c/binge-worthy-shows

Got snowed in last weekend and finally watched 'The Bear' straight through, what a ride.

Vent: I watched a whole season of a show on my phone and missed everything

I got into this mystery show, 'The Silent Forest', and watched all 10 episodes over a weekend. But I was doing it on my phone while cooking or on the bus. I finished it and went online to talk about it, and everyone was going on about the background clues in the detective's office and the hidden symbols in the wallpaper. I had no idea what they were talking about. I realized I was just following the dialogue and missing all the visual storytelling that made the show special. The small screen and my own distractions meant I basically watched a different, worse version. Now I feel like I have to watch it again properly on my TV. Has anyone else had a show totally change when you watched it the right way?

My barber said he watched all 8 seasons of 'The Blacklist' in a month and it made me think

He was telling me how he got hooked during a slow week at his shop in Akron. I realized I always pick short shows, but maybe I'm missing out on those long, slow-burn stories that really pull you in. Has anyone else had a show they were scared to start because of the episode count, but ended up loving?

Spent $15 on a month of that new streaming service and binged the whole thing in a weekend

I signed up just to watch that one show everyone's talking about, and it was so good I finished all eight episodes in two days. Now I feel like I wasted the rest of the month's subscription because nothing else on there looks good. What's a show you've binged so fast it made you cancel a service right after?

Just had my power go out right at the climax of the final episode of 'The Last of Us' last night

My power went out right at the climax of the season finale of 'Severance' last night.

I was in my living room in Chicago and had to finish the episode on my phone's tiny screen with 12% battery left. Anyone have a good show to watch that's less dependent on perfect viewing conditions?

Warning: I just saw a stat about how much time we spend watching

Found a report from Nielsen that said the average person streamed over 7 hours of TV per day in 2023. That's a full workday of just watching shows. Anyone else feel like that number is way too high, or is it just me?

My 10 year old asked why the characters in my show never seem happy

We were watching a gritty crime drama last night and she just looked up and said 'why are they all so grumpy, is there a happy show?' and it made me realize I've been binging nothing but bleak stuff for months... anyone have a good, genuinely joyful series to balance it out?

I just finished my 50th rewatch of The Office and realized I know every single line from the first five seasons.

It's a weird milestone that makes me wonder if anyone else has a show they've rewatched so many times they could basically perform it from memory.

Just read that the first season of 'The Bear' was filmed in only 18 days

I saw this in a behind the scenes article on a film site. That's less than three weeks for a whole season of TV. It explains why the show feels so fast and tense, like everyone is running on pure stress. The actors probably were. Has anyone else watched a show where you could feel the crazy schedule in the final product?

My barber mentioned the show 'Severance' is filmed like a puzzle you have to solve, which totally changed how I watched it.

I mean, after he said that in Philly last week, I started noticing all these tiny background clues about the characters' lives outside the office, and now I'm wondering if anyone else has a show where knowing one little fact made the whole binge way better.

My sister said she watches new shows on 1.5x speed to 'get through them faster'

We were talking about that new sci-fi series, and she said she speeds through the slow parts. I mean, idk, maybe it's just me but that feels like you're missing the whole point of a binge, you know? Has anyone else heard of people doing this?

Appreciation post: I watched a show with the subtitles off for the first time

I finally tried watching 'Severance' without the subtitles on, which I always use, and I caught way more of the background sounds and the actors' delivery. It made the tense office scenes feel completely different, almost like a new show. Has anyone else turned off a viewing habit and been surprised by how it changed a series for them?

I don't get the hype around Stranger Things season 4 at all

Everyone says it's a masterpiece, but I tried to binge it over a weekend and it took me almost a month to finish. The episodes are way too long, like the finale is over 2 hours, and the plot felt super dragged out. Has anyone else felt like the show lost its fast-paced charm after season 2?

Just got back from a trip to Portland and saw something cool about a show

I was in a coffee shop there and saw a whole wall covered in fan art for the show Severance. There were like 20 different drawings and paintings of the characters and the office. It got me thinking, I watched the first three episodes when it came out but then got busy and stopped. Seeing all that art made me remember how good the start was. Is the whole first season worth a binge now that it's all out? I have a free weekend coming up.

Faced a choice between starting 'Severance' or 'The Bear' this weekend. Went with 'Severance' and binged the whole thing in one sitting.

Vent: My friend made me watch a show about competitive cheese carving

I thought it sounded like the dumbest thing ever, but she put on the first episode of 'Slice Masters' last Friday night. After ten minutes, I was hooked on the drama of a guy trying to carve the Chicago skyline out of a 200 pound cheddar block. We ended up watching six episodes in a row. What's the most ridiculous sounding show you've actually gotten into?

My wife and I used to watch shows one episode a week, now we wait and do a whole season in a weekend

We stuck to the old TV schedule for years, even with streaming. Then last winter we tried 'The Bear' and binged all of season 2 in two days. It just hit different, like watching a long movie. Now we plan our weekends around a new show and a big bag of popcorn. Anyone else find they enjoy shows more this way?

My friend in Denver insisted I'd hate 'The Bear' because it's too stressful, but I binged the entire first season in one sitting.

Now I'm sleep-deprived and emotionally wrecked, but also completely hooked, so has anyone else had a show they were warned against that they ended up loving?

My friend in Denver said she only watches shows that are already finished, so she can binge the whole story at once.

That idea hit different because I realized I'm always waiting for new episodes, but maybe the real fun is in having the complete picture right away, so what's the best fully finished series you've binged lately?

I think the hype around that show set in 1980s Indiana is way overblown

I finally watched all of it last month and found the characters flat and the plot predictable, unlike what everyone at my crew's lunch break in Tacoma kept saying about it.

Am I the only one who thought that new space show was a waste of $15?

Everyone kept saying the new season was a must-watch, so I paid for a month of that streaming service just to see it. I watched the whole thing over a weekend and felt nothing. The plot moved slow, the big twist was obvious by episode two, and the characters just argued in different rooms of a spaceship. Honestly, I could have saved my money and just rewatched the old one from the 90s. What's a show that everyone loved but you just didn't get?

Convincing my dad to watch that space opera was a huge win

He usually hates sci-fi, but he got hooked by the second episode. Now we have something to chat about every week.

My hot take on that zombie show: less is more when binging.

In my experience, watching every episode dulls the scare factor. Your mileage may vary, but I'd pick key seasons only.

Our book club tried The Bear for our next binge and I couldn't get past how anxious it made me