
24 The Accountant 2 ★★★★
25 Ballerina ★★★★+
26 M3GAN 2.0 ★★★★+
27 Thunderbolts* ★★★★★-
28 Superman (Kino) ★★★★
29 The Life of Chuck ★★★★+
30 28 Years later ★★★+
31 KPop Demon Hunters ★★★+
32 Rogue One ★★★★★
33 Big Fish ★★★★+
34 Der Graf von Monte Christo ★★★+
35 The Naked Gun (2025) ★★★★+
36 Elio ★★★★
37 Flow ★★★
38 Nobody 2 ★★★+
39 Monkey Man ★★★★
40 The Fantastic 4: First Steps ★★★★+
41 All of You ★★★+
42 Wunderschöner ★★★★+
43 Heldin ★★★★+
44 Warfare ★★★★+
45 Avatar: Fire & Ash (Kino, en, 3D HFR) ★★★★★
46 F1 ★★★★★-
47 Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery ★★★★
TV 2025
★★★★★ Would binge in a few sittings; have to watch the next episode before any other shows
★★★★ Good to great show
★★★ Doesn't fully capture my attention; doing something else on the second screen
★★
★
1 Disclaimer ★★★
2 Hacks S1 ★★★★+
3 Hacks S2 ★★★★+
4 Baby Reindeer ★★★★
5 Cunk on Earth ★★★★
6 Derry Girls S1 ★★★★
7 Derry Girls S2 ★★★★
8 Derry Girls S3 ★★★★
9 American Primeval ★★★★★-
10 On Call ★★★★★-
11 BoJack Horseman S1 ★★★★+
12 BoJack Horseman S2 ★★★★+
13 BoJack Horseman S3 ★★★★+
14 Star Wars: Skeleton Crew ★★★★
15 BoJack Horseman S4 ★★★★+
16 The Night Agent S2 ★★★★★-
17 The Recruit S2 ★★★★★-
18 BoJack Horseman S5 ★★★★+
19 BoJack Horseman S6 ★★★★+
20 The Agency S1 ★★★★
21 Abbott Elementary S2 ★★★
22 Cobra Kai S6 ★★★★★
23 Sex Lives of College Girls S3 ★★★★
24 Running Point ★★★★
25 Paradise ★★★★★
26 School Spirits S2 ★★★★
27 Invincible S3 ★★★★★
28 Heartstopper S1 ★★★★
29 Heartstopper S2 ★★★★
30 Doc S1 ★★★★
31 Adolescence ★★★★
32 Reacher S3 ★★★★-
33 Long Bright River S1 ★★★-
34 Private Eyes S1 ★★★★
35 The White Lotus S3 ★★★★+
36 The Pitt S1 ★★★★★
37 An Astrological Guide for Broken Hearts S1 ★★★
38 DareDevil: Born Again S1 ★★★★★-
39 Behind Her Eyes ★★★+
40 Bosch: Legacy S3 ★★★★+
41 Hacks S3 ★★★★★-
42 Wheel of Time S3 ★★★+
43 Good Cop, Bad Cop S1 ★★★★
44 You S5 ★★★★
45 Ghosts S4 ★★★★★
46 The Rookie S7 ★★★★
47 Grey's Anatomy S21 ★★★★
48 The Last of Us S2 ★★★★★
49 Tracker S2 ★★★+
50 Étoile S1 ★★★★
51 Dept. Q S1 ★★★+
52 Chicago Fire S13 ★★★+
53 Overcompensating S1 ★★★★
54 Murderbot S1 ★★★★
55 The Bear S4 ★★★★★
56 Ballard S1 ★★★★
57 Adults S1 ★★★★+
58 Ironheart S1 ★★+
59 Dying for Sex ★★★★+
60 The Sandman S2 ★★★★★
61 Smoke S1 ★★★★+
62 Stick S1 ★★★★+
63 Hostage ★★★★
64 Star Trek: Strange New Worlds S3 ★★★★
65 Alien: Earth ★★★★+
66 Platonic S2 ★★★★
67 The Summer I Turned Pretty S3 ★★★★
68 The Terminal List: Dark Wolf ★★★★+
69 Gen V S2 ★★★★★-
70 Slow Horses S5 ★★★★
71 Peacemaker S2 ★★★★★-
72 Nobody Wants This S2 ★★★★
73 Only Murders in the Building S5 ★★★★
74 The Diplomat S3 ★★★★★-
75 Hacks S4 ★★★★+
76 Last Samurai Standing ★★★★-
77 English Teacher S2 ★★★★+
78 The Studio S1 ★★★+
79 Ginny & Georgia S3 ★★★★
80 Good Girl's Guide to Murder S1 ★★★★
81 Wednesday S2 ★★★★★-
82 Home for Christmas S3 ★★★★-
83 Alice in Borderland S3 ★★★
84 Black Books S1 ★★★★
85 Emily in Paris S2 ★★★★
86 A Man on the Inside S2 ★★★★+
87 Emily in Paris S3 ★★★★
88 Emily in Paris S4 ★★★★
89 Community S1 (mit Lisa) ★★★★★