Hot take: Binge watching a show weekly vs. all at once changes everything

Last month I watched Severance one episode per week with my sister, and we spent hours talking about theories and noticing little details. But 3 years ago I binged the entire first season of Stranger Things in one weekend, and I honestly can't remember half of what happened because it all blurred together. The slow watch made the show stick with me longer, but the binge gave me that immediate rush of finishing a story. I'm rewatching Succession now and trying to stretch it out, but the suspense is killing me. Does taking your time actually make a show better, or does it just drag out the waiting? For me, the weekly thing felt deeper, but I also missed being able to talk about the whole season at once with friends. Which side do you fall on for a show you really love?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_wendy28d ago

Binge watching lets you catch inconsistencies the writers hoped you'd miss.

susanb3428d ago

yeah but the thing is, binge watching also makes you miss stuff that was meant to be caught. like when they hide tiny details in the background that only make sense later, you can't really savor them if you're zipping through episodes. and pacing issues get blown way out of proportion too. like in breaking bad when Walt keeps his clothes for way too long in the laundromat, it's a slow burn thing that works better when you have a week to sit with it. but if you binge it, it just feels like poor writing.

parkerbrown28d ago

Spent three hours last night trying to decide if I should watch the next episode of The Last of Us or save it for the weekend, then gave up and watched three more episodes at 2 AM. Now I can't remember if that deer scene was episode 2 or episode 3, and I'm pretty sure I missed some important dialogue because I was half asleep. My attention span is basically a squirrel on caffeine, so slow watching is probably better for my brain, but my impatient lizard brain keeps clicking "next episode" anyway.