Things that are Overrated

Introduction

As society and individuals living in it, we are united by certain universally perceived notions. The food at that new restaurant is 'to die for.' Your friend's most recent ex is 'really cool, actually.' We are consumed by hype and are often driven to partake in something because it has been deemed worth it. Yet, this sense of attraction to the more 'popular' often becomes our own detriment, as no one can seem to agree on just what is deserving of such high praise.

But what is it that makes us dislike something once it becomes too hyped, too popular, and in the minds of many, too overrated?

The aim of this essay is to dissect this concept of being overrated. It is a quick and evolving discussion, wherein everything, from places to clothing to even certain ways of thought, is up for judgment. For this essay, the focus will be on the mundane: movies, TV shows, and music. These things, like the intangible feeling of religious enlightenment, are dependent on the viewer and are generally up to personal taste. Section one will deal with what is wrong with overrated things—why should this discussion even matter? Next, we will delve into overrated movies and dive into why, even though some movies are fun, people just seem to put them too high up on a pedestal. In section three, we will start really getting into what makes something overrated, focusing on certain animated films and a popular space saga. In this section, I will also discuss why it may or may not be important that our 'good but not amazing' movies are done by popular companies. Section four will deal with overrated TV shows—mainly certain series—and will attempt to discuss whether or not giving ratings on a show is inherently overrated. The next section will deal with the music of a certain artist and how reactions to this are variously interpreted. Finally, for section six, everything prior will be summed up and concluded.

Factors Influencing Overrated Status

Overrated things are everywhere and in every type, but what are some of the common factors explaining the overrated status of trends and phenomena? One factor could be social influence. Once a large portion of the population believes something, the rest will more often than not fall into line. This could be contributing to the rise of 'overrated' trends today. The media is another possible source of these overrated opinions. It would appear that prior to the rise of social media, news more often than not portrayed the 'overhype' of different subcultures as shameful, rather than news in and of itself. However, established brands are no longer reliant on news agencies as much as absolutely everyone that enacts any action due to an alternate reason.

Commercials and marketing strategies of today employ people as if they do spend when they are feeling mundane or lonely, or when life is mundane, and look effective rather than as though people shop when they need, making it easier to demonize buying a product over purchasing or doing something for our overall betterment. Some see it as a beauty trend that following people will naturally say is 'overrated', because as we can see, people generally like to endorse what they do when they see other people in one way or another find increasing success, as we are no different. Psychological factors can also confirm why things could be labeled as 'overrated'. Many people desire acceptance and will happily compromise their personal desires to fit in if the labels signal success. When in groups, it merely confirms our beliefs. If people around us label something as good, right, or deserving of a five-star review, some are more than likely to endorse that tag-team approach and repeat almost verbatim what their friends or family had reported to them. Consequently, what could potentially be a once-in-a-lifetime holiday or restaurant could be crowded with far too many critics online telling us that it's simply not worth the price. There can also be many other small reasons why people might simply like bandwagoning onto a trend or making deprecating comments about a worldwide or wonderfully respected culture or trend.

Examples of Overrated Phenomena

From "Pulp Fiction" to skin, white wine, and yellow face masks, there are overrated phenomena that just dot our lives. Whether they remain popular, though not one's first choices or maybe even experiences, due to other reasons – marketing, "easy explanations" for modern thoughtlessness, or what-have-you – is a different point. Popular culture is full of such phenomena. I have often begun to look up and see that a film the world thinks is groundbreaking isn't. I remember reading an account of a film's last update. This wonder was written by someone who barely met me and might not even identify me if I run into them. Just trying to be a trendy 'young adult' writer, thus employing the same kind of traditional publishers and marketers and a system to survive in a market. That's overrated, to me, and the books – people who file demi-god status and wait in lines – are, too. The "society wedding" that I attended for four days but was held to be such a hoot turned out to be honestly about twenty-eight times less fun than a “lovely family wedding.” Kitschy plotlines in films, books, or even in mainlines are evidently overrated, but so are facials. People are willing to write a discussion on them but then, as I discovered, barely make one feel so different. The same goes for “hot” summer clothes. Surely, something can be both trendy and good for the body. A film is thought to be the grandest thing ever in sci-fi cinema, but that's a load of twaddle too, because of its formulaic plot. Sometimes the underdog does emerge triumphant, and that was the only thing sweetening the most tedious fad in film history. Consequently, that’s an enduring film – with repeat viewers turning up to sneer. In pulp fiction, I think a certain film was overrated – famed only on account of being the comic strip hero. And a certain fast-food chain! Keep supporting the lawsuit-happy scums. Trains, too, are overrated. I expected much more of India's "only luxury train" and kept overestimating, I guess. Just as news TV. Low-taste, shrill, and propagandist it might be, but it remains overrated. In fashion, a certain brand is overrated – neither is the tailoring any better than that on Main Street nor do those blocked fabrics help.

