this post was submitted on 08 Jan 2024
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The same-y ness of the episodes really stands out when you do this. On a binge, I found myself watching it more for the character arcs than the diagnostic drama... which is not the show's strong point. :(
it was made for the once a week way of watching. just choose a day to be house day every week. instantly better experience
It’s weird how a lot of those types of shows seem different just a few years later, in the streaming/binge-watching era.
Those types of shows…House, CSI, etc…the formula itself just gets so dull and routine over and over again with nothing in between.
Conversely, long drawn out dramas that don’t reset 90% of the stage every episode, like Breaking Bad work really well. I’d say it even works well for most of GoT.
In fact, I’d say it makes some shows better. “Lost” was a big letdown for people watching it week to week and season to season over the course of nearly six years. But when I binge-watched it for the first time over a few weeks, I don’t think it was nearly as bad as an ending as people make it out to be.
I never watched Weeds all the way through. I quit when it started getting too self-aware and cliche (somewhere around the tunnel). It was just right before that, and it started to fall off. I think watching it in a binge manner might be a bit more quaint because that shark-jumping becomes part of its charm.
Part of what made LOST enjoyable was the wait between episodes, and the rabid fandom that generated. Fan forums were all over the place, and people just kept lobbing theory after theory out there about WTF was going on. Add in frame-by-frame breakdowns, the few times writers proved a few fans true on some truly wild ideas, and the official ARGs, and it just became this whole phenomenon. Neither of the show's endings were ever going to live up to that hype, and in retrospect, makes those takes as much in the moment as the show itself.
Re-watching it on a binge is doable, but more closely emulates what the producers experienced prior to broadcast. Which is to say it's entertaining, but not the same entertainment.
Yes, this is a fair point. The wait between episodes was just as important as the episodes themselves. All the community buildup, discussion, fan theories, etc.
That may not be the majority of viewers, but they certainly are your shows “free” hype men. They’re the ones that’ll tell everyone they know who would be interested (pre-qualified leads!) all about their favorite new obsession. They’re also the ones that’ll buy merch, or name their kid after Daenerys Targaryen (they say that Danielle is an old family name and they just call their girl Danni for short but you know it’s because they were heavy GoT watchers).
Maybe that’s part of why streaming services are going back to weekly (i.e. Handsmaid Tale) or split-season (i.e. Stranger Things) releases. It’s not just for profit…the suspense between the episodes can be just as, if not more, valuable and enjoyable as the episodes themselves.
I'd say so. If nothing else, consider what a proper episode-end cliffhanger is to experience in that scenario. It's a radically different thing.
LOST is one of my favorite shows ever. I'm jealous of people who got to watch it live and discuss at work the next day. I think a lot of people watched it just for the mysteries though and not for the characters, the ending is much better from a character arc perspective versus a question answering perspective