Binging versus weekly viewing

[oaken1]

hey fellas. I recently got netflix for the first time and I think I enjoy it. One thing I noticed is that some shows that I may not normally watch regularly I find I am enjoying. Mostly due to the ability to binge watch the show. Binge watching, IMO, is like watching a ten hour movie, The lack of week long interruptions allows you to form a bond with the characters moreso than watching weekly. The storyline flows so much better and I find it easier to give a show a chance if the first couple episodes dont grab me right away.

I recently Binged a show called "The 100"...it is kinda, say.... Lord of the Flies meets 90210 in a post apocalyptic world. Normally that is not my kind of show. Filled with poor decisions, girl power, and inept or submissive males it is beyond obvious I am not their target audience, lol. But due to the binge process I was able to find some common ground and enjoy the show.

Currently I am watching "Hemlock Grove". The first few episodes were rough. Not for any specific reason. But there was just something off about it. In some ways it vaguely reminded me of Dark Shadows.... keep in mind I have not watched Dark Shadows since I was about 6 or so, lol. It doesnt have that soap opery type feeling but I think the resemblance is more in the way it is filmed. But for lack of anything else catching my interest at the time I stuck it out. As the show advances I found it more appealing and started developing bonds with the characters.

Both of these shows would have been off my radar entirely by week three if I were watching them week to week on network tv. But instead I had the opportunity to enjoy them.

anyone else find they experience some shows differently by binging? The only real knock I have on it is in regards to ongoing shows. It really suxx to blast out a season over night and suddenly you have to wait another year, lol.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I stopped watching network tv back in the 90's. At first, I bought complete seasons of every show that interested me on DVD. I fell in love with watching episode after episode especially with the DVD packages that accommodated binge watchers by letting you skip the weekly show intro's. I use Netflix, Hulu Plus and Amazon to watch shows now and I can't even imagine what it's like to have to wait a week after each episode.

But fair warning, it can really mess with your head and your mood. We binge watched 24 when it first started coming out on DVD and watching a whole season over a 3 day period had both my wife and I looking over our shoulders everywhere we went.

 

[Chaplin]

Binging has become quite a phenomenon in today's tv landscape. I find myself DVRing episodes, with really only a small few shows that I watch within three days or so of air. In fact, there might only be two this year (Gotham and Supernatural). I watch a lot of TV shows, but find it much more laid back and easier to have the option to continue watching if I want to without having to wait for another episode to air days in the future.

 

[BillsCarnage]

I don't watch that much TV to begin with, but recently I binged the Sopranos. That's the only series I had never seen that I guess would be considered binge watching. I might watch a season of a show to catch up for the new season - is that still binge watching? For example, I'll re-watch Westworld before season 2, but I've already seen it.

Some people question the health aspect of binge watching. It's debatable, but I do think it's a bad habit for kids to get into.

 

[puckhead]

First show we ever binge-watched was Lost. And then we caught up to live around the third or fourth season. That was painful.

Now with the DVR, we'll build up seasons of stuff and watch 2-4 episodes in an evening now that hockey season is almost over. If something is really great we'll do more than that. Netflix is great, totally on-demand TV.

We watch a handful of shows weekly as they come out like The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and Westworld. But those are few and far between. Mainly so no one spoils them for us.

I love the idea of binge-watching but our busy schedule makes it hard to really pull an all-nighter or anything like that.

 

[Dback Jon]

One problem with binge watching is that if a show is overly formulaic, it becomes annoying to binge watch because the shows all run into each other.

 

[Chaplin]

One problem with binge watching is that if a show is overly formulaic, it becomes annoying to binge watch because the shows all run into each other.

That’s why you can’t do it with procedurals like bones or NCIS or criminal minds.

 

[AzStevenCal]

That’s why you can’t do it with procedurals like bones or NCIS or criminal minds.

I don't really have a problem but we do tend to mix it up. For example, if we're going to watch (or re-watch) Criminal Minds, we'll pair it with another trip through Buffy or Doctor Who or something like that. Maybe we'll watch 10 in a row of the procedural before we take a break with a handful of fantasy episodes.

 

[BigRedRage]

hey fellas. I recently got netflix for the first time and I think I enjoy it. One thing I noticed is that some shows that I may not normally watch regularly I find I am enjoying. Mostly due to the ability to binge watch the show. Binge watching, IMO, is like watching a ten hour movie, The lack of week long interruptions allows you to form a bond with the characters moreso than watching weekly. The storyline flows so much better and I find it easier to give a show a chance if the first couple episodes dont grab me right away.

I recently Binged a show called "The 100"...it is kinda, say.... Lord of the Flies meets 90210 in a post apocalyptic world. Normally that is not my kind of show. Filled with poor decisions, girl power, and inept or submissive males it is beyond obvious I am not their target audience, lol. But due to the binge process I was able to find some common ground and enjoy the show.

Currently I am watching "Hemlock Grove". The first few episodes were rough. Not for any specific reason. But there was just something off about it. In some ways it vaguely reminded me of Dark Shadows.... keep in mind I have not watched Dark Shadows since I was about 6 or so, lol. It doesnt have that soap opery type feeling but I think the resemblance is more in the way it is filmed. But for lack of anything else catching my interest at the time I stuck it out. As the show advances I found it more appealing and started developing bonds with the characters.

