Underrated: The World Cup, K’Naan

The World Cup: It’s a little depressing that what’s an all-consuming global frenzy every four years still lands on this side of the column in the U.S. But even if we don’t do a generation’s worth of damage to English self-esteem by defeating their team on June 12 (and we just might), don’t be afraid to let this Super Bowl of soccer — er, “football” — sweep you off your feet. Apart from the Olympics, nothing brings the world together quite like this.

K’Naan: The more we learn about this category-defying musician (who, coincidentally, wrote this year’s World Cup anthem), the more we’re amazed. A survivor of the Somali civil war, K’Naan taught himself hip-hop albums phonetically, addressed the UN in 1999 about international aid efforts and last year released “Troubadour,” a potent mix of poetry, reggae and African textures to wide acclaim. How silly must 50 Cent’s albums sound to him?

Pop stars as revolutionaries: We can’t decide what annoyed us more about M.I.A.’s feud with a journalist last week — the fact she was furious at having her “authenticity” tweaked or that we were supposed to be shocked that she makes good money and actually lives that way. We’d be impressed if she lived a monastic life and donated to needy causes, but ultimately she’s just an artist. Wouldn’t it be more fun to hassle, say, a BP executive about that?

Wacky assassin movies: We just might live in a world where the best options for summer laughs must involve gun play and the many crazy misunderstandings it inspires, but now that Ashton Kutcher’s “Killers” has joined our lives, can we call this whole mini-genre dead? So many films — “Mr. & Mrs. Smith,” “The Spy Next Door,” even “Grosse Point Blank” — need to disappear now until studios remember the many other comedic avenues available.