Impacts of Overrating

Having an overrated title, person, place, or thing might seem a small thing, but overrating as such can have some substantial, if indirect, effects. Overrating can deflate expectations. People who complain about things being overrated are disillusioned in terms of their high hopes. When hype and marketing draw attention to phenomena, people start to expect mind-blowing beauty, fabulousness, astonishing design innovation, or at the very least.

We can think of societies as having two options with respect to their overrated phenomena: they can overrate them and engage the hype, or they can think critically about the claims of overratedness. But the latter option seems to be underused: societies consume mass entertainment even though some of it is shoddy and overrated; they celebrate world events that may be politically motivated; and so on. The negative impacts of buying into the overratedness of something are far-reaching in fields that go much further than architecture. The overrating of phenomena is not only of interest to scholars, architects, wine critics, or city hotel and restaurant reviewers. There is growing concern in business studies that the overrating of phenomena can be turned into a practice of choice, especially in addition to the overheating of economism and conditional social license that occurs, for instance, with the above examples. That is, if tourists and locals keep on buying into overrated places both mentioned above and otherwise, in the longer term, places that could peddle a 'meh' practice or product may survive and flourish, even where that practice is unsustainable.

But the long reach socially is that overrating can create a hiatus between the hype of those who overrate the semi-overrated in society and the different and opposing tone of those who call something out for being overrated. There are also effects on mass culture because the overrating of heroes in sport and the excesses of television broadcasts, hypes of record talks with a mere few thousand consumer hits, and frenzy can narrativize the unspectacular, turning the present into history. Lastly, the rampant societal overrating of people uses its legitimation narrative on the cover of portraiture, a visual format known as the selfie. Yet overrated peoplescape, be it celebrity, sports star, or influencer, can have surprising psychological consequences, especially for today’s young person, exposed to perpetuated statuses and high notes. This is autobiographical, a life imaged ourselves. A society where opinions jostle too loudly is a society where everyone goes for a fragile belonging.

Conclusion

Overall, nothing is off limits when discussing things that are simply overrated. Questioning the societal norms and big beliefs is sometimes necessary. Far from being blasé or pessimistic, it could, at the very least, lend a different flavour to the macaroon. Really, folks… sometimes a spaceship is just a space ship. Often times, one of the valuable parts of the consumer experience is differentiating in one’s mind the difference between value and hype. Recognizing how something has been positioned by advertising, by collective gossip, or by cultural agendas may mean that the ‘real’ interaction one is having with the phenomenon means something other than one thinks. It is fine and conscientious to stay aware of that, all in fairness with respect to the constructed significance of an object or an event. Perhaps doing so could lead to a more distinctly genuine interaction with our world. At this point in the essay, have you thought of something that you once considered overrated, but upon further consideration thought was quite a necessary excitement? Based on your personal engagements, we can justify the idea that the concept of the overrated is rapidly evolving, changing and jumping tracks every five minutes. My advice: Be on your toes. Keep the argument bottom-up, proceeding from fact. What cannot be overrated is the unique individual process by which one works through the endgame of deciding, oneself, what is actually overvalued. Getting others to agree with one’s conclusions could be a useful conversation starter. Considerate consumerism is always part of change. Addressing the overrated can sometimes be deserving of society’s energy.

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