Both of these shows would have been off my radar entirely by week three if I were watching them week to week on network tv. But instead I had the opportunity to enjoy them.

anyone else find they experience some shows differently by binging? The only real knock I have on it is in regards to ongoing shows. It really suxx to blast out a season over night and suddenly you have to wait another year, lol.

The first 5 or 6 seasons if the walking dead I binged, I definitely liked it more being able to watch 2-5 at a time


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[oaken1]

One problem with binge watching is that if a show is overly formulaic, it becomes annoying to binge watch because the shows all run into each other.

I definitely prefer string story type shows for binging. I mean, I love NCIS and I could binge it... but I would much prefer Supernatural or Sons of Anarchy. I think the continuing story keeps it from getting dull.

 

[oaken1]

The first 5 or 6 seasons if the walking dead I binged, I definitely liked it more being able to watch 2-5 at a time


Sent from my LG-LS993 using Tapatalk

with walking dead,...when you binge it, isnt it painfully obvious how badly the writing dipped when Negan showed up??... IMO, the very best shows were right before the saviors... think it was season six.... but ever since the saviors showed up the writing just fell off a cliff.

did they change writers or have they just been trying too hard to milk the storyline?

 

[BigRedRage]

with walking dead,...when you binge it, isnt it painfully obvious how badly the writing dipped when Negan showed up??... IMO, the very best shows were right before the saviors... think it was season six.... but ever since the saviors showed up the writing just fell off a cliff.

did they change writers or have they just been trying too hard to milk the storyline?

I only binged to like season 5 or 6, since then I watch weekly to avoid it being spoiled.

Writers do change, next season even has a different showrunner.

Ive still loved it but like I said, I binged the first 5 seasons so that may have immersed me into the universe more than others.

I've enjoyed the last seasons too, its just frustrating watching one at a time. When binging, you do not mind a plot/setup episode as you get to watch the next episode and get the reward. When watching weekly, you get all the setup and have to wait.

 

[MrYeahBut]

24 on DVD was the 1st show for binge watching. Probably did all 8 seasons 3 times. I got into The Killing and having Netflix was the only way to watch the final couple seasons.

This was not something I was happy about, having to shell out more $ to the man just to catch the final season so I had a case of the ass for Netflix.

I never read or posted much in any forum other than the Cards, but one day I happened to catch the thread on Dexter... Thought we'd give it a try.. Pow... My wife and I were off to the races.. We love BBC crime shows so we blew through The Fall, Happy Valley, River, The Tunnel, Wallander, George Gently, etc

The drawback is they're over so darn fast.

 

[Cheesebeef]

That’s why you can’t do it with procedurals like bones or NCIS or criminal minds.

as someone who wrote one of those shows, I have no idea how people binge them... or even watch them to be honest with you.

Man... that was a GREAT pocketbook job, but just soul crushing creatively.

 

[Dback Jon]

That’s why you can’t do it with procedurals like bones or NCIS or criminal minds.

I have a friend who has been an extra in dozens of the new Hawai'i 5-0 (big, burly native Hawai'ian - has played a number of different speaking and non-speaking parts), so I tried to binge watch to see if I could spot him (dead Tongan Pirate, etc). After awhile I gave up - the show got annoying - always the same stupid banter, etc. Would have been ok watching it once a week, but binging, forget about it.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I have a friend who has been an extra in dozens of the new Hawai'i 5-0 (big, burly native Hawai'ian - has played a number of different speaking and non-speaking parts), so I tried to binge watch to see if I could spot him (dead Tongan Pirate, etc). After awhile I gave up - the show got annoying - always the same stupid banter, etc. Would have been ok watching it once a week, but binging, forget about it.

The stupid banter, specifically the whining and nagging by Caan, drove me away after just a few episodes. Not even watching it weekly would have saved it for me.

 

[Dback Jon]

The stupid banter, specifically the whining and nagging by Caan, drove me away after just a few episodes. Not even watching it weekly would have saved it for me.

Yeah, that gets really old. And now that the two best actors on the show (Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park) are gone, even less reason to watch

 

[Chaplin]

Yeah, that gets really old. And now that the two best actors on the show (Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park) are gone, even less reason to watch

Yeah we quit it after a few episodes this season

 

[Shaggy]

as someone who wrote one of those shows, I have no idea how people binge them... or even watch them to be honest with you.

Man... that was a GREAT pocketbook job, but just soul crushing creatively.

Which episode did you write?

 

[Cheesebeef]

Which episode did you write?

I wrote on season 1 of NCIS: New Orleans.

Episode 106: Master Of Horror, 114: Careful What You Wish For and episode 119: The Insider.

 

[Bada0Bing]

I don't watch that much TV to begin with, but recently I binged the Sopranos. That's the only series I had never seen that I guess would be considered binge watching. I might watch a season of a show to catch up for the new season - is that still binge watching? For example, I'll re-watch Westworld before season 2, but I've already seen it.

Some people question the health aspect of binge watching. It's debatable, but I do think it's a bad habit for kids to get into.

It's funny you mentioned the Sopranos. My first binge watching experience was renting seasons 1&2 after stumbling upon season 3 on HBO. We rented the VHS tapes from blockbuster and flew through them. What an amazing experience that was.

I only binge watch now, with the exception of TWD. I watch with my son and he can't wait.