My June 2025 Media Diet

June was packed with visiting family and friends around the country. My mom threw a retirement party for my dad in Ohio, and I also got to check out my brother’s new house in Seattle. Along the way, we spent some time hiking and taking in the views in the North Cascades. It was a nice reset to be outdoors for a bit.

Back in New York, I’ve been enjoying the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 and was genuinely thrilled to see Mamdani beat Cuomo in the primary. I went into it feeling pretty pessimistic, so it’s a pleasant surprise. Feels like it’s long overdue for some new blood in the mix.

A few articles stuck with me this month. Reading about how David Hill revolutionized the F1 broadcast was a fascinating look at shaking up something as old-school as racing. Karl Bushby’s decades-long walk around the world might be the purest (or craziest) example of sticking with a goal I’ve ever seen. Dropout’s scrappy improv resurgence made me nostalgic for the messy, personal internet of 2009. And Hamilton Nolan’s piece on how the subway isn’t actually scary managed to perfectly capture something I’ve been trying to put into words for years: it’s not only just the ordinary, everyday life of the city, but also nowhere near as bad as people love to claim.

🍿 Captain America: Brave New World. The X-Men can’t come fast enough to (hopefully) save the MCU. I’m crossing my fingers that the Fantastic Four reboot brings some juice back to this franchise, because right now it’s clearly on the wrong track.

📺 Rick and Morty. Why am I still watching this? Not sure. The first few episodes this season were entertaining enough, but it’s been downhill from there.

📺 Dimension 20. Brennan is my spirit animal, and I love the steampunk storyline in Cloudward, Ho!. Every player feels like an old friend hanging out. Parasocial relationshipping too hard? Maybe. I’ll go touch grass.

📺 Dept. Q. While I wait for the next season of Slow Horses, Dept. Q is filling the gap nicely. It’s striking how similar these shows are. I’m not very far in, but British police intrigue is exactly my jam right now. 👍

📺 Love Island (American TV series). Love it, hate it, Love Island: USA is back, baby. The American version is a bit trashier than its British counterpart, but it’s basically a cultural event at this point, and that’s fun. 👍

📺 America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. This season’s focus on the cheerleaders fighting for better pay was so satisfying. Glad it worked out. No one should be working 40+ hours a week for minimum wage to support a franchise worth billions.

🕹️ Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. French developer Sandfall Interactive knocked it out of the park. The story, acting, writing, gameplay were fantastic across the board. The Persona-style relationship bits were a little weak, but I loved the timing-based combat. I played on easy since it was too punishing otherwise, but still enjoyed every minute. 👍

🕹️ Mario Kart World. Another stellar entry in the franchise. Could use a few tweaks here and there, but I’m sure Nintendo has five+ years of content planned. The racing is chaotic and exhilarating in a way that feels perfectly tuned, and this might be my favorite Rainbow Road yet. 👍

🕹️ Lost in Random: The Eternal Die. This is basically a blatant Hades rip-off, and I love it. It tweaks the formula just enough to keep things fresh, and the dice-based combat adds a cool random element. 👍

🕹️ Dredge. Started this early in the month but have struggled to pick it back up. It’s not you, Dredge, it’s me. The atmosphere is fantastic and the gameplay loop is compelling; I’ll get back to it.

🍿 Final Destination: Bloodlines. Kinda trash, kinda fun? The deaths were gruesome enough that I had to look away in anticipation a few times, so… mission accomplished.

🍿 Trainwreck: Poop Cruise. Didn’t know this story when it actually happened, and now that I do… kinda wish I still didn’t.

🍿 F1. I’m the exact target market for this movie, and it mostly delivered. Sure, it’s not realistic, but that made it even more fun. 👍