Hype, as it were, is a pretty double-edged sword. Its origin lies, most likely, in the word hyperbole and it was originally used to describe "excessive or misleading publicity or advertising," which remains pretty true at the end of the day. But every now and then, people stumble across things that are worth the hype.
We’ve gathered examples of things that really did live up to the hype from across the internet. So get comfortable as you scroll through, upvote your favorites and be sure to share your own thoughts and examples in the comments below.
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Driving 8 hours into the desert, escaping the light pollution, and seeing the Milky Way.
I cried.
I had a view like that one night driving to Montana. I needed to sleep on my trip but not much money so I stayed at a little campground. But it was one of those campgrounds in the middle of nowhere. Not much traffic on whatever highway I got off of (maybe I90??) but then I had to drive 2 or 3 miles on gravel roads to get to the actual campground. Pretty wide open / very few trees. Probably not much of a campground to see during the day time. But the night sky was vast and amazing. I laid on my back on the wooden picnic table and just soaked it in for a while. Bazillion stars, shooting stars, the milky way etc. And no other campers.
Seeing the Northern Lights in person. Photos don't do them justice.
I have seen the northern lights often, but when I was on holiday in Lapland they were particularly impressive. No light or noise pollution. I have never felt so small as I stared spellbound at the lights dancing in waves in the night sky. You really felt the powers of the universe there. I live so far north that I can see the northern lights if I can keep an eye out from my living room window. Light pollution just interferes with their visibility and they are often not as multi-hued as they are further north. In Finnish Northern Lights is revontuli.The first word repo means fox and the second tuli is fire. It was a mythical creature in folklore. There was an old belief here that the fire fox would flick rocks or snow with its tail, igniting sparks through friction, which created the northern lights. In a way, it feels like I'm looking into the past when I watch the northern lights, but on the other hand, time ceases to exist at that moment.
The LOTR film trilogy. I've never been so hyped and at the same time nervous as when I went to see Fellowship. Within the first minute I knew they had pulled it off. Still the best theater going experience I've ever had.
Yes. Loved the books and didn't think there was any way they could do the books justice in a movie(s). Movies often have to cut a lot from books. The books and movies were their own experiences but I didn't walk away from the movies thinking, "But the books were so much better". The only 'movie' of Hobbit / LOTR I had seen before was that animated c**p show hobbit movie that didn't seem anything like the book. So I went into these movies with reservations but they were pretty good.
The Grand Canyon. It is 100% worth the trip to see it.
European chocolate.
Belgian is the best, then Swiss, followed by the UK. American stuff (eg Hersheys) is horrible.
Weird Al in concert. He wears a new costume for almost every song, his band is fantastic, and despite being around for ~30 years his tickets are still affordable.
I saw him live and during his shows the little comedy interview footage he showed stopped working towards the end of the show. So he cam out for a second encore, but admitted that they hadn't planned anything so asked for Suggestions from the crowd. You'd think a bunch of Weird Al fans would all be shouting their favourite song out but no, room was dead silent. Except for me waaaay up the back. I Yelled out Albuquerque, Queue a 12 minute second encore with weird all dressed in a Spongebob Tshirt, zebra stripe leggings and a fluffy pink tutu..
Marriage.
My wife and I love the same things. We support each other's dreams, but also try to empathize with each other's pains.
I'll take the most mundane day shared with my wife over an exceptional day alone, just because I know she will be there to be the little spoon at night.
Also the whole dual income thing is nice.
Pompeii. Holy c**p was it amazing.
It is an interesting bit of 'living' history. I know they are dead but I mean in the sense you feel like you are dropping into their town so long ago. I saw it in the 80s. My brother saw it a couple of years ago and from the photos it appears they have unearthed a lot more since I was there. It's weird to see an attractive mosaic floor that was some rich person's house 2000 years ago.
Dark Side of the Moon. I finally got a copy when I was...16? I started listening to it and was like...wow, no wonder.
Dungeons and Dragons as a second grader in 1980. S**t blew my mind for years.
Edit: wow happy to see all the folks who still love DnD and PnP RPGs. Still have a scar on my sole from a D4 I stepped on at age 10.
The Internet.
In the early days when it stopped being solely for universities and government, people, media, etc. was unsure what to make of it and how useful it would be.
Scuba Diving. Had friends who wouldn't shut up about it, but I was never sure (I was comfortable in the water, but I didn't like swimming that much).
Holy s**t, after the first time I can only think of when the next dive is.
Seeing a solar eclipse in totality it was amazing! 11/10 would recommend to a friend.
We watched it as teenagers with our summer camp in the Munich Zoo... every animal and person went totally silent. It was soooo special
Naps. The older get man the better they are. With noise canceling headphones it’s even better now. I look forward to them all the time. Hug a pillow, blanket over eyes but not mouth or nose, headphones in and I’m out cold in like 15 seconds. I wanna take a nap now just typing about it.
Shakespeare. You spend your whole life being told his stuff is just sooo goood and then you're forced to read it in high school and what do you know, it is actually good.
Deadpool and Ryan Reynolds playing him; oh boy if that didn't live up to be more than we all expected it to be!
That f*****g Kinetic Sand toy. It's AMAZING. You form it into a ball or a mound and it stays. You squish it in your hands and it runs over your finger tips like water. You break a chunk in half and both sides slowly ooze over itself like lava. What an easy, stupid, but highly therapeutic toy.
The Godfather
I've been on a kick lately of watching classic movies widely considered masterpieces. Best of anything so far has been The Godfather - not really into mafia movies or anything like that, but I guess it's more a movie about *humanity* and not just the mafia.
Absolutely deserves all the hype and more.
The Avengers. I think everyone was nervously thinking it might suck, and then we got the best film in the MCU at the time.
Better Call Saul is an amazing show, definitely lived up to the hype.
Smart Phones. I used to think it was all hype...but d**n it on the off chance that they didn't end up being helpful.
Air Fryers. Little kitchen miracles.
Poll Question
Do you believe hype affects your purchasing decisions?
Definitely
Sometimes
Rarely
Not at all
This was fun! It’s good to see people feeling happy and positive about something in their lives. It’s nice to see, I don’t agree with all of them but I don’t have to. It’s genuinely cool to see people celebrating experiences.
For me, I'd say a Rice Cooker. I kist love a good jasmine rice, with chicken that was cooked with soy sauce. 🤤
I make good rice in the instant pot. Also rice pudding (SO YUM)
Load More Replies...This was fun! It’s good to see people feeling happy and positive about something in their lives. It’s nice to see, I don’t agree with all of them but I don’t have to. It’s genuinely cool to see people celebrating experiences.
For me, I'd say a Rice Cooker. I kist love a good jasmine rice, with chicken that was cooked with soy sauce. 🤤
I make good rice in the instant pot. Also rice pudding (SO YUM)
Load More Replies...