If there is one thing that people enjoy more than consuming media, it’s ranking it. Deciding for oneself which movie is worth someone’s time, which game is the most enjoyable to play, which book deserves a place on the shelf (and so on and so forth), creates a streamlined way to understand what people come to like or dislike in their media.
But how exactly does one rank media? There are so many factors that could play into one’s taste and opinions that it’s almost impossible to begin. So maybe the first thing to do is shrink the amount of choices from a billion to just one: Are you thinking about it after it’s over?
Did OneShot leave some sort of impact on how you make choices for others? Does Glass Onion lead to debates and new thoughts about the world and people around you? Things like that are signs of high-quality media, but that isn’t the only aspect that defines quality. There are also the more immediate judgments made, such as Emotional and Production.
Firstly, Emotional Judgment has to do directly with the story. Did Neku’s story of learning to connect with others in The World Ends with You get its hooks in? Is To Your Eternity’s story pulling at your heartstrings as Fushi struggled to live in a world as a naive immortal in a world of death? Do characters like Mort, Death, or Commander Vimes in the Discworld make humorous yet meaningful impressions? Has the ending to Kid Cosmic left you in tears, lit a fire in your soul? These and many more are judgments based on how you felt during the story’s progression.
For Production Judgment, it’s more about the aspects of the medium that you appreciate. Is the writing strong and gripping? Are the character designs in Witch Hat Atelier fun to look at and full of little details? Is the gameplay loop of finding moons across the world of Super Mario Odyssey polished to a T? Did Yoko Shimamura’s score on Legend of Mana make you feel like you were really in the fantastical land of Fa’Diel? This is seen more in the moment-to-moment experience, but a truly impactful experience sticks with you even after it’s over.
Now of course, this is all based on personal taste, and everyone has their own scale for what they like or dislike; thus, there will be some media that people enjoy more than others. Comparing rankings of books (Trials of Apollo is BETTER THAN KANE CHRONICLES FIGHT ME) or anime (JoJo’s Part 4 > 5 > 3 > 6 >1 >2) or games (Mario Galaxy 2 is literally better than its predecessor in all the ways that matter and you’re just BLINDED BY NOSTALGIA) or whatever sometimes brings out the most personal sides of people.
The way some people rank their favorites and their least favorites shows how much they care about their self-identity, or are in need of propping themselves up with said opinions of the media. Nonetheless, it is important to understand that everyone has the validity of their own feelings and thoughts, and discussions on said opinions are more about understanding another person, as well as maybe getting a better look at yourself.
