CULTURE

Footer Column 2

Footer Legal

Footer Main

Nav Bar

OTHER

SPORTS

Subscribe, at any level, to play

Thanks for your interest in Defector Crosswords!

Become a subscriber today to get unlimited access

Thanks for reading!

Plans start at $8/month.

Subscribers enjoy unlimited, ad-free browsing.

Register to continue

Or click here to subscribe for unlimited, ad-free access!

Our gift to you: This year's post is unlocked. Register your email to get even more free articles.

Welcome to the 2025 Hater's Guide!

Just register your email:

This blog is free to read.

This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Defector Staff

Undated group photo of the original "Our Gang."

Staff Chat

Staff Chat Starts Now? Staff Chat Starts Now

Children watching a movie at the Bankside Film Theatre in London, UK, 27th July 1973. (Photo by Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Defector At The Movies

What’s The Worst Movie You’ve Ever Watched In A Theater?

two hot people kiss while a dozen hot men sit on bean bags in the background and clap

Arts And Culture

What Do We Think About This Season Of ‘Love Island USA’?

Defector Up All Night

Here’s A World Cup Weekend Open Thread

A photo of a bunch of old-timey green barstools with the cover of the NYRB Classics edition of Robert Coover's Universal Baseball Association in the middle and the Defector Reads A Book logo at left.

Defector Reads A Book

There Is A Whole World In ‘The Universal Baseball Association, Inc. J. Henry Waugh, Prop.’

The cast of Our Gang/The Little Rascals singing, circa 1930.

Hey! Over Here! Come Chat With The Defector Staff

Jeff Probst and the immunity idol during the Survivor 50 season finale

And So We Arrive, Starving And Exhausted, At The Defector ‘Survivor 50’ Finale Questionnaire

Announcements

Defector Numbers Guy Sean Kuhn Called Up To Big Leagues

Hark! Follow The Sounding Of The Horns To The 2026 NBA Playoff Preview

Pictured L to R: Aubry Bracco, Genevieve Mushaluk, Christian Hubicki, Joe Hunter, Rick Devens, Dee Valladares, Cirie Fields, Benjamin "Coach" Wade, Colby Donaldson, Emily Flippen, Chrissy Hofbeck, Tiffany Ervin, Kamilla Karthigesu, Jonathan Young and Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick.

Welcome To The Defector ‘Survivor 50’ Midseason Questionnaire

We Have A New Culture Newsletter

Come One, Come All, And Ask The Defector Staff Some Questions

“Epic Party” – 24 returning players are abandoned on the islands of Fiji for a monumental 50th season, with the chance to win $1 million. The theme of the season, “In the Hands of the Fans,” quickly materializes as decisions from the fan vote swiftly and forcefully impact the game. Castaways reflect on how much they have changed since the last time they played the game. Then, an unforeseen injury during the first immunity challenge causes tribemates to rethink their attack strategy in order to support their team member, on the historic three-hour season premiere of SURVIVOR 50, Wednesday, Feb. 25 (8:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on-demand for Paramount+ Premium plan subscribers, or on-demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs)*. Jeff Probst serves as host and executive producer. Pictured L to R. Tiffany Ervin, Dee Valladares, Ozzy Lusth, Joe Hunter, Angelina Keeley, Charlie Davis, Rizo Velovic, Christian Hubicki, Genevieve Mushaluk, Chrissy Hofbeck, Jenna Lewis-Dougherty, Emily Flippen, Kamilla Karthigesu, Savannah Louie, Kyle Fraser, Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, Rick Devens, Mike White, Cirie Fields, Aubry Bracco, Colby Donaldson, Jonathan Young, Q Burdette and Benjamin "Coach" Wade.

An Extensive And Exhaustive Player-By-Player Preview Of ‘Survivor 50’

Defector Wuthers Some Heights

What We Loved About Dan McQuade

Austrian fortune-telling cards from a pack of 32, showing acorns, hearts, bells and leaves.

Underexplained Lists

Underexplained Predictions For 2026

31st December 1931: New Year's Eve revellers at the Piccadilly Hotel in London.

Here’s An Open Thread To Help Ring In The New Year

Swedish Crown Princess Victoria and Prime Minister Goran Persson attend the Nobel Banquet at Stockholm City Hall, Sweden, 10 December 2003.

Year In Review

The Best Things We Ate In 2025

The Best Things We Read In 2025

Early gramophone in photo on Norwegian postcard of young people listening to record on a gramophone, early thirties.

The Best Things We Heard In 2025

Thomas A. Edison (1847-1931) experimenting with the first motion picture machine. B/W photo,1905.

The Best Things We Saw In 2025

Fans cheer as Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers bats during the third inning against the Milwaukee Brewers in game one of the National League Championship Series at American Family Field on October 13, 2025 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Our Favorite Sports Moments Of 2025

American director, producer, and actor Rob Reiner gestures near a camera while crew members surround him outdoors on the set of his film, 'North.'

Defector’s Favorite Rob Reiner Credits

An illustration of the back of a bus with several website logos on it